The rain fell in silver curtains against the ancient stone.
Cynthia sat alone beneath the great Celestic Temple, the echo of old prayers whispering through the broken halls.
In her hands, she held her aura pendant—the one given during her trial to inherit the legacy of Sinnoh's ancient guardians.
It pulsed faintly against her palm.
And she remembered.
Flashback – The Trials of Time and Space
The sacred flames had burned brightly that night.
She had stood within a circle of ancient stones, surrounded by carvings of Dialga and Palkia.
The spirits of the past had tested her strength, her heart, her loyalty.
And then—
Visions.
Of countless worlds.
Countless futures.
One had seared itself into her memory more than any other.
She had seen Skylar.
But he was not the boy she knew.
He was older.
Colder.
His coat torn, blood staining his hands.
Eyes hollow.
A sword of light in one hand, a cracked PokéBall in the other.
Surrounded by enemies on all sides—Pokémon she barely recognized, mutated, monstrous.
Skylar fought them alone.
Silent.
Relentless.
Empty.
And then—
When he was about to fall—
When the darkness was about to consume him—
Figures appeared from the mist.
First Misty, stepping forward with determination in her eyes, wielding power beyond anything Cynthia had seen.
Then herself—Cynthia—stepping into the battle, aura flaring bright and proud.
And two other silhouettes—blurry, unformed in the vision—but strong.
United.
Unbreakable.
In the vision, Skylar collapsed to his knees as they reached him.
Tears—real tears—streamed down his face as he looked at them.
"I thought… you'd all leave," he whispered, voice cracking.
"I thought I had to do this alone."
Misty placed a hand on his shoulder.
Cynthia knelt before him, smiling through her own tears.
"We never left," she said.
"We never will."
The vision ended there.
But the feeling had never left her.
Not for a second.
Present – Celestic Temple
Cynthia opened her eyes.
Rain washed the world clean.
And she knew:
This was that moment.
It was happening now.
Skylar, somewhere far away, was pushing everyone away.
Trying to fight the war alone.
Bleeding himself dry so no one else would be hurt.
But he was wrong.
He couldn't win alone.
He wasn't meant to.
She clenched the pendant tightly.
Her heart burned with new purpose.
"If he pushes us away…"
"Then we'll push back harder."
She would gather them all.
Everyone who loved Skylar.
Everyone who believed in him.
They would train.
They would grow stronger.
They would prepare for the battles to come.
Because when the final night fell—
When the darkness closed in—
Skylar would not face it alone.
Not this time.
Not ever again.