Cyrus pulled something out of his pocket—
A flute.
Without hesitation, he brought it to his lips and began to play. As the ethereal notes echoed through the battlefield, a series of staircases descended from the sky, materializing beside him. Edward's pupils contracted.
The Azure Flute?!
You've got to be kidding me.
How the hell did Cyrus get his hands on something like that?
And wasn't the Azure Flute supposed to only work on Spear Pillar? When used there, it would summon a hidden realm where one could challenge and capture Arceus. And even then, you couldn't catch it with a Master Ball—it had to be something like an Ultra Ball.
So why did Cyrus have one?
As the melody of the flute played, Dialga and Palkia halted their battle. Only Groudon continued rampaging. The gaze of the Time-Space duo now locked onto Cyrus—or more precisely, the Azure Flute in his hands.
Even Giratina seemed restless. Its relationship with Arceus… was complicated.
Cyrus lowered the flute. The staircase remained, hanging there silently. But he didn't ascend. He simply stood, smiling smugly at Edward—clearly expecting this exact scenario, as if Edward calling on Giratina had played right into his plan.
"Boss… what's going on?" Zoroark asked cautiously, standing at Edward's side as he stared at the bizarre scene.
The battlefield had fallen into a strange silence. Groudon continued to roar and attack, but the Time-Space duo had turned their full attention to Edward's group—more specifically, to Giratina, who had not yet fully entered this world.
"I don't know either…" Edward glanced from Giratina to Cyrus. The latter was wearing a smug smile—everything was unfolding just as he wanted. Could it be… that calling Giratina was exactly what Cyrus had been hoping for?
Edward's eyes narrowed, falling onto the ring Cyrus wore. He'd always felt something was off about that ring, but couldn't quite say what.
"Where's Arceus?" Edward wondered aloud, looking up at the Heavenly Staircase. By right, ascending it should lead to the place where Arceus resides. But until now, Arceus hadn't shown a single reaction.
Not that Edward minded—the four legendary Pokémon currently present were already more than enough to give him a headache. If Arceus showed up too, it'd be a complete disaster.
"Edward…"
Shizuka's voice called gently. Her gaze lingered on Edward for a moment before drifting briefly toward Zoroark—then back to Edward, her expression soft. She looked like she had something to say.
Edward glanced at her. In his mind, she was still the little girl he had taken care of during childhood. But now she had grown up—more mature, and her figure had developed too. Only… her injured arm was still bleeding, which made him a little worried.
"Shizuka, it's been a while. So you've been working undercover this whole time?" Edward asked while keeping an eye on Cyrus, still wary of the man's intentions.
"Mm. I—I accepted... no, Edward, there's something I want to tell you…"
Shizuka's cheeks flushed red. She stared at him, her eyes gentle and determined. She answered him instinctively but quickly remembered something and tried to speak again.
"What is it?" Edward asked, still keeping watch on Cyrus. The dial on the man's hand was still active. Without that, there was no way to calm Dialga and Palkia.
Wait… what were Dialga and Palkia doing?
Edward turned his head—and his heart dropped.
The Time-Space duo were both charging up their ultimate moves, aiming directly at his position!
Giratina let out an unwilling screech. It wanted to fully emerge from the Distortion World—but couldn't. And the next moment, Dialga and Palkia launched their devastating attacks!
The combined powers of Roar of Time and Spacial Rend blasted into the Distortion World, striking Giratina directly. The deafening explosion completely drowned out Shizuka's words—Edward heard nothing.
Giratina roared in fury, forced back by the overwhelming force of the twin gods.
"Giratina… is being attacked by Dialga and Palkia?"
Edward's face twisted. It made sense—Giratina had been banished to the Distortion World. Of course the Time-Space duo would view it as a threat.
Just now, the attacks had passed so close to Edward that he could feel the heat on his face. If not for the fact that Giratina was their primary target and that the Distortion World absorbed most of the blast's power, Edward figured he'd be nothing but dust in the wind by now.
"Some minor hiccups… but things are still developing just as expected."
Cyrus said with a satisfied smile, his eyes gleaming with madness as he looked at Edward.
"Be buried here, Edward."
This ghost—this obstacle that had haunted him for so long—would finally be erased today.
Giratina, driven into a frenzy, desperately tried to break through the rift into the real world. But that only fueled the wrath of Dialga and Palkia. They flew at it in unison, launching attack after attack, their explosions and howls forcing Edward, Zoroark, and Shizuka into a frantic retreat.
Edward had already recalled Q and Fortune. A single hit from those legendary Pokémon would spell disaster.
Yet the relentless assault only made Giratina more enraged. It thrashed, roared, and finally—
burst through the veil and emerged into the real world.
The moment Giratina appeared in full, a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, and Groudon's Precipice Blades came crashing down, destroying the temple and slamming straight toward Dialga.
"DIAA!"
Dialga growled in annoyance, narrowly avoiding the attack. Then its eyes flashed.
WHAM!
In an instant, Groudon's left leg buckled, and the beast tumbled forward, crushing several buildings under its massive frame.
Cyrus descended from above. The battle had clearly escalated beyond anything mere mortals could interfere in. All four Legendary Pokémon were now fighting at full power.
Well—except for Groudon, who was still struggling awkwardly to catch up to the airborne battlefield.
"Probopass!" Cyrus shouted.
A barrage of rocks flew toward Edward.
"This maniac…" Edward muttered, releasing Q and Fortune.
"Watch out, Edward!" Shizuka shoved him aside just as a stone flew past. She immediately sent out her own Pokémon and began exchanging blows with Cyrus's.
Edward joined in, giving commands to Q and Fortune. But Cyrus remained unnervingly calm, commanding his Pokémon with terrifying precision. One attack after another came crashing down, all aimed at Edward directly.
Against Cyrus's reckless, "defeat the Trainer to win" tactics, Edward had no choice but to dodge and counter, responding move for move.
But just as he sidestepped a Rock Slide, Cyrus's assault suddenly stopped.
Edward blinked in confusion and looked up—
And saw Cyrus's deranged smile. His eyes were full of twisted determination, as if…
"He's been pushing me into this position?"
A chilling thought flashed through Edward's mind.
He lifted his head—
And saw the light of destruction descending.
(End of Chapter)