Endless Possibilities

The sound of music and dancing fill his ears. His eyes shoot open, and he looked around. "Where am I?" he asks. He's on a beach. People are all around him, playing in the water. He sees Pokemon he's never seen before playing with them. "Whoa!" he exclaims. "What are those Pokemon?!" He starts running forward, only to trip over his feet. "Ah!" he exclaims, getting up. "Huh?" he says as he feels the way his clothes fit him. He looks at himself and sees that he is wearing a t-shirt with blue and white stripes. His pants are black with red cuffs at the bottom, and his ankles are completely exposed. A strange device is on his wrist.

He looks up and notices a large splash of water coming right at him. "Ack!" he cries as he gets soaked. "Jeez. What was that?"

"Argh! You darn, good-for-nothing kids!"

"Huh?" he blinks, turning to see a girl sitting not far from him. She has long blonde hair and is dressed in a bright dress. She wears white stockings and a large, white hat. Some kids are nearby splashing more water at her and laughing at her. The book in her lap gets soaked as they do so.

"Hey!" he shouts at them. "Knock it off, will ya?" The kids, all smaller than him, shirk in fear that he might hurt them. Then they run away. He blinks in surprise. "Wow," he says to himself. "That was so easy, I almost feel guilty." He turns to the girl. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she nods. "It's just a splash, that's all. Stupid kids."

He ignores her remark and extends a hand. "My name's Ash," he says. "I'm from Pallet Town in Kanto!"

"Kanto?" the girl looks up at him in surprise. He sees her bright green eyes for the first time and is almost startled by them. "That's really far away, isn't it?"

"Is it?" he asks dumbly. "Speaking of 'far away,' can you tell me where I am?"

"Huh?" she says. "You don't know where you are?"

"Well, no," he shakes his head. "I just woke up and found myself here, really."

"I see," the girl nods, eyeing him warily. Then she smiles genuinely, stands up, and extends a hand to him. "I'm Lillie! Welcome to the region of Alola!"

"Alola!" he repeats in excitement. He shakes her hand excitedly. "Wow, a new region! Are there Pokemon here that can't be found anywhere else?"

"Yes there are!" she nods.

"Wow! Can you show me –"

"Lillie!"

She looks to the inland. "Uh-oh," she says. "Hey, Ash, it was nice to meet you, but I kinda have to go."

"What?" Ash says. "But could you at least tell me where some new Pokemon are?"

"Lillie, let's go!"

"Maybe later," she replies. "Right now, I have to go. Bye, Ash! Come visit the lab sometime, okay?" She runs off.

"Wait, Lillie!" he calls, running after her. "Where are you going? I don't even know where I am! Do you at least have a map? LILLIE, WAIT!"

At that moment, he trips on his feet again and sees the ground coming right up to meet his face, when –

Ash's eyes shot open. He looked up and down and saw that he was in his bedroom back home. He blinked, trying to process what had happened, then exhaled as he realized. "It was just a dream," he said. "Wow...that was...kinda cool, actually." He chuckled to himself and sweatdropped.

A month had passed since Dark Gaia's defeat. Although Ash had mostly recovered his usual temperament since then, he still didn't know what to do. Every day seemed to be less eventful than the last, and he thought we was starting to go insane. He sighed as he laid back down, but he didn't stay there long as the morning sun indicated that it was time to get up. He sighed, stood up, and walked over to his dresser to get dressed. When he opened the top drawer, however, something softly hit the inside of the drawer from rolling around. His eyes widened.

"The Chaos Emerald," he said to himself. Shadow's words echoed in his mind: Then keep it with you. When you're ready, do as I said.

He sat on the bed with the emerald in his hand. "Well, I guess now's as good a time as any," he shrugged. With that, he held it in the center of his palm. It glowed a deep blue and illuminated his hand. He closed his eyes as six different senses flew through his head at once. He grimaced at first in confusion, but then he calmed himself and listened to them. It's the location of the emeralds he thought. This emerald is calling to them. Is that what Shadow meant when he said he knew where the last one was? Curiosity got the better of him, and he concentrated his mind on locating the missing emerald. As it turned out, it was the bright blue one. What he discovered astonished him.

