"Sapphire!"

"Sapphire!" The gem woke up, eye wide as she sat up. "No, stop!" she shouted, hand out as she tried to grab at air before looking to her right. "Oh.. Did you need something, sir?" Archie stepped back, arms crossed over his chest as he looked down at her in worry. "Is something the matter?" The man sighed, shaking his head. "No, but some of the grunts came in with complaints. Said you were screamin' your head off in your sleep. Are you alright?"

Sapphire blinked, seeing Brook nuzzle her face with a sad cry. She reached a hand up, rubbing her face. It was wet with tears. She had been crying in her sleep. The gem quickly rubbed the tears away. "It's fine.. Just a bad dream, that's all." Archie sighed again, shaking his head. "I know you don't want to worry us, but you're a part of the team. Like it or not, we look out for one another unlike Magma. Be lucky you're with us and not them. They're strict. They'd break you for showing any kind of emotion. They're not good people."

"But neither is Aqua, correct?" Sapphire asked, keeping her voice low. The man nodded, shrugging. "We have our differences. What they want is land. What we want is sea. We want people and Pokémon to live together in harmony, but their way is stupid. It could kill thousands of people. Now, come on. We have a mission on Mt. Pyre." Sapphire's eye lit up as she sat up, saluting to him. "Of course, sir! When do we head out, sir?"

Archie gave a hearty laugh, patting her shoulder. "You're ready to take on any challenge, aren't you? You'll be heading out right away with Shelly and a few grunts. You four will distract anybody there until I get there. Got it?" Sapphire nodded. "You got it, sir. Is there anything else I need to know?" Archie nodded, holding up a folder. "This has all the information you'll need. If you need to, take a little time to study it."

"Of course."

"Now, I know Matt said not to use your Mudkip, but I'm giving you the O.K. to use her in battle in case you need her. Just this once, alright?" Sapphire nodded, hopping off the bed as Brook followed her. "Of course. Thank you, sir."

"Grunts, move out!" Shelly shouted as the two grunts split up, one going upstairs and one staying on the floor ground to keep people distracted. The woman turned to Sapphire, nodding to the side as they followed the grunts going upstairs. Sapphire looked around, keeping her head low, so that they couldn't see the frown. She remembered the mountain was practically overflowing with thousands of gem shards. Like in the dream. To them, it probably meant nothing, but to Sapphire, it was like watching people you knew and loved die right before them.

Sapphire stopped, staring at one of the tombstones. It was a very old tombstone, the edges decorated with gem shards. Rose found it wrong to bury them, so they made them a part of the tombstones of the fallen Pokémon and their Trainers. Sapphire's gaze fell on a newer tombstone and saw the edges decorated just like the old one. Whoever took care of the dead here must've decided to take the shards left behind and continued what Rose did. The gem looked up as Shelly stopped at a tombstone, getting on one knee. "Shelly, are you alright?"

"Yeah, keep going. The new recruit and I will catch up in a moment." The grunt looked at Sapphire, sneering a little before hurrying ahead. Sapphire approached Shelly, looking at the tombstone. It was embedded with blue gem shards, some forming a heart shape in red at the top. Shelly ran a hand over the stone, so Sapphire couldn't read the name at first. "Was this somebody you knew, Shelly?"

"Yeah.. My grandmother.. She passed away a few months ago, right after a trip to a far off place where no Pokémon live. I don't know why she went, but when she got back, I stayed with her until she passed away. Archie and Matt were there to comfort me. It's hard to lose family, you know?" Sapphire nodded, staring at the shards. "I do know. Shelly, do you know why the tombstones are decorated with gem shards?"

Shelly looked up, brushing her bangs from her face. She had very pretty blue eyes, Sapphire thought. "My grandmother used to say it had to do with a 300 year old war. I don't know what it was, though. Were… Were these gems your family?" Sapphire shook her head, placing a hand on the tombstone. "As you know, I'm not like a human. I can live for thousands of years. Where I came from, you had a place. You're created with a purpose. Until one gem stood up against our leaders. Thousands of gems followed her example. So many were lost over the years. These gem shards… They were here 300 years ago. Rubies, Sapphires, and Emeralds. They were everywhere. They were somewhat like family to me. Until two gems, a Ruby and a Sapphire, were created. They were different. Something… happened. They got out of control a-and they destroyed every gem here. It was terrible."

