I honestly thought that it was the end of the world when flaming blue fireballs the size of comets rained down upon Castelia City.

Even darkrai seemed afraid of whatever was trying to bring upon the end of the world onto us, but by some stroke of good luck the city remained untouched other than being enveloped in searing heat. Whatever being that unleashed that hellfire had changed the weather in an instant, it has to be on the level of a legendary pokemon.

Given that we are in Unova, the only pokemon that came to my mind was Reshiram.

I'm sure that everyone in Castelia was acting like I did after we realised that we were saved by an act of miracle. We looked up to see what had happened and all I could spot was a small creature approximately the size of a ponyta putting itself in harm's way for us and somehow floating in the sky, an enormous amount of power emitting from the horn on its head as the power lengthened and took on the form of a giant sword. Castelia City is currently being covered by some sort of translucent barrier and it is obvious that this small ponyta-like pokemon had saved the entire city and its occupants.

Outside the protective barrier was a huge pokemon flying high up above the clouds. It's really too high up for me to get a proper look but I assumed that was Reshiram based on the vague outline I could make out from my position on the ground. Reshiram was obviously the aggressor, and in front of it stood three other quadrupedal pokemon who each also manifested a frightening amount of power to take on the form of a sword.

They have to be the legends that reside in Unova, the Swords of Justice.

The battle high above resumed and more flaming comets were dropped indiscriminately. The small blue ponyta-like pokemon swung its horn and that mysterious sword it wielded obliterated the comets before its destruction could even touch the gigantic barrier or affect the city below. I wasn't aware that the Swords of Justice had four members instead of the three that the legends spoke about, but it was obvious that the smallest and fourth unknown member had taken on the role to defend the city while the other three that Unovans are more familiar with engaged Reshiram in combat.

Honestly, I don't see how I could contribute to this battle beyond standing here and watching the events play out on its own. I wasn't there at the Battle of Olivine to witness legends at work but I had a feeling whatever happened back then was similar to what is happening now. You could do nothing but watch when legendary titans who wield powers that could destroy the world duke it out among themselves.

Even darkrai seemed reluctant to join the battle, simply content to remain here as an observer.

"Sup?"

I instinctively lashed out with my dagger towards the sudden presence of a voice who had snuck up to both darkrai and I without our knowledge. My strike found nothing but I saw who it was who had approached me from my blind spot. Yasuhira stood a few metres away with his face still in that usual bored and lethargic look that always seemed to be there. His castform is by his side as per usual.

"Sorry about sneaking up on you like that. Some habits are impossible to kick," Yasuhira apologised with a somewhat sheepish look on his face. He didn't even spare darkrai a glance, as if meeting a mythical pokemon was commonplace to him. "Um, just wondering if you know where Aline and Aaron are?"

"Weren't they with you?"

"I had to go run a last minute errand and when I returned to the place we were at I found it turned into a smoking crater," Yasuhira scratched his head cluelessly as we both observed the unworldly battle taking place up ahead. "Man, how troublesome. I had honestly hoped things wouldn't turn into something like this. We just can't have good things in life, don't we?"

"You are an elder. If you have any good ideas on how we can stop Ghetsis and Reshiram I'm all ears."

"That doesn't look like Reshiram to me," Yasuhira stated hesitantly as he squinted his eyes to get a better look. "I mean, it is Reshiram, but I don't think it's supposed to look like that."

"Artificial enhancement? Like they did with genesect?"

"Doesn't seem like a cyborg to me… or any weird science shit for that matter. I could be wrong though, the world is becoming a crazier and crazier place with each passing day," Yasuhira dramatically lamented before releasing two more pokemon out of their pokeballs, a slaking and an exploud. Seems that he is a Normal Specialist.

