Professor Sada vanished.
Juliana stood frozen, staring at the empty space where the mist had dispersed.
What in the world just happened?
Why had Professor Sada, from the past, suddenly appeared here?
Her gaze fell on Terapagos, who now looked drained from exertion, its crystalline shell faintly dimmed. A thought struck her.
Was it because of Terapagos?
Juliana's heart was tangled with confusion. Could its energy have pulled Sada across time and space?
Her eyes fell to the red-and-purple book with the white cover, The Scarlet Book. And suddenly she remembered.
Naoki… maybe Mr. Naoki knows something.
Snapping to attention, Juliana quickly pulled out her Rotom Phone and called him.
The connection came almost instantly.
"Mr. Naoki, we just saw Professor Sada at the Crystal Pool!" Juliana blurted out.
To her surprise, Naoki didn't look shocked at all. His expression was calm, almost as if he'd known this moment was coming.
"Professor Sada…" he murmured. "Did she say anything?"
Juliana nodded and relayed every detail of what had happened, repeating Sada's words carefully.
Naoki's eyes clouded with mixed emotions.
'So it's true… countless possibilities of spacetime, pasts and futures that intersect only for a moment, then drift apart again…'
Juliana studied him closely. She remembered the day at the ranch when Naoki had handed her the Scarlet Book and asked her to bring Elara to Kitakami.
Her eyes narrowed. "Mr. Naoki… you knew we'd meet Professor Sada here, didn't you?"
Naoki stiffened slightly, then chuckled with a wry smile. "I didn't think you'd catch that so quickly. You're sharp."
He didn't hide the truth any longer.
"After Professor Sada's passing, I visited the Area Zero Research Institute. In her notes, she wrote that during her research into the Great Crater, she traveled into another dimension… where she met a girl with a Koraidon and a girl with a Terapagos."
His voice grew heavier.
"So, the day you brought Koraidon to my ranch, I knew… the events she recorded in those notes were about to repeat."
Juliana's breath caught. Her suspicions were true, it had all been real.
And then, her thoughts drifted. To Arven.
Her chest tightened with regret. If only she had invited Arven along… he could have seen his mother again.
But, wait.
A sudden idea struck her like lightning.
If Professor Sada had been drawn here by Terapagos's power… could it happen again?
If so, then maybe Arven really could see his parents again.
Heart racing, Juliana explained her suspicion aloud. "Mr. Naoki! If I bring Terapagos back to the Crystal Pool… could we summon Professor Sada again?!"
Naoki's eyes widened slightly. "You mean..."
But his expression hardened. He shook his head firmly.
"No. It doesn't work that way."
"For someone, or something, from another time to cross into our world, Terapagos alone isn't enough."
His voice grew solemn.
"To bridge time and space, there must be a resonance. Terapagos, or an immense source of Terastal energy, must exist in both timelines at once. Only then can they answer each other and open the path."
Juliana's heart skipped. "But… Professor Sada and Professor Turo… they've always been in Area Zero! There's always been vast Terastal energy there!"
"But Juliana, you have to understand." Naoki's voice was calm but firm as he met her eyes. "If the past is changed… then our future will also be drastically altered. What happens to you, to me, none of it would be certain anymore."
He continued, his words deliberate. "Yes, parallel universes and alternate timelines exist. But if we interfere, then in that other timeline, the Arven who lives there would also lose his parents forever."
Naoki leaned forward. "And think carefully, are Professor Sada and Professor Turo, who appear in that other time and space, truly the parents of your Arven?"
Juliana faltered, her excitement dimming. "But…"
She didn't know what to say.
All this time, she had watched Arven.
Even though he always smiled, even though he pressed forward each day, she knew, deep in his heart, he was carrying a sorrow he never spoke aloud.
Losing one's parents… was a wound that never truly healed.
And now, for the first time, she had glimpsed the possibility of hope. If there was even a chance to let Arven see them again, she didn't want him to remain alone.
But Naoki was right. The risks were immense.
She squeezed her fists tightly, searching desperately for another way.
Then, her eyes lit up. A thought burst into her mind.
