Raigeki sat on the beach.
He was alone for the moment, just a blessed moment of peace to sit and watch the krabby blow bubbles.
It had been seven months since he had survived Temporal Tower, saved time, watched a god die, and lost Scout.
Sean survived. Grovyle was gone as well. Mane spoke about Celebi with fondness. Dusknoir was gone. Rai wasn't so sure if that was a good or a bad thing anymore.
A soft wind blew as the sun began to kiss the horizon, bathing the sky in a pinkish hue.
Mane had been having nightmares for the past months, waking up constantly through the night. Sometimes several times a night. Ultimately, Rai had started to curl up with him. It didn't always help, but Mane slept a little better at night. They were a lot closer now.
The litleo was physically alright. With Lapras' Aqua Ring and Chimecho with Chansey's expertise, he was fixed up. There was a gap in the fur on his neck where a thin scar ran through, he couldn't always turn his head quite as far anymore, suffering some stiffness, but he was okay overall.
He hadn't taken the cost of saving the world well.
Rai breathed in a deep breath as his mind fell back into memory.
"And then they disappeared," Rai explained to the whole guild. Whole minus Chatot, of course.
He and Sean had somehow dragged themselves to the Rainbow Stoneship. Lapras tried to comfort them but neither could really focus on him, just sleeping the entire ride across the ocean.
The guild had welcomed them when they returned. There was joy and relief, cutting even through the tragedy of Chatot.
It didn't take long for their cheer to diminish. No Grovyle.
Things only grew more sombre as he explained that Scout had managed to find a way to get back to the past himself and Striker taking Dusknoir back to the future.
Mane had come out. He is refusing to sit in the medical bay when something was being told. He remained quieter than anyone as Rai finished telling the story. He hadn't reacted throughout the story. Not at the part where Scout had entered, when Striker and Dusknoir had come to save them from Primal Dialga, or even when Dialga died.
He slumped to the ground after Rai told them of their disappearance and wouldn't speak for the next three days.
Rai locked himself in the medical bay with him during those three days. His injuries weren't life-threatening, but he needed to be with someone and the only person he had left was Mane.
Sean had been treated and then the guild weren't sure what to do.
After four days, Rai left the medical bay with Mane to give Treasure Town a lesson.
"Are you going to be able to do this?" Mane asked the first thing he had said since the news was dropped.
"I can," Rai answered, forcing his head up. "And I will. Because I am the only one who can."
Mane nodded and used his rather loud behaviour to draw attention before speaking with a Hyper Voice. "EVERYONE LISTEN UP!"
Once enough pokémon were gathered, Rai began to speak.
He spoke of the dark future, which Mane chimed in to give more context. Speaking about Scout's first arrival, of Sean and Grovyle, and their mission to save the world.
Rai recounted the experience of Brine Cave and Chatot's sacrifice. Wigglytuff, who was in the crowd himself, smiled sadly as Rai recounted through tears Chatot dying to save him.
He spoke of the Hidden Land and the struggle to reach Temporal Tower.
Through building emotion, he spoke of Striker's sacrifice, Scout's return, and the climb through the tower. He spoke of Primal Dialga coming from the future, and Grovyle and even Dusknoir also coming to a stop it. He spoke of Scout throwing the Time Gear and Sean charging him with Thunderbolt.
He did not speak of his own actions in saving time by placing the final Time Gear. This was not his story, and he was not the hero here.
He explained Dialga's death, the new Dialga, and then Scout disappearing.
He had trouble speaking of the last of it.
"We cannot let this happen again," Rai proclaimed. He was choked up, he was tearful, he was sniffling, but he wouldn't break down. "The world nearly ended, and brave pokémon sacrificed themselves to save the world. We cannot let this happen again, tell the story, and don't let them be forgotten. That's what he asked me, in the end, to not forget. So please…"
Kangaskhan came up and hugged them both, sensing Rai was finished. The town slowly dispersed, muttering and chatting to themselves. Exploration teams would begin to carry this story far and wide, even if some details would get murky as time passed.
Time would pass, at least it would keep going.
Raigeki sat on the beach.
He was no longer alone; his peace was not broken, however. Mane sat with him, and had come looking for him after he didn't return.
Bidoof had offered to go, but Mane stepped forward without hesitation. Rai was his, he'd check on him.
It'd been seven months since he had nearly died, Chatot had died, time was saved, and Scout had disappeared.
Mane was not a pokémon that liked to dwell on the past. It wouldn't do well to reflect too often, and he could get lost in his own regrets that way. The majority of those regrets were how he had treated Rai, but now he had a few more to weigh on him.
A gentle breeze was blowing, tossing their fur as the sun dipped below the horizon; the sunset was beautiful.
Despite his nightmares for the past few months, he wasn't doing too bad. He told Rai, reluctantly, that he was dreaming of the dark future he had gone through. Just a couple of days, at most, he was there, and yet he still remembered it with such intense memories.
What he didn't tell Rai, but he knew Rai had figured out, was that he also dreamed of Scout. He wondered what happened to him.
He hadn't asked for it, but Rai had begun to sleep on the same straw bed as him. There were many things Mane wanted to say the first few times, flirty remarks to push Rai back to his own bed, soft thanks for being so kind.
He eventually showed how it meant to him in the ways he couldn't say. They always shared the same bed now.
