Chapter 158 – Unexpected Return
The rhythmic beeping of life monitors was becoming uncomfortably familiar to Owen. He was a demigod, right? Why was he constantly being put in hospitals? Could they even help?
Well, the last one did, he supposed.
Groggily, he opened one eye to figure out his surroundings without alerting anyone. A white wall of well-made material. Certainly not a hut or some den, but the beeping would have given that much away. Still, it even looked more advanced than what he would see in Kilo Village. Even the Voidlands didn't seem quite this… modern.
"He's waking up," hummed a voice.
"Charizard? Are you okay? Can you hear me?" called another.
"Mhm," Owen groaned.
He just realized he couldn't Perceive anything. He tried to stand up but binds restricted him. The fatigue in his body still weakened him—he couldn't do a thing against these mundane bindings. None of his limbs responded.
"It's okay, you're okay. We need you still while we check on you, okay, Charizard? Is that okay?"
"My horns," Owen said again, trying to calm down. "Please, can you put them back on?"
Three voices gasped—there were three? How many were in the room? He couldn't move his head easily and his vision was blurry from all the strain.
"He really can talk," whispered a new voice.
"Just like the Milotic…"
Talk?
Owen stopped. Why did that surprise—
"Is Zena—Milotic okay?"
"She is, and in much better condition than you. You don't need to worry about her."
He… could trust that. He felt that he could trust that. "Where am I?"
"You're in Pallet Town, in a new Pokémon Center. We're trying to make sure you're okay. People said you fell from a hole in the sky, so…"
Pallet Town. Pallet Town. Pallet Town.
"We'll… get your horns, but they sort of… fell off you. We weren't sure what to do with them, but…"
"Kanto?" Owen suddenly asked.
"Yes, Kanto. So, about your horns, they can probably be reattached, but we've never seen this bone structure before. Are you from a faraway region? Your appearance is different from a normal Charizard, and . . ."
Owen didn't pay attention. He was in Kanto again. He was…
Oh no.
Humans were so strange. They were tiny, and they radiated no strength, but they acted fearlessly. Maybe they couldn't sense power the way Pokémon could. That was Zena's conclusion.
Still, that they were so weak yet fearless was a little charming.
And smart! She couldn't figure out half of what was going on in this place, and some of them were kind enough to explain a few of the gadgets.
The lead human—Zena had an easier time telling who he was because he usually held a clipboard—entered the waiting room lobby, which had seats that were not suited for a Milotic at all. "Zena?"
She nodded politely. Speaking seemed to startle them, so she kept that to a minimum for now.
"Owen is doing just fine. He's waking up now, but he's still very groggy. Would you like to be with him?"
Zena nodded again.
The doctor smiled. "You can talk, you know. It's okay. It was just… surprising at first. We don't normally run into Pokémon who can speak like humans so perfectly."
"Is it that rare?" Zena asked.
"Well… you're the first two I've ever met," said the doctor, "though, I've heard rumors about a Meowth in this region who… Well, it's just a rumor. Never saw the real deal before."
"I see… Well, yes. I can talk."
"Who taught you, if that's an okay question to ask?"
"Er, my parents."
"Who were also Milotic?"
"Ah, my father was a Gyarados, actually."
"Oh, I see… And they could also speak our language?"
Zena nodded. "It's quite normal. If you didn't speak in that way, you were usually very young or feral, but they looked different, slightly."
"You know, you do seem a little different," commented another human. "Your ribbons are a lot more dexterous than Milotic usually are."
"Oh, of course. That's one difference." Zena hummed. "Oh, I've… gotten distracted. I'm sorry. May I see Owen?"
"Of course. Right this way."
They led her along, and Zena noticed the many looks she was given. But they weren't the sort that stared at her for being pretty like in the Voidlands. This was more of a fascination. In some ways, she still found it a little bothersome, but they meant well.
A world where all Pokémon were feral. What a strange place. But given what she knew… that meant she had human ancestry, didn't she? Human ancestry from long ago, her first-generation being humans who'd been turned into Pokémon.
