Author's notes/replies

Janson Wu: indeed, you'll see what happens next.

santiagosiquina762: these two will have an interesting meeting

3697014: I was having way too much fun writing that dream scene. Liz will be apart of the story in some way. As for the Arceus question, it'll be spoilers if I revealed anything for now but you are right in that he wouldn't take outsider shit lying down. Hahah I love my cliffhangers.

Mr. Navit: the dream world helped Minato connect to the Velvet room again, so I may use it more in the future just for him to contact Liz for the moment unless she finds a way to break through. The tao trio, Minato has strong ideals and his already discovered his truth. He could fit with any dragon if he desired. I have some ideas in mind both for him and the dragons, just not in the way people think. You are indeed correct, this Blake has a lot in common with his manga counterpart...

Sitting down two identical cups of black coffee, Ryoji added sugar cubes to his own, taking a sip. "So what have you been up to these past few years?"

Minato was still as a statue, watching him as if he were a ghost. How could this be? Death was gone, how could he be here? And then the words of Elizabeth repeated in his mind. But he hid his paranoia over a calm facade.

"Fine, what about you?" Minato said, internally he was trying to wrap his head around the situation. How bizarre, was he still dreaming?

Ryoji sighed, "You know, I can tell when you're nervous. Just to clear things up, I'm fully human now. I'm no longer a harbinger of the Fall." He placed his cup down, showing Minato a picture of his new family. Mother and father along with their son on summer vacation. Everyone had cheerful expressions over a sandy backdrop."So far I've been blessed with a good family. Although it was strange experiencing what it was like to grow up naturally for the first time."

Minato inspected the photo and then looked at his old friend who had a somber vibe. He could tell Ryoji was thankful to be reborn into his own life, his own identity. Gazing down at his own cup filled with pure black coffee, the bluenette could tell the other now had his own preferences. Back home, Ryoji had a habit of copying Minato as if he were his shadow, mimicking him all throughout life. He was a distorted version of the original, a possibility of what could have been if it weren't for that fateful accident.

"I take it that you guys had fun?"

"Of course. Kalos had a very different vibe than Unova. Heck, I even met this little guy." Appearing out of nowhere, a curious Pikachu doll sprung onto the cafe table, its head snapping from side to side like it was trying to maintain balance, upholding its long held ruse.

"Mimi!"

"This is my new friend Mimikyu. It likes to help around the house when I'm home." Reaching out a hand to pet the sentient doll, Minato could tell there was something under it. From beneath the old cloth a dark claw reached out, stealing a sugar cube as it curiously watched the bluenette. Upon scanning the creature with his Pokedex, the device returned no data.

"Is it hiding inside the doll?" Minato asked, spotting a bit of the creature's eerie form.

"Something like that. Mimikyu doesn't like it when people try to see its true self so it disguises itself as a Pikachu to be more lovable."

"Mimikyu!" The small creature tried to imitate Pikachu by swaying its tail up and down. Like a shadow to the original, mimicking its motions. Although its resemblance was only artificial, Minato could tell it was trying its best. Just then, Deino and Woobat decided to pop out of their Pokeballs and joined the small creature.

"Deino, de!"

"Wooobat!"

The three started to circle each out of curiosity. Both Deino and Woobat sniffed the rag doll while Mimikyu poked them with its dark claws.

"I'm glad you've made wonderful friends here as well." Ryoji watched the pokemon play together. Now Mimikyu was chasing the other creatures around, albeit playfully.

"Deino has been with me since childhood and Woobat decided to come along recently." Minato said, "I'm happy to have met them, just like everyone else back home."

Noticing how the bluenette was more relaxed, Ryoji continued. "They both look pretty strong. Are you planning to tackle the Gym challenge?"

His old friend nodded, "Along with my pokemon, I'm helping out a few childhood friends gather badges for the Unova League." He showed him his first badge, "I have a feeling we'll pull through in time."

Ryoji chuckled, "I hope that the other candidates stand a chance if SEES's field leader is gearing up for battle again." A light joke shared between the two caused them both to snicker, reigniting their old camaraderie. The two shared a strong connection, even if the other was Death. "I'll be watching the broadcast just as I've always tuned in on all your fights."

"I don't know, you were pretty merciless during our last confrontation."

