Pokémon: New Universe of Legends

by Ultimate blazer

Hello, I'm Professor GF and I welcome you to the Pokémon universe. A place full of beings whose lives constantly intertwine and diverge, creating new adventures. And in the middle of them is usually a young man from the Pallet town. So enter and discover the wonderful secrets of this universe! I'll wait for you inside! (Remake of Pokémon Universe of legends with changes).

5. Chapter 5

5th Generation

Inside the golden palace, the sages and the muses watched the coronation of the savior, the one who grew up surrounded by Pokémon. Now the devil placed the heavy crown on his innocent head. Hope, dreams, discoveries... New adventures await you and your Pokémon.

X

Hi there! Welcome to the world of Pokémon! My name is professor Aurea Juniper and I'm dedicated to researching the birth and origin of Pokémon. If you know where you come from, you'll know where you are going. The past of this mysterious world is fascinating and the numerous legends and myths told are even more so. Places to discover, new Pokémon to capture…

Welcome to the Pokémon world and enjoy all its secrets!

---

UNOVA

---

Many years ago - Black City: Prosperous and Vibrant

That red-eyed boy always seemed to look at them all as if they were idiots and useless. But when they talked to him, his polite tone, his soft words, and his calculated gestures always made the people around him end up doing what he said.

"Your way of playing is intoxicating, aggressive, hypnotizing and at the same time chilling," his music teacher used to say. You could see her admiration and that of her companions on her face. "It's as if you seek to subjugate us all with your musical notes and take us to your kingdom... you are like a musical devil!"

The red-eyed boy just smiled.

---

Year 2009 – White Forest: People and Nature in Harmony

The green-eyed boy played with those special Pokémon every day. Special because they had suffered the consequences of the darkness that some people harbored. His closed hearts had been reopened, but only to the boy.

Any other human was an enemy or someone to be wary of. Yet there was a human even worse than those who hurt them. That human man always came to observe the child in silence. The Pokémon tried to ignore him but that man exuded so much evil that all they wanted to do was get away from there.

The child, in his infinite innocence, followed them everywhere, ignoring the devil who whispered in his ear when playtime was over.

---

Year 2016 – Vertress City

"Liberation!" Ghetsis exclaimed before his men. "To free all Pokémon from human oppression. That must be our goal, and the future of Unova."

"Human greed knows no limits." Ryoku said.

"Humans subordinate the existence of Pokémon to the empire of their desires, reducing them to the mere condition of objects," Bronius said sadly. "We must protect them, because they are capable of understanding."

"Living beings treated as tools…" Gorm began to say.

"…but they live an existence of slavery..." Giallo finished saying.

Zinzolin was the only one who remained silent, knowing better than anyone that all this was nothing more than a foolish errand. Was he really the only one who realized Ghetsis' true nature?

Ghetsis, for his part, nodded with a false smile upon hearing the words of his cultists.

"We must spread our message...but for it to penetrate all hearts we need a symbol for this new justice." Ghetsis clenched his left fist tightly, his words reaching the hearts of those who heard him. "Someone who embodies and inspires majesty. Someone worthy of being the king of Team Plasma."

"Makes sense." Bronius said.

"But where will we find it?" Gorm asked.

"Look," said Ghetsis as he turned on a huge screen, on which a boy appeared playing with two other girls who were watching him attentively. "His name is N, a boy capable of connecting with the hearts of Pokémon. He was raised alongside Anthea and Concordia. N is a pure soul."

For a fleeting moment a sinister smile was reflected on Ghetsis's face, but only Zinzolin and Rood were able to see it. The latter ended up attributing it to his imagination.

"Three more years and he'll be ready. And at that moment Team Plasma will be ready to rise. The curtain will rise on a new stage: The glorious liberation of the Pokémon."

Ghetsis then proceeded to give each of the sages a mission: Bronius was to spread the values of Team Plasma among the people. Gorm must find out everything he could about the legendary dragon that represented the ideals. Ryoku had to capture the volcarona who was hiding in the desert. Giallo for his part would capture Tornadus, Thundurus and Landorus. Rood had to find a Victini to ensure Team Plasma's victory. And Zinzolin will investigate the Abyssal Ruins.

"I don't understand why Gorm must look for the legendary dragon," Zinzolin complained. "Wasn't it me who gathered information about its existence?!"

"I'm the one who decides." Ghetsis said in a tone that didn't give rise to arguments.

"…"

"And now move towards the release of the Pokémon, slowly but surely."

Later, Ghetsis approached with a smile a man who was sitting looking at a screen with a bored expression.

"What did you think of our little meeting?"

"…It's a waste that you use your potential for such nonsense." said the man adjusting his glasses.

Ghetsis's smile never disappeared.

"I thought your thing was studying Pokémon potential, not human potential."

"They are both more connected than I thought. Anyway, I just came to say that I'm leaving, you don't need me anymore nor do I need you."

"You're sure? The new world that I am going to, that we are going to create, will need people like you, Colress."

Colress looked him straight in the eyes before getting up and leaving with a smile on his face.

---

Year 2017 – Aspertia City

Hugh watched helplessly as those criminals took his sister's Pokémon, a purrloin, being unable to do anything to stop it. His little sister screamed and screamed but it was no use.

"We've done it, we've released another Pokémon!" those men and women shouted happily after having used their Pokémon to beat up a child and his trapinch.

"They won't hurt this Pokémon again!"

"The new era of Team Plasma has arrived!"

Hugh, furious, got up from the ground as best he could with the help of his little sister.

"I won't forget this day! I'll never forgive you! I'll take revenge on all of you Team Plasma!"

---

Year 2019 – Near Nuvema Town

A twelve-year-old boy and girl silently watched the map of Unova as they listened to the words of the two strongest grunts of Team Plasma.

"You have shown great potential and you're the best rookies we have." said Barret as he looked proudly at the girl.

"That's why you have been given the mission to travel around Unova freeing Pokémon from their evil trainers." said Aldith, also looking proudly at the girl.

"Dad, Mom, I won't disappoint you." said Rosa happily. Her partner Nate nodded firmly.

"We expect great things from you, daughter" said Barret as he handed her a Poké Ball. "Use this Pokémon that was liberated two years ago. The scientists of Team Plasma have… improved her so that you can better understand the heart of Pokémon.

Meanwhile Aldith approached Nate.

"Your mother abandoned the cause and now works at a Pokémon center… Admirable, but disappointing in other ways. Let's hope you don't do the same."

"I will never do that, I live to serve Team Plasma," Nate said very seriously, earning a smile from the woman.

---

Year 2019 - Nuvema Town: The Start of Something Big!

"Now you're far from home, Ash! The technology is truly amazing. They say you can catch Pokémon even in your dreams!" ―Tecno.

Arriving at the quiet town, Ash, Delia, and professor Oak met Professor Juniper. Who according to Oak, possessed great talent and knowledge despite her youth.

However, the presentations had to wait, as a huge electrical storm formed nearby. Out of the storm came a Pokémon black as night and attacked them. Pikachu tried to defend them and ended up taking most of the attacks. The black Pokémon, which professor Juniper called zekrom, ended up leaving.

After healing Pikachu, Ash realized that his Pokémon could no longer do volt tackle but still had the rest of his attacks.

"Perhaps side effects from the zekrom attacks?" Juniper theorized. "Fascinating, it's the first time I've seen something like this."

After finishing several tasks, professor Oak and Delia returned to Pallet Town. Meanwhile Ash accompanied professor Juniper to see how she gave three initials to three young people from the town.

They were accompanied by a girl who always seemed nervous and fell all the time, probably because of the long, tight skirt she was wearing. Her name was Bianca and she had a Minccino, which was apparently the daughter of professor Juniper's shiny Cinccino.

"Are you from Kanto? That's very far away! Although you are lucky to have many pikachu!" Bianca said, squishing the electric mouse's cheeks.

"Don't do t-!" Ash couldn't finish the warning because Pikachu ended up electrocuting them all.

ooOoo

Hilbert, Hilda and Cheren were the people who were going to receive the starters. The three of them had the same age as Ash, 14.

Hilbert was a boy who seemed ready to explode due to the emotion and enthusiasm he possessed. The first thing he did as soon as he received the oshawott from him was challenge Ash to a Pokémon Battle.

"Next time I'll win and fulfill my dream of being the Unova champion!" Hilbert promised after losing the fight.

Cheren was calm, calculating and always seemed in control. At least when he wasn't casting indirect glances at Bianca, which she never found out about. He received a tepig and also challenged Ash.

"I have lost…but it is logical since I have just started. You clearly have experience, Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town." Cheren said after adjusting his glasses.

Hilda was cheerful but seemed to always have her head somewhere else. When it came to fighting she was the least enthusiastic and she ended the fight before there was a winner.

"I'm sorry but I don't Pokémon battles that much... I prefer to see them in shows." Hilda said as she hugged her snivy.

---

Among the few people who watched the three battles was one named Trip, who mocked Hilbert, Hilda, and Cheren for losing to someone from Kanto before leaving there.

Later professor Juniper gave them all new Pokédex for their travels. Ash and the new trainers left the town at the same time and then each went their separate ways. Bianca went with them because she wanted to do her own journey to learn more about Pokémon.

Along the way Ash saw new Pokémon that fascinated him, he even mistook a girl for one of those Pokémon. After asking for forgiveness, he realized that the girl was one of the people who had seen his fight in Nuvema Town.

"Those weren't battles. Your pikachu defeated them without even trying," the girl concluded. "I didn't know that pikachu could be so strong..."

"Eeeeh...Thanks, I guess," Ash replied. "But Pikachu and I have worked hard to get to that level, I'm sure my new rivals will do the same."

"Ah, I haven't introduced myself! I'm Iris and this little guy is Axew... And who are you?" Iris asked him, getting very close to him.

"I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and this is my friend Pikachu."

"Pikachu!"

"What a cutie!" Iris exclaimed. Before she knew it, Iris had picked up Pikachu and was caressing his cheeks. "What soft cheeks you have!"

"You shouldn't do that." Ash warned, somewhat alarmed. She looked at him strangely.

"Why?"

His question was answered when an angry Pikachu unleashed a powerful thunderbolt that electrocuted both trainers.

---

Don George's Battle Club

"Our goal is to free your Pokémon from your evil. Because ours, you know, is pure goodness. Bringing the blinding white light of truth of the future! Thrusting the hammer of ideals down onto the black darkness of the past! Carving our names in the Rock of Eternity! The fiery savior, Rosa! Fiercest defender, Nate! And the wisest of the wise, Purrloin! And now gather, under the name of Team Plasma!" ―The TPio (Rosa, Nate and Purrloin).

Iris had wanted to teach Ash the battle clubs. The two really enjoyed fighting and helping a small tepig that Ash ended up capturing. However, a couple of kids dressed as medieval knights attacked the place.

They claimed to be Team Plasma and had come to free Pokémon from human evil and oppression.

"This place is an ode to Pokémon violence." said Rosa angrily.

"How can you make such wonderful creatures fight each other?" Nate said sadly.

"All humans are equally cruel and offensive… No offense." Purrloin said immediately.

"None taken because you're right." Rosa and Nate said at the same time.

"You're a just couple of kids," Iris said, laughing. "You can't be more than twelve years old, that explains all the nonsense that comes out of your mouths... Has that Purrloin spoken?!"

"It's not that strange to see a Pokémon talking." Ash said.

"How can it not be?!"

"My gift of speech is courtesy of Team Plasma's science," Purrloin said with some disdain. "Now release your Pokémon!"

"You wish! You are nothing more than thieves." Ash said preparing his Pokémon for battle.

The TPio let out a sigh when they saw that.

---

Accumula Town: The Fast-Growing Town!

After defeating the TPio and blasting them off, they arrived at the next place. They had already forgotten the words of those criminals when they met professor Juniper at the Pokémon Center.

After a brief chat, the three went out into the street when they noted that a commotion was breaking out in the town square. They went there and saw several guys from Team Plasma going up on a stage to give a speech.

Among the people listening to them were Hilbert, Hilda, Cheren and Bianca. Ash, Iris and Juniper approached them and after greeting them they paid attention to the speech.

"My name is Ghetsis. I am here representing Team Plasma. Today, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to talk to you about Pokémon liberation." said a man with a kind smile who had his entire body covered except for his left arm.

"Could he be the boss of those three?" Ash said curious.

"I don't know, but at least he seems smarter than those kids." Iris said with a suspicious look.

"I'm sure most of you believe that we humans and Pokémon are partners that have come to live together because we want and need each other. However... Is that really the truth? Have you ever considered that perhaps we humans... only assume that this is the truth?"

The curious atmosphere became tense and guilty. Many began to look at their Pokémon while others avoided meeting their eyes.

"Pokémon are subject to the selfish commands of Trainers... They get pushed around when they are our "partners" at work..."

"That's a lie!" Hilbert shouted, earning Ghetsis's intense gaze, which made more than one swallow.

"What expression do your Pokémon show when they receive an order and act? Ghetsis asked. "Look closely... remember it, okay? Unlike humans, Pokémon are living beings with unknown potentials. They are noble creatures from whom we have much to learn. Pokémon do not exist to serve our selfish desires. We have to do something as soon as possible for them."

"Do what?" asked an old man.

Ghetsis smiled widely before raising his arms to the sky.

"Well, we should… Freeing them!"

After those words everyone remained silent for several seconds until…

"Are you crazy?"

""Free them", he says, what a fool!"

"Go back to the asylum, you old man!"

"Pokémon aren't slaves, they can leave whenever they want!"

"But it is true that there are people who treat them badly."

"And? I'm not going to free them just because some guy on the street tells me so."

"Pokémon are not objects!"

"I captured them and I can do what I want with them!"

Despite the fuss that arose, the number of people who rejected Ghetsis's message exceeded those who accepted it, however the seed of doubt had already been planted by the devil.

Both Ash and his companions watched worriedly as the people argued. Luckily Team Plasma left and everyone returned home.

Before they could do anything, a mysterious young man with green hair approached Ash and began petting Pikachu. To everyone's surprise, Pikachu didn't do anything to him and even seemed to be enjoying it.

"Your Pokémon... Just now, it was saying..." the young man began to say.

"What?" Ash asked confused.

"Yes, they're talking. Oh. Then, you two can't hear it, either... How sad. My name is N."

"I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town."

Before the others could introduce themselves, N continued speaking.

"I'm a Trainer, too, but I can't help wondering... Are your Pokémon really happy? Well, Ash, is it? Let me hear your Pokémon's voice again!"

ooOoo

Ash defeated N in a Pokémon battle but everyone realized that the young man didn't carry his Pokémon inside Poké Balls. Ash and Iris said goodbye to the others and left for the next city. Before leaving, professor Juniper gave him an Xtransceiver to maintain contact.

---

Striaton City: Three Stand Together as One!

Ash had a brief battle with Cheren at the entrance to the city and then went straight to the gym. However, he received a call from Professor Juniper asking him for a favor.

Apparently his childhood friend, professor Fennel, who was one of the creators of the famous Pokémon Dream World, lived in the city. Fennel needed the dream mist of a munna to continue her experiments, so Ash and Iris went to find one.

ooOoo

Dreamyard

There Ash and Iris stopped the TPio, who were attacking Bianca to take her newly captured munna. After saving her, they collected remains of the dream mist left by the munna of the area with a device given by professor Fennel.

ooOoo

Fennel House

After giving him the dream mist, they met his little sister Amanita, who was the creator of the Unova Storage System and a friend of Bill. Knowing that Ash was also Bill's friend, she told them that they could stay in the house as long as they needed.

Despite being a little girl, Amanita boasted of having improved Bill's system. Ash and Iris listened to everything she said without understanding anything while they enjoyed dinner.

ooOoo

Striaton Gym

"We welcome you to our gym! I like Grass type Pokémon. I use Water type Pokémon. Well, I'm on fire with my Fire-type Pokémon! The three of us will be your opponents since you have requested it." ―Cilan, Chili and Cress, Triple Trouble!

The gym was also the most famous restaurant and bar in the city. There the diners enjoyed watching battles while eating the most exquisite food of all.

The gym leaders were triplets, each specialized in a type, grass, water and fire respectively. Usually one was challenged, but Ash challenged all three at the same time, surprising everyone, Iris included.

Pikachu, Tepig and Osawhott vs Pansear, Panpour and Pansage.

Ash defeated all three at the same time after getting Osawhott to overcome his fear of fighting rivals who surpassed him.

"What a surprise! You're really strong!" Cilan said.

"You beat me... I can't believe I lost!" Cress said.

"Wow! You are amazing! You're going to make it to the Pokémon League!" Chili said.

Cilan, the eldest of the brothers, was so impressed that he wanted to accompany him on his trip to find out more about his combat style. Cilan was a sybarite and the mysteries of people and Pokémon caught his attention.

Having earned the Trio badge, the new trio of heroes set off on their journey.

ooOoo

Upon leaving the gym…

"And this is supposed to be the famous Striaton gym? What a joke." said an elegant woman who carried a riding crop in one hand and an Xtransceiver in the other. "Taking down those triplets is a job far below my abilities, Ghetsis."

