Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

Author Notes: Chapter 26! Have fun!

Also, I may or may not be changing my username sometime soon, when I finally settle on something new that I actually like. Just giving you all a heads-up!

Chapter 26 — Crucial Decisions

Latias looked at each of her friends for a lengthy moment, giving each of them a gentle and touched smile. "You're all the best. I feel so much better now. I love you all."

"That's great," Ash whispered while stroking her neck comfortingly. "I'm very happy you're doing much better now, Latias," he added softly.

Latias purred while pressing herself further into Ash's arms. She closed her eyes and let out a contented sigh. "Today was such a tough day. Thankfully, we made it through and it's all over now."

"Yeah," Bianca agreed with a small nod. "It's over and we can move on." She looked down and scratched the fine feathers on Latios' head to catch his attention. "What about you? How are you feeling?"

"I'm also feeling a whole lot better, thank you," Latios replied, pressing his head against her hand while letting out a soft coo.

Bianca smiled at him and pulled his head into her chest for an affectionate hug. "You're welcome, Latios."

Latias relaxed, enjoying the attention Ash was giving her. She remained completely silent and still for a while, and then frowned when she noted that something felt off. She took several deep breaths to steady herself and peacefully let her psychic powers spread to sense the world around her. As she slowly processed the feedback she got from her senses about her environment, the red dragoness slowly opened her eyes, which were glowing a soft hue of blue light. "I feel different," she murmured as her eyes dimmed back to normal.

"Wait, what's wrong, Latias?" Ash asked, pausing his stroking while glancing at her in concern. "Is everything okay?"

Latios quietly gazed at his sister, slowly processing what she had said and done. "Now that I think about it, I kind of feel different as well," he commented. "Let me try it too." Latios' eyes lit up in an ethereal blue glow. He took a deep breath to relax and then closed his eyes.

Latios spread his psychic senses all around him, much like Latias had just done. Immediately, his mind was bombarded by a myriad of different things. From hundreds upon hundreds of nearby Pokémon, to thousands upon thousands of nearby humans, to tens of thousands of little things happening here and there. However, unlike the previous times that he had tried to expand his senses in such a crowded and complex area, the dragon found that his mind was able to keep up with the feedback it was receiving. "Whoa!" Latios exclaimed in astonishment as he opened his eyes, which gradually faded back to their natural red color.

"You felt it, right?" Latias asked, gazing at him expectantly.

"I did. I see what you mean, Latias," Latios responded in shock. "The last time I spread my senses in an area like this, I got a headache immediately and had to shut them down because I got overwhelmed. Now? I actually kept up with my sensory perception."

"Yep!" Latias flashed him a grin. "It's amazing! It's like I can sort everything I'm sensing just as fast as new stuff comes up! Though I have a lot of trouble telling individual things apart with such a large volume of information coming in, but just keeping up with it is still pretty impressive."

"Yeah, same here," Latios agreed. "That's roughly how it went for me, too."

Bianca glanced between the two dragons several times, and then her eyes widened in realization. "I see what you mean. You two had always been incapable of using any special abilities other than turning invisible and sight sharing for as long as I remember. Then the wave incident happened, and suddenly you two were capable of using psychic powers and telepathy right after. What's going on right now, is it like that?"

"Yeah, something like that," Latias responded with a nod. "Just like after the wave, I do feel different than how I've always felt. It's like when whatever that's inside of us breaks to give us the power we need to survive the threats we're facing, some of it lingers afterward permanently. I don't know how it works but that's apparently it."

"Yeah, I feel the same way," Latios confirmed. "It seems we keep some of that power in the long run. I think Latias' explanation makes sense, I feel stronger now."

"That means there's something I want to test." Latias gently nuzzled Ash's arms away from her and levitated off the bed. She moved over to the center of the room and took in a deep breath to collect herself. Her expression shifted to one of focus, and her eyes began to glow a deep shade of blue. She gritted her teeth and let out a faint growl as she concentrated.

Everyone looked at each other in confusion. "Uh, Latias? What are you doing?" Ash asked slowly.

Latios gasped, his eyes widening in surprise. "Oh! I see what you're up to! That's awesome!" he exclaimed in excitement.