His neck was fine now if a little stiff on cold days. He had easily dealt with it, being a Fire-type. The scar was cool, but he kept it hidden with the Silver Bow.
Something about it felt like Scout, so he kept a hold of it. He wondered where it came from since everything from the future had disappeared. Not the bow, however.
Mane would take it as something to remember. And he would remember, as he sat with Rai watching the krabby blow bubbles. The shinx understood, sitting with the string he once wore the Relic Fragment with. He'd tried to take it out of the Stoneship but it disappeared too part way down. They both liked having something to remember others by.
It had taken a few weeks for Rai and Mane to decide they had grieved enough.
They hadn't, but the world didn't stop just because they lost people. Didn't stop, because Rai had saved it.
The Kecleon Brothers gave Mane a discount, to his surprise. He was sure they overcharged him usually. Perhaps this was just the regular price, then?
Rai was busy speaking to Kangaskhan about getting some stuff for their job today. A psyduck had been lost in Drenched Bluff. It would be easy for them, even Mane could probably do it himself, but the guild had insisted on starting small to get back in the swing of things.
Once things were ready, they set off. Chatting a little to pass the time until they reached the dungeon, Rai gave an anecdote about the first mission of Team Ion being to Drenched Bluff to find a psyduck. He doubted it was the same one, however.
It wasn't until they had neared the dungeon did the matter of the bag come up. Mane was carrying it since he was the one who had done the shopping, but as they reached the dungeon, he reflexively went to hand it over.
Rai gave him a puzzled look before they had a moment of mutual understanding. Mane pulled back and remarked.
"You look hot today," he babbled. Rai gave him another puzzled expression.
"Thanks…?"
"Yeah. Yeah…"
Neither took the first step into the dungeon.
Rai was the first to speak after they stood in silence for a minute. "We can't just… stare forward. Someone needs help."
Mane nodded and took a jerky step forward. Rai's soft footsteps behind him reassured him. But it was weird. It was strange to carry the bag when that was Scout's job.
It was tricky to find the right item when Rai got hit by a Water Pulse.
They stumbled their way onwards and found Psyduck. She chattered along as they made the rest of the way through the dungeon, even stating that they had saved her before.
"Oh, oops," Psyduck winced. Team Ion had saved her before, but not Mane. The litleo had a brief expression of discomfort before he made a sleazy remark that sent them all into an awkward silence.
No one really spoke until Team Ion had returned Psyduck safely to Treasure Town, and she rewarded them.
"It's not always going to be like this, is it?" Rai asked as they walked slowly up to the guild.
"It can't be," Mane answered. They walked with notable space between them since they had always walked on Scout's sides.
It was odd, Mane had found. There were so many little things that were missing.
Scout sitting next to them in the mess hall.
Scout sleep-talking about truly random topics. Mane wondered what a 'shower' was.
Scout was holding the bag and tossing them the items they needed when they needed them.
Scout taking them to the hot springs because he was the weirdest meowth ever and wouldn't bathe himself, no matter how much Mane had offered. He had even caught Rai almost offering too, but Scout always made a hairball joke, and Rai fluffed up instead.
Neither of them cried for Scout that day. And yet it still hurt, an ever-present ache that they got used to day by day.
They leaned into each other. Rai made sure the fur around his scar was clean, often grooming him and focusing there until Mane giggled and they wrestled.
Mane in turn shared his warmth with Rai, huddling next to each other at night, trying to soothe the ache with the warmth in his body.
They began to get closer, leaning heavily against the other. They were always together.
Corphish and Croagunk liked to keep them company, even join them on a few missions.
Sunflora always wished them a good day. Chimecho would check up on them without bothering them.
Dugtrio would save missions he thought they would enjoy. Diglett would share his feet jokes with Mane, and Loudred would share jokes about being impulsive with Rai.
Wigglytuff didn't lock himself in his room but instead joined the guild more directly. He often would restock the larder himself, so no one else was dragged down by THAT job. Unlike Rai and Mane, he still did cry.
Not just for Chatot, but everyone. And he sat by Chatot's grave every night. Mane had even heard him softly singing in the dead of night.
Bidoof remained a little odd. He left the guild more often at later times, sometimes staying out for entire nights. He came back with a lot of knock-knock jokes, however, so it wasn't worried over.
Sean was almost similar to Wigglytuff some days. Lost, adrift, not knowing how to handle life without the people he had treasured most.
He wasn't one to wallow, however. He tried planting a smile on his face, said that when they were together they tried to never look back, only forwards. He joined Rai and Mane. He wasn't Scout and he didn't try to be him, but Team Ion still had a third on most days.
Scout might have been gone, but they were pulling themselves together piece by piece, day by day.
Some days were harder than others, some days were easier. The worst days usually came when Wigglytuff had an episode. Without Chatot around anymore, Wigglytuff cycled through emotional states with alarming regularity.
He could barely hold himself together to keep the guild going. He was clingy and constantly on the verge of a breakdown. No one knew what to do for him, they could only pat the Guildmaster on the back until he was able to stop shaking and go back to work. He had taken on Chatot's duties, he was clearly unfit for the tasks, however.
Stocking the larder was one thing, Chatot had also chosen which requests to accept and which ones to discard. With Wigglytuff accepting every single request, the boards were flooded with pokémon asking for simple things, untrue requests, and dangerous ones that brought Sunflora and Corphish back bruised and injured.
Wigglytuff was trying, however, he just wasn't prepared to do this. Not when on the constant edge of a breakdown.
