Hikaru said, "Besides that... you should be able to enter dreams too. There's somewhere I'd like to invite you to."
"Invite me?" Alder looked slightly puzzled. "I already know Unova has many alternate spaces, but when you say dreams, do you mean the Pokémon Dream World?"
"What could possibly be in a dream where Pokémon just run around and play freely?"
Hikaru said, "The Dreamsky Gauntlet. It's a facility open only to the strongest Trainers. Right now, it's still under construction inside the dream world. Legendary Pokémon are handling the construction, and the tower itself was left behind by a Pokémon known as a god."
"God said that It wants the tower to connect past and future, and even different dimensional worlds. That's why we're inviting from every direction to enter the dream."
"There are three different ways to challenge the Dreamsky Tower, so it won't just be about battles between Trainers and Pokémon. There'll also be Trainer-versus-Trainer battles, Pokémon-versus-Pokémon battles, and even advanced capture training for Rangers."
"Inside the tower, you might run into Champions from other regions, hidden masters, strong people from the past and the future, and even all kinds of incredible Legendary Pokémon!"
"It wants to build that tower into a place that connects everything. So everyone I met in Unova who's on par with the Elite Four, or close to that level, or above Gym Leader level, will have a chance to go there."
"And once the tower is finished, even more people will come. I'm going to build four Wireless Connection Bridges around the floating island where the tower stands, so different worlds can be linked together."
Alder was stunned by what Hikaru described, but he quickly thought of the immense power that had once appeared in Unova.
Because of the descent of some kind of being from some faraway region, things that should never have happened in Unova had happened here after all.
But it wasn't a bad thing. At the very least, present-day Unova had already begun to understand the existence of the dream world and the connected world, and the C-Gear would likely spread at an unimaginable speed. Alder turned that over in his mind and concluded that he really did need to get more familiar with that second machine too.
"What an astonishing concept. That Pokémon they call a god... the ancient god you mentioned before, right? It really is magnificent. It wants masters from the past and future to cross time itself and battle each other?"
"If it were me, I wouldn't even dare imagine something like that!"
"Battling Legendary Pokémon... you mean beings like the Giant King you once encountered, and the one Marshal asked for while training on Roshan Mountain? Marshal told me he got beaten horribly, but that was what he asked for. Pain you invite onto yourself is something you have to bear yourself!"
Alder fell into thought for a moment.
"I see, I see!"
"So that's what you meant when you said masters capable of challenging me would start appearing one after another on this land. If I don't keep training hard, there's a real chance I'll be crushed outright by the younger generation. In other words, that time is almost here, starting with you!"
"That's where history shows its ruthlessness..."
"Champions in every region have changed. Some regions once had no Champion at all. In some places, the title has changed hands several times. Unova is an ancient land, and I've already been Champion for many years. Without false modesty, I can say I've trained and witnessed more young powerhouses than I could ever count..."
Hikaru said, "I think Unova will produce at least five to seven Champions after this. Should it set up a 'Champion-level' rank too, like those distant lands?"
They were all learning from each other anyway.
Alder looked startled. "Ho! You're incredibly optimistic. Sounds like you really have seen some peerless young powerhouses, or at least people with limitless potential!"
"I heard someone say you're known as the one who knows everything. That's a pretty outrageous title."
Hikaru replied, "Principal Asami's out there spreading that around again. He's probably doing it to build momentum for Blueberry Academy, though maybe he really does believe it. Still, it's just that I happened to know those things. In truth, just like you said, there's still a lot we don't know."
Things they didn't know. Supplemental lore, or the setting of a new generation, or truths hidden even deeper.
Hikaru took a deep breath. "I think the next dream is going to be very lively. You're the first person from Unova on my invitation list. Please make sure you come!"
"The first person I invited was Geeta, Paldea's Top Champion, and the second was Rika of their Elite Four. As for the other Elite Four members, they're so severely understaffed over there that they're constantly working overtime, so having to keep battling in their dreams too would probably be a bit too cruel..."
Alder said, "So you're planning to pull Champions from every region into this? Ho!!!"
"If that's the case... then isn't this kind of like, hmm... what was it called again?"
