The Elite Four (including their fifth member) and Hannah disembarked on Fullmoon Island. The tourists all sported tropical island clothing, complete with gaudy sun-hats and beach-sandals. Despite her holiday apparel, Hannah still lugged around her backpack, as she figured she could never be too prepared, even while vacationing.
Flint attempted to strike up conversation with Cynthia but failed. Lucian was nose-deep in his Amazon Kindle (the humid, salty air would ruin his precious collection of actual books). Bertha teased Aaron about his bright green beach clogs while Hannah and Cynthia had a race to see who would make it to the beach-house first. Cynthia let her win.
They settled in the house, lounging on the veranda in hammocks or sun-chairs, drinking in the vista of palm trees swaying in the ocean's warm breath. Flint made the idiotic suggestion that they pay 'Pin the tail on the Girafarig' owing to the presence of their youngest party member. Hannah did what she did best: glower.
"What, do I look like a five-year old? TRUTH OR DARE!"
"Eeee!" Bertha clapped her hands. "Me first! Aaron, truth or dare?"
Aaron was wary of the old woman's tricks. "Dare."
"I dare you to catch a Pokémon…"
"That's easy!'
"…NOT a Bug-type!"
Aaron walked outside, scoffing, "How hard can that be?" until he entered the tall grass and saw several hundred Bug-type Pokémon crawling, flying, feasting or chittering all around him. He began to sweat.
"That's a Weedle… and that's a Caterpie… oh my, a Metapod…"
There was a single Pidgey hopping amidst the bugs, ignoring them in favour of a small Rawst Berry bush.
"Okay, you can do this, Aaron…"
He drew an empty Pokéball. His friends were peeking over his shoulder.
"I don't know, man, I saw a rare Venonat skitter under that rock just now," Flint said.
"Ooooh, there's a swarm of Combees!" Cynthia pointed. "I love their honey!"
Aaron began to sweat even more. Finally, he broke under the pressure, flinging the Pokéball with all his might. He caught a Kakuna.
"I knew you couldn't do it!" Bertha gloated. "Now you'll have to sacrifice your precious Crocs!"
"Not my Crocs!" Aaron wailed, stepping out of the ridiculous footwear. Bertha fed them to the nearest Pinsir, who tore them to pieces, improving their aesthetic value.
They spent the day in merry revelry (except Lucian). Hannah shared the tale of her Pokémon adventure, even the scary parts. The Elite Four listened (including Lucian) and each smiled (except Lucian) with the recollection of their first Pokémon journey, even if it had been decades ago.
They then passed a peaceful night away from the trappings of civilisation. The next morning the tourists embarked for Newmoon Island.
"Think Darkrai is home?" Aaron wondered, stepping off the gangplank with bare feet.
Flint shrugged. "I don't think Palmer got his grubby paws on him. We can't find Darkrai without the Member Card, though. He has a special attachment to that artifact."
"What's the story?" Hannah asked.
"A few months ago, Eldritch's son started having nightmares."
"Eldritch? The captain of the ship that brought us here?"
"Yeah. With Cynthia's help, Palmer learned that Darkrai was to blame. So, Eldritch agreed to take Palmer to Fullmoon Island where he sought answers from Cresselia, the only Pokémon that can counteract Darkrai's power."
"The legendary lunar duo," Lucian said, despite appearing totally absorbed in his Kindle. "They are two sides of the same coin."
Flint continued, "Cresselia is elusive, like trying to remember a dream after you've woken up. You can't outmanoeuvre Palmer, though; he's a Frontier Brain, after all! He caught her, so she gave him one of her feathers. The Lunar Feather dispelled the boy's nightmares. Eldritch was so grateful that he gave Palmer the Member Card, allowing free lifetime access to his boat."
"Darkrai must have caused the nightmares me and the boys had in the Old Chateau!" Hannah said.
"Unlikely," Cynthia replied. "No-one wakes up from Darkrai's nightmares without Cresselia's help."
"You're right. When we woke up, only a small amount of time had passed."
"That sounds like an extremely powerful illusion, but not even my Alakazam can make an illusion seem utterly real to three people at the same time," Lucian said, nonchalantly swiping the page on his Kindle. Then, he lowered the book-reading device to stare at Hannah. "However, it is strange that you and Mint experienced the same illusion. An illusion that completely replaces reality must work in tandem with the mind, and no two minds are alike, not even twins. Did you really see and feel the same things Mint did?"
