Tracks of Light

Chapter 30 (Final)

Ben stirred awake to the sensation of something wet running alongside his cheek, followed by a faint crackle of electricity. A groan escaped his lips as he pushed himself from the floor, trying to blink away the headache he probably got from the fall. Koa leapt off his shoulder and was beginning to squeak incessantly, which didn't do very much good for his headache already.

He squinted blearily at where he had dropped. Three stories, huh? The Ranger swung his arms to test his muscles. Nothing damaged, thankfully. He was lucky.

"Pi…"

Koa looked up at him expectantly for an answer. All Ben could do was shrug.

"A way out?" he said to it. "It'll take a while."

The Pichu shook its head furiously and then directed his attention to a doorway exactly at their level. Even luckier.

"Impressive, Koa," he picked up his little partner. "That saved us a few hours."

The door that let him in, predictably, closed in on him when he was completely inside the room, which was poorly lit by red light that was fastened along the wall. Koa was quick to get off of his shoulder and scamper towards the direction of the red lights. It stopped dead in front of it, and Ben read an expression of awe and fear from the little Pokemon. He scanned the room for anything to look out for before joining Koa at the columns of red light that was far too advanced to be set in this fortress. When he came in clear view of the biggest tube, he understood why his partner was so afraid.

"T-That's…" he breathed.

Mewtwo. He only heard of this Pokemon in textbooks, seen blurry photos of the creature, not in person like this. And then Ben remembered about the general Ranger conference he and Keith went to a few months back, not long before they departed for Oblivia. And one of the panels was about the worldwide backup plan in the case that Mewtwo should ever wreak havoc. The protocol was no different than regular emergencies, but should the government ever release an alert on its escape, they would have to be prepared to deal with an unstable psychic Pokemon that could easily tear a human apart.

Ben had always wondered that since he wasn't the normal type, a Black Water prototype and all, if he could withstand Mewtwo's psychic powers. Maybe so, Keith had once told him. It had never been tested (his mentor flat out refused to place his charge in a life threatening situation like that), but since he was in no position to issue an alert, he'd have to think about it. Hopefully not.

Ben took note of the stairs that led upwards. Hopefully this would take him right to the chamber where he fell out of. Where Summer was. He hoped she was all right.

"Koa," he called out to his partner. "Let's get going."

The Pichu gave the sleeping Mewtwo one last look before scurrying after him. The climb was a relatively blind effort, and Ben was regretting not snatching one of the torches back at the foot of the stairs to make navigation easier. Even if he was able to sense where the steps were, he could not be comforted that his body was basically moving on its own and already a step ahead of his mind.

Ben assumed that they must have stepped on a triggered flight of stairs when the top of the winding staircase opened to a sliding trapdoor that led to the next floor. Once he emerged to the new room, he came to face with the stone statue of a stylized Pokemon. Now he remembered where this was. This was the first chamber he and Summer couldn't get past, with the high energy barrier that even he couldn't pass through.

"Ben?!"

The Ranger whirled around and spotted the strawberry blonde girl coming his way. Startled by her fuming expression, he expected for a hard slap to his face, but it never came.

"What did you think you were doing?" She scolded him instead. "Reusing ahead on your own, falling, and leaving me behind! That's what you get when you're in too much of a hurry."

Koa let out a guilty little whimper and head behind his hair. Ben understood his poor partner. Summer was scary when things went bad, in a panicky way or a furious way.

"I'm sorry," Ben said sheepishly. "I didn't think I'd fall three stories."

Summer considered his apology, and shook her head exasperatedly before she let him go.

"Be careful from now on," she chided him finally. "I was alone, and it wasn't fun."

"I'm sorry," Ben averted his gaze. "By the way, the trapdoor where I came from opened on its own. I thought I stepped on a switch…"

"Oh, that's right!" Summer cut in and pointed at a slightly raised tile on the ground next to the Pokemon statue. "Ben, these yellow switches appeared after you fell... I wonder if they have anything to do with the path to the right being blocked off. Shall we try stepping on the switch for now?"

