THE BLUE SPIRIT
CHAPTER 004 – THE ALPHA, THE LEGEND & THE GUARDIAN
Some people would say that reading a book during their free time compared to doing one of many other more entertaining things was stupid and boring. And most of the time, a certain honey blonde haired girl would be inclined to agree, as books and reading was never her forte. Her interests laid in other things, such as competing in Pokemon Showcases and Rhyhorn Racing. Not to mention shopping and doing everything else a normal teenage girl would do. And yet, here she was with her full attention on the words she read about her region's myths and legends while lying down on a couch with her head propped up against a pillow in her living room.
It was something so out of the ordinary for her that even her own mother, Grace, was surprised and stopped in her spot as soon as she noticed it when she walked into the living room. "Serena? What are you doing?"
Said girl looked up to the side towards her mother before she replied back. "Reading. Why, what's up?" she asked in a casual tone of voice.
Grace had her eyebrows go up with her eyes widening. "Okay, who are you and what have you done to my daughter?" she asked in a serious tone of voice.
"Ha ha, very funny," replied Serena sarcastically while rolling her eyes before moving her gaze back to the book.
"I'm serious," continued Grace as she went closer to her daughter and sat on the same couch as her at the end. She had space, since the couch was rather long and her daughter had her legs bent while lying down on her back on the couch. "I haven't seen a book in your hands since you left school." Her words made her daughter blush slightly, raising the book higher to hide her face as a result. "Oh, c'mon don't act so shy. It's not like he's here for you to act like this."
"MOM!" shouted Serena in shock and embarrassment, her blush reddening even more as she lowered the book and left it open on top of her lap as she sat up and glared at her mother. Grace however just burst out laughing, making Serena cross her arms over her chest and puff out her cheeks in anger. She tried to look angry but when her mom looked at her again, Grace's laughter continued even harder over Serena's expression that looked to be adorable rather than scary. "Oouuuu, it's not funny!" said Serena with narrowed eyes.
"B-But it is! Its s-so funny!" retorted Grace, laughing to the point of her having difficulty in breathing.
"Fine!" Serena made to get up to leave but her wrist was grabbed and made to sit back down. "What?!"
Grace raised her free hand to signal her to wait as she finished up laughing and took in a breath. "Okay, okay, I'm good." Taking in a deep breath through her nose before exhaling it out through her mouth, she locked eyes with her daughter. "But, you have to admit it was pretty funny." Serena didn't say anything, staying quiet and Grace let out a sigh while letting go of her and throwing up her hands in defeat. "Alright, alright, it wasn't funny. I'm sorry," she said sincerely.
Serena calmed down and let out a sigh herself. "Okay, it's fine."
"Okay." Grace looked at the book in her daughter's hands. "So, what are you reading?"
Serena looked at her mom before looking at the book. "It's called 'Legends of Kalos' and it's about all the myths and legends of our region that we know of," she explained.
"Oh, really?" questioned Grace and Serena nodded. "Interesting. I've never heard of a book like that. Where did you get it from?"
Serena had a soft smile form on her face as her cheeks turned pink before answering. "Um, remember when I went to Kanto for the get together?" Grace had one corner of her lips curl upwards into a small smile before nodding. "Well, besides making new friends, I met Professor Oak again since it's his home town and close to him and his mom."
"Okay. And?"
"Well, Professor Oak gave me this book, saying that he and Professor Sycamore worked on it and he wanted me to have one of the first books printed."
"Well, isn't that kind of him?" asked Grace rhetorically but Serena still nodded. "But, why'd you get embarrassed over that?" Her question made her daughter look at her with wide eyes. "Oh come now, I saw your little blush and how you looked at the book. I don't care if the world famous Professor Oak gave you that book, you still wouldn't look at it that way. So what's the truth? You can tell me," said Grace, finishing up with her reasoning softly so she wouldn't aggravate her daughter more, even though she was tempted to do so.
Serena was quiet for a moment before answering her mother. "Okay. Well, what I said is the truth. But, it wasn't the professor's idea to give it to me. Neither of them. It was…well…I mean…"
When she stopped talking, Grace figured it out. "Oh, I see. It was his idea, huh?"
Her daughter nodded with her face reddening as she explained. "Yes. He found out what they were doing and convinced them to give me a copy before they made it public friendly, saying that I was worthy to know the truth of some of these things regarding Kalos because of what we experienced together as we traveled around Kalos and since it was about my home region," explained Serena with a heavy blush on her face.