She heard Owen talking but couldn't quite make out the conversation. Once the door opened, Owen stopped talking and tried to stand again, but the strange bind kept him down.
"Why is he tied down like that?" Zena asked.
"Oh, er… right. Sorry, usually for Pokémon, if they get agitated, we… ah… you can talk. We can just speak about this. Don't strain yourself, yes?"
Owen frowned a little and grunted in reply. With a few clicks, the bindings against him were loosened and Owen sat up, sighing. He gingerly stretched his wings, careful not to knock anything over.
"Please stay here a while longer," said the lead human. "We are waiting for your test results."
"Yeah, okay," Owen agreed. The doctors all left.
It seemed there were two remaining in the room before some murmurs about different protocols followed between them. Zena heard one say, 'Treat them like human patients.' And they seemed unsure how to do that. Did this place specialize in Pokémon?
The two humans left after giving awkward nods to her.
The doors closed.
Owen was probably watching them with his Perceive, given his eyes were closed.
All the appliances here were small. Humans were small, so it made sense that all the tools would be specialized for their dainty hands. The lights were too bright, yet they didn't have the same warmth as the sun. That was saddening. Zena wasn't sure why.
"We're in Kanto," Owen finally said.
"Kanto?" She remembered that region. "It can't be. Isn't that a whole world away?"
"It is," Owen said, voice trembling slightly. "Does that mean… I've… I can't go back? How do we go back? Where's Kilo? What happened to…"
"It's okay," Zena said, having no idea if it was true. But she could tell he was panicking. His voice was even, but his flame was getting hotter. "We'll figure something out."
Knock knock.
Zena turned and tilted her head. "Oh!"
Another human wearing a red cap was at the door with one of the doctors.
"Hello again," Zena greeted.
"Who's that?" Owen asked.
"He was the one who guided me here," Zena said. "It was… a little worrying at first, but…" Now that she thought about it, why did she trust this human so easily? He'd found them in the forest and hadn't said a word, yet she knew to follow him along. It was as if she knew precisely what he wanted to do, and only had to follow him while carrying Owen to find safety.
"Well, thanks," Owen said to the red-capped human. "And… sorry if talking Pokémon is weird or anything like that. We're not from around here… sort of different from the Pokémon around this region."
The human exhaled through his nose and nodded, tilting his cap forward before leaving. He seemed satisfied to see that they were safe.
"He seemed nice," Zena hummed. "Quiet, though…"
The doctor nodded and said, "He's a strange one, but one of the best trainers out there, you know. He was visiting home after another one of his adventures. The way he is, he'll probably head out again in a week." The doctor sighed, wistful. "I remember when he was just a kid walking out of town with his very first Pokémon. That was… how long at this point? At least a decade by now…"
Decade. What did that mean to them at this point? Well, explaining that to the doctor probably wouldn't amount to much. Zena was about to ask Owen something when she noticed the grave expression on the Charizard's face.
"I… Kanto. This is Kanto, right? What town?"
"Hm? Pallet Town. Goodness, you must have had quite a trip to not even know where—he-hey!"
Owen had suddenly gotten out of his bed and made for the door.
"W-wait! We haven't gotten your blood results yet!"
"I need to go," Owen said.
"Owen, wait," Zena said, "shouldn't we—"
"I won't be far. Send my results to the Starter Breeding Facility."
"Oh? A-are you… from there?"
"It's still around, right?"
The doctor nodded.
"Is… is there a Charizard named Amber there?"
"That's the Charmander clan's main elder. She's—"
Owen was already gone. Zena could deduce what was so urgent and let him go but then looked back at the doctor. "Is him leaving okay?"
"Not… not really… but… what can you do?" He sighed. "We'll send the lab work to them. If he's from there, they might have a record for him. Could you take his Poké Ball with you?"
"Oh, of course." Those strange capsules they'd put her and Owen in while transporting them. It was strange, and took a lot of convincing, but the strange human with the red cap said it was fine, and she believed him.