He didn't Yoom-TAH thankfully. Or, perhaps, unfortunately. There was no pep to Wigglytuff anymore. He seemed to have lost the sparkle in his eyes and the guild, and the town, began to realise how much Wigglytuff's constant positivity meant to the area.
Nor how much Chatot meant to everything.
Each apprentice found themselves experiencing life a little different.
Sunflora was a lot more withdrawn, not floating around town absorbing and dispensing gossip for her little information racquet. Loudred had become a lot more quiet, much like he was before Chatot stirred the voice out of him. And Corphish was constantly irratable, never anything big bothered him, just a series of small things that weren't there to bother him before.
Chimecho found herself a little lonelier, with Sunflora being quieter and Wigglytuff a wreck she hadn't a fussy chatot to tease, nor an extra pair of hands to help the little things. The Psychic Network side of her role was growing more stressful without him to bear some of the writing burden.
Croagunk seemed little different besides a tired sadness in his eyes.
Dugtrio rarely visited the sea much anymore, sticking much closer to his son than before and Diglett was getting snappish with the constant hovering.
Chatot did so many little things. He helped transcribe for Chimecho, sort the items, manage the incoming jobs and knew every little thing that helped run the joint and smooth things out for the apprentices.
No one woke up early to a song that they were 'Surely not meant to hear at all now get going chop-chop!' That turned a bad week into a good one. Varieties of food were less specified and the place was a little less clean.
No one was sure what to do. Team Go-Getters had stuck around, deciding to be useful even if the major danger had passed. As the guild fumbled, they took on many of the more difficult rescues in dungeons that had begun to appear where the freezing storms had been most fierce.
The guild may not have known what to do, someone new, however….
"Pokémon detected! Pokémon detected!" Diglett called one day, going the rounds as usual.
"Who's footprint? Who's footprint?" Loudred replied. It was just another day.
"The footprint is... Armaldo. The footprint is Armaldo!"
Loudred was quiet for a moment, checking the wanted posters. Before he could answer, a pink blur zipped through the room fluttering the papers everywhere. "Dammit!" he cursed, grumbling as he had to pick them all up and re-stack them.
On the guild's grate, Armaldo looked down with impatience. "Am I cleared or what?" he snapped, privately hoping that they didn't have an ancient wanted poster of himself or anything. He wouldn't put it pass Wigglytuff to have put one up as if it was a medal of honour and had forgotten to tell anyone what it really was for.
Diglett began to say his apologies, as Loudred had gone radio silent unable to even squeak out a sound, but before anyone could say much Wigglytuff appeared at the top of the guild. Chatot's old roost.
He stared out in naked hope for a moment, meeting Armaldo's eyes. Armaldo began to raise a claw in greeting when the guild's gate opened and Wigglytuff leapt out. "TEACHER!" he cried and slammed into the old explorer, nearly knocking the sturdy pokémon over from the shock of the impact.
Armaldo coughed, tilting back but regaining his balance. It had been a while since he had been on the other side of Wigglytuff's affection, but his old skills in withstanding it were still tried and true.
"What are you doing here? Where have you been? How have you been? Why did you come? Please don't go," Wigglytuff said all in a single breath, nearly crushing Armaldo's exoskeleton with his strength.
"I... heard," Armaldo grunted, trying to pry Wigglytuff's deceptively strong arms from his torso. "About Chatot." Wigglytuff sagged against him and Armaldo had to catch him before he simply slid off like a deflated balloon.
Wigglytuff sniffled. Armaldo looked down at him.
He whimpered again, eyes watering. Armaldo gave a weary sigh and closed his arms around Wigglytuff, giving him a hug. Even now, years down the track, this little Fairy-type was just as emotional as when he was an impudent igglybuff.
As Armaldo's eyes moved past the now bawling Wigglytuff, he noticed a simple grave situated by the side of the guild. He rubbed Wigglytuff's back; this would be okay this one time.
The guild all watched him with confusion and vague suspicion as he came down, knocking his head and tail on the walls as he entered. He ignored them, carrying Wigglytuff to his room and letting him fall asleep against him.
He noticed the piles of requests on Wigglytuff's table and glanced at them.
Help please. I ned to seee Korfish in Dank Cave. Send help soon. Reeward, a million Purfect Apps. Signed ~ Princely Puddle
That was one that had clearly been marked for approval. Armaldo sighed, sat down, and began to properly sort through this mess while Wigglytuff slept.
"It's been a while, hasn't it?" Rai said, turning to Mane at last. "Since everything returned to normal."
"It's weird," Mane replied, nodding. "It's kinda like nothing changed? Since that future was stopped, it never happened. And everyone who came to a stop it… is this what things were supposed to be like?"
"Us being on a team?" Rai asked.
Mane smiled a little. "Heh, maybe. It still feels…" he trailed off, not really knowing how to finish that thought.
Rai understood, however. "We're missing someone," he said, glancing back out to the horizon. "Even if he wasn't really supposed to be here, it doesn't change that he was. All of them."
Their tails poked against the sand, twitching closer at random until they flopped on the other and curled around.
"I wonder how things went originally?" Mane asked, looking out himself. "When we went to the future Treasure Town, I actually found myself. I was just at my house, near the door. And you… you might have been still there. I hope it wasn't you, though."
"I wonder if I joined the guild?" Rai asked, before shaking his head. "I… I don't think I did. I never could, until he said I could."
