This really just feels like one long stretch of story. In a game as open-world as this one, it's hard to reconcile with giving the characters direction. I'd like to think I found one, though. Let's see it in Chapter 9!

Chapter 9

A Fear

Juliana would have rather fought another Roaring Moon than face the upward trek to Montenevera.

Even without the feathered dragon bearing down on them, Grusha had not been lying when he called Glaseado the ultimate challenge. Snow still made it difficult to move at any speed, and given they were heading uphill, it meant they were prone to slip more often than not. This often prompted Arven to hold on to her, especially when they reached the deeper patches of snow. That wasn't helped by the wind, either.

Topping it all off was Koraidon, who was as heavy as he looked, making every Pokémon struggle. More than once, Kilowattrel had tried to lift him into the air, only to be carried back down by gravity. About the only one that didn't look to be struggling was Ceruledge, on account of melting small pockets of snow wherever he went. That didn't help the rest of them, though.

"I think I see something!" Arven managed to shout over the wind around midmorning. They had been traversing all night, guided under the diseased moon. Their only boon had been that the snowstorm had ceased, but Juliana still felt exhausted and all but shuffled over to where Arven was standing at some cliff. When she reached him, she looked down, only to find they were standing over a frozen plunge to water.

"Arven, I'm not going in there." She shivered at the thought, and some of the Pokémon swirling within it, as though waiting for a snack. The older boy, however, grabbed her face and turned it in a different direction.

"I'm not talking about that. I think I found the road." Juliana blinked a few times, trying to clear the pure white landscape from her eyes. While she did so, Kilowattrel flew ahead, only to reverse and zip back to her.

"Kiwatt!"

"Mile marker, huh? What're we waiting for, then?" Juliana turned around, only to get her unfortunate answer. Quaxwell and Tinkaton both slipped, dropping Koraidon to the snow. The lizard's tongue lolled out, panting with ragged breaths. In alarm, both Juliana and Arven slid over to him.

"Yeowch, he's really burning up."

"Down here he's really cool, though," Juliana said, running her hand over the scales near his posterior. They felt cold and fragile, similar to the crystal fragments on the air. That alone gave her cause to worry, her heart gripping so tightly she felt she wouldn't be able to breathe. "You really think we can heal him? If even the Herba Mystica…"

"We can't know until we try. Hard part is getting him there."

"Seledge." The pair turned and then parted when Ceruledge stepped forward. He bent low, gingerly slotting his blades underneath Koraidon and managing to lift him high. Unfettered by the heat or cold exuding from Koraidon's body, he hauled him upwards and began walking in the direction of the mile marker. Most of the Pokémon breathed in relief, save for Tinkaton, who glowered at him and then chucked a snowball with her hammer.

"Stop that," Juliana scolded, rapping her on the head. She listened, if barely, and joined their party in circumventing the frozen lake to reach the path once again.

When they had, the journey became demonstrably easier. Having a path, if snow-covered, made it far simpler for them to climb. Ceruledge and Arven took point, their backs providing some shielding against the cutting wind. From behind, Mabosstiff and Tinkaton took the rear, as if watching for any more unusual and dangerous Pokémon that wanted to besiege them. None did, thankfully, and as the morning melded into the afternoon, the sun beginning to sink, they finally caught their first sight of little lights on the horizon. Juliana wasn't sure what they were at first, but she knew they definitely belonged to their destination. That feeling doubled when the mountain path began to feel less like an untrodden trench and more like snow-covered cobblestone.

When that stone became less covered, Juliana could finally identify the lights for what they were: streetlamps, winding upwards towards a peak. They all lined the streets, illuminating the sides of quaint houses. Few though there were, each brick house looked warm and inviting in the stark, chilly landscape. Smoke was puffing out of many chimneys in the small frontier town, though it looked strange from a distance.

That strangeness was only enhanced the closer they got, but for a moment, Juliana paused. The brisk wind burned at her cheeks, as if to remind her just how high up on the mountain they'd gotten, but she didn't need that to know. All she needed was a look downhill. Though it wasn't fully visible, she could see that past the frozen flats and falls and drops, the Glaseado Gate stood.

She didn't have time for it just then, though, challenge be damned.

"What a weird town…" Arven's comment called attention to Montenevera, their party approaching the iron-wrought gates that led into the town. On closer examination, they looked like a Lampent, beckoning them towards some sort of underworld. Koraidon must have thought so, because he whimpered as Ceruledge led him under the gate and into the town.