Shaking his head, Ryoji couldn't help but look back on those memories, mixed with both bitterness and a tinge of sardonic humor. It was all over now so surely they could both lighten up the situation. He was not the avatar and Minato was not a field leader anymore. "As I said before, I really didn't want to, but you gave me no other choice."

"I still wouldn't. Killing you would have gone against everything we've worked for." Minato stopped, finishing his cup. "But do you know what happened afterwards? After the battle?" referring to how Ryoji should have disappeared after he became the seal. So how was he here?

Death shook his head, "I'm afraid, I'm clueless myself, Minato. After everything ended, I was just…brought here. One moment I was the avatar fighting you and in another I awoke in a home with loving parents. Ironic isn't it." His voice was laced with guilt, or at least the loss of control of his own situation. How he went from the harbinger that rained down death to a child showered with human affection in the blink of an eye.

"Something similar happened to me too…" his old friend mused, "I thought I had found my answer to life when I suddenly opened my eyes in a grassy field. For a second there I thought I'd landed in heaven but it turns out I had a new mother. "

"No father?"

"No idea. Mom says he's alive but wouldn't go into detail. I'd still rate this as better than my previous childhood." When Minato lost his family in his past life, he was passed around from relative to relative, but nowhere felt like home. Instead he became withdrawn, depressed, until he landed in Iwatodai.

"I'm sorry to hear that. At least things appear stable where we are now. I can finally live my life out the way I want to. Being a regular human isn't so bad, although the downside is not being able to teleport whenever I want."

"Yea, I'm glad it's over now." Minato kept the burden to himself. Elizabeth's words echoed in his mind once more. If his old friend wanted to live a happy, regular human life, then he would at least give him that. Death didn't seem like he had retained any of his powers crossing over so asking him for help now would only complicate things.

"Speaking of which, I heard you still retained your personas even now?" The world fell silent, Minato upped his guard once more. The temperature of the room dropped down to a chilling sub zero.

"Where did you hear I could use personas, here?"

"Why, from a new friend I made of course." Ryoji signaled, N entered the cafe carrying a bundle in his arms. Silently, he walked up to Minato who wanted to jump out of his seat. It was the creep from before yet he appeared different somehow. Gone were his arrogant eyes and mocking attitude, humbleness taking root in its place.

N lowered his head in a sincere apology, "I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."

"Ryoji, what is this?" Minato twisted around to see the boy grow serious, the weight of the situation eclipsing their previous, casual banter.

"I apologize if our meeting here appeared coincidental, Minato. In fact, we may have known of your whereabouts beforehand, at a selfish request of mine." The boy carefully picked his words, seeing the bluenette's rage build second by second. It felt like he was betraying his trust.

"This better have a good explanation…"

"Don't worry, I do. But before that, let me redo our introductions." Ryoji gestured to the greenette next to him, "Minato, this is N. He's the heir of a large corporation in the Unova region. I heard of what he did during your first meeting, and we've come to apologize for that. He deeply cares about the wellbeing of all pokemon." He then greeted the Messiah once more, "And I'm Ryoji, I act as his aid and friend. Our families have helped each other out for generations."

Minato's eyes widened, seeing N lift his head as Ryoji supported him. That was when he realized how much his old friend had grown. Not only did he have his own life but his own networks as well, and he was also fighting for his friends too.

"You see Minato. N has been a good friend to me for a while now. One day he came to me saying he saw someone perform a miracle on a Woobat." Wootbat gently landed in Ryoji's hand, "I asked him to describe who that person was…"

"Woobat!"

Ryoji set the creature free, "And I found out you were alive here too. Born again into this new world just as I have. We really didn't mean to deceive you…"

"Once again, I'm sorry for what I did back then. I realized I was too eager to find ways to save my friends." N spoke up again, showing Minato an elderly Dwebble wrapped in a layer of warm towels. Unlike the wild ones the bluenette had seen, this one had been blinded long ago with old scars running down its body. "But would you please…please help Dwebble recover…" His voice cracked, hands shaking as he held strong in the face of the Messiah. Anything for his family that raised him through thick and thin.

"Dwebble?" The elderly pokemon said, gingerly curled in N's arms as if it was saying everything would be ok.

Minato furrowed a brow at Ryoji who already appeared sheepish, "You told him about my powers too..?"

