A/N: Sorry for the delay on this chapter! I got blasted by an absolutely insane week of work so this wasn't even close to being ready last Friday, and since it's the start of the finale of the whole damn thing, I'd rather get it right and miss one update than rush to get a half-assed product out by deadline (GF take note for the gen 10 games lol). There are a couple changes to how it plays out, so I couldn't just pull from the game this time around. Anyway, thanks to those who reached out asking about the update, we should be back to normal. Enjoy the chapter!

Daylight came far too early. I blinked my eyes in the sliver of bright morning light coming from behind the curtains and pulled myself up to a sitting position with some difficulty, as sometime over the night, Marnie had wrapped her arms around me and, deep in sleep, seemed to have no interest in loosening her grip. "Marnie, you gotta let me go, I've got a battle today," I said softly. She grumbled, her words unintelligible, but with a couple minutes of coaxing and kisses on her forehead, I managed to pull myself free and tuck her back in. I pulled myself up and stretched, my spine crinkling as it righted itself, and stepped to the window, taking care to avoid Morpeko and Boltund, who were curled up on the floor next to the AC unit underneath, grabbed the small plastic rod attached to the end of the curtain and gave it a good yank, letting in all the light of the morning.

"Gloria, you didn't have to do that!" Marnie grunted, stuffing her head in between pillows.

"I told you, I've got a battle tonight; I gotta get ready!" I explained, circling the bed and finding my suitcase of clothes and challenger uniform, which I could almost smell at arm's length. I scrunched my nose up. At least no matter what happened during my battle with Leon, tonight would be the last night I'd ever have to wear this ugly old thing. I scooped my knapsack up from its spot next to the suitcase and crammed the uniform inside, snapping it shut. I grabbed my clothes and slipped into the bathroom to change.

It is happening tonight.

"Yeah, I know, you don't have to remind me," I snickered, dropping my pajama shorts on the floor and stepping into a pair of black leggings.

"What?" Marnie called back from the other room.

"I said, you don't have to remind me, it's literally all anyone is talking about," I repeated, slipping a sports bra on, followed by some more tightly-fitting athletic wear.

"What, the match with Leon?" Marnie asked, now from the other side of the bathroom door.

"Were you not talking about that?" I asked.

"I didn't say anything."

I blinked and stopped what I was doing for a moment, arms frozen over my head, tangled in the sleeves of a sweater. "Huh," I said slowly. "I thought I heard you say something." I slowly finished putting the sweater on and opened the door. Marnie was waiting there in a tank top and short shorts, her leather jacket and a pink dress hanging on her arm. She was studying me intently and I felt myself blush under the intensity of her glare. "Can…can I help you?" I asked.

"Stress of the final match getting to you?" she asked, leaning to the side and letting her black hair falter to the side, brushing her collarbones and the straps of her black tank top. "Can't have you goin' crazy on me now, of all times."

"Yeah," I laughed weakly. "That must be it. Doesn't feel real yet, fightin' in the championship match."

"Yeah, well, you better win," Marnie said in her tough voice, though her face softened as she leaned up against me. Her nose brushed against mine as our lips found each other, and then she slinked behind me into the bathroom proper. "Get out of the doorway," she grunted. "I gotta pee." And then she shut the door in my face. I furrowed my brow and rushed back to the bed, where my Rotom phone was lying. A small light was flashing in the corner, indicating a new notification. I picked up my phone nervously; I already had an inkling what it might be. One new message from Hop, received only a few seconds ago:

Not to add any more stress on your day but did Zacian just say anything to you just now

"Zacian, you better not be saying what I think you're saying," I muttered under my breath.

Gloria. Her voice was clear as crystal in the inside of my head, just as it had been moments ago. How stupid of me to think it was Marnie this whole time.

"What is happening tonight?" I asked, my voice hardly a whisper.

I cannot be sure, but the power of the Black Hand is growing. I fear it may escape its prison.

"Something about that dream you gave me last?" I growled.

That was a premonition, Zacian replied. I do not see time the same way you do, and I regret that I cannot place its accuracy, but something wicked is brewing. This man who claims power over the dragon; he must be plotting something.