"They killed off their own kind?" Sapphire sighed, nodding. "In a way… In the end, my leader, Rose Quartz, could not bear to see the shattered gems of those who brought no harm. People died, too. Rose took the shards and, with each Pokémon and Trainer that was buried, shards would be decorated on the tombstones. After everybody was buried, we had so many shards left over. The rest were left with the people taking care of this mountain. It seems they still carry on what Rose did."

"So, it's like burying your own dead with us. Crystal guardians to watch over our deceased loved ones." Shelly muttered, running a hand on one of the shards. "... If you want to see it like that." Shelly nodded, standing up as she looked at Sapphire. "Come on. We've got a job to do." Sapphire nodded as she followed Shelly up the stairs, shielding her eye once they make it. The top of Mt. Pyre was no different from what it looked like 300 years ago aside from the once large structure that stood tall now crumbled away.

Sapphire looked around until she saw a familiar figure step away from the grass, holding a Pokéball in their hands. "Matt, what are you doing here?" Matt looked up, quickly putting the Pokéball behind his back. 'Ah, Shelly! I didn't know you were going to be here! When did you get here?" Shelly raised a brow, hand on her hip. "Just a few minutes ago. Boss sent us to get the Orb. Did he send you to do the same thing?"

"Ahhh, no. I-I came out on my own to visit my great grandfather," Matt mumbled, looking away. "You guys have a mission, so go do it. Don't disappoint my bro!" Shelly chuckled, patting Sapphire on the shoulder. "Right, then. You heard the man. Let's not disappoint the boss." Sapphire nodded in response, following Shelly up the ruined stairs. "He's clearly not here to see family."

"What makes you say that, Shelly?"

"His great grandfather didn't live in Hoenn. He passed away in another far place. Matt moved here years ago. Something to do with family, I think. He doesn't talk about it." Sapphire blinked, looking down as she pondered over this knowledge. "Why lie to us? If you know he's not here to visit family, why did you act like you didn't know?" Shelly shook her head, brushing her bangs over her face. "We have our secrets. Matt, while he doesn't look like the kind of guy to have any, has his own secrets as well. If he wants to tell us something, he'll tell us."

"Right…"

"It's here." The gem looked up, staring at a pedestal in the middle of a ruined building. On the pedestal was a blue crystal that glimmered in the sunlight. Sapphire could see something inside, but she couldn't make out what it was. Shelly took out what looked like a headset and placed it on. "Sir, it's still here. Want me to retrieve it?"

Sapphire stared, stepping forth as she got a better look. It looked like a smooth orb within, which made Sapphire a little uneasy. It looked like it was crystallized, but what could've caused it to look like what it did now. Shelly removed the headset and stood beside her, hands on her hips again. "Archie will be up here in a moment. What do you think, Sapphire? Beautiful, isn't it? It's going to help us, I tell you."

"What happened to it? What does it look crystallized?" Shelly shrugged, looking down at her. "Nobody knows. Supposedly, it was a smooth orb thousands of years ago. Maybe it had something to do with your gem people?" Sapphire shrugged, looking down. "I don't know. I… I think I need to sit down for a moment," she muttered as she sat down, hands to her head. It didn't make any sense to her. Why were they like this? These orbs, she could tell, were filled with so much power. It was like they're trapped away, but the crystal prison didn't look stable.

"Shelly! Sapphire!" The gem stood up, turning as Archie approached. His gaze fell on the orb and his eyes lit up. "There it is… The Blue Orb… It looks different, but this is the same orb." The man approached, slowly reaching a hand out. His fingers grazed the top of the orb, causing him to pull away when it glows to life. Sapphire stared, pushing her bangs away in shock. "What… happened..?!"

"Archie..?" Archie turned, her eyes glowing a faint blue until it faded off. "What?" Sapphire blinked, frowning a little as he walked up to them. Shelly took a deep breath as Archie started to walk by, turning to face him as she speaks. "You go ahead. I need a little more time here." Archie nodded, turning to Sapphire with a small grin on his face. "Let's go."

Sapphire looked at the wall with a sigh, petting Brook to comfort herself. Team Aqua had the Blue Orb now, and she could only wonder what they'd need it for. She had a peculiar feeling that she knew the answer already, but she didn't want to believe it. The last she saw the Orb in use, it was to awaken a powerful Pokémon. One of unspeakable power. She tried to forget that moment, hoping she would never have to witness it again, but it seemed history would be repeating. Sapphire shook her head, hopping off her bed.

"Mudkip?"

"We need information, Brook.. I need to know what they are up to. I have a bad feeling I already know the answer, but I have to be certain."