"Only your ability to heal injuries." He nodded. "N has a very close bond with pokemon Minato. To the point he can understand their language. It was through his resources that we were able to meet again too."

"He can understand them?" Minato turned to Deino, Woobat, and then to the Dwebble. He was sure pokemon had their own language but never knew humans in this realm could have the ability to speak to them directly. Yet, he didn't expect people of his world to have the ability to summon personas either, so now they were even.

"Yes. You could say we exchanged one secret for another today. Don't you want to know what Deino and Woobat talk about all the time?" Ryoji winked, petting the little dragon.

The Messiah sighed, pinching his temple in a growing migraine. Did Pharos ever cause this much trouble in the past? "Let's go to the outskirts of town. I can't do anything here that'll draw too much attention."

The three males found a clearing empty devoid of any other human activity. N placed Dwebble on the ground where it attempted to feel for its surroundings. Through practiced movements it was able to deduce it was on a grassy plain.

"Dwebble, dwebble?" The creature clipped a blade of grass with its claw, but stayed perfectly still. After living in the sanctuary for so long it wasn't used to being in the wild where danger lurked in every corner. Without its sight it was unable to see what lay ahead.

"It's alright friend. I brought you someone that could help you." N assured the creature.

Minato knelt down, raising a hand to release warm blue light, surrounding the pokemon. Slowly, the cracks on its shell began to recede, and its eyes shone with a sparkling light. As the Messiah's powers soothed the insect, it washed away any lingering pain. Years of scars went away in an instant. Salvation was cast once more, ensuring this little mon would have its life back.

"Dwebble…? Dew…bble?" The Dwebble blinked, gazing up at the vast blue expanse above. The shining afternoon sun overhead shone a dazzling light amongst the fluffy white clouds. "Dwebble! Dwebble!" It raised its claws, amazed at the world around it, its vision having been restored after decades. The Messiah had healed the blind.

N's jaw dropped in amazement of the miracle, watching his little friend taking in the wonders of the world. Lush trees stretched on into infinity, creating a dense, forested wonderland. Wild pokemon roamed amongst the tall grass, contributing to a diverse ecosystem that upheld the circle of life.

"How could this be…?" The King's hands shook, holding back tears. His friend could finally see. Without hesitation he begged the bluenette, his voice shaking.

"Please, can you tell me how you did this? Is it true that you can heal any injury? Any wounds? Any pain of pokemon?" If Ryoji was to be believed, then not only could Minato's powers save pokemon but change the course of history.

Minato hesitated, not wanting to be dragged into whatever plans N had. He only helped at the request of Ryoji who he felt was orchcasting this entire play, beat by beat. At the moment, he appeared to be satisfied with the result of the outcome, giving him a small wave from behind the greenette.

"I have my limits too," Minato thought for a moment, "But I intend to keep my powers a secret for now. And that means you'll comply with my demands if you're asking for any future healing sessions." As much as the Messiah wanted to help, he didn't want his secret getting out too early, lest he accidentally throw this world into chaos too. Just as the Kirijos hoarded special powers back home, he didn't want to end up on an experiment table.

N nodded, reverting back to his Kingly front. He had to compose himself as this interaction was both business and exchange, an equal give and take, something he had to quickly learn from his adviser. From the corner he saw Ryoji give a thumbs up. "That's a reasonable demand. Very well, I shall promise to keep our meeting under wraps."

"Sounds good to me. Now can you tell me what my pokemon usually talk about?"

After Minato said his goodbyes, N relaxed, releasing his pent up anxiety. To say he was scared was an understatement. He didn't know how to approach Minato, nor if he would have torn him apart on sight. Ever since that night's encounter with Death, the greenette had nightmares. Yet, despite his fears, he would still brave through them if it were healing all pokemon. "Ryoji, couldn't we've done more?"

His advisor shook his head, "Forgive me for being blunt my lord, but earning Minato's trust will be a journey in itself for you."

N looked defeated, holding onto Dweeble. "I suppose this applies to my Plasma affiliation as well? It's why you introduced me as a wealthy socialite instead?"

"Precisely. It's better to take it slow. Plus, from my digging Minato didn't have the best impression of our organization either." Ryoji said, catching the greenette by surprise.

