The ground began shaking violently, as vast swathes of mountain were swallowed up into the darkness.

"It seems as though you have another visitor…" Dialga sighed, lowering its head. "What makes you so special, to dredge him up here, I wonder."

"Why, a bet of course." The new voice growled. Deep and rattling, like chains soaked in honey, the last of the sky's light conceded as this new deity made its presence known. Eight enormous wings slowly arched out of a hole in the ground, meeting together at a long, serpentine body of red and grey stripes. Two piercing red eyes poked out from a yellow husk, one that looked like those masks bad people wore in scary movies.

"I'll happily oblige," It said, glowing eyes staring right through Sparky.

"Who… what are you?" She gasped, her voice strangled to a whisper. Shivering so viciously that her teeth were already hurting, she forced herself to look this thing in the eye. Its mere presence made her want to scream and run for the hills.

"I am the 'other' one." It growled slowly. "The one no one dares speak of. For I seal their fate…"

A sharp, unshifting chill suddenly blew over Sparky. This must have been the gatekeeper. The one she had to convince.

"S-so you're…" Sparky mumbled.

"Yes," It answered for her. "I am the one who controls the afterlife."

Sparky's eyes widened, and the idea flickered. Like one of those neon signs down a dark alley, it seemed like maybe it was a bad idea? But definitely better than no idea...

"And you're saying you want to give me a… chance?" She gulped down. Whatever this thing was offering her, there was no way she was getting it for free.

"Seems fair to me." The beast said lightly. "I feel as though a wager is in order. It's been a while, after all."

"You are serious…?" Dialga huffed. "I had almost rid us of this pest, and now you show up, giving her incentive to stay with a promise you don't intent to keep…"

"What can I say?" The new deity chuckled. "I love a gamble."

"Oh, so upsetting the fragile balance between worlds is taboo, but perfectly fine when the mighty Giratina requests it?"

"…don't see why not?"

"Sickening." Dialga spat. "Going against His wishes and endangering the balance just to appease a bet?!"

"Eh, balance shmalance. We can fix it no biggie. Now we havin' fun or what?"

"Oh, Arceus above…"

"'Sides, it's only your world. Mine'll be fine. Heck, I'd probably enjoy the busi-"

"Enough." Dialga cut in. "This is not your dimension, Giratina. You have no authority here."

"Yet here I am. So… we're doing this?"

"No, we are not! I have nothing to gain from this and everything to lose!"

"But that's what makes it fun! And who knows? It might be fine?"

"Might?" Dialga snorted. "We are not about to-"

"That's right, kid!" Giratina suddenly swooped towards Sparky. "I'm offering you a once in a lifetime chance! Follow me and I shall explain all…"

The ghostly snake thing sunk back into its dark portal, maintaining its gaze with Sparky. "You coming or what? Time's a wasting."

Sparky swallowed heavily, glancing up at a fuming Dialga.

"I wouldn't." It didn't even look at her. "You might not come back out."

Giratina glared up at it. "I thought you wanted the kid out of your shrine? I'm doing the thing you want. Quit complaining already."

"…fine." Dialga turned away. "You've taken the world's fate into your own hands. And so I shall divorce myself from this fiasco."

"Works for me." Giratina 'shrugged' with its eight shadowy wings. "You coming, kid?"

"B-but Dialga said I might not come back?" Sparky's voice was barely a squeak.

"You wanna see your trainer or not?" The deity's eyes bounced.

"I… I can see Miss Holly?!" Sparky gasped, tears prickling at the corners of her eyes. Of all the impossible, outlandish things she'd heard today, this was the worst. It said it ran the underworld, yet also said she could see Miss Holly. It seemed too good to be true, and too good to pass up, both at once. Could she even trust this Giratina? Dialga didn't seem to. But then again, Dialga wasn't promising her she could see Miss Holly.

Sparky glanced into the shadowy depths. It was like someone had spilled a whole load of ink onto the mountaintop, and no matter how much she stared, she couldn't see anything beyond the surface.

