Shaymin Appears!

In a remote forest somewhere in the Sinnoh region…

Towering trees blanketed the area, their canopies forming a lush, natural ceiling. Thick underbrush flourished everywhere, and wild Pokémon frolicked freely, their playful cries echoing through the trees.

Deeper within the woods…

Several Ursaring were performing what looked like some sort of ceremonial dance. They circled a massive boulder, waving their paws rhythmically, lost in ritual.

Beneath a distant ancient tree, a herd of Stantler chased one another in a lively game.

In a crystal-clear river, Water-type Pokémon splashed and leapt joyfully—Goldeen, Seaking, Feebas, Lumineon, Finneon… a spectacular aquatic display.

Out on the sunny plains, a Rampardos lounged lazily, basking in the warmth.

Farther away, in a rocky cavern, an Aggron led a colony of Lairon and Aron as they excavated and expanded a new nesting site, aided by a crew of Dugtrio and Diglett digging tunnels with precision.

Occasionally, a Sandshrew or two scurried by.

Near a serene lakeside…

The soil was rich, and thick grass swayed in the breeze. From within the tall grass, a snow-white creature with what looked like a green grassy "cap" on its back emerged quietly.

It was Shaymin.

Shaymin are small, hedgehog-like Pokémon that typically live in herds. They're known to cause flowers to bloom wherever they pass. Legend has it they can sense gratitude in human hearts—and if someone full of gratitude encounters a Shaymin, it may bring them good fortune.

This particular Shaymin, however, had gotten separated from its companions.

Originally, they were headed for a sea of blooming Gracidea Flowers.

Now it was walking alone… slowly making its way toward that same destination.

It stopped beside the lake, its tiny pink tongue flicking out to sip from the cool water.

But then—

Ripples suddenly distorted the lake's surface.

Space twisted, and a rift shimmered open above the water—an interdimensional wormhole.

From within it, a colossal deep-blue dragon-like Pokémon emerged. Its scales gleamed like polished obsidian. It had not come to attack, but simply to drink.

It was the ruler of time: Dialga, the Temporal Dragon.

Recently, Palkia had repeatedly intruded into Dialga's time dimension, encroaching with waves of spatial pressure. Dialga had just managed to fend it off… barely restoring balance to its realm.

What neither Dialga nor Palkia realized, however, was that beyond their own time-space dimensions, another dimension existed—one that mirrored the real world in distorted form.

This dimension was known to Pokémon researchers as the Reverse World.

And it had a ruler too.

Giratina, the Renegade Dragon. Known to a few scholars and sages as the Phantom Dragon or the God of the Underworld.

The Reverse World operated in delicate sync with the other three dimensions—reality, space, and time. If any of the other dimensions collided or malfunctioned, toxic energies would accumulate in the Reverse World.

Giratina was furious.

Using its power to observe every inch of the real world, Giratina instantly detected Dialga's presence by the lake.

Without hesitation, it tore open a wormhole between dimensions and lunged through—its ghostly jaws clamping down on Dialga's tail!

With a thunderous pull, Giratina dragged the mighty Temporal Dragon into the Reverse World.

But the little Shaymin, who had just been drinking water peacefully, got caught in the vacuum too—and was pulled in as well…

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Meanwhile, Ash and his companions were heading toward their next destination: Valor Lakefront.

Along the way, Dawn had grown concerned about her newly evolved Mamoswine and her still-young Cyndaquil—wondering if they were ready for the rigors of Contest performances.

So before continuing on to Lake Valor, Ash and Anabel accompanied her to Neighborly Town, where a local Pokémon Contest, the Neighborly Town Contest, was taking place.

It was Mamoswine and Cyndaquil's debut on stage.

Although Dawn hadn't entered with the goal of winning, she wanted both Pokémon to gain experience and develop stage presence.

And it paid off.

Her training level had grown significantly—enough for her to fully bring out Mamoswine's potential. Cyndaquil, too, performed decently for its first time. While they didn't claim victory, the experience was invaluable.

After leaving Neighborly Town, they resumed their journey toward Lake Valor.

By noon that day, the skies were clear and endlessly blue—a perfect day for Pokémon training.

Ash and Dawn each took time to train with their teams.

Dawn focused on deepening the bond and coordination with Mamoswine and Cyndaquil.

Ash, on the other hand, was working closely with his newly captured Gible.

Though Gible had the Hidden Ability Rough Skin, it had not yet been activated.

Ash still had six Trait Activation Cards in his inventory, but he decided not to use one just yet.

Instead, he focused on helping Gible master one specific move: Draco Meteor.

Thanks to Ash's own vast arsenal of advanced Pokémon techniques, he was able to guide Gible rapidly toward mastery.

"Nice one, Gible! That last Draco Meteor looked really solid," Ash praised. "Let's go one more time. If you can pull it off again, that means you've truly nailed the trick!"

"Gaa-gaa!" Gible chirped happily—and immediately leapt onto Ash, aiming a chomp at his head.

Ash, well-prepared, raised his arm just in time, letting Gible chew playfully on that instead.

"Alright, now listen. Gather your Dragon-type energy, find the balance at your core, and when you hit that breaking point—release it straight through your mouth with full force!"

"GAA!"

With a burst of radiant energy, Gible unleashed another spectacular Draco Meteor. The dazzling explosion lit up the training ground like a falling constellation.

At that moment, Anabel called out from the camp.

"Ash, Dawn—lunch is ready! I've also prepared food for all your Pokémon!"

"Got it! Coming!" Ash and Dawn answered in unison.

As Anabel turned to plate the last dish—

She suddenly froze.

Right there, on top of the table, a tiny, dirty Pokémon was nibbling at the lunch she had just finished preparing.

The food for the Pokémon was also already half-gone!

"This little thing… is that a Shaymin!?"

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T/N:

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