"Are you sure? Team Plasma has been nothing but kind to pokemon and played well with the human population." To the Plasma King, everything was perfect, so why did Ryoji insist on holding back? If anything, they could have tried to recruit Minato into the organization on the spot. N was about to offer him all of Plasma's treasury if it meant bringing the Messiah to their side. Call him naive, or pure hearted but he wasn't stupid. After hearing the voices of his pokemon, the greenette understood just how much of an anomaly Minato was. He was both kind and considerate, loving yet strict. He was everything N thought was impossible for humans to be, yet as a result of this encounter he was forced to acknowledge the good side of humanity.

"What Minato wants isn't money nor status my lord. But I'm sure you already knew that from your conversations. My friend is a tough nut to crack indeed. He has strong ideals just like you, in fact I may say you both share kinship in that respect." Ryoji made a strange expression, one that was hard to decipher, giving him an air of mystery.

"Then what do you propose we do, adviser? For now I only see us biding time." The King stressed his last words, hoping one day he could bring Minato to their side. Plasma needed someone like him, no, they required someone who could save pokemon.

"Agreed. But I suggest you focus on your quest for the black dragon my lord. Becoming friends with the incarnate of ideals will help you a long way. It may not convince my old friend to join us but you will be one step closer to the ideal Unova you envisioned." Death suggested to the King.

"Yes, I…" For a brief moment, N looked down, hesitating. What was this feeling he had? Like a sixth sense that things weren't as they seem. Was it his fear of death catching up to him once more? Could he really build an ideal paradise with pokemon? Was it all too naive?

No, he thought to himself, shaking his head. "I'll keep searching for Zekrom. Yes. Creating a paradise for my friends was my original goal after all…"

He spoke, his words rang hollow across the vast expanse. His eyes blind to the dream he had shared with his friends.

Death remained silent, feeling sorry for the mortal King.

Minato explored the Nacrene museum, taking in the ancient exhibits. Old artifacts from the planet's early days sat idle behind plated grass, each with a description of their long forgotten past. From a mammoth sized dragon skeleton that decorated the first floor entrance to the rarer finds located deeper in the institution. Walking through a room filled with aged pottery and kimonos from the Johto region, he took an interest in another set of displays just across the hallway. Entering a large area filled with rusted armor, he was drawn to an old sword encased in the center of the exhibit.

Reading its history, it appears to have been a few hundred years old, originating from the Kalos region. Embroiled in a great war, this blade was used to slay hundreds if not thousands of opponents during its lifetime. Even now, aged spots of crimson dyed the blue cloth of the sword red. To say Minato was a weapon fanatic was an understatement as he would hoard inventory during his Tartarus runs, accumulating a massive backlog of arms. It was like a hobby to him, from collecting the legendary excalibur to his current favorite still being Lucifer's blade. Of which gave him a keen eye for spotting good swords in the wild. Judging from how well kept this blade was, it must have been well kept for ages, yet inspecting the Kalos artifact, something about it felt different from the rest. It held a special aura compared to the armor and other arms in the room. The Messiah was tempted to grab it by the halt and go for a quick swing, but obviously he shook off that idea.

"Mina?" Minato heard White call to him.

"Oh, you two done with your badge run?"

"Yea. Bianca's Audino totally wrecked Lenora's Herdier. You should have seen how brutal it was, teehee." The brunette walked over, "Wanna grab a bite to eat before going for the challenge? Cheren still isn't back from the forest but I had Bianca get a table for us."

"I don't see why not? Was there a food court here?"

"Lenora doesn't like it when people take drinks into the museum, so it's pretty out of the way." Minato discovered an adjacent building next to the Gym that hosted a wide variety of fast food options. Being right across from the exhibit building, it was still considered a part of the museum.

"And this shiny new badge is mine to claim." White teased, holding out a glistening gold and purple rectangle. "Lenora's Watchhog almost got me with its retaliate when Gigi finished off her Herdier, but Stacy totally went in for the kill afterwards." During the intense fight, Tepig had sustained severe damage from Watchhog's onslaught, thankfully Bitzle was able to take it out after it was already suffering from a burn from Tepig's fire attacks.

"You really like fire types, White." Bianca said, still hesitant. She had the Basic badge as well, but once again it was like something was bothering her.