"Ready to take control of your fate?" Giratina said, its voice suddenly warm and inviting. Dialga let out a short huff in the background.

Sparky looked away from the inky portal. Rough flagstones met her gaze. What did she even have to lose? Turn Giratina down, then just go back to Candice and wait for this 'friend' of hers? What good was that going to do? Just exist somewhere else, knowing she could've had a chance to change everything?

Even if Giratina was lying to her, she wasn't going to accomplish anything by just standing there. At the very least she was getting off of this mountain. Throwing her life away over absolutely nothing would suck, but there was that tiny niggle of uncertainty. Maybe it wasn't for nothing. Maybe the god of the underworld was being honest with her?

"…o-okay." Sparky shivered. Taking in a deep breath, she jumped into the empty, endless portal. A viscous cold gripped at her the moment she took the plunge, but if she were honest with herself, it was nothing compared to the blizzard. Or the boat. Or even the ride in the truck.

Floating downwards towards what she could only assume was the ground, she felt as though she could see for miles, yet at the same time could barely see in front of her eyes. Swallowed up by the gentle bluish glow, it felt like the world itself was depressed.

Except Giratina. It seemed delighted for some reason. Maybe it just wanted some company, Sparky chuckled inwardly.

"…so." It caught her gaze, swimming through the emptiness alongside her. "You know why you're here. Do you have any questions?"

"Um…" Sparky hesitated. "Y-you said my trainer is in here, right?"

"That's right."

"Why… why can't I see her?"

"Because we're not there yet."

"…oh. I-is she happy here?"

"Bit of a sticky question there…" Giratina frowned. "When living things pass away, their souls return to the planet, and they leave their emotions at the door, so to speak. Until they're reassigned, that is."

"Re… reassigned?"

"Uh huh. Think of this place as like a waiting room. Depending on the host's behaviour during their lifetime, their soul is eventually reassigned to an appropriate new life. Like, an average, uneventful life would probably get reassigned into another average, uneventful life. Your trainer, on the other hand…"

Sparky's heart twisted. If was as if Giratina had reached in there and grabbed a hold.

"…bit of a mixed bag, I'll be honest." It sighed.

"H-how do you mean?" Sparky said.

"Well, put it this way. Your trainer had qualities across the board. She worked her hardest to provide for her three high maintenance Pokémon, despite a whole lot of nothing happening in her life. But then again, she also took her life. And I gotta be honest, that last one is frowned upon."

"B-but why's that so bad?" Sparky mumbled.

"How would you feel, if you gave someone an amazing gift, and they just threw it back at you?" Giratina said.

"B-but she didn't throw her life away! She was forced to do it!" Sparky cried.

"And you know that for certain?" Giratina's hollow eyes narrowed. "I don't think you do, kid."

"But I know my trainer!" Sparky said. "S-she was always so nice to us, and did everything she could to make sure we were happy! She even made us poffins on the night… night before…"

Some semblance of land floated into view. The pair gently hovered towards a tiny island in the middle of the nothingness, landing softly on dying grass.

"Listen, kid. You don't know what your trainer was thinking that night."

"…a-and you do?" Sparky.

"Yes. I do." Giratina growled back at her, its voice dropping a notch lower. "That night, her mind was set on one thing only; a lifetime of existing, without living."

"…huh?" Sparky frowned. Weren't those the same thing?

"Put simply, she was tired of her life. She'd wake up on a miserable morning, look after her three Pokémon, sometimes escaping to go shopping. That was the highlight of her day, kid. Shopping. For bare essentials at that. Forget luxuries. No money coming in, no friends, no love interests… it's no wonder, really…"

"B-but…" Sparky stammered. "But she always looked so happy when she was with us! I remember her being happy all the time! A-are you telling me my memories are a lie?!"

"I don't need to, kid." Giratina said. "It's easy to pretend you're happy. No one asks difficult questions if you just sit there and smile."