"Alright youngster, let me teach you a few things while I'm at it. When a battle erupts at a location that you really do not want it taking place at, always- and I mean always- find a way to relocate it. Speaking from personal experience here," Yasuhira pointed up at the sky then at the city. It was obvious that the battle was taking place a little too close to the city for it to be safe. "It doesn't matter how you do it; luring the aggressors away, beating them back, forceful relocation, whatever. A pokemon battle and war are two very different things and so they have to be handled differently. Do you know why people call me the Uncrowned Hero of Ever Grande?"

"Oh enlighten me, esteemed elder," I sarcastically answered, knowing that the whole point of him asking me this was because he simply wanted to show off if the way our very first meeting panned out was any indication. This immortal can be quite the braggart even if his bragging rights had to be well-earned..

"Since you so humbly asked," Yasuhira gave me a wide grin and turned back to the battle ahead, "it's because none of Ever Grande's enemies ever stepped foot on Ever Grande's soil for as long as I'm there. Literally not one single step."

A strange power began to be emitted from Yasuhira's pokemon, powerful enough to visibly warp the area that we were in. It's something that I had never seen before.

"This is…"

"My specialty: Secret Power."

The legendary pokemon fighting high up above instantly vanished but it was easy to figure out where they had been relocated to when a huge and incredibly hot blast of energy could be felt from the direction of the sea at the southern end of Castelia City. Yasuhira had relocated the site of the battle taking place between four legendary pokemon from the skies above the city to the sea regardless of their will.

"Secret Power can do that?" I questioned because what Yasuhira demonstrated had shattered my worldview. Secret Power is a very rare move to encounter because its practitioners are very few in number. They are also highly secretive and the secrets of this move are very zealously guarded by them. They are very selective of who they chose to pass down the secrets of this move to but as far as the world is aware Secret Power is not useful in combat. Its effects are highly dependent on the terrain where the battle is held and its main usefulness is creating spaces within objects, an aspect of it that was only made public to the world after Hoenn had resolved the Team Magma and Aqua crisis because that was how they hid from the Hoenn League in plain sight for so many years.

Furthermore, this is a move that's only largely relevant in the Hoenn region because that's where the move originated from. Hoenn had been very careful in preventing the secrets of this move from leaking out beyond its borders. There likely are still practitioners of Secret Power outside of Hoenn, but there's too few of them for anyone to pay any attention to them.

However, what Yasuhira's pokemon just did with Secret Power was not just merely creating space from out of thin air, but more like the manipulation of space such that he's able to instantly relocate anyone he wished to move to wherever he wants to. That's a very scary power to have.

"How else did you think Opelucid came out of the attack with so many survivors? It's because I was there," Yasuhira proudly claimed. "I wasn't conferred the title of Strength for nothing. I am powerful. Castform, revert the weather to what it originally was."

Castform howled and the blistering temperature that Reshiram subjected Castelia City to swiftly cooled back to normal. Far ahead at the southern sea I could see storm clouds gathering with hurricanes and thunder inbound, no doubt the work of the unassuming castform hovering by Yasuhira's side.

"I want wind and thunder to clip its wings, snowstorm to freeze its flames."

Castform visibly manipulated the weather per the wishes of its trainer. Bolts of lightning repeatedly struck Reshiram's wings with unholy accuracy and while Reshiram was powerful enough to cause the lightning to bounce off some sort of barrier that was conjured with its mystical power, it was still powerful enough to serve as a useful distraction for the Swords of Justice to take advantage of to overpower it. A powerful snowstorm soon arrived to engulf the legendary dragon and Reshiram made it disappear with its power to control fire, but that distraction created an opportunity for terrakion to slash at it with its sword.

"Regrettably, it's a little too difficult to assist any further than this. My pokemon are after all, not legendary pokemon," Yasuhira rubbed his chin in thought. "The only entity in Unova that probably stood a chance of stopping Reshiram is Zekrom. It's kind of weird how it still hasn't arrived. You'd thought that it would be awoken from its slumber with such a din going on."