Grace was surprised over what she heard. "Wow, really? So because of him, you were given an unaltered book made from evidence collected by professors, professionals and government officials that contains all of Kalos' legends, myths and history with no bullshit added or important bits taken out?" Serena nodded without saying anything, her heavy blush still on her face. "Wow. No wonder you're reading the book since it's practically a gift from your dark haired savior…"
"MOM!" snapped Serena with a glare over her mother's joking once more.
"What? You should've seen that one coming," said Grace as she chuckled.
Serena huffed as she crossed her arms. "Whatever." I guess I could say it was a gift from Ash, but…I wasn't the only one who got something because of him…
Grace didn't know what her daughter was thinking as she continued chuckling for a bit before calming down. Looking at her daughter, she decided she'd play nice a bit. "So…what are some of the hidden facts about our Kalos?"
Serena glanced at her with raised eyebrows. "You really want to know?" asked the honey blonde haired girl with skepticism.
"Of course," replied back Grace sincerely. "If it's the actual true facts about our region and if it's something that interests you, I want to know too. We have similar taste, remember?"
Smiling at her mom, Serena looked at the book in front of her and went back to where she was at. "Alright. Well, there's so many. One thing was about a myth that dates back thousands of years. It says that our ancestors performed a special rite to summon the legendary pokemon Xerneas so the legendary can show up and grant them longer lives. And another ritual was one about bringing back those who had passed on but there's no evidence of that ever being done. The longer life one is well documented and there's a lot of evidence of it being done. But even though it worked and Xerneas would come, it would do their own thing to determine if the person or pokemon was worthy enough to be given longer life..."
Grace's eyes widened as she let out a whistle. "Wow, I never knew that. That's incredible."
"I know, right?" replied Serena with a smile, glancing at her mom before facing the book and flipping through the pages back towards the beginning of the book. "And remember how my friends and I fought against Team Flare so they wouldn't be able to fire that weapon of theirs?"
"How could I forget? I was so worried about you and scared to death when I found out you were in that fight too," said Grace with a frown.
Serena looked at her, feeling guilty about making her worried. "Sorry Mom."
"It's alright. It's over and done with. And I bet he probably did whatever he could to keep you safe," she said with a playful smirk.
Serena reddened again while the image of a raven haired young man appeared in her mind. She moved her eyes back to the book and stopped on the page she was looking for. "SO, AS I WAS SAYING…" started Serena loudly, making her point quite clear that they were moving on while Grace's smirk grew into a large grin. "…it looks like that weapon was actually fired before a long, long time ago and Team Flare's leader, Lysandre, was telling the truth about that. It says that the man who made it first built it as a machine to restore life to his pokemon. When it was used, it caused the deaths of countless pokemon, humans and plant life around the machine since it used their aura, which is another way to say life energy, to bring back his pokemon that lost its life due to being forced to fight in the Great Kalos War. When the pokemon came back to life and learned of what its trainer did to restore it to life, it was disgusted of the man and left him. Because of his despair and anger over everything, the man turned the machine into a weapon and fired it at both sides involved in the war that caused horrific levels of destruction. And that was what caused the Great Kalos War to end."
"Now that's terrible. I can't believe that actually happened. But why didn't that man try to do that other thing to see if Xerneas might bring back his pokemon?" asked Grace, wondering why go to such horrible lengths when there already a possible way to get it done.
Serena looked back at the open book and looked for the notes she saw with her right index finger moving over the page to help her do so. "Well, I read here before that they don't know the exact reasons why, but guessed that it could be because...oh here it is. So yeah, they thought he didn't know or that he tried to summon Xerneas but was unsuccessful. But they're leaning towards him not knowing since that legend about summoning the legendary pokemon of life seems to have been lost in time since they were only able to recover evidence about it being done before the man's time."
"I see. Well, sometimes people can do extraordinary things, both good and bad, when pushed to the edge," remarked Grace heavily.
"Yeah." Serena agreed with a heavy tone on that. After everything she's been through and seen with her own eyes, she knew that was true. Some people would just do whatever it takes to get what they want, even if it meant hurting others to do so. But, she also knew that there were also those who would stand against them, picturing a certain young man in her mind.
"Well, anything in there about something good?" asked Grace, catching Serena's attention as she looked at her mom. "I need to hear something happier after all that doom and gloom."
