Celebi

"These have their shapes engraved on them."

"Yes. This town honors those two, so it's hardly surprising."

"Good for you. You're popular."

Latios tilted his head, apparently unsure what Kaim meant. Curious about Cynthia's medal, Latias brought her face closer to Cynthia and studied it with interest.

"It's hard to believe legendary Pokémon are so close to us."

"Even though you preferred flying on them to being near them?"

"Well, sure. But it felt more like competing with Cynthia than flying. Thank you both."

Kaim gently stroked the neck of Latios beside him.

"Yes, it felt like I was racing you. It was great fun."

"Yeah."

Cynthia sat down on the harbor pier, and Kaim sat beside her.

Blackie climbed off Latias and settled on Kaim's lap. Latias floated beside Cynthia, apparently enjoying her strokes. Latios drew closer to Blackie on Kaim's lap, seemingly communicating with him.

"Beautiful."

"Oh, I see."

I won't say what's beautiful.

There's no need to say it for you to know.

"Kaim, give me your hand."

Although Kaim didn't understand Cynthia's sudden request, he did as she asked. Cynthia placed something in his outstretched hand.

On closer inspection, they were an earring and a ring.

"What's this?"

"I heard about the accessory shop you recommended, Kaim, and bought these there. I thought they'd suit you."

Kaim had never worn accessories before, but he liked the ones Cynthia had given him. The earring was small and made of blue glass, as was the ring. Looking closely, he could see a Latios-shaped design on it.

"I've never really had anything to do with accessories, but these are nice."

"I bought the same designs for myself, too. These."

Cynthia had also bought earrings and a ring, though hers were red, clearly representing Latias. She was already wearing the earrings.

"I'm happy, but why?"

"You've shown me how you've grown in battling, archaeology, and as a person. This is your reward."

"Thank you very much."

"Try them on."

"All right, all right."

Kaim put the earring on his left ear. Since it was his first time wearing one, Latios helped a little, but he managed to put it on properly.

"Yes, it suits you."

"Can I wear the ring as a pendant?"

"That's why I bought a chain for it."

"You came prepared."

With a wry smile, Kaim accepted the chain and hung the ring around his neck as a pendant.

"Yes, it suits you."

"Thanks."

"Hey, Kaim."

"Yes?"

"Could you put my pendant on for me?"

Cynthia handed Kaim an identical chain and her red ring, then looked into his face.

"Ha, I get it. I've found a good angle, so let's get started."

"Thank you."

Kaim moved behind Cynthia and fastened the pendant around her neck.

The pendant glittered in the moonlight. Latias bounced in front of Cynthia, perhaps delighted that she was wearing the same color as her.

"Hehe, we're matching."

Were those words meant for Latias, or for "the two of them"?

"This is my first time wearing accessories."

"Yes."

"Even if you ask me... well, how is it?"

"Not bad. Just like Cynthia's."

Kaim's face looked pale in the moonlight, but the faint redness of his ears was no illusion.

Seeing him like that, Cynthia smiled as she stroked Latias and looked up at the sky.

The red and blue rings on their chests glittered like stars, just like Latias and Latios beside them.

It was the day after they left Alto Mare.

After returning to the Johto mainland, the two drove toward Hiyoda Town in Johto.

"Alto Mare was a lovely town."

Cynthia spoke as she opened the car window and felt the breeze.

"Yes. I'd definitely like to go again."

"Yes. I'd like to see those two again."

"Latias really liked you, Cynthia."

"Oh, speaking of which, Latios liked you too, Kaim. He even turned into you at the end."

"Why did he turn into me at the end?"

When they left Alto Mare, Karon, Pengola, Latias, and Latios saw Cynthia and the others off. Latias looked so lonely she seemed ready to cry. Cynthia promised to return and gave Karon and Pengola her contact information.

As they departed, Latias finally transformed into Cynthia, while Latios, pestered by Latias, transformed into Kaim.

"Latios doesn't usually transform, but he did this time, you know?"

"Wasn't that just because he was being pestered?"

"Latios wouldn't turn into a human just because someone pestered him, would he?"

"Oh, maybe you're right."

Latios probably wouldn't have transformed merely because he was pestered. It was thought that he transformed because he trusted the person whose appearance he took.

Afterward, Latios began wandering around the city in Kaim's form as well, though Kaim only learned about that later.

"So, is Ubam Forest next?"