And, in the end, it was fine. Cozy, even. She still preferred the air, though. But it kept Owen's body safe, and that was the important part.
"Could I have more of those?" Zena asked spontaneously as the doctor sent for a nurse to get the capsules.
"More? Do you have friends?"
"In case this one breaks. It… I don't know. It was nice."
"Hmmh, well… I'd say you could purchase them, but you don't exactly have money to buy them at a store."
"Money. Oh, we have money," Zena said, promptly realizing that their money might be useless here. Awkwardly, she said, "Er… do you accept these?"
She pulled out her bag and offered some spare coins she'd forgotten to get rid of. The doctor inspected it with a furrowed brow and Zena noted the many wrinkles on his furless forehead, aside from his tiny eyebrows.
"That's… Some of that is gold, isn't it?"
"We just call it Poké." She offered a coin to him.
The doctor inspected it, flipped it over, and felt the material. "What world do you come from where coins of precious metal are abundant like this? Not even as a currency, but the raw material here could be worth quite a lot."
Zena shrugged her ribbons. "It's just our currency."
"I'll want some of it to be appraised before anything official, but, you can have a few of our spares. We don't have to use them very often anyway, and if it's to help and protect Pokémon, I won't refuse."
"Thank you. Er, how about I come back after it's appraised?"
"Oh, that will do fine."
The nurse returned with two red-white capsules. Zena gently placed them in her bag.
The nurse laughed a little and said, "I never thought I'd meet a Pokémon who qualified as their own trainer. How would that work on the forms?"
"I just listed Zena here as Charizard's trainer," the doctor admitted with a grunt.
"We're mates, actually," Zena said.
"Oh!" The doctor seemed confused at first. "Oh, mates! As in, married?"
Zena tilted her head. "That's a bit of an ancient term, but yes, it's the same. I would be his… wife, right?"
"A-ancient?"
Zena wondered if she'd said too much. She started slithering backward. "Where I'm from, at least. Er—goodbye. I'll return later."
After getting lost in the medical facility a few times, Zena finally found her way out and asked a few startled humans where the Starter Breeding Facility was. They shakily pointed her in the right direction and she apologetically thanked them before going on her way.
It was the same as he remembered—just… a lot smaller.
No, he was larger.
The main room was lined with common but educational books about Pokémon. Deeper inside were front-facing labs that would often be shown to prospective trainers—usually younger kids eager to start their adventure with a partner Pokémon. They'd be given some assignment to see as many Pokémon as they could and to report their findings to the professor. Sometimes, they would report new findings. Most of the time… stories and rumors.
It all was starting to come back to him. The little ember within him, Smallflame, felt so much warmer.
Two thousand years. That's how long it had been.
Yet Kilo flowed faster. It had only been a decade or so at most since then.
And…
"Owen!"
Zena rushed up to the Charizard, who had stood nearly dormant at the walkway into the lab. His Perceive was on now that his horns had been returned, but he'd somehow not noticed anything. He'd never been so lost in thought before.
"Is everything okay?" she asked.
"Oh, I'm… yeah. Sorry. I was thinking. Just… I was in a rush and then it hit me that I'm here again."
"Here. Here as in…"
Owen nodded. "My first home. Where I was born and raised before I went with… Eon, Tim at the time, for his journey.
"Right…"
"I wish he was here," Owen admitted without thinking, looking ahead again. "I wonder if…"
If he could have rekindled something, he thought. But it was a fleeting one. Everything was far, far too different between them now. It wouldn't have been healthy to regress so far.
Yet here he was, seeking someone from even earlier in his life. Because he had to.
"I should keep going," Owen said.
"You should. They're staring at you."
"What?"
Finally, Owen looked at the humans with clipboards and lab coats staring at him from across the room. He heard a pen drop.
Oh, right. He was speaking their language.
"Hi."
He awkwardly waved at them, folding his wings back.