The honey blonde haired girl chuckled in agreement. "Right. There is one that I just read recently." Flipping through the pages, she stopped close to where she was in the book and showed the pages to her mother. "There's a legend about the elemental winged titans and how they have multiple homes throughout the world. One of their homes is actually here in Kalos and it's called the 'Sky Spirits Den'. It says here that its open to everyone but only the worthy ones, the chosen ones, will be able to meet them in person. And if any who enter desecrate their home, they'll know who it was and unleash their wrath on them."
"Okay, that's a little better. But why mention this one? Isn't there anything better?" asked Grace.
Serena had a large smile on her face. "Well, one other thing about the 'Sky Spirits Den' is that the view it offers at the top of it is said to be amazing and rivals that of any other beautiful spot in the world."
"Now that's more like it," commented Grace, making Serena giggle. "Sounds like a great place for a date. You should go with…"
"Don't start!" interrupted Serena, making Grace laugh.
"Okay, okay. Anyways, that's enough history lessons for one day for me," said Grace as she stood up. "What do you feel like having for dinner today?" she asked as she made her way to the kitchen.
"Doesn't matter. You decide," replied back Serena.
As Grace started making something for them to eat, the honey blonde haired girl saved her spot by folding the top right corner of the page and closed the book. She started thinking as she gazed at the book's cover. She thought of what she read. She thought of the one who got the book for her. And thinking of him made her think about how she didn't go through with her plan when they said their goodbyes when he was going back home and they were alone. She wanted to show him how she felt about him by giving him a goodbye kiss but chickened out at the end. And she also thought about how she didn't do anything when she went to his house for the big get together. She closed her eyes and took in a breath. I have to tell him. But how and when? Unable to figure out a way after a short while and not wanting to dwell on that, she decided to go help out her mom with preparing their meal. Placing the book on the coffee table next to the couch, she got up and went to the kitchen. A little while later, after Serena and her mother finished their meal, the honey blonde haired girl got a call from one of her newly made friends, who she remembered was a native from the Hoenn region…
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Three individuals appeared out of thin air right in the middle of the Hall of Origin. Two of the three were amazed at where they now stood unable to look away. The marvelous grand hall with their seemingly divine markings and decorations seemed to capture their attention. So much so that they didn't notice that the one who brought them here had already moved forward nor did they notice the others that were already there.
"I've brought him just like you requested. Now, what other information is there to that vision?" asked the purple feline.
Ash's and Pikachu's attention snapped back to Mewtwo after hearing him speak. It was then they noticed three others near them who were actually standing right beside him. His jaw dropped and his eyes grew wide before he was able to say something. "No way!" he exclaimed with surprise in seeing the three reality dragons with his loyal partner letting out a 'pika' in shock too. Immediately afterwards, a large goofy grin spread on his face. "Hey, it's so good to see you guys again!"
"It's good to see you too," replied Giratina kindly.
"Whoa, you can talk?!" remarked an astonished Ash.
A scoff was let out by the lord of space before he responded telepathically. "We've always been able to talk. It's just sometimes we simply chose not to," replied Palkia with a slightly annoyed tone.
"True, as well as other reasons," added Dialga.
"What, no greetings for me?" interrupted a deep, booming, yet oddly calming voice that came from behind the trio.
"Wait, is that…" Ash peered behind Giratina as he leaned over to the side. "It is! Arceus!" The young man dashed forward with Pikachu holding onto his shoulder. He quickly made his way to the Original One, who was sitting on top of his throne. Ash stopped directly in front of him with a large beaming smile on his face, mirrored by his starter. "Hey Arceus! It's been so long. How have you been?"
"It has been a while. It's good to see you in good spirits and health." Arceus replied back with a warm smile on his face, one he rarely gave. The reality Dragon trio noticed this, becoming a little envious but made no sound.
"Thanks, and same to you!"
The purple feline couldn't wait anymore and spoke up once more at that moment. "Alright, I brought the boy. I've done as you asked. Now tell me the rest of the vision. What other information is there in regards to it?" Mewtwo was getting impatient. Even though he had a little respect for Ash and Arceus, he didn't like being ignored and made to wait.
"Vision? What vision?" A clueless Ash asked the group at large, alternating his gaze to each of the powerful beings around him.
"Pika?" Pikachu looked lost as well, tilting his head.