"You always could," Mane replied. "I just made you think like you couldn't." He paused, looking up right into Rai's eyes. "I'm still sorry about that."
Rai smiled, glancing at Mane. Even now, the litleo still looked unsure about where they stood. He felt bad, this was his fault. "You don't need to apologise anymore" Rai said, watching Mane relax. He almost sagged, Rai wondered if he really hadn't said it sooner. "I forgave you a while ago. Sorry for letting you think I hadn't. Thank you for being here with me."
"You don't need to apologise," Mane said, frowning slightly in discomfort. He willed himself not to turn away. "And you're welcome."
Rai stood up to cross what little space was still between them. He licked Mane on the cheek and nuzzled him. Mane briefly tensed, just briefly, before he remembered that this was okay and leaned into it. Rai's breath ghosted over his for a moment.
"Do you think it's possible we could find him?" Rai whispered, pressing back. "Ask Dialga? He was a bit upset before, but…"
"I think we could look," Mane said, leaning back. "Treasure Town is in one piece again, Team Go-Getters have been doing the work of a whole guild with rescuing so many pokémon. Can't believe so many new dungeons have spawned, though. Armaldo's keeping Wigglytuff and the guild going. We could leave for a bit."
"I want to see Sean again," Rai whispered.
"Scout," Mane replied, rolling his eyes.
Rai coughed, inner ears going pink. "Will I ever get that right?"
"If you call him Sean when we get him back, I may have to smack you."
Rai giggled, and the two continued leaning on each other as the setting sun lit up motes of dust in the air, falling and coalescing.
The Hidden Land was a beautiful and terrible place.
Rolling hills tore up the landscape as chilling mountains erupted from the floating mass of earth. Forests and dungeons covered the island, inviting adventure and danger on every corner.
A floating citadel was a beacon to all that could see, but few could ever reach it. Didn't help that the final piece of the Rainbow Stoneship had been removed on the way back, but neither Striker nor Guardian could really fault Rai for that.
Dialga was able to grant them passage anyway.
It was bizarre. After failing to stop Primal Dialga from reaching the past and leaping in after it to drag it back, Striker, Guardian, and Saniya believed their time was up.
The wind had begun to blow. An aurora lit up the sky, giving Saniya a moment to see what a living world could look like. Before it too began to disappear into motes of light.
The three had huddled together, and there was no complaint to resting against Guardian with Saniya in his arms. Guardian had made the right choice in the end; to his friends, that was what mattered.
Primal Dialga had disappeared before they did, and the three accepted their fates. They had saved the world, that was what mattered.
However, then they were back.
Guardian had been the first to react, being the sturdiest of the three. Saniya had taxed herself completely to stop time from folding in on itself during Primal Dialga's rampage in the past, and Striker had closed his eyes to feel one last time simply.
So, it was Guardian who spotted an oddly small Dialga looking over them with a mixture of confusion, concern, and irritation.
"Huh," Dialga said as Striker and Saniya also noticed they existed. Such clever pokémon.
"How?" Guardian spluttered, looking back and forth. There was no sign of Primal Dialga, the aurora, or anything.
"How, indeed?" Dialga grumbled, glancing back and forth. When no Palkia came screaming down to smite him, he decided to explain as best he could. "Somehow you three have been plucked out of the nothingness that decaying timeline became and brought back to this one. I can only assume the thing that got stuck in the fence, who else could have done this?"
"What?" Guardian said.
Dialga shrugged. Odd look on a quadruped. "Arceus. I guess it must have woken up or something and decided to make my day, and Palkia's day, a lot more complicated." Dialga looked back and forth again, checking once more for the dragon with an attitude. "Well, come along. If you have to exist, then you can help me fix the tower. I've been trying for the past two weeks, but I am not skilled in handiwork."
Guardian picked up Striker and Saniya; both were stunned speechless, and slowly began to float after Dialga.
They were alive. And, if Dialga was to be believed, they were in the timeline they had saved.
"How long has it been since time was restored?" Saniya asked, she wanted to fly up and support herself, but her wings were not responding.
"Two weeks, as I said," Dialga replied.
"Why are you so small?" she added, not flinching when Dialga glared.
"The previous Dialga died from the injuries delivered by that THING you three failed to keep in the future," Dialga snapped, all three flinched. It sighed and tried to act nice. "You can make up for it by helping me. Alright?"
And so the days of Striker, Saniya, and Guardian became something different. Saniya was ecstatic beyond words that she was not only alive but in the past. Or, technically, the present now that their future no longer existed.
According to Dialga, this was the timeline now. The future did not exist anymore.
Guardian struggled the most with that. Having erased countless lives, even lives that were hardly worth living, was not easy on his head. But as time continued, his memories of the future grew hazy. He sometimes forgot who his servants were; sableye or yamask or druddigon or…?
Striker and Saniya also had difficulty recalling things from the future. Dialga, once asked, explained with some of their ever-present frustration that since those things did not exist anymore, they would eventually forget completely.
Sean and Scout were not being forgotten, however. The three made sure of that, to remind each other each day, to not let their spirits fade. Even if they technically didn't exist anymore anyway.
Saniya was the first to find something upsetting. In the dark future, she couldn't time travel particularly easily. Teleportation was possible, but that was about it without the Passage of Time. Despite time flowing normally again, she still was unable to time travel.