It's...not in this world?! he thought. But where is it? Hm...what? Darkness? Evil? It's...that other dimension? But how could it be there?

He concentrated harder, and discovered that someone actually had the emerald. It was protecting them. He saw a vague image of the someone in his mind, and it gradually grew clearer. Wait...can it be?

The figure turned to face him.

"GAH!" he screamed, jumping back as the vision abruptly ended. His back was against the wall as he breathed quickly, his eyes wide with shock. As he recovered his senses, reality began to hit him.

"Ash?" Delia said, coming in and seeing her son on the wall made her worried. "Are you okay?"

"He's alive," Ash whispered incomprehensibly.

"What?"

He looked at his mom in excitement. "He's alive!" he cried, a smile bursting onto his face. "Sonic's alive!"

"What?!" Delia exclaimed. "Ash, what are you – WAAAAH!"

She got cut off by her overjoyed son bear-hugging her while laughing. She tried to pull him off, but she had to resort to force when her oxygen supply started to leave. "Ash, get off of me this instant!" she ordered.

That brought him back to reality, and he let her go, shaking with excitement. "Sorry, Mom," he said. "I got a little carried away." He started to calm down, though he was still very happy.

"And what's making my favorite son so happy this morning?" she asked, smiling brightly.

"It's Sonic, Mom," he said. "He's alive! I saw him!"

"Ash, you were dreaming," she said, hands on her hips. "You told me yourself that he sacrificed himself to save you."

Ash was about to protest, but instead he shrugged as though in defeat. "Yeah, I guess you're right," he said. Well, it's technically true, right? I was dreaming...just not about him.

"Well, why don't you get dressed and get ready?" she smiled again. "After all, we're finally going on that vacation today!"

"Huh? Vacation?"

"Yes," she said, slightly annoyed. "That vacation we've been planning for a month."

"Oh!" Ash exclaimed. "That's right! Vacation! Ha! I forgot about that! Right! Okay! I'll start packing!"

Delia just smiled in amusement and shook her head as she closed the door. "That's my son," she said to herself as she walked down the stairs. "Even at the age of 18, he's still just as much a child as he was at the age of ten."

No sooner had she finished descending the stairs when she heard a knock at the door. "Hm?" she said. "Who could that be?"

"All right!" Ash grinned, dressed in his blue shirt, black and red gloves, and red and white cap. "Ready to go on vacation, Pikachu?"

"Pi-Pikachu!" Pikachu cheered.

"Awesome!" he grinned, locking up his sloppily-packed suitcase and pulling it to the door. "Let's go!" He opened to door, only to see his mother there. She was startled when the door opened. "Ah!" he exclaimed, also startled. "Sorry, Mom."

"Oh, that's okay," she smiled. "Ready to go already?"

"Yup!"

"That's good, because there's someone here to see you."

"Huh?" he raised an eyebrow. "Who is it?"

"Why don't you go and see for yourself?" she winked at him. He looked at Pikachu as though to ask what he thought, but the yellow rodent's guess was as good as his. Shrugging, he walked down the stairs and into the living room. To his surprise, he found a young woman with long, golden hair standing there.

"Serena?" he said, his eyes wide with surprise.

"Hey there, Ash!" she grinned, waving shyly at him. "How have you been?"

"Great!" Ash replied with excitement. "Mom and I are going on vacation today!"

"I know!" Serena nodded. "That's why I'm here."

"Are you coming too?" he asked, eyes lighting up.

"Oh no, not me!" she giggled.

"Oh," he said, his face falling slightly.

"But there is someone outside who wants to go with you, and I think you'll like having her along!"

"Oh, okay!" he smiled. "You sure you don't wanna come, though? I'm sure we can get you another ticket."

"Do you know how expensive those tickets are?" she asked, glaring at him playfully. "You're lucky your mom managed to get even three of them for you!"

