Black Hero's Return, White Hero's Awakening

That happened a couple days ago.

Icirrus City, Dragonspiral Tower.

A young man with green hair and an elongated figure stood beneath the tower, looking up at the crumbling tower that towered over the city.

This was a tower that had been built here at an unknown time.

It was likewise the place where the dragon was sealed a thousand years ago.

Once upon a time, N had awakened the Ideal Dragon in this place.

Now, he had returned to this place.

"..."

N raised his foot in silence, crushed a piece of ice, and stepped on the snow to walk onto the dilapidated bridge.

The other end of this bridge connected to the gate of Dragonspiral Tower.

N didn't know when this bridge had appeared here, he only knew that when he had the idea of awakening the dragon, this bridge would appear on this side, guiding him towards the place he was destined to be.

The bridge was old and out of shape.

When N walked on it, the broken bridge would shake slightly, making a "creaking" sound, making people wonder if it would collapse in the next moment.

However, N's steps did not stop.

He had already made up his mind.

If that was the case, he would not be stopped by any obstacles.

"Wah~"

Accompanied by a puppy-like yelp, a black shadow burrowed out from within the grass behind him and caught up with the youth's footsteps.

The figure of this Pokémon appeared so blinking between the white snowy ground.

It did not care about the cold snow under its feet, shaking its black fur with a few strands of red hair, and after shaking off the snowflakes that had fallen on its body, it lightly called out to the N in front of it.

"Wah!"

This was a small fox-like styled Pokémon, and the bark was naturally on the canine side.

"Zorua."

N still walked ahead, his steps not pausing at Zorua's appearance.

"I have more important things to do right now, so I can't play with you."

"Wah~"

Zorua stepped lightly on the white snow, her small red feet moving swiftly, and caught up with N, who was walking in front of her, in three clicks.

"Zorua?"

Looking at his longtime companion, N revealed a surprised expression.

"What do you want?"

"Wah~"

Zorua called out and stood by N's feet.

Its heartfelt message was also conveyed to N.

"You want to accompany me... Right?"

"Wah!"

Clearly hearing Zorua's heart, N was in turmoil.

He remembered again the teenager he met in Nimbasa City two days ago.

Thinking back to what that teenager had said to himself.

He told himself about the relationship between people as trainers and Pokémon.

N learned from his side that Pokémon vs. Pokémon was not a battle for victory or defeat, it was an effort made by man and Pokémon to respond to each other's feelings.

"..."

N looked at Zorua in silence.

His ability told him that Zorua didn't have any unnecessary thoughts in its heart, and that the little fox simply wanted to follow N's side and accompany him.

That's all...

"Heh~"

Finally, N revealed a long-lost smile.

He doesn't know when the last time he had laughed.

The last time he genuinely laughed like this seemed to be two years ago, when Team Plasma was overthrown...

"I see..."

N muttered softly to himself.

He had walked across the bridge and stood before the doors of Dragonspiral Tower.

N raised his head again and looked towards the top of the tower.

Unlike the party, there was an additional realization within his eyes today.

"I understand."

He finally understood what Aisha's words meant.

Understanding the relationship between people and Pokémon...

"Zorua, let's go."

"Wah~"

Hearing N's call, Zorua couldn't help but show a joyful expression, and hurriedly followed N into this crumbling tower together.

N stepped on top of the broken steps with one foot.

The broken stones made a "clattering" sound underneath his feet, and fell to the bottom along with a handful of dust.

Outside the tower, it was still snowing heavily.

The snowflakes were sent into Dragonspiral Tower by the harsh cold wind, wrapping around the broken walls.

"Ha..."

N exhaled a mouthful of white air.

However, the thinly dressed man did not feel the cold.

This was because, a naive, fiery red Darumaka had stood beside him at some point, and was now working hard to release heat to warm N's body.

"Yee!"

The oddly shaped Sigilyph flew to N's front and flapped its wings, blowing away the snow that covered the top of the steps in front of him.

"Meow~"

Purrloin with a bad smile on its face also lightly climbed up the steps, and the cat's paw lightly tapped a place with a tiny crack, signaling N that this place was dangerous and not to be stepped on.

"Everyone..."

Looking at these Pokémon that were helping him, N couldn't help but lower his head and depress the brim of his hat.

N didn't like Poké balls.

He hadn't taken in any Pokémon.

These children were all Pokémon that had spontaneously followed him within his journey.

The seed of bonding had long been rooted in everyone's hearts.

"Wah~"

Zorua rubbed against N's pants leg.

N looked towards it and saw the light shining inside Zorua's eyes.

Sigilyph, Darumaka, and Purrloin also came up to him.

Everyone's thoughts were passed on to N.

"Wah~" "Yee!" "Woo!" "Meow~"

Their cries were different, but their meaning was the same.

Walk together.

Don't walk alone by yourself.

We can stay with you...

"Hmm."

N raised the corners of his mouth again.

He remembered Aisha's words again.

"You're right, Instructor Ai."