Ben quirked his eyebrow at his friend. Something was a little off about Summer, now that he realized how terse she sounded. She could be angry, but not this bad. Summer was never a passive-aggressive person when it came to venting out steam when it came to disagreements. And who uses "shall" anymore?

He crushed the thought a moment later. He shouldn't be over-analyzing the situation. That would just waste more time he already probably accosted the group. Kate and Keith probably were done by now.

"Okay," he played along, addressing the three tiles laid before them. "Which one do we try first?"

"I'm positive that it's be switch in the middle!"

Very confident, Ben noted. Since he was out for quite a while, Summer probably tried out these tiles on her own, though he couldn't understand why she would go around getting him to figure this entire thing out for himself. Summer was not one for puzzles.

Just to humor her, he went and stepped on the middle switch, and then all hell broke loose.

Koa squeaked in surprise as it was launched into the air by the tiles it was standing over, just as it was hurtling into a field of spikes that had come out of the floor. Ben quickly reached out and caught his little partner before he could get skewered, and held it safely to his chest. Thank goodness the mouse didn't venture off too far into the field. He wouldn't know how he could save it.

"I'm so sorry," Summer rushed to his side. "It appears to have been a trap!"

"Yeah," Ben agreed, and set Koa on his shoulder. "I guess we'll have to go through this one, and stay beside me."

Navigating the traps was fairly easy, since all they did was follow a simple pattern that alternated between the panels. Ben observed Summer discreetly, noticing that she was not at all focused on her surroundings like she should. She had been acting rather strange for these past few minutes, like really strange.

They came across another set of switches, and Ben was glad there was only two. It's a fifty to fifty chance now.

"Okay," He said cautiously. "Since we know you hate puzzles, I'll do the checking, all right?"

"Oops."

Ben watched with a dropped jaw as Summer had already stepped on one of the tiles, and much to his bad luck, a Voltorb crashed onto the ground, shooting off sparks as it identified Ben as the closest thing it should blow up. The Ranger scowled as he ran about the room trying to capture it as quickly as possible, and Koa was struggling to overcome Voltorb's electric current with its own to calm it down.

Fortunately, the electric Pokemon was feasible to defeat, and Ben sent Summer a withering look. She didn't help at all, if he remembered.

"Oh my," she finally said. "That was a trap, too, huh? I'm sorry."

"Yeah," Ben said with a severe face. "Sorry's more like it."

He stepped on the untouched button, and the next barrier or trap was disabled soundly. Ben wanted to sigh in relief, but he had to be careful of Summer now. She was never this much of a troublemaker as a Top Ranger. He was starting to think she inhaled some sort of gas when he was out.

They reached the next corridor and lo and behold, a single button was left in wait. The passage was relatively clean of traps when he gave it a once over. Ben then was about to cross the corridor when a pair of hands shoved him right on the right tile where he could have been crushed by a massive iron block if it hadn't been for his own skills and Koa's shrieking and furious pointing to the ceiling. At this point, Ben wasn't even surprised who had pushed him.

Summer, on the other hands, was giggling like a giddy schoolgirl. She didn't even shrink under his glare.

"Sorry!" Her voice was not in the slightest regretful. "I thought I was going to fall, and I accidentally pushed you back!"

Ben let out a small scowl as he got back on his feet. This really wasn't Summer at all, if he thought about it, but he wanted to deny it. He couldn't really imagine what was done to Summer for her to act reckless, so callous, in the span of what, like a few hours?

He took out a Pokeball and called out Kate's Bastidon, and together, they dispatched the block to make way for them to keep going. Summer immediately praised him for his strength, which was odd because she already knew that. Ben could tell this was no Summer, but he had to keep ignoring her, pretending that he could see right through it. Something happened to Summer, and he was going to have to find out.