Dialga was growing more comfortable with their presence by the point she learnt this and was more accommodating to answer.
It might have helped that progress on repairing the tower was faster than it had anticipated with Striker and Guardian setting up foundation throughout the days.
"Time is under too much stress for any time manipulation," Dialga explained to the disappointed Saniya. "A natural response. Safe mode you could think. Neither of us nor can the other Celebi travel through time right now."
It was odd, however, how easy it was to fall into a routine.
All three have lived with their lives on the line, going moment to moment, the stability that Dialga gave was comforting. Each day they had something to do, more of the tower needed repairing, ferals warded off, and Dialga needing to be talked down from raining Draco Meteor's down on the Hidden Land in frustration.
They didn't speak of Sean and Scout except for the very first time they talked to Dialga, asking if they had returned as well. Dialga had told them that to its knowledge, they were the only ones pulled from the nothingness.
That was it until seven months later.
"Okay, you three," Dialga said, standing proudly before Guardian, Saniya, and Striker. Temporal Tower was not fixed, but it no longer looked like it was going to fall over if a stiff breeze blew across it, "I must thank you for everything you have done."
"It was no problem, Master Dialga," Guardian said, giving a bow. It had been simple for him to call this Dialga master, and this Dialga didn't dissuade it. Even when Saniya and Striker gave Guardian a hard time about it, he didn't stop.
"Perhaps not," Dialga rumbled, "but without your assistance, the tower would still be in shambles." Dialga looked back towards the tower.
The three waited in silence. Dialga had called them to the Old Ruins to talk, which was odd since it usually called them up to Temporal Tower if it needed to discuss anything.
Praise was unusual, especially from Dialga.
"Why did you call us here?" Striker asked, deciding to be the upfront one. "It is unusual."
Dialga turned back to them and nodded. "Your company has been valued, but I have a hang of things now. I think it is time for you to re-join the rest of the world, find your own paths. Live your own lives."
The reactions from the trio were varied.
Guardian flinched, reeling back in horror. Striker looked back and forth between his friends in rapid surprise. Saniya beamed with joy.
"M-Master Dialga?" Guardian stuttered. He took a breath and composed himself. "Surely, there is more work to be done. It would be undue to leave you completely."
Dialga's expression morphed into a stern look, with a hint of amusement. "What would you do if I ordered you to leave and live your own life?"
Saniya giggled. The revolving expressions of pain and horror on Guardian's face were hilarious to her; she was glad Dialga had started to pick up a sense of humour. She accepted all the accolades for being responsible for that.
"You want us to leave?" Striker asked, deciding to give Guardian a break from his fit.
"I want you to do more with yourselves," Dialga replied. "For whatever reason, you were revived, despite the risk that poses, despite the anger that Palkia might have shown, you were chosen to come back. Whether it was a reward for what you did, or for a purpose, I do not think you should remain here forever."
"I understand."
"Master Dialga, isn't there anything else I can do here?" Guardian was grasping at straws now. Striker punched his shoulder, and he gave the grovyle a hurt look.
"You can't hide here forever," Striker said.
Saniya floated up to his other side. "He's right, you know?"
Guardian hesitated. "I… I do not deserve to go back," he admitted. "What I did to the pokémon in this timeline, it is unforgivable. It would be better for you two to return as heroes, I should stay here."
"Not going accept that, Guards," Saniya giggled, flicking the sensor on top of Guardian's head. "You saved the world in the end, plus hiding out here is no good. You have to face the world. They will probably not be happy at first, but we will be there for you. You'll always wonder, otherwise."
"Plus, I am not giving you a choice," Dialga pointed out.
Guardian gave a world-weary sigh.
Dialga saw them off, having summoned Lapras and given them all a packed lunch. Guardian looked back a lot as Dialga grew smaller and smaller. It was larger than it had been when they first saw it, but still small compared to Primal Dialga.
Honestly, that had helped.
Saniya looked forward, glancing back only to wave. She was unbearably eager to see the world she had heard so much about but had never been able to experience.
Striker sat between them, thinking over Dialga's last words to the trio.
"Thank you for your help. Let life be your reward, you have more than earned it."
He didn't want to think about what that could mean. There was no point, but he did anyway as Lapras carried them to Treasure Town.
As they went, they thought of when they thought their lives were done.
"Do you regret saving me?" Striker had asked, as they stared up at the grand mountain they would be surmounting momentarily. In the Dark Future, before Primal Dialga beat its way into the past.
There was no time to stop and breathe, so they had to do it as they walked. Or, in Saniya's case, flew.
"No," Guardian replied, heavily and pained. "I regret many things, countless things, but not this."
Saniya had flown slightly ahead, sensing Striker's wishes to talk but not with her. She was kind like that, even if this wasn't really a conversation Striker wished to have.
Walking towards this final summit, to their ends and the ends of countless beings. This world was broken and rotting, a carcass in time and space. Striker had dreamed of the world Sean had come from many times, but his brain could never visualise the wonders Sean sighed about, not until he stepped into the past.
It was not their actions here, and now that would necessarily save time, but the blood of the world still stained their hands. A question many may wonder, what would it be like to kill a world?
And yet, Striker thought, was this killing a world or saving it? Was it cutting an infected limb off to let the greater whole live and heal? Was this salvation?
He didn't know. Sometimes he thought yes, sometimes he feared no.