"I got it, I got!" Latias announced victoriously as a cube of bright blue energy spawned out of thin air in front of her. She grinned happily, the glow of her eyes brightening noticeably as she did so. The cube of psychic energy in front of her gave off an eerie buzz and grew in size until it was about as big as she was, lighting up the hotel room in a blue hue in the process. "Yes!"

"What is that?" Bianca asked, clearly impressed.

"That's Psyshock," Brock realized, hitting his palm with a fist. "It's a powerful psychic attack that materializes psychic energy into a physical form, allowing a psychic user to damage an opponent physically with a special attack. It's quite handy."

Latias' excited grin widened. "This is what I used to form the psychic wall that protected Rustboro from the explosion, only back then it was much bigger because of our heightened state. I doubt I can make it that much bigger than this without that drastic powerup, but hey! I got a new attack!"

Ash laughed, clapping enthusiastically. "That's awesome, Latias!"

Bianca clapped as well. "Oh yeah, it is! Congratulations!"

"You know, considering that you're going down the Pokémon Contest route along with Bianca, that can be useful. If you practice changing it into different shapes, sizes, and styles, you can make some interesting appeals," Pikachu pointed out. "Just food for thought."

"Yeah, I'll definitely keep that in mind," Bianca responded after Latios had translated Pikachu's speech for her and Brock. "That'll be quite useful."

"I have a question, though," Ash spoke up, causing both dragons to look at him. "It's blue right now. Wasn't it red earlier?"

Latias blinked in confusion and looked at the blue cube of energy buzzing in front of her. "I have no idea why that is," she answered. Her expression relaxed and her eyes began to dim down as she canceled her attack, causing the Psyshock to harmlessly disintegrate into blue wisps of light that quickly faded away.

"If I had to guess, it's probably because you're not in that super-powerful state you were in earlier," Pikachu suggested.

"Yeah, that's probably it. But as long as we don't know what that state is to begin with, we have no real way of proving anything." Brock looked at Latios curiously. "Anyway, what about you?"

Latios froze and let out a loud gasp. "That's true! Well, if Latias retained Psyshock from earlier today, that means I—" he stopped and grinned, an eager expression forming on his face. "I gotta try this out! But, eh, just for safety, can we open a window?" he asked with a nervous laugh.

Bianca nodded and gently ushered Latios off of her. Once he had levitated away from the bed, she stood up and walked to the end of the hotel room and opened the sliding door led to the balcony. "Is this enough?" she asked while glancing back.

"Should be enough," Latios answered as he leisurely floated toward the open doorway.

Everyone followed after him, exchanging curious glances amongst themselves. "I think I know what he's got planned," Pikachu commented. "Just don't overdo it in case it's as big as earlier today."

Latios laughed energetically. "It shouldn't be!" he replied telepathically as he flew out the doorway and into the city's night sky. He stopped in midair and took a deep breath while glancing around at his surroundings. He levitated higher up into the sky, idly taking note that the group's room was very close to the hotel building's rooftop. Latios closed his eyes and exhaled, relaxing and feeling the cool breezes of the night pass by.

Latios remained still for several long moments, letting his instincts and powers guide him. He tilted his body upward and opened his mouth. At first, nothing happened, which caused the dragon to let out an irritated growl as he concentrated harder. After several seconds, a tiny sphere of green energy began to form in front of the dragon's open mouth. Latios' growl deepened, making the sphere crackle as it kept growing in size until it was about a couple of feet wide. Seeing that he couldn't make it any larger than that, Latios thrust his head and released the sphere skyward.

The Dragon Pulse flew swiftly into the dark sky, leaving a faint trail of green light in its wake. Once it had flown for a considerable distance and became unstable, the attack exploded in a forceful blast that looked rather diminutive from the ground, and could only be heard as a distant echo that spooked a few Murkrow on the hotel's rooftop and rattled the windows of nearby buildings.

Latios beamed excitedly. "I have Dragon Pulse now!" he exclaimed triumphantly. He paused in alarm when he noticed several lights flickering on in many nearby buildings, including the one he and his friends were currently staying on. "And I may have spooked some people in the process. Oops!" He hastily turned invisible and flew back to the room.

"Yeah, that was really smart of you, Latios," Pikachu commented sarcastically as everyone went back inside and Bianca hurriedly closed the balcony's crystal doorway. "Only you would think that firing an explosive attack in the middle of a city that almost got wiped out in a massive explosion earlier would be a good idea." The electric-type rolled his eyes. "What could go wrong?"