"That can't be it," I argued. "Rose is…he's here. I saw him yesterday, unless he…" I gulped and opened up the chat log with Hop. I typed out a request for him to find Leon quickly, but before he could respond, I heard the flush of the toilet and soon Marnie appeared, dressed for the day.

"Bloody hell, Gloria, you never looked this nervous battling me, do I need to be jealous?" she joked dryly. I didn't respond, but merely bit my lip and shouldered my bag. Marnie picked up on the extra discomfort and dropped her tank top and shorts on the floor and walked to me, placing one hand on my shoulder and the other gently underneath my chin. "Hey, what's happening? something's up."

"I, er, I told you about the whole 'talking to Zacian' thing, right?"

Marnie frowned. "You're tellin' me that she's talking to you about Eternatus now?"

"Seems like it."

"Tell that mutt her timing is terrible," Marnie said with a sigh, then guided my head towards her for a quick kiss. "But at any rate, Rose isn't going to do anything. Not on the day of the championship match. Even his ego isn't that big."

"It's pretty big," I said shakily.

"Well, if he pulls anything, we'll go mess him up good," Marnie shrugged. "You find your, er, sword and shield, we call up the hounds, and make a Dragapult out of the bloody thing and call it a day."

"I'd kill for your confidence right about now," I said.

She huffed proudly. "Hey, I'm from Spikemuth. I don't take no shite from no one."

"I love you," I sighed. My phone buzzed with Hop's response. "Hop said Leon's already on his way over to the hotel. If anyone knows anything it'll be him."

"So, that gives us, what, twenty minutes maybe?" Marnie asked, lowering her arm and letting her fingers snake between mine.

I shrugged. "Knowing him, probably thirty, actually. If you had something in mind." I gripped her hand in mine.

"Gloria! Was wondering when you would finally come down!" Hop said, waving, as Marnie and I made our way across the lobby half an hour later. With him sat Leon, who was looking thoroughly nonplussed about everything.

"Wow, wasn't surprised to see you making it here so early," I said to Leon as I reached the pair of couches they were sitting at and sat down across from them.

"Sometimes I happen to know where I'm going," Leon grumbled. "I happen to know Wyndon fairly well by now."

"He also happens to know the new map app Sonia made him download pretty well by now, too," Hop said cheekily.

"That's…beside the point," Leon sighed. I snickered. Marnie leaned back on the couch next to me, her typical bored face back up, along with her hair, clipped perfectly in its usual places atop her head. "The point is that you two thinking Rose is up to something at this exact moment is completely unfounded—"

"Leon, you were there when he revived Eternatus," I stressed.

"I said at this exact moment," Leon said, "Look, I know he's up to something, but I'm telling you it can wait! He's not going to pull anything on the day of the final match. And after, if he wants to do whatever it is, end the world or whatever, we can handle it! C'mon, Gloria! It's the biggest match of the year and you're part of it!"

"I—I mean, I guess," I sputtered, looking to Hop for any sort of guidance. Hop snuck a quick look at Leon, and once he was convinced his brother could not see him, nodded and gave me a look that said "do not push it."

"Besides, you can ask him yourself if he's got any funny business planned," Leon said, leaning back into his couch. "He's been holed up at the Stadium making sure everything's been running smoothly. Been weirdly hands-on about the whole league this year. Probably because you kids have made the challenge more popular than it ever has been! Hell, I don't think I've been this excited about a battle in years! I had a funny feeling I'd be seeing you on the pitch one of these days, but to think it'd be so soon!"

Hop glanced back over at Leon, a twinge of hurt in his eyes, and ever so slightly, he sank into his cushion, but Leon didn't pay any attention to it.

"You feel good about the end of your reign?" Marnie asked.

Leon leaned forward, a fire in his eyes. He had completely forgotten about Rose and Eternatus at this point. "We'll see about that. I'm not going to make it easy for you, Gloria."

"Wouldn't think of it," I said with a nervous chuckle.

"Anyway, I was already on my way over. We've got a lot of press to do today, Gloria. Every news channel from damn near every region is screaming for an interview with you! Figured you should have someone there who's had experience with 'em. You ready to go?"

I glanced back at Hop, who was now eyeing a spot on the floor very intently. "Er, Leon, I haven't even had a chance to get breakfast yet," I said quickly. "Can you hold 'em all off for thirty minutes or so Marnie, Hop, and I can eat?"

