"And, with a 6-4 victory in the finals, give it up for your 116th Kalos Pokemon League Tournament Winner, Emma Matiere!"
Marcus clapped with the rest of them - most of the rest, that is, for there were still a few boos from the audience at the ease with which she'd breezed through the tournament. The finals had been the only time she'd ever seemed really pressed, up against a strong Skuntank that had actually beaten her Florges one-on-one and a massive Mega Metagross (which had drawn an impressed reaction from Steven) that had been devilishly difficult for her Mega Mawile to defeat. Unfortunately for her opponent, the rest of his team wasn't close enough to those two in power to actually bring it home.
He looked left at the lone Tyrunt standing beside him. Though Kamado had clearly been quite heavy and thus hard to lift, the constructors of the stadium had thoughtfully provided each seat with a small but strong mini-seat for Pokemon to watch from. "How was it, Kamado?" he asked; he'd been quick to start calling the Tyrunt by his preferred name, with apologies, after Medicham had set that straight.
"That was truly a spectacle," Kamado answered. "It seems every round of this Tournament brings new ways to dazzle and impress."
"He liked it," Medicham translated telepathically from her Luxury Ball.
Marcus smiled. "Glad you enjoyed it," he said. "That'll be us, one day, battling for the final and winning. Might not be here, but it'll happen, mark my words."
"I look forward to serving you, Pack-Leader," said Kamado. Medicham was quick to translate. Marcus chuckled. "Well, I look forward to training you."
Kamado leaned back in his seat, satisfied.
"And now," said Steven, "will the Trainers in first, second, third, and fourth place report to the field for the closing ceremony?"
Marcus rose from his seat.
"Hey, sit down!" a boy cried behind him. "You're not one of the people who placed!"
"I've got an appointment," said Marcus. Grumbling, the other boy retreated as Marcus recalled Kamado into his Pokeball, pushed past a few people, and stepped through one of the many doors from the stands to the inner parts of the stadium.
At this time, the stadium aside from the stands was almost deserted. There were food carts and shops, of course, but at this hour most Trainers would just wait for the closing ceremony to be over to eat. Even many of the shopkeepers were sitting with their backs to the corridor outside, watching the beginning of the ceremony on small television screens.
As such, Marcus was undisturbed as he stepped through the corridor and down the stairs to the bottom floor of the basement. As he turned at the bottom of the stairs, Medicham saw Valerie, leaning slightly against the wall in full costume. Does she ever take that thing off?
"Probably not," Marcus responded telepathically, and Medicham jolted. She sighed in irritation; even now, after weeks of practice and her memories from her life as Spirit, she still sometimes accidentally communicated her involuntary thoughts.
"Ah, Marcus," said Valerie. "I'm glad you could make it."
She cast her eyes to a spot beyond Marcus. Marcus and Medicham turned to see another screen playing the closing ceremony. Emma was front and center, smiling broadly as she stepped up to the podium that had apparently just been wheeled out.
"I heard about your battle with Emma," said Valerie. "Tough luck, but congratulations on your Top 16. That's not easy for a rookie, even if you got several fairly good matchups. And the fact that it took Emma to take you down…you show real promise, Marcus."
"She was tough," said Marcus.
"I know," said Valerie. "After all, my greatest protege and the newest member of the Kalos Elite Four can't just be any old Trainer."
Marcus's jaw dropped. Valerie giggled. "Yes, you heard correctly. After Malva's…departure from the Elite Four, a replacement was obviously needed. Emma was my protege for four years, and a fine member of the International Police for three more. They reached out to her after Geosenge; she was quite happy to accept."
"But then…why would she be entered into the Tournament?" Marcus asked.
"As a final test," said Valerie. "The place was hers only if she won. If she'd lost, then they would have recruited another."
The Fairy-type Gym Leader sighed. "But enough of that. I didn't ask you to come down here just to speak of Emma. Do you know what the 'Regional Type Individuality Law' is, Marcus?"
