"It hit!"
A cheer erupted from outside Twinleaf Town.
Just moments ago, Joseph Stone and his team had assembled a strange weapon and fired several shots at the time-space barrier in front of them. After pounding it repeatedly, they finally created a small breach. Then, they launched a special energy projectile—developed by Devon Corp using data from their capture of Rayquaza—through the gap.
Nobody had high hopes for it. After passing through the warped time-space field, the bullet's trajectory had already been distorted. It could've landed anywhere.
But somehow, it struck Cyrus's hand dead-on, and the crowd went wild with excitement.
Everyone except Joseph Stone.
His expression darkened. Something didn't feel right.
When he looked through a high-magnification scope and saw a blinding light burst from Cyrus's hand, realization dawned.
That shot—might've hit something truly catastrophic.
"No! Bro, what the hell?!"
Edward couldn't hold it in anymore.
It felt like someone had betrayed him from the inside. Who brings a weapon like this at a time like this?!
Something strong enough to destroy Dialga's time gem?
Great. Just great.
Staring into the blinding light before him, Edward had no idea what to do next.
His leg had been pierced by shrapnel—he couldn't even move.
And the explosion was right in front of him.
The only thing he could do now was… try to pick the least painful way to die.
"Edward!"
A heart-wrenching cry rang out.
In the next second, a figure appeared in front of him—it was Shizuka.
The white-haired girl, tears in her eyes, stood in front of the blast to shield him.
Edward was stunned.
Not far away, Zoroark was trying to attack the ball of white light, attempting to divert it away from them. Groudon also turned to look at their position.
Then—the gods of time and space arrived.
Dialga opened its mouth. Palkia prepared to shift the light away.
The next moment—
Ringing in the ears. A blinding white light. All-encompassing.
Edward collapsed, dizzy and overwhelmed.
He had always wondered—why did characters in war movies get disoriented and deafened after an explosion?
Now, he understood.
Lying on the ground, unable to move, ears ringing, vision filled with white—
But something was off.
The dust and gravel around him, stirred up by the explosion, were floating in midair—as if someone had paused time.
No…
This wasn't a pause.
It was the power of time.
The shattered gem of Dialga held an immense force—divine power, temporal energy.
Edward watched with his eyes wide open as Shizuka turned her head.
Why… why could she move?
She opened her mouth, seemingly saying something, her eyes filled with tears… and a smile.
Edward's head throbbed. The next wave of explosion tore through.
And then—
A red, molten-clad foot stepped in front of him.
Groudon.
Edward blacked out.
…
When Edward woke up again, his head was still spinning—like he'd spun in circles a hundred times.
No ordinary person could withstand this without training.
He stumbled to his feet… and immediately collapsed again.
Holding his head, fighting back nausea—
"Shizuka… where's Shizuka?"
He glanced around.
No Shizuka.
No Twinleaf Town.
Only floating rubble and debris.
Dialga's gem was broken—a chunk of it was gone.
Edward recognized that shape.
It was the cobalt-blue gem that had once been in Cyrus's hand.
Palkia's gem was also filled with spiderweb-like cracks, terrifying to behold.
The rift to the Distortion World was completely gone.
Groudon stood before him, its body damaged in several places—but still standing.
Under its other foot, Zoroark lay unconscious, now reverted to its original Hisui form, red and white, ethereal and beautiful.
Edward looked at it, dazed.
Where's Shizuka?
He stood up, confused.
Twinleaf Town—gone.
The blast from Dialga's gem, perhaps amplified by that attack—looked like a laser weapon— had obliterated everything.
Every building was now floating rubble.
And countless bodies…
Shattered limbs and gore were everywhere.
Edward vomited uncontrollably.
Wiping his mouth, he forced himself up.
This was the power of a Legendary Pokémon.
Even a single gem from Dialga held unimaginable might.
But now…
What could he do?
He turned toward where Cyrus had been.
The cobalt gem and the disc—both gone.
That lunatic… had destroyed everything.
But even if he had the disc, it wouldn't matter anymore.
The temple was gone.
The floating rubble might have once been part of it.
Dialga and Palkia were both down, needing rest.
Groudon let out a low growl and bowed its head—it had shielded Edward from the explosion and was heavily injured.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this…"
Edward looked around, his heart aching.
None of this should've happened. It should never have turned out like this.
He looked to the edge of Twinleaf Town.
The time-space barrier had turned completely black—no one outside could see in anymore.
And at the barrier's outer edge—
Everyone was silent.
All they had seen was the explosion…
Then darkness spread across the barrier, cutting off their view completely.
Joseph Stone stood trembling.
He was the one who had fired the shot that caused the explosion.
"Edward…"
…
"It shouldn't be like this!"
Edward ran toward the spot where Cyrus had been.
He looked up at the floating debris.
Broken shards, shattered ruins… and then—
His eyes lit up.
There it was.
A flute—unharmed even by the explosion.
The Azure Flute.
Without hesitation, Edward picked it up and began to play.
Melodic, sacred music echoed through the air.
A staircase descended from the sky.
Rubble in the sky began to gather and reshape—
The temple rebuilt itself before Edward's eyes.
The metallic disc landed beside him.
Staggering forward despite the pain in his leg, he picked up the disc and entered the temple.
Without pause, he inserted the disc—
And pulled the lever.
Ding.
A clear, elegant melody rang out.
Edward collapsed to the ground, staring weakly at the sky.
And there—
Golden wings appeared before him.
The melody of Oración flowed, transforming into a wave of healing power.
Lush, vibrant flowers spread out all around him.
And Edward—
Lay silently among them, gazing up at the sky.
(End of Chapter)