"I didn't think of that!" Latios shot back as he reappeared amid a shower of blue wisps of light. He held his arms out in front of him defensively. "I just got carried away with my Dragon Pulse, I swear!"

"Well, you could've canceled the attack like Latias did with her Psyshock," Brock pointed out as he raised a finger.

Latias laughed heartily. "Oh please!" She smirked playfully at her sibling.

A look of horror crossed Latios' face. "Oh no. Don't you dare—"

"Well of course you'd want to fire that attack and make a big flashy boom out of it, Latios," Latias interrupted, a teasing edge clear in her telepathic voice.

Latios huffed and blushed in embarrassment. He looked away and grumbled something under his breath.

"Hey, we all make mistakes. It's fine," Bianca commented as she walked past the blue dragon—affectionately stroking his side as she did so—and sat down on a chair beside the table.

Latias giggled and gave her twin a playful wink. "Anyway, your Dragon Pulse looked awesome, Latios. Congrats!"

Latios rolled his eyes. "Why thank you," he grumbled.

Latias stuck her tongue out at him. "You're welcome."

Pikachu chuckled in amusement. "Classic. I love this."

Ash shook his head a couple of times, suppressing a slight laugh. "That was pretty funny. Anyway, it's awesome that you have Dragon Pulse now, Latios. It's a really good attack, and it's much better than Dragon Breath."

Latios nodded eagerly. "Oh yeah, it is. Can't wait to use it next time I take part in a battle."

"Well, having Dragon Pulse would've been useful when we were fighting that Swampert. It's a shame you didn't have it then," Pikachu commented. "It'll be good to have for the next time we run into them and get a rematch. I'm salty we couldn't take her down."

"That's assuming we run into them again, to begin with," Bianca pointed out. "It's not guaranteed to happen."

"Oh, trust me, we're definitely running into them again," Pikachu countered, clearly exasperated. "We always run into the region's bad guys. No exceptions."

"Well, now that you bring up the region's bad guys," Ash began with a tired sigh. "What do we do about Team Aqua? A lot of them got away, including all the important ones."

"Well, about that," Latios mumbled telepathically as he let out a groan. "They're the Donphan in the room we have to talk about."

"Yeah, we do," Bianca agreed while crossing her arms over her chest. "Team Aqua almost blew up this entire city and nearly killed all of us. Now that we're done talking about Latios and Latias, I think it's a good idea to discuss those guys and decide what to do about them."

"What is there to discuss, though?" Brock wondered. "We don't know what they were after or what was the reason for their attack, nor do we know if they got their objectives. We've got to leave that to the people at Devon."

"No, no, not just about today," Latios interjected. "I have more in mind about this topic than just that."

Ash frowned. "In what sense, Latios?" he asked curiously.

"So, if we discuss Team Aqua, we also have to bundle in Team Magma, remember?" Latios pointed out.

"Wait, there's a Team Magma?" Brock asked in confusion. "So, it's not just Team Aqua that we have to worry about?"

"Yeah, there is," Ash confirmed with a grimace. "Bianca and I ran into Team Magma shortly after arriving in Hoenn, in a place called Oldale Town. But it wasn't anywhere near the scale of what happened with Team Aqua today."

"Okay, listen, guys," Latios began to catch everyone's attention. "During Team Magma's attack on the Oldale Ruins, I had the chance to briefly read the mind of Tabitha, who is the main admin of Team Magma. Today, I had the chance of reading Shelly's mind. She, as we heard, is the main admin of Team Aqua." Latios' eyes narrowed dangerously. "That means I got the chance to read the minds of the second-in-command of both teams."

Bianca nodded slowly. "I think I remember you telling us about reading the Magma dude's mind back then, though you didn't really follow up on it and we changed the subject soon after. I can't remember to what, but that's irrelevant right now."

"Yeah, you didn't. Why's that?" Ash questioned, looking at the dragon with a puzzled expression.

"I didn't want to concern any of you with something that big and dangerous while I still lacked half of the information." Latios smirked. "But now I have the other side of the coin, too."

"So, what exactly are Team Aqua and Team Magma after?" Latias asked, her ears perking.