"I think so," said Marcus. "It's the one where…among the eight Gym Leaders and four Elite Four members of a region, there can be no two Trainers of the same type?"
"Yes," said Valerie, "though it was almost the Champion as well after the whole controversy with Wallace and Juan. The thing is…Emma is a Fairy-type Trainer, and with her ascension to the Elite Four, under the Regional Type Individuality Law I am required to relinquish my status as Gym Leader within the next three months."
"I'm sorry," said Marcus, clearly not entirely sure what to say.
"Don't be," said Valerie. "Emma is my protege. I am glad to relinquish my title as the regional Fairy-type Trainer to her. But the fact remains that my position as Gym Leader is now open." She sighed. "I will not beat around the bush any further. I wish to offer you the opportunity to compete for a position as my replacement."
"…wait, what?" Marcus asked.
"I'm offering you the chance to become a Gym Leader," said Valerie.
"Well…" Marcus smiled broadly. "I mean, of course! Thank you…but why?"
"Simple," said Valerie. "Because I believe you can. If I didn't believe you had the potential to become a Gym Leader, I would not be making this offer. You may be young, but so are Clemont, Grant, and Korrina, and that's just in Kalos; in fact, Clemont became Gym Leader after only one League Tournament as well, and he only placed Top 32."
"Okay, so how does this work?" Marcus asked excitedly.
"Within the next three months," said Valerie, "you must do three things. Firstly, you must recruit a team of at least four Pokemon of your preferred Gym Type. If you were competing for the position of eighth Gym Leader, this number would be five, but you are not, so it is four. This Type cannot be the same as any Gym Leader or Elite Four member of the region you wish to become Gym Leader in. Secondly, you must gather a team of three Gym Trainers to support you. More may be added after you open your Gym, but until it is opened you must have three Gym Trainers, no more, no less. Thirdly, you must perform adequately in a battle with your chosen team against my real team. Which, of course, will be a far more difficult battle than your Gym battle with me. And at the end of those three months, if all of those tasks have been completed to my satisfaction, you and your allies will be allowed to enter into the competition for the position of Gym Leader. Because it will, of course, be a competition; you will not be the only Trainer I make this offer to." Valerie smiled. "You see, the position of Gym Leader is not something that is just given away freely."
"So I just get to decide which type I want to specialize in?" Marcus asked.
"Yes," said Valerie. "With the aforementioned caveats, of course. If I may make a suggestion, it is always best to build off an existing type similarity."
"So-" Marcus began, but Valerie raised a hand to interrupt him.
"I will not keep you any longer," said Valerie. "I wish to congratulate Emma personally, and then I must be off to make my other invitations. Good luck, Marcus. And do try to have fun. Those who spend those three months obsessing over the position are often those who do not end up with the position."
With a last friendly smile, Valerie turned and walked away, her costume glittering as she stepped through a beam of sun shining in through one of the stadium entrances. She left behind a Marcus who, judging by the expression on his face, was mentally warring between excitement, nervousness, and outright shock.
"Congratulations," Medicham said telepathically.
This finally stirred Marcus from his emotional turmoil. He grinned widely. "Wow," he said. "Just…wow." He chuckled. "I…guess Galar will have to wait, huh?"
"I guess so," said Medicham.
"Can't say I expected that," said Marcus. "But…Medicham, I'd love to use you, but-"
"I know as well as you do what she was insinuating," Medicham interrupted. "And I'm fine with it. I'm sure Drapion and Houndoom will be pleased."
Marcus nodded slowly. "All right, Medicham." He looked down at two of his other Luxury Balls. "Drapion, Houndoom. Once this ceremony ends, we're going to start preparing. You're going to have to work pretty hard, I'm not going to lie."
The Trainer sighed, looking out into the sunlight. "If I'm going to become the first Kalosian Dark-type Gym Leader, I'm going to need you two to step up to the plate. Because I'm definitely not going to be able to do this without you."
