Author's Note: My God. I have no excuse for how late this chapter is. I've had no inspiration, no desire to write, and life was pretty sucky. But I'm updating at last! Yay! I hope you all realized how much time I spent working on this chapter! It took a very long time to get alright. But I think you guys will like it. It's a dramatic chapter, and we see a few more Legendary Pokemon!

But first... PARTY! I updated! YES! Okay, back to the story.

I don't own Pokemon. Sadly. I own the plot, OCs, and everything else you don't recognize.

Oh, and btw: thanks for all who encouraged me over the hiatus. You guys are so awesome! Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 11 - Under the Skin

Flying through the air as if he was some discarded doll, Dalton's flight was stopped as he collided with the stone wall of some alleyway in Jubilife City. Dalton gave a cry of pain as he heard a snap come from his leg. As he slid to the hard, dirty ground below, Dalton managed to catch sight of his leg. It was at an angle that no leg should ever have been in, and Dalton felt sick just looking at it. He felt the taste of copper in his mouth, which he knew to be a sign that he was going to throw up.

Pain blurred Dalton's vision, and he found himself threatening to go unconscious because of the incredibly sharp pain. It was throbbing now, and Dalton felt something wet sliding down his neck. Numb realization kicked in as he figured out that the wet unidentified liquid was his own blood. He must have hit his head.

That explained the throbbing headache.

Dalton felt more numb pain shoot through his body as someone grabbed him and lifted him up a bit. Dalton bit back a groan of pain as whoever lifted him up put heavy weight on his broken leg. Dalton's leg throbbed as his whole body began to do the same. The blood flow from the back seemed to be coming almost quicker than before, and Dalton's consciousness threatened to disappear as the pain intensified.

The voice that spoke to him next, however, kept him awake.

"The little Kanto Guardian," the voice said tauntingly. The voice was female, surprising to Dalton, and was colder than even the Sea Foam Islands of Dalton's own home region. "So easy to kill. And the little blue-haired girl is next."

Protective rage exploded in Dalton's very being. No matter how much pain Dalton might be, he would do anything to protect his family and loved ones. Jason, Luna, and Autumn were his very best friends, and he couldn't imagine life without them. It was completely impossible to imagine life without them, no matter what happened. Dalton managed to give a snarl, though it pained him greatly to do so.

"I swear to Arceus, if you hurt Luna, I don't care how I'll do it, I will make you pay. I will come back from the dead if I have to, and don't you dare think that I won't find a way to do it!" Dalton's threat was not a threat to him. It was a promise that he would keep, no matter what.

"Oh, I don't doubt you'll find a way. I don't doubt the Legendaries will find a way. But it'll take them time. And we don't need that much time at all to complete our goals."

Even though Dalton could barely see anything through his foggy pain, he could hear perfectly. A scream reached his ears, and he was wondering if something had happened to Luna. A moment later, he realized that the scream was too deep to be Luna's. He would make good on his promise if he had to, and he didn't care what he had to do. No one hurt someone Dalton cared about and got away with it.

Over his dead body was the only way he would let one of his friends get hurt. No matter what.

"Luna, duck, now!"

The unfamiliar voice called out, and Dalton's world exploded into darkness as he knew nothing more.

Giratina had learned a very long time ago a very important lesson.

Guardians were danger magnets. The fact that they had been chosen by the Legendaries themselves for unbelievably difficult tasks was proof enough that they were talented beyond belief. But they were also very likely to get hurt in the line of their duty. Chrisdeole had been hurt more times than he could count. Jaina sought danger out of sheer boredom. Seth had been the biggest danger magnet of them all.

But as Giratina raced into the alley, followed quickly by Chrisdeole and his Umbreon, he realized that the new Sinnoh and Kanto Guardians could have given even Seth a run for his money.

The blue-haired girl had climbed onto a fire escape, and had grabbed a metal pipe. A black-clad man was sitting at the bottom of the fire escape, cursing as he rubbed his bloody scalp. Giratina could also see blood on the metal pipe. The pipe had been in the hands of her attacker a few moments ago, until Giratina had shouted a warning. She had taken the pipe somehow and had hit him on the head.

I'm gonna like her.

Chrisdeole reacted much more quickly, especially after seeing the Kanto Guardian in his current condition. "Umbreon, use Dark Pulse!" he ordered, his eyes narrowing at the dark-haired girl standing over the critically injured, blond-haired Guardian.