-oOo-

The waiting proved to be worth every single second of it. Ben's fears were confirmed when he stepped into what he thought was the last chamber. He had found Summer crumpled on the floor, not severely wounded, but at the very best unconscious. And that did it. He wasted no time facing the imposter and slugging her in the face, hard enough to send her hurtling across the room.

To his expectations, not-Summer rose back on her feet, a demented grin plastered over her face.

"Oh my…" she breathed, "This is no good."

"Ben!"

Said Ranger whirled around and saw his partner was slowly getting up. Her hair was a little frazzled, so he had to wonder if Koa had shocked her awake. Despite this, her awakening was perfect timing.

"Aww," not-Summer falsely bemoaned. "My disguise was perfect!"

"Wrong," Summer growled. "You probably didn't play the part right."

Ben was about to come forth and deal with the imposter, but Summer was faster. She raced forward, and with just her hands and lips, she whistled out a small tune. Ben and not-Summer were not sure what she was about to do until a great many shadows loomed over the great glass dome of the chamber, shattering all the windows at once.

A flood of wings streamed into the chamber and formed a whirlwind around the imposter. Ben heard a surprised cry from in the mass of birds, realizing they were tearing apart the fabric and false skin that made up not-Summer's disguise. He glanced back at Summer, who was now rejoined by her own Staraptor partner, and the two of them observed quietly as the birds finally parted from their victim. Now that Ben could see who was responsible for the mix-up, he could see how badly they had been fooled.

"Kasa!" Summer roared. "So you're the one who knocked me out!"

The Societea's master of disguise didn't have much left to hide.

"Yes, that's right," she taunted them. "It was all I could do to keep from laughing that you fell for such obvious acting. I'd love to play with you a bit longer, but how about we end this? Let me give you a taste of what it feels like when those Pokemon are your enemy!"

She waved her hand absently, and out of the broken glass stepped the three Pokemon Ben had least expected to see. The Legendary Beasts began to circle the two Rangers and their partners, teeth bared and snarling.

"Listen," Summer said. "I'll take Raikou. You take the other two. Got it?"

Ben stiffened, not really used to Summer telling him instructions, but he nodded in agreement. He leapt into the air to avoid a fireball that was aimed in his direction and released his Capture Disc in mid-air while Koa began his song.

The capture was long and arduous, but bad enough for either of them to get any new wounds. Ben had no trouble, since he was always faster, but Summer was surprisingly doing much better on her own. She had managed to calm down the Raikou and was already helping him take out Suicune with her army of birds. How she did that, he'll have to ask later.

He could tell that Kasa didn't expect either of them to win this fight. The woman was obviously despondent when the Legendary Beasts backed down and returned to their original form as Ditto again.

"I can't believe I lost," the woman let her shoulders hang. "It feels like my beloved walk-in closet has been emptied out…"

"Wearing fancy items and disguises is fine," Summer suggested. "But how about using this as an opportunity to take a good look at who you really are?"

Kasa gasped in surprise at the Ranger's advice, but she scoffed and snapped her fingers. The door Ben had arrived in reopened again, letting them escape.

"Quite a know-it-all kid," she said to Summer. "Go ahead. I won't bother you any longer…"

"As you should," Ben finally said, and he slapped cuffs on the woman's wrists. "There's a squadron of Area Rangers waiting outside for you to take you into custody. Be on time."

-oOo-

After they left the chambers, sure that Kasa was left in the hands of the Area Rangers, they were back at the main door again. Summer considered for a moment, looking at Ben as he tried to gather his bearings to go into the last chamber. When he returned the gaze and noticed what she was doing, she felt her face grow hot and she turned away from him.

"What's wrong?"

"Ben…" she thought about it a little while. "I'm sorry getting caught. Kasa, she… pretending to be you before knocking me out. Just to make sure, though... Are you sure you're the real Ben?"

"Yes," Ben said. "Summer, you're a good partner. Maybe a little afraid of lightning, but a good partner nonetheless. Is that enough proof for you?"

