As Aven stepped into the Sea Temple, the light emitted by the mysterious mystic water grew even more intense.
His figure quickly moved deeper into the temple, and along the way, he saw far more murals than those in the Temple of Manaphy of Marina City.
The murals that covered the walls seemed to depict the entire developmental history of the People of the Water. They were filled with countless scenes of worship, and at the center of every image stood Manaphy.
Suddenly, he stopped in front of one particular mural. In this painting, a ritual altar was depicted.
At the very top of the altar was not Manaphy, but a special Pokémon Egg. The egg floated in midair, while below it, countless People of the Water knelt in worship.
"That Pokémon Egg is… Manaphy?" Aven let out a soft sound of surprise.
"Lilli~ Lilli~"
At that moment, Lilligant gently tugged at the corner of his clothes.
Through telepathic connection, Aven instantly understood her meaning—at the very end of the temple, there was a sign of life.
"A life signature? Manaphy?" He withdrew his gaze from the mural and quickly led his Pokémon deeper into the temple.
Before long, they arrived in front of an altar. On top of it lay a Pokémon Egg, quietly resting there, exactly like the one depicted in the mural he had just seen.
As if sensing the presence of the egg, the mysterious mystic water released an even more violent surge of energy. The energy roared forth, then poured entirely into the Pokémon Egg on the altar.
After absorbing all of the energy, the egg returned to its calm, ordinary state, as though nothing had happened at all.
However, Aven was now certain of the egg's identity. Inside it was very likely Manaphy, the Prince of the Sea worshipped by the People of the Water. For some unknown reason, it had been left behind here in the form of an egg.
"Naga~ nadel~?"
The newly evolved Naganadel leaned in closer.
Having once hatched from an egg itself, it was now filled with curiosity toward the Pokémon Egg before it.
Would a Pokémon like itself emerge from this egg as well? What kind of form would it grow into?
"If nothing unexpected happens, this should also be the egg of a legendary Pokémon," Aven said as he walked up to the altar.
After hesitating for a moment, he reached out and carefully lifted the egg from the altar, holding it in his arms. Throughout the process, the egg showed no reaction at all, causing the Pokémon present to breathe a sigh of relief.
"Although I don't know why you're here, or what your purpose is,"
"Please believe me—I will definitely find a way to hatch you."
Aven gently raised the egg, infusing his intent into his psychic power and transmitting it toward the Manaphy that might exist within the egg.
As if responding to his words, the egg swayed slightly a few times before returning to stillness.
Smiling in satisfaction, he handed the egg to Lilligant. At the moment, he didn't have any prepared nutrient solution on hand, so he could only rely on Lilligant to nurture the little life inside with her life energy.
With Lilligant's current level of control over life energy, aside from being unable to provide certain nutrients, her ability to nourish the life within the egg was far superior to any potion.
"Garde~ voir~"
Gardevoir floated over as well, light flickering in her eyes as she attempted to communicate with the little life inside the egg.
"Naganadel, when you were still an egg, you were just like this too," Aven said with a smile, turning toward Naganadel beside him.
"Na…"
Naganadel froze for a moment, its expression softening as it quietly watched the scene before it.
"Let's leave this place," Aven said softly, sensing that the time was about right.
They quickly retraced their steps. At this point, there was nothing left in the Sea Temple that could hold him back.
Although the history of the People of the Water recorded here was fascinating, if he truly wanted to study it, he could always return in the future.
After assessing the situation of the Fiore Region, he had already marked this place as one that the Pokémon League must eventually spread to. When the time came, he would certainly return.
After leaving the Sea Temple, Gardevoir could finally use Teleport again. In a flash, their figures vanished from the spot, and when they reappeared, they were already at the seaside.
Aven threw a Poké Ball and released Gyarados. Riding atop it, they began their journey back toward the Sinnoh Region. They had already been away from Sinnoh for several days, and it would still take nearly half a month to return. He couldn't help but feel worried about the situation back home.
What he didn't expect, however, was that Cresselia bringing him away from Sinnoh had itself been part of the Sorcerer Organization's plan.
They were also aware that the three colored crystals could dispel the power of the Shadow Crystal. However, back when they still controlled the Shadow Crystal, they hadn't devoted their efforts to the other three crystals.
Now, using the three colored crystals to lure Aven away was a far better strategy for them. After all, the Shadow Crystal was already in Aven's hands, making the three colored crystals far less important. Whether Darkrai was awakened or not was completely irrelevant to them.
After the combined efforts of several Pokémon, Aven finally returned to the Sinnoh Region.
Yet, at the very moment he set foot on the continent, his heart suddenly sank. Closing his eyes and sensing carefully, he discovered that he had lost his connection with Azelf.
"Did something happen to Azelf?" His brows knit tightly together.
Without any hesitation, he immediately had Naganadel carry him into the sky, flying straight toward the nearest city—Heartglade City.
As he approached Heartglade City, the sight before him caused his pupils to shrink. The land was devastated beyond recognition. The entire forest near Heartglade City had been flattened by overwhelming power. Countless trees had withered, as if all life had been drained away.
"Lilli~ Lilli!"
Lilligant also sensed something terribly wrong.
The aura of death here was far too dense, as if the entire land had fallen into a world of death, devoid of any vitality.
Just being within this region made her feel deeply uncomfortable, and the surrounding land showed no trace of life whatsoever.
"What on earth happened here?" Aven continuously scanned his surroundings.
Faintly, he felt an unsettling sense of familiarity. When the gray mist erupted from the Abyssal Caverns back then, it had also left behind a scene just as lifeless.
But this was Heartglade City, located in the southwesternmost part of the Sinnoh Region. Even if the gray mist from the Abyssal Caverns erupted again, it shouldn't have been able to spread this far.
"Could it be a similar kind of power?" He sensed the presence of a conspiracy.
"Darkrai…"
Darkrai's figure quietly floated beside Aven.
As a Dark-type legendary Pokémon, it wasn't particularly afraid of such deathly energy.
Still, after thinking it over, Aven chose not to let Darkrai recklessly investigate the situation. Instead, he decided to head straight for Heartglade City to assess the situation firsthand.
He urgently wanted to know what had happened to Heartglade City and to Mesprit in Lake Verity—whether they had been affected by this deathly power.
As they continued deeper inland, his heart sank further and further. It wasn't just the area where he had landed—nearly the entire forest near Heartglade City had already been enveloped by the aura of death, and it had begun spreading into Heartglade City itself.
The deeper they went, the denser the deathly aura became. Even Lilligant, Lucario, and Naganadel, all of whom possessed champion–level strength, were heavily affected.
He could clearly feel a force extracting the life energy from his body. If he remained here for too long, he would definitely be eroded by this deathly energy and lose his life.
"Garde!"
Gardevoir continuously used Teleport, carrying Aven rapidly away from this land of death.
In a flash, they appeared on a plain that lay within Heartglade City's territory.
Even so, they still hadn't completely escaped the range of the deathly aura. It was obvious that this energy had already begun affecting Heartglade City itself.
And when they truly arrived at Heartglade City, Aven's heart sank completely. The city gates had been destroyed for reasons unknown. Although knights were still stationed there, the city itself felt eerily empty, with no sign of civilian activity.
"Who are you? Why are you approaching Heartglade City?" A knight shouted upon seeing Aven.
At the same time, the archers at the gate raised their bows, aiming them uniformly at Aven, ready to fire at any moment.
(End of Chapter)
TN: Damn city names. I thought the westernmost part of sinnoh was Canalave City which I named Canalvein City, turns out it was Heartglade City which I thought to be Jubilife City. Guess I can justify my earlier naming's?