"Sure! I'll be right outside! That's where they're all waiting!" Leon said, jumping up and strutting off, pausing halfway across the lobby and changing direction when he realized he was walking further away from the doors outside. When he was finally gone from the lobby, I sank back down in my chair.

"As you can tell, he's a bit of a non-starter right now," Hop grumbled.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, fine!" he said, a little too quickly and a little too enthusiastically.

"Neither of us believe that," Marnie asserted, standing up to punctuate her point. "I'm goin' to grab us a couple muffins or somethin', because I don't really care that much about it, but Gloria does. For what it's worth. You want chocolate chip? Oran berry?"

Hop gulped. "Er, chocolate chip is fine."

"And you?" she asked, looking at me.

"Any," I said.

Marnie nodded and smiled sweetly at me, and then turned to Hop. "Tell her or you're getting the muffin comin' towards you at fifty miles per hour, got it?" Hop nodded, gulping a second time. Content with her threat and walked off.

"You really had to fall in love with the scariest woman on the planet, huh?" Hop said once she was out of earshot.

"Don't change the subject," I said sternly.

"Blimey, she's rubbing off on you, too," Hop joked. "But honestly, Gloria, I'm okay. I admit, it kind of hurt that Lee just talked how he's always been excited about battling you and didn't even mention me. I must've told him a thousand times that I'd be the one to battle him in the championships and finally break his winning streak."

"Hop…"

He held up a hand. "Gloria, I'm fine. You're the better battler between us. Hell, maybe you always have been. You've worked so hard this whole journey but you've made it look so easy. And that's okay. Really. I'm okay with it. It's just a reality that I've got to get used to. And that's what's been pushing me to be better, ever since you and I battled on Route 8. And if Leon can't see it yet, you've just got to knock that crown off his head so he can re-evaluate."

I stood up and extended a hand out to Hop. He took his hand in mine and I pulled him into a tight hug. "I promise I will kick his arse, just for you," I said.

Hop snickered and pulled himself out of the hug. "Razor sharp and always on the attack. No wonder the Sword of Galar chose you."

"And look at you, standing firm against all this adversity," I said. "No wonder the shield of Soan chose you."

Hop blinked. "Oh! About that. Zacian spoke to you, yeah? Zamazenta was speaking to me earlier. Something about 'it happening tonight.'"

"Yeah," I said. "You did tell Leon about that, right?"

"What, no, of course not. Even if he did take me even remotely seriously, he wouldn't actually do anything to help. You saw him, he's far too focused on his battle with you to be of any help if anything does happen."

I frowned. "What, so we're on our own?"

"Kinda," Hop said with a shrug. "But we don't have to be. Raihan's still in town, hell, I think most of the gym leaders are still in town. We've got Victor and Marnie. And Sonia! We can take down one Pokémon, no matter how tough it is! We aren't as alone as we think!"

"I need your infallible optimism, mate," I chuckled.

"Oh, it is very fallible right now; I'm doing this to comfort me as much as I am to comfort you. Look, focus on the battle with Leon. See if you can't figure out where Rose is or what he's up to. No doubt he'll be hovering somewhere around the stadium. I'll see what I can do in the meantime. We have to get the sword and shield, right? In Circhester? I'll talk to Melony, she's got to know something, right Or Marnie can talk to Piers and Team Yell and see what they can do?"

"Taking a leaf out of Vic's book?" I asked. "When did you get smart?"

"Call it inspiration," he said with a smile. "And Gloria? Thanks for looking out for me. Again. And again. It means a lot to have someone as supportive as you." He clapped a hand on my shoulder and the two of us held a content smile together. And then out of the corner of my eye, I watched a chocolate chip muffin sail out of nowhere, hitting him dead in the face and knocking him back into the couch. "What the—" Hop stammered as the muffin rolled to a stop right next to him on the couch.

"You think I was kidding?" Marnie said, walking up with another pair of muffins. She tossed another at me, at a much slower pace than the one she threw at Hop.

"I changed my mind," Hop groaned, peeling the wrapper off his muffin and stuffing in into his face. "Take your Impidimp of a girlfriend and get her out of here."