She looked back up at Naoki, determination shining.
"Mr. Naoki! If we can't change the past… then what if we summoned Professor Sada and Professor Turo from the past?"
Naoki blinked in surprise. "You mean…"
Juliana's words spilled out in a rush.
"I remember their supposed deaths at the Fourth Station. Even now, the League never recovered their bodies!"
She leaned forward. "Everyone assumed they were annihilated by the massive energy surge… but isn't there another possibility?"
Naoki froze.
It was true. No remains had ever been found.
At the time, Geeta had explained it as annihilation, total disintegration from the Paradox Pokémon's attack. Nothing left behind.
Like in the old tale, Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You!, when Ash was struck by Marshadow's attack, his body had briefly dissolved into nothingness.
That was what Naoki had always believed.
But now, Juliana's words lit a spark inside him.
His eyes gleamed with sudden realization. 'Could it be… they hadn't been destroyed at all, but displaced?'
In a rush, Naoki threw on his coat and called out to Koraidon. "Juliana, wait for me at the Crystal Pool. And tell Arven to come as well! With his feelings as their son, Terapagos will have the best chance of locating the moment where Sada and Turo truly are!"
Juliana's heart leapt. She nodded quickly. "Yes!"
The call ended.
Naoki handed the ranch over to the Indeedee siblings, then gathered every Terapagos under his care. Mounting Koraidon, he rode straight toward Kitakami Village.
At the same time, atop Oni Mountain in Kitakami, the Crystal Pool shimmered into existence once again.
Juliana quickly pulled out her Rotom Phone and dialed Arven's number.
After a few rings, his familiar face appeared on the screen.
When he saw her, Arven's eyes softened into a bright, cheerful smile. "Juliana! Long time no see!"
Juliana's heart pounded as she blurted out, "Arven, come to Kitakami Village! Hurry!"
Arven was stunned, his brow furrowing. "Kitakami Village? What's going on? Did something happen there?"
Juliana didn't hold anything back. "We just saw Professor Sada! Mr. Naoki said we might be able to summon both Professor Sada and Professor Turo. He's already on his way here, come quickly!"
Hearing this, Arven's composure crumbled.
His grip on the Rotom Phone tightened, his knuckles white. His eyes reddened, disbelief warring with a fragile spark of hope.
"Really?" His voice was soft, as if the word itself might shatter the dream.
"Really!" Juliana nodded firmly. "We're waiting at the Crystal Pool right now!"
"I understand. I'll leave right away!" Arven's voice trembled. He ended the call, wiping away the tears that spilled uncontrollably down his cheeks. But in his chest, a light flickered, a hope he had long thought impossible. Without hesitation, he hailed a Flying Taxi and headed straight for Kitakami.
Naoki was the first to arrive.
By the time he reached Kitakami, Juliana had already pitched a makeshift tent beside the Crystal Pool.
Elara sat leaning against Entei, idly combing her fingers through its fiery mane.
When Naoki appeared, both of them jumped to their feet to greet him.
"Mr. Naoki!"
"Dad!"
Elara ran into his arms. Naoki caught her gently, then asked, "Did you notify Arven?"
"Yes! I even asked Koraidon to bring him here. He should arrive soon!" Juliana said with a nod.
"Good." Naoki let out a quiet breath of relief.
They didn't have to wait long.
Two hours later, Arven arrived on the back of Koraidon.
"Mr. Naoki!" Arven asked urgently, hope and fear tangled in his voice. "Is it… really possible?"
Naoki glanced at Koraidon beside him and nodded. "There's only one way to find out."
"Yes!"
He reached into his bag, unclipping Poké Balls one after another.
With repeated flashes of white light, Pokémon began to emerge. Alongside the three already at Elara's side, fifty-one Terapagos, survivors from ancient times, appeared in a radiant cluster before them.
Juliana's eyes widened in astonishment. She had never seen so many at once.
Naoki's voice was solemn as he addressed them. "Terapagos, we're relying on you."
"Bago!"
The Terapagos answered with cheerful cries, crystals gleaming, they would gladly help Naoki.