A huge shadow being casted on us prompted us to look up. We saw Aline arriving on the back of a very familiar looking volcarona that I really do not want to see a second time in my life. The only reason that I'm not freaking out was because Aline was its rider, which meant that the volcarona is not hostile. I do not need to be a genius to know that Tarot had not only captured, but tamed this overgrown moth. Aaron's with her too from what I could see.

"Sorry, my bad. Might have played around a little too much," Aaron apologised with a sheepish look on his face the moment he touched down with Aline. "Not sure what crazy science shit Ghetsis did but he somehow managed to fuse Kyurem and Reshiram into one. Think he called it White Kyurem."

"That's two dragons in one? Huh, no wonder castform's Thunder didn't have the power it usually does," Yasuhira remarked. "But if they could be fused together does that mean they can be separated? I mean, according to Unova legends Reshiram and Zekrom were one and the same before they split into two, or three if we want to be more accurate."

"Why does this sound like Zapmolcuno," I muttered under my breath. This time, the overgrown baby is not here to help.

"They were defeated because Ho-oh and Lugia were there, they are Zapmolcuno's natural nemesis. Unova dragons don't have such a nemesis to keep them in check. The Swords of Justice are fighting a losing battle," Aline shook her head. "It would be too foolish to count on Zekrom to appear to defend Unova and there's no guarantee that it would be White Kyurem's match. Our best bet is to figure out what caused Kyurem and Reshiram to fuse and undo the process. Hopefully the fusion is not permanent."

"Where's Colress or the doc when you need them? This is exactly the kind of thing we need them for!" Aaron exclaimed before he froze, then quickly turned to look in a faraway direction.

"Aline? I think you jinxed it."

A powerful bolt of blue lightning zipped past the skies and crashed into White Kyurem. The last and third dragon from Unova's legends announced its presence with a resounding roar as it brought the thunder along. Zekrom, the Dragon of Ideals, is here to defend Unova.

"Someone's riding it."

"That's Team Plasma's King, or more like someone who used to be their King," Aline scoffed, obviously knowing much more than I was let in on. "Not sure if I should call him an unfortunate victim or a naive fool."

"Think they can beat White Kyurem?" Aaron asked nobody in particular.

"Honestly? No, not without help," Yasuhira disagreed before turning to look at the other two elders while bringing out two other pokeballs now held in his hand. "Should I?"

"There's too many watching eyes. It's going to cause an international scene if you use them," Aline reminded him with a slight frown on her face and I still have no idea what they were talking about. "We are here to help solve Fool's problems, we are not here to create more problems."

"Yeah but Fool wanted us to get rid of Team Plasma, and how else are we going to stop that? Only a legend can take on another legend but the dragons are in an entirely different league from the Swords of Justice and White Kyurem is the fusion of two of the original three. Zekrom doesn't stand a chance."

"You-! Argh, whatever. Explain this to Fool yourself," Aline sighed in frustration and it was obvious she had given up on persuading him. She still didn't forget to shoot a glare of warning my way though. I got her hint immediately.

"My mouth is sealed," I promised. I have so many questions that need answering but the priority here is to ensure that Ghetsis does not burn down the entire region through White Kyurem. Everything else can wait.

"Your show, Yasu," Aaron's smile was from ear to ear, his anticipation of the performance that the Uncrowned Hero of Ever Grande would put up clear for us to see. Yasuhira stepped up and took out a necklace he wore around his neck, a necklace he fashioned to hold what I recognised was a Key Stone.

The two pokeballs that Yasuhira held in his hand began to glow a rainbow hue and I watched in mild shock. I never knew Mega Evolution could be initiated when the pokemon in question is still in their pokeball. Yasuhira threw them towards the sea and a bright flash of light revealed two pokemon I had never seen before. I didn't even catch a good glimpse of them because they were so fast and had flown off towards the site of the battle ahead even before Yasuhira gave a single command.

"What was that?" I cannot help but ask.

"The Eon duo, Latios and Latias. Well, Mega Latios and Mega Latias in this case," Aaron helpfully informed. "Ever wondered why they hadn't been sighted for about two centuries or so? It's because Yasu caught them."