"I guess fire's pretty when it burns red hot? Professor Juniper said fire can come in blue, green and other crazy colors if it's the right temperature. Isn't that interesting? I saw someone online saying they had a blue Emboar."

Bianca thought for a moment, picturing a blue version of the usual red starter, "Wow, it would look pretty. But is it a different temperature like the Professor said? So if Emboar's body temperature changed, would it affect its flames too?" She wanted to look into it if she could, research was appealing to her. Way more than battles. In fact, she struggled against Lenora until Audino went berserk from Watchog's beatings and stomped it into the ground, face first.

"That's a good question. What do you think, oh great egghead of the classroom?" White nudged Minato, referring to his nickname back in school. He was always the top of his classmates, beating out the likes of Cheren who was considered a genius. Although did it count when you were mentally seventeen?

"I won't talk unless you drop that dumb nickname." Minato crossed his arms in a childish huff.

"Nahh, you're totally an egghead Mina. I bet you know stuff not even the Professors do." White's intuition was always spot on, it was just that she never knew how right she was.

Minato opened his mouth, ready to complain again when the lights around them flashed, throwing the building into complete darkness. Sharp high pitched screams erupted from the venue as people started running from the museum building with sounds of shattering glass and yells clouded the area.

"What's going on?" White shot up from her seat, dropping her sandwich. A small hissing sound came from the cracks of the building, filling the air with orderess gas, forcing the girl to clasp her mouth as it started to irritate her throat. Minato knew what this was, tear gas.

"M-mina are you ok?" Bianca coughed, with the bluenette taking the hands of the two girls, rushing them outside, realizing what this was. From afar, among the chaos, streams of people emerged from the building and in that crowd he spotted a group of uniformed crooks break down the door to Lenora's Gym.

"White, Bianca, you two stay outside. I'm going to see what's going on over." Minato handed them both some bottles of water, when he turned to go but someone grabbed his wrist.

"Ack! Ughh…I'm not letting you charge in there all by yourself, Mina!" His childhood friend clung to him, still coughing up a storm.

"Whoever this was, tear gassed the entire venue. It'll be too dangerous-"

"Like you would fair any better alone? What if you get overwhelmed?" She had a good point as she stubbornly held him off. Minato frowned, but ultimately decided it was better to have someone watch his back.

"You two go on ahead, I'll give Cheren a call and help out any people and pokemon left behind." Bianca said.

Minato and White dashed towards the entrance of the museum, what they found on the other side was blood boiling. Multiple men and women in white knight uniforms surrounded Lenora and her staff. Watchog and Herdier appeared to be fatigued from clashing with the enemy pokemon. There were also a few people trapped as hostages by the Plasma grunts.

"We of Team Plasma will liberate these artifacts from the ignorant human population of Unova!" A zealous man in uniform preached, pointing to the hostages, Lenora angry. "As per our deal Gym leader, you give us the items we requested and by our lord's grace, we will free these captive humans."

"You people are insane. Are you seriously threatening the lives of others over some museum artifacts?" Lenora protested. The few trainers she had on her side were taken out by an especially strong lad in the back, she couldn't get a read of him but there was something about the boy that felt recognizable. His Baxcalibur froze most of the first floor, encasing any active pokemon in thick layers of ice. His battle instincts were sharp yet refined, no akin to a seasoned ace. What was more was how he used such an uncommon, completely foreign mon to counter the Unovain Gym leader. All the other Plasma members appeared to be small fry in comparison, using common creatures found within the region.

"And what of it? You humans trap pokemon all the time in balls and yet you complain when humans are trapped against their wills? Isn't that just a bit hypocritical?" Lenora returned her attention to their leader, a rowdy man in the front, his brow furrowed, snapping his fingers and scaring one of the kids being held by the grunts. Several children were forced into hostages when the museum was taken over. Pulled from their teacher when they were taking a field trap away from school.

Lenora held her tongue, holding a bitter grimace. There was nothing she could do to save the captives and her pokemon were exhausted. Any more struggle and it could endanger not only their health but everyone around her. As the head Gym leader of Nacrene, she had to take responsibility with a heavy heart.