Umbreon shot a powerful, black and dark purple colored beam of shadow towards the girl. It cut her on the shoulder, and the girl (Giratina knew in an instant that it was Kelly, the one that Latios had warned them about) was knocked off of her feet and far away from the Kanto Guardian (Dalton, Giratina realized), slamming against the hard brick wall.

She wasn't off her feet for more than ten seconds. She got up immediately, but in that time span, Giratina had crossed the distance between him and the now unconscious Dalton, and was trying to check to see if Dalton was dead or alive. To Giratina's utter relief, Dalton still had a pulse, but he had gone unconscious. His leg was very clearly broken, he was bleeding from the back of his head, and he was very pale, but Giratina knew with some healing from Palkia, he would be fine.

Only a few of the Legendaries had the power of healing. Arceus had pretty much every power there was, being the God Pokemon, but she was not a healer or a lover. Arceus, above all, was a fighter. Cresselia could also heal, as could Latios and Latias. Palkia, surprisingly, could also heal. Arceus mused that it came from the fact that Palkia was able to manipulate space.

Giratina stood up, his eyes narrowed. "Leave. Now." His voice was hard and cold. "Or I promise you, the next bolt I fire will hit you in the head. Dead center between the eyes."

Kelly stared back coldly at Giratina. "You, I'll enjoy slaying." A second later, a burst of black energy exploded in the air.

Giratina reacted instantly, covering Dalton's body with his own without applying more pressure on the trainer's broken leg. Chrisdeole grabbed Luna (who had come down from the fire escape) and Umbreon before pulling them both behind a dumpster. When the black energy disappeared a moment later, Kelly and the man who had been assaulted by the pipe were gone.

Giratina stood up quickly, his nose now bloody from him throwing himself to the ground, and glanced around, making sure that there were no other threats in the alley. Chrisdeole let Luna and Umbreon leave the small space behind the dumpster. Luna just stared in utter shock at Chrisdeole and Giratina, her face pale and her legs shaking. She froze in her tracks when she saw Dalton's unconscious body.

"Oh, Arceus, please no…" she whimpered.

"He's still alive," Giratina told her quickly. "We just need to get him healed, and he'll be good as new. But he's still alive."

Luna shook her head before shooting a look towards Chrisdeole. The dark red haired man stood off to the side, leaning against the alley wall. Umbreon sat next to him, watching Luna with his eerie eyes. She looked back to Giratina, her eyes turning accusing.

"Who are you?" Luna shot an accusing glare towards Chrisdeole. "And you! Why did you two help us?"

Chrisdeole shot her a look. "Well, I could tell you the complete story, but you would probably think that I'm insane."

Luna rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't say that. That… that crazy girl that was attacking us… kept calling us Guardians. She called me the Guardian of Sinnoh. What the heck was she talking about?"

"It's a long story, trust me, one that we shouldn't talk about here."

The group all looked towards the mouth of the alley to see Palkia bolting towards Jason. He put his hands several inches above Dalton's heavily injured body. A light purple glow came from Palkia's hands as he moved them up and down through the air above Dalton's body. Luna looked away at the snap that came when Dalton's leg fixed itself.

Chrisdeole's attention wasn't on the Lord of Time, however. His attention was on the Lord of Time's counterpart, who had frozen several steps behind Palkia. Dialga stared in utter amazement and disbelief at Chrisdeole, while Kyogre and Groudon stood several steps back. The two glanced at each other, and Kyogre bit her lip.

Dialga gave a choked sob before walking briskly over to Chrisdeole and giving him a tight hug. Chrisdeole hugged her back, and Luna was surprised to see that Chrisdeole's eyes were tearing up. Dialga was starting to sob, and Giratina felt a stab of sadness. He knew that Dialga was happier than she had been in years.

Luna looked at the two and then glanced to the side as Giratina put a hand on her shoulder pulling her a bit away. She glanced back at the two as Giratina led her to where Dalton's unconscious body was. Groudon and Kyogre were standing there with Palkia, who was just finishing healing Dalton. He was still unconscious, but Luna was shocked to see that his injures were mostly healed.

They had been joined by a pretty blonde dressed in a pair of khaki shorts, a navy blue shirt, and navy blue boots. Her eyes were a bright, incredibly intelligent emerald green. They almost seemed to soften as they looked over Luna, who had went immediately to Dalton's side.

