The second Princess Key!
With the second Princess Key in her hands, Serena's joy was impossible to hide.
Eevee hopped around happily as well, celebrating together with Fennekin and Pancham.
Serena had already made a promise with Eevee: in the next Rookie Class Pokémon Showcase, Eevee would definitely take the stage with her.
But until then, she knew she had a lot of training to do.
First and foremost, she had to help Eevee overcome its timid and shy personality.
------
"Ash, your next step should be challenging the Anistar Gym. Let me warn you though—the Gym Leader there is really strange. People say she's eccentric, but in Kalos she's very famous. She's called Madame Olympia.
Her specialty is Tag Team Battles—one match, winner takes all. She uses a male and female Meowstic as her team. Because of Shauna, I went to Anistar City and tried my luck at the Gym. The result? A total defeat! Ash, you have to be careful—those two Meowstic are terrifying when they use Future Sight!'"
The hefty Tierno warned Ash seriously.
"Thanks, Tierno. Madame Olympia, huh? She's not just eccentric—she really can glimpse into the future, at least to some extent. Still, I'll have to face her myself to truly understand."
"Pika, pika."
Ash and Pikachu thanked Tierno for the advice.
"Tierno, you don't need to give him advice," Trevor said with a faint smirk, fully aware of what Ash was capable of after witnessing his battle against Legendary Bird Moltres.
The group split at the Pokémon Center: Ash, Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie heading for the Gym, while Tierno, Trevor, and Shauna took another path.
Not long after they left, the television in the Center started airing breaking news.
In Kalos, Professor Sycamore was preparing to conduct research at one of the Seven Wonders of Kalos—the Anistar Sundial.
The Sundial was regarded as one of the Seven Wonders because of the mysterious energy waves it emitted.
In fact, in Ash's Mega Evolution research notes for Steven's company, he had already explained the strange properties of the Sundial.
That was one of the reasons why Kalos had received priority in Mega Stone and Key Stone distribution.
------
Meanwhile, inside the Anistar Gym.
The Gym was filled with a mysterious aura of space and time. Even the battlefield was built from a special material designed to resonate with psychic energy.
Madame Olympia stood at the center. She was the Gym Leader of Anistar, renowned for her prophetic powers.
Every so often, she would use her ability to glimpse into the future.
Of course, what she saw didn't always come true. But whenever she poured her heart and strength into it, eight or nine times out of ten, her visions proved accurate.
And today was one of those days.
Madame Olympia levitated above the battlefield, flanked by her two Meowstic—one deep blue, one pure white.
"Let me see… Will anything of great significance happen soon?"
"Meow…stic!"
At her command, the male Meowstic unleashed Future Sight, while the female cast Helping Hand to amplify its power.
Her eyes glowed.
"I see it! Disaster… A great disaster is coming! A young man with a red cap, accompanied by a Pikachu… and even Professor Sycamore of Kalos… they're all connected to it!"
Her voice trembled with shock as the vision unfolded.
But—everything was blurry.
So blurry it was as if some unseen force was deliberately blocking her sight.
No matter how hard she tried to focus, the vision shattered, cut off by a strange, overpowering energy.
"The boy in the red cap, with Pikachu at his side… is he the key to this disaster?"
Olympia muttered to herself as her Meowstic gently lowered her back to the ground.
Her two disciples rushed forward: one named Cosette, the other Sophie.
They urgently asked what she had seen.
Without hiding anything, Madame Olympia recounted her ominous vision.
------
Back in the city, before challenging the Gym, Ash and his friends stopped at the Sundial.
"Wow! It's so beautiful, so magnificent!" Serena exclaimed, bouncing happily as she gazed at the sparkling crystal monument.
"The Sundial is pink… Ash, is it really connected to Mega Evolution?" Bonnie asked, wide-eyed.
"Yes. The Anistar Sundial is actually a crystal that fell from outer space. It's mysterious and powerful. When a Mega Stone and a Key Stone resonate, the energy waves they release are exactly the same as the Sundial's."
Ash nodded, but didn't go into further detail. Even if he explained, they wouldn't fully understand.
Still, thanks to Ash's warning, security around the Sundial had been reinforced by the Anistar City police force. Any suspicious activity would trigger an immediate, large-scale response.
Professor Sycamore had also arrived with his assistants, ready to begin research.
But before he could even set up, a girl appeared—accompanied by a Sableye and a Sigilyph—and in an instant, destroyed all the equipment he had brought.
Professor Sycamore was left completely stunned.
"What's going on here?!"
"You're the so-called Professor researching the Sundial of Anistar, aren't you?" the girl sneered. "Then Madame Olympia's foresight has come true once again. Anistar does not welcome you. And you, the boy with the red cap and Pikachu—leave this city. Right now!"
The girl was none other than Carrie, one of Madame Olympia's apprentices.
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T/N:
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