"T-Thanks," The Ranger bit her lip, feeling her eyes watering. This was ridiculous. She was crying over nothing, even though they had won that battle. He had implied that she didn't fail him, yet she felt that she really didn't do her best. If only…

"Speaking of which," Ben asked. "What was going on when you… summoned an entire legion of Wingull and Staravia? I didn't know you were into that stuff."

"I just learned it," Summer explained. "From some of the locals."

She didn't really divulge very much information, but it was enough for Ben to understand. The smile on his face warmed her heart a little more. He was proud of her. What she had done was worth it. Approaching Supurna those few days ago was not a mistake after all.

"Guys!" A child's voice called out to them. Nema had run out of her hiding place and was coming their way, her portable Styler Recharger waving in the air.

"Nema!" Summer chided the younger girl. "We were going to go to you? Why did you go out of your hiding place!"

"It's the last stretch, Summer," the little scientist defended. "I'm going to go with you. The Area Rangers are here with us, too, so I'll be safe in the open."

"Yeah, but they're going back, not with us," Ben added. "You should go back after recharging our Stylers. We'll be fine. There's electric Pokemon that could restore our equipment if we want to."

"That's for me to decide, not you," Nema then pointed to the main door. "It looks like one of the seals on the door was broken! Man! It was hard trying to get to you! I can't reach Dad or any of the others!"

"The others?" Summer raised an eyebrow. "You mean Kate and Keith aren't back yet? That's weird. We took longer than they did."

"That'll be on them," Ben said. "What could also be the case is that they went through that third door before us. We should just go ahead and walk back there."

Summer agreed, "Let's hope they're already done with whoever they're facing there."

-oOo-

Arley's feet gave up from under him, doubling over at the waist. That kid kicked hard, despite how much training and endurance the wrestler had built up on over the many years he's lived. He shuddered as a pair of feet walked into his vision as he was fixated on the ground. His eyes rose to meet the other, in awe at just how menacing a simple child could look like. Edward and Kasa were right. This child truly was a product of the gods, the perfect candidate.

"I-I never dreamed you were this good," he wheezed, but he made no struggle to get up. "To think… that you would beat me."

What had occurred was exactly what he meant. He had set various Pokemon on Ben and his partners, but they managed to deal with their obstacles with ease. Even when Ben ran out of support Pokemon, he resorted to using his own strength against the mighty Regigigas. And he still had energy to face Arley himself.

"You rely on power too much!" Summer called out to him. As for her, Arley did not really see any reason to be reverential to her. She was a brat, through and through. She was nothing like Ben here. From what he knew, she never went through what her friend went through. It was charming to see she was able to command so many birds with just a few songs (he refused to admit that was impressive, since Hocus could do a lot better), but she lacked the right mind. She always aimed to please, not protect. She was not fit to be in the role the Societea laid out for them.

"You felt that yourself," Ben finally spoke to him. "Didn't you?"

Arley looked back at the Ranger, reading the hopeful look on his face. What type of answer was he expecting? For this, he did not know what to say, and he was most likely going to disappoint the boy for not having any response.

Before he could open his mouth, he watched Ben's face drain of color and back away slowly from him. Summer was also having the same moment, taking the boy's little Pichu and cradling it from view. Arley noticed that the boy was staring at his torso. His green garments were stained red, and a long blade was the cause of it all. He couldn't feel the burning feeling yet, but the idea of a sword protruding from his stomach was not helping.

"How insolent," a familiar voice appeared from behind him, and he tried to turn around, the sensation of the blade worsening as he did so. His discovery was less than pleasant.

"Y-You…"

"Of course it is me," Purple Eyes hadn't even bothered to hide himself when he withdrew his blade and swung for his head.

-oOo-

Ben didn't disturb Summer as she sat in the corner with her Staraptor and Koa. Nema didn't understand what the girl was grieving about, but she did her best to comfort her. Rand and Sven had come back the moment Ben had called for him, and the boy explained the situation in detail to the two men. Summer was in no state to go with him to the next part, not after what she had witnessed.