Elsewhere in Kalos, with the towering form of the Kalos Pokemon League nothing but a faint speck on the horizon, an Absol stepped into a small clearing in the middle of a forest, a Manectric following in her wake.
"Remind me why we're here?" Ripper growled. "Our quarry's at the Tournament, isn't he? So why are we not there?"
Betrayer-Of-Kin waited a few seconds before responding. "Both of us have tried twice and failed twice," she said. "They will be ready for an attack. And furthermore, the closer they are to the Tournament, the closer they are to support. If we assault Marcus at the Tournament, there is only a 17.84% chance of success, and only a 5.72% chance of succeeding without compromising our anonymity. Those are odds that will improve with patience. And besides, did you not join me with the intent of becoming stronger before challenging your quarry again?"
"With your help-"
"I will not fight your battle for you," Betrayer-Of-Kin interrupted. "My quarry is Marcus, not his Fearow. I am not the distraction for your success. You are the distraction for mine. Is that understood?"
Slowly and grimly, Ripper nodded.
"Now," said Betrayer-Of-Kin, "as for why we are here, specifically, there is one perfect way for you to gain strength. And that is Mega Evolution, something which, incidentally, both of us are capable of. All we need to do is find a Manectite."
Ripper smirked at the thought of gaining the power of Mega Evolution. "That will certainly be enjoyable."
"I thought as much," said Betrayer-Of-Kin.
The Absol let out a sigh. Her pace began to slow, then stop altogether.
"Is it around here?" Ripper asked.
"No," said Betrayer-Of-Kin. "I believe we are being watched. Discharge."
"What?"
"Use Discharge," Betrayer-Of-Kin insisted.
Ripper obeyed. "Thunder Blast!"
Betrayer-Of-Kin faded out of existence as Ripper released an omnidirectional blast of Electric energy, an explosion that ripped through the surrounding trees and bushes. But at one place in particular, the blast was stopped, bending around something Ripper could not see and yet now knew was there.
And it was there that Betrayer-Of-Kin materialized, horn slashing down at the Pokemon Ripper now saw camouflaged in the trees.
A Pokemon that raised a massive trunklike purple-armored arm with shocking speed, taking Betrayer-Of-Kin's horn-strike on that arm. Betrayer-Of-Kin's horn glanced off, and in that moment the Pokemon shifted a foot on the ground.
"Earth Power."
The forest erupted.
Ripper could not react in time. The ground exploded underneath him, sending him flying into the air. He could see bushes and trees bending and crumpling around him, the boughs shifting so that parts of the sky became obscured and unobscured, and then his back hit a tree trunk and he fell to the ground, his body screaming in pain.
The Manectric rose to see the forest before him reduced to a crater, a ruined patch yards across where the earth had simply bent and shifted to the new arrival's will. In the center of the crater, a massive Nidoking stood on a raised patch of earth, black pinprick eyes fixed on Ripper and Betrayer-Of-Kin. The Absol, for her part, had apparently evaded all of the damage, for she was standing on another edge of the crater, fur only slightly ruffled.
The muscular Nidoking had some kind of glowing purple orb dangling from a chain around his neck, an orb that ceased its glow as Nidoking shifted his gaze fully onto Betrayer-Of-Kin.
"I knew I would find you eventually," he growled, his voice deep and rumbling.
Betrayer-Of-Kin's eyes narrowed at the Nidoking. Without a word, she flashed into action, carving a hemispherical slash of Dark energy into the air and sending it hurtling at Nidoking.
"Triad," Nidoking rumbled, lowering his horn. The purple orb hanging from his neck flashed as a beam of Fire, Ice, and Lightning energy, twirling around one another in a fantastic display, flew from his horn and slammed into the flying blade. The two attacks exploded against one another, momentarily blocking Nidoking's vision.