"…They're being honest, as stupid as their plans sound." Latios rolled his eyes in an unimpressed manner. "Team Magma wants to use Groudon to expand the world's landmass by erecting new continents over the oceans, and Team Aqua wants to use Kyogre to expand the world's oceans by flooding vast swaths of land."

"That sounds stupid," Brock said flatly. "I honestly thought it was a lame joke when I heard those Team Aqua grunts spewing that nonsense, but apparently they're serious about it."

Bianca frowned. "I wonder if they realize that if their plans succeed, regardless of who wins, they're going to kill millions of people and Pokémon worldwide. Flooding the world would—" she paused, almost choking on her words.

Latias grimaced. "Most likely mean the destruction of Alto Mare as we know it."

"Yeah," Latios agreed solemnly. "From what I saw in their minds, both teams are heavily armed and have the means to carry out their plans. The scariest part? If they get to Groudon and Kyogre, they may actually be able to pull it off. This is serious."

"Can these 'Groudon' and 'Kyogre' Pokémon they're after really do that?" Brock asked. "I've heard about them in stories and some scientific papers, but I don't think much is known about them."

"Oh yeah, I forgot that you weren't with us when we had that Oldale scuffle with Team Magma." Latios nodded in acknowledgment. "Okay, so, a brief recap for you and everyone else if needed." Latios' eyes glowed slightly as he reached out with his psychic powers and gently inserted a mental image of Groudon and Kyogre into his friends' minds. "That's them. Ho-Oh's told me a lot about Groudon and Kyogre. They're essentially the gods who created this planet. They have the power to completely change it as we know it, and that includes what Team Aqua and Team Magma plan to force them to do." The dragon gulped. "They could even undo this planet if they so desire. You don't mess with them."

Brock's jaw dropped slightly. "Okay, they're a big deal. But if they're so powerful, how can Magma and Aqua force them to follow their plan?"

"Through the use of some ancient artifacts and whatnot," Latios answered while rolling his eyes. "Some thingies called the 'Red Orb' and 'Blue Orb'. Apparently, they're hidden somewhere in Hoenn, and Teams Magma and Aqua are after them. Once they find these orbs, it will allow them to take control of their respective Legendary and thus carry out their plan."

Ash scowled. "And when they do, it's game over for the world. We can't let that happen!"

"Is it our job to stop them, though?" Bianca asked. "I mean, sure, we helped out in Rustboro City because we happened to be here when Team Aqua attacked, but it's not like we're actively opposing them."

"We also had to help out at Oldale Town," Ash recalled.

Pikachu facepalmed. "See what I meant? Man, why is it always us who runs into these bad guy teams? I mean, there's gotta be thousands of trainers on their journeys to get into the Hoenn League right now. And it just has to be us who were at Oldale when Team Magma attacked, and were in Rustboro when Team Aqua attacks."

Latias shook her head in exasperation. "Tough luck, I guess."

Ash laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. "Beats me, buddy."

Bianca gave Ash a look. "You also happened to be at Alto Mare right when Team Rocket showed up. What a coincidence."

Ash paused, opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it. "Uh…"

"Yeah, that too," Brock said very slowly.

Pikachu scoffed. "That's our luck."

Bianca sighed. "Anyway. I don't think it's our job to go after them and stop them. We're not superheroes, we're just a group of trainers on their journey. As Pikachu said, we're just one out of a thousand, probably." She looked at the twins unhappily. "However, I'm very concerned about Alto Mare's fate if either succeeds on their ploy."

"Not just Alto Mare. It's billions of people and Pokémon around the globe who are in danger should these teams pull off their plans," Latias said sadly.

"The thing is, even if we wanted to stop them ourselves, I don't think we can just get some superhero capes and go defeat them next Tuesday or something," Bianca commented worriedly. "We'll most likely just get ourselves killed."

Brock put a hand on his chin in thought. "Team Aqua suffered heavy losses in Rustboro. They ought to be crippled, at least. However, I doubt they're out. If they attacked like this, they must have been aware of the potential for casualties. I agree with Bianca in that regard, I don't think we can take a fight to either of them."

Latios nodded somberly. "Indeed. We may have taken out one of Team Aqua's main ships, but they have more. By the way, Team Magma is on even footing with Team Aqua in terms of armament."

"Well, that's wonderful," Pikachu commented sarcastically. "And that's not counting their armies of trainers."