"I know Morana," said the man who had hired her, "even so you won't do anything until I say so, understand?"

"Of course, after all you pay."

---

Along the way Ash and his companions met other strong trainers, among them Burgundy, Cilan's rival obsessed with being a better sybarite than him and beating him in a Pokémon battle.

There was also Georgia, Iris's new rival. She was a trainer obsessed with defeating any dragon tamer she encountered along the way. Apparently her desire for revenge derived from having suffered a heavy defeat in the Dragon Village, Iris's home.

Later in the Wellspring Cave they stopped TPio, who had "released" a girl's Pokémon. Karen, the director of the day care where the girl was, gave Ash a Pokémon egg as a reward from which a scraggy would emerge.

Afterwards, Ash had a brief battle with Hilbert, who was passing by.

---

Luxuria Town – Battle club

In this place Ash competed against Trip, the boy who seemed to believe that the inhabitants of Unova were superior to those of other regions. After a double battle Ash defeated him, making Trip promise to humiliate him next time.

---

Nacrene City: A Pearl of a Place

"I... want to see things no one can seen. The truths of Pokémon inside Poké Balls. The ideals of those who call themselves Pokémon trainers. And a future where Pokémon have become perfect… Do you feel the same" ―N.

That mysterious N challenged Ash to a Pokémon battle as soon as he saw him. Ash won but for some reason he didn't feel any joy, which Iris and Pikachu noticed instantly.

"I can't see the future yet... The world is still to be determined..." N murmured, worried.

"What's the matter? Are you hungry?" Ash asked, confused when he saw him so absorbed.

"I doubt hunger is his problem." Iris murmured. Without warning N petted both Pikachu and Axew and then left.

"Right now, my friends aren't strong enough to save all Pokémon. Maybe I can't solve the equation that will change the world. So, I need power... Power enough to make anyone agree with me. Maybe Alpha Reshiram can help me…" N murmured.

"Hum…What an interesting guy." Cilan commented with a strange smile on his face.

ooOoo

After that battle, Cilan gave them a guided tour of the city since he had been there before.

The so-called city of art was full of avant-garde artists, vintage cafes, art galleries, a cultural and historical museum, furniture designers, a library and street vendors of paintings.

In addition to having an old train track, which was a vestige of the city's industrial times. After eating at the Alma cafe, Ash and his companions headed to the gym.

ooOoo

Nacrene Museum/Gym

"Welcome! Well then, challenger, I'm going to research how you battle with the Pokémon you've so lovingly raised!" ―Lenora, an archaeologist with backbone.

After saving Cilan from the possession of a yamask, Lenora accepted Ash's challenge.

Tepig and Osawhott vs Watchog and Herdier. The teen from Pallet Town lost but the next day he returned with a new strategy and won.

"Your fighting style is so enchanting. It is charming. You are a Pokémon Trainer worthy of receiving this Basic Badge!" Lenora said very happily.

"Thank you so much!" Ash said. "I hope I can get stronger with my Pokémon and bring out their full potential. This way I won't have problems like when you beat me yesterday."

"If my Pokémon are so strong, it is thanks to the advice Whitney gave me."

"The Gym Leader of Goldenrod City?"

"The same! Do you know her?"

"I fought her when I travelled through Johto. She also gave me some good advice on how to train my Pokémon."

"You remind me of a guy I fought the other day. I will tell you the same thing that I told him: "Some problems you can't solve even if you think about them your whole life. Some problems have different answers depending on the person. Still, the reason I can't keep my curiosity down is this: I want to figure out the truth, but I also have a desire for adventure!""

"…?"

Iris put a hand on Ash's shoulder as she looked at Lenora.

"Using complicated words with Ash isn't a good thing." Iris said almost laughing.

"A very big truth for an idealist like Ash." Cilan said.

ooOoo

Lenora gave them a guided tour of the museum, telling them that her most precious discoveries were made after investigating the Gray Ruins, where she found a black stone and another white. Her husband Hawes was investigating them right now.

Just then a man named Burgh came. He was a famous artist in Unova, a gym leader, a friend of Lenora, and a native of the city. He was accompanied by Hilda, who was a big fan of his works.

After a while Hilbert, Cheren and Bianca appeared to challenge Lenora to a fight but they couldn't continue talking, because Hawes came screaming that they had stolen a fossil. The culprits: the TPio along with a group of Plasma grunts.

Ash, Iris, Cilan, Hilbert, Hilda, Cheren, Bianca and Burgh chased them until they reached the forest. Meanwhile, Agent Jenny called for reinforcements.

ooOoo

Pinwheel Forest

That place was a natural labyrinth so they divided into pairs to search better: Ash and Iris, Cilan and Burgh, Bianca and Cheren, Hilbert and Hilda.

Between the four groups, they managed to defeat the grunts and corner the TPio, who was desperately clinging to the fossil. However, a mysterious old man named Gorm appeared and ordered them to return the fossil, as it wasn't what they were looking for.

"B-but our lord's wishes must be fulfilled." said Rosa distressed. Nate gave him a gentle hug and shot an angry look at our heroes. Purrloin for her part was hiding behind the boy.

"Your great fidelity to our lord is commendable," Gorm said to Rosa. "If you feel so much frustration, make yourself stronger so as not to tolerate anyone getting in our way."

"We will do so, wise Gorm." Nate said.

"Wow, it seems that grandpa is someone important." Burgh joked.

"Be careful with your words before me, for I am Gorm of the seven sages."

"And what are you going to do to us?" Lenora asked after running there. "I've heard of Team Plasma. Your boss Ghetsis preaches non-violence towards Pokémon, but you're a bunch of thieves."

"It's true, you always talk about liberation but you are just like Team Rocket!" Ash said.

"Do you dare compare us with the Mafia Pokémon?" Roared Nate, who had to be stopped by Rosa so that he wouldn't throw himself at Ash.

"You look more like a sect." Iris said. This time it was Nate who stopped Rosa.

"Lenora the Normal-type expert and Burgh the Bug-type expert," Gorm said. "When you know your enemies as much as you know yourself, you will always be able to avoid danger..."

"Nice words, it's a shame they come from you." Cilan said.

Using more grunts as decoys, Gorm and the TPio managed to escape after abandoning the fossil.

---

Castelia City: A City of Grandeur

To say that the capital of Unova was large and luxurious would be an understatement. Ash laughed as he watched Iris gape at what he saw. She had already been to other cities but never in one so big, bustling and with so many people running from one place to another without stopping or even saying hello.

Nurse Joy told them that if they wanted to battle there were several buildings dedicated to Pokémon battles between workers and Pokémon trainers. Cilan had to run like crazy after Ash and Iris to not be left behind, as they both ran in search of said battle buildings.

The Battle Company wasn't the only place where they could fight. In the central area was the famous dancing trio who challenged our heroes with an intense rhythm battñe. They also went through certain alleys... In which Cilan tried to ensure that none of his companions saw what some people were up to. Iris felt chills as she saw how certain people were looking at her up and down, so she stood behind Ash, who shot warning glances at said people.

Ash and his friends decided that they wouldn't go into those places again. At least the Café Sonata that Cilan took them to was nice and cozy. An oasis in that dirty place. And to lower the food Cilan bought them some Casteliacones.

The tour had to wait when they saw TPio stealing Pokémon and fleeing to the sewers. Luckily Burgh had found out about Team Plasma's activities and guided them through said tunnels. After facing a gang made up of a bald man, a breakdancer and a guitarist, they caught TPio and recovered the Pokémon.

"No! Not the Pokémon that we were going to release!" Nate said furious.

"How awful! We're so bad that they're going to call us Team Pussycat!" Purrloin said.

"Let's go! We have to inform the Seven Sages as soon as possible." said Rosa.

The three ran out of there, being chased by our heroes until they reached a very tall building. There they saw Bianca, Cheren, Hilbert and Hilda.

Hilbert and Hilda were traveling together while Cheren and Bianca did the same. Bianca and Hilda had been in the Castelia Gallery when some grunts broke in and stole their Pokémon.

"They took my munna!" Bianca cried.

"Don't worry, we'll save her." Hilda reassured her as she patted her back.

"Damn, how dare they..." Cheren muttered. Hilbert very much agreed with his friend.

"Why would they go inside this skyscraper?" Cilan wondered.

"What difference does it make? Let's go get them! Ash said.

"I agree, let's go!" Iris said with the same enthusiasm.

ooOoo

The skyscraper was a secret base filled with members of Team Plasma. Right at the entrance were three of the seven sages. Ghetsis, Bronius and Rood. The latter, unlike his companions, seemed quite nervous about the situation.

Bronius taunted Burgh by revealing that they made their secret base in front of the Castelia gym as a mockery.

"Tell me, do you know the legend of how Unova was formed?" Ghetsis suddenly asked, preventing a battle from breaking out in the building.

"Yes, I know it!" Iris said raising her hand. "It's a legend about two dragons, one white and one black, right?"

"Indeed... In a land convulsed by constant wars between nations, two heroes undertook their own crusade with the purpose of restoring peace. The black dragon and the white dragon appeared before each hero, offering to help them with their relentless power and wisdom. The four managed to unite the hearts of the people. This is how the Unova region originated. And now, we set out to revive that hero and one of the dragons here in Unova to capture the hearts of the people."

"Are you going to use a Pokémon? Aren't you supposed to want to free them?" Ash reminded him.

"Damn hypocrites!" Hilbert shouted.

"Don't you dare talk to Great sage Ghetsis like that!" Nate said.

A simple hand gesture from Ghetsis silenced everyone instantly.

"When the will of the legendary became m-... Ahem, with the help of the legendary we can build the world that and-, I mean, that Team Plasma desire."

"I don't understand anything." Hilda said scared.

"I-I don't either, I just want my Munna." Bianca said.

"I don't believe you at all." Ash said.

"Pika!"

"You're mad man!" Iris said.

"You have the eyes of a liar," Cilan said.

"I agree." said Cheren, who had picked up Munna when no one was looking and gave it to a very happy Bianca.

Honestly, there's something about what you're saying I don't quite understand." Burgh said.

At such words spoken by Ash and his companions, anger invaded the grunts and the two sages who accompanied Ghetsis.

"You're really interesting people, even though you don't seem very smart... although no one is compared to me, of course."

Not wanting to get into trouble, Ghetsis asked them to leave his skyscraper. Burgh accepted that truce and got our heroes out of there. It was best not to endanger the Pokémon when they were at a numerical disadvantage. Furthermore, Burgh felt that Ghetsis was much stronger than all of them combined.

After solving the problem, everyone returned to their routine. The next day Ash, Iris and Cilan went to the gym. Hilda wanted to accompany them to see her idol Burgh fighting, so her traveling companion Hilbert went too.

ooOoo

Castelia Gym

"My Bug-type Pokémon are looking forward to facing you in battle. Have I told you how fabulous my team is?... And now let's stop with the preambles and jump into battle!" ―Burgh, Premier Insect Artist.

Tepig and Swadloon vs Dwebble and Whirlipede. After a fight in which Ash's Swadloon shined, victory came for the challenger.

"Aww... I lost. Whatever! Losing to you doesn't bug me because you are a-MAZ-ingly strong! This is the Insect Badge! You beat me, so it's yours!"

"It's very bright," Ash said happily as he looked at it. "With this I already have three badges."

"Burgh, why did you become a painter?" Hilda asked, a little sad at having seen his defeat.

Burgh looked thoughtful for several seconds.

"When I was little, I discovered the beauty of Bug-type Pokémon. They stole my heart. Since then, I've been drawing them and fighting with them, over and over again... Even now, after all this time, I'm still discovering things about them. Living in a world with Pokémon is something magical..."

ooOoo

Liberty Garden

Hilbert and Hilda were going to stay longer in the city, because they wanted to get the badge. Ash and his friends decided to stay one more day and all go visit the Liberty Garden. They called Cheren and Bianca to all go together.

Unfortunately, the entire island was full of Team Plasma grunts, who wanted to capture the legendary Victini who had inhabited the lighthouse for a long time.

With the help of Agent Jenny and professor Juniper, who was nearby investigating, they managed to save the Victini and take the Team Plasma grunts to jail. The Victini ended up becoming attached to Hilda and becoming part of her Pokémon team.

ooOoo

Finally, to relax, everyone went to the Royal Unova cruise ship. There Ash fought against his friends and other passengers. Later he and Iris watched the beautiful sunset together on the deck of the ship while Cilan watched them with a warm smile.

On the way out of the city, Ash, Iris and Cilan met a scientist named Colress, who told them about his dream of extracting the hidden potential of Pokémon. After a brief fight against Ash's pikachu, Colress left satisfied.

"If a pikachu can be so strong with the right trainer, ho, ho, ho... Team Plasma is very wrong in its ideas of liberation." Colress murmured.

---

Aftermath of M14: Black: Victini and Reshiram – Eindoak Town

Professor Juniper called Ash to tell him that she knew where was the zekrom that attacked them when they arrived in Unova. So Ash, Iris and Cilan went to Eindoak town to investigate.

What they didn't imagine was that in the following days they would risk their lives to save not only said town but possibly the entire region.

"So, was Damon's Zekrom really the same one you saw before?" Iris asked. She, Ash and Cilan were eating outside the town, as they would soon leave there to continue their journey.

"That's right/Pika." Ash and Pikachu said.

"What a coincidence, if you can call it that" Cilan said very interested. "The fact that Reshiram chose you to stop Damon says a lot about you Ash."

"Well knowing what each dragon represents, I would say that Zekrom should have chosen Ash" Iris said confused. "He's a very idealistic kid."

"I'm not a kid," Ash complained, "and right then I wanted to show Damon the truth about what he was doing to Victini and the planet."

"Well, all's right in the world right now". Cilan said trying to stop a possible argument between his friends. "Luckily it seems that the people of the Valley will be able to find new lands and Victini will finally be able to see the world."

---

Desert Resort

"Life is a serious battle, and you have to use the tools you're given. It's more important to master the cards you're holding than to complain about the ones your opponents were dealt. Pokémon battles are proof that you are really living..." ―Grimsley of the Unova Elite Four.

Right at the entrance to the desert, they met a man who was playing cards with a group of workers. They were betting on things like objects or supposed treasures found in the desert.

The man who ended up winning almost everything was Grimsley of the Elite Four and a Dark-type specialist. Grimsley recognized Cilan as a gym leader and invited him and his friends to eat.

"Do you come from Castelia City? It's a shame what has happened to that city." Grimsley said sadly.

"And what happened to it?" Iris asked confused. "Apart from certain streets, it is a beautiful place."

"Those streets are where you can make the most money," Grimsley said with a small smile. "There used to be casinos all over the city but due to the new international laws of the Pokémon World Association, almost all of them have closed. Finding a casino today is a miracle."

"That's fine with me, I never liked those places!" Ash said very happily. Grimsley raised an eyebrow somewhat displeased by his words.

"I'm with you Ash," said Iris, smiling at him, "those places are houses of evil... Or so grandma says."

Grimsley's eyebrow twitched harder.

"If I remember correctly," Cilan said thoughtfully, "the casinos began to be removed because they were used by criminal organizations, or they let children in, claiming that they were adults according to the laws of certain regions."

"Yeah...well...Playing in casinos saved me from poverty..." Grimsley didn't know what else to say, so he retaliated by challenging the three of them to a Pokémon battle.

ooOoo

Several hours later…

"I think we're lost." Cilan said.

"It's Ash's fault for running off to look for Pokémon." Iris said, looking angrily at her friend.

"…I'm sorry." Ash said, avoiding looking at her, because he knew she was right.

Cilan gave a long sigh.

"It doesn't matter, at least I know that in desert areas there are always nurses or booths to rest," Cilan reported. "At least we won't starve."

"That's if a maractus or a sandile doesn't capture us…" said Iris worried.

"If they do, we'll beat them and that's it, right, Pikachu?" Ash said.

"Pika!"

While they were walking they met a man in a suit and with sunglasses who tried to sell them "soft sand" but Cilan refused and quickly took them out of there. After a while they saw a backpacker on the ground and they helped.

"…I-I wanted to enter that castle over there because it reminded me of a place in Hoenn." the tired backpacker revealed. "But that place is cursed... I pray to Arceus that it falls like the Mirage Tower..."

ooOoo

Relic Castle

That place was full of Pokémon that wanted to eat them, kill them or possess their bodies. And to top it off there were Plasma grunts everywhere, suffering the same as our heroes or trying to finish them off.

"It's not your strength that has defeated us, but that of your Pokémon!"

"The world cannot change without pain!"

"If people released their Pokémon there would no longer be winners or losers!"

"We fight for our young lord... and for no one else!"

"There will be no mercy for those who oppose our ideas!"

Finally our heroes cleared the place of Plasma grunts. Especially when they said that the Pokémon they were looking for was no longer there.

"The rumors that the champion captured him years ago must be true… Damn it! Plasmaaa!" a recruit shouted before fleeing.