Hikaru said, "A World Championship? Though it's still a little different from that. I think Dreamsky Gauntlet, or maybe Dreamsky League, would fit better."
The World Championship in Driftveil City wouldn't be held for another three or four years.
In the anime, Galar would ride that wave and move hosting rights for the tournament over to Galar, building hype around Leon in the process.
Of course, in this worldline, the anime's Masters Eight Tournament might not appear at all. But one thing was certain: the Dreamsky League Arceus and he were putting together would be stronger than any so-called World Championship.
"In battle, all regional systems can be used. Inside the tower, God has already conveyed Its wishes. It needs four Pokémon with immense power to stand guard. They're being called the Elite Four among Legendary Pokémon!"
"And what I'm thinking is that each of those four Pokémon should naturally represent one battle system. Right now, we already have the first one: Terapagos, the source of Terastalization."
Even though the little turtle had been granted the power that served as the source of Terastalization by the meteorite of the stars, it wasn't especially good at battling by nature. So just like every region seemed to have one weakest Elite Four member keeping watch at the gate, Kamekame was actually perfectly suited to being the gatekeeper Elite Four member here.
Still, Hikaru thought that having those Pokémon fight alone by themselves wouldn't look very good. The Dreamsky Gauntlet was originally meant to allow for multiple-opponent battles anyway, so when the time came, having each one bring along Pokémon tied to the four major systems, with five underlings sent out first to wear challengers down, would be perfectly fine too.
And if they did that, the difficulty would skyrocket.
"Five Terastallizations and one Stellar Form."
"Six Mega Evolutions."
"Six Z-Moves."
"Six Dynamax."
At that point, even Champions wouldn't be able to win easily.
As a real-world battle facility, doing that would absolutely get people cursing it out.
But as the ultimate challenge in a dream, the difficulty felt just right.
Hikaru said, "Of course, challengers could also partner up with designated Legendary Pokémon, like team battles in battle facilities. That would be fun too."
Alder said, "I can't even picture the scene you're talking about... but there is one thing I can say for sure."
"It'll be magnificent. And it'll bring the world joy beyond compare. I'm looking forward to it just as much myself."
"I'll be waiting for tonight's dream. I'm sure it'll bring me a surprise unlike any other."
"By the way, do you want to head over to the tournament venue and take a look?"
Alder suddenly made the offer, and Hikaru blinked. "The tournament... the Vertress Conference?"
"Exactly."
Alder nodded. "Vertress City is near Opelucid City. That's where the tournament is held. Trainers who don't head to Victory Road, or can't make it through Victory Road, go there instead. The tournament is open to all competitors, and the barrier to entry is much lower than Victory Road."
"There are only 128 people in the qualifiers, and the top 64 advance to the next round..."
"The tournament champion earns the right to challenge the Elite Four and the Champion. But in most cases, those young Trainers are still too green. Some of them don't even intend to challenge a higher level at all, and stop after taking the tournament title."
Hikaru thought about the level of the Unova League tournament in the anime. Honestly...
There was a pretty huge gap between it and the Lily of the Valley Conference in Sinnoh.
Maybe it really was because Unova simply had too many strong Trainers, so people felt their odds were better entering the tournament instead. But if someone couldn't even make it through the tournament, then challenging the Elite Four and the Champion was out of the question.
Vertress City might be an anime location, but its naming style was still in line with many of Unova's other cities. In Japanese, its name came from a traditional pattern, while the English name came from clouds.
Still, since this main worldline followed the games, there wouldn't be anything strange like Bianca entering the tournament. And because the BW arc was essentially a soft reboot, that was why Ash's Pikachu got one of its most infamous scenes: after getting blasted with electricity by Zekrom, it performed badly enough to lose to a Level 5 Snivy.
Before the soft reboot, though, the original series through Diamond and Pearl theoretically all belonged to the same continuity, while the Ash of BW was no longer the Ash of that earlier worldline.
That was why the same Ash who once said to the TV, while looking at Cynthia, "The Trainer who can beat her is right here," suddenly came off half-braindead in BW. It was the result of the setting being split apart early on, then awkwardly patched back together later.
