Prologue -1: Mission
When I came to, I was floating in space. I looked around as my memories foggily came back to me. All of my Pokemon were there, even Absol, somehow released from her Pokeball, as well as Yvetal, Xerneas and Ho-Oh, and I reached out and grabbed Luxray's paw for comfort.
All of them except Charizard.
Luxray slowly came to, and reassuringly licked at my face. "Stop that, you," I snorted, unable to stop myself from chuckling. His tongue tickled.
There was a noise like a thunderclap, and an image fizzled into being as the Pokemon around me woke up.
"This is the current state of the universe," a voice rumbled. The image depicted the cave, or what was left of it. Mewtwo was still there, but all the other Pokemon were gone - replaced by a single blue Pokemon with framework around its waist that I immediately recognised.
Arceus.
Everything behind Mewtwo was white nothingness, and the two Legendary Pokemon were frozen in a clash, seconds from impact. Mewtwo with his fist ready to strike, Arceus with his head lowered and horns bared.
"I alone am not powerful enough to defeat this being," Arceus rumbled. "If I fight Mewtwo by myself, I will lose. So I have frozen time in this universe, and lifted you and your Pokemon out of it," He was directly addressing me. I felt honoured.
"No, it would take two of me to come off best in this battle," he informed me. "So that is what I have decided to do,"
Slowly, a white object materialised, gaining first definition, then colour. Cyan blue, with a navy base. "This egg contains a baby Arceus. Zach, I am going to send you and your Pokemon to an alternate dimension. Train my son there, let him grow strong. And when he is ready, return him to our world, so that he may aid me in the battle. Once that has happened, we shall take back our universe from Mewtwo,"
"What?" I breathed. "But -" There were a lot of questions I could have asked. What should I do, how should I do it - but only one came to mind. "Why me?"
For a brief second, the screen showed a tanned boy in a blue jacket and red hat. A Pikachu was perched on his shoulder. Then it flashed back to the frozen battle. "The boy I usually get for things like this is, ahem, out of commission. The rupture of time and space can cause assets to be lost," Arceus admitted. "As for why you, well . . . you are the last one left,"
"The last what?" I asked.
"The last friend to Pokemon in our universe. Wear the title with pride on your travels, Zachary Geldum. You are The Last Trainer,"
Suddenly, every single one of the nine Pokemon around me returned into balls, all of which were forced into the backpack still slung across my back. The egg Arceus had given me joined them, and a shimmering golden portal appeared beneath me. "Don't worry. I found someone in the other world who should be able to help you if you stay with him. We shall meet again very soon,"
Once again, everything went black.