"Can we leave this desert now?" Iris complained. "Too many crazy things for one day."

"I agree," said Cilan.

"Well, I had a lot of fun." Ash said happily. Iris wanted to yell at him but only a small laugh came out.

---

Nimbasa City: Lit by the Flash of Lightning!

As soon as they arrived at night, they went to the Pokémon Center, where their friends were waiting for them. Hilda specifically told them that she had signed up for a Pokémon Musical after being recruited by a blonde woman. The girl seemed very happy because she had always been attracted to that kind of things since she watched Pokémon contests on TV.

The next day they went to the Musical Theater where they saw Hilda dress up her Pokémon and give a show similar to the contests, only this time the music and rhythm of the Pokémon were very important. The ovation that Hilda received was thunderous, because she really had talent.

"…Even she knows what she wants to do with her life…" Cheren murmured.

"How lucky…" Bianca murmured.

Later they all went to visit the stadiums, where there were athletes of all kinds training. Ash, Iris, and Hilbert spent the entire day going from stadium to stadium challenging players to Pokémon battles until Cilan stopped them, as they had to rest.

"Besides, there's a Battle Club tournament coming up soon," he informed them, "you don't want to be exhausted and lose, do you?"

"They're like kids." Bianca said laughing.

"What have you said?!" Iris exclaimed offended.

ooOoo

The joy was short-lived as they had to confront the TPio, who were robbing the elderly owner of a day care. Bianca's father, who was passing by, saw his daughter in danger and became furious.

"I knew we shouldn't have let you go, you're only fourteen, for Arceus's sake! Unova is no longer what it was, it has been filled with crazy cultists and on top of that the routes are fuller than ever of wild Pokémon... You are coming home with me right now!"

Bianca didn't want to obey her father but she didn't want to disappoint him either, so she was going to accept but Cheren got in the way and challenged Bianca's father to a Pokémon battle. Elesa had gone to meet Hilda when she saw all that and she intervened, acting as a mediator.

"Sweetie, you keep going on your travels." Elesa said firmly.

"But...! Who do you think you're?" Bianca's astonished father asked. "This is a conversation between father and daughter..."

"My name is Elesa. I'm this town's gym Leader. I also happen to be a model. You know, there are many people in this world. There are people whose way of thinking may be completely different from yours. Sometimes, this means you may get hurt."

Bianca's father nodded quickly.

"That is! Very well said! That's precisely what worries me!"

"But it's important to keep trying, to learn about the differences between yourself and others... To learn that being different is ok. And you shouldn't worry. Trainers always have Pokémon at their side. Pokémon are wonderful. It's not only how cute they can be, but also how much you can depend on them..."

In those seconds of reflection that her father had, Bianca took the opportunity to give her opinion.

"Please! I know you care a lot about me, dad... I really know! But... I want you to know that there are also good people in the world and that, thanks to my Pokémon, I am stronger now."

In the end Cheren and Bianca would face her father in combat together, since alone they had no chance against him. Bianca's father wiped out both of them using only his darmanitan, yet he let Bianca continue with her journey when he saw how strong she had become with her Pokémon and all of her friends she had supporting her.

ooOoo

A few days later… - Battle Club

A tournament in which any trainer could participate regardless of age or number of badges, obtaining a box of Pretty Feathers.

Ash and all his companions entered said tournament. There were all kinds of trainers and Pokémon ready to win.

"N? What are you doing here?" Ash asked confused when he saw him among the participants. "I thought you didn't like Pokémon battles."

"And I don't like them... but I should know more about them before judging them... Besides, this is just a preview of the Pokémon league."

"Are you going to participate in the Pokémon league? The maximum representation of what you don't like? You are very weird." Iris said.

"My friend may have little tact but her words are no less true." said Cilan in an attempt to apologize.

N smiled a little.

"Don't worry. I know that my actions may be contradictory but they always have a purpose."

ooOoo

After several elimination rounds, the real one-on-one battles began.

-First round: Iris vs Cilan, Hilbert vs Bel, Colress vs Dino, Luke vs Scooter, Ash vs Burgundy, Georgia vs Trip, N vs Stephan and Cheren vs Hilda.

-Second round: Iris vs Hilbert, Colress vs Luke, Ash vs Georgia and N vs Cheren.

-Third round: Iris vs Colress and Ash vs N.

-Fourth round (Final): Iris vs Ash.

Winner: Iris

ooOoo

Ash congratulated Iris for winning the tournament and they all went to eat at a restaurant. They invited N even though he didn't seem confident at first, but he accepted.

For the first time they saw him smile continuously when he saw how happy the Pokémon of the people around him were, especially Ash's.

Bianca, Cheren and Cilan wanted to ask him all kinds of questions but surprisingly Ash and Iris stopped them, as they didn't want to make N uncomfortable. He appreciated the gesture and continued enjoying the delicious dinner.

When Ash, Iris, and Cilan told them that they had seen the legendary dragons, N almost choked. His though returned to normal upon deducing that they weren't the alpha dragons he was looking for. However he began to notice Ash more.

The next day everyone went their separate ways. Cilan told his two friends that he had to buy food, so Ash and Iris went to the amusement park alone and even went on the Ferris wheel together.

On said Ferris wheel they met a couple of lovers named Yancy and Curtis.

"Are you also dating?" Yancy asked.

"You seem very in love." Curtis commented.

"We aren't!" Exclaimed an embarrassed Ash and Iris.

"They remind me of us when we were young." They both said after hugging each other in a lovey-dovey way.

"But you're only one or two years older than us..." commented an irritated Iris.

When Cilan returned, Ash and Iris went with him straight to the gym.

ooOoo

Nimbasa Gym

"Congratulations, you have reached the main stage. My dear Pokémon team or yours? Which one shines with its own light? Now we'll know!" ―Elesa, the Shining Beauty.

Palpitoad, Snivy and Pikachu vs Zebstrika, Emolga and Tyamo. Unlike other fights, the gym this time was packed to capacity. Almost everyone, except four people, were Camilla fans.

Even Ash, with his little interest in that sort of thing, could understand why. Camilla was stunning in more ways than one. The pressure that Ash suffered was enormous but he managed to overcome it and win.

"My, oh my... You have a sweet fighting style. I mean, you're a great Trainer! Excuse me, I...uh... Oh, here! I want you to have this, the Bolt badge!" Camilla said very happily.

To finish, they did a photo session to have a memory of the battle. Camilla became especially fond of Pikachu, since he was an electric Pokémon that was almost non-existent in Unova.

During the photo session, Nancy and Christop, the two most famous presenters of Unova, appeared. Their fame even reached international levels like Elesa, so that place was filled with many people willing to kill themselves to get an autograph.

The only ones who got these autographs were Ash and Iris for some reason that both of them didn't know. In these autographs were the images of the Pokémon that always accompanied Nancy and Christop, like Meowth, wobuffet or shieldon.

ooOoo

Battle Subway

"In order to master the art of fighting, I'm training under my mentor, Alder." ―Marshal of the Unova Elite Four.

That place was the dream of any Pokémon trainer obsessed with fighting while also wanting an adrenaline rush. Ash and Iris paired up to board the train and face numerous trainers in a row.

Sometimes there were brave or stupid people sitting in the carriages, watching the battles with the risk of receiving a Pokémon attack. One of those people was Marshal of the Elite Four, a Fighting type specialist.

The burly man seemed to be looking for something but couldn't find it. In the end he stopped searching for it to watch Ash and Iris fight the Subway Bosses, the brothers Ingo and Emmet. While Cilan, a train sybarite and friend of Ingo and Emmet, gave his opinion on the combat.

Ash and Iris won but just then the station was hacked by Team Plasma. The TPio, with the help of someone, took many kidnapped Pokémon on a ghost train.

"It's a ghost because technically it doesn't exist or it's not official." Marshal explained as they moved through the cars full of Plasma grunts. "They had given me a tip and I see that it was true, damn thieves!"

"We will help you!" said Ash, Iris and Cilan.

"Thank you."

"What a shame that this happened in our guard." said Ingo.

"We still have time to fix it." Emmet said.

ooOoo

Anville Town

In the end they arrived at the town from which all the trains left. There they detained the TPio and while they escaped, Marshal captured the rest of the grunts.

"Thank you for your help," Marshal said to our heroes as he took the grunts to the police. "It's obvious that you have potential, especially you two, Ash and Iris. I'm looking forward to seeing you soon."

"Thank you very much, Marshal! Give my regards to grandpa Alder!" Iris said.

"Of course, I'm sure my master is happy that you remember him."

Next time we'll have a Pokémon battle!" Ash said. Marshal just smiled.

Later Ingo and Emmet told them that they could spend the day in the town, since they still had to fix the problems caused by Team Plasma.

In the town our heroes crossed paths again with N, who had returned a pansage to a girl.

"Thank you very much sir!" said the girl.

"You're welcome...I think your pansage wants to be the train manager's assistant," N explained with a smile. "That's why he had run away and hidden here."

"Can you talk to the Pokémon, sir?"

"…You could say so."

"How cool!"

"…Thanks."

Ash and his friends watched that interaction with a smile on their faces. N seemed a little more relaxed than other times and wasn't mumbling to himself as much.

After spending the day with N, our heroes returned to Nimbasa City. By pure chance they didn't meet Hilda, who despite not liking Pokémon battles very much, had become a little obsessed with the battles in the Battle Subway.

---

Route 5

"If there are people like you who pursue strength, there are also people who are happy just being with Pokémon. There are many different people and many different answers."―Alder, Unova Champion.

There was a large group of people around a red-haired man who looked affable but somewhat intimidating. Iris and Cilan recognized him immediately, that man was Alder, the Unova Champion.

"Champion?! Fight with me!" Ash asked him immediately. However, the rest of the people began to insult him and push him away.

"Get in line, kid!"

"Yeah, yeah, don't sneak in!"

"Don't be a cheater!"

"He has a Pikachu!"

Alder laughed as he calmed the people down and then looked Ash in the eyes.

"It's the first time in a long time that someone challenges me without starting to shake after a few milliseconds," Alder said. "And I see that you are accompanied by a gym leader and… Iris! Little girl, how are you?"

"Good morning, champion." said Cilan making an elegant bow.

"Hello Alder," said Iris very happily. "I'm fine and I'm not a little girl anymore!"

"Do you know him?" Ash asked. Iris nodded.

"He's a friend of Grandpa."

Ash didn't know who Iris's grandfather was but he couldn't ask because people interrupted them again. Soon Hilbert, Hilda, Cheren and Bianca arrived at the scene.

"And what the hell is the champion doing here, lost in the middle of nowhere?" Cheren asked as soon as he arrived.

"Cheren!" Bianca scolded him.

"You're quite a judgmental young person, are you not? For your information, I'm not goofing off. I'm on a voyage. I know every corner of Unova."

"And what does that matter? Let's fight!" Hilbert said excitedly.

"Hilbert!" Hilda scolded him.

Alder, seeing that tempers were very heated, decided to fight everyone at the same time. Using only a bouffalant he quickly ended the battle.

He later invited Ash, Cilan and Iris to eat with him at the house of a pastry chef friend of his named Jenn.

Ash quickly noticed that Alder was very laid back and didn't seem very enthusiastic about Pokémon battles. Playing with his Pokémon, observing nature and thinking about future trips were his greatest hobby.

"Battles are not the only way to connect with Pokémon. Contests, shows, sports, simply living with them... Pokémon are creatures just as complex and unpredictable as humans. It's a shame that many of us are forgetting it."

---

Driftveil Bridge

The TPio, along with a large group of grunts, had sabotaged the famous bridge, forcing Elesa and Agent Jenny to ask Ash, Iris and Cilan for help. The villains' objective was to control transportation between Nimbasa City and Driftveil City, with which they could blackmail the Unova government. Luckily their plan only lasted a few hours before Pikachu sent TPio to blast off.

---

Driftveil City: A City of Billowing Sails

"I know you Ash Ketchum." said a motorist who stopped Ash, Iris and Cilan when they went to the market.

"Well, I don't know you." Ash said confused.

The muscular man laughed as he roared his motorcycle.

"I'm Charles, the man in love and you're the kid who beat up my colleagues from the Kanto Motorcycle Association."

"…"

"Two years ago."

"…"

"On the Sevii Islands."

"…"

"Enough, I challenge you to a triple and rotation battle, I'll avenge my pals!"

Five minutes later, Charles' six Pokémon were out of action and the bike had been indirectly destroyed by Pikachu's thunder bolt.

"I'm sorry about the bike..." Ash said.

"… it serves me well. In the end, you have taught me a lesson."

Charles picked up his motorcycle and his Pokémon as he left there humming sadly.

"I am... a man in love. You can call me Charles. I love riding a motorcycle and feeling like the wind…"

Shortly after, a man in a cowboy hat approached our heroes.

"My name is Clay and I'm the gym leader of this city. I've seen how ya fight and the other leaders have told me about ya and yer little group," Clay said. "I need yer help, Team Plasma has hidden in my city and I'm not going to allow it."

"You can count on us!" Ash said without a second's hesitation. Iris gave his shoulder a gentle tap.

"Don't make decisions without us."

"But there was only one option."

"I love your simplicity," said Cilan.

ooOoo

Cold Storage

The group found TPio almost frozen, along with several Plasma grunts and one of the seven sages. Next to him were many stolen Pokémon that were also suffering from the cold.

"How cold!" the sage Zinzolin shouted. "Come closer to me, my grunts, I can't stop shivering."

"Don't worry, we'll warm you up right away!" Ash said.

"The prison has very good heating." Clay said.

"You haven't been very smart choosing a hiding place, have you?" Cilan said.

"Let's end this quickly, please!" Iris shouted, who hugged Ash so as not to get cold.

"D-damn, I'm not going to let you stop the release of these Pokémon... Finish them off!"

"A-as you w-wish, sage Zinzolin," said the TPio and the Plasma grunts.

There were many grunts surrounding them, but just at that moment a biker appeared breaking a window with his motorcycle and next to him was a Pokémon.

"How cool! Who is that?" Ash and Iris said at the same time with their eyes shining with excitement.

"We are Accelguardian and his faithful companion Accelgor!/Acce! Said the Superhero and his Pokémon.

"How cool!" Ash and Iris shouted again.

"Just what we need, a clown." said Clay, who knew him very well.

"That voice... Charles the man in love?" said Cilan confused.

"I don't know who Charles is, I'm... Accelguardian!"

"He's Charles." Ash and his friends thought.

"A super hero? How cool, I mean, oh no!" Nate said excitedly. "Like the Unova Rangers!"

"No one is cooler than the young master." Rosa said, although deep down he did seem cool to her.

"The bike is cool, no one can deny that." Purrloin commented.

Ash and his allies quickly took care of all the grunts. Capturing even Zinzolin. Accelguardian left as soon as the police arrived.

"What do we do with the stolen Pokémon?" Asked Ash when he saw so many.

"I'll tell the Aether Foundation to take care of everything, I've to go talk to Agent Jenny," Clay said. "You guys have done a good job, thank you. And you Ash, you can challenge me whenever you want. I would like to give you the badge as a reward but something tells me you wouldn't accept it."

ooOoo

Things didn't go well. Ghetsis appeared in person at the gym and took his men away. Clay asked Agent Jenny not to do anything, since Ghetsis came with a large entourage and there were too many innocent people nearby that could get hurt.

"I get the feeling that this Ghetsis guy is more than he seems." Cilan said worried.

ooOoo

Driftveil Gym

"Well, well... Why don't ya show me what ya're capable of?" ―Clay, the Underground Boss.

Oshawott, Snivy and Boldore vs Krokorok, Palpitoad and Excadrill. After a fight in which Ash did not hesitate to use "dirty" strategies (according to Clay), he defeated the gym leader.

"You fight very well fer yer age. Ya would even give my daughter problems. I wonder what kind of journey you've taken to become this strong. I'm curious and, at the same time, I don't like it one bit! Anyway, take the Quake badge!" Clay said.

---

Chargestone Cave

"Chargestone Cave... I like this place. Formulas express electricity and its connection to Pokémon..." ―N.

Ash and his friends found themselves in the cave with professor Juniper being helped by Bianca. Cheren, Hilbert and Hilda were nearby, fighting with other trainers.

"My father and I are here," Professor Juniper said. "He apparently has discovered something important."

As they all travelled together through the cave they noticed that there were many galvantula webs everywhere.

"There are many more than normal, don't you think, professor?" Bianca said worried.

"It seems so, I wonder if the Galvantula are nervous about something." said Aurea Juniper.

Along the way they met N. He was fascinated with the cave and its operation.

"Ash, I'll tell you a very important secret related to the cave if you beat me in a Pokémon battle."

"You don't need to promise me anything," said Ash as he petted Pikachu even though he was very charged with electricity from the effects of the cave, "I'm always ready to fight."

Iris, for her part, felt as if someone was watching them. Whenever she looked out of the corner of her eye she seemed to see the shadow of someone with white hair...

ooOoo

"N, are you okay? It's okay to lose." Ash said worriedly when he saw N distressed.