"I sincerely wish all those contestants the best, but I won't be going. Also, this is for you."
Hikaru removed a small charm-like pouch and handed it over. The moment Alder took it, he could tell there was something soft inside.
Alder said, "This is... Sacred Ash?!"
Hikaru smiled. "Since you might be facing a huge number of challengers from here on, I'm thinking at least thirty strong ones will make it all the way to you. So to prevent Volcarona or your other Pokémon from suffering severe, irreversible injuries, Sacred Ash is necessary."
"In a faraway region, I learned how to make it. As long as you possess sacred flame, you can produce it, so there's no need for you to feel burdened."
"If you endure overwhelming pain and realize one of your Pokémon's life is in danger, or even the healing machines can't restore them, then use the Sacred Ash. I still have plenty of other restorative items with similar effects too."
After that, Hikaru removed his six Poké Balls from the machine and said goodbye to Alder.
"Then I'm heading out!"
Alder replied, "Yeah... as the Unova League's new champion-level Trainer, have a safe journey! Carry that great life force to every corner of the world."
"Uh, though I say that..."
Alder looked at Hikaru's stunned expression and laughed like a mischievous old man before gradually turning serious again.
"If you're not in a rush, I have one request of my own."
There was confusion and remembrance in Alder's expression.
"I told you before, didn't I? I know my ancestors came from Sinjoh, then migrated and settled in a place called Hisui. And you told me that we once belonged to a clan that served a god."
"In that case, since you don't plan to go to the tournament... could you tell me, right here and in detail, about my ancestors, and about the story of Shenhe? It'll delay you a little while... and I'm sorry for that."
Hikaru froze briefly, then glanced at his Pokégear.
He had only ignored it for a short while, but it was already full of unread messages and mail from faraway regions.
"News really does spread fast in Unova... There are even emails from other regions. What happened here has already been..."
That made sense. Unova was a highly developed region, and the world paid attention to its news. So when every official facility updated at once, the news of someone entering the Hall of Champions would naturally be noticed by people in other regions too.
At least there were no awful reporters like the ones in Kalos, the kind who'd chase little kids all the way home and keep pestering them for interviews. Come to think of it, the entire Unova region seemed oddly short on the Reporter and Cameraman Trainer classes that had existed all the way back since Generation III.
"Ms. Keith, could you wait for me a little longer?" Hikaru noticed that one of the messages was from Keith too, so he sent a reply. The answer he got back was that she was celebrating with other people, and -
Keith: "Congratulations. (clap) The Prince of the Sea is happy for you too. Everyone here is really enthusiastic! Prince seems like he wants to stay a little longer too."
"I've never seen this Egg this active before! Maybe that's a good sign."
After getting Keith's response, Hikaru finally relaxed. Then he turned back to Alder.
"My friend is outside. She says the Pokémon Center is celebrating, but I still don't think I should make her wait too long."
"So I'll tell you a little about Shenhe, and about the history of your ancestors. Just like the history of Unova that we ourselves have experienced."
"Ancient verse, Part 19: Long, long ago, in the era when this land had only just formed, Pokémon and humans exchanged what they had with one another and lived lives of mutual aid and mutual benefit. One day, one Pokémon thought, If only I could help people anytime, anywhere."
"So it asked the other Pokémon to appear before humans as well. And from that time onward, whenever people stepped into tall grass, Pokémon would run out."
"But before long, humans and Pokémon became locked in a relationship of mutual slaughter. Beginning with the swordsman of Sinnoh and the nameless Pokémon, it continued that way all the way to the end of the world."
"When the sun went dark and fire vanished... then a hero appeared. That hero led ten Pokémon and challenged Sinnoh..."
"Of course fire can go out, but the next time it ignites, it will surely become a new legend. So no matter how many times flame is destroyed, it will eventually burn again."
"The story of Shenhe has already scattered apart, but someday, in some corner of the world, a tiny flame will begin to burn again - that is the flame passed down by kings."
"Though in the new world, even without fire, there can still be light everywhere. And portraits of your ancestor were once passed down among the people of Shenhe."