He was met with surprise from both of them when he finally explained that Arley was dead. Sven immediately ran back to the now open chamber to confirm the body and came out, shaking his head to Rand. The older Ranger slumped in defeat.

"That man is dangerous," Ben said about Purple Eyes. "But to think he'd go this far…"

"Rand and I'll go with you," Sven asked the boy. "But what about you, Ben? Are you okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"You just saw a man decapitated," the Ranger exclaimed incredulously. "And you're not bothered at all?"

Was he bothered by it? He wanted to say yes, but he wasn't ready to burst into tears. For some reason, watching Arley die was nothing compared to what Ben did back when… he was imprisoned with Kellyn and Basil, when he hurt both of them, or when he watched all the other kids fail to assimilate to the earlier samples of Black Water. It was a pity he felt this way, but he couldn't do anything about it.

"I've seen worse," he supplied. "And this probably isn't the beginning. He might be targeting the rest of the Societea at this rate…"

"Ben!" Crawford called in on his Styler, overriding the call feature. "The suspect! I'm sorry, but the lady's dead."

Ben watched Rand stiffen, shocked that the news would come so soon. He and Sven exchanged glances, realizing things had come to worse.

Sven turned to the panicked Area Ranger on the Styler, "How?"

"Someone stabbed her when we weren't looking! If only I were more careful…"

"It's fine," the Ranger reassured his friend. "We'll deal with it after we get out of here."

"Yeah, that should be fine," the man frowned in concern. "Oh, and I tried to call Kate and Keith about it, but they didn't reply. What's up with that?"

"They're missing at the moment," Sven answered. "But I think Summer and I met the person responsible for it. I think it's our killer here."

"So what now?"

"Sven, Rand, and I are going to head into the main chamber," Ben explained. "We're sending Summer back if we have to. Give her a shock blanket when she comes out."

"Okay," Crawford nodded. "I'll alert the other Rangers to take care of themselves. You guys stay safe."

Communications were shut off when the conversation ended, and the men were about to go away when they heard a pair of feet approaching them.

"I'm going."

Ben looked at Summer, who didn't look much better than when they had gotten out of Arley's chamber. She still looked deathly pale, but the harsh glare on her face suggested otherwise.

"Summer," Rand tried to persuade her. "You're not able to-"

"You don't have to worry about me," Summer said. "But I won't just abandon my mission by just one or two deaths."

"Let the kid come along," Sven shrugged. "The more the merrier. We have no idea how good the next boss is."

-oOo-

In a strange world of a long desert, echoes of heavy footsteps resounded in the endless walls. A strong trail of red followed after the two, but the crimson carpet faded away after a while, leaving nothing behind. The feet that carried another were getting slower and slower as the hours passed. Her legs gave way, and they fell to the floor, the strength in their legs lost entirely. Kate struggled to get up, her fingers

"Your legs," she asked him. "You okay?"

Keith's eyes flitted about aimlessly, as he couldn't see anything past a few feet of his face.

"I can't feel anything," he whispered back. "It's not… much of a problem, thought."

"That's good," Kate strained her throat. She hadn't made any effort to use it for what felt like a few days or months. She couldn't see anything much herself, but at least she still had enough strength to crawl. They couldn't remember much, other than sitting the dark with Purple Eyes looming over them. He asked many things, but neither of them had any answers and long after that they were kicked into this hell of a wasteland.

"Kate?"

"Hm?"

"You know, I never really told you," Keith was going talk for as long as he liked. If he was going to die, he could at least waste however many words he had left.

"Told me what?"

"That Rhyth and Isaac's wedding's going to be in a week. To think we've been here for about three months already… I nearly forgot about it."

A pause.

"And?"

"Well, Isaac wanted me to be his best man and I said yeah," he imagined himself in a suit. "Plus I was going to ask you to be the bridesmaid… Don't tell Rhyth I said that. It was meant to be a surprise."

"Yet you brought the entire Union here."

