Episode 56: Into the future

"Is he okay?"

"I think so."

"Guys! He's fine!" Niko finally heard Charlotte's voice. Opening his eyes seemed like a chore at this point. He heard her explaining his connection to mega evolution. Slowly, but surely, he opened his eyes to see the young brunette woman staring down at him with a concerned expression. "Niko! Are you okay?"

"Yeah…" he said, fully opening his eyes to see Charlotte, Warren, his mother and Jake, and Hau and Kukui standing over him. He slowly got up, feeling only minor aches but ultimately fine by the time he sat up. "I passed out, didn't I?"

"Only for a couple of minutes," Kukui replied. "Not enough for it to be serious. We had no idea of your condition."

"My…condition?" Niko asked. He had never considered it a condition before. It was unique and be felt way more in tune with his Pokémon, but never as a "condition." Not that there was anything wrong with that, of course. "Right. Yeah, that happens sometimes. It happened when I was at the Lumiose Conference. It was the first time, actually."

He suddenly remembered why he passed out. His eyes widened, and he looked directly at Hau.

"Who won?"

"I did," Hau said. "It was close for sure, but Venusaur collapsed just after you did, and the judge called it for Raichu. You put up a great fight, though. I haven't had a battle that exciting since…" he turned to Ash, who was standing in the small crowd of Kahunas and Elite 4 members, "well, since you, Ash."

The spiky, black-haired trainer laughed nervously, his Pikachu doing the same.

Niko nodded. He didn't completely expect himself to win. This was always going to be difficult for him. But part of him wanted to be the winner, the Champion.

He just hoped his Pokémon were taking it well.

"Anyway," Hau said. "There isn't much else to say, other than good luck in your next adventures, wherever they take you. I hope we can battle again one day."

"Likewise," Niko said, shaking the Champion's hand. He finally stood up and faced his friends and family. He turned to his mother and Jake first. They simply smiled as they each hugged him.

"We're proud of you," Jake said.

"And so is your father," Daisy said.

Next were Sydney and Warren. Then JJ, Maizie, and Brittany. Then Kaila. "I want to be like you one day, Niko. I want to challenge you to a battle."

"I accept," Niko said with a smile. "But maybe not today."

Finally he looked at Poipole, and then Charlotte. The Poison Pin Pokémon realized what had happened and floated over to hug its trainer. Niko returned the hug, feeling an odd warmth inside of the Ultra Beast. Lastly, he turned to his girlfriend.

"I'm proud of you, too," she said, looking up at Niko. "Always will be."

"Thanks," Niko said, hugging her tightly.

The biggest question for him now was—what next?

That evening, the group had had one final dinner together before JJ and Maizie would head back to Akala Island, as they had been gone for some time and needed to give their caretaker a break. Plus, they needed to make final preparations for the birth of their child. After the dinner, Niko simply shook his long time friend's hand and smiled. They said nothing other than their farewells. After all, there wasn't much to say anyway.

Niko lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling. Earlier, before the dinner, he had broken the news to all of his Pokémon. Some were disappointed, but mostly they were sad. Niko did what he could to reassure them, saying that they were nearly there. Venusaur, surprisingly, seemed to take the loss well. This could have been because of how that battle against Raichu had a toll on Niko, or maybe he—like his trainer—understood the uphill battle they had from the start. They had never engaged with a Champion head-on before, at least not like that. His attitude, more than anything, made him proud to be Venusaur's trainer. The Seed Pokémon was wise beyond his years.

After a while, he really started to consider his options. He could re-challenge the Indigo League, hoping to make it past the Elite 4 there. Or he could go out in search of another region, like he had done for the past six years. He wanted to consult with Charlotte, who was bound for Castelia City with her mother.

He wanted to be with her, more than anything. Even if he had to go to Unova, he would. He liked it there and wouldn't mind settling down in Castelia City. He'd be closer to Warren and Sydney. He could finally get a proper education, or find a job working in the battling field. He could even re-challenge the Unova League. After all, he made it to the finals, and could likely make it to the Elite 4 with another shot.