The nerves that I had been feeling in the buildup to my battle with Hop were not there today. Instead, I found myself unable to focus on almost anything at all. Everyone wanted a blurb, everyone wanted a picture, and even though he was next to me for almost the whole of the long, long, long journey across Wyndon to the stadium, Leon and I could barely get a word in with each other. Hop and Marnie tagged along at first, despite both of them also being overwhelmed. I whispered to Marnie that if she wanted, she could break off with the crowd and meet us all at the stadium for the match, and never before had I seen so much relief slide across her face. She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and shoved her way out of the hurricane of reporters and opportunistic fans. A few stragglers followed her, but I could see streaks of pink hair on their heads – Team Yell truly were by Marnie's side until the end. I offered Hop the same opportunity, but he shrugged and stayed along with us, eventually calling out Rillaboom to keep some distance between the more antagonizing journalists. I reached towards Bewear's Pokéball to add another bouncer to the mix, but Leon laid a hand on mine.

"Your Pokémon are as much a celebrity as you now," he explained. "They'll be just as stressed as you are. Note that Charizard's still in his ball, too." Reluctantly, I stashed Bewear's ball back onto my belt.

Finally, after a trek that took literally an hour longer than it did the first time and felt like it took another six, we made it to the challenger entrance of Rose Stadium, where a couple League officials used their muscle and a pair of serious looking Bisharp to push the crowd of reporters and paparazzi back. Leon and I finally slipped in, Hop right behind us.

"They're always at their worst this time of year," Leon chuckled.

"You know, I really ought to have some sleeping areas built into the stadium, with how frenzied the press can get." The three of us whirled around to see Rose, in the flesh, smiling his typical, factory-default smile. "Leon and Gloria, man and woman of the hour! I hope you're well-rested. We haven't had had a match this hotly anticipated in ten years!"

Leon nudged me and I looked over to him. He was beaming, equal parts proud of our shared success as Pokémon trainers and battlers and pride at him being correct about Rose not cooking up trouble in Hammerlocke. Admittedly, I did feel a twinge of relief, and finally, I could feel the Butterfree in my stomach waking up, reminding me of the battle that would commence in just a few short hours. "I wish I could take all the credit for that, but I think Gloria deserves a fair amount," he said to Rose, leaving Hop and me and heading over to the chairman.

"Well, you deserve all the credit for finding such a dynamite battler, at least," Rose chuckled, eyes glinting as he looked at me. I frowned at him, but he didn't even seem to recognize any bad blood that could have been between us. His face showed only the happiness to see his final battlers in a room together with him. He and Leon quickly excused themselves, leaving Hop and me alone in the hallway, in blissful silence for the first time all day.

"So Zacian and Zamazenta's prediction was off?" Hop asked after a brief pause, as we slowly made our way to the locker room.

"Maybe, but something doesn't sit right with me," I said, scratching my arm. "Maybe once I get some time to myself I'll, er, I dunno, try and call them?"

"You mean like that thing you did back in Hammerlocke where you just passed out on us?" Hop asked, eyebrow raised.

"I'll make sure I'm sitting down, or that Bewear is around to catch me, or something, I dunno. You could always give it a try, too, now that you and Zamazenta are speaking to each other."

"Right…"

We walked to the locker room together in silence, and the entire time I spent trying to reach out mentally to Zacian, but no dice. Now that my match with Leon was so close, I couldn't keep focus on anything. Hop wished me luck at the door and went off on his own, likely to scope out any gym leaders like he said he would, and I let the door close behind me.

Only the emergency lights and a single fluorescent lamp burned, casting deep shadows into the locker room. I could see the light switches only a few feet away from me, but I kind of liked the darkness they brought to the world. Slowly, I walked through the locker room. For a stadium so big, it was rather small; just a couple benches, a wall of lockers stacked two high and ten across, and a small area with all the first aid my team would need coming off of this battle and then some. I shook my head and stepped further in, onto the tile floor of the bathroom. There were three stalls and three sinks, and a mirror at each sink. I walked up to the closest sink and splashed some water into my face. It was cool and refreshing on my skin. I wiped my face on my sleeve and looked into the mirror. I had become used to looking different in reflections now that my Pokémon journey was over. I could hear, just for a brief moment, my father's voice, telling me how he became a completely different person after he took his Pokémon journey, followed by Mum joking about how much better he and she both were off afterwards. I chuckled at the memory, seeing a dimple crease my cheek, less pronounced on my leaner face now that it was free of the baby fat I had been holding onto when I first left Postwick months ago. I cocked my head to my side and watched as my hair brushed down, tickling my shoulders. It had been years since my hair had been this long. It didn't look bad, just a little messy. Maybe I should keep it this way. It's not like I could hope to have perfect obsidian hair like Marnie.