"Oh, yeah," he shrugged. "I guess you're right." His expression changed to one of curiosity. "So, who's outside?"

"Go see for yourself!" she grinned.

Still confused as ever, Ash walked to the door and slowly opened it. Then he gasped.

The figure standing before him had its back to him, but it was clearly a young woman, as the sun shining in front of her revealed. Long brown hair cascaded down her back, stopping at her waist. She wore a short, red skirt, black stockings, and black and white sneakers. She also wore dark fingerless gloves with white and red cuffs.

"Um...excuse me?" Ash said. The young woman turned her head slightly to see him. "My friend Serena said you wanted to talk to me about going on vacation." He blinked and squinted. "You look kinda familiar. Do I know you?"

She then turned to fully face him, a bright smile on her face. "Really, Ash?" she giggled. "After all the times you kissed me? I thought you'd be able to recognize me a little easier than that!"

Ash's jaw fell to the floor. "MAY?! No, you can't be May!"

But as he continued to look at her face, all his doubts rapidly disappeared. She wore a dark tank top and a pink vest over her torso. Her hair, normally parted in two bangs, was now styled in a more traditional format.

"Can't I?" she winked at him. She still had those same sapphire eyes.

Ash was still in shock, but that was no longer because of May's sudden change in appearance. He slowly walked towards her, eyes wide and mouth hanging open until he was right in front of her.

"May," he whispered, still in disbelief, though not so much that he couldn't speak clearly.

"What?" she smiled. "Are you really that surprised to see me?"

"Well...yeah...I mean, I wasn't sure when you were going to wake up, but...I mean, I…" he stammered.

"Ash?" she said, still smiling.

"I…"

"..."

Finally, he lunged forward and tightly embraced her. "I love you," he said, his mouth right beside her ear.

Although she was slightly caught off-guard by his suddenness, she quickly relaxed and returned his embrace. "I love you, too," she whispered, sending goosebumps down his spine. Then she pulled away from him. "But is that really the best thing you could come up with? After being apart for a month, is that the only thing you can say?"

"Sorry," Ash shrugged. "It's just...you look…" He trailed off.

"I look what?"

He smiled softly at her. "You look...amazing...no, outstanding...no, that's not it, either! Beautiful? No, too modest. Gorgeous? Nah, that doesn't sound right. Ugh! What I'm trying to say is…"

He trailed off once again. May just continued to look at him, as though wondering when he was going to go on. Finally, he sighed and shook his head. "I guess I just don't have any words to describe it," he admitted. "You look absolutely beautiful, May."

May blushed heavily, her hands folded in front of her. "Thank you, Ash."

"So, what do you think?" Serena asked, coming up to them. "Doesn't she look wonderful?"

"That's putting it modestly," Ash replied. "There are no words to describe her right now."

"Really?"

"Really really."

May smiled at him. "Then you can thank Serena."

Ash blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

"She helped me style it," his girlfriend explained. "I know it's not the same as my usual style, but I'm glad you like it."

"Serena," Ash breathed. "You did this?"

"I knew it had been a while since you and May had seen each other," she nodded, "and she wanted to make up for lost time. So I came up with this new style for her. I was worried you wouldn't like it because it's so...different." She giggled. "I guess I was worrying about nothing."

"You sure were," Ash laughed with her.

"Plus, I guess it makes up in some small way for how I betrayed you guys," she admitted, putting her hands behind her back and looking down. Ash and May stopped smiling at that and looked at her with compassion.

"Serena," Ash said, "you don't have to do anything to make up for that. I already forgave you."

"So did I," May agreed.

"I know," she nodded, "but I still wanted to do something to make up for it. Plus, things are going to be different between us now."

"Us?" Ash blinked.

"All of us," Serena said. "It's time for me to move on and find someone else."

"Oh," Ash said, his face falling. "Well...good luck."

She smiled warmly at him. "Ash, don't feel bad. You did nothing wrong."

"But if it weren't for my choosing May, you wouldn't have been heartbroken," he said. He turned to May. "Sorry, nothing against you."