Following him, Juliana could finally take in the town proper. It was sparsely populated, only a few people on the roads doing daily activities. Compared to other places, there were certainly no students and even less tourists, leading the whole place to feel rather empty. Or it would have, if the entire street didn't have little candles lining it. Even the streetlamps, Juliana now realized, weren't electric but made of those same little flickering flames. They danced with the wind but were never doused, a perpetual source of light for the little town.

Trailing her eyes upward, Juliana could see it all culminated in the Gym at the top of the town, and what looked like a massive stage bedecked with floodlights and speakers. They were currently off, but Juliana had a feeling the little town was livelier than she gave it credit for. It felt confirmed when they passed by a yard and saw three doglike Pokémon playing with each other. A quick scan told her they were Graveard, and when they were in their field of view, the trio stopped and watched them pass. They barked, yipped and then ran out of the yard and up the hill towards the Gym.

The party, however, only made it a few more feet before Koraidon convulsed a little, and Ceruledge buckled. Both hit the ground.

"Kooor! Koraaai!"

"Koraidon! Hey, calm down!" Juliana rushed to his side, as did Arven, and the pair quickly locked themselves on his body. He wouldn't stop, and his wildly fluctuating body temperature made it all the more difficult to hold on. Doors opened from the houses and people began to filter outside, looking at the cause of the commotion. So, Juliana did the only thing she could in the situation. "Someone, please help us!"

Concerned mumbles passed through the onlookers, some of whom were barely poking their heads out of their houses. No one stepped forward, though, prompting Juliana to fly to her feet.

"Hey, don't just stand there," one person said, a young man wearing shades and dark clothing. Emblazoned on his jacket was the symbol of the Paldean League, and to his presence everyone finally reacted. "Come on, y'all. Lift him up. Bring him to Ryme. And make it quick!"

"Ryme?" Juliana said, but she stepped back. It gave the villagers enough room to pick the listless Koraidon up and begin carrying him up the hill with all speed. He was still writhing, but a shot of frozen water from a Glalie locked his limbs in place. "Wait, isn't that Miss Tyme's sister?"

"Sure is. Leader of the Montenevera Gym, if I'm not mistaken," Arven said. He dusted himself off as he stood. This prompted both to look towards their savior. "You work with her?"

"I'm her protégé, yo. And her referee." The man made some poses, but when the pair didn't react to them, he quickly recovered. A jerk of his head later and they were following the procession up the hill. "Your Pokémon looks in a bad way, but if anyone can find the core of the problem, it be Ryme."

"Songs that raise the dead, you said?" Juliana noted to Arven. He nodded, but appeared to know just as much as she did from this point forward. "So, you're taking us to the Gym?"

"Ain't no place better for ailing Pokémon than the Montenevera Gym," the man said, slapping both on the back. "Think of it like a sanctuary on the mountain. Lots of accidents happen out here, yo, and the Pokémon need somewhere to go. Ryme's music lifts them up. Though I don't think it'll help your friend."

Juliana clenched at the very thought of that. She paused in the street, allowing her Pokémon to catch up to her, with Quaxwell and Lokix supporting Ceruledge. "Don't…don't say that."

"Didn't mean nothin' by it," the referee said, turning back. "I just mean the music ain't so simple. But whatever's hurtin' your big boy, Ryme'll find it. Diego, by the way. Ryme's apprentice and don't you forget it. Now, come on."

The callous comment rolled off Juliana's back, and she put all her emotion into care for Koraidon. Her Pokémon did as well and they soon surpassed Diego to join the procession of villagers to the top of the town. When they got there, Juliana received a fuller picture of the area. The Gym and the stage were more prominent, as expected, but Juliana could see the group of Pokémon near the stage, a place large enough for either a concert or a battle. Soft music was now coming through the speakers, calming the Pokémon, providing them with some healing vibes and confirming what Diego had said.

There was also a Pokémon Center, and it was from here that Nurse Joy came running, her partner Flittle at her side.

"He looks in a bad way," Joy automatically said. "Bring him straight in. Ryme's already finishing with her own therapy."

"Nurse Joy, can-can you help him?" Juliana asked, squeezing to the front. She never felt so out of sorts or tense, and matching gazes with Nurse Joy did not help in the slightest. Her pursed lips made it even worse.