"Yes. It's not a particularly well-known place for archaeology, but that forest has a legend."

"A legend?"

"There's a belief in Celebi in that forest."

"Is Celebi the Pokémon that travels through time?"

"Yes. Also, forests where Celebi lives are said to be pristine."

There weren't many forests in the world where Celebi was said to exist.

Among them, Ilex Forest was famous as a forest inhabited by Celebi, despite being close to town. There had actually been reports of Celebi sightings, but poachers and others had often appeared in the past to capture Celebi. These days, the Pokémon League on Shirong Plateau made regular visits to ensure those people couldn't do as they pleased.

"A forest..."

"Oh, have you been there, Kaim?"

"No. I never needed to. But the atmosphere isn't very pleasant, so I don't think I'd want to go."

"It's a habitat for Ghost-type Pokémon now. There are other types there too, and rumors say real ghosts appear."

"Ghosts?"

"Don't you believe me?"

"It's not that. But I can't prove they exist or don't exist, so I'd rather not make claims about their existence."

"You're right. That's just like you, Kaim."

As they talked, they arrived in Hiyoda Town.

Unlike their stay in Alto Mare, they didn't intend to remain long, so they hadn't booked an inn this time. Through one of Cynthia's acquaintances, they parked the car in a lot they could use freely.

Taking only the bare minimum of luggage, the two set off for Ubam Forest.

"We're here."

"Yes. This is Ilex Forest."

Kaim let out an admiring sound at the towering forest before him.

Though faint, Pokémon-like cries could be heard coming from the forest, and plenty of wild Pokémon could be seen living there.

"There seem to be a lot of wild Pokémon."

"Yes. There seem to be quite a few Bug-type and Grass-type Pokémon."

"It looks that way. So, what are you looking for, Cynthia?"

"There's a shrine in the center of this forest. I'd like to investigate it."

"A shrine. Either way, I'm coming along."

"Yes, of course."

The two entered the woods and continued onward.

"Is this the shrine?"

About an hour later, they found a small shrine in the center of the forest.

The trees formed a clearing around the shrine, making it difficult to see from outside. But Lucario, who was good at sensing signs of a presence, told Kaim about the shrine, allowing them to find it.

"This is probably it."

"It's small, but well cared for."

Whether people visited often or not, it was old but well maintained.

There was nothing around the shrine. It simply stood enshrined in a small clearing.

"I doubt we'd be punished for peeking inside, but I'm curious who put it here and for what purpose."

"Exactly. Someone deliberately placed it in this forest. I imagine they did so because they thought someone needed it, but I don't know anything. There aren't any clues."

"Even if it's dedicated to Celebi, is that its only purpose?"

"What do you mean?"

"When you enshrine something, I think there ought to be something that symbolizes the object of worship. I think there must be something here."

"Yes, I think so too. Of course, I don't think this place is only meant for worship."

"Speaking of Celebi..."

"It's 'time travel,' a power that interferes with time. Originally, it's energy supplied by the forest to heal an injured Celebi. Anyone who comes into contact with it is transported to the past or future. Of course, that's apart from when Celebi tries to travel through time on its own."

Celebi was an extremely rare Pokémon. Apart from Dialga, which controlled time in the Sinnoh Region, it was the only Pokémon capable of interfering with time. It wasn't especially prominent in the underworld, but it could probably still fetch a considerable sum.

The mere thought was enough to make one's mouth water.

Sometimes, shiny Pokémon involved in underworld transactions at Pokémon Centers were taken into protective custody. The police were cracking down hard as well, but no matter how much time passed, this sort of thing could never be eliminated.

A good example was Team Rocket, an organization that had run rampant a few years earlier. Unfortunately, organizations like that existed everywhere, though their sizes varied. Team Rocket, of course, had been destroyed by a boy who was now the champion of Shirong Plateau.

"Time, huh?"

"Time is important. It seems infinite, but everyone has only a limited amount."

"Oh, yeah."

"That's why you should treasure the people who walk through it with you."

At Cynthia's words, Kaim nodded silently.

"Well, I've found the shrine I was looking for, but what should I do now?"

Shirona had come all this way to investigate the shrine. However, apart from the ruins, there wasn't anything worth exploring.

"Um, I don't want to look inside, so perhaps we could look around the forest for a while and then head home."

"That sounds right."

Since there was nothing to see, there was no reason to stay. Judging by Cynthia's tone, her desire to see it wasn't especially strong, or so Kaim thought.