One of the humans waved back. Something about her was familiar. He struggled to recall, almost but not quite chirping when he tried, and then he realized it—this was the kind lab assistant from long ago. She was so much older now. Wrinkles were starting to form, but not enough for her hair to gray.
"I'd like to see Amber," Owen said. "The… the matriarch, or something?"
"Oh! Of… course. You must… be…"
She suddenly gasped.
"No way," she said. "Smallflame?!"
Owen closed his eyes. A thousand little petty memories ran across his mind at once. Scents of the sterile lab and the lingering ash of the fields. Challenging grunts from the rival clans of Bulbasaur and Squirtle that the kids had made a little game over, despite the elders simply enjoying the balance they provided one another.
Gods, he was home again. Back where it all began. He wondered how they could tell; he didn't look anything like his old self. Was it his demeanor? Had he changed so little? Or… were they expecting one last Charizard to return?
Finally, he opened his eyes. "Yeah," he replied, switching to his native tongue so it didn't throw anyone off. No need for those questions. "A lot's changed."
"We thought you died!"
I did.
"Well," Owen said, "I got pulled away for a while and didn't have a way to return. I'm back now on a visit."
Hopefully… right?
"And the first thing I want to do is see Mom again. Is she…?"
"Yes, of course. You asked for your mother?" She nodded earnestly. "Hey, let him through, okay? It's her last kid to come back."
So he was right. Owen still gave the human a questioning look.
"Amber was adamant that you'd return one day like everyone else," she said.
Zena blinked. "Return…?" She glanced awkwardly at Owen, who nodded back.
"I think she means to visit. To show her how far I've come. And Dad, he'd want to see how strong I've gotten, too. He's older, though…"
"He is, but he also has some vitality left in him. Some of Amber's old wounds were starting to show a little more in her old age, so she isn't as mobile now, but… She's alive. She's waiting for you. Don't let me hold you up.
"And, er… when you're done… mind answering some questions?" She tittered nervously. "Not every day we have a talking Pokémon with us…"
Zena glanced at Owen, then at the human. "This seems… very personal. How about I answer these questions for now, and Owen, you go ahead."
"I want you to meet her, later, though," Owen said immediately.
"Of course." Zena nudged him with her forehead. "But… I think this should be your moment."
Owen felt conflicted. Yes, it was his moment… but he wasn't sure if he had the strength to do it. What would he say? After that initial rush, the quiet of the flight to the lab, and all the new scents, took all the wind out of his wings. He was a lost child.
"She wants to see you," Zena encouraged. "I'll meet her."
"Right." That was enough of a push. If he didn't know what to do, if things didn't work out, Zena could be there as backup.
So, with another nervous breath, Owen let the lab assistant lead him to the fields.
He already knew the path.
So little had changed. He recognized some of the little mounds of dirt and ash, somewhat shifted but largely the same structure. It couldn't have been that long.
There were a few other Charizard here. They were all a lot younger than he was. And the irony struck him like rocks—those were all his 'older' siblings. Back from their adventures. Their partnerships with their trainers must have ended, or they retired from their adventuring and decided to return home. Of Mom's offspring… about a fourth of them had returned, if he had to guess.
He didn't know all of them too well anymore, but he did remember Bigtail. And he was still a Charmeleon after all this time, having never gone to see a trainer, and therefore struggled to evolve on his own. But he looked happy and content, the way his muscles moved. Maybe not everyone had to gain wings.
They made eye contact. Bigtail's expression brightened immediately and he sprinted over.
"You're back!" Bigtail said. It was in the language of ferals, but he understood it perfectly, of course. In fact, at the moment, it felt more natural than how he spoke in Kilo. "What happened?"
"I had a long trip," Smallflame replied. "I'm only here for a little while, and I brought a friend, but I wanted to see Mom and Dad."
Bigtail gestured to the other side of the field. "I'll take you."
The same large field. It was a lot larger in the past, but now, it seemed cozy to his new size. If he supersized himself again, maybe it would be too cramped. But they wouldn't need to know that side of him.
