PROLOGUE

SAPPHIRE'S POV

Darkrai and Eclipse were finally gone.

There would be no more murders occuring in the Pokemon world, at least, Sapphire hoped. With Storm still around, she wasn't so sure.

Anger burned through her paws as she watched the humans finally say their goodbyes and leave forever. She was surprised, of course, over what had just happened, but her thoughts weren't focused on all that.

They were focused on Storm, and how he was the one to kill Shade.

She felt a small strike of sadness that she'd never apologize to Daisy and become her friend again. It was foolish of her to pin the blame on her best friend, but she needed someone to blame, and Daisy was the one to tell her of his death.

I remember when I used to be so cheerful and bubbly, Sapphire thought. So much has happened since... The Espeon flexed her claws and stomped back to the Guild without looking back. One day, she was going to kill Storm. She was going to get her revenge for Shade's death. There was no more pain, only anger.

"Well," a voice spoke from next to her. "That was...interesting, to say the least."

Sapphire turned her head to nod at her partner, Ruby, although she wasn't even thinking of that now. It was as if what had just happened was so shocking her mind couldn't even comprehend it.

"I'm not sure what to think, honestly," Ruby continued. "It all happened so fast... Daisy, River, Swift, Eclipse, Night...they're all gone. It's going to screw up most of the rescue teams."

Sapphire thought for a moment. It would really only affect Skye, Blast, and Haunter. The question was, would they find another team or be forced to leave the Guild?

"You okay?" Ruby's annoying voice continued to interrupt her daydreaming, which was something she did frequently now. The Espeon constantly had to be snapped awake during it, which put her in a bad mood. Then again, nowadays she was always in a dreadful mood.

"What do you think, Ruby?" Sapphire replied, rolling her eyes and pointedly turning her head the other direction. "That's a stupid question."

The Togetic let out an exasperated huff and walked away, obviously not attempting to talk to her partner anymore. They were slowly drifting apart, but it wasn't the fault of Sapphire. Everything that happened should be blamed on Darkrai, Storm, Eclipse, Thunder, and Stream. But of course, Eclipse redeemed himself in the end. He risked his life to save the worlds, something Sapphire wasn't sure she was capable of doing.

The Espeon walked over to the table and pulled up a chair, feeling a slight pang in her heart when she realized that Flame wasn't coming back. She was no longer the leader Sapphire remembered who had accepted her into the Guild all those months ago.

She scanned her eyes around the Guild, taking note of all the tension in the air. It was more silent than it had ever been; even Golden wasn't talking or sending rescue teams out on missions. Everyone would be taking a day to themselves, she guessed.

Sapphire was afraid for Skye, who was nowhere to be seen. She probably went back to her room with Moon. This was a lot to take in, especially for them.

Right now, the Guild almost seemed deserted, with only a few rescue teams. Those who were on the first floor either weren't talking at all or speaking in hushed whispers. This was the worst it had ever been during Sapphire's time here. Hopefully, it would only be like this for a few days before the Guild went back to normal and everything would be alright again.

However, she didn't think she would ever go back to normal. Not since Shade...

Sapphire shook her head, her eyes flashing. Shade was making her go insane.

"Sapphire, I've been calling your name for the past five minutes! Where've you been?" a voice sighed exasperatedly from right next to her, and Sapphire instantly recognized the voice of Blast.

Blast, who was in Shade's rescue team... No! Stop thinking about Shade!

But another side of her couldn't stop thinking about him. Either that, or she just didn't want to stop thinking about him.

"Oh, uh, I'm sorry, I'm just thinking, that's all," she said in a rush.

"Sapphire, you've been like this ever since Shade died," Blast snapped. Right after he said it, he knew it had been the wrong thing to say.

Her fur bristled until she looked twice her size, and her eyes narrowed furiously until all she seemed to see was red. "Don't you dare say his name!"

"You're right, I'm sorry," Blast said awkwardly, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. "I know you're sad about him and all, and I am too... But you're taking it out on others, and that's not how you deal with losing someone."

"Since when did you know so much about coping with death? You've been nothing but a weakling ever since you joined the Guild; oh yeah, what are you even gonna do now that Team Waterfall is gone? Roam around until you die?"

Blast winced and looked away. Sure, Sapphire knew she had probably gone too far, but he crossed the line when he mentioned Shade.

"You don't know me," the Squirtle said quietly. "You don't know what it's been like for me. Shade was like family to me, and now he's gone. You only had a small crush on him! Not only that, I don't have my team anymore. You have no idea what that feels like! His death changed my life. I'm a completely different Pokemon now. So you have no right to call me a weakling when I lost much more than you ever did!"

After he spoke the last word, that was it for Sapphire. No more pain. No more anger. No more emotions. She simply felt nothing. She glared at him once before walking away and not looking back.

That night, Sapphire lay curled up in bed without having spoken to her partner all day. Maybe this was it for their friendship; she didn't know. Maybe this was it for her friendships with anyone. Without Shade, she didn't know who she was. A stupid crush Blast had said? No, it was much more than that. If it was just a stupid crush, it wouldn't have changed her life like this.

She shut her eyes tight. Usually, she was out like a light. But this time, it took her a few hours before she managed to drift off.


She woke in a dark forest, the trees looming above her as if they were about to attack at any moment. Sapphire took a step forward, a leaf crunching underneath her. She looked around in puzzlement. Usually, she rarely had any dreams, and definitely not one that seemed so vivid. What was this?

The sound of bushes rustling nearby made her fur stand on end and her eyes widen, alert. She waited a few moments, but nothing came out.

"Who's there?" Sapphire demanded. "I can hear you!"

The next thing that happened nearly made her fall over in shock. Beware... a familar feminine voice whispered in her ear. No matter how familiar it was, she couldn't pinpoint who had said it.

Then she heard a different feminine voice. Beware of the four...

Don't let them change you...

You have to get rid of them before it's too late...

The world is unbalanced...

It was never supposed to end like this...

"What's going on?!" Sapphire shrieked, crouching on the forest floor as fear flashed through her. "Who are you and what are you talking about?" This is just a dream, this is just a dream... she thought to herself over and over again; besides, how could something terrible be happening so soon after Darkrai? Didn't the Guild deserve a moment of peace?

Luckily, the voices had stopped, but Sapphire's fear hadn't subsided. She knew she would never forget this dream.

And no matter how many times she tried to convince herself it was just a nightmare, she knew it was something much more than that.

Something terrible was coming.