The three chatted now and then along the way, with a Hydreigon following behind, Firetree still clutched in his claws.
Ada asked what life outside was like, while Chen Shi and Steven were equally curious about the lives of the Draconids.
"Do you worship the Dragon God?"
Ada looked at Chen Shi in surprise. "How did you know?"
"Our village does indeed worship the Dragon God."
Steven was curious too. He had never heard of any Dragon God.
"Is the Dragon God you worship still around?"
"Is it a Pokémon, or some other kind of being?"
Ada thought it over. Since this was hardly a secret, Ada answered, "Strictly speaking, the Dragon God is a Pokémon."
"According to our village's legends, the Dragon God lives in the ozone layer."
"The legends say that the Dragon God descended a thousand years ago and quelled a great disaster alongside one of our ancestors."
These legends had been passed down by word of mouth in the village, and Ada had grown up hearing them.
Steven began to understand. The Dragon God the Draconids worshipped was probably a legendary Pokémon.
But what kind of disaster could have prompted a legendary Pokémon to step in and stop it?
Steven asked that question outright.
Ada shook their head, unable to give a clear answer. "Our village doesn't have many surviving records."
"If you want to know about that, you may have to ask the Grandmother-in-Chief."
Chen Shi suddenly smiled. "It's hard to verify something that happened a thousand years ago."
"Even if accounts survived, some details might have been lost, leaving the records incomplete."
Ada wholeheartedly agreed.
"You're right. The Grandmother-in-Chief has also said that many of our records have been lost."
"No one can say for certain what happened a thousand years ago."
Of course Chen Shi knew what it was. Wasn't it just Groudon and Kyogre fighting?
Aside from those two, Deoxys was about the only other Pokémon that could get Rayquaza to intervene.
Honestly, Chen Shi truly thought Rayquaza was incredibly strong.
Especially the black shiny Rayquaza that appeared in the anime.
Could you believe it took on six opponents all by itself?
In the end, it had even brought about Groudon's infamous moment, ruining Groudon's reputation and saddling it with the label of the one that couldn't fly.
Then Ada led the two through a winding route until they reached a gorge.
After they passed through the gorge, a secluded paradise appeared before the three of them.
They could see a small village in the distance, with thick smoke rising from some of the houses. People were probably cooking.
All kinds of Dragon-type Pokémon flew overhead, and they traveled in flocks.
Dragonite, Salamence, Hydreigon, Garchomp, Flygon, Altaria... and other Dragon-type Pokémon.
Even a filthy-rich guy like Steven was stunned. The sight was quite a shock.
After all, even the fabulously wealthy Stone family only had a Metagross colony under its control.
But what was this in front of them?
There were already four pseudo-legendary colonies here.
Chen Shi marveled, "This place is like a secluded paradise!"
"This is our village, but we'll need to ride flying Pokémon to get across from here. You can ride my Altaria and Flygon."
As Ada spoke, two more Pokémon were released.
Neither objected. Chen Shi hopped onto Altaria's back, while Steven chose the other Pokémon, Flygon.
Then Ada climbed onto Hydreigon and led the flight toward the village.
At the village entrance, seven or eight children started to crowd around Ada as soon as the Pokémon landed, but when they spotted the two strangers, they suddenly backed away.
They studied the unfamiliar faces curiously, but none dared approach.
Ada smiled. "Thanks to these two friends, I found all Five Dragon Hatchlings."
"I invited them to visit our village. You don't need to be afraid."
Just then, a girl around Chen Shi and Steven's age walked over.
"Ada, the Grandmother-in-Chief wants you to bring the guests to her. She'll welcome them personally."
Ada visibly froze for a moment before quickly answering, "All right, Zinnia. I'll take them over right away."
Hearing that name piqued Chen Shi's interest, and his gaze lingered on Zinnia for a moment.
She had slightly dark skin and short hair, and wore an old-fashioned robe with a small cape. She looked spirited and confident.
This was Zinnia, the Draconids' successor.
Later on, this girl would even infiltrate Team Magma. She certainly had guts.
Ada turned back and said, "Since the Grandmother-in-Chief has invited you, I'll leave it to her to welcome you personally."
"Just follow me."
Neither of them minded. This was the villagers' territory, after all, so they would go along with their arrangements.
Besides, they could both tell that the Grandmother-in-Chief was probably the highest-ranking person here.
With her welcoming them personally, they certainly had no reason to refuse.
Ada and Zinnia then led the way, with Chen Shi and Steven following behind.
They noticed that life here was not particularly primitive. Many villagers used modern tools.
However, almost all the villagers' Pokémon were Dragon-types, ranging from Dratini to lesser draconic species like Swablu and Trapinch.
Their wealth was simply outrageous.
Before long, the four arrived in front of a solitary little wooden cabin.
It was solitary because there wasn't a single other building nearby, only the small cabin before them.
It didn't look very big either. At most, it probably had a living room and a bedroom.
"This is where the Grandmother-in-Chief lives."
Ada stepped forward and knocked on the door. "Grandmother-in-Chief, I've brought the guests."
A moment later, an aged voice came from inside.
"Then please invite them in!"
Ada stepped aside, and Zinnia opened the cabin door, gesturing for the two to enter.
They walked into the cabin one after the other, and Zinnia gently closed the door behind them.
Once inside, Chen Shi found it was just as he had expected. There was only a living room, with another door off to one side that probably led to the bedroom.
A wooden table stood in the center of the living room, surrounded by four stools. On one of them sat an extraordinarily old woman.
She looked as though a gust of wind could knock her over.
"Please, have a seat. I'm old, and my legs aren't what they used to be, so I won't get up to greet you. Please forgive me."
The two hurriedly assured her there was no need, then sat down at the table.
Zinnia took the remaining stool.
The old woman slowly poured each of the three a cup of tea. "Our accommodations are poor. I hope you won't mind."
The corner of Chen Shi's mouth twitched. "This is already quite nice. We aren't the sort to care about things like that."
"There's no need to say that, Granny."
The old woman nodded slightly. "I heard that we were only able to recover the Five Dragon Hatchlings thanks to your help. I'm sorry for the trouble."
Chen Shi felt a headache coming on. Why did this old woman keep standing on ceremony?
And we only just arrived. Ada was with us the whole time, too. How did you find out?
Steven spoke up instead. "It was no trouble at all. That dragon thief is no decent person in the outside world either. Of course we'd help when we ran into him."
The old woman let out a soft sigh. "I invited you here because there is something I would like your help with."
Chen Shi said, "Let's hear it. If it's something we can do, we don't mind helping."
Although Chen Shi agreed aloud, he couldn't help grumbling inwardly. We just finished helping you, and now you want us to help again.
Still, I'd like to hear what you have to say. Whether we can do it is up to me anyway.
After two seconds of silence, the old woman asked, "Do you know about the disaster a thousand years ago?"
Chen Shi and Steven were startled.
The disaster a thousand years ago?
Flygon
Before you continue