"We'll see." She waved them forward. Flittle's eyes lit up, psychically supporting Koraidon and carrying him into the Center. Their own party followed, unable to do anything but watch as the great red lizard was floated to the back, and the light went on over the emergency room.

We'll see? That can't be good enough… Juliana found herself balling her hands, digging her nails. She resisted the urge to kick a nearby trash can, and decided to pace instead. The villagers dispersed, but Diego continued on, dipping into another room with a light over it. That light went off mere moments later and a door in the Center opened. Three Graveard came gamboling out and running up to her, Arven and their Pokémon.

"Grav! Grav!"

"So, this is who you saw, huh? The infamous Juliana." She stopped her pacing, her name tumbling from someone unknown's lips giving her pause. With the slightest glance to Arven, she looked up and saw the woman walking towards her. For a moment, Juliana thought she was seeing things and Miss Tyme was in the Center with them, but the details were quick to stand out. Instead of the prim and proper dress, this woman wore a tighter fitting one, trimmed with gold. That extended all the way down to her shoes and her jacket, making it look like she was bedecked in jewelry. Around her head were a couple Gastly, but her voice appeared to command quite a few ghosts to gravitate near her. "Sis was right. You are some kinda troublemaker, aren't ya, baby?"

"Huh?" Juliana shook her head back and forth, starting to realize she was speaking to the very Gym Leader that Diego had mentioned. "I'm sorry, how do you know me?"

"Brown hair, school uniform, single braid, and a scowl that could make a grown man cry. Described by my sis and that firecracker Nemona, you seem to fit it to a tee. Or are you not Juliana?" She had no response to Ryme's assertions, and couldn't even take her hand when the woman offered it. Arven was swift enough to accept in her stead.

"She is Juliana. I'm Arven."

"Oh, Nemona's said your name a few times, too, baby. All good things, last I remembered." She shook the hand and then turned back to Juliana. Realizing now how the woman knew her from description alone, she accepted the shake. "I thought I'd be runnin' into you on some kind of Gym challenge, but that don't look to be the case. Bringing me less than stellar news, looks like."

"Is it true?" Ryme's face squinted, not quite understanding what she meant. "Is it true that your songs can heal the…" Juliana couldn't finish getting the words out.

"Don't you worry, honey. My ghosties already told me everything." Her ghosties, as it turned out, looked to be the Graveard that were gathered. They seemed to take a particular liking to Ceruledge, their fellow Ghost type alarmed by the sudden attention. It didn't help Juliana's own mind much, a fact Ryme noticed, for she bent down to put an arm on her shoulder, her braided white hair swinging like it was a demented skeleton's arm. "Don't you worry. I'll get to the bottom of it. Might take a bit, but you're just gonna have to wait, okay?"

"But is it true…?" Ryme patted Juliana's shoulder without a word, walking for the emergency room. She turned back before she entered.

"Oh, you better believe it, honey. I ain't called the MC of RIP for nothin'. I raised my own partner from the dead, and I can do anything. You just sit tight, y'hear?" As if to reassure her that Juliana would, Arven grabbed her pack and pulled Juliana into the seat next to him. The Graveard scampered off, and the door soon slammed shut behind Ryme and her pack of ghost Pokémon.

"And now we wait," Arven said, taking her hand and gripping it tight.

Waiting, however, was the hardest part.

If it wasn't the deep red light over the room, or the sudden cries from Koraidon, it was all of her Pokémon giving furtive glances that never seemed to stop. Understanding the mood of the situation, Mabosstiff and Crocalor both attempted to cheer all of them up, but Juliana couldn't bring herself to do so. Day turned into night, and her time limit wound on, but Juliana didn't care. She didn't care for much of anything, really. Not food, nor the music outside, or anything. All she wanted was for Koraidon to be okay.

Arven was surprisingly resilient through it all, not saying anything and not freaking out at all. He showed concern, sure, but he remained a rock that refused to let emotion cloud his judgment. The only way he showed his own worry was him sticking to his cooking, making a lavish spread for a completely empty Pokémon Center. Even when the dark of night fell around them, he didn't stop. Nor did Juliana stop her pacing. The pair really did show how dire they were, and how much relief flooded them when, as the first cracks of sun shone over the mountain, the red light went off.

"Arven," she whispered, though she needn't have bothered. He was as awake as she was. With her call, though, they both approached the room, waiting for someone to open the door.

It was Nurse Joy who did so, looking exhausted, but keeping a grim smile on her face. "We've done what we can."