Hannah smirked. "Why don't you just read my mind?"
The Psychic-type Pokémon Master was not amused. "I never do so without consent."
"You don't have mine."
"Fair enough."
Lucian dropped the topic to resume reading.
They had a pleasant, sunshiny day of volleyball, swimming and even some surfing lessons (except Lucian).
That night, however, they had terrible dreams.
Aaron dreamt of a world devoid of Bug Pokémon. Cynthia dreamt of a world where Cyrus had triumphed, removing spirit from all living creatures. Every living thing was dull, in the doldrums, downright depressing. Flint dreamt of a world where there was no landmass and only Water-type Pokémon existed. Bertha dreamt that the Earth had rotted away under the strain of pollution, unable to support life. Lucian dreamt he lived in a world where there were no books and no Internet; only mindless television and radio. Finally, Hannah had the nightmare that she had grown old and stiff with arthritis, without the vim or vigour of youth.
No matter how they cried or protested, they remained trapped in their private nightmares. Nor did they realise it was all a dream, for the mind assumes the dream is real until waking. For them, there was no waking the next morning. As there were no other humans on the island (Eldritch's boat would return in a few days), Glitch escaped from his Pokéball. He attempted to wake his Master and her companions with everything from loud noises to mild electrical shocks.
"IRRITATED STATEMENT: I MUST SEEK HELP."
888
Glitch found Palmer having brunch with Manny's father at the Fight Area Pokémon Centre.
"URGENT STATEMENT: THE SINNOH LEAGUE AND MY MASTER ARE UNDER SEDATION ON NEWMOON ISLAND. DARKRAI IS THE MOST LIKELY CULPRIT."
"Him again?" Palmer sighed. "Hang on, lemme get that item out of the PC."
A minute later, he presented Glitch with a single iridescent Lunar Feather.
"Place this on each of their foreheads."
"IRRITATED STATEMENT: VERY WELL."
Back at Newmoon Island, Glitch found the six humans and an army of thirty-one Pokémon standing on the shore, all in a neat line. They were all staring at the sunrise, quite out of their minds. A single Vibrava was buzzing back and forth above Hannah's head, making small noises of confusion.
"QUERY: WHAT IS THIS?"
"Greetings, Glitch."
"EXCLAMATION: DARKRAI!"
The Pokémon of the New Moon shimmered into existence above Hannah's head, swatting Tori out of the air with a careless backhand. His one, striking blue eye glinted out of his wispy head that billowed like white smoke. His unnaturally long arms rose from his shadowy body to encompass his new playthings.
"I have grown bored with my prison. I have resolved to explore your world once more, but Cresselia will not stop me this time. I have bodyguards."
"THREAT: RELEASE THEM OR SUFFER."
In response, Darkrai made a small gesture towards Glitch. Thirteen beams of energy from various possessed Pokémon blasted the angry Porygon-Z all the way back to the mainland.
Tori stirred, diamond wings fluttering over the sand. She nosed Hannah, saddened by the lack of response. She entreated Darkrai for mercy but the lord of nightmares struck her down a second time.
After rebooting, Glitch again sought Palmer, who had finished brunch and was now chatting with Manny's father about the price of Lava Cookies.
"IRRITATED STATEMENT: DARKRAI HAS AN ARMY COMPOSED OF THE SINNOH LEAGUE AND MY MASTER."
Palmer looked at the vexed Glitch, who was sparking and smoking from various parts of his body.
"Did they not fight you with one Pokémon at a time?"
"STATEMENT: THEY GANGED UP ON ME."
Palmer threw his hands into the air. "That is a gross violation of our sacred tradition! I'll call Mint and make him bring Manny along. You coming?"
"Nah," Manny's father replied, sipping his Dr. Pepper.
"Bah. We'll just have to clear this up on our own."
Glitch submitted himself to repair at the capable hands of Nurse Joy. He then left with Palmer, who had already called his son's cellphone.
Ten minutes later, Glitch returned, sparking and smoking even worse than last time.
"RHETORICAL QUERY: GUESS WHAT HAPPENED?"
"Darkrai's army beat all of you up, then possessed everyone except you?"