N raised his feet and climbed to the top of Dragonspiral Tower.

With the help of the Pokémon, the path to climb the tower seemed much better.

It took N an hour, but finally he was able to climb to the top of the tower.

The top floor of Dragonspiral Tower was undoubtedly the most severely damaged part of the tower - half of the area had been turned into an open-air condition, covered with thick university, and some scorched black marks could still be seen between the broken walls, as if it had been struck by lightning.

"..."

N didn't say anything.

Of course he knew why the top floor of Dragonspiral Tower was like this.

It was because it was the masterpiece that the Dragon of Black had casually cleaved out after he had liberated Zekrom two years ago.

"Ha."

Exhaling a breath, N looked towards the sky covered with dark clouds, as if he saw the image of Zekrom opening his eyes above this sky two years ago, harnessing ten thousand horses of thunder and lightning.

At that time, he was just as spirited as Zekrom.

It was as if, at that time, he was the savior.

Unfortunately...

"Heh."

Laughing to himself, N walked up to the front.

Within the monolith was sealed Dark Stone, and there was no snow covering it, so it was obvious that someone was carefully cleaning it.

"Alder...?"

N remembered the Unova Champion that he had defeated in the Unova League two years ago.

That Alder was a power down and a bust after the death of the Ace Pokémon Volcarona, and his answer didn't match up to N's mind.

That's why it was said that N rode Zekrom and defeated him without mercy.

"Sure enough, Instructor Ai is the one..."

Suddenly, N paused.

For a moment, he actually didn't know how he should praise Aisha.

Compliment the trainer who had unlocked his heart.

"Forget it."

N shook his head, dispelling those thoughts in his head.

Instructor Ai himself didn't think he'd care about any verbal compliments, so in that case, he might as well actually do something serious himself.

"Zekrom."

N's hand touched the tablet as he gazed at the Dark Stone and called out the long-lost name.

"I want you to be my aid."

"Buzz!"

The Dark Stone hummed, and pitch-black light flowed out from within the slits, mingled with a hint of lightning.

[Tell me the ideal you pursue.]

A majestic voice resounded in N's mind.

It was Zekrom's voice.

Zekrom responded to N's call and, as he had done two years ago, made this inquiry once again.

The Ideal Dragon needed the Black Hero to have a grand ideal in mind.

"Hmm."

N lowered the brim of his hat.

Two years ago, he had spoken loudly to Zekrom here with a full-blooded passion about his ideal of liberating all of Unova with the intention of creating a new world where Pokémon were unharmed - that very clear, romantic, and arrogant ideal was recognized by Zekrom.

At that time, he was the king of Team Plasma.

He was the Hero of Black who had harnessed the Dragon of Ideals.

Power and ideals gave him enough backbone.

Nowadays it was different...

Two years of seeing and hearing was enough to change a young man with a passion.

N had wandered the Unova region, seeing countless things he once couldn't see under the cluster of waiting Team Plasma.

He was determined to create a world where Pokémon were not harmed, but Team Plasma's recklessness had harmed many innocent Pokémon.

I was determined to liberate all of Unova's Pokémon, but the families that had surrendered their Pokémon under the spell of Team Plasma were torn apart...

That's a lie.

N wouldn't listen to lies again.

Especially after meeting that one trainer, hearing his teachings, and seeing his bond with his Pokémon that was as beautiful as a painting, N thought differently.

"Zekrom."

Calling out his partner's name, N placed his hand on top of the stone ball, undeterred by the lightning that was wrapping around Dark Stone.

"Boom-!!!"

It was as if there was thunder and lightning exploding in his ears.

N's surroundings changed, as if he was in a realm of thunder interwoven by endless lightning.

Standing on both feet, his body was wrapped in black armor, and his wings were as metallic as if they were mechanical, the dragon stood in front of him with its sturdy arms hanging down, and its scarlet eyes were looking directly into N's eyes, filled with a strange smell of scrutiny.

[Tell me about the ideals you pursue.]

Zekrom snapped once more.

There was no hint of confusion within N's eyes.

"My ideal is to atone for my sins, I want to atone for the sins I have committed with my own hands, and, to defeat Ghetsis, who may hold the strongest dragon!"

[You've come to your senses and revealed your ideals.]

An appreciation appeared within Zekrom's eyes.

Mistakes weren't scary, but it was even better to learn from them.

N had always had high ideals, and Zekrom liked that very much.

[Therefore, you have my approval.]

The world of illusions collapsed along with the recognition of the ideal dragon.

N opened his eyes and realized that he was back on the top floor of Dragonspiral Tower.

Zekrom was standing in front of him.

"Roar-!!!"

The Ideal Dragon covered in pitch-black armor let out a stirring roar.

Behind it, the thick dragon tail in a spiral stance erupted incomparably blinding lightning between the heavy sounds, shattering the dark clouds that were waving gooseflesh.

"Instructor Ai, I did it."

N smiled and raised his head.