Marnie. I wonder if she'd made it to the stadium yet. I hoped I would get to see her once more before I took the pitch. I recalled her saying that she didn't date losers and involuntarily shuddered. Was there any truth in that? I shook my head. No, Gloria, don't be daft. Of course, it was just a joke, and even if it wasn't, I'd won against her in the quarterfinals. And that's not even mentioning the fact that a legendary Pokémon and I were on first name basis.

Zacian. I gulped. She said her prediction might not be true, but they were right about Eternatus' revival when it happened. Even if Rose was here in Wyndon, would there be anything else that could happen. With one hand, I gripped the porcelain of the sink and with the other, I pulled out Cinderace's Pokéball. I dropped the ball to the ground and he popped out, looking at me curiously. "Be there to catch me if I fall, okay?" I asked him with a smile. He nodded and braced himself behind me, and I reveled at how in sync the two of us had become in our journey. I trusted him completely. I gripped the sink with my other hand and shut my eyes tightly, reaching out for Zacian with all the mental capacity I could make.

Gloria, her voice echoed in my head. My eyes fluttered open. I was still at the sink, knuckles as white as the basin as they gripped it, but in the mirror, I didn't see my reflection. I saw her.

"Rose is here. In Wyndon. We're miles away from Hammerlocke. Whatever it is you think is going to happen might now happen," I said.

Perhaps, Zacian said slowly. This…Rose. I gather that he shares many qualities with the 'hero.'

I nodded. "Hop said he was going to speak to Zamazenta for guidance, too, they don't think anything will happen tonight."

For your sake, it better not, Zacian said, a flicker of annoyance flashing across her hungry eyes. Know you where our sword and shield are?

"Oh for Arc's sake—yes, and Hop and I can go grab 'em after tonight."

I ask you to bring them to prevent disaster, not to fix it once it has occurred.

A knot tied in my stomach, and I felt my grip on the sink loosen. Zacian's image flickered in the mirror, and I could sense Cinderace readying himself behind me, should I fall. "Zacian," I sputtered, "I don't know how much faster I can do this. I'm just…bloody hell, I'm only sixteen…"

Zacian hung her head. True. You are young, and with age comes a lack of experience and preparation. There is little to do about that, but experience and preparation do not a hero make. I have seen you through to your core, Gloria. There is more power inside you than you are giving yourself credit for. This…challenge you are on? Battling Pokémon for sport? Are you not a novice in this as well? And yet you are now to prove your worth as champion on this battlefield as well. You seem much less concerned about your failure there.

"Yeah, well if I lose against Leon, there isn't an apocalyptic threat to deal with, I'd just be one in a line of other people who have lost that's ten years long."

I suppose it is a poor comparison, Gloria, Zacian admitted. But hear this. You and Hop are not the first to seek us out since the events of the Darkest Day. Nor are you the first to stumble upon us by accident. As I understand it, our resting place has gained a reputation for its…wandering spirits? I chuckled. That made sense. I'd lost track of the times Mum had told Victor and me to stay away from the Weald when we were noted my laugh and continued. Yet you and Hop are the champions Zamazenta and I chose to trust. The darkness is returning, and it returns more quickly than we had expected. But it has not darkened your hearts. And that is all we could truly hope for.

"I don't know if that makes me feel any better or not," I admitted.

Perhaps, Zacian agreed. When the time comes, you know what you must do. You must act quickly and decisively. You have before. I imagine the next time we speak, we shall finally be face to face. And just like that, she disappeared from the mirror, leaving my own worry-wracked face blinking back at me.