The possibilities were endless.

"What do you think?" Niko asked Charlotte as she laid down next to him. She shrugged.

"I think you mentioned that you wanted to go with Jake to Sinnoh, right?" she said. "He's pretty close to getting all of his badges anyways."

Niko nodded. In his hyperactive state of mind, he completely forgot about that. "You're right! I could do that, actually. Would you want to join us, provided he's okay with it?"

"Oh, of course I would," Charlotte said. "I was only planning on going home if there was no plan. If you want to go somewhere, I'll go with you. Maybe I could challenge some of the gyms there?"

"Actually, it's possible. We'd have to split from Jake after a while so you could collect the first six. Or we could stay there until the Lily of the Valley Conference next year? Either way, you might like Sinnoh, actually."

"Maybe I'll just tag along with you two, provided Jake is alright with it."

"Okay! It's a plan, then," Niko said, finally settling on something. "He's leaving tomorrow, so we need to tell the others first."

They both got up and made their way to Jake's room, just down the hall from theirs. It was still early in the evening, and so it was likely no one was yet asleep. They knocked, and he promptly opened the door.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Jake asked, throwing back some of his red-brown hair. The couple explained their proposition. "Oh, of course you can! I'd love for you two to join me. Niko already knows the area, so it'd be a big help! Charlotte, is your mom alright with it?"

"I haven't asked, but I will in a moment. We just wanted to make sure it was okay with you first."

"Absolutely," Jake said with a smile. "We'll be flying into Veilstone City and heading north to Snowpoint. Niko, you're okay with that?" Niko nodded. "Excellent. Just let me know what happens on your end, and we'll leave tomorrow!"

Next, the couple went to the individual rooms of Emily and Daisy. Charlotte's mother seemed perfectly fine with it, as did Niko's. They only had one more room to hit before going back and packing for their next adventure.

"Wait, you're doing what?" Warren asked. He had a separate room with Sydney during the Lanakila Conference, which worked out well for both couples.

"We're leaving for Sinnoh tomorrow. It was a snap decision, I'm really sorry," Niko said. To his surprise, his friend wasn't angry.

"Niko, Charlotte, I'll always support your decisions. You know that, right? I just hoped to have more time with you both before you leave, that's all."

"Well, we won't be gone that long. Just until the Lily of the Valley Conference to watch Jake. I might try and quickly visit wherever Brittany is to watch a Grand Festival or something, but otherwise only a couple of months. We might visit Castelia after, but that's up to fate right now," Niko explained.

"I hear ya. I'd like to start looking into opening my orphanage. Sydney loves the idea, too!" he said, side-hugging his girlfriend. "I think I might start out doing some freelance writing while I set everything else up."

"I'm just glad you have something you want to do, besides just travelling," Niko said with a grin. He clasped Warren's hand, and the two couples said goodnight before heading to bed.

Everyone met at the port near Tapu Village the following morning. Boats would take them to Hau'oli City first, and then they would take individual airplanes to their respective destinations.

It had been some time since Niko, Charlotte, and Warren had been to Hau'oli City, where they started their adventure. It had only been eight or so months, but it had felt like an eternity. As they made their way to the airport, they finally parted ways with Kaila.

The goodbyes were emotional for all parties. Kaila was sobbing, with Ruffy trying to comfort her. Eventually, Charlotte stepped forward and hugged her.

"We'll be back, I promise," she said.

"Y-you will?" Kaila asked. Niko and Charlotte both nodded. "Or! Or I could visit you two!"

"We'd love that. Let's keep in touch, though," Niko said, hugging Kaila. "I'm really proud of you, too."

"I'm so glad I got to meet you guys. I don't know where I'd be without you."

This struck Niko particularly hard. No one had ever told him that before. He considered it, for sure, but it had never been spoken to him. He smiled wearily, trying to hold back a few tears.

"Bye, Niko and Charlotte. Oh, and Warren, too!" she said with a giggle.

"There isn't such a thing as goodbye, Kaila," Niko said with a slight grin. "Only 'we'll see each other again.'"

Kaila nodded. "Right! See you later!"