Lightning was roaring, his ideal, illuminating the dark sky.

...

Eindoak Town, Sword of the Vale.

"Wow, what a view."

Standing on top of the watchtower on the top floor of the castle, Skyla looked out over the dense forest and river in the distance, marveling at the beauty of Eindoak Town's scenery.

"Sword of the Vale, it wasn't here in the beginning."

The old mayor, who had returned to the castle at an unknown time, said, "Once upon a time, the Sword of the Vale stood on top of the land called Kingdom of the Vale, and Kingdom of the Vale has been maintaining a prosperous situation through the power of Dragon Force. Kingdom of the Vale has also been maintaining a prosperous situation through the power of Dragon Force."

"Kingdom of the Vale?"

"Uh-huh." Speaking of this, the old mayor sighed and said, "Unfortunately, because of the battle between the two princes, the Dragon Force's energy became disordered, and seeing how the earth collapsed due to the Dragon Force's disordered energy, the king used the Pillars of Protection to lay a boundary around the castle, and with the help of Victini's energy, moved the Sword of the Vale to leap across the sky and finally landed on top of this one mountain."

"Look."

The old mayor pointed to the gully in the distance.

"That is the Kingdom of the Vale."

"Already..."

Skyla headed toward Kingdom of the Vale.

The energy over there had dried up.

However, the Dragon Force was still there, and Eindoak Town was still blessed by it, and could retain fertile land between a field of ice and snow.

"These are the Pillars of Protection." Aisha walked towards the front at this time, and with the help of the height of the watchtower, he looked around the entire Eindoak Town.

Stone pillars with strange postures were stationed in all corners of this town.

These stone pillars surrounded a boundary that bound Victini.

"Bee~"

Victini, on the other hand, ignored it and rubbed against Aisha's palm.

It wasn't distressed by the restriction of its freedom.

"It's still really a child."

Looking at V-cub's innocent smile, Instructor Ai also smiled helplessly.

"Sword of the Vale has finished its tour, in that case, we'll take our leave."

Having already known the information he wanted to know, Aisha said goodbye to the group of them and pulled Skyla out of this castle.

"Instructor Ai?"

After leaving the castle, Skyla looked towards Aisha with a curious expression and said, "You... could it be that you really found something?"

"Uh-huh."

Above Instructor Ai's face was a joyful smile.

"I found it, the key item."

Earlier, the image he saw at the entrance of the warehouse was clearly Reshiram's figure.

As a supernatural, Aisha didn't think that he would somehow hallucinate.

Then, the fact that such a thing had happened was an indication that Reshiram's Light Stone was, indeed, stored in Sword of the Vale.

"Skyla, wait for me at the Pokémon Center, I have something to do."

"Good."

Skyla also had the sense not to ask anything.

Aisha twisted his head and walked straight to the bottom of the peak where Sword of the Vale stood.

As expected, he found a cave over here.

The theater version of Ash had mistakenly passed through this cave and entered the underground of Sword of the Vale.

"Well!"

After approaching that cave, Aisha's pupils shrunk as magical images once again surfaced between his mind.

The White Dragon entwined with flames soared above the sky...

It carried the Truth Hero.

"Heh~"

Shaking his head, Aisha laughed and ran towards that cave.

After entering the cave, the four-way tunnel stopped him in front.

However, the special feeling was guiding Aisha on the right path.

He walked all the way to a huge hollow - it was a bottomless huge sinkhole, countless crystals in the form of stone pillars in the form of a ladder, spiral distribution in the hollow, forming a spiral ladder spreading towards the bottom, endless darkness was obscuring the road below, as if this ladder would never come to an end! The same as.

"..."

Stepping on the stone pillar, Aisha looked downwards.

There seemed to be a flash of white light within the endless darkness.

"Eh?"

The white light was just a flash, but Aisha couldn't help but move his feet.

When he came back to his senses, he realized that he had already walked on top of a lower level of steps.

"...Huh."

After looking around and confirming the height he was standing at, Instructor Ai couldn't help but raise the corner of his mouth.

He couldn't be more clear about what exactly such a situation represented.

"I see."

By this time, the darkness under his feet was nothing to Aisha, as if he had a map inside his head, he confidently ran on top of the complicated and rugged spiral steps, his feet did not hesitate or stop for a moment, and he quickly ran towards the lower level.

"Buzz!"

Following a burst of civilization, a white light carrying a gentle feeling like a flame flashed across Aisha's circumference.

[Tell me.]

A gentle voice resounded in Aisha's mind.

[Do you possess the courage to pursue the truth.]

"Yes."

Hearing this voice, Aisha's smile grew a point wider.

"Of course I do!"

His answer was firm and unquestionable.

Following the call, Aisha walked up the last dry road.

Finally, after a period of running, he took the last step and stepped on top of the thick ground.

On top of the stone case in front of him rested a pure white round stone, emitting a brilliant white light, with a few wisps of flame draped around the surface of the stone.

That was none other than Reshiram's Light Stone.