"Tsk! Why? As if I could pursue my ideals or truth with something as meaningless as a battle! As if that could make me worthy to become friends with the legendary Pokémon!" said N.

"Legendary Pokémon?" Professor Juniper asked curiously. N looked at her with some disdain.

"Professor Juniper, what are you thinking? You appear to have no qualms about the relationship between Pokémon and people. You put Pokémon into categories using arbitrary rules and think you can understand them like that..." N said, slowly losing his temper. "The very idea of a Pokédex revolts me. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Wow, you really hate me, don't you? On the one hand, I recognize that your personal opinion is totally valid. But, on the other hand, I think ours is too. Don't you think that everyone should reflect and decide for themselves if they want to be with Pokémon?"

"You're saying I should just allow people to think whatever they want and treat Pokémon however they want, no matter whether the Pokémon suffer? I refuse to tolerate the existence of a world like that!"

Everyone looked scared and confused as N left in a hurry, only to return several seconds later.

"…Eh…Ash, you won so I'll tell you the secret," N said without looking him in the eyes. "Team Plasma is in this cave and they have kidnapped professor Juniper's father. They are a little further ahead."

N gave them a couple more tips and left without looking back.

ooOoo

Rescuing professor Cedric Juniper was easy thanks to N's instructions. Professor Juniper's father had recently found two stones, one white and other black. Ash, Iris, and Cilan recognized them as the zekrom and reshiram orbs. However, they were larger than normal and emitted more powerful energy than those seen by our heroes in the past.

According to Cedric they were the alpha stones, the original ones. Although luckily Team Plasma didn't know anything about that, because they had tried to kidnap him just because they knew that he was an expert in legendary Pokémon.

After leaving the cave, everyone went their own way, except for Professor Juniper and her father, who accompanied Ash, Iris and Cilan.

---

Mistralton City: Strewn with Windblown Leaves

It was a city from which almost all of Unova's planes left. There Cedric Juniper caught a plane while his daughter stayed in the city.

After resting at the Pokémon Center, Ash headed to the gym. On the way he talked to Iris and Cilan about N and his furious attitude towards the professor. He almost seemed like a person, as if something was tormenting him inside. Also, how did he know so much about Team Plasma's plans?

When they arrived at the gym they met Skyla, a very attractive and lively girl who loved airplanes.

Skyla told them that she could not accept challengers because she had to solve a problem. Ash and his friends offered to help her with this problem. Hilbert, who was passing by after having separated from Hilda for a while, decided to accompany them.

ooOoo

Celestial Tower

Ash, Skyla, Iris, Hilbert and Cilan reached the top of the tower, where there was an injured Pokémon, but not just any Pokémon but a mesprit. Ash recognized her immediately and after briefly telling them a part of her adventures in Sinnoh, they cured the Pokémon and watched as it moved away from the Tower.

"I saw it fall from the sky several hours ago from the city," Skyla explained. "I thought it was a bird Pokémon, not a legendary one native to Sinnoh."

"You must have incredible eyesight to have seen it from so far away," Hilbert praised her.

"It runs in the family," Skyla laughed.

"And what is Mesprit doing here if she is from Sinnoh?" Iris asked confused.

"There are Pokémon that migrate from other regions," said Cilan, "I've heard of legendaries that do that."

"Like suicune or moltres!" Ash said.

"Exactly!"

Shortly after, when they were going down the tower, they crossed paths with the champion Alder and Miles, Skyla's grandfather. Skyla and Iris were the only ones who weren't surprised to see Alder there.

"I always go up several times a year to ring the Wishing Bell in honor of my first Pokémon," Alder said, his constant cheerful smile was somewhat waned. "He died a long time ago and I buried him in this tower."

"It must have been very strong if he was your first Pokémon." Ash said. He and Pikachu looked somewhat sadly at each other. Alder nodded his head slightly.

"He and I were obsessed with being the strongest, but I realized too late that strength isn't something that lasts forever. I left the Pokémon League for a while and embarked on a long journey to make everyone understand it."

After a brief moment of reflection, Ash promised Alder that he would face him one day. Then Skyla, out of pure curiosity, asked Ash to ring the bell. Ash did so and after hearing the sound...

"Ash, let's fight right here please." Skyla asked him.

"Of course!"

ooOoo

"Hu, hu, hu... Your sound tells me that you're a tough person, who isn't daunted by a good wind. Now you're going to have a blast with me, you'll see!" ―Skyla, the Highflying Girl.

Krokorork, Pikachu and Unfezant vs Swoobat, Unfezant and Swanna. Miles acted as judge and ended the fight when Ash's female Unfezant defeated her granddaughter's swanna.

"You have defeated the commander of the Unova airport and the best pilot. Here's the Jet badge," Skyla said.

"My sixth badge!" Ash said very enthusiastically.

In celebration of the victory, Cilan gave his two friends sweet hearts. While they were eating them, they met Hilda, who told them to sign up for the Wishing Bell Festival.

The tournament was divided into 6 small competitions where each participant had to team up with one of their Pokémon. Whoever won would have the opportunity to ring the Wishing Bell, so that one of their wishes would come true.

Neither Ash nor his friends mentioned that the teen from Pallet Town had already rung said bell and they signed up for the tournament anyway. In the end the winner of the tournament was Hilda.

While the others left the city, Hilbert stayed with Skyla because the girl needed help. Apparently a man named Scott was having a Pokémon battle with his wife's ex-boyfriends in the Celestial Tower.

---

Lentimas Town: Where Rough Mountain Trails Lead

Professor Juniper needed to do a job in a distant town and took Bianca with her. Mentioning that there were rumors of a strange Pokémon in that town, Ash wanted to accompany them.

Anyway they would return to Mistralton City after finishing the job so Cheren promised to wait for Bianca while training. Hilda stayed with Cheren.

Ash, Iris, Cilan, Bianca, Hilbert and Juniper arrived at the dusty place in a plane piloted by Skyla. It reminded the young man from Pallet Town a lot of the Orre region, where his friends Leo and Rui lived.

While the professor and Bianca worked, Ash and his friends went to explore the surroundings in search of rare Pokémon. Hilbert stayed training with Skyla and learning about the life of a pilot.

---

Reversal Mountain

That place was full of lakes at first, but the deeper they went, the more lava they saw. Until they came across lava lakes in which a pair of heatran were resting.

Ash explained to his friends what he knew about those Sinnoh legendaries, which fascinated Iris and Cilan, but Ash was expecting some other, rarer Pokémon.

ooOoo

Strange House

"This house is a whirlwind of fear, sadness, resignation... Of feelings that converge to form an unknown energy." ―Psychic Lynette.

"Don't you think that in this house things move by themselves? Hey, it wasn't me! I haven't moved anything, I swear!" ―Backpacker Boone.

Walking a little further they came to a mysterious house. Iris didn't want to go in since she felt something was wrong but Ash and Cilan didn't think anything of it and convinced her to go explore it.

The objects moved every few minutes. Whispering voices could be heard coming from the walls. A thick negative atmosphere made it difficult for them to walk...At first they blamed it on ghost-type Pokémon, but they soon realized that even they were uncomfortable.

There were other people just as scared as them but none of them wanted to leave because they said there was a treasure hidden in the house.

ooOoo

"'"Do you know Thunderbolt?" was his first greeting to me. His name was Volkner.' That's part of a novel I wrote. I absolutely love writing about the close bonds between the Trainers who come here and the Pokémon they train." ―Shauntal of the Unova Elite Four.

In the library, after getting a tremendous scare, they met Shauntal of the Elite Four, a specialist in the Ghost type. The woman was reading a book so calmly while she drank tea.

"What brave young people you are." Shauntal said leaving his book on the couch and writing something down in her notebook.

"What is that book?" Asked Ash curious, because the cover had a black rayquaza.

"You don't know it? It's Pokémon Conquest, the most popular novel series in all of Unova!" Iris said excitedly. "My favourite character is Nobunaga, the "demon" who dominated the black dragons."

"True, there are very few people in Unova who haven't read it!" Cilan said, trying in vain to hide his emotion.

"The best part are the love subplots between Hero and Heroine, Hero and Oichi, Hero and Ginchiyo, Hero and Nō, Hero and Nene..." Iris continued.

"What?..." Ash said, somewhat confused.

"It's a harem story subgenre." Cilan explained. Although Ash still didn't fully understand it. Iris, for her part, continued talking like crazy about the novels.

"The rivalry between Shingen and Kenshin. Nobunaga destroying the Hero and Heroine's home. Nobunaga learning that his sister is part of the harem of his greatest enemy. Nene abandoning Hideyoshi for Hero. Mitsuhide's betrayal to protect her daughter Grace from her, when she becomes devoted to the religion of Arceus. And especially the Infinite Tower saga, with the final battle between Hero and Nobunaga!"

"I'm glad you like it so much, because I'm the writer." Shauntal revealed very happily.

"Oh really?!" Iris and Cilan exclaimed at the same time.

"Is something imaginary so good?" asked Ash, who had never been one for books.

"My novels are based on real events," Shauntal revealed. "They are a collection of legends and true events that happened in the distant region of Ransei. And even if it were totally fiction, that doesn't mean that books aren't a whole new world in which you can to immerse yourself and explore. Here, the first volume of the novel!"

Ash accepted it a little hesitantly and put it in his backpack.

"I'm rereading my novels because PokéWood has sent me an offer to make movies of them." Shauntal explained.

Both Iris and Cilan put on bitter expressions.

"I hope it's decent." Iris said worried.

"True, movies are not usually better than the books they adapt." Cilan remembered.

"Don't worry, I will try to make the actors and the plot as faithful as possible, although knowing how the industry works..."

Soon Ash and his friends noticed that the heavy atmosphere had disappeared. Shauntal then told them that she had recently been to the Marvelous Bridge, where people claimed to see the ghost of a young woman and after several investigations he ended up arriving at this house.

Unfortunately for our heroes and Shauntal's joy, they ended up meeting the young ghost.

"Dad, Mom, Abra... Where are you...? In the dark dream... I heard my dad's voice... Forget about the Lunar Wing... Please stay here with me..."-said the young woman as she guided them little by little through the house until she took them to her room, where there was a Moon Feather. And then, it completely disappeared.

"It's the feather of a cresselia, a legendary from Sinnoh." Ash said when he recognized it.

"Lately we see many legendaries from that region." Iris commented.

"Maybe her parents died because of a darkrai and the young woman tried to give them a Moon Feather but it didn't arrive in time?" Shauntal deduced while she wrote non-stop in her notebook. "Or maybe she wanted to summon a cresselia to defeat the darkrai?"

"Or maybe Darkrai killed her using his nightmares and her parents didn't arrive in time with the moon feather..." Cilan deduced after putting on a detective hat.

After returning by plane to Mistralton City, Ash and his friends continued their journey.

---

Ambiga Town

In the Clubsplosion tournament participants had to register with only one Pokémon, which was the one they would use throughout the competition. The winner would get a set of vitamins for their Pokémon.

Ash tried to talk to N and he apologized for his attitude in the past, promising that he would take his next defeats better... if there were any.

Iris noticed that next to N was a tall man with white hair and a mask covering his mouth.

"That guy... Have we seen him anywhere? In a cave…?"

"It doesn't matter where we've seen him because I'm going to beat him too." Ash said, earning a long sigh from Iris.

"What a kid you are..."

ooOoo

-First Round: Ash vs Hilbert, Colress vs Stephan, Bianca vs Trip, Cilan vs Burgundy, N vs Cheren, Roxie vs Marlon, Shadow vs Hilda and Iris vs Georgia,

-Second Round: Ash vs Colress, Bianca vs Cilan, N vs Roxie and Iris vs Shadow.

-Third Round: Ash vs Bianca and N vs Iris.

-Final Round: Ash vs N.

Winner: Ash.

After winning the tournament, Ash and all his friends, including N, went to dinner. The mysterious Shadow spoke with N for a bit before disappearing without a trace. On the other hand, the competitor Colress seemed very interested in Ash's Pikachu and after talking to him he left with a wide smile on his face.

ooOoo

N wanted to talk to Ash alone, so the two left the restaurant for a walk. Of course Pikachu accompanied them.

"After this tournament one thing has become clear to me," N began to say, "the trainers force the Pokémon to fight and hurt them just to show that they are the best. Am I the only one who is deeply saddened by this?"

"I disagree. It's true that there are trainers like that, but most of us just want to enjoy our Pokémon," Ash said with a smile. "Plus, battles are a good way to bond with Pokémon."

N stared at him for a few seconds.

"Let me talk to your Pokémon team. I've been raised around Pokémon since the day I was born and I enjoy talking to them more than people. And at least you know that a Pokémon is never going to lie to you."

"…So, is it true that you can talk to Pokémon?"

N didn't say anything and picked up Pikachu in his arms.

"Hello, Pikachu."

"Hello N, how are you?"

"Very well, thanks. What can you tell me about Ash?"

"He's very annoying and is obsessed with being a Pokémon Master, although I don't know if he knows what it's. He always gets into trouble and doesn't hesitate to fight criminals to help people. He has saved a lot of people and Pokémon but I wish he cared more about himself... Still I would never abandon him. I would give my life for him."

N returned Pikachu to Ash and stood silently looking at the stars.

"…For some strange reason…" said N. His gaze fell on Ash and Pikachu again and this time he had a smile on his face. "This Pikachu believes in you! Very good! I wish all humans and Pokémon were as friendly as you! Then it wouldn't be necessary to free them from the clutches of the heartless! And we could all live in harmony forever."

"Release them? You sound like Team Plasma." Ash laughed nervously.

"That's because I'm Natural Harmonia Gropius, the leader and king of Team Plasma, Ash. And when I have made friends with the alpha Reshiram, I'll be a hero and show the world the truth of trainers and Pokémon. Although it must be done by force."

"…W-what?... I don't understand anything… You're the leader of Team Plasma?"

"Evil trainers will suffer when they see that their Pokémon no longer want anything to do with them. They will have to confront the hard truth, the truth that… Pokémon deserve better than to be people's puppets! Although also... It also saddens me that humans and Pokémon that are as friends as you are have to separate."

Before Ash could say anything, three shadows appeared and took N away into the darkness of the night. Later his worried friends went to see him and found out what had happened.

Everyone was disappointed in N. Hilbert, Cheren and Hilda believed that he was a madman and a traitor, while Ash, Iris and Bianca weren't sure that N was a bad person. Cilan for his part didn't say anything and remained thoughtful for the rest of the night.

---

Icirrus City: Sky Glittering with Flowers of Snow

Cilan was eager to get to this city, since the gym leader was in the past a famous PokéWood actor who made martial arts movies.

"All the children of Univa grew up watching hus movies! He and his beartic were known as the icy duo, the Fists of the North, the legs of the South!"

Ash and Iris watched with a smile as Cilan left so excited that fire came out of his body, making the cold go away.

Luckily for Cilan, Brycen and his Pokémon were nearby beating up Team Plasma grunts for trying to rob the town's people. Knowing that Cilan was a fan of his, Brycen gave him an autograph along with one of his famous phrases: "Don't limit yourself to the cold or the heat. Control them both at will."

Cilan almost fainted right there.

"Why did you stop making movies? If I can ask." said Cilan excitedly.

"I got bored, and then I met Alder, who convinced me to be a Pokémon trainer." Brycen said without much interest.

"Wow, I imagined a more epic story full of pain, suffering and personal improvement." Iris said disappointed.

"Me too." Ash said.

"Don't talk like that, you're in the presence of a legend!" Cilan scolded them.

"But they're right," Brycen said. "I'm thinking about going back to PokéWood and making a more legendary past for myself, so to speak."

"B-but that's..."

"In the film industry, most actors have false names and pasts. At least you can be glad you're the only fan who really knows the truth about me."

ooOoo

Brycen had things to do so Ash and his friends took the opportunity to visit the city. In one of these Ash came across a person he almost didn't recognize.

"You're the guy Misty and I beat!" Ash said pointing to him. "The Power Plant thief."

"I-I'm Pierce... And n-no, I'm not part of Team Rocket anymore!" the guy swore. "I only did what I did because I wanted Team Rocket to regain its former glory, but after seeing how Giovanni abandoned grunts like me without hesitation... well, I decided to leave him and lead an honest life..."

"Does Brycen know who you are?"

"Yes and also Agent Jenny. They both usually visit me from time to time..."

Ash decided not to insist and leave that man in peace. Along the way he told Iris and Cilan about his adventures with Team Rocket. Right in the middle of the street he stopped when he recognized a man and a woman coming out of a store.

The hard-eyed man and the red-haired woman also stopped when they saw him. The looks of both adults no longer had the evil of the past.

"Tabitha and Shelly!" Ash shouted very confused.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted.

"Ash Ketchum!" Tabitha and Shelly said at the same time. Everyone became tense, not knowing what to do.

"Do you know these two?" Iris asked confused. "Don't tell me they are also ex-criminals?"

"From Ash's reaction it seems that way." Cilan deduced.