They went further than usual. Did Mom and Dad not want to be close to the lab anymore? The humans were always kind to them, so he couldn't imagine why unless it was some other desire to keep a distance. How old had she become?
Then, his Perceive picked them up. His breath hitched. His father, Marowak Daichi, was well enough. Aged, but still strong. Firm. He probably had a good few years left in him, maybe even a decade if he kept his health up. But his mother…
He could feel her struggling heart. Her labored breaths. Every detail of a truly elderly Pokémon barely hanging on was so vividly known to Owen that he wanted to tear out his horns just to blind himself from it.
But he had to march. No backing down now. He continued walking down the path and finally could see, with his eyes, the state she was in.
Discolored scales. Long, loose skin. She was a lot thinner, but not skeletal. Her eyes were closed, and her tail flame was incredibly dim. But there was a spark that came with every breath.
A once mighty warrior had long passed her prime. Smallflame should have found a way to visit sooner. If he knew it was possible, if he could've remembered, could he have seen her again? Sooner? Gave her closure? Would she even know? Could he call out to her, or would that be worse?
"Mom?" Smallflame said anyway.
The flame grew the tiniest amount.
Bigtail said, "You need to speak louder. And closer."
Daichi stood from his seat and wobbled over. Their eyes met, and Smallflame found himself straightening his back in response. Daichi did the same. They stared at one another, and then Daichi smiled, nodding. Using his bone club, he walked a little closer and gestured with a free hand to the elderly Charizard.
Smallflame crept closer, afraid that he'd startle her. Amber's eyes flitted open but then squinted. Could she see? Her pupils were cloudy.
"M—"
"I knew," Amber whispered, "you would come back."
Daichi finally made it to them and collapsed oddly gracefully next to Amber, who growled comfortingly.
Smallflame fell to all fours and crept a little closer. Amber sniffed the air and let out a long, satisfied sigh.
"You have been through a lot," she observed. "Your scent… is of so many places. It's changed so much."
"How do you know it's me?" Smallflame asked.
Amber chuckled weakly, lugging her tail closer until their flames touched. Smallflame's completely overtook hers. "I'm not gone yet," she said. "I know. The last one. You are Smallflame. I know."
He didn't need to question it. He moved closer for a hug, ever so careful not to hurt her. His cheek rested against her neck, and she did the same. Her delicate arms wrapped over his shoulder, but that proved too strenuous, and she eventually let go with a grunt.
"Mom—"
"I am fine," Amber assured, then laughed once. "As fine as I can. I am… satisfied. I knew… all my children would return. Each one. What more… could I ask?"
Smallflame clenched his jaw, but he understood. She was waiting for him all this time. For her, perhaps it had only been a few years over. But for Smallflame… he had whole lifetimes away from her.
And now he was back.
How could he possibly express that to her? Was there even a point to it? Would she understand? Should she understand?
"I missed you."
But the answer was so much easier to give. He followed his heart. That was all he had to say.
Amber leaned against him, then Daichi. She let out one last sigh.
"I'm sorry I have so little time left," Amber admitted.
Smallflame squeezed his eyes shut again, but his Perceive told him the truth. Amber had held on for the sole purpose of seeing him again. Her goal had been achieved. That final goal in her life, at the very end. Her resolve to remain… was fading.
"I'm sure," Amber said, "you have a lot to talk about. I'll try to listen… if you want to."
Smallflame hesitated. She wanted to know. But… how much would she understand? It was absurd. He'd been gone for two thousand years. Sure, most of it was a repeat, or things he couldn't remember too easily, but… that sort of time scale would be incomprehensible to her.
But she was his mother. He had to answer.
"I'll try," he said.
Quietly, he explained what he could, and while Amber seemed to drift off with a smile now and then, Daichi listened intently and with his usual, hardened gaze. The more he spoke, the more other Charizard gathered to listen, curious about his story.