Betrayer-Of-Kin lunged through the explosion, horn flashing. Nidoking raised his thick arm and took the strike on the purple armor; Ripper could have sworn he saw sparks fly at the contact. Nidoking twisted, throwing a fast and brutal-looking punch enhanced with Poison energy at Betrayer-Of-Kin. The Absol ducked smoothly under the strike and lunged again. This time, Nidoking twisted, catching the horn-strike on his broad tail and sending sparks flying once again.
In a flash Betrayer-Of-Kin disappeared in a cloud of suddenly-appearing shadows. She reappeared on Nidoking's other side. A flurry of Pursuit rays shot from her mouth, but yet again Nidoking twisted to face the attack. "Ancient Defense," Nidoking growled. With a wave of his hand he tossed a wave of Rock energy at the incoming rays, intercepting and neutralizing them.
Betrayer-Of-Kin lunged, forming half a dozen Double Team copies that Ripper knew were perfectly solid as she streaked at Nidoking. "Earth Power," the behemoth grunted, shifting his foot again as the purple orb continued to glow with power. The forest between Betrayer-Of-Kin and Nidoking erupted in an explosion of Ground energy, trees and bushes collapsing and tearing into pieces as Betrayer-Of-Kin's copies were thrown into the air, dematerializing as they slammed into trees or just fell to the ground.
But Nidoking, clearly no fool, twisted just as Betrayer-Of-Kin appeared out of another cloud of shadows, lunging straight for his throat. Nidoking lowered his head and moved, lunging straight for the incoming Betrayer-Of-Kin. Both Pokemon twisted their heads and struck, horn-first.
Energy exploded out of their strikes as they collided, buffeting what little remained of the surrounding forest and forcing Ripper to dig his claws into the ground. When he finally opened his eyes, they were still standing there, horn locked against horn, eyes narrowed and clearly straining against one another.
Both had the exact same realization at the exact same time. Both opened their mouths. A flurry of Pursuit rays came from Betrayer-Of-Kin's; a single blast of Fire energy came from Nidoking's. Both Pokemon stumbled backwards as the attacks hit home, Nidoking planting his feet hard into the ground to avoid staggering further, Betrayer-Of-Kin simply dematerializing yet again, reappearing back where she'd started on the edge of the crater.
The Nidoking and the Absol glared at each other, hostility not yet spent. Then Nidoking's mouth split into a grin. "Perfect. I'd heard you were quite the fighter; it seems those rumors were not incorrect."
Betrayer-Of-Kin did not untense, but did cock her head to the side. "So," she said. "What is your purpose here?"
"As I insinuated," said Nidoking, "I have heard quite a bit about you."
"That's a shame," said Betrayer-Of-Kin. "I prefer to remain anonymous."
"I know," said Nidoking. "You've done quite well at it. It was fairly difficult to even gain confirmation you existed. But your skills make you worth the effort."
"You intend to recruit me," said Betrayer-Of-Kin.
Nidoking inclined his head. "I do. There is a task in Alola that I must undertake. Your aid would be beneficial to the successful completion of this task."
Betrayer-Of-Kin remained silent for a few seconds, calculating probabilities once more. Then she smiled thinly, turning her head to Ripper once more. "It seems our search for a Manectite will have to wait a little bit," she said. "We have a trip to Alola to arrange."
Ripper could not quite hide his jaw dropping as Nidoking nodded approvingly. "Excellent. I already have a method of transportation ready. Let us depart; it is not a long walk, but it would be best if we make it with haste."
Nidoking turned and began to stalk away, feet making indentations in the dirt as he strode. Betrayer-Of-Kin began to walk after him. Ripper hurried to her side.
"What are you doing?" he hissed. "This is not-"
Betrayer-Of-Kin fixed him with a glare. "Firstly, I scanned the probabilities. I could have won that fight, but not without injury. And secondly, this Nidoking may not know it, but his task will allow me to further my own goals. In summation, I am joining him for the same reason I elected to join Team Flare. Because Team Flare put me in the perfect position to search for, and eventually track down, Marcus. And after scanning the probabilities...I have no reason to doubt that this Nidoking will do the same."