"No wonder you guys said it will cause an international scene. The Hoenn League will be making an uproar over this," I agreed with Aline's point that was previously made and then suddenly realised that there's one other impossibility that I had overlooked.

"Mega Evolving more than one pokemon at the same time is possible?"

Forget that, I didn't even know the Eon duo were able to undergo Mega Evolution. I don't even want to think just what lengths Yasuhira went to undercover that secret and made this possible.

"He's Yasu," Aaron shrugged as if this was perfectly normal and the conversation ended there. I believed that they weren't all too interested in sharing the details with me, but if legendary pokemon are indeed capable of undergoing Mega Evolution then maybe Mewtwo had the right idea all along. That annoying baby was captivated at the idea of Mega Evolution and it was what prompted him to travel to Kalos when we went our separate ways. He might actually be able to work something out.

"Watch and learn. It's not everyday that Yasu has to fight seriously and he's one of the strongest trainers in Tarot alongside Fool and Emperor, it will be good exposure for you," even Aline seemed to be feeling generous today given the advice she imparted to me, one that felt very sincere.

"Hey, what about me? I'm pretty strong too," Aaron pointed at himself, apparently upset that he had been left out.

Aline's only answer was to signal her monstrous volcarona to slap him away from her with a beat of its wings.


The research facilities at Area Zero are buzzing with activities as always, not like he expected any less from the passionate scientists and researchers who made it their life's goal to unravel the mysteries of paradox pokemon, an admirable goal that he could respect.

"S-S-Sir!" Someone had obviously recognised him despite very rarely coming here himself, not like he was trying to conceal his presence in the first place but it was still awfully heartwarming that someone did remember him.

"Sorry to intrude on your work, but I have a Level 10 emergency on my hands and I require-" a deafening crash punctuated with a bombastic electrical explosion could be heard detonated somewhere outside nearby this particular research facility at that very moment, shaking the land with it. Only one person in Area Zero would be capable of something like that.

"...her," the messenger wearing a frightening mask with a haunting skull painted on it blandly completed his sentence. "The La Primera requested for her," he elaborated before realising that maybe he should be clearer in his words and quickly added, "the first La Primera."

"I-I will get her," the research assistant nodded frantically. The first La Primera? The founding Champion of their region? T-T-That's… an absolute honour!

The messenger wasn't kept waiting for long. The girl came crashing in like a hurricane minutes later, she still hasn't changed one single bit.

"This better be important, old man!" The slender girl with her short messy dark brown hair cut into a bob obviously wasn't in the best of mood. The jacket that the tomboy usually wears over her shirt was slightly tattered from whatever she and her pokemon were tussling with earlier and even her jeans now have holes in them. The trainer clothes she wore were made with the best technology the region could offer that are incredibly tear resistant, an indication of how dangerous it could be out there in Area Zero even for a trainer like her.

"The pokemon at Area Zero are acting up again and you know how it's like when they get into one of their moods! I had to deal with tyranitars today, thirteen tyranitars! And don't get me started on the Iron Jugulis that they riled up! Taking me out like that is going to severely strain our manpower resource!"

"La Primera requests for your assistance in other matters."

"Geeta?" The girl made a very uncouth universal hand gesture using a certain finger on her hand. "Oh come on, just tell her to shove a stick up her-"

"The first La Primera."

The air between them fell silent for a short second before the tomboy exploded in excitement.

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?! Come come come, let's get going-"

"She authorised you to take Miraidon and your team of paradox pokemon with you for this mission. Leave your standard team here, they won't be enough to go up against what La Primera wanted you to put down."

The tomboy's head whipped around to stare up at the much taller messenger, her facial expression now one of concern.

"What the hell's going on?"

"Strength needs assistance. Fool decided that things are serious enough to warrant sending you over."

"Strength? You gotta be kidding-"

"He's up against a fusion of Unova's Kyurem and Reshiram."