"Well, I didn't mention you at the meeting, now did I?"

The ground was starting to feel like sand, or clouds, a lot more comfortable than whatever they fell on the first time they set foot here. There was a sun, but it beat hard on their prone bodies.

"So what do you say? Want to come home now that this is over?"

"I've… I've given it some thought."

A small smile graced Keith's lips. He reached out for her hand, barely even having the strength to grasp it. They were not really human, but they did have limits. They were torches compared to the little candles that other people were. Perhaps now that Purple Eyes threw them here, those lights would finally be put out. They've walked so far with little to no luck. Yeah, maybe those lights would finally be blown out.

"Hey, Kate, you still there?"

No answer.

"Kate?"

He was about to panic and use the last of his strength to get up and make sure she was still breathing, but he was forced to close his eyes. He felt himself being lifted from the sand, with Kate's hand still entwined in his, and they could feel the heat of the sun approaching them. The sensation of large hands cradling them certainly didn't make things easier, but Keith felt like he could relax, not in the way that he was being released from his pain.

He was not going to visit death, but the light.

"Keith."

"Wha-"

He was pulled into sitting position, his strength returning to him. He was looking up at a concerned Rand. Rand?

"Rand, what are you doing here?!"

"I could say the same," the man looked like he was going to cry. "We thought you were dead."

"Dead?"

"Purple Eyes told us everything," the Ranger helped him to his feet. "He was behind the murder of the Societea. He stole Edward's armor and combined into the Golden Armor and took control of a Mewtwo, and was about to kill the doctor. I jumped in… and now I'm here."

"Was Edward caught in the attack?"

"I don't know. But… Where's Kate?"

"Kate?" Keith looked around. They were in the clouds, like how Hocus envisioned his little challenge at the end of his chamber. She could be anywhere, or she may have fallen through the clouds unconscious. She didn't answer him, so she could have still been asleep.

"I'm here."

Her steady voice caught them by surprise, and Keith restrained himself from flinging his arms around her. She was healthy and well again, as if their long trek had never happened at all.

"Kate," he breathed. "I… Where are we?"

"I don't know," the woman gave their surroundings a quick glance. "I'm more surprised that Rand managed to get here."

"Well, we're in heaven," Keith joked. "Does this mean we're dead?"

"Absolutely not."

A chill ran down Keith's spine as he saw the newcomer. He wasn't donning the piece of Golden Armor like they last saw him, but they all crouched into a defensive stance.

"Edward," Rand spoke first. "So you got caught in that attack, too."

"It seems so," he said. "I have no reason to hurt you anymore. I'm here for something else."

"And that is?"

"A summoning."

Just as he finished saying that, the clouds parted, and great white horse galloped into view. Its great head craned down to their level, scrutinizing the smaller beings.

"Uh, that's it," Keith quipped quietly. "I think we're in heaven."

"That's…" Rand staggered, in fear and awe. "That's Arceus."

"Indeed it is," Edward said as he stepped forth, and bowed under the light. Keith and Kate exchanged uneasy glances before kneeling themselves, trying to copy the doctor's movements.

Rise, young Children. You are, for the time being, welcome.

As they got to their feet, Arceus's head turned to Edward, who seemed to know this Pokemon better. Keith and Kate lingered behind, unsure of what they should do. It was hardly possible enough for them to have walked so far, only to be given their strength back so easily. Was that this god's doing?

"I am Edward, the Thinker," the doctor presented himself. "I have come back."

Ah, the Thinker, Arceus lowered his head in recognition. To think you would do so much just to have an audience with me.

"And that I have considered for a while," The doctor winced at the jab. "My behavior was unbecoming. I had realized that when the rest of us had been too consumed in our desire to meet you that we forgot that others wanted you for the wrong reasons. I shall accept all punishment, Arceus."

If you were coming to see me, the great equine god wondered. What do you wish to ask of me. Only one so desperate would want to sacrifice for me.

"We had wanted to ask for your blessings again," Edward explained. "But now that only I am alive, I don't know how effective my request is."