"Not even a 'good luck,' on the match, huh?" I joked to Cinderace, who chittered behind me. "Alright, everyone out!" I cried, pulling the five remaining Pokéballs out and tossing them up. Soon the locker room was truly alive as all six of my teammates were wandering around, turning their heads at me every so often to see if I was ready to start my pep talk for this final battle. Truth be told, I didn't know what all I even had to say about it, so I stayed quiet. Perhaps I would think of the words before the battle, but if not, they knew how I felt about them and their abilities. After a few minutes, Boltund walked to my side and lay her head on my lap. I began to scratch under her ear softly, and waited until they called for me to take the pitch.

"Miss Dixon?"

I glanced up to see the face of a league official, warmly smiling at me and gesturing for me to follow her out. With a shaky inhale, I returned my Pokémon to their Pokéballs and slowly followed her out. My legs, despite feeling like their bones had dissolved, were able to carry my weight, and though the official tried to make small talk as we headed to the pitch, I could hardly hear her over the pounding of my heart.

A left turn, another left, a right. I had memorized the journey to the pitch by now, and as we took a final turn and the hallway opened up again, I felt the air almost completely leave my body. At the end of the tunnel, I could see almost everyone. Victor stood, smiling warmly at me. Sonia and Nessa were standing opposite him, holding hands. Sonia gave me a thumbs-up with her free hand. Behind her stood Milo and Kabu, and peeking out from behind them were Melony and Bea. I stepped forward, and finally I could hear the murmurs of the crowd begin to eclipse my heartbeat. They were positively ravenous; how they continued to grow in size and volume with each battle still astounded me. The closer I got to the edge of the turf, I could feel the strength in my legs come back. My heart still pumped powerfully, but it was in a fixed rhythm now, and the nerves I had been feeling gave way to the cool confidence I had felt in almost every other battle. Shame I couldn't go straight to that feeling instead of wading through the nauseating stress of the past two hours. Right as I was about to step onto the turf, a hand slipped into mine. I turned, and Marnie was there, smiling. She pulled me off the course and into her arms, giving me a soft kiss before resting her forehead on mine.

"Fuck him up, Gloria," she whispered, her smile turning ever so slightly mischievous.

"Get a room," Piers grumbled from behind us. Marnie let go of me and turned to give her brother a shove, and I turned to look back at everyone. As I scanned the small group that had arrived to cheer me on, I noticed two things. The first was that Bede was there, next to Opal. He was not making eye contact. And the second was that two of the people I would have thought wouldn't have missed the match for the world, Hop and Raihan, were not there at all.

But before I could ask anyone where they were, the loudspeaker roared to life. "AND NOW," a familiar voice boomed, "IT IS MY GREATEST HONOR TO INTRODUCE THE NOW-NUMBER ONE RANKED TRAINER IN THE POKÉMON LEAGUE, IN HER FIRST EVER LEAGUE TOURNAMENT AND FIRST SEASON AS A TRAINER, THE NEARLY INDOMITABLE GLORIA DIXON!"

The crowd roared and I felt a tug on my sleeve. I looked over to see the League official jerking her head toward the pitch, where chairman Rose was standing, dead in the center, a million lights shining down on him. I gulped and jogged out. The second the lights hit the back of my neck, everything changed. The nerves I had been feeling completely vanished, as if burned away by the heat of the stadium lights, and the roar of the crowd welcomed me in entirely. I smiled wide as I jogged in, waving. I imagined what it felt like to be Leon, to have this sort of reception at every battle he ever fought. No wonder everyone was so eager to become champion. I glanced up to my left and saw a massive screen showing me run across the pitch. I tried to find where the video feed was coming from, but there was a veritable army of Rotom-powered cameras flying around the pitch at top speed; I couldn't figure out where it was if I had an hour to search.

I stopped in the center of the circle and saw Rose smiling warmly at me before bringing a wireless hand mic to his mouth. "AND THOUGH I KNOW HE NEEDS NO INTRODUCTION AT THIS POINT, ALLOW ME TO DO IT ANYWAY! YOUR UNBEATABLE CHAMPION, LEON NAMBAREK!"

The crowd roared again and from the other end of the stadium, Leon jogged in, Charizard flying behind him as per usual. He was decked out in full champion gear; a black uniform shirt emblazoned with a shield and white pinstripes; an inverted version of the challenger uniform I was wearing myself. He wore white shorts and leggings and bulbous white sports shoes, looking almost like a jester from a kings' court, but billowing behind him was a burgundy cape with blonde fur lining, showing the entire stadium who the real royalty on the pitch was. If they didn't pick up the regality that his uniform suggested, it was made all too clear as, atop his wild violet hair, a snapback cap stuck straight up, the lines of a crown on the underside of its brim. He was the king of the Pokémon League by almost all accounts, and here I was, attempting to usurp the throne.