"Don't worry," she winked at him. "I'm with you."

"That's true," Serena nodded, her smile still sincere. "But that's not important. What's important is that you followed your heart, and she followed hers. And the truth is, May, even though I envied you for so long, I always knew deep down that you were better for Ash than I was. He's happier when he's with you, and you two...well, you make the perfect pair."

May smiled at her again. "Thanks, Serena."

Serena nodded, then looked at a watch. "Well, I should probably get going," she said. "I'm meeting Clemont in Vermilion City."

"Vermilion City?" Ash said.

"Yeah. We're heading back to Kalos from there. After that, who knows what'll happen?"

"That's great, Serena," Ash smiled, extending his hand out to her. "I wish you the best of luck wherever you go."

"Thanks, Ash," she replied, shaking his hand. Then she turned to May. "Take good care of him for me, okay?"

"Oh, don't worry," May grinned mischievously. "We're going to have lots of fun together!"

"I don't like the look on her face," Ash whispered nervously to Pikachu as the two girls giggled. Pikachu looked just as nervous as he did.

"Goodbye, Ash," Serena said. "Have fun on vacation, okay?"

"Thanks, we will," Ash replied. With that, Serena walked away. "Say hi to Clemont and Bonnie for me!" he called after her.

"I will!" she called back. "Thanks for everything!"

He smiled as he watched her follow Route 1 until she disappeared out of sight. Then he sighed wistfully. "Take care of yourself, Serena."

"Pikachu," Pikachu nodded.

Ash felt an arm wrap around his waist. He turned and saw May leaning against him. With a smile, he put his arm around her shoulder and let her do just that. "She'll be okay," she smiled.

"I know," Ash nodded, kissing her her cheek.

"Ash! May!"

They let each other go and turned to see Delia waving at them to follow her. "Hey, Mom!" Ash replied. "Ready to go?"

"Yes we are!" she said. "Come on! We don't wanna be late!"

Ash and May grinned at each other, then started running after her, laughing in excitement. Before long, they were boarding a private boat owned by a very tan man with long white hair. Ash recognized his face, and surprise followed.

"Professor Oak?" he said.

"Yes?" the man replied in a different voice than Ash was used to.

"Whoa!?" he exclaimed. "Wait...you're not Professor Oak!"

"Hm?" the man blinked. Then he turned to Delia. "You didn't tell him?"

"Oh!" Delia said, slightly embarrassed. "Ash, this is Samson Oak. He's Professor Oak's cousin. He lives in the region where we're going on vacation and does research out there."

"Oh, okay!" Ash grinned, extending his hand to the other Professor Oak. "Nice to meet you, Professor Oak Number 2! My name's Ash! Delia's my mother." He turned to May. "And this is my girlfriend, May."

"Hi!" May grinned, shaking his hand. "Nice to meet you, Professor!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you both," the professor replied. "I've heard many things about you from Sam. You know, son, he takes a lot of pride in you."

"I've heard," Ash shrugged. "But it's nothing, really."

"Oh, Ash!" May glared at him playfully, punching his arm. "Don't be so modest! You earned the professor's respect, and you know it!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he sweatdropped, putting a hand behind his head. "I just don't like parading around telling people that. It sounds conceited, you know?"

"Well, I did hear you were quite conceited when you first started your journey," Samson said. "But you've grown so much since then, in age and wisdom. I've really looked forward to meeting you."

"Thanks, sir," Ash smiled at him.

"Hm," May grinned mischievously. "Well, he has grown in wisdom, that's for sure. But age? I don't know...he doesn't look a day past ten to me."

"May!" Ash hissed into her ear. "We don't talk about that!"

"I know," she giggled. "I couldn't help it."

"All right, you lovebirds," Delia chuckled. "Let's get ready to go. It's going to take some time to get to where we're going."

"That's okay," Ash grinned. "I can't wait!"

"Very well, then," Samson grinned as he started the boat's engine. "Sit tight, everyone! Next stop: the Alola region!"