And why do you wish for me to bestow those curses upon you again?

"The gates have been opened," Edward talked as if the god could understand him. "We had worked to close them before, but that hasn't stopped man from trying once again to use ways to reach you in dishonorable ways."

"What is he talking about?" Rand asked Keith, who shrugged. The doctor and this Pokemon god was chatting it up about gates and blessings, he couldn't tell right or wrong from it.

I cannot provide such assistance, Arceus finally said. You are but only one man. You cannot carry such a burden. Your bones are too brittle. Your mind has aged too far. I cannot give my blessings to someone so frail. And do not forget that you too had become a dishonorable one. You cannot leave without being punished.

Keith was silently expecting the doctor to explode and plead, but the man hung his shoulders dejectedly.

But I can heed your warning, They added. If you wish this to be dealt with. I will find the right Children for this task.

Edward's eyes lit up and he presented the three Rangers behind him.

"Then your Children are here."

The great horse lifted its head and examined the three of them. Keith wanted to melt under its gaze. Its gaze was too intense for him to even handle, he had to admire Doctor Edward for actually being able to stare this Pokemon straight in the face.

They certainly are good choices, Arceus said. But only two of them are candidates.

"The other tried to save me," Edward reasoned. "I guess that wasn't enough."

I am afraid not. We can do him a favor by sending him back.

In a flash, Rand had disappeared. Keith quickly waved a hand over where Rand was, and felt nothing.

"What did you do to Rand?" Kate asked, though her tone was far too indignant, for a god, that was.

I have returned him back to his world, Arceus was pretty good to control his temper. I will return the two of you as well, but only when I have given you my instruction.

"For what?"

Katherine Adeline Davies, They recited. I understand that you and Keith Alphonse Mustang have been tirelessly finding the cause of an accident that had left both of you the way you are. The Project of Black Water, I presume?

"That is… correct."

"Then we can say this," Edward explained. "This is not the first time this has happened. In my time, there had been the existence of experiments that threatened other people and Pokemon. Some of my Societea, namely Arley and many others, were products of such vile deeds. And we as the Societea worked to put down this threat."

The Societea, as they call it, were once our own allies, Arceus continued. But after they completed their duties, they have been relieved from peacekeepers and champions of us gods. We had assumed our world would be at relative peace, but sadly this is not the case, and we have not chosen anyone to be like what Societea had been for us.

"Since you left us here," Kate contested. "You mean to say that we will 'carry on' whatever legacy Doctor Edward here had left us?"

"This is only an invitation," Edward excused himself. "This would advance your findings."

Keith looked expectantly at Kate, hoping to get a better explanation. She had a long staring contest with the doctor and then with Arceus themselves.

"If I was allowed time to consider," Kate said. "Would I able to come back? Here, I mean."

Child, Arceus reassured her. I will keep watch over you and other potential champions as long as I can, until you decide.

"Then it's settled," Kate finally said. "And Purple Eyes?"

He shall be dealt with accordingly. You should return home knowing that he is no longer a threat to you or any of us.

"Are you going to stay here?" Kate asked Edward one more time. The doctor nodded.

"My punishment is already given," he said solemnly. "My friends are no longer with me. I will stay here until I'm dust."

Keith watched as Kate placed a hand on his shoulder, and giving one last glance to Arceus, she turned him away as they walked away into the light.

-oOo-

Ben kept Summer and Koa close to him even after the rumbling had stopped. The plummeting feeling of vertigo was slowly easing out of his system as he felt Summer stir under his protective arm. They both got up from where they lay on the stone floor.

He had to say that they just did the most ridiculous thing. After Rand had been blown away in that attack from Mewtwo with Edward and hearing what Purple Eyes had done to his mentors, the boy had nearly lost his handle on himself and was ready to beat Purple Eyes into a pulp. He had Summer to thank for stopping him, but the damage that was done to the entire fortress was too much, and after Purple Eyes was defeated, the fortress was set into free-fall straight on Renbow Island. But somehow the crisis was averted when Ho-Oh returned to set it into the ocean away from the islands. It was too much like a dream.