"... You mean White Kyurem? Might have read about it somewhere in one of those history books but I never paid much attention to those…" The tomboy rubbed the back of her head with an irritated frown when she failed to drag out that piece of information from her mind but that did not bother her for long. "Okay, I get it. Give me ten minutes to assemble my paradox team and change into a new set of clothes."

The tomboy ran off and the messenger flicked an object at her with his fingers that she reflexively caught between her index and middle finger before she could disappear like the wind.

"Don't lose it this time," the messenger helpfully reminded the forgetful girl who had a tendency to misplace her belongings. The girl smirked as she held up the card in her hands- her very own card- liking very much the picture of the opened eye that represents the organisation that she belongs to.

"Got it, old man," the girl mock saluted him before running off for real this time, the other side of the card she's holding depicting a moon hanging overhead that represented her title in Tarot.

"It's Death to you, brat."

"More like I will be the Death of you old man!" Moon's cheerful laugh could still be heard as she turned around the corner and left, making the aged messenger shake his head in fond exasperation. It's moments like these that he felt fortunate to have joined Tarot under his master's suggestion. It felt good to be human again rather than to be a disposable tool.

"Sir…?" One of the many researchers and scientists who had remained in the area and kept their silence in blatant curiosity in hopes of observing the Cards of Tarot up close finally mustered up the courage to speak to him. "Isn't White Kyurem… Will she be okay?"

"She's special. La Primera made her the Moon of Tarot for that same reason, because she's the only person who could command Miraidon."

"Um, yeah, but…" The researcher felt a little braver when he found the esteemed Death so friendly and approachable. "Pardon me for my ignorance, but I heard that White or Black Kyurem is an existence that pretty much puts it up there among the likes of the Creation Trio. I'm not too sure if Miraidon can stand up to that."

"If it's Miraidon alone, no," Death agreed, "but if it's that tomboy and Miraidon along with her paradox pokemon, that's a different story."

Death wasn't surprised at the researcher's question and his apparent hesitance. Everyone here at Area Zero knows Moon, that she is an absurdly powerful trainer with skills to match Champions and is a vital reason why they could safely study the wild paradox pokemon in detail. She beats them back whenever they start to go on another of one of their frenzied rages and her skills was why she was tasked with Area Zero's security and rarely interfered in Tarot's main operations in the PWL regions.

What many people do not know were her origins and secrets. If they knew what he knew, they wouldn't be asking those questions. While Strength is undisputedly one of the strongest trainers in the organisation alongside people like Fool and Justice and Emperor, that's only if you consider the firepower that they possess. For the girl, that shortfall is easily remedied when she's allowed to use Miraidon and is where her talent will truly shine.

A girl who had hardwired every known battling style and tactics of every Champion in history into her brain, where else in this world can you find such an individual? Even Fool had trouble believing her claim when they first met and she's someone who had seen a great many things, but apparently something unimaginable like this was pretty normal from where Moon came from.

Well, it's not like she can go back to her home anymore, something that he could fully sympathise with and which was perhaps why Death always had a little soft spot for her when he was tasked by his master to help her adjust to her new home here when she first arrived. It's the main reason why they have such a close relationship now.

"Guess it's time for us to go," Death said to nobody in particular when he heard the signature whirr and thunder outside the research facility that is unique to Miraidon. Moon had always been an impatient girl with a competitive streak. The opportunity for her to test herself against the might of Unova's legends must have been too enticing for her to keep still.

Come to think about it, he hadn't had the chance to inform Moon about their master's orders to her for this mission.

Never mind, he can do that on their way there.


Name: Jayce Dandolos

Age: 23

Pokemon Team:

1. Ninetales, female

2. Exeggutor, male

3. Weavile, male

4. Honchkrow, female

5. Umbreon, male

6. Hydreigon, male

7. Drapion, female

8. Zoroark, male

9. Bisharp, male

10. Shiftry, male

11. Porygon-Z, (Nosy), genderless

12. Greninja, male

13. Spiritomb, male

14. Pikachu, (Grumpy), male