"All right!" Delia and May cheered. "Alola, here we come!"

"Pi-Pikachu!" Pikachu also cheered. Ash cheered, too, but his mind immediately began swimming with questions when he heard the name of their destination.

Alola? he thought. Could it be…?

It was very late at night now. They'd been travelling all day, since the Alola region was far away from Kanto. Ash leaned against the boat's railing, staring up at the starry sky. Pikachu sat perched on his shoulder, also staring up.

"How's it going?" May asked, walking up behind him.

"Well, I'm a little sunburnt, and I've got itches all over from those darn Remoraid that attacked us earlier," he mumbled, then brightened up. "But other than that, I'm great!"

May giggled and leaned against the railing with him. "I don't know how you do it, Ash," she said. "You're always so positive and optimistic, even when things don't go your way."

"Well, what's not to be positive about?" he asked. "I've got my best friend on my shoulder and my girlfriend by my side."

This is my escape:
I'm running through this world,
And I'm not looking back.

May blushed at that. "But seriously," she said, looking at him with a serious look. "How do you do it? You're still chasing your dream after all these years, and yet you don't seem any less positive than the day I first met you."

His expression didn't change as he answered. "Losing in the Pokemon League is never a fun experience. Sometimes I have to force myself to stay positive. I have to remind myself that my losses aren't what define me, and that my real victories happen off the battlefield."

"Huh?"

"But one day, I know I'll reach my goal," he grinned, looking to the sky in anticipation. "One day, I will become a Pokemon Master!"

"Pi-Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, sharing his trainer's excitement.

Cause I know I can go
Where no one's ever gone,
And I'm not looking back.

May slowly moved over and shyly cuddled up to him. "You're already a Pokemon Master to me."

He smiled and put his arm around her. "Thanks, May."

"No, really," she said, looking into his eyes. "I don't know why you don't see yourself as a master."

"What?" he blinked, confused. "Wait...you mean you really think I'm a Pokemon Master?"

But how will I know when I get there?
And how will I know when to leave?

"Of course!" she smiled.

"But what makes you think that?" he asked. "I haven't been able to win in the Pokemon League, so why –"

"I don't think a Pokemon League victory makes you a Pokemon Master."

Ash caught his breath when he heard that. "What?! What do you mean?"

"A Pokemon Master is supposed to be an exceptional trainer who earns and deserves the world's respect, right?"

"Well, uh," Ash started to say, but he trailed off as he came to a stunning realization. "Wow...now that I think of it…

We've all gotta start from somewhere,
And it's right there for me:
The possibilities are never ending!

"I've never really thought about what it means to be a Pokemon Master," he said softly. "When I was ten, I just thought you had to win in the League to be a master. I guess I never really gave it any more thought."

I see it,
I see it,
And now it's all within my reach!
Endless Possibility!

May smiled and snuggled her head into his shoulder. "You really haven't changed, have you?" she said softly. Her breath sent goosebumps down his spine. "You're still the same stubborn, impulsive boy I met in Littleroot Town that day."

Ash chuckled and blushed slightly. "I guess you're right...to an extent. To be fair, I'm not as dumb as I used to be."

"Oh, I know," she smiled, looking back at him. "But deep down, you're still the same boy who took the whole world by storm. You're still the same boy who cares for every living thing. You're still the same boy with a grand dream that you will always pursue." She leaned against his shoulder again. "And you're still the same boy that I fell in love with so long ago."

Ash smiled softly as he gently pulled her off his shoulder and gazed into her eyes. "And you're still the same girl I fell in love with," he replied. With that, they closed their eyes and brought their lips together, sharing a kiss under the stars. Although they didn't go too deep, they did go deeper than they ever had before, opening their mouths slightly. Their tongues stayed in place, though. Regardless, when they broke apart, they were literally left breathless.

"That was...wonderful," May whispered.

"Well, that's just our kiss," Ash winked at her. "If it wasn't wonderful, there'd be something wrong."

I see it,
I see it now:
It's always been inside of me!
And now I feel so free!
Endless Possibility!