He talked about Tim and their journey through Kanto, and how it came to its abrupt end. Then, he talked about his time helping him as a Ranger in another region entirely, far, far away from here. With hesitance, he explained their final mission and quietly obfuscated the details afterward so he didn't need to get into all the talk of gods and worlds and resets.
It wasn't easy, and Amber, despite her age, seemed to recognize that Smallflame was leaving out details. His tail dimmed at the interrogating look she gave him and the way she seemed to pay more attention.
"Wait," interrupted one of the larger Charizard— Smallflame recognized her voice as Sharpeye. He wondered if she kept the name.
"What?" Smallflame asked.
"So does that mean you're super strong?"
"I… am, I think," Smallflame said passively.
He felt weaker here. Maybe it was fatigue from Necrozma. Maybe it was for being in a different world. But his techniques were all there, and he certainly had some strength back.
"Prove it!" Sharpeye said, tail thumping on the ground. "My human and I got to the eighth gym before we had to stop. I'm super strong thanks to her!"
Smallflame suppressed a smile when he asked, "Are you sure you want to fight me? I'm… sort of a lot stronger than someone who'd go through those gyms now."
"That's why I want you to prove it," Sharpeye claimed.
"Go on," Amber whispered. "My eyes aren't as good… but I can still feel your battle. Let me see."
He couldn't deny that.
"Alright," Smallflame agreed. "But don't go overboard, okay?"
"What does that mean?"
"Er… don't fight too hard. It's just sparring."
They cleared the field of onlookers. There seemed to be another neighboring clan nearby of another family of Charmander-line Pokémon also spectating the fights, and Smallflame smiled at them. They would probably be the next generation; he wondered if any of them paired off with Charizard of his family.
"I'm ready!" Sharpeye called.
"So am I," Smallflame said, spreading his wings to look a little larger. He knew he could literally grow now thanks to his awakened Radiance, but that would… lead to more awe and questions than a good fight.
Daichi stood up and tapped his bone club on the ground. "Ready," he said. "Fight!"
Sharpeye was fast. With a kick of her legs and a flap of her wings, she disregarded the ground unceremoniously and spiraled toward Smallflame. She fought up close. He already saw countless openings in her reckless fighting style, but the problem was he had to take a hit for that to happen.
He brought a palm forward and blocked her strike with a Protect shield. When she bounced back, Smallflame kicked up dust with his wings and countered with a gout of fire through the debris. He made sure it was weak.
Sharpeye yelped in pain and crouched down to recover. Smallflame could have pressed on from there, but this was just sparring, and this was one of his siblings. Even though her throat was exposed and he knew precisely where to cut, that wasn't a sparring match.
Sparring, sparring. Remember, it's sparring.
Fighting in a crowd was a bad idea. He was still on edge from Necrozma. Or, was he always on edge?
Sharpeye didn't just attack up close. She blasted Smallflame with fire next. The beam was solid and hot enough that Smallflame had to step back, but even when he did, the beam's aim was true. Her namesake held.
But Smallflame had no trouble blocking it, and then, using this as a time to practice his advanced techniques, he reached toward the energy through the shield. His fingers extended invisibly with his aura, grasping at the incoming flames. In less than a second, they coalesced into a ball at the edge of his barrier, now at his command. He curved the flames back toward Sharpeye, who yelped and stumbled back again.
"What?!" she cried.
He had a good feel for the blast, now. When she tried again, Smallflame didn't even need his shield. He reached toward the incoming flames and flicked his wrist, curving them toward her again. All of her siblings watched with awe.
"You took my fire!" Sharpeye shouted it like it was an accusation.
"Oh, yeah. Sorry. It's one of my techniques."
"Can you do that with anything?" asked Bigtail. The Charmeleon crept forward and inspected Smallflame's hand.
"Kind of," Smallflame replied.
Sharpeye snorted. "Well, I can't beat someone who blocks everything I do… and then throws it back at me." She seemed irritated at first but then grinned. "But you became so strong!"
"Yeah…" Smallflame rubbed at his neck. They didn't know half of it. If he was weak, or if he'd stayed weak…
No. Enough wondering. Once Zena got back, and he introduced her to his family, they could get back to business and figure things out.
