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Bubble… bubble…
The golden plasma pool churned violently, bubbles rising faster and faster.
Suddenly—
Whoosh!
A head burst out from the glowing liquid. Kael gasped desperately for breath, his dark eyes dazed and unfocused.
The last thing he remembered was eating the strange fruit Zeraora had given him. Everything after that was a blur.
Slowly, he raised his right hand, clenching it into a fist.
Zzzzt!
Bolts of electricity erupted from his body, spilling out into the air. It felt like his entire being was overflowing with power too much to contain.
Something was different. Something was wrong.
Within him surged a strength unlike anything he'd ever felt before.
What… what is this?
He was about to open his status screen to check his changes when—
BOOM!
A deafening shockwave thundered from the canyon's entrance.
Kael's instincts screamed a warning, a sixth sense telling him the disturbance was tied directly to him.
With a thought, he manipulated the magnetic field that now obeyed him so naturally, pulling himself free of the molten plasma. Golden liquid streamed down his body as he floated into the air.
Then, like a supersonic jet, Kael exploded forward, leaving behind a blinding trail of crackling lightning.
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At the canyon entrance, Louis knelt in despair. His arms hung limply at his sides, his eyes hollow with defeat.
Articuno, his last trump card, had fallen. Even the Legendary bird had been unable to stop Zeraora. This was the end. He was going to die here.
Regret, anger, grief… all swirled within his chest.
Behind him, his team of trainers had already lost the will to fight. They had seen Zeraora's terrifying strength, and none dared to resist.
On the battlefield, Zeraora stood silently, its piercing blue eyes scanning the intruders. Something about their aura reminded it faintly of Kael.
Then—
Bzzzzt…
The air trembled. A figure wreathed in golden lightning streaked across the sky. Zeraora turned the corner of its mouth into a small smile. After sensing the power within the newcomer, it gave a nod of approval.
Kael descended beside Zeraora, his eyes sweeping across the scene an injured Articuno, Zeraora standing firm, and the group of trainers.
He frowned. Something about those humans felt strangely familiar.
Then he noticed the emblem on Louis's uniform. His eyes widened.
"Dark Star…?"
Memories surged through him.
Louis, seeing the newly arrived Ampharos-like figure, recalled rumors within the organization about a missing Flaaffy Understanding dawned on him.
"So that's what happened…"
But for Louis, standing on the brink of death, it hardly mattered anymore. And yet, this unexpected twist kindled a flicker of hope within his dying heart.
Kael's emotions churned.
He had left Dark Star. He was free now. But facing his former organization stirred complicated feelings.
Yes, Dark Star was a criminal syndicate opposed to the League. But they had given him resources, training, and experiences that had shaped him. For all their darkness, they had treated him well.
He couldn't deny it.
"Zerora!"
The Legendary's growl snapped him from his thoughts. Kael turned as Zeraora pointed first at Louis's squad, then at Kael himself.
Kael's face went pale. He shook his head furiously.
"Zerora!!"
This time the roar carried authority, brooking no refusal.
Kael opened his mouth to protest only for a blinding flash to strike before his eyes. Zeraora's claw blurred faster than Kael could follow, and with a gentle flick against his forehead—
Thoom!
Darkness swallowed his vision. Once more, he collapsed into unconsciousness.
With a wave of its magnetic field, Zeraora placed Kael's limp body gently before Louis and his trainers. Without a word, it turned away, walking back toward the canyon depths.
Its expression flickered with complex emotions before settling back into calm, ancient serenity.
As the guardian of the Canyon, Zeraora nurtured those with true potential but it was no caretaker. Strength was forged in hardship, not comfort.
The fruit it had given Kael was the last help it could provide. From here, Kael's path was his own to walk.
A subtle, almost prophetic instinct whispered to Zeraora that leaving Kael with these intruders was not a mistake.
Behind it, Louis trembled as the sound of Zeraora's footsteps faded.
"Did… I survive?"
He lifted his head weakly.
Zeraora's lone silhouette grew smaller against the vast canyon, solitary yet unyielding.
Louis slowly stood, recalling his Pokémon. He returned the fainted Kael and the broken Articuno to their Poké Balls.
His teammates exchanged glances, their eyes filled with relief at having escaped death. Supporting each other, they limped out of the canyon.
Louis's mind replayed everything that had just happened.
He had lost heavily… yet somehow, in a twisted way, his mission was fulfilled.
A bitter smile tugged at his lips, laced with the sting of self-deception.
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