"I thought you were dead. Everyone in Hoenn believes it." Ash finally said.

"And we almost did it, but by some miracle we were saved from dying in that damn cave." Tabitha revealed.

"Our Pokémon helped us get to a desert island, where we spent a couple of months," said Shelly. "In the end we realized how stupid Archie and Maxie were and we swore never to work for them again."

"We know that Team Magma and Aqua have changed for the better, but we don't want to have anything to do with them anymore." Tabitha said very seriously.

"And if you're worried about what we might do, Brycen and Agent Jenny know who we are and make us do community work every week." Shelly said.

To Ash's surprise, the two invited him to have dinner with them. Despite his initial hesitation, Ash accepted. Especially when he found out that Pierce and his wife would also be at the dinner. Ash later told his friends about Team Magma and Aqua and what they did in Hoenn.

"I'm starting to get nervous, especially after what happened with N," Iris said. "Are you going to get us into some big trouble?"

"It's not my fault that I'm always at the middle of mad men." Ash complained.

"What surprises me most is the number of criminals hiding in Unova," Cilan said. "Although I understand it, since it is so far from his native regions..."

Before they could continue talking, they saw a group of four children dancing in a circle next to the Pokémon Fan Club.

ooOoo

Icirrus Gym

"It seems like you have enough spirit to challenge a gym Leader. Come on!"" ―Brycen the Ice Mask.

Scraggy, Pignite and Krokorok vs Vanillish, Cryogonal and Beartic. After an intense battle between Krokorok and Beartic, Ash's Pokémon managed to win.

"You and your Pokémon team make an outstanding combination! A touching friendship! Here, the Freeze badge badge." Brycen said.

ooOoo

That night Ash, Iris, Cilan, Brycen, Agent Jenny, Pierce and his wife had dinner at Tabitha and Shelly's house. It was a little awkward at first, but Ash could see that the criminals were truly remorseful and using their knowledge to improve the city.

They should be in prison but living their entire lives being watched and forced to help others was a good punishment, Ash thought.

---

Dragon Spiral Tower

Upon leaving the gym they had found Hilbert, Hilda, Bianca and Cheren being surrounded by three mysterious guys in black. One of them was the one who had spoken with N in Clubsplosion. They called themselves the Shadow Triad and they left a message for Ash, he had to go to the Dragonspiral Tower to witness the birth of a legend.

Almost instantly Ash and his friends received a call via Xtransceiver from professor Cedric Juniper, saying that Team Plasma had stolen the Light stone.

Ash, his friends, Brycen and the strongest trainers in the city, after calling the police, quickly headed to the tower, which was filled everywhere with Plasma grunts. All directed by the sage Giallo.

"How could you get this far?! Attention! Rosa and Nate! Stop his feet immediately!" Giallo exclaimed as he saw Ash, Iris and Brycen approaching down the stairs.

"We won't let them touch master N!" Rosa shouted furiously.

"For the new era!" Nate yelled.

"For the separation of humans and Pokémon!" Purrloin shouted.

"Plasmaaaa!" the other grunts shouted.

While Iris took care of the grunts, Brycen confronted Giallo. What the sage didnt expect was that Brycen would use his own fists to beat up an old man and his followers.

Ash reached the top and there he saw N next to the legendary white dragon Pokémon. He had been awakened from his orb and was bowing before his new lord. N had a grin from ear to ear as he turned to look at Ash.

"What do you think, Ash? You have before you the hero who must guide the world towards the Truth." N said while he caressed the legendary. "And, fighting alongside him, the powerful silhouette of a Pokémon! Now, Reshiram and I'll participate in the Pokémon League, defeat the rest of the challengers, the Elite Four, and then the Champion!"

"You may want something good, but you talk like a villain." Ash said worried about his friend. "Having a legendary doesn't make you invincible!"

N didn't even seem to be listening to him. Little by little he was drowning in his own power.

"And with this we'll put an end to the battles, which cause so much damage to the Pokémon. A world just for them... will finally be a reality. In order to stop us, you too must demonstrate heroic qualities! Yeah! Earn the respect of Zekrom Alpha, and face us! Try to stop us!"

"If you continue down this path, rest assured that I will, N!"

"Perfect, because your Pokémon team believes in you! The formula to change the world... Will you be his unsolved mystery? If you want to protect the bonds between humans and Pokémon, look for zekrom! I'm sure it's waiting for you in a dormant state in the Black stone. I already have the eight badges, the next move is yours, Ash."

---

A great commotion arose in the region. That the leader of the most controversial sect in Unova had the alpha reshiram in his power was disturbing to everyone. The politicians, not wanting to make the population nervous, covered up the matter and left it in the hands of the Elite Four.

The Elite Four would go, with police support, to attack the bases of Team Plasma, both legal and illegal. Gym Leaders were only supposed to monitor their respective cities and not do anything unless necessary.

Despite Ash's protests, Alder would be in charge of guarding the Black stone. And Cedric Juniper and his daughter would have police protection for the moment.

---

Aftermath of M15: Kyurem vs. The Sword of Justice – Roshan city

"What an adventure we've just had, huh?" said Iris very happily. "Being able to meet the legendary Kyurem... In the end, he wasn't as bad as the legends painted him."

"I liked seeing the Swords of Justice, my brothers and I have always been fans of legendary Pokémon trios." commented Cilan, who had noticed that Iris was trying to distract Ash so that he wouldn't think about N or Team Plasma.

"I'm glad we were able to help Keldeo" said Ash with a big smile. "I'm sure that now that he has the Resolute Form, he'll be able to help many more Pokémon and humans."

"Pikachu, pika!" said Pikachu smiling as well.

Iris and Cilan looked at each other, happy to see that Ash had recovered his usual optimism. Later they met a meloetta who had been following them for some time.

The Pokémon could turn invisible and was very shy, so it only approached the three of them when they were alone. She seemed to have taken a liking to Ash after seeing how he treated his Pokémon.

---

Undella Town: A Town of Rippling Waves

When they arrived at the beach they found that a family, the Riches Family, didn't let people enjoy the beach unless they defeated the entire family. Ash, Iris and Cilan accepted the challenge.

However, someone joined them by surprise. Dawn, Ash's friend in Sinnoh, had come to Unova with the champion Cynthia. Apparently Dawn wanted to participate in a tournament that was going to happen soon in Lacunosa Town.

Together with Dawn, defeating the Riches family wasn't a challenge. Later they all ate together at Cynthia's beach house, who let them stay as long as they needed. Cilan along with the butler Jervis took charge of the meals.

During dinner Dawn explained to Iris and Cilan what Pokémon contests were, which interested the latter quite a bit.

"Sounds complicated but fun." Iris said.

"It's so much fun!" Ash said. "I participated in a couple of them. I really had talent."

"I'm glad to see that you still have a big ego, Ash." Dawn laughed.

"It's not true!"

"Yes it is, you're such a kid." Iris laughed.

After dinner they took out all their Pokémon to get to know each other. Being that a rivalry was formed between Ash's Oshawott and Dawn's Piplup for Meloetta's love. Meanwhile Dawn's lopunny was still obsessed with Pikachu.

They spent a couple of days enjoying what the town had to offer, and then the four of them left for the next city. Meanwhile Dawn met Meloetta and she even showed our heroes her Pirouette Form.

---

White Forest

In this forest, Iris captured a violent-looking dragonite that had strayed into the area. They also saw species of Pokémon that weren't from Unova and very strong trainers who were preparing for the Pokémon League.

ooOoo

Black City

In the sinister city they met Benga, the grandson of the champion Alder, who was also going to participate in the league, since his dream was to defeat the Elite Four and become the new champion. Benga knew Iris very well and they maintained a kind of rivalry.

"I hope Drayden has trained you as well as my grandfather has trained me."

"Rest assured that thanks to grandpa Drayden I'll beat you up!" Iris said. It was at that moment that the girl revealed that the Opelucid City Gym Leader, whom she called Grandpa, was her master.

"So, are you training to be a gym leader?" Ash asked surprised.

Iris nodded shyly.

"Although Grandpa thinks I have the potential for more."

"I believe it." Cilan said.

"Ha, I doubt it." Benga said.

"What did you say, you damn kid?!"

That night, Iris told Ash that she hadn't said anything about being the next gym leader because she was afraid of not exceeding other people's expectations.

"Well, I think you're already very strong," Ash said. "The strongest of all the friends I have had."

"Really?"

Ash nodded his head quickly while smiling.

"You're already stronger that many gym leaders. And you can beat anyone who says otherwise to prove it."

"…Thank you."

"Why?"

"N-nothing!" Iris said trying not to show how red she was.

---

Opelucid City: Time's Dividing Line

The areas far from the gym were very technologically advanced with light blue houses, while the areas closer to the gym were more traditional with houses made of stone.

A double melody could be heard in the area when seeing a man playing a keytar and his twin brother playing an erhu.

Iris told Ash, Dawn and Cilan how she used to live in the Dragon Village, but because of her talent, Drayden took her to the city. Little Iris had a hard time adapting to school and the city to the point of falling ill.

That's why Drayden decided to take her into his home and make her his apprentice. When Iris turned fourteen he told her to travel across Unova to gain the necessary experience.

ooOoo

Opelucid Gym

Drayden was out of town at the time. Apparently he had a very urgent matter. Even so, he had left a message for the gym trainers when he found out that Iris was going to arrive. She would be the one to face his friend Ash for the Legend badge.

That caught Ash and Iris by surprise at first, but then they both smiled and accepted. Cilan and Dawn watched expectantly at the gym battle that was about to take place.

"That's right…Now I'm the gym leader of Opelucid City," said the girl who knows the hearts of Dragons. "Grandpa made me travel to get stronger and gain experience. And I plan to use that experience against you, Ash."

"I didn't expect anything less from you, Iris!" Ash responded.

Scraggy, Pikachu and Krookodile vs Axew, Deino and Dragonite.

Ash had never seen Iris fight with such intensity, not even in tournaments. When she used dragon-type Pokémon she seemed to come into some sort of trance with them, making her movements more precise and her strategies more complex. She was beautiful. Even so, Ash managed to win and get the badge.

"Phew... I gave everything I had, but still... I just couldn't win... Thanks, though! We're going to keep aiming higher!" Iris laughed as she petted her Pokémon. "Here Ash, you've earned the Legend badge."

"It was the best gym battle I have had in Unova, thank you Iris."

"Yes, it has been spectacular." Drayden said, surprising everyone.

He had been hidden watching the battle, not wanting to make his apprentice nervous.

"I'm very proud of you, little one." Drayden said, placing a hand on the head of a tearful Iris.

---

Lacunosa Town: Methodical and Orderly for Safety

"Ash? How impudent you are to disturb my sleep. Hmf... You still possess a combination of strength and kindness. Very well…"―Caitlin of the Unova Elite Four.

After hurrying, our heroes managed to arrive in time for the Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup. After an exhibition match between Cynthia and Caitlin, whom Ash and Dawn recognized from the second Battle Frontier, the tournament began. The winner would have the opportunity to fight one on one with the champion Alder.

-The best 8: Benga vs Hilbert, Iris vs Dawn, Ash vs Bianca and Hilda vs Trip.

-Semi-final: Benga vs Iris and Ash vs Hilda.

-Final: Benga vs Ash.

People said that it was normal that the final had been between two Top trainers, with the grandson of the champion being the winner. After this Benga received a trophy for winning the tournament and the exhibition match between Benga and his grandfather Alder began.

"I'm going to show everyone that my strength is mine and that being the grandson of the champion has nothing to do with it." Benga said with a fierce look on his face. Cilan wanted to comment that being the grandson of the champion did have a bit to do with it but he kept quiet.

Everyone was surprised when Benga took out a latios from his Ultra Ball.

"And where did you get that latios from?" Alder asked his grandson.

"I captured him at the Dreamyard."

"It has always been said that it's a place where dreams come true."

"Well, my biggest dream has always been to defeat you! This fight is just a preview to what's going to happen when I win the league, grandpa." Benga said with intensity.

"Show me how much you've improved, boy." Alder said with a kind smile.

Volcarona vs Latios. Benga ended up losing but Alder congratulated his grandson for having captured such a Pokémon and for having won the tournament.

Ash and Dawn greeted Caitlin, who was happy to see them, although with her sleepy appearance it didn't seem that way.

"I've only been in Elite Four for a short time but they've treated me very well," Caitlin told them. "Unova is a less conservative region than Sinnoh so it took me a bit to adapt."

"And how is your butler Kokuran?" Dawn asked.

"Very sad because we can't see each other that much in person."

"A shame indeed." said Ash, who deep down was very happy not to have to see Caitlin's obsessive butler.

Ash later ran into Colress, who praised his Pikachu again.

"As far as possible, I would like to continue studying the mutual trust between trainers and Pokémon." Colress said.

The next day Dawn said goodbye to our heroes, as she wanted to go to Johto to participate in that year's Wallace Cup.

"Good luck, I hope you win like last time!" Ash told her. Dawn high-fived him and then gave him a hug.

"And I hope you see me even if it's on television."

"We'll all see you on television." Iris said after giving her a hug.

"Good luck with your contests." said Cilan, who had begun to study on the subject.

"Thanks to all of you!" Dawn said before leaving on the plane.

ooOoo

Before leaving town, they met professor Juniper, who invited them to eat while telling them a famous legend of the town:

"A long time ago, a large meteorite arrived with a terrifying monster. The monster appeared at night in the town, along with cold winds, and took both humans and Pokémon to devour them in its lair. A wall was created on the outskirts of the town to prevent the monster from entering. A law was even established that forced the inhabitants to stay in their homes at night."

"Nowadays the inhabitants don't believe in the monster, but still no one leaves their house at night..." Professor Juniper finished saying in a mysterious tone. Aurea looked at the three with a smile, thinking they would be scared or excited, but rather they seemed thoughtful.

After looking at each other, the three came to a conclusion and told it to the professor.

"The monster must be a kyurem, perhaps the original." Iris deduced. Between the three of them, they explained to the surprised professor their adventures with Keldeo and Kyurem.

"…Wow, the one who ended up getting a surprise was me," the professor laughed.

---

Humilau City: Calm and Sparkling Seas

"Sup! You look strong!"―Marlon, a Bigger Splash than the Sea!

Marlon seemed to be on a different wavelength than everyone else. Nothing seemed to worry him and he lived in the present without thinking about the consequences. A particular lifestyle that ten year old Ash would have agreed with but the actual Ash not so much.

Ash and his friends got lost in the middle of a forest due to a trap by the Tpio. However, they were saved by a trainer named Marlon.

"Do we know each other?" the boy asked when he saw Ash. They had both participated in some Unova tournaments together but they didn't remember.

"… I don't know." Ash said. Then they both laughed without giving it any more importance.

"I think Ash has found someone just as absent-minded as him." Iris said worriedly.

"I'm afraid so." Cilan confirmed.

Marlon seemed to be on a different wavelength than the others. Nothing seemed to worry him and he lived the present to the fullest without thinking about the consequences. A particular lifestyle that ten-year-old Ash would have agreed with but the current Ash not so much.

"The truth is that I don't care much about what Team Plasma does. As long as they live and let live, of course." Marlon laughed.

Our heroes spent the rest of the day at the beach with their Pokémon, watching Marlon win a swimming contest.

---

Village Bridge

"I am a geezer standing in the dusk, mesmerized by the gulls.

Gazing fixedly into the blue sea, I bemoan with shed tears,

as I yearn for the lovely gulls soaring above the blue harbor." ―the Dark musicians of Village Bridge

They had passed by here before, but since they were in a hurry because of the tournament, they didn't have time to stop long. Now that Ash had eight medals and there was still time left for the league, they decided to explore the place.

Ash defeated an old man who dressed in expensive clothes in a Pokémon battle.

"I've been here for two years adding victories... All for nothing. It doesn't matter! I'll start from scratch again to achieve a thousand victories in a row. Believe it! But I won't fight against you again, no way." Gentleman Stonewall laughed.

The old man then told our heroes that the village was originally built under the bridge, but the river flooded it and destroyed all the houses. After that the houses were rebuilt, but instead of being built back in place they were built on top of the bridge to prevent the city from being destroyed again.

"My family, since my great-great-great-grandfather, have been in charge of taking care of this bridge." said Stonewall proudly.

"So much interesting information," Cilan said with admiration as he took out a book about bridges.

"Where does that beautiful music come from?" Iris asked suddenly.

"They are Ridley's band, the Dark Musicians. A group of descended from the guardians of Meloetta." explained Stonewall.

"Do you know Meloetta?" Ash asked surprised.

"They say that in the past the region was full of them, but that the alpha Meloetta used to live around here. If you want to know more ask Ridley."

ooOoo

Ridley was a man who had been searching for Meloetta for a long time and at first believed that Ash had kidnapped her, but the misunderstanding was soon cleared up. Ridley then told them a legend about his ancestors:

"Only Meloetta can activate the power of the Reveal glass, whoever possesses the Reveal glass also possesses the strength to control forces of nature. For generations the only one who commanded that power was the chief protector of the people who lived next to Meloetta, however Evil fought constant battles trying to obtain that power; When Meloetta realized that she was the reason for the battles, she sank the temple deep into the ocean, disappearing from history along with my ancestors."