"Why did you choose to try and preserve this world?" Striker asked. He never had truly and entirely shared his thoughts on the morality of what they were aiming towards, he couldn't with Sean until recently. By that point, there was no time for doubt.
There was no time for doubt here either, so Striker knew that perhaps easing his mind would help. An answer, yes or no, would not change his path or his step. But it would at least be an answer.
"I did not want to die," Guardian said, voice trembling above a whisper. "Not again."
Striker gave him a curious look. "You never did answer me about that."
"It's a rather private thing to ask," Guardian replied. "How I died? Who I was before? There's no question I can ask you in return that bears as much weight."
"There might be one," Striker said, not wanting to outright state it. He did not know how heavy this was for Guardian, he was not a Ghost-type after all.
"You think there is something I could ask you that burdens you as much as your question burdens me?" Guardian asked, not quite angry, not quite accusing, but almost.
"We never truly discussed how we felt about our task," Striker said, softly. "How changing time erases us, erases everything, from here. The idea of removing so many people from reality, never giving them a chance, not even getting a chance ourselves. We never really talked about that."
Guardian was quiet, there was only Striker's footsteps, crunching the snow. Beforehand this was probably time frozen and would be cutting him to ribbons, forcing Saniya to carry him. But time was beginning to move again.
"You have doubts?" Guardian asked, absolute fear in his voice.
"No," Striker replied. "I have never doubted what we are doing, or… at least I never doubted that I would be willing to do it."
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Guardian relax. Ironic, Striker felt, only a short time ago that would have been very different.
"What gives you your courage?" Guardian whispered. "I do not… I truly and honestly do not remember much of who and what I was before. The last I remember is fear and pain. The screaming wish to not disappear into nothingness, and I was back. A duskull. Death frightens me so much, but it was due to that feeling I remember, of nothingness, that I fear the most."
Striker met Guardian's eye and then cast out his arm to their surroundings. "Everyone fears like that," he said. "Everyone. We all want to live, but… can you really say what's happening here, what's happening in this time, is living? It's surviving. It's fighting day and day or night and night because the time does not change. There's no peace or happiness, no security, no hope. This world is already dead."
"But I'm still afraid," Guardian whispered. "The past it was… so beautiful. I know it is right to keep that and not let it become… this. But I am still so afraid."
"I am here with you," Striker said. It was not awkward. It was a little awkward. "And we'll be together until the end."
"I hope Scout is with Sean and Shinx," Guardian said, looking up at the sky. "I don't want him to be alone either."
While the boys spoke, Saniya flew up ahead. They deserved to have some privacy, while she could still hear every word she wasn't intentionally eavesdropping.
Regardless, she had someone she needed to talk to as well. "Giratina?" Saniya asked, pulling out her mirror. The mirror didn't even swim before it appeared, as the great eye of Giratina was already there.
"Celebi," Giratina rumbled, unflappable in its greatness.
"Looks like this is it," Saniya whispered, unable to stop a tremble going through her. She may have been a Grass-type, but the cold wasn't the reason.
"Indeed," Giratina replied. She wished she could tell how they were feeling, but even now she had trouble discerning Giratina's mood.
The motes of light were only occasional, but they would float out of everything, so even one in a hundred still created a dazzling array of light—all around them. The boys would be too focused on each other, but Saniya saw it. Saw it all. Saw the light of the world this one time. This final time.
"Do you think I'll see a sunrise?" Saniya asked. Sean had described one. Giratina had described one. Yet, she just could not imagine it through their words. She wanted to see it for herself.
"I do not know," Giratina replied, never one for empty promises. "But I hope you do."
Touched, she smiled at the mirror. "You're nice," she said with a smile. "No matter what that other one acts like, or what I've said. You're nice. You raised this bubbly beam of beauty and brightness! So, you can't be too bad."
Giratina chuckled. To some, it'd sound like the wind of the damned, but Saniya knew what it was.
"Thank you, Saniya," Giratina said. She almost missed it, only almost. Giratina had never once referred to her by the name Sean gave her, only as Celebi. The one it had said was hers.
To her surprise, the eye rolled. "Don't get teary on me, please." But it was too late, tears were filling her eyes.
"I love you, you know?" she said, wiping her face. "I might not have ever actually seen you face to face. Heard what you sound like in person. Even touched you. I don't really know what a parent is, but would you get mad if I wanted you to be mine?"
Giratina was silent, and she feared she said too much. Asked too much.
"I raised you," Giratina said after considering its words for a moment. "I may not have been able to hold you in my 'arms', I don't have arms in the first place. I may not have been able to hold you when you cried or lulled you to sleep. But I raised you. I don't know what a parent is myself, not truly. But don't ever think that I don't see you as my daughter."
She didn't cry this time, just smiled and sniffled. Giratina turned away from the mirror for a while, the two not saying anything. She didn't ask if it was wiping tears, not even in a teasing way. She wasn't sure Giratina could anyway, they were probably just embarrassed.
"Thank you," Saniya whispered.
"Thank you," Giratina replied, emphasising the word. "You made saving this world worthwhile."
Giratina had never died. Never. It believed it was the only being as such, even Arceus had died several times. Not Giratina. However, as the frozen world began to fade away, the distorted and reversed world Giratina solely inhabited started to fade in kind. They were mirrors, one could not exist without the other.
It would not be a true death, more akin to a reset. And yet, even so, Giratina remained close as it too did not want to be alone in this final hour.