But the king felt no malice towards his would-be opponent. The moment he reached me he stuck his hand out. On his face was a massive grin spreading from ear to ear, showing every tooth in his mouth. I took his hand and he shook it vigorously. "Gloria," he said. "Look at how far you've come. You and Victor and Hop, all three of you, but especially you. I knew I recognized a winner when I saw you battle with Scorbunny all the way back in Postwick. I can't wait to see what you're truly capable of." He took a sharp inhale and breathed out. "Ah, that tense, still air on the pitch…and the exact opposite from the audience, cheering and yelling…they're both fantastic, wouldn't you say?"

"It's…it's something else, for sure," I agreed, letting go of his hand and looking around.

His face softened a bit as he pondered. "But remember, the audience is also a bit cruel. They want nothing more than to see one of us lose, after all! It can fill you with fear knowing that, but I absolutely love pushing past the fear. I love giving it everything I've got as a trainer and seeing my team give everything they've got to seize another victory! It's the greatest feeling in the world, and I can't get enough of it!"

"You're quite the poet," I said dryly. "Hop never told me you were this much of a renaissance man."

Leon laughed. "I've had years to figure out why these battles mean so much to me. Believe me, you take the reins from me and you'll see what I mean. But we'll see if you can even grab at them first. I can feel my partners itching with anticipation inside their Pokéballs. We're going to have a real champion time!"

"Hell yeah!" I agreed, starting to feel my blood boil with anticipation.

Leon turned to me, a fire in his eyes that was all too familiar from all the battles I had with Hop. "Me and Charizard, and all the rest of our team, will use all our knowledge and experience to crush you completely!"

"We'll see about that!" I shot back.

Rose chuckled. "One of these years, I'll remember to give the top trainers mics for their pre-battle banter," he joked. And then he moved the microphone back to his face and stepped away from us, addressing the crowd. Above him, the jumbo screen had a live camera feed trained on the three of us. It was weird to see me standing there with Leon and Rose, but somehow, I didn't look out of place at all. There was a brief flicker on the screen, some sort of transmission error, but it steadied as Rose began to speak.

"Well, they're both here!" he shouted into the mic, "And I think it's time we both see why!" So would you please give a big, Galar welcome to—"

His microphone went dead. His shout was lost in the yell of the crowd, but they also started to quiet down in the confusion.

"Hello? Testing…one, two…well this is rather embarrassing," Rose said with a laugh, looking back to Leon and me. We both laughed awkwardly, but an uncomfortably familiar knot was tying in my stomach. Something was wrong.

The jumbo screen crackled again, static overtaking the camera feeds unevenly. As the audience grew more and more quiet, sounds of someone arguing began to play over the loudspeakers. Rose tried one last time in vain to speak into the microphone, but it was so quiet I couldn't even hear him from where I was standing not five yards away. The speakers fizzled again, and now words could start to be heard.

"—paying you for—"

"—light's on now, we have—"

"What the hell is going on?" Leon said. He snapped his head, a stern glare coming from his eyes, drilling holes into the back of Rose's head. Rose's hands dropped to his side, his grip loosening on the microphone but not dropping it yet.

The screen above us died, and the entire stadium and the nearly hundred thousand people and Pokémon inside were silent. The only noise we could hear was the soft buzz of the Rotom-cameras, milling about with no direction. And then it snapped to life again, only the camera feed was not on any part of the Rose Stadium at all. It was instead playing the camera feed from a dark room, but it was hard to make out any particular details of it. Two figures, blurry from being too close to the camera lens, were fidgeting around with something or someone behind the camera.

"—sants, mucking it all up—"

"Brother! I think it is working now!"

"Oh?"

The figure on the left ducked down, and though his face was still too blurry, I could recognize that smug smirk anywhere. Edward Buckingham made a sly grin and backed away from the camera, and his brother, the figure to the right, did the same, and they finally slipped into focus, as did the room around them. My heart froze as I started to take in the details of the room behind them. Various machines were scattered about behind them, whirring like the set of an old sci-fi movie, and behind them was a giant, shattered glass orb that looked big enough to house a Wailord. My heart sank.