"There's that too. Well, I got a lot of information about them from reading their admin's minds. Like, I know where a lot of their secret bases are, what weaponry they have, and many technical things about them," Latios revealed. "The thing is, even if we wanted to play hero, I don't think we can defeat either Team Aqua or Team Magma, much less both of them combined. It's way out of our league."

"That makes sense. To be honest, had it not been for Steven's intervention we would've lost to Shelly. And before that, we were evenly matched with Matt, but he most likely would've won the battle in the long run. Swampert was pretty tough," Latias commented. She made a face and let out a faint scoff. "I feel powerless in this."

"If you guys do whatever you did to stop that ship's beam, you could've easily beaten either Shelly or Matt," Ash pointed out, looking back and forth between the two dragons. "If they happen to have more weapons like that airship, can't you two just do that again to destroy them?"

Latias shook her head. "I don't think so, no. Whatever we did back there was triggered by intense emotional distress, as I explained earlier. Serious and honest distress because we were dying, and because all our friends would die soon after. We can't replicate that on our own."

"Yeah," Latios agreed. "We have no control over it. And I don't think deliberately putting ourselves in near-death situations just to trigger that huge powerup is a… reliable strategy. And I'm not even sure it'll trigger if we knowingly put ourselves in danger to force it out."

Brock winced. "Yeah, definitely not. If it fails to trigger then you two would die for real. We can't gamble your safety like that."

Ash sighed. "So, what do we do? I understand that it's not our job to take down Team Aqua and Team Magma, and I don't look forward to a war with them. But we know what they're up to and where to find them. We've gotta do something about them, right?"

"I also don't look forward to fighting two massive evil organizations by ourselves," Bianca said with a frown. "But I'm extremely concerned about the consequences of their success. Especially regarding Alto Mare. Should we just tip off police about them?"

"I doubt the police can handle them," Brock noted. "Not if they're that heavily armed and well-organized. It'd take the authorities and Pokémon League years of constant crackdowns to defeat them. But by then it could be too late."

Latios' mouth slowly curled into a vicious smirk, causing everyone in the room to look at him. "Oh, we're going to do something about them alright. Team Aqua will pay for what they did, and we'll drag Team Magma down along with them. Ever since we first encountered them, I've been thinking about what to do with them, and I have an idea now that I have Team Aqua's info too."

Bianca tilted her head, an expectant expression forming on her face. She knew Latios well, and that savage smirk gave a clear insight to the dragon's ruthlessness. "What are you up to, Latios?" she wondered curiously.

"We are going to take a brief detour from our journey," Latios announced. "Instead of heading out for Ash's next gym or Bianca's next contest, whichever was supposed to come next, I want us to put that on hold so we can go and seal Team Aqua's and Team Magma's fates." Latios' smirk widened, a coarse chuckle rising up his throat. "I want us to go to Sky Pillar."

Ash blinked. "Sky Pillar? What's that?" he asked.

Brock hummed. "Sky Pillar doesn't ring a bell. I presume it's not manmade, then. Doesn't sound like a major place from any of the regions I know of."

Latias' eyes widened slowly, realization flashing on her face. "I see, so that's your plan."

"Sky Pillar is not a manmade place, no. It's the home of a Legendary Pokémon. A Legendary that Ho-Oh has told me many tales of. A Legendary she's described as the most powerful entity on this planet, a god with no equal. It's the home of Rayquaza," Latios declared in a thundering telepathic voice, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "If Teams Aqua and Magma want to go around causing destruction across Hoenn while carrying out a plan that could potentially destroy the world, then fine. If they're way too powerful for us to handle them and there's nothing we can do to stop them ourselves? That's fine too. Because then I'm going to put them on a path to face a god so powerful there's nothing, absolutely nothing, they can do about it. I'm sure that Rayquaza will handle them."

"Whoa," Ash breathed out with widened eyes. "That sounds awesome."

Latias suddenly burst out laughing, causing everyone to turn to look at her. She threw her brother a very knowing look, a smirk slowly forming on her face. "Oh, Latios, Latios. Did you really have to be so overly dramatic when you're just telling us about it?" she questioned teasingly, her eyes sparkling with mirth. "That speech was worthy of a theatre presentation!"

Latios blushed in embarrassment. "He-hey! I wasn't being dramatic!" he protested.