Striker and Guardian had spoken, Saniya and Giratina had spoken. If the world was ever kind to them, it was in giving them enough time to settle their nerves. As now, they were out of time.
"Boys," Saniya called, floating to a stop and lowering her mirror, "not to interrupt this, but… we're here."
Striker and Guardian stopped with Saniya to stare into the dungeon entrance for a moment. Just a moment. Just a single moment to let them think about why they were doing this.
The three did not share their resolution with the others. It was something only for themselves.
Saniya smiled softly as she cleaned a mote of dust off her mirror. Striker fastened the old backpack Sean had retired for orb carrying. Guardian brushed a finger on the old scarf-blanket tied to his arm.
They stopped only for a moment. Then. They moved.
Later on, as Primal Dialga finally sunk to its knees, allowing the paradox to end its world-ending misery, three pokémon huddled together.
Striker pressed his back to Guardian, almost like the times they'd do this in quiet moments to build up Striker's leg strength. He held Saniya in his arms, resting against Guardian, as motes of light bloomed around them.
There was no more talking. Saniya had seen the sun at long last and was content, her mirror fallen to the ground but with an eye peering through.
Giratina watched as Dialga, its poor, maddened, sibling was finally put to rest.
Giratina watched as Guardian leaned his head back, clutching Striker's hand with his own, and sighed. His spirit had shined. He was still afraid, but with Striker's steady hand on his own, he knew he was not alone.
Giratina watched as Saniya nestled into the crook of Striker's arm, staring up at the sunrise in wonder, she held Guardian's other hand with her own tiny one.
Giratina watched as Striker lay between them, providing all the strength he could to those he cared for. And also as Guardian and Saniya returned it, not allowing him to take this final burden on alone.
Giratina watched as the world disappeared and smiled once, in a sadly happy way, as its own body joined them.
The quiet moment Rai and Mane were enjoying was spoiled by two things happening at once.
In the distance, now above the setting sun, swam a familiar blue form. Huddled on Lapras were three visible figures. One of the figures sprang into the air and began flying back and forth excitedly. A hint of green and grey could also be seen, one climbing up to wave and the other huddling down to try and avoid being seen.
Further distracting the surprised pair was the arrival of Sean, having been sent after Mane to see what was taking the two.
Compounding both things was the reaction both new parties had. A sound akin to a snap of a whip caused water to separate as a pink missile flew in.
"SEAN!?"
Saniya slammed into the staggered riolu with the force of her affection, nearly burying him from the impact. "AHHHHH!"
Striker dropped to the ground and leaped for Sean faster than Saniya had, tackling the riolu again in a shameless explosion of hysterical joy.
"Celebi?" Mane asked, blinking as she began to teleport in uncontrollable glee. She grabbed Mane and shook him in excitement before flying into Beach Cave and exiting the other side in only thirty seconds.
Lapras shored up, and Guardian glanced off awkwardly.
"Dusknoir?" Rai gasped.
With his head rattling, Mane almost didn't recognise him. "YOU!" he snarled, jolting up as embers popped out of his mouth.
"He's okay!" Saniya cheered, grabbing and shaking Guardian next. "We all are! Yippee! Where's Scout?"
Busy hugging a weeping Striker, Sean glanced around as well as he began to mentally catch up. "U-uh? Guys? How?"
"I want to know why Dusknoir's here," Mane said woozily. Mane tried to pull himself together, but he fell over instead.
"He did save me from Dialga," Rai pointed out, finding it easier to focus on facts rather than questions. "You know that. But… you are all here. H-How?"
"Where's Scout!?" Mane added, half-buried in the sand.
"What's going on?" Sean asked. "Am I asleep? Am I dreaming? This can't be real, can it?" He looked between Striker, Saniya, even Guardian in almost wary hope. "G-guys?"
"We were revived by something 'greater' than Master Dialga and had been helping Master Dialga repair the Hidden Land," Guardian explained.
"You?" Mane scoffed.
"Dialga said no one else was brought back," Striker hiccuped, still holding onto Sean. "I also want to know how?"
"I never disappeared," Sean explained, and then tears began to fill his eyes. "I-I-I watched Scout disappear and I didn't and everyone but me and I thought, I thought." His voice shook more and more until his burst into tears, grabbing Striker in a rib-crushing hug and bawling into his chest.
Saniya flew in and collided with them, hugging him back and joining his sobbing with her own. Guardian remained where he was, awkwardly looking in as Mane glared at him, Rai looked around for who wasn't there, and Lapras tried to be as still as possible.
"If you are all here." Rai's voice came sharply. "Then where is Scout?"
That was the question that no one knew how to answer.
"Is Scout back?" Mane asked, pulling himself up. "And not here? Does ANYONE have any answers?"
"Dialga… just said that it was us," Striker managed quietly. "We didn't even realise Sean was still around."
"Why?" Mane shouted.
"I can take you back," Lapras said, deciding to enter the conversation. He nodded as everyone turned to him. "I kindly require a night to rest, however."
"Alright," Rai replied, nodding. He looked to Mane, and they shared a nod. "We'll go to the Hidden Land tomorrow. Ask Dialga what is meant by something 'greater' and get answers." He turned to Mane, determined energy burning in his eyes.
"You're being very level-headed," Mane pointed out
Rai closed his eyes briefly, taking a breath. "Too much is going on at the moment to process it at all," he said, opening them back up. His claws had extended and his body was rigid. "I don't want to freak out, so let's just focus on stuff one at a time. They're back, we should go to the guild."