He watched his friend leap to her feet, admiring the sun and the waves. He himself couldn't contain his own excitement and relief. They had won, at a steep price, but they had won. Ben was yanked to his feet and was spun with Summer, who was now frozen in place.

"We…" She stammered, struggling to hold in her tears. "We were saved, too…"

After many hugs, the two of them set out to find the Rangers who had been left around the fortress. Thankfully, no one had gotten hurt. Crawford and the Area Rangers were gathered outside the doors they first came through and even more crying ensued. However, Ben was approached by Nema, who was confused and lost.

"Where's Papa?"

Everyone held their tongues, not sure how to answer that question. Summer stopped crying in joy and she hid her face from Nema with her scarf. Ben took a deep breath and knelt to the little girl's level.

"Nema," He said. "I… I'm sorry to tell you this, but… your father was a brave man…"

In those words, the little girl was about to become a blubbering mess. The festivities came to a halt immediately as the little girl was viciously rubbing the tears that flowed out of her eyes, and Ben made a move to hug her and comfort her. He wasn't going to tell her what happened to Kate and Keith, that they too died in the line of duty. Nema shouldn't have to deal with three deaths.

Ben could feel the morale of the entire group drop to a new low as Nema continued to cry. Strangely, he felt cold. Or maybe it was confidence, or hope…

"Guys!" Crawford hollered. "We've got visual confirmation from Hastings!"

All eyes turned on the big haired Ranger who was too excited for his own good.

"They've found them. All three of them! They're in critical, but they're going to live."

And the festivities resumed.

-ONE WEEK-

"I… I don't know what I should say."

"Look, Kate," Keith tried to ease his girlfriend's fears. "I've got no advice for you, but please, just be yourself. Rhythmi's right behind that door."

Kate bit her lip as she fumbled with the door knob. She was scared, which she refused to admit to Keith, despite how many times he kept teasing her about it.

She had to say, this was getting out of hand. They had just been given the okay from the doctors and boarded the first plane to Almia. Keith even had the idea to shove her the bridesmaid dress (delivered to him personally by Sven) just as soon as they got off the plane, and with Summer's help, they managed to make her look acceptable for a maid of honor. Kate was no expert on makeup, but she was sure she would have to reapply everything again, especially after all the running.

The light hit her face like a few ton of bricks and she immediately raised a hand to shield herself. She peeked through the crevices in her fingers to see the image of a beautiful bride, her blonde hair tied up with ornate pins, a long flowing dress Kate would no doubt be carrying for the entirety of the ceremony. Isaac deserved someone so wonderful, and Kate couldn't have been any prouder of an old friend.

The ex-Ranger, no, reinstated Top Ranger, snapped out of her reverie when Rhythmi turned around and nearly dropped her mirror in shock. Kate stepped forward to catch it but stumbled a few in her heels. Damn all that running.

"Kate…?"

"Yes, it's me."

-oOo-

A/N: Hahahahaha, I got too tired to write anything, and I am terribly ashamed. Didn't really get to end it with the bang it deserves, but I've gotten pretty worn out leaving this story hanging, I had to end it or else leave it unfinished.

So what now? Well, this was meant to be a prequel to my current Pokemon Black 2 Semi-Nuzlocke (I decided that midway, so that's why things just got so weird), branching on the continuity of Project Black Water, but then I look back on this and said, yeah, this is a pretty okay story, but I kinda wanted to reboot it.

This is probably confusing. Maybe I should add a note on what I had intended to happen.

Except now things are different, and I don't think I'll have much time, and I have future projects to work on. So, probably sticking to writing the reboot in The Little Miracles as drabbles, or I'll leave a Tumblr post on my blog explaining what I wanted to happen in the reboot. But this is the end. I'm sorry for having dragged this out for so long, but I'm glad to have reached the end with all of you.