"What…we can?"

"What does that mean?"

Their questions were met only by Nurse Joy inviting them inside.

The corridor and room were as sterile as could be, making Juliana uncomfortable. There were some dirty cloths here and there, but largely the place felt devoid of personality until they entered the space where Koraidon was on a table. His eyes were open, and he no longer looked to be close to death's door. Yet Juliana expressed no joy upon seeing him, and he showed no joy at seeing her or the other Pokémon. If anything, he was despondent, in a rested state that showed all his limbs curled in.

"He's looking better," Arven said, allowing a smile to slip on his face. He waved a hand in front of Koraidon in greeting, but all the lizard did was bury his head in his torso. "Uh…okay… Rude."

"We managed to stop the fever," Nurse Joy explained. She shuffled into the room with her tired eyes and began cleaning some things up. "That was the main thing threatening him, but it's not the only thing. There are parts of his body that have crystallized."

"I noticed," Juliana said. She found a chair and scraped it along the ground so she could sit next to her partner. "Is it threatening him?"

"Could be. It's something unlike anything I've ever seen. But his vitals are a bit different from Pokémon as we know them. Almost…undeveloped. Ancient, you could say." Nurse Joy paused, allowing a sigh to escape her lips. "If left unchecked, it might harm him, but it seems a little like his body's defense mechanism to damage. Either way, he's not about to deteriorate."

"Then why isn't he all perked up?" Arven asked. He took the moment to lean against a wall and watch as Mabosstiff pawed his way up to Koraidon. The lizard didn't move at his friend's short bark.

"He's not 'perked up' because his problem ain't with his body, baby," Ryme said. They jumped, hardly noticing she was there, but she took no offense. She looked too tired to take offense. Despite that, she had enough energy and fire to continue talking with them. Her hand raised up, tapping at her head. "He can take those wounds, no matter who dishes 'em out, but everything that's causin' fear and despair and lethargy is in the mind."

"You're saying he's scared?" Juliana asked. She reached out, wrapping a hand around Koraidon's scaly leg. He barely reacted to it. In fact, he started to shy away from it, drawing in on himself in a way that felt very uncomfortable and very familiar to Juliana.

"Scared. Wounded. Pressured. Ashamed. Baby, Pokémon are just like humans," Ryme said. She looked like she wanted to grab some kind of microphone, but dropped her hand when she realized she didn't have one. "They feel everything we feel. And I understand, it's easy to deal with your own problems, but this one has been strugglin' for a long time, just trying to keep up with you."

"I never asked for him to-" Juliana found herself standing, and that it was her turn to be filled with shame. She had never asked for any of them to be dragged into her messes, but they had all the same. Koraidon was no different. But she had never taken the time for his mess.

"No one's sayin' you did anything wrong, Juli," Ryme said, the shake of her head whipping her braids around. "All I'm saying is that Koraidon has a lot goin' on his head, and he's got nowhere to turn to. It's clear he's tried to emulate whatever strength you got goin' on, but that can only go so far. Like how you can tell a child not to touch a stove. They might avoid it for a bit, but eventually, they'll try again. Courage isn't somethin' you can pass with a few words or raps and expect someone to find it.

"They need to feel it, baby!"

Juliana sat back down, bending closer to Koraidon and trying to look into his eyes. She could remember just how many times she told him he was strong, or his triumphant roars when she'd win a battle. Yet every time one of those strange Pokémon showed up, he balked, sprinting for the nearest exit. There was truth to Ryme's words, and no matter how many words she uttered, it would never save him from himself, and his perception of his weakness.

She reached out again, touching his feathered head, and wished with all her might to have the answer. Tell me, Koraidon. How can I help you?

"If I can ask, where'd this guy come from?" Ryme's question jerked her out of her own. Arven scratched his head, sighing, but left it up to Juliana to answer. "I only ask because he looks a lot like some of those creatures that've been terrorizin' these parts. Maybe that's a clue to what's breakin' his mind."

"I…I don't know, actually," Juliana answered. Her hand fell off her trusty partner. "I just found him one day when he saved me. Though we guessed…"

"He came from Area Zero," Arven said. He shoved his hands in his pockets and snorted. His eyes darted everywhere but towards them. "From my parents."

"Your parents?" Ryme asked, tilting her head to the side. The Graveard with her tilted their heads, too. It took a moment, but eventually Ryme figured it out. "Ahh, of course. Shoulda seen the resemblance. Area Zero you say?"