Turning, Naoki fixed his gaze on Arven. His tone was steady but heavy with meaning.
"Arven. Show them your heart. Your longing will transcend time and space and guide your parents, Professor Sada and Professor Turo, from the Fourth Station to this place."
He reminded them all, "It was this power of resonance that allowed Koraidon to connect with the future. Terastal energy transcends all types, distance, and even time. With enough longing, it can open the way."
"I understand," Arven said, his voice low but firm.
Gone was the carefree boy Juliana remembered. Time had carved away his immaturity. After losing his parents, after years of loneliness, Arven now stood as someone stronger, someone tempered by grief.
Step by step, under the eyes of Naoki, Juliana, and Elara, he walked to the edge of the Crystal Pool.
The light of the crystals reflected in his eyes as he looked up at the gathered Terapagos.
With both hands clenched at his sides, his voice broke with raw emotion.
"Terapagos… please… bring my parents back!"
Memories of the past surged painfully through Arven's heart.
Ever since his parents' disappearance, he had carried heavy regrets. He hated himself for the times he had thrown tantrums, for the stubborn silences when he refused to talk to them.
He had even grown jealous of Koraidon, resenting it for taking so much of their attention.
All those regrets now twisted together, transforming into something pure, an aching, desperate yearning for his parents.
As Arven's voice cracked with emotion, a single tear rolled down his cheek.
The gathered Terapagos blinked, watching him silently.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Naoki frowned. Juliana's face was tight with worry.
And then...
An immense light exploded from the Terapagos, shooting upward like a pillar that split the heavens.
The brilliance surged outward, resonating with Arven's grief and longing, carrying his thoughts beyond time and space.
They reached…
The year 206 of the League Calendar. A certain day. A certain hour. The Fourth Research Station, Area Zero.
An Iron Moth's attack slammed into the station, the ground quaking violently.
BOOM!
The unstable energy tanks within the facility were struck, igniting an inferno.
"Danger!"
Sensing the blast, Professor Turo threw himself forward, trying to shield his wife.
But before he could, a deafening detonation split the air. The shockwave and fire swallowed everything in its path.
"Koraidon!" Professor Sada's voice rang out desperately. Her eyes darted to the side.
There, by the fuel cells, was the weakest Koraidon of the group, its small body trembling.
Without hesitation, Sada rushed forward, shielding the frightened Pokémon with her own body.
Turo dove beside her, shielding them both as the explosion tore through.
BOOM!
In that instant, just as flames engulfed them, a massive surge of Terastal energy erupted, bending across time and space.
The wave enveloped both Professors and the Koraidon.
And then;
They vanished.
An unknown time later, deep within the scorched ruins of the Fourth Station, a lone Koraidon crawled weakly out from the debris.
...
Crystal Pool.
Arven's eyes were locked on the brilliant light rising before him. His entire body trembled, his chest tight with hope and fear.
Naoki and Juliana stared breathlessly, their hearts pounding.
'Had it worked?'
Then, within the light, two human silhouettes slowly emerged.
When Arven saw their forms, tears burst from his eyes.
His body moved on instinct. He sprinted forward, crying out with all the strength in his soul.
"Dad! Mom!"
The figures blinked, dazed by the sudden light. Then they looked up, startled by the familiar voice.
And in the next heartbeat, they saw him.
Their son.
"Arven…"
Tears streamed down his face as he hurled himself into their arms, clutching them with a grip that would never let go.
Professor Sada and Professor Turo froze in shock, hardly able to believe the grown boy before them.
"You've… you've been through so much," Sada whispered, her hand trembling as it brushed through his hair.
"What… what is going on here?" Turo asked, confusion clouding his voice.
But before either of them could say more, their gazes shifted.
There, just beyond, stood a crowd of shining Terapagos. And beside them, Naoki, Juliana, Elara, and a towering Koraidon.
Sada's eyes widened, then softened as recognition flickered across her face. A knowing smile touched her lips.
"So that's it," she murmured.
"It seems… we've traveled through time and space once again."
...
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