Sparky sighed. Miss Holly sure did smile a lot. Were they all just pretend? How long had she been lying to them?

But then there was the cuts on her arms. And the tired look. And all the times she got mad for silly reasons, like when Socks left the front door open and a Venipede got into the house and started chewing on the coffee table. It all made sense now…

*Foooooop!*

A low, whistling noise punctured Sparky's thoughts. She glanced up to see that a railroad of all things had appeared out of nowhere.

"Perfect timing." Giratina chuckled. "Looks like you might get to see her after all."

Ominous red lights flashed back at the pair of them as a heavy metallic sound rumbled in. An expulsion of steam hissed out of nothingness, and the rest of the spooky creation followed after it – a ghostly contraption of connected metal hundreds of metres long. With an awful, screeching wail, the spectral strain howled to an eventual stop, and it belched out another bellyful of steam, shutting off its engines.

"Bit of an odd concept, I know." Giratina sighed. "This dimension is an unusual one. Existential perception is difficult for just anyone to grasp, so it's been structured in a way where it would appear in a form you'd better understand."

"…s-so it's not actually a train?" Sparky asked.

"No, in a word." Giratina said simply. "Reassigning souls doesn't have a definite form. Once a decision has been made, all they need to do is wait for an appropriate life to be made available.

"Wait… available?" Sparky queried. "S-so… it's like waiting for a movie, but there's a queue?"

"…I'm not sure I understand your wording, but it sounds like you get the idea." Giratina nodded.

"Uh huh," Sparky shivered. "And the train is because…?"

"I guess you like them or something?" Giratina said vaguely. "Anyway, here we are at a 'station', where a limited number of appropriate souls can be reassigned. Souls will be leaving the 'train' and passing through this station to their next life. Those who don't get off stay on until a suitable life opens up. Make sense?"

"So… the people getting off at this station," Sparky put two and two together. "They were good in their last lives?"

"The souls leaving the train right now led forgettable but overall 'good' lives, like I mentioned earlier." Giratina explained.

"Oh, so like shopkeepers?" Sparky just blinked.

"…yeah, something like that." Giratina nodded, just as the train door swung open with a silent whoosh.

Before their eyes, living essences of people and Pokémon began to dismount the train. Their faces were lifeless and empty as they simply made their way to their next lives. Despite the blank faces, they themselves couldn't be more different: a businessman with overlarge glasses and a briefcase; a young woman with an apron over her long green dress, and her hair woven into a tight bun; a Raticate that seemed to be missing its whiskers; a teenage girl helping a younger boy safely down from the train…

"Remember how I said souls are blank slates?" Giratina said, as Sparky watched the pair of them. "Occasionally personality does slip through. Those two were together in death, so it only makes sense that they're together in the afterlife, doesn't it?"

"H-how-"

"Car crash." Giratina deadpanned. "Humans and their technology. All it does is speed up their deaths. The operator fell asleep at the wheel, and they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. He'll be getting off at the next stop."

"Wh-what's the next stop?" Sparky dared.

"Basically it's a huge grey area," Giratina said. "But if you've done something to annoy us, odds are you'll be getting off at that stop."

"S-so Miss Holly's getting off at this stop, right?" Sparky chittered, her voice higher than she wanted, but nerves were getting the better of her.

"…right?"

"Let's find out." Giratina's eyes flashed, and Sparky's heart gave an unpleasant wrench.

A Makuhita with a black eye and bloodied head,

An old lady dressed in some fancy looking bathrobe,

A Charmeleon with an extinguished tail...

And no one else.

"Hunh? Where's the rest?!" Sparky squeaked. "Miss Holly is getting off here… right?!"

Just as her name was mentioned, a ghostly visage appeared at one of the windows. There was the same blank expression as everyone else, but Sparky could recognise the long dark hair, the prominent cheeks and the oversized hoodie anywhere.

"Miss Holly! O-oh, she's okay!" Sparky cried.

"Not the words I'd use…" Giratina sighed.