The rest of Ridley's friends were very nice and didn't hesitate to dedicate several songs to our heroes for having protected Meloetta during her trip.

They were Derleth, Aickman, Russo and Koontz. Ridley wasn't a musician but he was in charge of maintaining their instruments and the group's finances.

They also met professor Fennel's famous friend, professor Burnet, who was studying the forces of nature.

"I'm sure Tornadus, Thundurus and Landorus have something to do with Meloetta. With the radar I can find them but I need the reveal glass, which is said to be in another dimension... Perhaps it can be accessed with Fennel's Dream World..." the professor murmured excitedly as she tried to explain her research. "Or maybe I should use the new Tretta Scanner…"

"You can tell she's Fennel's friend." Iris commented.

Our heroes told her that they had already seen those three legendaries in the past when they needed to call Landorus to stop Thundurus and Tornadus. A little adventure they had on the island of Milos, where the Abundant Shrine was.

Upon hearing that, professor Burnet became even more excited about the matter. However, her joy faded when Team Rocket attacked and took Meloetta away by plane.

---

Undella Town - Abyssal Ruins

Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket, in an attempt to gain power and conquer the Unova region, had devised a new plan. The plan was to kidnap Meloetta and use her song inside the underwater ruins. With this he managed to obtain the reveal glass and invoke the Forces of Nature.

Ash, Iris, Cilan, Ridley, professor Burnet, and Cynthia, who was swimming around, confronted Team Rocket. However, Giovanni ended up being possessed by the power of the Reveal glass after getting the legendaries to show his true form.

That, added to the hatred he felt towards Ash, made Giovanni almost destroy everything, including his own grunts. Jessie, James and Meowth managed to take the mirror from him and make him return to normal. Still our heroes won, calming down the legendaries in the process and Team Rocket was forced to retreat.

Finally Meloetta returned to Ridley's care and said goodbye to our heroes. Meanwhile, Team Plasma's sage Giallo, who had seen everything, contacted Ghetsis. He told him what had happened, somewhat nervous.

"Despite having given him all the information about Meloetta on a silver platter, that fool Giovanni hasn't been able to do anything" said Giallo. "My plan to let him do the dirty work and reap the rewards has failed."

"Instead of using that idiot, you should have done the work yourself, Giallo" said Ghetsis in a tone that chilled the sage's blood. "Although I can't blame you since the plan wasn't bad. However, it seems that Ash Ketchum has become a thorn in the very heart of Team Plasma."

Later on Ash, Iris and Cilan later received a call from Drayden, he wanted to have a fight with his student.

---

Opelucid Gym

"I'm glad you're back. As mayor and trainer, seeing promising young trainers grow and become stronger is priceless. I hope you show me your bright and hopeful future, Iris." ―Drayden the Spartan Major.

Dragonite vs Druddigon. Iris didn't manage to defeat her master, yet he didn't seem disappointed at all.

"At this rate and with more training you will be at the level of Elite Four." Drayden said happily, although his fierce gaze was still intact.

"Thank you Grandpa!" Iris said feeling that she was really getting stronger.

ooOoo

Drayden House

That night Drayden told our heroes that he had been researching more about the legends of Unova so he could help professor Juniper.

"Reshiram, the white dragon of Truth and Zekrom, the black dragon of Ideals. The empty carcass they left behind in the skies was known as Kyurem, the gray dragon… Very interesting."

Ash and his friends told Drayden about N and his obsession with showing the Truth of the Pokémon world to people.

"A shame, because truth and ideals don't have to be opposite concepts. I honestly can't stand people who try to impose their opinion on others by force." Drayden said upon hearing the whole story. After letting out a sigh he stared at Ash. "Young man, it seems that N wants to repeat history by forcing you to confront him."

"I don't care, if I have to stop him I'll do it without hesitation." Ash said very convinced. "Pokémon aren't slaves and you can change the world without hurting anyone."

"…Very idealistic, yes."

---

Tubeline Bridge: Unova's famous railway bridge

Drayden learned that the Black Empoleons, an infamous biker gang, were causing trouble. Annoying and attacking people, preventing them from passing safely across the bridge... So Drayden asked Iris to investigate.

Ash confronted leader Jeremy while Iris and Cilan fought the rest of the bikers. The beating they gave to the motorists was such that none of them dared to return over that bridge.

"You'll see when Charles, the man in love, finds out." the bikers whimpered as they fled.

The applause from the people was deafening, praising the heroes who had expelled those hooligans.

"Here, the first three volumes of Pokémon Try Adventure." Drayden said, giving them the reward for completing the mission.

"…" none of the three knew what to say.

"It's my grandson Levi's favourite manga," Drayden said without losing his smile. "Although Pokémon RéBurst is probably more popular, they say it's based on real events."

"…"

The next day Cilan received a call from his brothers, apparently a woman, along with Team Plasma, was causing trouble in Striaton City. Worried, Cilan had to say goodbye to his friends and return to his city.

---

Vertress City – Unova Pokémon League

"Are we really going to let that N participate? This's so thrilling!" Shauntal said without stopping to describe.

"We should crush him right here, right now," Caitlin said, opening one of her eyes. "Legendary or not, together we can put him and his Pokémon in their place."

"I agree, he's too dangerous to let him loose," Marshal said very seriously. "But I'll still respect his wishes, master."

"We're taking a big risk letting him do whatever he wants… I like it!" Grimsley said with a smile.

Alder laughed at the different opinions of his Elite Four.

"I'm sorry you have to put up with my whims," Alder said, scratching his head. "I know N is dangerous, but from what Ash and his friends have told me, he's not a bad person. I want to see how he battles in the league, since there's no better way to know a Pokémon trainer."

The Elite Four exchanged glances with each other.

"I still think it's a bad idea." Caitlin said.

"Don't worry, if something goes wrong I'll take responsibility," said Alder, a little more seriously. "That boy has obtained the eight badges legally and hasn't committed any crime..."

"Except being the leader of Team Plasma." Marshal reminded him.

"True, but if necessary I'll take care of him and Reshiram myself." Alder said, taking out the Black stone from his pocket.

"That stone still doesn't react." said Shauntal, excited to have such an object nearby.

"The odds keep changing… and I hope they're in our favor." Grimsley commented as he tossed a coin into the air.

"…" Marshal pretended to be calm but inside he was the most worried of all.

ooOoo

Hilda used her Victini to light the torch and start the Pokémon league. Iris watched with great joy as Trip lost to Ash in the elimination rounds. She disliked that boy from the first day she saw him. Luckily, so many consecutive defeats in different tournaments had managed to humble Trip, who accepted that he was no better than Ash and left promising to improve as a person and trainer.

After the elimination rounds, the real tournament began:

-The best 16: Ash vs Cheren, Bianca vs Cameron, Hilbert vs Dino, Roxie vs Hilda, N vs Virgil, Colress vs Burgundy, Benga vs Georgia and Marlon vs Stephan.

-The best 8: Ash vs Bianca, Hilbert vs Roxie, N vs Colress and Benga vs Marlon.

-Semi-finals: Ash vs Hilbert and N vs Benga.

-Final: Ash vs N.

There were funny moments, like Cameron losing to Bianca for only bringing five Pokémon to a six vs six battle. And tense moments like N using Reshiram to defeat all of his opponents without any problem.

"Don't worry, Ash, I'm sure you can win!" Iris said.

"Thank you..." Ash said nervously.

"I'm not going to lie to you Ash..." Cilan said through the Xtransceiver.

"Hey, I haven't lied to him either!" Iris complained.

"…but it's impossible for you to beat N, he's too strong and on top of that you are very nervous." Cilan said very seriously.

"I know he's very strong but that's not what's worrying me." Ash said looking at them both. "I have the feeling that something is wrong...but I don't know what."

"Pika…" Pikachu said, feeling the same.

Iris put a hand on Ash's shoulder and he smiled a little.

ooOoo

N didn't even look at Ash or talk to him. He alone was focused on Reshiram, who seemed bored… or perhaps disappointed. Even so, the fight never took place, because just at that moment several people took off their clothes, revealing their Team Plasma uniforms. Soon panic spread among the people but the huge screens changed the channel, showing Ghetsis's face.

His sinister and cruel voice made everyone in the stadium instantly shut up and listen to his words.

"Bravo Ash Ketchum for making it to the finals! However, this fight is neither worth it nor necessary, who N must defeat right now and in front of everyone is Alder. If the champion isn't able to awaken Zekrom, that means that he isn't the great person that all of Unova believes him to be. Since his childhood, N received the proper education to be the hero. As a result, the legendary Pokémon has recognized his strength. He's a person with a pure heart! The liberation of Pokémon that Team Plasma preaches leads us to protect Pokémon from people's ignorance, separating them completely and absolutely! When we manage to carry out our plans, it'll all start with one, or perhaps, a couple of those stupid Pokémon Trainers who are trying to uselessly oppose Team Plasma. Once those two Trainers release their Pokémon, hundreds will follow, and then thousands. Even the Elite Four itself and the gym leaders will join the movement. Then people like that ungrateful Bianca, whose Pokémon we almost released in Castelia City, will realize their mistake and release their Pokémon. And the world will finally change! The advent of that world is near!"

Ghetsis's face disappeared and only the Team Plasma symbol remained on the screen.

"Ash… This isn't what I wanted…" said N confused. "I mean yes, but not like this…"

"Then stop them! Help us stop them!" Ash asked. Iris and the rest of her friends had come down from the stands to stand next to Ash.

"I-I can't…" he said, climbing onto Reshiram. "I must make everyone see the Truth... just as my father taught me... I'm sorry."

Suddenly, the entire stadium and nearby areas began to shake. The ground opened everywhere and a huge building emerged from the bowels of the earth. N's Castle rose completely, covering the city with its sinister shadow.

Pokémon and trainers helped each other, preventing anyone from dying due to earthquakes. N saw all this and asked Reshiram to help those who were in danger.

"I'm sorry" N said to everyone before leaving.

The six sages appeared in several of the palace towers. Reciting philosophical phrases:

-Giallo: Those in accord with Fate are preserved, and those who rebel against Fate perish.

-Bronius: When the Way is forgotten, duty and justice appear.

-Ryoku: One can lose the forest for the trees.

-Gorm: If you make a mistake and do not correct it, that is a second mistake.

-Rood: Superior men understand what is right. Inferior men understand what will sell.

-Zinzolin: There are not two suns in the sky, nor two sovereigns over the people.

"N!" Ash shouted, watching as his friend went straight to where Alder was. Soon the gym leaders and the police arrived. Together they organized the trainers and attacked the sages and the Plasma grunts.

The battle had begun. Gym Leaders vs. Sages. Elite Four and trainers against grunts, police saving people and Pokémon while preventing any criminal from escaping the area.

"Damn Team Plasma!" Clay roared, standing in front of the seven sages along with the rest of the gym leaders. "Looks like ya need a good ol beating, huh, guys?"

"So sorry…" Lenora said very seriously. "Not only are we stronger than you but there are a lot of us!"

"We won't let you separate Pokémon from humans." Elesa said.

"There are too many people who trust in us." Burgh said.

"…" Brycen simply glared at them as he took out the recruits protecting the sages with his own hands.

"This will be a piece of cake!" a cheerful Skyla said.

"Ash, Iris, please proceed!" Drayden ordered our heroes.

"And Cilan, where's Cilan?!" Iris asked very worried. Her friend wasn't among the gym leaders and she wasn't answering the Xtransceiver either.

"I'm sure he's okay, now we have to stop these crazy people." Hilbert said.

"Hilbert is right, we can't let N defeat Alder in front of so many people." Hilda said.

Those words made Cheren a little angry.

"Alder won't lose, he's the champion!"

"We can't know what will happen, Cheren." Bianca said very seriously.

"Please help me get to N," Ash asked his friends. "I have to stop him."

They looked at him intently and little by little they all smiled.

"Well of course!"

---

N's Castle

"Surrender, I won't allow your truth to continue threatening this region," said Alder. For the first time in his life there wasn't a smile on his affable face. You could even see the fire of anger in his eyes.

"I can't give up... Not until I have made my truth the only one that no one can refute," N said just as seriously. "You are the top, the living proof of the slavery to which Pokémon are subjected."

Alder let out a sigh.

"I guess this old man will have to teach you a lesson."

Alder then threw his six Poké Balls into the air and they opened showing six powerful Pokémon eager to fight.

"Your arrogance will be your downfall. It's time to let the past die and make a new way." said N raising his hands towards the heavens. With a powerful roar, Reshiram came down from the cloudy skies and landed hard, shaking the entire place.

Alder's Pokémon didn't back down and even growled at the legendary. He roared again, only louder.

"...What a pressure..." Alder murmured nervously. "Accelgor, Bouffalant, Druddigon, Vanilluxe, Escavalier, Volcarona attack!"

ooOoo

The huge screen turned on so everyone could see the fight between N and Alder.

"Alder," Iris murmured. She and Ash had almost entered the palace.

"Don't worry," Ash told her with a smile. "He won't lose that easily. Trust me!"

"Ok" Iris responded somewhat more cheerfully.

ooOoo

Several minutes later…

Trainers, gym leaders, Elite Four and the police watched Alder's defeat on the big screen in horror. The rest of Unova also saw it on television.

"No... grandpa..." Benga said horrified.

The camera landed on N, who looked directly at the spectators.

"It's over... No human will ever hurt or subjugate a Pokémon again. I will assume command of the entire Unova region and order all trainers to release their Pokémon. Alder, you and I have fought fair, with strength, honor and mutual respect. But I have emerged victorious. You have nothing more to tell me."

Alder barely heard what was happening. He had failed as a champion. He had failed all of Unova and now that sect was going to bring a great change. A change that would destroy the foundations of society.

Meanwhile Ash and Iris had gotten quite far but so many battles against Plasma grunts were taking their toll on their Pokémon. They soon ended up meeting the TPio.

"Our Master N has won, you can't do anything now!" said Rosa very happy.

"…Only we can have Pokémon and guide them into the new era." Nate said.

"Surrender now or prepare to die!" Purrloin said.

"Get out of our way, I have to see N!" Ash said.

"We don't have time to waste with some kids." Iris said.

Before they could fight, two teenagers appeared and stood in the way. Both Rosa and Nate instantly knelt when they saw them appear.

ooOoo

"I am Anthea, let me heal your Pokémon/I am Concord, my mission was to calm our brother N." ―Anthea and Concordia.

Anthea and Concordia told Ash, Iris and the TPio about N's past. And secrets, like that the palace was built by Pokémon enslaved by Ghetsis himself, who was a trickster capable of manipulating anyone to carry out his master plan.

The TPio reacted in different ways. Rosa was furious because her master was just a puppet of Ghetsis. Nate, disappointed with the truth, began to think about all the times he had seen or heard suspicious things and ignored them. Purrloin, for her part, knew very well the darkness of Team Plasma, so Anthea and Concordia had only verified her suspicions.

"Team Rocket, Team Magma, Team Aqua, Team Galactic…" Anthea said. "They all attracted too much attention, which is why they encountered so much opposition."

"Ghetsis found the perfect formula, manipulating hearts and wills little by little with beautiful speeches about freedom and progress, about a future where we are all equal... A future in which he never believed." said Concordia.

"Please save our brother from Ghetsis and himself." they both asked him.

ooOoo

"N!"

"Ash," N said without taking his eyes off the defeated champion. "You have managed to get here after defeating many grunts, just as I anticipated."

"Everything has been thanks to my Pokémon and my friends."

"Your friends?" N glanced at the battlefield. "I see... all united to stop my utopia. An impossible ideal."

"No, it's not!"

N smiled slightly and asked Ash and Iris to accompany him. Alder threw the Black stone at Ash, asking him to please stop N. Along the way, N showed them the place where Ghetsis raised him.

He also told them about how his sisters were descendants of a nearly extinct Kanto clan. Ash in turn told him about Yellow and his strange powers. Iris watched as the two chatted calmly while Reshiram followed closely. They soon arrived at the throne room, where Ghetsis was waiting for them.

N's father could hardly hide his devilish smile.

"Just a little more, just a little more and I'll finally be able to end this farce... Soon the whole world will be mine." Ghetsis thought. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the battle on the numerous screens that he had placed. Team Plasma was going to lose, but that didn't matter because with N and the legendary it was enough to turn the tables.

N told Ash to give up, that there was nothing more to do. However, Ash completely refused, saying that he would never give up on saving Unova or him.

The strength of Ash's ideals made the Black stone react. In a matter of seconds, said orb shook strongly and transformed into pure energy that, when released, gave rise to Zekrom alpha.

Just then Hilbert, Hilda, Bianca, Cheren, Alder, the Elite Four, and the Gym Leaders arrived at the throne room.

