After a night's rest, Gary and his group officially entered the territory of the Tree of Beginning.
After they had driven for about an hour, Lucario's expression suddenly shifted.
Young Master Mao stopped the vehicle and got out.
Before them stood an unremarkable raised rock platform and a barren canyon road.
"Why are we stopping here?" Caitlin asked, puzzled.
"This is... where I was sealed away." Lucario's Telepathy echoed in everyone's minds.
Everyone froze, then got out of the vehicle.
Young Master Mao glanced at the Time Flower in the corner and nodded at Lucario. "Go give it a try."
After a moment's hesitation, Lucario crouched beside the Time Flower and reached out one hand. Blue aura lit up. "Aura, be with me~"
Hum~ As aura flowed into it, the Time Flower shone brilliantly. A crystalline memory fragment flew out of its center, then projected an image before them.
"Lucario!" A man dressed in a Hero's garb thrust his staff into the ground before Lucario. With a burst of aura, Lucario was sealed inside.
Then the man rode away on Pidgeot.
"That man is Sir Aaron, the Hero!" Brock exclaimed.
"There's no mistake, but did he really seal Lucario away and run?" May asked incredulously.
"Why~" Lucario closed his eyes in anguish.
Only Caitlin and Shauntal looked thoughtful, neither rushing to a conclusion.
"Wasn't the direction Pidgeot flew off in a little strange?" Shauntal spoke first.
"Exactly. If he was abandoning the city and fleeing, why would he head toward Cameran Palace?" Caitlin nodded in agreement.
Gary smiled faintly. "You're perceptive. That's right. There are plenty of unanswered questions here. We can't just conclude that Sir Aaron deserted."
"Really?" Lucario looked up in disbelief.
"To find out the truth, we'll have to keep tracing what happened. I think there should