May yawned and put a hand over her mouth. "I think I'll go to bed," she said. "What about you?"

"I think I'll stay up a little longer," he replied.

"Okay," she said, softly kissing his lips. "Good night, Ash."

"Good night, May," he whispered. She smiled dreamily at him and slowly walked into the cabin on the boat. Ash, meanwhile, continued leaning against the boat's railing as memories flooded his mind.

He thought of his first days as a Pokemon trainer. It felt like an entire lifetime since that day: the day he met his best friend and began the journey of a lifetime. He remembered how small-minded he was back then, brashly thinking he could become a Pokemon Master all by himself. That idea, of course, came crashing down in his defeat at the Indigo Conference. He remembered how he was ready to give up and go home until he got a wake-up jolt from his friends. From then on, he remembered, he vowed never to let the defeats he suffered defeat him. He would journey all over the world, never stopping until he became a Pokemon Master.

And so I'll carry on.
My time to shine has come:
I feel it!

I'll get there someday he thought with a smile. Then again, was May right? Have I already become a Pokemon Master? He thought about this a moment, then smiled softly to himself Maybe she's right. Maybe I am a Pokemon Master even if I haven't been able to win in the League. He pumped his fist excitedly. But I still wanna take home a trophy one day.

As fast as I can go,
Straight to the top I know
You'll see it!

He looked to the stars as he began daydreaming – or, rather, night-dreaming – about that day: the day he came out on top in the Pokemon League, the day he proudly held the gold trophy above his head, the day he could thank his friends, his family, and of course his Pokemon, without whom he could never have gotten this far.

So please wake me up when I get there.
It feels like I'm lost in a dream.

He put a hand over his heart. It was beating rapidly with excitement. He chuckled to himself. If I'm not careful, I'll give myself a heart attack from sheer excitement!

I know in my heart that it's my time,
And I already see
The possibilities are never ending!

I see it,
I see it,
And now it's all within my reach!
Endless Possibility!

I see it,
I see it now:
It's always been inside of me!
And now I feel so free!
Endless Possibility!

Although his memories were mostly happy ones, Ash still couldn't help but remember some of the darker times in his journey. He thought of his Charizard and how disobedient it was when it first evolved. He thought of how its refusal to obey him cost him in the Indigo Conference. Regardless, he managed to bounce back from that loss and later gained Charizard's respect once again.

Then he thought of that one time he got brutally beaten by Paul, his rival in Sinnoh. He thought of how his Pokemon were badly injured after that, and for the first time in his journey, he seriously began to doubt his capabilities as a trainer.

Drop that smile 'cause you're beaten again!
No, this is where my journey begins!

Thankfully, his friends were able to snap him out of his funk, and he would go on to not only defeat Paul in the League Conference, but he did what no one else could: he defeated a Darkrai that no one else could beat. Even though he didn't come out on top in that conference, he didn't care. Knowing that he and his Pokemon were able to defeat a Pokemon that no one else could even scratch made him so proud of them all. Defeat meant nothing to him at that conference.

His memory then drifted to his more recent adventures in Kalos and beyond. He thought of his Greninja, and the special bond they shared. It's kinda funny he thought. Until then, I was pretty confident in myself. Not overconfident, just confident in my abilities as a trainer. Then this new form appears, and I have to learn something new all over again. He shivered slightly as he thought of how the transformation affected him.

You're losing speed! You're losing your flow!
But inside me's a power you'll never know!

It took time and even more self-doubt than ever before, but he and Greninja were able to master the transformation. He still tried to use it only when absolutely necessary, but the adrenaline rush it gave him, if he was honest, was pretty addictive. It made him feel stronger, faster, and more than ready to take on any challenge.

Then let it out, it's inside you!
Better all stand back
'Cause I'm coming THROUGH!

Maybe I should try that sometime he chuckled to himself. We've never really tested the capabilities of humans who wield the transformation, have we? Well, it can't be too much different, can it?

He sighed softly and shook his head. Then he saw the sky start to brighten in front of him. As it did so, he made out several land masses, appearing as silhouettes.