"Is he okay?" Luna asked immediately. Her eyes were worried as she glanced at them. "Oh, yeah, and… who the heck are you people!"

Her voice had taken on a slightly defensive edge, and she looked incredibly wary. Arceus gave a small sigh as she looked at the girl who was the Guardian of Sinnoh. She glanced at Chrisdeole, who was still hugging Dialga. She could already see many similarities between Luna and Chrisdeole, and she realized that they were the only Guardians from the same region that would ever meet each other.

She felt a stab of regret, but she ignored it.

"It's a long story," Giratina said. He took a deep breath. "First, we ask that you just listen through what we're going to tell you."

Luna nodded. "Just tell me what's going on. And Dalton, too, when he wakes up."

Giratina gave a small, sarcastic smile. "Okay. You see, this story begins a long, long time ago…"

"Somebody help! Somebody help!"

"Wait, there is seriously nobody here!"

"I don't know! Someone get their ass out of here!"

"We're in the fricking Hall of Origin."

"No way! I didn't notice, Johto!"

"Darkrai, play nice!" Cresselia snapped as she tried to keep Darkrai supported. Jason stood on the other side, keeping Darkrai from collapsing to the floor. He was very pale now, and Jason realized just how bad this situation was. Darkrai could very well be dying.

"Can Legendary Pokemon even die?" Jason asked, the thought finally occurring to him.

Suicune and Cresselia exchanged a sharp look with each other. Darkrai didn't even seem to be paying attention, gritting his teeth and looking down at the ground, clearly trying to keep himself calm. The poison was working fast, and Darkrai had no idea what the poison was. He, however, knew of his vulnerability. Legendary Pokemon were immortal. But in their human forms, they were far from immortal.

"In our Pokemon forms…it takes a very good amount of damage for us to die," Cresselia explained hesitantly. "In our human forms, however…"

"We're just as mortal as you are."

The group glanced over to see a blond man with sharp black eyes hurrying over. Dressed in a pair of light blue jeans, orange sneakers, and a orange shirt with a yellow thunderbolt on it, the man's hair looked to be the result of the man sticking his finger in an electrical socket as a child. It was incredibly spiky.

The Legendary Pokemon (at least, Jason assumed this to be a Legendary Pokemon, since they were in the Hall of Origin) frowned as he took Darkrai from Cresselia's hold, now helping Jason to hold the poisoned dark-type up. Jason frowned at the Legendary, trying to figure out who it was from his prior knowledge of Legendary Pokemon. He would assume that it was an electric Pokemon, but he wasn't sure.

"What the hell happened, guys?" the blonde demanded, staring at the three in shock before glancing at the slowly-losing-consciousness Darkrai. "Seriously! And you've brought what I assume to be a human into the Hall of Origin? Arceus is going to have your hide."

"Long story short," Cresselia said, leading the group through the large foyer and into a smaller room. "We got attacked trying to protect Jason here, who's the Guardian of Johto, and Darkrai got hit by a poisoned knife that was aimed for Suicune. Idiotic hero boy."

Darkrai was too weak to even give a reply, which worried his three fellow Legendary Pokemon even more than any wisecrack he would give could.

"Oh, you have no idea who this is," Suicune realized, looking at Jason. "Jason, meet Zapdos. Zapdos, meet Jason."

"I would have preferred to meet you under better circumstances, but nice to meet you," Zapdos told Jason, nodding cordially with the Guardian of Johto.

Jason nodded back to him, still a bit freaked out about being introduced by the Kanto Bird of Lightning. "Um, back at you," he replied slowly. He glanced around the room, blinking a bit. "Wow. I never thought the Hall of Origin was like this."

"It's kind of like a giant house," Zapdos explained as the two laid Darkrai on a small couch that was towards the one edge of the room that they had entered. "We all have separate rooms. We watch over the world, interfere when we have to, and just drive each other insane."

"Believe it or not, Zapdos is one of the only pacifists in this whole place," Cresselia told Jason as she attempted to heal Darkrai of the poison. She put a hand over the wound, watching intently as the healing started. "He's one of the only ones."

"…Legendary Pokemon can be pacifists?"

"Trust me, there aren't many of them," Zapdos replied dryly. "Jirachi, Shaymin, and Registeel are the only other ones besides me. We're the ones on the Council who always try and keep out of human conflicts."