"But I bet you can't beat ALL of us!" Bigtail declared.
Smallflame blinked.
"What?"
But Bigtail was already rallying the other siblings. Amber smirked and settled her head against Daichi's side. It didn't look like she was going to interfere as the swarm of flames closed in on her final arrival.
Peace was a luxury and Angelo was a starving artist.
Well, not really. He was paid very well for his comics after all the success he'd gained.
But he called himself one anyway in terms of how much relaxation he could earn. The night before, upon rescuing ADAM, he felt accomplished. He did a mission! He felt great! Successful! Maybe his father was watching from the aura sea or whatever Star called it and was proud of him for finally doing some Heart mission! That meant he could retire after saving a demigod, right?
No. Because now he was frantically running down the main roads of Kilo Village with his personal Nate blobbing behind him, staring skyward at yet another rift that had formed.
But this time, it wasn't the Voidlands—that was good, he hoped—but instead, he was staring at Kilo Village again. Like there was another mountain, upside-down, staring at the sky.
"Oof!" He bumped into something and realized it was slimy, to great horror. He screamed and tried to pull away, only to be staring at a concerned Goodra moments later.
"Are you okay?" Anam asked.
"H-Heart of Hearts!" Angelo scrambled to his feet, wincing at the matted fur the Goodra's slime had left behind. "I, er… yes. But—the sky, it's—"
Anam nodded. "We gotta go! Something bad's happening!"
"Go? M-me?"
Anam nodded. "For protection and planning! It's okay, no fighting!"
That was a relief… though, he felt a pang of guilt that he was known for that most of all.
They both rushed down the road and to Heart HQ, where they happened upon Star looking around frantically.
"Anam!" she called, wincing a little when they rushed close.
Anam skidded to a stop, his slime carrying him forward a few extra feet.
She shrank away but then steeled herself with a breath. "Where's Barky?"
"Huh? I thought he was with you at Destiny Tower!" Anam nibbled on his grabbers. "Where is he?"
"Ugh! He's probably chatting with Ghrelle or Aramé or something." Star rubbed her eyes. "Okay. That's fine. But look, we've got a big problem."
"Oh, you don't say?" Angelo said with a shaky voice, pointing skyward.
Something orange caught his eye and he turned his head, seeing a young Charmander with a black and white flame running past him with curiosity in her eyes. She was chasing a tiny Joltik. And, far down the street, a blue Gardevoir was chasing the Charmander.
"It's Aether Forest," Star said. "There's a rift in there, too! That place is supposed to be safe now!"
"And what's that rift? It looks like Kilo Village!" Angelo pointed up.
Spice and Jerry were running and flying over next, catching the end of the conversation.
"Don't tell me there are parallel dimensions like those sci-fi comics," Spice said.
"That's not a parallel world," Star said. "That's across the aura sea! That's… the afterlife!"
"What?! Then why does—what's that mean for here?"
Star opened her mouth to answer, but then the sky erupted with golden light like another sun rose from the earth. It came from Hot Spot.
And that golden light was tainted by tendrils of darkness, creating some kind of dark sun in the middle of the rift. Angelo staggered back, blinded yet unable to look away.
"What is… THAT?" he cried.
The whole world became darker. Light was being siphoned away from Kilo and toward that rift, where a single new sun was formed above the portal.
And then it went flying toward them, everything getting hotter and hotter. Angelo could only hear screams. He curled up and squeezed his eyes shut, his life rushing through his mind.
After all of his struggles, was this how it was going to end?
Hotter and hotter. He could barely feel anything else. And then…
He waited.
His breath halted.
He dared to open one eye.
The great shadow of the leviathan, Nate, loomed over the town. The palm-like head was curled around the sphere, crushing it into a dissipating cloud of reddish energy.
"Wh-what…" Angelo gulped.
The leviathan left Kilo Village and flew toward the rift, as a dragon made of gold-black light emerged from the void.