"Far as I can remember," Arven confirmed. "My memory's a bit hazy, though. I remember him being there with my parents one day, but after that day, they never let me near Area Zero again. Not with permission, at least."

"It wouldn't surprise me," Juliana said. Her body had fully slumped now, unable to gather a lot of the requisite energy to stay upright. "It's pretty clear he's not from these parts. And to be honest, since those creatures came out, he…started reminding me of them."

"Those paradoxical Pokémon?" Ryme said. She started to pace, finding everything about the situation intriguing. In spite of her own research-oriented mind, Juliana couldn't find the same. None of the strides made in that kind of discovery mattered against Koraidon's very real state. "Now that you mention it, he looks like some kind of prehistoric Cyclizar, doesn't he? Would explain a lot."

"Does it?" Arven's snort sounded amused, but his face conveyed that he was far from it. His concern for Koraidon was just as prevalent as her own.

"It does," Juliana managed with a sigh. She tried to pick herself up, wanting to soothe Koraidon again, for as little good as it would do. "Think about it, Arven. That Roaring Moon, or that Donphan in the desert. All of them looked like they were these rugged, more natural Pokémon than the kind we see today. Could make sense Area Zero would be a biome where they're preserved or something."

"Then how do we explain the robotic Donphan, or that Iron Valiant?"

"Oh, you're talking like that weird Robot Delibird people have noticed. Hasn't come near the town, but it's certainly something people have pointed out." Ryme was clearly a quick study, latching on to the conversation with minimal effort. If anything, she looked like she knew more than the both of them put together. "Now that could explain a lot."

"You keep saying that but you're not exactly telling us what it explains!" Juliana snapped. She stood, putting the chair behind her. Ryme didn't even blink at her sudden outburst. Arven didn't react much, either, like he expected her to get more and more riled up as the conversation wound itself in circles. "Koraidon is hurt and you seem to know the answers, but you don't want to tell us."

"Baby, I don't need to tell you a thing. All the answers be right there in front of you. You're just not lookin'." To that, Juliana gulped, swallowing the hard lump that had formed in her throat. Her body was shaking, unable to see anything but the red scales of Koraidon right in front of her. It took a moment, but Ryme made her way around the table and put her hands on Juliana's head, forcing her to look straight forward. "Take a look at your friend. What do you see?"

Juliana's breaths came as pants for a moment, but realizing that Ryme wouldn't let go caused her to breathe deeper and calm herself. Her conversation with Arven came back to her. She couldn't neglect the things closest to her, those connections she had formed. So instead of broadening herself to looking at the world, she looked only at Koraidon.

"He's…scared." That bit was obvious, and Ryme continually holding on to her told her that she hadn't yet grasped the bigger picture. "Hurt. Alone. He's alone. He fought…something alone. Lost to it. Meowth said he'd…"

"Now you're gettin' it, Little Miss Juli." Ryme let go, but it didn't stop the observations from flooding into Juliana's brain, bypassing the sheer worry that had built up.

"Meowth mentioned he had lost a big battle, and that's what's been making him so scared of fighting those, I guess we call them Paradox Pokémon." Juliana started to tap her foot and before she knew it, she was pacing back and forth in front of a still despondent Koraidon. "Maybe…maybe he lost to one. Maybe if he's like some prehistoric version, maybe he lost to a futuristic version!"

"What, two of them? I guess it's not impossible," Arven said, folding his arms. "That doesn't help, though."

"Sure, it does! If we beat the future one then Koraidon can see there's nothing to be scared o-" She looked at Koraidon, seeing no change in that mention. Not any extra dose of fear or courage or anything. Juliana's form slumped once more. "Guess we'd need him to beat it, though, if he already lost to it once."

"Honey, you're gettin' it all wrong," Ryme said. She was seated once again, all the little Graveard in her lap while she petted them. The Gastly floated around her like little lights, giving her a rather mysterious vibe. "You're so held up on that detail that fixin' the problem is somethin' external. It ain't.

"It's about the heart and the mind, baby."

"Yeah, but how the hell are we supposed to fix that?!" Juliana finally shouted, frustration spilling out. She slammed her hands on the table, it being the one action that made Koraidon look up and peer into her eyes. She could see the fear there more than ever, but the longer she looked, the more she saw the fear was just a mask for what was deeper inside. For what he felt like he was lacking. "Connection… You're so scared because you think you can't take it on again. Like… like only you could, but on your own…"

She wanted to bury her face in her hands, she was ashamed of having gotten it all wrong. The truth was something so startlingly simple, and so close to home to begin with. Though they had met by pure chance, and had acted so different, they really were of the same mind.

