Chapter 1 – The Rift in the Stars
The night had always been one of Lira's favorite times. The chatter of Bug-type Pokémon softened with the cool evening air, and the stars over Verdanthollow Town gleamed brighter than anywhere in the region. Nestled between forest and mountain, the small town had always thrived on quiet routines: children running through the lanes in the afternoon, the local rancher shouting for his Mareep at dusk, the regular glimmer of Staryu in the stream that cut through the edge of town.
Lira often climbed the watchtower that overlooked the village's border. From there, the wilderness stretched endlessly—rolling forests that deepened into a dark ocean of green, and higher up, the first barren rocks of the cliff route that led to Mt. Lunaris, whose snowcapped peak caught and reflected starlight even on a moonless night. Some nights, she swore she could hear bird Pokémon calling from halfway up that mountain, voices carried across the wind.
And yet tonight, that peace was fractured.
Bramble, her Rowlet, shifted uneasily on her shoulder. His round eyes darted toward the blank horizon, then up at the sky where the stars glowed faintly. Lira stroked his feathers gently.
"Don't worry, Bramble. It's probably just the wind again," she murmured, though her voice betrayed uncertainty.
The Rangers had noticed strange things in the past few days. Normally, there was a steady flow of Pidgeotto, Swellow, and Talonflame hunting across the skies, but their flights had thinned. Bug-type Pokémon populating the Canopy Trail had gone quiet, and even the usually excitable Hoothoot were restless at night. Some brushed it off as seasonal migration, but Lira felt it was something bigger.
Above, the sky shimmered faintly—as if ripples moved across stars that should not move.
At first, she thought her eyes were playing tricks. After all, nights on the tower could feel long and lonely. But then Bramble stiffened. He puffed his feathers out, wings twitching in agitation. His sharp hoot cut through the night like an alarm.
Then came the sound.
It started as a vibration, so subtle that Lira felt it in her bones before she even heard it. A resonance, like a hum from miles away deep under the earth, then layered with a pitch that scratched at her ears. Thunder? No—this was stranger. Higher, like a mechanical shriek hidden beneath nature's voice.
The sky cracked.
A line of white-hot light ripped through the horizon, jagged and sudden. Lira clutched the railing as the stars seemed to split open. Townsfolk below gasped and shouted, torches flickering to life in the square. The air shimmered like heat waves, though the night was cool.
But what emerged was no natural event.
From the gash in the firmament, a silhouette stepped—or perhaps glided—into existence. Enormous wings, glinting with crystalline edges, stretched outward. Its body undulated, shifting between brightness and shadow like it couldn't settle on whether it belonged here. Its eyes, glowing a sharp cerulean hue, locked onto the world below as it let out a cry that tore across the valley. Half roar, half mournful wail, it was not simply heard—it reverberated within Lira's chest, rattling her very lungs.
Bramble shrieked his own hoot in reply, feathers bristling.
The strange Pokémon beat its colossal wings once, and the night fractured. The stars shimmered unnaturally, as though being pulled into the cracks left by the creature's form. Reality bent around its wings, distorting air into visible waves.
Lira's Pokédex jolted in her pocket, buzzing frantically. She yanked it out, the screen flickering with static. After a moment, cracked words appeared across the display:
"??? — The Riftbringer Pokémon.
Born from collapsed starlight.
It opens tears between realms."
Then static again.
The Riftbringer arced forward with a screech, and with a slam of its wings, unleashed a shockwave. The tower buckled as metal brackets squealed in protest. Bramble squawked and launched from her shoulder, wings spread wide as if ready to defend. The walls groaned. Lira shielded herself as splinters of shattered railing burst against her arms. Wind tore through her hair, leaving her gasping.
And then—silence.
The creature glanced upward, then folded into itself, dissolving into a warping tear of air before vanishing as suddenly as it had come. The rift sealed, leaving faint streaks of light burning into the sky.
The only remnant was a fragment.
A shard of crystalline light, glowing faintly, fell into the tower beside her. It pulsed with warmth as though alive. The texture shifted between solid and intangible when Lira picked it up. It hummed faintly in her palms.
Bramble fluttered down, cautiously nudging the shard with his beak before letting out a soft, uncertain hoot.
Lira's heart raced. "What… was that?"
Down in town, shouts filled the air. People scrambled in confusion, pointing at the sky, gathering in clumps of fear and awe. The Mayor's voice called for calm, though it faltered against the anxiety spreading like fire between the villagers.
Lira couldn't stay. She held the glowing fragment close and turned for the tower's ladder. She had to know more.
The next morning, Verdanthollow felt heavier. Smoke curled from blacksmith shops, children whispered while clutching their parents' sleeves, and Rangers patrolled with uneasy expressions.
Lira hadn't slept. Instead, she had packed her worn satchel, secured supplies, and scribbled a note for her parents:
"Going to see Professor Ashfield. Don't worry—Bramble's with me. I'll find out what last night was about."
By the time dawn crept over the ridge, she was already following the old dirt road leading south out of town. Her boots were dusty not ten minutes into the walk, and above her, Bramble flew restlessly in circles, ever watchful of the skies.
Professor Ashfield's cottage lay just beyond the border of town, tucked into the edge of the Canopy Woods. The man was eccentric, often muttering about myths and cycles of the stars while absent-mindedly scribbling notes. Most kids found him boring. Lira had always found him fascinating.
When she reached the lopsided wooden fence circling his cottage, she found him already outside, adjusting a massive telescope. His wild gray hair stood in all directions, glinting in morning light. He looked up as if expecting her.
"Lira, child," he said without greeting, his eyes bright. "You saw it, didn't you?"
Her breath caught. "You mean the—"
"The Rift," he interrupted, nodding furiously, tugging on his mustache with ink-stained fingers. "Yes, yes. For decades they laughed at me, thought my theories fanciful nonsense. But it has come. At last, the Shattered Sky opens."
Lira set the shard onto his worktable. It pulsed faintly, illuminating the scattered notes of constellations and sketches of bird Pokémon. His eyes widened, trembling fingers hovering above it.
"You found— You touched— By Arceus' light…" He swallowed hard. "Lira, this is not accident. The Riftbringer does not appear without reason. It is herald, guardian, destroyer. Which, I do not know. But with this shard, you have been marked."
The words sent a chill through her. Bramble leaned against her cheek, soft feathers brushing her skin, as if reassuring her.
"Marked? But… what does that mean for me?"
The Professor's eyes dimmed with worry. "It means, my girl, that the world has tied you to this legend. And legends… are rarely kind."
Far away, beyond the woods, a figure stepped from shadows under towering trees. Black and silver clothing clung to their form, sleek and precise. A small device on their wrist glowed faintly with light that mirrored the sky-shard Lira had found.
They smiled faintly, coldly. "So, it has awakened at last. And chosen its vessel… fascinating."
Their voice drifted across the clearing as several Pokémon—dark, masked shapes—emerged around them in silence.
"Then we will take what is ours, before the girl even understands what she carries."
And above them, unseen in the morning sky, something faint moved where stars should not…