She waved vigorously as the group walked into the airport, where they further split off.

Warren, Sydney, and Emily were headed towards a flight bound for Castelia City, and Daisy was going to Pallet Town, leaving Niko, Charlotte, and Jake at roughly the same time.

They all said farewell to one another. Niko first hugged his mother good-bye. "I'll keep him safe," Niko said in reference to Jake. "We've done this before."

"I know, but I still worry," Daisy said with an exhausted smile.

"As you should," Niko joked. He then turned to Emily and hugged her as well, promising to keep Charlotte safe as well, although she didn't need it in Niko's mind (he didn't say that, though).

Finally was Sydney, and then Warren.

"Well, this is it," Warren said, looking at Niko and Charlotte together. "I'm a much better man because of you two. It's really hard to explain what you guys mean to me."

"Same here," Niko said, going in for a hug. They stood there for nearly a minute. When they let go, Niko hugged Sydney while Warren and Charlotte hugged and said their farewells, too. "Let's keep in touch. I'll let you know how Jake does."

"Oh, we'll be watching. Kill it out there for us, Jake," Warren said with a wink.

"Absolutely," Jake replied.

Then, they all parted ways. Niko, Charlotte, and Jake went to their gate, bound for Veilstone City. There, their new adventure—or current one—would begin.

"Everything went off smoothly, just like you thought," Hau said, sitting next to Kukui in his home near Hau'oli City. "But still…I can't help but feel as if something just isn't right."

"That's a correct instinct to have," Kukui said, petting his Incineroar as they sat on the porch overlooking the ocean. "Have you heard back from Cynthia yet?"

Hau shook his head. "Last we talked, she was headed for Kalos to meet with Bonnie and Diantha. One of their legendaries, Zygarde, is a natural indicator of disasters, oncoming or in the process of forming. So far, nothing yet."

"Keep me updated, please," Kukui said, sighing. "I just hope everything is just some false alarm."

"I hear you. Alola comes first, of course, but the other regions involved will need to be protected, too, in case this crisis truly is global in scope."

Kukui nodded. They then sat there in silence for a while longer.

A tall man, entirely dressed in black leather clothing, opened his cape and continued walking forward. His footsteps on the cobblestone earth beneath him were light, but nevertheless powerful. He looked up at the twin columns above him, pointed at their tips. Behind him were two younger people—one man, one woman—also dressed entirely in black, with their faces covered by masks.

"This is it," the woman said in an altered voice.

The man in front nodded and reached into his pocket, smirking.

"Yes, yes, it is. The future is ours with The Godly One."

Author's Note: As you might be able to guess by now, this is not the end. There is still one more season. I will not reveal the title of it until it's released, but I will say this-Season 9 will be split into two parts, but still in the same "story" on this site.

Season 9 will start-tentatively-on May 1st. It will be between 23-24 episodes (I have 23 planned, but I might extend it an episode or two more). Originally my plan was to be done with Season 9 already, but this one took much longer than expected to finish. It might not be everyday, since my life is getting pretty hectic now, but that's why i'll be uploading the next season in a week or so to give me some extra time.

Now, as usual, I'd like to ask y'all about your thoughts on this season, but maybe less formally. What did you like and/or dislike about the season? Did the plot move smoothly? Do you think the characters were developed enough and, if not, who wasn't and why? What can I work on in the future? As always, you are by no means obligated to answer these.

Also, I'd like to thank the followers, favoriters, and reviewers for their contributions to this:

Athios, Chris Dawson, Eeveefan1290, Jolteon2404, Mega Espeon, RubyOmegaGroudon, Silver Espeon, TheArmedShadowYT, Wildstar993, YellowFlashCannon, breath20k, crownkingck, Demon Shadow5000, Flamin'Wolf, Light Flame Blast, and Pokemonmaster3164.

Thanks for sticking around so far. I hope you all do for what will be the final season of this stupidly-long fanfic.

See y'all on May 1st!

-Evanibble

(PS: Season 8 was the longest in word count as of, I think, Episode 54. Fun fact for ya).