Jason stared at them before saying, "I'm going to understand most of this eventually, right?"

"Eventually."

"Good. Because I'm seriously confused at the moment."

Zapdos and Suicune both chuckled slightly before looking down at the unconscious Darkrai. He had blacked out after a few minutes, and Cresselia was still healing. However, within a few minutes, Jason realized something. The healing wasn't working. Darkrai was still unconscious. Something was seriously wrong. Zapdos and Suicune seemed to realize the same thing about the same time.

"It's not working," Zapdos realized. "It's not working."

"What in the world was he poisoned with?" Suicune demanded, her voice raising an octave out of panic. "Oh, no, he can't die, we still need him! When I told him to drop dead, I wasn't serious!"

"Suicune, calm down!" snapped Zapdos, grabbing her arm and shooting her a warning look. "Darkrai isn't going to die. You just need to keep calm. We're going to take care of this, and Darkrai is going to be fine."

Jason took a deep breath, shaking his head. His frustration was peaking. There was nothing that he could do, and he could see that Suicune and Cresselia were both panicking. Cresselia hadn't given up on the healing, her eyes brimming with tears. She was beyond panicking. Jason realized that the member of the Lunar Duo must depend on him more than they thought.

The revelation that came next from Cresselia shocked the other three in the room to their cores.

"He's in a coma," Cresselia whispered. "Whatever that poison is, it just sent him into a coma."

The silence was extremely heavy for a few minutes. Jason realized just how serious this was. What the heck have I gotten myself into? Jason wasn't ready for this. There was no way he was ever going to be ready for this. He glanced at Suicune and Zapdos, who were both quiet.

For a few seconds, anyway.

"…he dies, I swear I'm going to figure out a way to bring him back and kill him again myself."

"You do that, Suicune."

"Autumn, meet Kolton. Kolton, meet Autumn."

The two trainers shot each other a friendly smile as they shook hands. Rayquaza and Latios stood off to the side, glaring at the dark-type trainer with obvious distrust in their eyes. Mew, still in Flareon form, was lying on the deck, warming itself with the sun. Kolton could feels their gazes on the back of his neck. He resisted the urge to sigh. He was hoping that they would learn to trust him eventually. He doubted it, but he could always hope. Latias seemed to trust him at any length.

Why, he had no clue. He wasn't going to complain though. Latias seemed to be one of those people… or Legendary Pokemon… who lived to make people smile, who made the world seem brighter just by being around other people.

Latias was chatting away. Apparently she had come up with a back-story for how they knew Kolton. She had been a bit wary of Kolton the moment that she had met him, but she seemed to have warmed up to him quickly. He actually liked the peppy Legendary. She reminded him of a couple of friends he had made over the years.

"Autumn, Kolton was our neighbor back home," Latias explained. She gave a giggle as she blushed. "Kolton is like my best friend… and he was my first kiss."

Deciding to play along (and to egg on Latios, who looked very furious), Kolton rolled his eyes. "Lati, that was years ago! We were little kids!"

"I know, I know!" Latias gave a laugh as she saw Latios's face. Rayquaza actually looked somewhat amused, judging from the smirk on his face. Latios scowled, and Autumn gave a small laugh. Latias winked at Kolton, who winked back. Latios seemed to be fuming further.

"And we've been traveling with Autumn out of sheer boredom," Latias continued, nodding towards Autumn. Autumn grinned teasingly at Latias. The two had grown very comfortable around each other.

"Thanks, Lati," Autumn replied, rolling her eyes. "I'm so glad to know I'm keeping you guys from dying from boredom." Both of the girls giggled, and Kolton gave a small chuckle. Autumn glanced over towards the ship, and then glanced at Latias. "Hey, you want to grab a coffee or something? I'm thirsty."

"I'm in," Latias replied. She glanced at Mew. "Flareon, come on!"

Mew, using her Flareon guise, glared at Latias as she stood up and stretched. She trotted over, rubbing her head against Latias's leg before purposely stepping on Latias's foot. Latias ignored it, though Autumn and Kolton both chuckled upon seeing the victorious look on Mew's face. Kolton knew that the Flareon wasn't a Flareon, but he knew that the group was still keeping Autumn in the dark.

"Anyone else going to come?" asked Autumn glancing at the two Legendary Pokemon and the dark-type trainer.