I see it,
I see it,
And now it's all within my reach!

His eyes widened. "Is that it?" he said quietly, bouncing in place as excitement took hold.

"Pi?" Pikachu blinked, yawning as it woke up.

I see it,
I see it now;
It's always been inside of me!

"I think that's it!" he exclaimed. "That's the Alola region!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu also exclaimed, sharing his trainer's excitement.

Ash looked at Pikachu with a bright smile. "You ready for a new adventure, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu!"

I see it,
I see it,
And now it's all within my reach!
Endless Possibility!

"Wow," Ash said more to himself than anyone. "Was I really taking a trip down memory lane all night? Heh. I guess I got lost in my thoughts."

"Pikachu," Pikachu smiled at him.

I see it,
I see it now;
It's always been inside of me!
And now I feel so free!
Endless Possibility!

His smile grew as the Alola region slowly came closer and closer. He looked to the slowly brightening sky and thought of one more thing.

"I know you're still out there," he said softly, "I don't know where you are or how to get there, but I promise you, your sacrifice will not be in vain. I'll keep living like I always do: making the most of every day and pursuing my dream to the end, always working to make the world a better place.

Endless Possibility!

"Thank you for everything. And I promise you: one day, we will meet again. Until then...Sayonara, Sonic the Hedgehog."

Endless Possibility!

"Pi?" Pikachu looked at him eagerly.

"Don't worry, Pikachu," he grinned. "We'll be there soon. And when we get there, we'll be the very best, like no one ever was. That's what we've always done, what we're doing right now, what we're always going to do. That's the way it will always be, because that's the way it's always been:"

From our first day
With Red and Blue
All the way
To Sun and Moon

And there you have it, folks: at long last, Sonic-Pokemon Global Adventure: The Dark Crisis is finished. I've got a lot to say here since I didn't do any talking throughout the story, so here goes.

First of all, I apologize for not updating throughout the story. The reason I didn't do that was because at the beginning, I had a very different idea of how this story would be. It involved heavy narration that would really flesh out the Sonic-Pokemon world I've created, so I didn't want to stuff too much content into these chapters. However, as the story went on, I decided to scrap that idea and just wrote as usual. That led to an odd combination of a long, long story and zero updates. I get the feeling that you guys got a little fatigued by that, which would explain how reviews stopped coming in about halfway through. Again, sorry about that.

As for my original idea for the plot, it was completely different from what you just finished reading. The first two chapters are the only thing in this story that were planned from the start. And if you look carefully at the writing, you can see a foreshadowing of things that would've been yet to come if I stuck with my original idea. Thankfully, even though they pretty much have a red marking on them saying "foreshadowing," they're still very subtle hints. So that wasn't too much of a problem.

Actually, two video games that came out this year had a great influence over the direction this story. The first, and most obvious, is Pokken Tournament. I started to get the idea of having Shadow Mewtwo be the main antagonist when he was revealed, so I started incorporating him into the story. I don't remember if I had any reservations about that, but if I did, then they completely evaporated when I looked into the lore of Pokken and read about Gaia energy. For those of you who aren't familiar with Sonic Unleashed (which is what this story is mostly, loosely based off of), the main antagonist is a monstrous being known as Dark Gaia. In order to beat him, you need the help of Light Gaia, who you find by heading to the Gaia temples all around the world. That's why "Gaia energy" in Pokken's lore cemented Ferrum's place in this story.

Speaking of travelling the world, the global scale of Sonic Unleashed was what originally attracted me to the idea of using that game for my #Pokemon20 story. I was originally planning to use Sonic Generations, being an anniversary game and all, but I decided to go with Sonic Unleashed instead when I realized what I could do with it: I could have the heroes travel to all the regions of the world to reclaim the Chaos Emeralds. Perfect, right? Well, it would be...assuming I executed the idea correctly. Did I? I'm really not sure.