"Well... It's time for the final battle! I'm ready!" N said, proud of what Ash had achieved. "And even if that means hurting my Pokémon friends, I have complete faith in my victory! I imagine you have it too, since you've come this far. Come and show me!"

"No, I'm not going to fight you N." Ash said, surprising everyone.

"W-what?" N asked confused. It's the only way you can stop me!

"I'm sorry, but I don't really like making two Pokémon that are like brothers fight like this," Ash said with a nervous laugh. "Pokémon battles are fun because they allow trainers and Pokémon to get to know each other and improve together. I only fight in this cruel way against criminals and only when my Pokémon agree. Zekrom doesn't want to fight and neither do I."

"Typical of Ash." Iris murmured with a smile. Every day she felt more admiration? for that boy from Pallet Town.

N, stunned, watched as Zekrom approached Reshiram and spoke with him, about the past, present and future. About everything they said and did, joys and regrets... Even Ash's Pokémon came out of their Poké Balls to talk to N.

-Pikachu: No matter what you do, we'll never give up or separate from Ash even if it's the end of the world. The bond that unites us is unbreakable and will last even after our deaths. Together we'll the very best, like no one ever was!

-Emboar: Ash saved me from a trainer who treated me badly and even abandoned me. Ash understood me and never forced me to fight. If I'm this strong now it's thanks to his kindness, compassion and courage. If you free us, you'll be taking away many Pokémon's chance to find someone like Ash.

-Servine: You are a hypocrite. You say you want to free us but you have used Pokémon to achieve your goals, haven't you? If you're going to fight to impose that truth at least do it with your own hands and not hidden behind a legendary!

-Oshawott: W-we're not afraid of you! W-we'll fight alongside Ash and defeat you and that ugly dragon even if it costs us our lives! I won't be a coward again and it's all thanks to Ash!

-Unfezant: You don't know how happy I was when Ash captured me. I had seen so many of my kind be treated like pests by humans... however Ash treated me like we were family from day one and thanks to his training I have been able to reach the top. I'll do anything for him.

-Leavanny: Ash is your friend, please don't force him to fight. Remember all those tournaments, all those meals, walks... All those moments in which you weren't the leader of Team Plasma, but just another Pokémon trainer in search of answers about life and the world. Remember how happy you were in those fleeting moments.

N heard each and every one of those words before looking at his hands. A small tear fell down her face. He could finally feel what he had tried to hide during the entire league, the pain of hurting other Pokémon, his friends, himself...

"Ash, you were with a reshiram and now with zekrom... Is that the answer to my formula? Truth and ideals... united are the answer..."

"I have no idea, but I know that if we unite instead of fighting you can make the world a better place for Pokémon." Ash said, happy to see that his friend's gloomy gaze was bright again.

N looked at the screens around him, where he saw his grunts and Pokémon falling defeated one by one.

"Denying contrary thinking has led us to harm Pokémon…to use them as tools…we have become the same thing we swore to destroy…"

"It's all Ghetsis's fault," Ash revealed. "He doesn't want to save anyone, just-"

Suddenly Iris pushed Ash away just in time, and the girl was attacked by Ghetsis' hydreigon.

"Iris!" Ash shouted, grabbing his friend so she wouldn't fall to the ground.

"D-don't... shout so much, it... my ears hurt," Iris joked. "Besides, I'm okay."

"Father!" N said, disgusted when he saw how Ghetsis had tried to kill his friend.

"After all of that, do you think you're still worthy of sharing the name Harmonia with me? You good-for-nothing boy! To start with, I spurred N into pursuing ideals and the truth, even your obsession with summoning the legendary Pokémon... To rule my great Team Plasma with an iron fist! Power to control the fearful masses! I was about to get it! But your obsession with facing the other legendary Pokémon, to fight for your beliefs and prove your worth as a hero... All for what? There hasn't even been a fight, his pathetic words have defeated you!

The anger and evil were completely reflected on the villain's face to the point that most trainers and Pokémon backed away out of pure instinct.

"…F-father…" the words didn't seem to want to come out of N's mouth.

"I'm afraid that being raised among Pokémon was a mistake," Ghetsis murmured. "Ash! Not even in my wildest predictions had I conceived that a Kanto brat would stand in my way. But my goal remains intact! Immovable! I desire absolute control over the world! Manipulate the hearts of ignorant humans! N was the puppet sitting on the throne and I was the puppeteer, the true king in the shadows. For daring to turn you against me... I must eliminate you!"

"B-but...Team Plasma's goal was to free the Pokémon..." said N, cowed by his father's harsh and cruel words. Ghetsis's face expressed only disdain.

"That was just a convenient lie that I needed to create Team Plasma. Use your head. What's to be gained from letting go of useful things like Pokémon? Certainly, manipulating Pokémon helps people expand their possibilities. That much, I can agree with. So it naturally follows that only I should be able to use Pokémon!"

"Anthea and Concordia were right, you are a twisted being." Ash said angrily.

"You can say whatever you want. A Pokémon, even if it's revered as a deity, is still just a Pokémon. Come on! You'll face me in battle! I can't wait to see the look on your face when you've lost all hope! I won't allow anyone to stop me!"

ooOoo

Pikachu, Emboar, Servine, Oshawott, Unfezant and Leavanny vs Cofragius, Bouffalante, Eelektross, Seismitoad, Bisharp and Hydreigon.

As Zekrom and Reshiram watched along with the rest of those present, Ash defeated the furious Ghetsis in a battle that everyone in Unova saw. Team Plasma had been defeated, the false king had surrendered, and the true king had been defeated.

"What does this mean? I am a perfect man! The creator of Team Plasma! Has my plan to change the world completely failed?!" Ghetsis said in an unhinged tone.

The TPio observed everything from the shadows. Nate and Purrloin were trying very hard to stop Rosa from lunging at Ghetsis.

"Well, N?" Alder asked. There was no resentment or anger in his voice. "Do you still think that humans and Pokémon should be separated?"

"Mwa ha ha! Since I couldn't become the hero and obtain the legendary Pokémon myself... I prepared someone for that purpose-N! He's nothing more than a freak without a human heart. Do you think you're going to get through to a warped person like that?!" Ghetsis interrupted cruelly.

"Shut up, you're the only one who doesn't have a heart!" Ash shouted angrily. "N is a good person, that's why Reshiram has chosen him, not you!"

"Exactly, you don't deserve to be anyone's father!" Iris said.

"The more I listen to this guy, the more he annoys me!" Cheren said.

"I never trusted him, he always gave me a bad feeling." Hilda said.

"I hope a bastard like you rots in jail." Hilbert said.

"Your plans are evil, you're evil. You're an irredeemable monster!" Bianca said so furious that she scared everyone, including her friends.

"What took you so long you stupid brat?" said Ghetsis, his face completely disfigured in a rictus of evil.

"My mother was right to leave Team Plasma." Nate said with restrained anger.

"… How could you have fooled us all?" Rosa asked equally furiously.

"You really are an evil puppeteer." Purrloin muttered.

Before anyone could do anything, the Shadow Triad suddenly appeared, throwing smoke bombs everywhere and using their Pokémon to rescue Ghetsis.

"You should check on your friend Cilan." Ghetsis suggested to Ash in a mocking tone before fleeing from there.

---

N and the two legendary dragons had disappeared without a trace after saying goodbye to Ash and his friends.

The seven sages, the Shadow Triad, and several grunts had escaped. The police took most of the grunts to jail, who hung their heads in shame before the insults and mockery of the people.

However, Alder asked people to be more polite and respectful towards the defeated. Many didn't agree, as there were already people who had abandoned their Pokémon after spending months listening to Team Plasma's message. These people had ended up in depressive states and/or looking like for their Pokémon to come back to them.

Like it or not, Team Plasma had managed, even on a small scale, to have its actions have consequences in Unova. Luckily these consequences would disappear little by little.

The Pokémon League had been interrupted so there was no win or victory ceremony. Ash and his friends called Cilan, who had been questioned by the police because the Striaton City triplets hadn't helped in the final battle.

Cilan explained that a woman named Morana had been causing trouble for his brothers. And to top it all off Team Plasma had attacked his city. When Cilan went to see what was happening, he and his brothers were attacked by the Shadow Triad and ended up in the hospital along with their Pokémon. That's why they couldn't arrive on time.

The most surprising thing had been the speed with which the Shadow triad went from Striaton City to Vertress City. The Striaton City police claimed to have seen them flying on top of a strange gray Pokémon...

In any case, the national police would carry out an exhaustive investigation, as evidence had been found that Team Plasma had a secret base in Striaton City, more specifically next to the Pokémon gym.

Cilan, knew that this would make it very difficult to work in the gym and the restaurant, but there was nothing to do. At least the gym leaders had pleaded for his and his brothers' innocence.

---

Floccesy Town: Prophecy Flocks Here

Those days had been very difficult for Nate, Rosa and Purrloin. Nate had gone to Aspertia City to apologize to his mother for not going with her when he left Team Plasma. Rosa had received the scorn of her parents, who were now radical members of Team Plasma, willing to follow all of Ghetsis' orders. Purrloin still didn't fully remember who his owners were so he remained by his friends' side.

After all that, the three of them were now in front of the champion Alder, who had prevented the police from putting them in jail.

"From now on you will be my students for a year and you will also help the police chase down the members of Team Plasma who follow Ghetsis," Alder said with a soft smile.

"Why are you helping us so much?" Nate asked confused.

"N asked me."

"Lord N?" Rosa asked, excited to know more about him.

Alder nodded.

"I'll take care of all the members of Team Plasma willing to change. This is your chance to change and do something good for both humans and Pokémon."

"… What a weird guy you are" said Purrloin. "The whole region wants to kill us except you."

At that Alder just let out a loud laugh.

---

Aftermath of M16: Genesect and the Legend Awakened – New Tork City

Ash, Iris and Cilan were in front of a Mewtwo, who wanted to say goodbye to them before leaving with her new friends the Genesect.

"After talking to them and seeing their memories, I discovered that the Genesect were created by Zeno and Dudley, two Team Plasma scientists, from the fossils of some ancient Pokémon" Mewtwo explained. "Team Plasma had turned them into biomechanical weapons but someone called N released them after considering Zeno and Dudley's actions an aberration."

"Team Plasma… N…" Ash said thoughtfully while clenching his fists.

"Ash…" Iris murmured worriedly.

"Luckily they won't have to suffer at the hands of bad people anymore, neither will you." Cilan asked.

Mewtwo nodded.

"Now we're all free and we're going to make good use of that freedom, without harming others."

"You're much more understanding than the other Mewtwo I know." Ash laughed.

"Pika, Pikachu…" said Pikachu, who agreed.

"Do you know another Mewtwo?" Iris and Cilan asked surprised.

"I'd like to meet him… another being just like me…" said Mewtwo excitedly.

"If you see him, tell him you're my friend" Ash recommended. "I'm sure you'll get along."

"I will… See you later, my friends."

---

Nuvema Town – Professor Juniper's Laboratory

Ash, Iris, Cilan, Hilbert, Hilda, Cheren and Bianca returned at the same time at Nuvema Town. In the laboratory they met Hilbert's mother.

"What are you doing here, mom? Weren't you in a Pokémon Battle at the Join Avenue today?" Hilbert asked confused.

"Ha, I'm still a master of disguise!" Her mother said, tearing her clothes. Iris, Hilda and Bianca covered the eyes of Ash, Hilbert and Cheren respectively although it wasn't necessary.

"This's Handsome, the agent that the International Police put me as a bodyguard after Team Plasma's attack on my father." Professor Juniper explained when he dropped the costume.

Handsome gave a brief explanation of Ash's exploits in other regions so that everyone would understand why he was asking for his help. His friends, astonished, ignored Handsome to ask Ash all kinds of questions.

"Why have you never told us you were some kind of hero?!" Hilbert said excitedly.

"That explains a lot of things." Cheren said adjusting his glasses.

"Your life is like a deadly spectacle." Hilda said worried.

"How do you withstand so much pressure? And I'm not talking about the Pokémon ability." Bianca joked.

Iris and Cilan, for their part, already knew all that so they didn't say anything. They just smiled when they saw how uncomfortable and nervous Ash was getting.

Handsome coughed lightly to get their attention.

"The commanders of Team Plasma and the seven sages, have escaped and are missing," he said very seriously. "Although we have already found Ryoku in the Relic Castle, Bronius in the Chargestone Cave and Gorm in the Dreamyard. Only Ghetsis, Giallo, Rood and Zinzolin remain to have the complete collection."

"And you want a child to help you look for them?" Professor Juniper asked.

"Yes, I mean, no! Just let me know if you see anything suspicious," Handsome said. "Surely some of them have escaped from Unova but I plan to catch them all!"

With that, everyone watched in surprise as Handsome quickly changed into a Team Plasma grunt costume.

"My Togari grunt costume has been helpful in capturing members of Team Plasma," Handsome explained as he ran out of the room.

ooOoo

Professor Juniper's House

For the next few days, Ash, Iris, and Cilan stayed at the professor's house. That morning they had decided to have breakfast together, friends included, since it was Ash's second to last day in the region.

"Ash, are you okay?" Aurea asked him, seeing him very tired.

"He probably had a nightmare." Iris said.

"Don't worry, it's something that usually happens to me once a year" Ash explained, sitting down right away and putting a lot of food for breakfast. "I dream that I transform into Pikachu."

"Pika, pii, pika, pika (I don't know if I should start to worry)" said Pikachu.

"Dreaming that you're a Pokémon is quite common." Cilan said.

"Well, I only dream of becoming the champion of the Pokémon league." said Hilbert.

"And what was the dream about?" Hilda asked, thinking that this could be a new source of ideas.

"I knew an Axew and together we built a Pokémon paradise on the Fog Continent. In this paradise we did missions and saved lives."

"… What a curious dream." Cheren commented.

"We formed a team with Virizion, Emolga, Dunsparce, Espeon, Umbreon, Hydreigon and Keldeo" Ash continued explaining with some nostalgia in his voice. "Together we defeated an evil kyurem and its leader… Although I don't remember who or what it was…"

"My goodness Ash, I'm not surprised you're so tired." Bianca laughed.

They spent the rest of breakfast talking about the dream, although the memories of it would eventually disappear from Ash's memory, the memory of the bonds formed would not.

Another strange dream that felt like Déjà vu was when Ash had to save Toyland from Dark Rust and his army… Ash didn't know if he should start worrying about such dreams...

---

KANTO/UNOVA: DECOLORE ISLANDS

---

Ash decided it was time to return to Pallet Town, but his friends wanted to spend some more time with him. Professor Juniper told them to take a cruise to Kanto that made several stops around the Decolore Islands.

"It'll be a good vacation and a way to relax after so much adventure and intense battle." Professor Juniper said.

Ash, Iris, Cilan, Hilbert, Hilda, Cheren and Bianca boarded the Queen Decolora cruise ship together, led by Porter.

---

Queen Decolora

"N?!/Pika!" Ash, Iris, Milo and Pikachu exclaimed at the same time.

"What are you doing here?" Cilan asked. "Didn't you say you were leaving Unova?"

"And my plans haven't changed."

"Are you going to travel through the Decolore Islands then?" Ash asked with a wide smile, because she was very happy to see him again.

N approached them closer and began to caress Pikachu's and Axew's chins, who gladly received that gesture.

"Not quite."

"What do you mean by "not exactly"? Speak more clearly!" Iris demanded with a frown.

"I want to ask you a favor… I would like to travel with you." N revealed. Ash, Iris and Cilan almost fell to the ground due to surprise.

"H-how?!"

N gave a nervous smile as he clenched his fists slightly.

"Ash, you told me that it wasn't just Pokémon that changed you during your travels, but also people. I also want to travel with humans and better understand what I want to do with my life."

"Wait a moment..." Iris and Cilan began to say, who still didn't completely forgive N's actions.

"Of course you can travel with us!" Ash exclaimed suddenly. Iris and Cilan nodded their heads out of pure instinct.

"Yes…Wait, what?!" Iris grabbed Ash's jacket and looked him straight in the eyes. "You're still making decisions on your own! Remember that we are a team."

"But…"

"Do you really want me to travel with you?" N interrupted them.

"Of course, I don't see anything wrong with that."

"Stop making decisions as if you were our leader." Iris complained again.

"Come on Iris, I'm sure it'll be a lot of fun," Ash said with a pure, wide smile. Iris blushed slightly.

"W-well, I don't think there's anything wrong with letting him accompany us." Iris said turning around to avoid looking at her friend.

"How easy to convince you are..." Cilan murmured with a mischievous smile. "Although I'm not much different."

"Ash, are you able to accept me despite all the problems I have caused you?" N already knew that Ash had a big heart, but even seeing him in person it was difficult to assimilate.

"We all make mistakes," Ash answered a little more seriously. "You admitted yours and are trying to improve as a person. Plus, having someone at our side who understands the heart of Pokémon is amazing!"

"…Thank you." said N.

No one noticed a small but important detail. N was being watched by Agent Tedesco of the International Police, as he was still the former leader of Team Plasma.