"You want to bring HIM to the guild?" Mane asked, glaring at Guardian.
"He has changed," Striker snapped but Mane rolled his eyes.
"Cool story. Doesn't change what he did."
"I can find my own accommodation for the night," Guardian suggested, but Mane glared at him anyway.
"Like I'm letting you run off alone."
"Then what do you want to do?" Striker asked.
"I don't know!"
"Let's just," Saniya trailed off, glancing behind her curiously. "Hm. That was odd. Uh, what was I saying?"
"What we should do?" Mane answered. "Because I don't want him out of my sight, nor do I want him in my sight!"
"Mane," Rai said, touching his shoulder.
Mane sighed. "You're not going to take his side here? Even if he did save you."
Rai shook his head. "No, but arguing isn't going to solve anything. We've got to get to the Hidden Land tomorrow, and arguing on the beach isn't going to help."
"What the shinx said!" Saniya said, opening her mouth to continue but pausing again. She shook her head and tapped her ear.
"Are you alright?" Striker asked, still not relinquishing Sean, who was still crying.
"I'm fine," Saniya replied, "I feel like I'm hearing stuff, though. Is this what it's like at a beach? It's weird. I love it!"
"Those would be the waves," Mane said, gesturing vaguely.
"Alright," Rai said, trying to pull things back on track. "I think we all should go to the guild. Understand what's going on here as best as we can. Wigglytuff and Armaldo might be able to help."
Mane decided to accept that, and the seven of them began the trek back to the guild.
Rai - quiet, and puzzled. Mane - annoyed, and cross. Sean - still crying. Striker - carrying Sean. Saniya - giggling as she looked at things she'd never seen before and chattering everyone's ears off. Guardian - reluctant and uncomfortable.
Despite everything seeming to be over, it seemed that something new was building. If Striker, Saniya, and Guardian could be brought back, then it gave Rai and Mane hope that they could, in fact, find Scout.
Whatever it took.
They would find him.
Hello! You've made it to the end of Arc 1 of Warped Skies. Thank you so much for coming so far in this story, yet we are not even close to done!
In the original story I have a long authors note discussing things about my thoughts and processes of Arc 1. I won't repeat that stuff here, rather I'll talk about things I've done differently.
To those who have already read the story, this might be interesting. And to those who are reading this first, well, you might still find it interesting~
So, where do I begin?
I long since wanted to split Warped Skies into several 'books'. By the time I realised how long it would be, it was waaay too late to split them up so I decided I'd do it afterwards.
Which seemed daunting, over a million words to edit but I'd do it.
Writing Arc 1 the first time, I had no idea what I was doing at first. Massive paradigm-shifting ideas came to me frequently and the story had a few retcons and played catch up a lot as I thought of new things that should always have been there.
So, one such change here was having those ideas in place from the start. The Psychic Network and a lot of the world building was not present in the first Arc or in the same way because I didn't think of it until later. This will probably be just as big with Arc 2, because that had a lot of important stuff due to a certain couple characters, so I'm looking forward to that!
What changed between the previous version and this one? Well. A couple things, some small, some bigger. Team Skull, for instance, had the same general role as they do in the game, and Scout and Rai didn't try and speak about them until after they turned up and Chatot was his game self.
Chatot was a really important thing to do right. He developed into Guild Dad that he was here, but he had that harsh game Chatot stuff early on which was wildly at odds with who his character was supposed to be. So, Team Skull was shifted around. We did get a fight with them in Arc 1 to retrieve the Relic Fragment and, as you know, that didn't happen here.
They took one from the future, which was on the table but never happened in the original. Other smaller changes was the Guild Debriefs (which we'll get at least a few more of) and Scout and Rai being a little cuter. They had an awkward beginning in the original that I smoothed out a bit here (the night mate thing still happened though, lol).
Otherwise that's been about it, updating chapters in important ways and making things a little nicer to read. We'll get a couple bonus chapters after this but we'll get there, the bonus chapters like to explore past stuff for backstory and are fun.
Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed! Much more to come.
Before you go, two things. May I ask what was your favourite moment of the arc, least favourite, and if you have any questions feel free to ask them (can't promise I'll answer but I might).
And, like the original, we have a little story below this~
Scout sat between Rai and Mane.
They always left just a little bit of space when sitting beside each other. That little spot for him to fit into.
He wasn't sure if they realised they did it.
He was sure that they didn't know that he sat in between them. They couldn't know. Because he didn't exist anymore.
He did not exist but he was still here.
As the light had gone dark and he disappeared from the tower, he found himself still there. He was happy, for just a moment.
Trying to hug Rai in joy had caused him to fall straight through him and then nearly through the stones before he righted himself.
He was not there, but he was.
He followed them back to the Stoneship. Through the Hidden Land. Across the sea.
He sat with Rai as he and Mane cried, unable to offer them even the slightest touch of comfort.
He followed as they walked back into the dungeons. Without and then with Sean.
Listened to them cry in their sleep.
He couldn't cry himself.
He did not exist, but he was still there.
He did not exist, but he was still here.
He thought Saniya might have heard him. She looked almost at him, just briefly.
Dialga hadn't brought him back.
He did not exist.
Yet, Rai and Mane hung on. So, he would hang on for them.
He had to.