Glitch made an angry whistling noise. Manny's father slammed his empty can on the counter.
"Farfetch'd, I choose you!"
The brown duck scurried through the doorway, hunched over and spread her wings. Manny's father took a flying leap onto the duck, planting one foot on her head and one foot on her back. The duck launched off the ground with astonishing speed, flying her Trainer to Newmoon at such a pace, Glitch could barely keep up.
888
As Darkrai watched bemused, Tori tugged at Hannah's arm, trying to lead her away from the zombie horde.
"What do you hope to accomplish? You will only experience pain."
The brave little Vibrava kept right on tugging Hannah's sleeve, wings beating even as the dark lord appeared beside her, cruel fist raised.
Darkrai and his new minions advanced along the beach, preparing to Surf or Fly to the mainland. Manny's father and Farfetch'd landed on all fours before them, blocking the thin strip of sand between the army and ocean. The man stood to his full height, pointing his right index finger at the pupper master with a flourish.
"Darkrai! Release my son and his friends!"
Darkrai blinked his one eye at the indignant man and his duck, the latter with one wingtip resting on her leek.
"Is that what you have to offer?" he chortled at Farfetch'd, indicating the shoreline, where Manny, Mint, Palmer and their Pokémon had all joined the zombie army. "I will explore this world freely. I will not be imprisoned again. You will join us!"
The moment Darkrai began to use Hypnosis, Farfetch'd drew her leek with lightning speed, making a wide sweeping motion that blasted a torrent of sand into the Nightmare Pokémon's face. Though nothing but shadow, he sputtered, flinging one clawed hand forward.
"ATTACK!"
Energy beams of all colours hit nothing but sand as Farfetch'd leaped into the air. Her brown wing rested on the green leek. Manny's father made a sweeping motion with his pointing finger.
"Farfetch'd, use Koga's technique: CHAOS STAR STRIKE!"
One slash executed with unholy speed from heaven to earth: Cynthia's Garchomp flew into the air. Three slashes, all in the blink of an eye: Cynthia's Togekiss, Lucario and Roserade joined Garchomp in flight. Four slashes, swifter than the wind: Cynthia's Milotic and Spiritomb, along with Lucian's Alakazam and Bronzong, hurtled upward and away. Sand, water and wind blasted in eight different directions. All eight landed almost at the same time, one after the other, either pounding the sand or plunking into the ocean.
All eight were unconscious!
A giant eight-pointed star had been carved into the sand from the motions of the simple leek. Farfetch'd had already sheathed her 'sword', and the little duck did not even look winded.
Darkrai's smoky body writhed with disbelief. "What devilry was that?"
The man's finger did not waver. It pointed at Darkrai like a spear ready to fly. "Master Koga taught Farfetch'd well. Surrender now, Darkrai. There is no victory here."
Darkrai rose to his full height, rage pouring from his blazing blue cyclopean eye. His gloomy aura blanketed the shore, causing the waves and wind to thrash in anger.
"YOU WILL NOT TAKE MY FREEDOM! Even YOUR minion has limits, human!"
He waved a hand over the enslaved.
"Destroy that bird AND her Trainer! Tear them to pieces!"
Waves of mindless drones stampeded across the sand toward the lone man and duck. Fangs slavered for blood. Claws clicked the air for flesh. In the face of certain death, Manny's father still pointed one finger, his eyes and the eyes of his Pokémon forged with tempered steel.
"You are mistaken, Darkrai! The Chaos Star of the Koga clan HAS NO LIMIT! FARFETCH'D, FORBIDDEN TECHNIQUE: CHAOS RADIAL FINAL STRIKE!"
Farfetch'd began to draw her leek. In mid-motion she disappeared from one end of the beach and reappeared at the other, behind the herd on the rampage, sheathing her leek. Then sand, wind, surf and turf exploded all at once. Like a flock of Pidgey taking flight in perfect synchronisation, dozens of Pokémon flew in eight directions, some splashing far out into the ocean, most tumbling onto sand, others crashing into the beach house some distance up the beach. Carved deeply into the shoreline was another, even larger image of the eight-pointed star.
None of the fallen Pokémon moved!