"Shall we go, then?"

"Yes. What's moving? That sound..."

"The air?"

He noticed it when Cynthia pointed it out, but now Kaim could hear it too.

It was a sound that defied description.

"It's not an unpleasant sound, but it still feels strange."

"I've never heard anything like it before."

"Ah..."

"Look, Kaim!"

When Cynthia told him to look at the shrine, a blue-green light was floating in the air.

"What's this?"

"Hey, you're trying to touch something mysterious."

Before he could finish telling Cynthia not to touch it, she touched the light.

At that instant, light spilled outward, illuminating their surroundings.

"Ah?!"

"Cynthia!"

Kaim immediately grabbed Cynthia's hand and tried to pull her away.

But the light grew brighter and brighter, filling the area.

"⁈"

Kaim suddenly sensed something behind him and wrapped his arms around Cynthia.

I know something is there, but it's filled with light. I can't see it.

And in the next instant, Shirona, Kai Mu, and Kai Mu's Lucario were gone.

"Ugh."

Someone shook Kaim and woke him.

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was Lucario's face.

"Lucario."

Relieved to see that his Pokémon was safe, he opened his eyes. Shirona lay on Kaim's chest, still unconscious. Apparently, he had immediately grabbed Cynthia and protected her head.

"Cynthia, Cynthia. Wake up."

"Yes..."

Cynthia woke at Kaim's call.

"Kaim."

"Are you awake?"

"Yes. Where are we?"

Kaim released Cynthia and stood up with Lucario's help.

I looked around, but the scenery was different from the Ubam Forest we had just been in. Most importantly, there was no shrine.

"It looks like this isn't Ubam Forest."

"It's not just the scenery. Even the air is different. Most importantly, there wasn't a stone tablet like this."

Instead of a temple, a small stone tablet stood enshrined before Kaim and the others.

"I wonder if this stone tablet has something to do with what happened."

"It's only natural to think that."

Kaim took out his smartphone to check his location, but he couldn't get a signal.

However, after trying various things, I discovered that I could pick up some sort of radio signal.

"I can't get a connection, but I can just barely pick up a radio signal."

"The radio? That's great. From the broadcast, we can at least find out what region we're in."

"Yes. This place is in the Johto Region. But something is clearly strange."

"Strange?"

"Ubam Forest, where we were just now, is in the Johto Region. And the frequency we're picking up is from the Johto Region too. But the date is strange."

"Oh, can you tell?"

"It's just as I expected. Everything they're talking about on the radio now happened about forty years before our time."

"...I see."

"Can something like that really happen?"

Kaim gave a wry smile and slipped his smartphone into his pocket.

"I was pretty sure we'd traveled through time, but I didn't expect us to go back forty years."

"That's a time before either Cynthia or I was born."

"Anyway, we should first find out where we are. At least there should be people somewhere."

"Right. Uh, what's wrong, Lucario?"

Lucario, standing beside him, tugged on Kaim's hand. Lucario seemed to have noticed something near the stone tablet.

"What is it? Is something wrong? Cynthia?"

"What happened?"

"This little one..."

Kaim cradled a Pokémon behind the stone tablet.

The Pokémon was small and covered in wounds.

"Celebi! You're hurt!"

"Celebi was behind the stone tablet. Lucario found Celebi."

"So that's what happened. Anyway, I'm going to treat this little one. Kaim, how many supplies do you have?"

"Not much. I wasn't planning to stay at all, so I only brought the bare minimum."

"With these supplies, first aid is all I can manage. Kaim, can you have Staraptor survey the area from the air? If there's a Pokémon Center or anyone nearby, I'll go there."

"Yeah."

He brought Staraptor out of the ball and had the Pokémon look around, while Kaim helped Cynthia treat the injuries.

I quickly handed over the supplies Cynthia asked for as I helped her with the treatment.

"Could you get me the bandages?"

"Yeah."

"You said you only brought the bare minimum, but you brought some excellent medicine for wounds. That's amazing."

"Considering our Pokémon's level, it makes sense."

"Yes. I'm glad you're so well prepared."

Although it was only first aid, the injured Celebi could at least receive treatment. Staraptor returned around then. Apparently, the Pokémon had found a village.

"There seems to be some sort of settlement."

"Let's head there for now. This isn't a good place, and we don't have enough supplies to provide proper treatment."

"All right, please lead the way."