Further away in Kalos, so far away that the Kalos Pokemon League could not be seen at all, a single Skorupi scuttled through the undergrowth.
He'd been through a lot in the past few weeks. He'd been beaten in a forest by a group of ridiculously powerful Pokemon. He'd been captured by a group calling themselves 'Team Flare' and stuffed into a cage along with several fellow Skorupi. He'd listened as battle raged that he could not see through the darkness of a cloth that covered his cage. He'd been rescued along with the rest of his swarm, and had been held in much nicer confinement for two more weeks before it was finally ascertained where he came from, whereupon he'd been released back into the forest that he called home.
But none of that mattered now. The Skorupi clambered to the top of the hill, and the compound came within sight. He knew what he had to do. Because that group of powerful Pokemon that had beaten him and his swarm, stealing their allied Phantump in the process, had included another Skorupi. And it wasn't just any Skorupi, either.
"Halt!"
The two Skorupi at the compound entrance stepped in front of the arriving Skorupi, blocking the way. One of them glared at him. "You are not of the Steelclaw Swarm. Which Swarm do you hail from?"
"I am Pincer, of the Forest Spirit Swarm," the first Skorupi answered. "I require an audience with the Swarmlord. It is important."
One of the Skorupi looked at the other one. "The Swarmlord does not receive visitors lightly," the other Skorupi growled. "Tell us your business."
Pincer did so.
Five minutes later, Pincer stepped into the compound's throne room, a guard on either side. The throne room was dark even in the daylight, the only light coming from a few small holes in the ceiling. Pincer could just barely see the forms of three Drapion dominating the cave, the largest one visible only by the gleam of his eyes as he surveyed the newcomer.
"Pincer, of the Forest Spirit Swarm, here to see you, Swarmlord," said one of the attendant Skorupi.
The Drapion at the back of the room leaned forwards, his purple head coming into the light. "I thought the Forest Spirit Swarm was destroyed," he growled.
"It was…we were captured by humans, Swarmlord," Pincer admitted.
"Have you come to request my assistance?" the Swarmlord asked, warning in his voice.
"N…no…" Pincer stammered. "We were…rescued by other humans. But that is not why I have come. Because before those humans captured us, another human and his team of Pokemon attacked and defeated us, rendering us weakened for capture. And that human had another Skorupi on his team."
"Which tribe did this traitor Skorupi hail from?" the Swarmlord asked, leaning even closer, eyes glittering with interest.
"With…with all due respect…Swarmlord…" Pincer barely managed to get out the last of his words. "It…it was the Marked One. He has returned."
The two Drapion on either side of the Swarmlord tensed. The Swarmlord himself finally rose from his seat, stepping fully into the light as he rose to his full height. "Impossible."
"There was no…no denying it," said Pincer. "He bore the markings of the Darkwalker Tribe, and he used their energy in combat."
The Swarmlord glared down at Pincer. "And you, and your tribe, lost in battle to the Marked One and his…new allies?"
"Y…yes…Swarmlord," Pincer managed.
The Swarmlord sighed. "My sons," he growled to the other two Drapion. "Eliminate this weakling, and arrange for the extermination of his Swarm. I will not tolerate such weakness in my domain."
Pincer gulped as the other two Drapion stepped into the light, claws flashing and eyes gleaming.
"So…the Marked One lives…" the Swarmlord mused. "It seems…it seems nature was not enough to destroy him. It seems I will have to remedy this affront myself."
The Swarmlord stepped from his throne room, ignoring the dying screams of Pincer as his sons ripped the unfortunate Skorupi apart, thoughts entirely focused on the Marked One.
He saw the whispers rushing around the compound already. Pincer's story must already have been told. The Swarmlord seethed. He could not allow the Marked One to become an icon again. That weakness would not stand.