Amidst the summary destruction, the possessed Trainers were unharmed, their faded eyes registering no emotion. Darkrai, however, overflowed with demonic hate. His wicked aura caused the sea to churn and boil with ire.
"You… CRETIN! I will trap these humans in their nightmares FOREVER!"
The man was unmoved. His pointing finger and grim countenance accused the nightmarish legend more than mere words.
"This is your last chance, Darkrai."
The vengeful Pokémon raised both his arms, summoning a vortex of negative energy above his head. The possessed Trainers lifted off the ground, floating towards the event horizon as Darkrai released a deep and terrible roar!
"DARK VOID!"
One voice pierced the darkness!
"Farfetch'd, FORBIDDEN TECHNIQUE: CHAOS CORE FINAL STRIKE!"
The area-of-effect attack was now concentrated on a single target. Darkrai was struck once, thrice, then four times, each blow causing the sky, earth and ocean to howl with its fury! The image of the eight-pointed star shimmered in the air where Darkrai hovered. He then collapsed, his shadowy being almost disintegrating. His oppressive aura vanished like mist in the light and high beauty of the morning sun.
The Trainers fell to the sand. The bump woke them up.
"Headache of epic proportions," Hannah reported. She looked a little surprised to see the swath of unconscious Pokémon – including her own – strewn across the battle-torn beach. She hastened to return them. She then patted her shoulders.
"Aw man, my backpack's gone!"
She gave the shore a second glance. Unpleasant memories came flooding back.
"Where did Tori go?"
Hannah walked down the beach calling her name. A feeble whirring of wings caught the girl's attention.
"Tori!" she cried, pouncing the Vibrava half-buried in sand. Joy quickly turned to horrified sorrow as she lifted the creature's battered body. "Oh no! Look at what Darkrai did to you!"
Tori buzzed soft and low, closing her huge green eyes.
"TORIIIIIIIIII!" Hanny wept, hot tears splashing onto the Pokémon's broken antennae. "You escaped from your ball and tried to help me! I couldn't... I couldn't save you!"
Cynthia and Aaron knelt beside Hanny in the sand, hugging her. Their Pokémon gathered round, heads bent with respect.
"We'll get her fixed. Soon she'll be right as rain," Cynthia soothed, helping to cradle Tori's broken wings.
"She's tough," Aaron assured her, resting a hand on the smooth shiny carapace. He nodded, smiling. "Pity she isn't a Bug-type; she'd fit right in."
While Hanny cried into Cynthia's shoulder, Aaron tilted his head. The light of stars reflected in his widening eyes.
"Hanny... look!"
Rainbows glittered about Tori's body. Glowing, she levitated, leaving tender human hands. Breathless, they watched her morph and shift, spreading bright new wings filled with the radiant sunrise.
Vibrava evolved into Flygon!
"You came back!" Hanny whooped. Tori cooed and thudded into her Trainer's embrace, wrapping her much larger wings around the girl. Cynthia and Aaron stood back, laughing, their Pokémon dancing in celebration.
Glitch flew to Hannah's side, holding her backpack in his beak. It, along with Mint's and Manny's, had fallen from their shoulders during the intense battle.
"STATEMENT: YOU LIVE."
Hannah retrieved her belongings with an amused smirk.
"Do I detect an emotional response, Glitch?" she asked, stroking Tori's long slender antennae. Tori purred, rubbing her snub-nose against Hanny's cheek.
"INDIGNANT STATEMENT: YOU WOUND ME, MASTER."
"What is that?" Mint asked, staring at the discombobulated shadow. Palmer rubbed his eyes a few times.
"That's Darkrai, son, what's left of him."
Mint walked to the shadowy morass.
"Hey, are you alright?"
Darkrai spoke, but the hate was gone, replaced by misery.
"I am tormented by my captivity."
"Do you want to explore the world with me, instead? You can come with me and all my friends. You don't have to hurt people to get what you want."
Darkrai turned his one blue eye to Mint, but faltered and looked away.
"I almost trapped you in a dream without end. You would have languished in perpetual Limbo!"
"Hey, much worse things happened while I adventured with Hanny."
"It's true," Hannah affirmed.
Mint offered his hand to Darkrai. "Come with me, Darkrai. I'll show you the world outside of nightmares. It's a place where you can make all the friends you want, and share their dreams."