Arceus had an expression of annoyance flash across his face that only the young man missed before he started speaking. "I shall tell you. I will tell both of you. But first let me have Ash catch up to what you already know." Mewtwo growled lowly at having to wait even more but said no more as he crossed his arms and looked over to the side. Seeing the psychic feline fall in line, Arceus moved on. "Better. Now Ash, I have something important to tell you…" And with that Arceus told Ash everything he told Mewtwo. The darkness that can and will corrupt all that was coming in five years time. How even the legendaries weren't even safe and powerless against it. How Arceus couldn't get involved personally. And how he and Mewtwo were seen in his vision, which meant they would fight together against the darkness.
After he had been caught up, Ash was both horrified at finding out about the darkness coming and shocked that he was one of the two seen fighting in Arceus's vision. He went quiet for a short while, thinking of what he had been told. Several things came to mind and he brought them up. "Damn, to hear all that…that's terrible. Even legendaries can be corrupted by this evil. That's awful. I want to help. I really do. But…why me?" asked Ash, glancing at each legendary Pokémon there before facing Arceus again. He took in a breath and continued since they remained silent. "I'm just a teenager, not even an adult in the laws' eyes since I'm just seventeen years old. I haven't even won a major tournament yet. Sure, I've gotten to later rounds and my pokémon are strong…but…I don't think they can handle something like this. Especially if even legendary Pokémon can't go against it, how could I? I don't know why you saw me in your vision Arceus. I'm not some great hero. I don't think I'm the right person for the job." Ash couldn't look at the Alpha pokemon anymore and lowered his gaze to his feet while his ever loyal starter tried to cheer him up by patting him on his head. The young man felt ashamed that they thought he was something special when he wasn't. How could they think I could do it?
Arceus knew what troubled his young friend and decided to help him. "Ash." The raven haired trainer looked up at the Original One after he called out his name. "Aren't you forgetting some things? You are an Aura Guardian and you have done many great things already, even before you knew of your true heritage," reminded the god pokemon kindly.
Mewtwo's face showed a startled expression over hearing that, but only for a split second. Of course! That's what it was! I knew what that glow was! So, he's an Aura Guardian as well? Hmm…he keeps surprising me. Perhaps there is even more to him than I thought.
Seeing that his Chosen One was still being quiet, Arceus continued on, to give him encouragement and to reveal the first of the information. "You have much potential. Both you and Mewtwo. But there is more to the vision. I mentioned that I have seen the vision every morning for the past five days. I have not seen the vision today though which means something a little good for us. You will have five years to train and prepare for this coming evil."
"How do you know that?"Both Mewtwo and Ash asked at the same time, making them glance at one another before facing the creator of all.
"As I said before, only the most important visions come to me. I have seen visions before and each time, I saw them continuously for some days and then it stops. Once it stops, the amount of days I saw the vision, would be the amount of time in years it would take for it to happen. That is something that never changes. So again, that gives us the time to ready ourselves for what is to come."
Ash nodded at hearing that and so did Mewtwo. "So five years. Five years is what we have to prepare for what seems like an all out world war or to do nothing and just wait for it to come for us…" said Ash quietly but it was heard by everyone there. He glanced down at his shoes, thinking hard. After a short while, he clinched his fists and raised his head up to face Arceus. "I will train hard and prepare as much as I can. I will face this coming darkness when it appears to the best of my ability and I will never give up until the end," he said with no hint of hesitation in his voice with Pikachu agreeing with his statement, making Dialga, Palkia and Giratina give him astonished looks while Arceus gave him a proud one.
Hearing his words spoken with such conviction caused the purple feline to give an appraising look at the boy. I knew that this human…no...Mewtwo shook his head mentally. This young man has shown me great kindness and respect. He is also not running away from this. He deserves my respect and I shall call him by his name. I knew Ash was different, but I didn't expect him to accept this great burden so quickly.
While Mewtwo thought of that within a split second, Arceus spoke to Ash. "I can expect no more from you, even as an Aura Guardian…even as my Chosen One." Those last few words made Mewtwo widen his eyes and looked at the young man with disbelief on his face. "I am happy to say that I am proud that you are accepting this great burden on your shoulders. I know you will do your best and that you will not give up, like you always have done before. I have some advice and a plan for both you and Mewtwo that will help out tremendously in your training and preparation."
Ash and Mewtwo, who had recovered and went back to his normally stoic expression, glanced at each other and give a curt nod to one another. They both stepped forward to Arceus and awaited his advice.