"Yes, you were!" Latias called out, giggling in amusement.

Pikachu grinned, pointing at Latios with a paw. "You totally were! I'm with Latias on this one. I don't know who Rayquaza is but I'm fairly certain you didn't need such a dramatic speech to tell us about him."

Latios rolled his eyes, grumbling incoherently under his breath. "Fine. I just thought it'd sound cool."

Latias and Pikachu burst out laughing, while the rest of the group looked at the dragon with a bemused expression.

Ash couldn't help but shake his head, his Pokémon just never changed. "Anyway, I think I remember Rayquaza. You showed us an image of him back at Oldale Town after we rescued Professor Alden."

Latios nodded. "Yep, that'd be him." His eyes glowed as he gently inserted a mental image of Rayquaza into his friends' minds. "That's to refresh your memory, and also for Brock to see. If you guys recall, he was shown along with images of Groudon and Kyogre. That's because they're a trio of gods. Like I said earlier, they're responsible for the planet's creation. Rayquaza created the sky, Kyogre created the ocean, and Groudon created the land."

"All of that sounds good and all, but how can we be certain that Rayquaza will help us?" Brock questioned sharply. "I don't want to cast doubt on your plan, Latios. I just want to make sure you've got it covered because we don't have the best track record when it comes to meeting Legendaries."

"I can't exactly say for sure if he'll help us out or not," Latios admitted. "But something this grave that concerns both Groudon and Kyogre, two Legendaries Rayquaza is deeply related to, will definitely raise his attention. And, even if he doesn't help out, then we've done as much as we could by letting a higher power know of the existence of Teams Aqua and Magma. We can't do much else."

"Yeah, I agree on that," Latias said, gazing down thoughtfully. "Regardless if Rayquaza helps us out or not, we're making our contribution by exposing the teams to him and that's the most we can do." She let out a sigh. "But, do you even know how to get to Sky Pillar? Because I don't remember Ho-Oh telling us where Sky Pillar is, or… any other Legendary's home, for that matter. She was always very secretive about that topic, for some reason."

"I don't know where Sky Pillar is," Latios confessed with a sweatdrop. "But!" he added quickly as everyone turned to stare at him incredulously. "Ho-Oh told me that any dragon can find their way to Sky Pillar if they desire it. Latias and I are dragons. This means, if we desire it, we will be able to somehow feel our way to Sky Pillar. How does it work? I have no clue, but I trust Ho-Oh on that."

"I guess that works," Bianca commented with a shrug. "I like that plan. I'm not particularly eager to fight off two militarized organizations full of crazy zealots. I very much like the idea of telling this Rayquaza about it and leaving it to him."

"I agree," Brock spoke up, nodding once. "While it's a bit rude that we're essentially dumping the problem on Rayquaza, if he's every bit of what you say Ho-Oh told you about him, then Team Aqua and Team Magma should be no problem for him."

"Yeah, I can agree to that too. So, once we leave Rustboro City, we're going to Sky Pillar to tell Rayquaza about what's going on, and then we resume our Hoenn journey?" Ash questioned, glancing at the blue dragon for confirmation.

Latios nodded and smiled. "That's correct."

"Count me in, then," Ash responded.

"Yeah, likewise," Pikachu agreed. "I'm sick and tired of villainous teams and having to deal with them, so it would be nice for someone else to do the dirty work for a change."

"Let's do that, then," Latias approved. "No clue how we're getting to Sky Pillar because I don't even know how I'm supposed to sense my way there, but I trust you on that, Latios."

"Thanks," Latios replied gratefully. "I'll do my best."

"I know you will," Bianca said kindly. "So, when do we depart for this Sky Pillar place?"

"I still want to visit Steven and Joseph at Devon before we leave," Ash spoke up. "So, let me do that tomorrow. Then we'll see."

"Oh, you'll be busy tomorrow? That's fair. Then I'll probably go and spend the day at the Pokémon Trainer's School with Roxanne, to help her sort things out," Brock informed them. "Plus, I have to stock up on supplies as we're kind of depleted after going through Petalburg Woods."

"I think I'll go with you, Brock," Bianca said. "An extra pair of hands could be useful for supplies. Plus, the school's nice."

"Thanks, Bianca," Brock replied appreciatively. "I guess that's that." He stayed still for a moment and then yawned loudly. "We should probably go to sleep."