Darkrai turned his blue eye to Mint. The sun rose behind the boy, gracing his bright face with a golden halo through his blonde hair. Darkrai groaned. There was no longer blind hatred in his cyclopean gaze; rather, a touch of intrigue.
"Such human arrogance! I like it."
Trembling, Darkrai reached for Mint's hand, and found the boy's grasp to be quite firm and reassuring.
Manny's father, meanwhile, bent his head towards Palmer. "I get it, now. Your son is the avatar of the Unconquered Sun. The adventure was here, all along."
Palmer snorted. "You're crazy, you know that?"
"Yeah, but I admit when I'm crazy. You still hang around in a tower the size of a mountain, beating up little kids and their pets."
"And you have a ninja duck who thinks she's a samurai. Are we comparing notes?"
While Mint retrieved his backpack and Hannah checked hers to see if anything had fallen out, Manny shuffled over the sand toward his father.
"Dad, I heard your voice in the middle of my nightmare. What are those moves Farfetch'd used? They wrecked everything! They're too powerful, almost evil."
"It also sounded corny. I mean, seriously? You had to call your attacks such ridiculous names?" Hannah complained.
Farfetch'd looked at the children and quacked with mirth. The boy's father rested one foot on the duck's back. Farfetch'd did not even register the weight.
"The Chaos Star is neither good nor evil. It responds to power and will alone. Farfetch'd spent months learning the most basic kata before Koga even began to train her in its use."
"You think any of my Pokémon can learn it?"
"First of all, the Chaos Star Style is incredibly illegal. No League on the planet will permit its signature moves."
"Why?"
"It was designed to be a killing technique. Koga's ancestor, who was a Warlord, developed it during the dark ages when humans used Pokémon to fight wars in the Ransei region. Fortunately, one cannot kill with a leek."
"...Oh," Manny replied, his face paling.
"Secondly, you don't have what it takes, Manny. Not yet. You have not found your true power, or the will to use it. I sensed all these things while fighting you in the Tower."
"How do YOU know?"
His father cracked a grin, setting his other foot upon Farfetch'd's head. The duck jumped, hovering just above the sand, wings beating like a hummingbird's.
"I know, because your mother showed me the source of my strength, and gave me the will to use it. She discovered her own strength and unique will long before I did."
He pointed at Hanny, who was playing tag with Cynthia, Aaron and Tori.
"You see that, son? Unless you understand why her Pokémon evolved, you'll never be a real man."
With that cryptic statement, man and duck sped over the ocean, spreading ripples into the rising sun.
888
The League Trainers said their goodbyes, agreeing to never spend another holiday vacation on an island where a dark god had been imprisoned for thousands of years. Hanny, Manny, Mint and their Pokémon teams recuperated at the Resort Area's Pokémon Centre. After lunch, they related their nightmares.
"I dreamt I was an old biddy in a nursing home. I couldn't get out of bed in the morning without some candy-striper helping me," Hannah recalled, her eyes distant, still remembering the stiff, cracking joints.
Manny told his tale next. "I dreamt I lived in a world without Pokémon. We just had the Internet and video games to entertain us. Oddly enough, there was a Pokémon video game, along with a manga and anime series, but nobody believed me when I said Pokémon were real. My parents wrote it off as a phase in my life."
Mint shared his experience. "I dreamt I was mauled by a wild level 2 Bidoof."
Manny and Hanny stared at him. His face burned bright red.
"Well, I was. I couldn't walk for a few weeks, and my face was kinda messed up. After that, Mom banned me from Pokémon forever. She blamed my Dad for wanting me to follow in his tracks, and they got divorced. I didn't really like Pokémon after that," he said, and twisted his face. "Ugh, that nightmare sucked! Imagine me not liking what I like most!"
"I was in my dream for a whole month," Manny said.
"I was in mine for about that time, yeah," Mint nodded. The boys looked at Hannah.
She was very still, blinking slowly behind her glasses.
"I was in mine for ten years."
The boys's faces fell. Their stomachs dropped somewhere around their knees when they saw the truth in her eyes.
"Oh Lord," Manny uttered.
"Hanny, I…" Mint began, but the girl got up and went outside. The boys could not look at each other or speak for a few moments.
Mint shook his head, dazed. "It's not fair."
Manny shook his head, too. "No-one deserves that."