But then the train whistled again, and sickly bile surged in Sparky's stomach.

*Foooop!*

"Wha?!" She shrieked, scrambling towards the train as its engines kicked back into life. "B-but Miss Holly! She's still on the train!"

"That she is." Giratina deadpanned. "You expected her to get off? Here and now?"

"W-well yeah!" Sparky gasped, jumping about as much as she could. "Why wouldn't she?!"

"Maybe this isn't your trainer's stop?" Giratina sighed. "Also, stop doing that. It won't make any difference."

"H-how do you know?!" Sparky cried.

"I control this dimension, child." Giratina's eyes rolled. "Believe me when I say nothing will-"

"I can still try!" Sparky yelled back, putting her paws to her temples. Miss Holly was a memory, right? That was what Ros said. So maybe if she brought up some memories…

"Sparky! Chase these Pidove away with a Spark attack!"

Sparky sprang into action, coating herself in a surge of electricity and skating across the kitchen lino, spooking a flock of confused Pidove. Feathers scattered everywhere, and one crashed into the dining room door, but after a few moments of bemused flapping, the half a dozen Pidove scarpered out the window.

"…phew!" Holly wiped her brow. "Ohh, who's a good girl! You did so well, Sparky!"

"Sparky…"

"…Sparky?"

A distant, echoing voice dragged Sparky back from her daydream. She grunted and looked up, only to see Holly's ashen face staring her down. She was just as deadpan as ever, but definitely looking right at her with her empty, lifeless eyes.

Had Miss Holly heard her? Did her memories actually work?

Meanwhile, Giratina looked no less stunned. "…w-well what do you know? Looks like you made a difference."

"Uh huh! See?!" Sparky threw a paw at the ghostly mirage on the other side. "Now can she get off?! She doesn't belong there!"

"How can you be so sure, kid?" Giratina's eyes narrowed. "This place isn't exactly biased. If she's not getting off here, she isn't meant to. Like I said, we don't take self-termination lightly. Odds are she'll be getting off at the next-"

"Stop it!" Sparky raged. "I don't care what you think! My trainer doesn't belong there! She belongs back in the real world, in her kitchen, where we can make cookies and she can give me hugs!"

The train let loose another ominous whistle, as the carriage began to pull away.

"Huh?!" Sparky scrambled after it. "No no, wait! Waaaaiiiit!"

Picking up speed, the spectral train chugged down the tracks, leaving Sparky for dust. Stumbling across the tracks, Sparky fell to the ground and sobbed.

"She doesn't belong there…" She whimpered into the floor.

"Maybe you could save her?"

Those words rang with a clarity she could almost taste. But daren't. How could she save Miss Holly from a situation like this? A few days ago that was impossible, but now the lord of the underworld was telling her that maybe it wasn't?

"Wh… what do you mean?" Sparky sniffled, dragging herself into a sitting position at the edge of the tracks.

"Did I stutter?" Giratina's flashing eyes bounced. "Maybe you can save her. Now this is the part where you woo me with your finest offer."

"Offer…?" Sparky frowned. What could she possibly have that Giratina would want? She was just Sparky. "B-but I don't have anything to offer…"

"Now that's a pity, kid." Giratina's voice was low and dangerous again. "Because this is her stop."

*Fooooop!*

Sparky spun around, and once again the phantom train rattled past. How they had gotten to the next station was enough of a conundrum, but there was a bigger problem burning in Sparky's mind.

"…you knew this was gonna happen." She narrowed her eyes.

"Guilty as charged." Giratina 'smiled' from the depths of its soulless face. "Doesn't change anything though. Gonna offer me something? Time's a-wasting!"

The phantom train slowed to a heavy halt, and with the heavy scrape of a metal door sliding open, silent footfalls touched the ground.

"M-Miss Holly!" Sparky bolted upright and charged after what was once her trainer. "Miss Holly, don't go! I need you!"

"She's not the one you need to negotiate with, kid." Giratina chuckled emptily. "I am the ruler of this world, therefore I am the one you need to make a deal with. Got it?"