This time, the Swarmlord thought, he would make sure the Marked One was gone for good.
Far from Kalos, in the small island-based region known as Alola, a blonde, long-haired woman strode into a room containing two men in white coats, one thin and wearing green goggles, the other fat and wearing red goggles.
"Faba. Xerosic." Lusamine cast her gaze around the room. "You said you wished to speak with me."
"Yes, Lusamine," said Faba. "We have completed a functional RKS System, and under your instruction, tested it on one of the Type: Null models. The test was satisfactory. As of now, Type: Full-001 is ready for deployment."
Lusamine smiled. "Excellent work, Faba. How soon can you duplicate the feat for 002, 003, and 004?"
"004?" Faba asked. "But Lusamine, ever since Gladion-"
"The actions of my son are of no consequence," said Lusamine frostily. "Type: Full-004 will be recovered. My contacts will see to it."
"Very well, Lusamine," said Faba.
"If that is all," said Lusamine, "then keep up your work. I want the other three RKS Systems functional within two days."
"Lusamine," said Xerosic, "that is not all."
Lusamine turned to face Xerosic. "Is it not?"
"We have also developed…something…that we believe could be useful for operation of Type: Full," said Xerosic.
Lusamine frowned.
"You see," said Faba, "we were thinking that Type: Full may be the perfect Pokemon, but, in Xerosic's words, 'A Champion's Ace is next to useless in the hands of a bad Trainer'. And that got us thinking. Even if Type: Full is perfect, the Trainer commanding it might not be."
"And so," said Xerosic, "we have devised a way to make the Trainer perfect as well." He stepped aside to reveal a black-and-gold suit sitting on a table that his girth had been hiding until now. "This is called the Expansion Suit. It increases the user's physical prowess, allowing greater strength and speed. Additionally, it neutralizes the user's emotional hangups. No worry, no fear, no hesitation. A Trainer inside this suit seeks one thing and one thing only: victory in battle."
Lusamine stared at the black-and-gold suit for a few seconds. Then she sighed. "Unacceptable."
"What?" Xerosic asked.
"You heard me," said Lusamine. "There are too many variables. Too many problems. Nullifying one's emotions…what does that mean? Would the user be willing to push their Pokemon to death? And what of memories? Would the user keep their memories, thereby possibly recognizing their Pokemon and clashing with the suit's programming, resulting in an unknown and unforeseeable outcome? Or would the user lose their memories, thereby becoming unable to recall their Pokemon's abilities and unable to utilize them as efficiently as the suit wants them to? It's too risky. Destroy it."
"But-"
"What did I just say, Xerosic?"
Xerosic sighed. "Yes, Lusamine."
"Good," said Lusamine. "If that is all, then I will take my leave. And do not embark on another…idea…like this again without my express approval."
Faba and Xerosic nodded. Satisfied, Lusamine retreated from the room, closing the door behind her.
Xerosic turned towards the Expansion Suit. "It was worth a try."
Faba chuckled. "What do you mean, was? Please. It might have some bugs now. But if we can perfect this, it will revolutionize Pokemon battles! Lusamine can talk all she wants. But we are not destroying this suit."
Xerosic stared at Faba. Then he began to smirk. "That works just fine for me, Faba," he said. "I have a feeling the Expansion Suit will prove very useful in the future."
In the corner, as the two scientists got back to work, a tiny, barely visible Alolan Vulpix crept back into a small hole in the wall, nervous but satisfied with the information she had gained.
Even further away from Kalos than Alola, atop a high snowcapped mountain, a single Trainer stood a small ways away from a wood-crafted hut, looking out across the region as it lay spread out before him. A Pikachu stood on his shoulder, looking out with him.
A crunching noise sounded from behind them, and he emerged, stepping up the natural staircase leading from the depths of the mountain to the peak.