"Yeah, I'm tired after such a long day," Ash agreed, stretching his arms lazily. "Now that we've discussed everything, I could use some sleep."

"Latias and I literally just woke up from a long nap," Latios said flatly.

"Well, you two did, but the rest of us haven't slept and it's late," Bianca shot back. "It's almost one. You two should still rest through the night if you can, it'll do you good."

"I agree with that." Latias smiled at her sibling. "Even if we don't fall asleep, just laying down and taking it easy for the night will do. Hopefully, we can nap a bit."

Ash nodded. "Well, we've got stuff to do tomorrow. So, let's hit it."

Bianca stood up, walked over to where both dragons were levitating, and gently caressed both of them on the head affectionately. "Hey, Latios, Latias. Thanks again for saving us all, you two are awesome."

Latios leaned down and nuzzled his cheek against hers. "You're welcome, Bianca," he responded gently.

"Anytime," Latias added with a soft coo.

Bianca yawned and headed over to her bed, kicked off her shoes, and laid down on it. Latios and Latias made their way to another bed, though they had a bit of trouble fitting on it comfortably. Ash made his way to his bed, where he tucked himself in along with Pikachu. Once everyone was settled, Brock turned off the lights and clumsily made his way over to his bed.

"Good night, everyone!" Ash called out as he turned around and closed his eyes.

Everyone else responded with their own goodnight wishes, preparing to go to sleep as well.

…

"Good night, everyone!" the young trainer's voice echoed along with those of several others shortly after the room's lights had gone dark.

A serene atmosphere permeated the night that fell on the hotel room once everyone had gone to sleep, with the only occasional sound that pierced the nocturnal silence being the soft breezes. On top of the hotel's roof, a Murkrow was roosted patiently near the window of the room that Ash's group was occupying. The dark-type waited for several minutes above the window, and once it was clear that the group had indeed gone to sleep, it spread its wings and took off.

The Murkrow quietly flew away from the towering hotel, easily blending into its surroundings thanks to its dark plumage, leaving it unseen in the night sky. It kept flying away, eventually exiting the city's boundaries and entering its sprawling countryside. Once it had reached a peculiar spot, it suddenly stopped in midair. It looked ahead at something invisible, something that nearly no mortal could ever hope to sense or know it was there. But the Murkrow was no mere mortal.

In front of the diminutive dark-type avian lay the edge of a thin shield of ethereal power that spread vast across the landscape, with its epicenter being the group it had just been spying on. Without any further thought other than being cautious, the Murkrow flew ahead and passed through it without disturbing the shield in the slightest.

Once it was out, the Murkrow swiftly dove to a nearby tree and landed on one of its branches. Its unfocused eyes returned to normal as a ghastly purple-colored aura began to exit from its body. The Murkrow let out several petrified screeches and frantically flapped its wings, taking off into the sky and darting away to hide among the treetops.

The aura that emerged from the dark-type began to coalesce together, taking on the form of a large ghost-type Pokémon with deep red eyes. The Gengar swiveled and looked at the barely-perceptible shield that he had just gone through, eyeing it with a careful expression as if waiting for something to happen. After all, one had to be careful when dealing with the craft of deities.

As the night remained still and near-lifeless, the Gengar faded into nothingness and teleported away.

…

The Gengar reappeared inside a pitch-black room. The moment the ghost materialized into it, several torches on hollowed-out sections of towering pillars ignited into life. The brazen illumination revealed a vast room covered with countless hieroglyphics of an ancient tongue on its old and decayed amber-colored walls, and a formidable statue resembling a human holding a staff predominantly rising from floor to ceiling on the far end of the immense room. An elegant but cracked stone throne lay at the statue's feet.

"Greetings," the Gengar spoke up, bowing his head respectfully. "My King."

Atop the throne, an ominous spirit suddenly appeared with a whirl of dark magic. The spirit looked at the Gengar, a distinct flicker of excitement coursing through him.

Chapter 26 End

Author Notes: And that concludes the chapter! I hope you all had fun reading it! Remember, I have a DISCORD SERVER with over 130 members at the moment, if you want to join our community of fanfiction enthusiasts, head over there! Link is on my profile!

And, lastly, don't forget to leave a REVIEW with your thoughts! I'd love to hear them!