"No thanks," Rayquaza and Latios both replied in unison.

"Nah. I can't drink coffee. I go completely hyper and then I crash in an hour," Kolton replied, shaking his head. "Me on coffee isn't a good thing."

"Okay, we'll be back in a few minutes then." Latias shot a mock glare towards Latios and Rayquaza. "Don't kill him while we're gone." Autumn laughed, but the Legendary Pokemon and Kolton didn't miss the dark glare that Latias shot the two boys.

The two girls walked off, the boys watching them before they disappeared into the crowd. Latios glared at Kolton, crossing his arms across his chest. Rayquaza rolled his eyes. Despite being Legendary Pokemon, Latios was still Latias's older brother. Older brothers were protective of little sisters, and Latios and Latias were no exception to that rule.

"Don't encourage her," snapped Latios, glaring darkly at Kolton.

Rayquaza rolled his eyes. "Heel, Latios. Heel, boy."

"Shut up, Green Boy."

Kolton snorted before glancing at the horizon. "We're going to reach Sunyshore in a few hours. I'll stick with you guys. Kelly will go after her soon. Trust me, I know that psychopath."

"How the heck does your family tree work out, anyway?" Rayquaza asked, frowning at the dark-type trainer. "You said that you're only Kelly's half-brother. You two had different mothers?"

"Yeah," Kolton replied, glancing at the dragon-type Legendary. "He met Kelly's mother a few years before he met mine. He and Kelly's mom ended up having her, and then Kelly's mom died. Kelly was only two years old. He met my mom, knocked her up, and then abandoned us." He shook his head. "I didn't meet Kelly until three years ago. I was fourteen, screwed up, and desperate."

"Why were you desperate?" Rayquaza asked, looking at him in a strange way.

"My mom had died a year before. I ran away soon after."

"I'm sorry," Rayquaza said quietly.

"It's been a long time," Kolton replied quietly. "She's in a better place now. And I'm glad that she's in that better place now. But Kelly's father is dead now. He died, and Kelly took up his little conquest." Rayquaza could tell from the tone of voice Kolton possessed that he considered this discussion over. He shook his head. "I'm going to grab a snack. I'll be back later."

He walked off, and Rayquaza and Latios watched him walk away. Latios's face was openly hostile towards the dark-type tournament favorite. Rayquaza was still reserving judgment on the young man, but until he proved that his loyalty was to the Legendaries (or anything that was not Kelly) Rayquaza was going to keep a close eye on him.

"Did you notice that?" Rayquaza asked, watching the dark-type trainer until he disappeared.

"Notice what?" Latios demanded, scowling. "The fact that he is trying my patience just to be irritating, or the fact that he and my sister apparently have a past together?"

"First of all, it's not even real. Second of all, they were apparently little children. And third of all, that's not what I'm talking about. Oh, and fourth… it's just fun to get you angry."

"You're hilarious."

"Yeah, I know."

"But seriously, what?"

"He didn't call his father 'my father' once. He only referred to him as 'he' or 'Kelly's father'." Rayquaza frowned. "There's some bad blood there. I'm just wondering what happened."

"As long as he's on our side, I don't care. He betrays us, so help me…"

"He won't, Latios," Rayquaza said. He glanced up sharply before looking to the side. "Someone's coming."

"Ray! Lott!"

The two glanced sharply to the right, the opposite direction that Kolton, Mew, Autumn, and Latias had gone. Coming towards them was a handsome, rugged young man. He was tall and lean, with dark brown hair that fell to his shoulders in thick locks. Yellow streaks were visible throughout his hair. He was dressed in red shorts with a silver shirt, silver sneakers, and silver bracelets on both hands.

"Entei," greeted Latios. He had already glanced to see if they were alone. Nobody was around where they were. He frowned at the look on the fire-type Legendary's face. "What's wrong?"

Entei looked grim as he stood in front of the two. "There was an attack. The Guardians are all alive, but…"

"But what?" Rayquaza demanded sharply. "What happened? Who got hurt?" Latios had a dark frown on his face, worried about what he was going to hear. Neither were prepared for what Entei said next.

"Darkrai was poisoned. He's dying."

Author's Note: Le gasp! Do you think I'll kill off Darkrai? Find out next time!

Please review! I need to know what you guys think! What do you guys think is going to happen? Speculate, people, speculate! Until next time, CSF is out of the house!