She'd known he was coming. But it was still hard to see.
Quickly, she delved into her telepathic abilities, casting her mental senses down to the plateau below.
"King," the Trainer on the edge of the mountain greeted, not looking back.
"Red," the Immortal King replied.
Red turned his head, eyeing the Pokeballs on the Immortal King's belt.
"Five against five?" Red asked.
The Immortal King cracked a smile. "Please. I would crush you."
The smile, the simple, challenging thought, felt strangely compelling to her. For the briefest of moments, she considered coming down. Landing on the Immortal King's shoulder. Feeling his calloused hand caress her for the first time in three thousand years.
But no. She couldn't return. What he'd done…even with the Ultimate Weapon finally destroyed like it should have been all those years ago…she could not forget.
She could not forgive.
"Fine by me," said Red. "Five against six, then."
"Perfect," AZ - no, the Immortal King - replied. "Golurk. You are first."
"Pikachu," Red stated. The small yellow Electric-type Pokemon jumped off Red's shoulder, landing crouched on the ground, as the titanic, robotic form of the Immortal King's Golurk formed on the opposite side of the plateau.
There was a moment of silence, and then the two Pokemon leaped for each other, Electric energy playing off the Pikachu's body as the Golurk slammed a foot down, sending a wave of Ground energy arcing towards the Pikachu, tearing up rock and earth as it swept across the plateau.
Far above, far enough so that neither of the Trainers could possibly see her, Floette turned and drifted away, ignoring the single tear dripping from her eye.
In a dimension entirely made of darkness, twenty Absols stood in a circle around the twenty-first, otherwise known as Bringer-Of-Visions.
"I recognize this has come on short notice," said Bringer-Of-Visions. "But a crisis has emerged. One of our memory-altered Pokemon, the Medicham of Marcus Grayson, has been reminded of her memories by the Lifebringer's resurrection."
A murmur came from the surrounding Absols.
"The Lifebringer himself demanded we leave her memories alone," said Bringer-Of-Visions. "Though he backed down, we must not treat his demand lightly. Thus, I have called you here to discuss this crisis and others." She turned to one of the surrounding Absols. "Reader, what have you ascertained of Betrayer-Of-Kin's position?"
"She has disappeared from our sight again," said Reader-Of-Minds. "Sadly, her Psychic blocking has grown more powerful. Perhaps she picked up some tricks from the Harbinger of Death. Regardless, we have scanned Marcus's probability; there is only a 1.34% chance that Betrayer-Of-Kin will assault him within the next month."
"Good," said Bringer-Of-Visions. She turned towards another Absol. "Teller. Speaking of the Harbinger-Of-Death, what is his status?"
"The Harbinger-Of-Death is lost from sight as well," Teller-Of-Tales reported. "From what we know, his physical form was obliterated in combat with the Lifebringer, and his mental form has disappeared off the face of the earth."
"And we know what became of the Lifebringer, considering his…recent actions," said Bringer-Of-Visions. "Seeker, what of your mission?"
"Unfortunately, my Trainer and Marcus will soon separate," said Seeker-Of-Endings. "I do not foresee being able to easily keep an eye on Marcus."
"Do not worry about that," said Bringer-Of-Visions. "Marcus will be handled. You are going to Alola, yes?"
Seeker-Of-Endings nodded.
Bringer-Of-Visions sighed. "Then…it is regrettable, considering the events that will soon be unfolding in Alola, but we must bring Marcus there."
"Bringer," said another Absol, "I have ascertained that there is a 100% chance that Marcus intends to become a Dark-type Gym Leader. His predicted movements and actions throughout the next three months all point to that goal."
Bringer-Of-Visions smiled. "Good work, Watcher. In that case…Seeker. How many Dark-type Pokemon does your Trainer have?"
"Well," said Seeker-Of-Endings, "she has me, and she just got an Inkay from an egg, and technically she has an Eevee that can evolve into Umbreon."