"Leon…" I muttered, barely able to breathe.

"What. Are. They. Doing. There," Leon growled, staring daggers and staring them deeper into the back of Rose's head. Rose still did not turn around. He gave no answer. Edward and Herbert cleared their throats in unison and Leon and I snapped our eyes back up to the screen.

"Good evening, citizens of Galar," Herbert began.

"It is such an honor to be speaking to you this evening," Edward continued. His voice was sickeningly sweet, and the smirk plastered across his face. "But alas, I fear the news we are here to share is not good." The two of them stepped aside, revealing the shattered orb in full.

"Rose, what is going on?" Leon rumbled. "How did they even get in there?" Again, Rose did not respond. Leon took two steps forward, grabbed his shoulder, and wheeled him around so we could finally see his face. Rose looked at him, then me, and then a wide smile spread across his face as well.

"It's all under control," the chairman said confidently. His eyes quickly darted back to the screen though, suggesting that he was not as confident in the royal oafs who snuck into his lab. He pulled out his phone and began typing furiously.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Gloria. The time is now! Zacian roared inside my brain. Come to us in the Weald! Now! I took a shaky step back, but my legs felt like iron weights.

"It involves Mr. Legatum and his Project Eternamax," Herbert said, slipping a well-manicured hand into the pocket of his suit, "and perhaps a bit of the hubris that unites us all." And with that he pulled out a small piece of purple metal and twisted it about in his hands.

"Eternatus, our collective answer to the impending energy crisis, turned out to be a bit more…volatile than Mr. Legatum had hoped," Edward said. He took the effect of concern and woe, but I could still hear a sadistic glee radiating in his voice. "We were here to observe some experiments in power transfer and the thing just broke the whole machine!" He waved his arms toward the broken orb behind them.

"Rose!" Leon roared. Charizard behind him snorted angrily, shooting a puff of fire into the turf and scorching it on impact.

"Relax!" Rose said quickly, phone to his ear. "I've prepared for this! In the case of machine failure, the mechanism will automatically recall Eternatus into the Master—"

"And not only did the beast break through this contraption," Herbert said, bringing the piece of purple metal closer to the camera, revealing a small 'm' directly on the center of it, "the Pokéball it was kept in was also destroyed. Such a pitiful oversight, Mr. Legatum." His eyes flicked off-screen, and he nodded, almost imperceptibly. Then, as if on cue, there was a horrifying screech that was so loud it maxed the levels of the mics, distorting itself beyond all recognition. The camera shook and fell to the ground. Shadows bounced dramatically off the walls until finally there was another loud noise, distorted beyond all belief, and suddenly, the room was lit up with the all-too-familiar pinkish white of pure, unfiltered Dynamax Energy. As the camera feed flickered in and out of focus, Edward, Herbert, and a third person rushed to it and pointed it to the light of the source. When it refocused, we could see a pillar of light shooting into the sky and Eternatus, larger now than it was on its rebirth, spread its bony wings and take to the sky.

Gloria, you must run! I can sense that the black hand is returning!

"Working on it!" I shouted back shakily. Leon tore his eyes from the screen and looked at me quizzically, then back at Rose, who had dropped his phone and was looking at the screen, dumbfounded. The crowd started to murmur uncomfortably. I don't think they realized what was about to happen just yet, but it would only be minutes until total chaos would unfold, I could feel it.

"Leon, where's Hop?" I asked.

"What? He's not with you?" Leon replied.

"He's not with you?" We looked at each other for another moment, then turned back to the screen, where the camera feed shifted again. The camera person pointed it down on the ground, and amidst the rubble I could see a pair of stiletto heels, somehow barely untarnished from the glass and debris that was now all over the room.

"Oleana, how could you let them…" Rose said quietly.

"I know this is a troubling time for you, people of Galar," Edward continued. His voice was also distorted; the microphone on the camera must have been severely damaged from the blast. "But rest assured, we will save you from this. From your hubris. We will bring you to salvation." And then the feed went black.

A/N: Of course these assholes are here to ruin everything. Anyway, welcome to the endgame.

NEXT WEEK: SWORD AND SHIELD