The other game that had a strong influence over the plot was Fire Emblem: Fates. If you're familiar with the games or even just their fanbase, then a close look at some of the chapters (particularly the early ones) will reveal some nods to that game. However, the biggest influence over the plot was the decision to include a traitor in the group: A traitor working quietly behind the scenes to do their master's bidding, leaving evidence of their betrayal behind. Even the way the traitor accidentally outs themselves uses the same general concept that Fire Emblem did: talking about information that they shouldn't have known unless they were the traitor. And that brings me to my next point...

Serena. (Oh boy, here we go) I imagine this story turned off the Amourshippers by the dozen. Now, I'd like to point something out: I don't hate Amourshipping, and I don't hate Serena. In general, I have nothing against other shippings that I don't actively support. After all, it's all about the fandom, and none of it (excluding Serena's crush) is canon. A reviewer pointed out that they didn't like how Serena was portrayed in this story, but they were okay with that, since they knew I was an Advanceshipper, and they thought it would be a good idea if Serena turned out to be subtly manipulated by the darkness. I thought that was hilarious, because I had decided from the beginning to make Serena a traitor. And the reason for her betrayal? She was emotionally hurt when Ash chose May, and even a little jealous (and why wouldn't she be?). Mewtwo, seeing the opportunity, twists her pain and jealousy into anger and hatred until she's nothing but a shell of who she used to be. This was also directly influenced by Fire Emblem: Fates. So my making Serena evil wasn't supposed to be a "take that" to Amourshippers. It was just using a piece of the Pokemon anime canon as a plot device. Besides, I think the Amourshippers are getting a big enough "take that" with the simple fact that Serena's not joining Ash in Alola! Sorry, guys.

(Then again, I don't blame her. If I found out my crush was going to a foreign school to get plastic surgery and then get dumbed down, I'd stay home, too)

Okay, just a little more, then I'll be done. I primarily wanted this fic to be a compelling story, which is always my first goal. After that, however, I wanted to load it up with a ton of fan service for longtime Pokemon fans and, to a lesser extent, Sonic fans. Visiting every region, having all of Ash's friends come together, Mewtwo being the main villain (in a sense), the continuous nods to the upcoming Sun and Moon, and having Ash's strongest Pokemon in the final battle was all meant to be a shout-out to the past, present, and future of Pokemon. On the other side of the franchise spectrum, I don't think I did a very good job of pandering to Sonic's fanbase. It's kind of a pity, since this story was originally his. I did do one thing, however...

I really don't know how people took my inclusion of "Nazo" Sonic in the final battle. I got a couple of reviews suggesting I do a Sonic-Pokemon crossover of "Nazo Unleashed" (whatever that is), but I already planned to include "Nazo" in the grand finale. Besides, the truth is, "Nazo" is really just a beta version of Super Sonic from the anime. Regardless, I knew he was popular with the fanbase, so I decided to include him in the climax. And who knows? He may have a role in future stories.

Speaking of which, this isn't the end of the Sonic-Pokemon crossover canon. I love writing this series too much to abandon it. But with Sonic trapped in another dimension, I have little choice but to halt the continuation of this series for now. I'll be focusing on other things in the meantime, but don't worry: Sonic will return. That being said, rather than starting a new story continuing the adventure, I'll be focusing more on fleshing out this world I've created in the coming year. You can expect my older stories - "Sonic Adventure," "Sonic Adventure 2," and "Shadow the Hedgehog" - to get revised and, in some cases, rewritten (but don't worry: the main plots will stay the same). In addition, I have some other ideas on my plate. Some of them I'm toying with, while others I'm planning to begin in the coming months.

On a side note, May's design in this epilogue was created by haruharukaspring on Deviantart. Special thanks to them for letting me use it.

So, what do I think of this story? Well, like my other Sonic-Pokemon stories, this one is in need of heavy revision. No other story I've written suffers as much from sagging-middle syndrome. However, before I revise this one, I want to revise the other ones.

And that's it! What did you think of this story? Feel free to rate and review, but no flames please! Thanks for reading, and, as Pokemon has said to us all year, train on.

Catch ya later, everyone.