---

Virbank City: City of falling fog and rising stars!

The first stop of the cruise was in a port city near PokéWood. Hilda invited all her friends to the Koffing and Toxics concert, the most famous rock band in the city.

"After the concert we can visit PokéWood." Hilda suggested excitedly. However, N preferred to go see the Pokémon that lived in the Virbank Complex.

ooOoo

"Get ready! I'm gonna knock some sense outta ya and drag you into a brand new world!" ―Roxie, Poison days, poison on the stage!

"Isn't that the girl I beat in the Pokémon League?" Hilbert asked when he recognized the singer.

"Yes, the same one who beat me in the league." Hilda confirmed. "She's very talented despite being our age, I wish I could convince her to work with me…"

"We have talent too." Iris complained.

"I'm not talking about Pokémon battles, although she's also very talented as a Pokémon trainer."

Roxie recognized the group of friends and when the concert ended she invited them to eat.

"How could I not treat the saviors of Unova like kings?" Roxie laughed when she saw the faces of the teenagers when they saw the banquet that the girl had prepared.

"Thank you very much!" they all said before eating. Ash, Iris and Hilbert devoured half of the banquet in a few minutes.

"Wow, they really eat..." said Billy Jo and Nicky, Roxie's companions.

Meanwhile Hilda told Roxie about the Pokémon shows.

"Well, you'll really like PokéWood" said Roxie. "My old man is there right now. He's supposed to help out with the Queen Decolora this year but the idiot is obsessed with working as an actor."

"Well, it's never too late to pursue your dreams." said Bianca.

"But you also have to be realistic with your limits." Cheren said somewhat seriously.

"That's what I always tell my old man, but he doesn't listen to me." said Roxie.

"Well, why don't we go together to see if your father has any talent as an actor?" Cilan suggested.

---

Pokéstar Studios

Gym Leaders Sabrina and Brycen, Fiorello Cappucino, Cleavon Schpielbunk, and Brad Van Darn. The best people in the film industry were there.

Ash and his friends even saw Nate and Rosa, who had been convinced to make a movie with Roxie's father. The movie was so bad that many believed it was a very clever comedy, so it was a success.

Even so, Roxie's father realized his lack of talent and decided to go back to work on the Queen Decolora.

"Please don't let Lord N see this movie," Rosa pleaded with the group of friends.

"It doesn't seem so bad to me, and you looked very pretty," Nate murmured, blushing a little. Rosa just gave him a loving look.

---

Honey Island

A place known for its delicious products made from the honey that the Combee people produced. Cilan learned quite a few recipes while Ash and Iris dedicated themselves to eating honey, desserts and dairy products. N spoke with the Combee, learning from their daily lives working alongside humans.

"The Combee say there're one hundred and fifty-one types of honey on the island." N commented to his friends.

"I don't know if I'll be able to try them all." Iris said completely full.

"Well, I can still do more! Right, Pikachu?" Ash said, licking his lips just thinking about so much honey.

"Pika!"

ooOoo

That same afternoon, Pikachu, Emboar, Servine, and Oshawott were playing when Reshiram and Zekrom appeared and transported them to the PokéPark.

"Wow, kidnapping me again against my will!" Pikachu complained, remembering his past experiences with that place.

"This place looks like fun." Emboar observed.

"Everything seems funny to you," Servine scolded him. "I guess that naivety is what I like about you."

"I'm going to vomit." said Oshawott, very dizzy from the trip.

The PokéPark was different from last time or at least that's what Pikachu noticed. Dawn's piplup was also there, who helped them solve the mystery of the Park. To no one's surprise, a darkrai was behind all that and it wasn't just any darkrai, but the one that had been in the possession of Sird from Team Galactic.

---

Grand Spectrala (Island and Islet)

Numerous mysterious events were happening on this tourist island. Thick fogs, giant Pokémon... However, it was all due to the illusions of a Zoroark. N's Zoroark and Cilan's sybaritic detective skills managed to solve the mystery.

The relationship between the island's Zoroark and Nurse Joy moved N quite a bit.

---

Torom Island

An island inhabited by Rotom. One of which was captured by professor Oak, who was out there investigating Rotom's properties alongside professor Rowan.

"Lucas's rotom, along with the notes he found about the Pokémon, aroused our curiosity." Professor Serbal explained.

"And with the rotom that you have helped me capture we'll be able to know even more." said Professor Oak.

"…Rotom seems very happy." N noted as he watched him fly around the teachers at high speed.

ooOoo

Elite Typists' Club

In the afternoon they accompanied both professors to visit one of their former students, professor Quentin Werty, who boasted of being the man who wrote the fastest on a keyboard in the world.

"My dream is to study all the rare Pokémon that exist in the world, such as Reshiram and Zekrom." Quentin Werty explained.

They also met his assistant Paige Down and his two apprentices the Typists.

---

Unnamed Island

Thanks to the information provided by Agent Tedesco, Ash, Iris, Cilan and N learned that Zinzolin was using his grunts and Pokémon to steal food from tourists.

His goal was to stay hidden until the storm passed and the police gave up their search.

Together they arrested him and handed him over to the police.

"With how warm it was... I don't want to go back to the cold jails of Unova!" Zinzolin complained. "You are a traitor, N! I swear I will get revenge!"

"How bad it is for some to lose." Iris commented.

---

Wayfarer Island

An island full of caterpie, which evolved into butterfree and migrated to other regions of the world. Ash told his friends that the first Pokémon he captured was a caterpie and how he let him go during mating season.

---

Capacia Island

The largest island of the Decolore Islands. Here Ash and his friends crossed paths with the sage Giallo, who was trying to capture a jirachi to fulfill his wishes.

However, the inhabitants of the island needed jirachi to bring water back to a valley that was very important to everyone. Giallo didn't care about any of that and he wanted to kidnap jirachi, but our heroes stopped him and sent him to the police.

"I could have brought glory to Team Plasma…" Giallo said desolately.

"There was never glory in our actions... but perhaps in our motivations..." N thought.

As thanks for saving him, jirachi returned water to the valley, saving it from drought.

A few days later Ash and his friends met Pokémon from space, who used N to communicate with them.

---

Harvest Island

The Pokémon sumo tournament was held on this island, which was a commemoration of the traditional folklore of the island. Ash won the tournament using his emboar and got a focus band.

Here our heroes met the beautiful Alexa, a famous journalist from the Kalos region. Alexa decided to accompany our heroes to Kanto for work reasons.

---

Frond Island

Alexa possessed the map to a legendary treasure and asked our heroes to help her search for it on this island.

However the treasure, which was a chest full of evolution stones, was protected by the Pokémon of the long-dead pirate captain. N spoke with said Pokémon and after a short debate, our heroes decided to leave the treasure in the cave.

---

Cave Island

While N rested in a hostel and Alexa did a report, Ash, Iris and Cilan met with Clair, the leader of the Blackthorn gym in Johto.

Ash told his friends a little about his adventures in Johto, while Deborah explained that she was looking for a shiny druddigon that was hiding on the island.

Iris, excited to have a famous dragon tamer by her side, didn't hesitate to help her and even learned a few things from her.

"I'm going to Unova to meet Drayden, although first I'll stop by the Dragon Village." Debora reported.

"If you do, say hello to grandpa and grandma for me!" Iris said.

"I will, and if you ever stop by Johto don't hesitate to visit me."

"You bet, I really want to meet the Dragon clan and Lance."

---

Conley Island

"A long time ago this peaceful island was suddenly attacked by a group of Pokémon, but then a young man arrived from the other side of the sea and his name was Conley. To save the exhausted islanders from further distress, Conley skillfully led the group of angry Pokémon to the top of the mountain. And when he and the Pokémon got there, he raised his hand towards the night sky and a bright comet suddenly appeared and illuminated the place. The Pokémon were amazed since for them it was as if Conley knew of the comet's existence before it appeared; The fury within the Pokémon dissipated, they became friends, and peace was restored to the island. Soon trainers began coming from all over the world to challenge Conley and after the news broke, he decided to stay on the island with the Pokémon." ―Report by Alexa, from Lumiose TV.

---

Unova – Aspertia city: A city that reaches for the sky

---

After a couple of weeks training with Alder, Purrloin had evolved into Liepard. At that time she had accompanied her friends Nate and Rosa to their hometown. However, the former Plasma trio had encountered a furious boy who looked at them with pure hatred.

"You bastards, when I saw you on television I couldn't believe it. My childhood friends, being part of Team Plasma that has done so much damage to the region" said the boy. "And on top of that, your families were too!"

"Hugh…" said Nate, not knowing what else to say. Rosa was scared and also embarrassed by her recent past.

"Listen to what he has to say." said a woman who appeared next to Hugh.

"Mom?" said Nate confused when he saw her.

"Someone recently spread the rumor that I was part of Team Plasma" the woman revealed. "Most people know that I abandoned those ideals a long time ago, but others are still angry and rightly so. Hugh has protected me from the wrath of those people."

"I only did it because the only ones I have to blame are right in front of me" said Hugh pointing at his two former friends.

"Nothing we say can justify our actions" said Nate finally. "We only wanted the best for the Pokémon but we didn't think about the people. I still think that this world needs to improve in many ways, that's why I decided to join the international police."

"I-I want to create a different Team Plasma" said Rosa gathering courage. "An organization that truly wants to help Pokémon and people to make a better world."

Hugh stared at them for a few seconds before exploding with anger.

"Don't fuck with me! Do you think I'm going to forgive you just because you've been beaten up and changed your mind?! You're scum! Your people stole my sister's Pokémon and she hasn't been the same since then! If you want forgiveness, kneel before her and then abandon your Pokémon team!"

Before anyone could say anything, Liepard stood in front of a surprised Hugh and stared at him.

"You... Do I know you?" Liepard asked confused.

"What..? A Talking Pokémon…?" Hugh fell silent as he stared at her. His heart was pounding and a cold sweat ran down his back. It wasn't possible, but he knew that fierce and mischievous look "... Purrloin?"

---

Paladin Island – Marine Cup Tournament

The cruise was organizing a small friendly tournament and Ash wanted all his friends to participate, taking advantage of the fact that the trip was already ending.

First round: Ash vs Cilan, Hilbert vs Cheren, N vs Bianca and Iris vs Hilda.

Second round: Ash vs Hilbert and N vs Iris.

Third and final round: Ash vs N

The final was between Pikachu and Zoroark, with Ash's Pokémon barely winning. Although there was no prize, Ash and his friends had a great time, including N.

ooOoo

On the island they met the sage Rood, who didn't resist and allowed himself to be taken to the police.

"I'm ashamed of Team Plasma and myself," Rood said sadly. "We were manipulated and even knowing that Ghetsis wasn't a good person, we followed his orders."

"You're not the only one who feels bad about himself, Rood," N said. "And I don't know how we will achieve our redemption, but we must seek it at all costs."

---

They finally arrived in Kanto and everyone had to say goodbye to Ash.

-Iris: I'm going to Johto to challenge Clair and Lance. It'll be a little sad to travel alone but at least I have my Pokémon. Be careful and never give up. When we meet again I'll be much stronger and I hope you will too. Remember that I'll always be supporting you. Ash… I… you…You have my best wishes!

-Cilan: I'm going to Hoenn to participate in a fishing contest organized by Mr. Briney. Our adventures have given me so much experience and happiness that I don't even know if being a gym leader will continue to fulfill me. Thank you very much for everything Ash, you have my best wishes!

-Hilbert: I'll be in Kanto for a while, but then I plan to return to Unova and train with Benga. I want to see Skyla too… Ash, you have opened my eyes and I have seen that there're very strong people in the world. Next time we meet I'll beat you!

-Hilda: I'm going to create a Pokémon talent agency. I want to make everyone happy by showing them that there are other ways to be with our Pokémon. I've met a girl who does shows with her patrat, so at least I have someone else. I hope you come see my shows!

-Cheren: …If I'm honest, I still don't know what to do now that I've already participated in the Unova league. Alder has made me an offer to train with him at Floccesy Town, and of course I'm going to accept. Being the best trainer is no longer my dream but I want to continue getting stronger. Until next time, Ash!

-Bianca: After so much travel and adventure it has become clear to me that my job is to work as professor Juniper's assistant! Yes, I'm going back to where I started but it's what makes me happiest. I plan to become a professor Pokémon just as good as professor Juniper. You'll see! Goodbye Ash!

-N: When I first met you in Accumula Town. I was shocked when I heard what your Pikachu was saying. I was shocked because he said he liked you. He wanted to be with you. I couldn't believe there were Pokémon that liked people. Because, up until that moment, I'd never known a Pokémon like that. The longer my journey continued, the unsure I became. All I kept meeting were Pokémon and people who communicated with one another and helped one another. That was why I needed to confirm my beliefs by battling with you. I wanted to confront you hero-to-hero. I needed that more than anything. There's no way a person like me, someone who understands only Pokémon… No, actually… I didn't understand them, either. No way could I measure up to you, when you had met so many Pokémon and were surrounded by friends… The Champion has forgiven me… What I should do now is something I'll have to decide for myself. Ash! You said you have a dream… That dream… Make it come true! Truth and ideals can change the world! If anyone can, it's you! Well, then… Farewell!"

ooOoo

Pallet Town – Ash's House

Ash and Pikachu decided to go with Alexa to Kalos.

"My sister is a gym leader and Kalos is a very competitive region." Alexa told him during dinner.

"That's all Ash needs to convince himself to travel again." Delia said with a smile.

"Of course! Alright Pikachu, let's go to a new region!" Ash exclaimed excitedly as he left his house. "This time we will win the league!"

"Pika, pii, Pikachu!" exclaimed the Pokémon excitedly.

"So much energy." Alexa said laughing.

"You have no clue," Delia laughed. "Ash, you're older now but I still have to remind you to change your underwear every day."

"Mom, not in front of other people!"

End of the Fifth generation

-Ash's Pokémon in Unova: Pikachu, Emboar, Servine, Oshawott, Unfezant, Scrafty, Leavanny, Palpitoad, Boldore and Krookodile.

-Iris's Pokémon: Emolga, Dragonite, Haxorus, Excadrill, Zweilous and Gabite.

-Cilan's Pokémon: Simisage, Crustle, Stunfisk and Maractus.

-Hilbert's Pokémon: Samurott, Simisear, Conkeldurr, Braviary, Galvantula and Reuniclus.

-Hilda's Pokémon: Serperior, Simipour, Archeops, Eelektross, Vanilluxe and Victini.

-Cheren's Pokémon: Emboar, Liepard, Unfezant, Stoutland, Gigalith and Castform.

-Bianca's Pokémon: Cinccino, Musharna, Chandelure, Mienshao, Bisharp and Carracosta.

-Nate's Pokémon: Jellicent (Male), Cofragius and Kabutops.

-Rosa's Pokémon: Jellicent (Female), Amoonguss and Zorua.

-Hugh's Pokémon: Bouffalant, Flygon, Unfezant and Eelektross.

-N's Pokémon: …

Save game?… Saving data… Game saved!

---

Inspirations:

-Games: Black, White. Black 2, White 2, Mystery Dungeon 3, Dream World RAdar Pokémon, Dream World, Super Pokémon Rumble, Learn With Pokémon Typing Adventure, PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond, Pokémon Tretta, Pokémon Tretta Lab.

-Anime: Seasons 14, 15 and 16; Movies 14, 15 and 16.

-Manga: Pokémon Adventure arcs Black and White, Black and White 2; Pokémon Try Adventure; Pokémon RéBurst; Pocket Monsters B2W2 A New Legend.

---

This generation has undergone the most changes and adjustments along with the fourth. I honestly think I've managed to do better than the original version of my fic by mixing the fifth generation games better and giving space to characters that didn't have it before (Nate, Rosa, Roxie and Marlon).

Rosa in the Adventure manga was part of Team Plasma and I've used that to make her be part of the plasma trio along with Nate and Purrloin (who is a like a female Meowth). I've made the three of them more or less a sectarian version of Jessie, James and Meowth, since the theory that the fifth generation was a kind of soft reboot of the first was always an interesting theory.

Neo Team Plasma will appear two years later like in the games, although in this case it will be in Chapter Seven (Seventh Generation). Since I've already included many elements from Black & White 2, the Neo Team Plasma subplot will be as short as possible so as not to interfere with the other events of the seventh generation.

In the fifth generation there're no remakes so we only focus on Unova. The Decolore Islands are part of the anime and have served as a kind of post-game for Black and White.

Black and White are one of my favourite games and their story is legendary in my opinion, with a well-intertwined story and characters. Especially with a villain like Ghetsis orchestrating everything like Mephistopheles.

Iris, along with Lillie, have always been my favorite Poké girls, so I really enjoyed writing her. I also really liked Ash and N's relationship, let's hope they see each other again soon.

At first I wanted Cilan and his brothers to be the Shadow Triad but canonically this is not the case and in my story I tried to make everything as close to canon (anime, game or manga) as possible.

I think this is the generation with the most interactive games since it was the time of the Nintendo 3DS.

Until the next chapter!