"Fine, take all these items and let those kids go…"

"Mina we shou-"

Minato shushed White. They both hid behind the tall double doors of the entrance. He observed the situation with the negotiations ending in Lenora's loss. The young lad from before carried an array of items along with his comrades through a side entrance of the museum. Prized artifacts worth millions were hauled off in rapid succession. Among them the giant dragon skull and ancient war sword from before. It wasn't that the field leader of SEES saw himself incapable of saving the situation, but the fact that Team Plasma held captives which would dampen any plans he had that didn't involve using his own powers to charge to break the tension. So far, no pokemon in his or White's arsenal were capable of stopping the grunts from this distance without them retaliating against the children in some way, one wrong could spell disaster for everyone.

"Hey! You didn't say you would take these kid's pokemon too!" Lenora shouted when a member of Plasma yanked the pokeballs out of several children's hands.

"Too bad lady. We're liberating them from human tyranny. Of course, being part of the establishment, you wouldn't ever understand our goals!" The man weaved a hand, his Whirlipede spun, shooting out bullets of poison needles towards the children. Lenora sprung after them, shielding them from the attack. She embraced them tightly, closing her eyes for the worse.

Dashing from his position, Minato kicked the grunt holding the Kalosian blade, snatching the sword from him before intercepting the attack, rushing forwards like a speeding bullet, deflecting all the needles in one decisive blow. The force of his swing sent a resounding shockwave throughout the room.

In that moment, everyone stood frozen in shock. The leader of the Plasma group furrowed his brows. "What the hell are you doing Whirlipede?! Get rid of that guy!" He shouted at the top of his lungs, trying to rationalize his shock. No human or pokemon could have moved that fast and he was right as Minato wielded the blade to deflect another round of the bug's needles. Each incoming attack being sliced apart in the air like he was being protected by an invisible shield. When that didn't work the creature spun furiously, ramming into the bluenette's sword but it was soon overpowered when the Messiah swung outwards, throwing it back when the sword unleashed a sinister, shadowy claw, slicing the bug as it smashed into a glass stand.

"Huh…?" Minato was sure he didn't use any of his powers, so why did the sword activate on its own? He had rushed in because there was no way Woobat or Deino could have made it time so he improvised by stealing a weapon, but that was about it. Suddenly, several people screamed as the blade in his hand started to shake, its blue ribbon fiercely wrapping around him, draining his life force.

"Young man! Get away from that sword!" Lenora shouted, horrified, realizing what was going on.

"I-is that thing alive?" A Plasma member shrieked.

"Mina! What's wrong?" White burst in, taking out a few crooks with Gigi and Stacy. She saw him slump in the middle of the lobby, his shoulders dropping unnaturally, his fingers twitched as an icy chill traveling across everyone present, even colder than Baxcalibur's frost. From Team Plasma to the Gym's staff, they all shivered at the bloodlust radiating from the blade in the Messiah's hand.

"Mina? Hello? Huh-?!" White saw Minato spin around, raising his leg, roundhouse kicking the Plasma leader, throwing him to the ground. Just as he was finished, he rushed at the second, third, and forth, grunts in rapid succession, knocking out two with the blade's halt before grabbing the last one and smashing their head onto an empty pedestal.

"Ekkkk! Monster! He's insane!" All the other Plasma members screamed with more of their comrades being forcefully dragged across the room. Grabbing the hair of one, the bluenette threw them into the air, raising his fist to deliver a bone shattering punch. Team Plasma ran, dropping whatever items were in their possession, releasing the hostages as they tried to get away, Minato's body moved all on its own, eyes dead. Seeing his prey get away, he chased after them out the door, running off into the forest.

"Mina…?" White shook, unable to process what just happened. Team Plasma had raided the museum, caused a hostage situation and now her best friend had gone berserk by smashing people into walls before running off to do more harm. What was more, the blade in his hand felt…scary. Like it had a mind of its own. The last moment she made eye contact with Minato, she was sure there was something else behind those icy eyes. Like a deep seeded grudge forged from a distant war long ago.

"Honedge…" Lenora muttered under her breath, petrified.

Author's note: How goes the chapter?

Ryoji is clearly cooking something in the background becoming the King's adviser and N is unsure of himself now in more ways than one, you could say he's having an existential crises.

Team Plasma got a taste of the good old shadow whooping techniques. And who is that guy in back that wiped Lenora's team? All these question keep piling on.