"Perfect," said Bringer-Of-Visions. "Then I will endeavor to ensure that Marcus recruits your Trainer for his upcoming Dark-type Gym. Watcher, what is the probability that Marcus will recruit Serena by himself?"
Watcher-Of-Time scanned the timeline for a few seconds. "57.88%," he reported. "However, if he actually thinks of Serena, it is a 98.65% probability."
"Then I must ensure he thinks of Serena," said Bringer-Of-Visions. "Thank you, all. This meeting is closed."
"Bringer?" asked Seeker-Of-Endings. "You keep saying 'I'. Does that mean what I think it means?"
"Yes, Seeker, it does," said Bringer-Of-Visions. "The Medicham's regaining of her memories represents a leak we cannot allow. As such, I will see to the realteration of her memories personally and with due haste."
She sighed. "Now, all, let us depart. May the Master guide you."
"And you," replied the rest of the Kalosian Heralds as the Song faded, tearing them away from Oblivion and depositing them back into the real world.
Left alone, sitting in one of Serena's Pokeballs in the dead of night, Seeker-Of-Endings sighed. It was a shame, really. Medicham was a worthy battler and a good ally. She had shown that much in Geosenge.
But the Master's will was the Master's will. And if her memories were the target of the Master's will, then so be it.
Seeker-Of-Endings cleared his mind of those thoughts and lay down, slipping back into sleep in only a few moments.
So.
Now it's done.
At least, the first season. Because after an entire epilogue of sequel setup, I'm certainly not hanging this fic up for good.
That said, the future of this fic will be...interesting.
I do not plan on making the second season a different fic. It will be part of the same fic. I flipflopped several times on whether to make the second season a different fic than the first season or not, but in the end decided to keep them all in this one fic.
But Season 2 of this fic will take a fair amount of time to write.
I have a confession to make. Posting my entire backlog in less than two weeks, then consigning myself to a two-day update schedule with minimal hiatuses between arcs, was probably the second worst sequence of decisions I ever made. (The worst, of course, being the Bookmark Incident.)
On one hand, I have really, really enjoyed writing this fic. After several years of coming up with all sorts of ideas yet never actually mustering up the nerve to put them to paper, it feels quite refreshing to finally actually be able to share some of my ideas with the world. I want to thank Blue Is The Sea in particular for including my fic in their Pokemon Fic community and thereby putting it on the map, and Symonator for reminding me that sometimes hiatuses are a good idea, which motivated me to take a few very necessary breaks when writing this.
On the other hand...I'm not going to lie. This fic kinda took over my entire life for a couple months. Looking back on it now, restricting myself to such a tight update schedule turned out to be somewhat unhealthy for me. It's not like my life completely suffered from the experience, but the difference was...noticeable, especially when I reached the Geosenge Arc right as midterms were happening.
And furthermore, said update schedule also resulted in a rather embarrassing dip in quality control. I took some time to go over my earlier chapters, and dang, there were some pretty humiliating grammatical and consistency errors. Which, considering I have no idea how to go back and edit chapters once they're released, might be staying for a while.
Oops.
So, with Season 1 done, finals rapidly approaching, and not one but two trips back home to visit my family in the upcoming months, I'm making the difficult decision to wait to start posting Season 2 until January 1st, 2023.
I hope you don't mind this too much. But in the end, as I've said before and will say again, I quite like my sanity and would prefer to keep it.
When I do start posting Season 2, it will also probably be on a 4-day update schedule. I don't want my schedule to slip too much, but 4 days seems like a fairly healthy schedule considering my chapter length. At maximum, if things get too hectic, I will decrease to a weekly schedule, but that will only be in extreme circumstances.
Whew.
Okay, that was a wall of text.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading Season 1 of Through Their Eyes. Please drop a review! I always enjoy reading them. And I will see you all on New Year's Day for the first arc of Season 2, otherwise known as the Recruitment Arc!