Juliana and Koraidon, two beings with problems that they felt only they could solve, both running away from the way they could solve it.

"Now you're seein' it," Ryme said, a smile cracking her face. It enhanced her wrinkles, her age showing itself for just a bit, but somehow that seemed to make all of her wisdom shine through. "It really comes down to somethin' I think you get, but he doesn't: you ain't alone."

"That's what I've been telling her!" Arven said, looking on the cusp of laughing.

"Life is all about that connection. To another person. To another Pokémon. Whether you be battlin', eatin', healin', or just sittin' at the end of the day and taking in the time together, we're making those connections all the time. It's a way of sayin' that you're in all of this together."

Juliana started shaking again, tears again threatening her eyes. She reached up and wiped them away, knowing that it would only scare Koraidon more. It was so true, in a way she had wanted to ignore. It wasn't just her who needed to be taught she wasn't alone. Sucking in her breath and her tears, Juliana leaned forward and hugged Koraidon tight. That was followed by all of her Pokémon moving in and doing the same.

It was simply a small step, one that didn't change much, but Juliana knew if there was one thing she'd learned from Serena and her classes, it was that a step made all the difference.

"It's okay, Koraidon. You're not alone."

"None of us are. And denyin' those connections," Ryme scoffed, shaking her head, "that's when we lose the world. That's why we keep goin'. Keep singin', keep battlin', keep smilin'."

"You have a heck of a positive outlook, Ryme," Arven said. He chuckled, too, the air in the room beginning to lighten at last. The woman reached up, tapping her fist against her chest.

"Gotta have it, Arven. I'm in a town that's the furthest away from the rest of the world," she said. She mixed her own laughter in there, one that put a smile on even Nurse Joy's face. "It'd be so easy for me to forget the rest of the world exists, but that's why I'm singin' and battlin'. Cuz when I do, baby, I'm not alone. My sister feels it, my Pokémon feel it and I can shake the whole world!"

"Shake the whole world, huh? Maybe shake our world." Juliana drew back, holding to Koraidon's head and staring deep into his eyes. He didn't look away, though his body trembled. The longer she looked, the more the answer to everything with him became obvious. "If we keep closed off, you'll always be afraid. You'll never be able to beat that fear. And you'll always think you can't beat that future version of you alone.

"So, I'll prove to you that you're not alone, Koraidon. We'll have your back, now until the end. We've got all the strength to back you up, the same way we do to take on Eri and bring you home!"

"K-Kor?"

"How you plan to do that, baby?" Ryme's knowing smile said it all.

Juliana stood straighter, took a breath, and then pointed right at the Gym Leader. "Gym Leader Ryme, I challenge you to a battle! And Koraidon, you're gonna watch us fly in a way we never have before."

"I'll make sure he does!" Arven said, coming over to slap Koraidon. The lizard yelped, his eyes blinking with the slightest bit of fire brought back to them.

"This isn't just encouragement, though," Juliana clarified. "We're a team, and we're in this together, right to the very end. We won't leave you behind. We'll cover each other's strengths and weaknesses. I want you to see that."

"Then there's only one way to do it," Ryme said. She stood and strode past Koraidon, a light hand patting him on the head before she stood in front of Juliana. The woman practically towered over her, but Juliana didn't waver. "You show 'em workin' as a team. If you agree to a double battle-"

"I agree!" Juliana said without hesitation. That alone made Koraidon perk up a little more and look around, her enthusiasm like a shot to him.

"All right, then, honey. Bring it on!" Ryme's hand slapped out and Juliana caught it, their agreement present and visible right in front of Koraidon. "We gonna raise the dead with our battle. Gimme your worst, Juli, and sing me your song! We battle at sunset!"

Author's Note: What's this? Another Gym battle? Are you really surprised?

As a shorter chapter, this was really about the build into Koraidon's character and Juliana finally connecting and understanding him. In some way, it's a reinforcement of the previous lesson that Juliana just learned, putting her breakthrough into practice. It's not some wholesale rejuvenation the way it was for Ash and Gloria, but it's no less potent.

So, get ready for the double battle, baby! Until then, I always ask you review, comment and, of course, Dare to Be Silly.