"Perhaps he was that lost hero."
"He was the sun itself."
In Paldea, Geeta received the news from Unova immediately. Naturally, the source of the message was Professor Juniper's lab in Nuvema Town.
She hadn't made Professor Juniper work overtime for free all that time, after all. Naturally, they had already forged a solid friendship.
Geeta rubbed her brow. She had gone back into the Dreamsky Tower for another challenge last night, and this time her luck had been good. She hadn't run into the Giant King and had successfully reached the second floor.
Then she had met Terapagos.
It wasn't as if it was impossible to beat, but opening the match by going straight into Stellar Form and throwing up a barrier? Wasn't that a little disgusting?
Still, the pain of last night's overtime had gradually been replaced by joy.
Looking at Rika and Hassel nearby, both of them stunned as they processed documents, Geeta couldn't suppress her happiness at all.
"This is truly exciting news! Hikaru succeeded. He completed Unova's Champion Road trial and defeated Champion Alder!"
"It really took me by surprise. Champion Alder is a Champion of long-established fame. He was already standing at the top of the Unova League before I ever became Champion myself, and now... I feel like I've gone back many years."
"It feels just like when I first became Champion. Everything was new, and I also believed I would surpass the older generation. After all, the world is always changing and renewing itself. And now, a new Champion has been born again."
"Even if he didn't become Champion-ranked in Paldea, Champions from other regions are still stronger than Champion-ranked Trainers, at least for now. But our side should produce someone of equal strength soon too... shouldn't it?"
"The world is changing so fast. It's like a swift, gentle wind has quietly blown into every corner of it."
Hassel nodded too. "I can see how excited you are, Chief. It's been a very long time since I've seen you this happy. That the shopkeeper could break through those barriers and enter the Hall... it leaves me deeply shaken as well..."
Rika was thinking quietly, a bright fire shining in her eyes. After a short pause, she said,
"When he fought you back then, I wondered whether he might already be a Champion-level Trainer. Looks like my guess was right."
"Chief - no, Commander - now that that guy has broken into Unova's Hall, I might be setting my sights on your seat too. I couldn't beat you no matter how hard I tried before, but now that's not necessarily true. After all, I'm one floor higher than you in the Dreamsky Gauntlet."
Rika was pretty proud of that. She had no idea why she always managed to climb one more floor, but it did feel like a fair reward for all the effort she'd been putting in lately.
Geeta said, "...Luck is part of strength too. Fine. If that's how you see it, I welcome your challenge anytime!"
A battle to switch places? Interesting.
"But before that." Geeta smiled from the bottom of her heart. "Let's share this astonishing piece of good news with the students at the academy. This is the best example they could ask for!"
In the dream world, near the tower of the Dreamsky Gauntlet...
Entei was still overseeing construction, and within the fog surrounding the island, several tall figures gradually began to appear.
Unown E was calling something, summoning someone out of the mist.
Entei turned its gaze toward the far end of the fog.
Several clusters of pixel-like lights began blinking like machine signals, and then came a series of heavy, pounding footsteps.
"Hm. So they're here? The ones in charge of healing, maintenance, and sales."
Looking at Regirock, Registeel, Regice, a massive Dusknoir, a Bloodmoon Ursaluna covered in peat, and Scizor as they emerged from the fog, Entei saw that all of them seemed very excited after arriving near the tower, and it understood the meaning in their voices.
"So they'll be both area overseers and teams for training and battle."
"In that case, there should be new guests tonight. I'll leave gatekeeping to all of you. Battle format: Pokémon teams. Challengers will have to face multiple opponents at once, and your strength will be increased accordingly."
"Team name... if it's being registered, then Sinjoh, is it?"
"The captain is E? Or someone else?"
Entei stared for quite a while at the strange green light that began flashing into existence inside the dream.
Unown E froze for a second, then turned around and saw a green sphere of light appear within the dream, carrying a familiar voice.
A captain, a captain!
Of course the traveler through time is the perfect choice! And the captain has to guard the gate too, doesn't it!
Entei said, "Celebi? The one from Sinjoh. So we meet for the first time...!"
(End of Chapter)
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