"Before the advice, I have been told from one of my children who has also seen a vision as well, but of a happier event. There will be a tournament of the best trainers across all the regions. It will take place in three years time, hosted at the Indigo Plateau. I think it will be a good test for you, my Chosen One, to see where you stand against the best of the best and will help you find out of any weaknesses you may still have."
That bit of news perked him up greatly since he loved pokemon battles. "Sounds awesome, thank you Arceus! I will definitely enter and see where I stack up," said Ash, excited to hear of a new tournament coming up in the future.
Arceus smiled before continuing on. "As for you Mewtwo, I believe you will be able to achieve greater power and skill if you were to stick with Ash for the next five years. You can learn greatly from Mewtwo as well Ash."
Mewtwo was silent for a moment, thinking about what he was told but then gave a slight nod in understanding and agreement soon after.
Ash looked at the powerful psychic, feeling a little anxious. "I guess we're partners huh? I hope we can get along and learn a lot from each other." He was unsure if the legendary psychic feline wanted to be around him or if he was disappointed to be told to stick with him.
Mewtwo could tell Ash was feeling a little timid and hesitant, even if he hadn't picked up his thoughts as he read his mind. "Do not worry Ash. You are the only human I respect and will not hurt intentionally. I believe we'll do well together as long as we do our best and don't give up," stated Mewtwo.
Ash smiled at that, feeling more confident. "Thanks Mewtwo and I'm sure we'll do great!"
Arceus had nodded in approval with seeing the two getting on the same page. "Mewtwo. Ash." The two looked up at Arceus. "I have a plan for you both as to what you should do in the coming years. If you feel you have any advice, objections or different ideas, please feel free to let me know as I give out the details." Both Mewtwo and Ash nodded and waited patiently. The reality dragons, although silent all this time, became still as statues as well, waiting to hear their father's plan. "Alright, since we have five years before the darkness emerges, we should break up that time into smaller goals and objectives so we don't get lost in what to do…" Arceus trailed off for a moment as something popped up in his mind suddenly. "By the way Ash, I know you have practiced on using your aura a bit, but you should train your aura abilities every day from now on. In that regard, you should find that Riolu that you crossed paths with a while back as fast as you can. He will become one of your strongest friends." Arceus gave a slight pause, as if something just hit him and then he continued. "Actually that should be your number one priority. He is on his way to your Mount Silver training area, since that's where he last sensed you."
Ash was slightly surprised that Arceus mentioned Riolu for a moment but then quickly understood. He figured that Arceus is the Alpha Pokémon and probably learns about everything that happens at some point or another. "Will do Arceus."
The Alpha pokemon went on with his plans. "For the first year, you should travel the world again and look for Pokémon that will aid you in the coming battles. It's a given that you should find powerful Pokémon, but also look for powerful ones who also have true fighting spirits. Your aura senses, along with Riolu's, as well as Mewtwo's psychic senses, should help in that regard." Arceus paused for a second, waiting to see if either Ash or Mewtwo had questions, but both were silent. "From the start of the second year until the tournament begins, you should train all of your Pokémon as well as yourself to the best of your and their abilities. Mewtwo, you should help him in this regard and he will help you. You both know how to set up good training regiments. But don't forget to do some research as there may be some things that you don't know about."
Both Ash and Mewtwo nodded, to show that they understood the plan so far. "After the tournament, use the results to catch up on things you may not know or weaknesses that you may not have addressed that were exploited. Also, use this time to find other Pokémon that you didn't think about before and train them up to your other Pokémon's levels. During this time, you should also start strategizing how to implement your Pokémon in an actual battle of war, and how to have your Pokémon fight multiple opponents at once." Arceus gave a moment's pause so they can think about what he just said and to see if they had any questions.
Silence followed and he went on. "After the end of the fourth year, you should start scouting out strategic areas to set up camps and bases. Perhaps even set up secret supply stashes that you can use while on the run. Make sure to have some sort of communication system set up between all of your Pokémon, and maybe perhaps your camps so that you can give out commands efficiently while in combat. You should also have some sort of headquarters that will help set everything else up." Arceus took in a breath before he finally finished with a couple more statements. "That's what I have planned out so far at the moment. If I come up with anything else, I shall let you both know. And please, if either of you come up with anything, let me know as well. But I must also say this; all this planning will only help a little to prepare us for what is to come. I cannot truly say what will happen when the fighting actually begins."