"Fine! Umm…" Sparky hesitated, stopping in front of her trainer, only for Holly to pass straight through her. Holly gave her a half a glance, but continued walking slowly towards a gate in the distance – several metres high, wrought with bars of spiky black iron.

She had to stop Miss Holly going through that gate. No matter what, she had to.

"Tick tock, kid." Giratina snarled behind its mask. "Tick… tock!"

"W-well what do you want?!" Sparky cried. "How am I supposed to know what the god of the underworld would like! I don't even have anything worth trading! And definitely not worth someone's life! Not even my-"

Her heart gave an almighty thud, twisting with realisation. If there was anything she'd learned from her time here, it was that all life was created the same. Souls – the dregs of life – were the equaliser, discarding their differences in the interest of renewal.

"…my soul."

"Your what?" Giratina asked, swooping closer.

"Oh c'mon, you heard me!" Sparky's eyes shone with resolve. "I-if I can save Miss Holly, you can have my soul. Is that good enough?"

"You do realise that, if I take your soul, you'll no longer-"

"Yes."

"…well then! It looks like we have a deal!"

A sheet of paper materialised out of nowhere, and fluttered down in front of Sparky, followed by a red crayon of all things.

"B-but I can't read this! What if it-" Sparky started.

"No time for small print, kid! You wanna save her or not?"

"O-o-okay! Sparky cried, snatching at the crayon. Nerves mountain, she wrestled the stick of wax between her paws, and scrawled across the paper. "…done! Now what?!"

"Heh." Giratina chuckled. The crayon and sheet of paper burst into flame. "Your fate has been sealed. And so has hers."

A flutter of white wings swooped down from above, attaching themselves to Holly by the shoulders. She didn't struggle at all as the wings raptured her away from the queue, and both disappeared into the distance.

"Is… is that supposed to happen?" Sparky swallowed her heart.

"Yup. Perfectly normal." Giratina hummed. "Alright kid, back to the surface world. Now we just gotta convince Dialga."

"You what?!" Sparky yelped, fear and rage colliding beneath the surface. "I thought this was a guarantee?!"

"Relax kid, they're a pushover." Giratina dismissed. The pair of them rose back up through the 'air' towards the surface world. All traces of land beneath Sparky quickly dissolved away into the dull bluish horizon, leaving the pair surrounded by endless black once again…

"You didn't…!"

Giratina floated, calm and unblinking, as a livid Dialga glared at it. "Just what did you promise this mortal?!"

"Relax, it'll be fiiiine." Giratina gave a strict deadpan. "It's not like it'll-"

"I don't care if it will work!" Dialga roared, exploding with energy. "You cannot promise a service that does not belong to you! How many times must you – ugh, you stupid, reckless-"

"Need I remind you that you're down 5-2?"

Dialga's eye twitched. "That's why you're doing this? To win a bet?"

"Yes. Weren't you listening earlier? That's like the whole reason I'm here."

Dialga's entire face contorted. "…fine!"

"You're in luck, kid." Giratina muttered to Sparky, as Dialga stared the pair of them down.

"As for you…" It seethed. "You have invaded my shrine, insulted Palkia and I on numerous occasions, and made a foolhardy deal with this," it glared in Giratina's direction. "However it seems you will get your wish after all…"

"I-I do?!" Sparky gasped, her eyes lighting up.

"Yes. Giratina, in their… haste, has decided to promise my abilities to just anyone, it seems. I think you shall agree that it is quite the nuisance!"

Sparky just nodded. She got the thing she wanted. Pushing her luck seemed like a bad idea.

"So um… what do we do now?" She mumbled.

"Just stay where you are…" Dialga said, its eyes closed. "I am reading your timeline."

"O-okay," Sparky said, and made the effort to stand still. By hook or by crook, she had made a deal with the gods. Now all she had to do was not mess up.

"…alright," Dialga opened its eyes at last. "I am ready."