Ash and Mewtwo understood Arceus, not saying anything about his plans or about his final warning. Ash remained quiet for a moment since many thoughts were going around in his head. Some of those thoughts needed answers and he spoke up. "Arceus, what about my friends and my family?" asked Ash. "Shouldn't I tell them about all this? Shouldn't they come to train as well? And what about you? And the Legendaries? Actually, shouldn't we let the world know?"
Arceus had a feeling those questions would probably be asked and was ready in advance to answer them. "Yes and no. Before you go to tackle these things, you may go tell your friends and mother that you are going on a long training trip. But do not tell anyone, not even your close friends or mother, about the coming darkness. The world will panic and be engulfed in chaos if they let something slip. It may even make the darkness emerge sooner than we anticipate. It may even bring those who are the cause of it to attack you before you are ready. Unfortunately, when the battle begins, I will not get involved. It may not affect me but if it does, it will wreak havoc on the entire universe. I will watch from here, the Hall of Origin as nothing can get in here without me knowing or having my permission. I will give guidance when needed. If the darkness does take over and you two fail, I have a backup plan but I would much rather not do that though as I care about all of my children," explained Arceus, making Mewtwo furrow his brow slightly over what he said last.
Ash scowled over what he heard and Pikachu didn't like that either. He didn't like to lie or to keep secrets, even though he had to regarding certain things. He was tired of keeping secrets and lying to those he cares about the most. But now he had to keep more secrets and tell more lies? And these lies involved such high stakes that he wondered how could he even keep this from them.
Arceus sensed his Chosen One's feelings and knew what he was thinking. "I understand how you feel Ash and I know what you're thinking. You don't want to endanger them, but also don't want to lie or keep secrets from the ones you love and care about. How about this then? You can tell them to train, as if to battle you, but don't mention the tournament or the coming war, or anything related to the darkness coming. It may cause unforeseen consequences. You, your Pokémon and Mewtwo are the only ones who should be training together as it will be grueling and I fear that if they're with you while training, it may hinder your progress and growth."
Mewtwo, Pikachu and even Dialga, Palkia and Giratina looked at Ash and waited for him as he thought long and hard about Arceus's explanation.
The young man knew that the Alpha Pokemon was right, but still didn't like what he had to do. Lie to his friends and family…and not see them for a much longer time than usual? The raven haired trainer let out a heavy sigh before talking. "Arceus…I won't tell them or anyone else anything about this. But I will drop by them to tell them I will be gone for a while and for them to train."
The Alpha pokemon thought that was reasonable enough. "That's fine by me. So we are decided then? We have a plan of sorts. I will leave you two to come up with the more intricate, finer details and items of your agenda, but I believe those main points I advised will help you both greatly. If there's nothing else, I suggest we start as soon as possible," said Arceus.
"Father, you haven't forgotten have you?" spoke up Giratina suddenly.
The dragon's question reminded Arceus of the other thing he was supposed to mention and give. "Ah, no, of course not. Also, I have one final gift for the both of you. You may use it or not, up to you. But I have prepared an island specifically for your training endeavors, and you may even set it up for what you need, away from prying eyes and hidden from any and all things, thanks to the Dragon trio here. You both remember New Island correct?" Ash and Mewtwo both nodded. "Good, that makes things easier. Well, I have made several changes to it and I believe it will help immensely for what we are trying to do. You could also use it as your headquarters during the war as well."
"If you say it is hidden from all, then how are we supposed to reach it?" asked Ash with Mewtwo thinking the same thing.
"Ah, you're getting ahead of me Chosen One. Mew, come my daughter!" called out Arceus into the hall.
A pink energy bubble suddenly appeared out of nowhere above them. It started moving around rapidly in a zigzag motion across the room and then hurtled towards the Alpha Pokémon. It stopped at the last second right in front of Arceus' face that caused a burst of wind to flow over the hall and the pink bubble vanished, revealing the small, but powerful pink legendary, Mew. "Hi Daddy! How are you? I've been having so much fun back home!" giggled Mew. She didn't even wait for his response as she turned around and greeted everyone with Ash and Pikachu waving hello.
Arceus chuckled over her antics. "Thank you for coming so quickly, my daughter."
"No problem Daddy!"
Arceus smiled. "Did you bring what I asked of you?"
"Of course! Here it is!"
Another pink energy bubble appeared but this one was smaller. The bubble disappeared, and before the inside item fell, Mew caught it. She then held it up in front of Arceus, whose eyes glowed a pure white, causing the item to glow a bright white. After a couple seconds, the glowing stopped. "Thank you daughter. Would you kindly hand that to Ash please?"
"Sure thing!" Mew zipped towards Ash with such speed, he flinched, thinking she'd run him over. But she stopped instantly, right in front of him. "BOO! I gotcha good!" she said, giggling while handing the item to Ash who saw what it was; it was a small blue flower crystal hanging from a black leather necklace.
"That crystal will allow you to see and get to the island. Otherwise, it is invisible to all else," explained Arceus.
"If that's the case, wouldn't we require more crystals then? Wouldn't I and the other pokémon require one of their own?" asked Mewtwo as Ash put the crystal necklace around his neck, letting it rest against his chest.
"No, you will not need another one as it will only be necessary for the first time you go to the island. After that, the crystal will disappear and only you, Ash and his pokémon, because of their bond, regardless if they are old or new captures, will be able to see the island and get to it unless Ash desires to bring in someone to the island."
"I'm impressed," replied Mewtwo.
"Wow, that's cool. I guess that could work," said Ash.
"It will work. But only until the darkness emerges. I don't know if my children will be able to keep it that way, while being confined in their own dimensions once everything starts or when they are staying here. Until then, they will be able to keep it up since they can roam around back and forth between your world and their own dimensions until everything starts. That's why I advised multiple bases and locations in case one gets overflowed. The island should be easy enough to defend and be used as your headquarters. But it may be a good idea to have a backup made somewhere that is easily defendable."
Ash and Mewtwo agreed with that reasoning since it made a lot of sense. They would definitely do as he suggested and set those up. "Good. Alright, you two should get going. If you have any questions, please, visit my daughter Mew. She'll probably know the answer you seek, and it will be good for her to have visitors once in a while, since she cannot leave the Tree of Beginning for too long, unless she comes here. Also, she knows almost everything there is to know about Aura abilities and training. Once you find Riolu, you should visit Mew so she can grant her wisdom to him for your aura training." Ash and Mewtwo nodded and Mew squeaked happily at the thought of them visiting. "If there is something she doesn't know, or you must absolutely speak with me, contact me or come here. But only do so if it is a must. I will be busy as well, preparing in my own ways for the coming evils."
"Understood Arceus. We will set out at once and begin our part of the plan as soon as we can," said Mewtwo with a serious tone.
"Yeah, we'll do our best Arceus and we won't give up! And let's keep in touch as often as we can so we can update each other and stay in the loop," added Ash and everyone agreed to that. With that done, Ash turned to Mewtwo. "If you don't mind, let's go find Riolu first."
"I don't mind. Let's go." The purple feline's eyes quickly glowed blue. Mewtwo, Ash and Pikachu vanished in a blue glow as they teleported towards Mount Silver once more.
As soon as they left, Dialga asked a question. "What about us father?"
"Yes, what should we do?" added Palkia.
"What can we do to help or to prepare?" finished Giratina.
"The only thing we can do is to keep doing our duties, to keep the world spinning. If I or any of my children get an idea, we will meet once more. Until then, go back to your homes and responsibilities. But before you do, Dialga, have you seen any possible outcomes for the future?"
"Yes Father. I have seen dozens of futures regarding the darkness and the chosen ones."
"And?"
"Most of them are quite dire indeed, going from bad to worse," said the Lord of Time, making everyone in the Hall of Origin become extremely worried. "However, I do see a possible good future where the darkness has been overcome but to what cost, I don't know yet. From all the other futures I've seen, it looks like it would take a miracle for something good to happen with the amount of odds stacking against the two."
"I see. Thank you my son. We can only hope they grow powerful enough to stop the coming evils, or at least to keep it from spreading," said Arceus and his four children let out heavy sighs. "Alright, you may take your leave now. I would like to take a bit of break before starting on my plans. These visions have left me wanting a good rest."
"Yes Father," said the reality dragons together. Each of them left for their own respective dimensions through some portals.
"See ya Daddy! Have a good rest!" Mew said before teleporting back to her home, the Tree of Beginning.
"Farewell my children. And good luck to you both, Ash and Mewtwo," said Arceus quietly as he laid down on his throne, closed his eyes and attempted to get some rest before getting to work himself.