"So, I heard you can share eternal life, Xerneas. Is that right?"
Damian didn't test the waters.
He asked Xerneas directly.
Whether Xerneas could actually share eternal life—
was still an unknown thing up to now.
After all, in the Pokémon World, the Pokédex is basically something Professor and all kinds of researchers write after collecting info.
In reality, a lot of it is subjective.
And Xerneas's Pokédex description said:
supposedly, it can share eternal life.
After it sleeps as a tree for 1,000 years, it revives.
But in practice, Pokédex data isn't fully accurate.
A lot of Pokédex data exaggerates things, or just describes with unclear meaning.
For example, the classic one:
Gardevoir handcrafts a black hole.
And Gothitelle can influence the starry sky from tens of thousands of light-years away.
If Gardevoir and Gothitelle really had that kind of power…
then what about all the other Pokémon?
And what about "the prettiest Pokémon in the world"?
Before Gen VI, the prettiest in the world was always Milotic.
After Gen VI, Diancie is also revered in the Pokédex as the prettiest Pokémon in the world.
So which one is "the prettiest"?
Another classic example is Mew.
A lot of people think Mew's "level" is high, because there's actually no confirmed "Pokémon ancestor" setting.
But in reality, the Pokédex's original wording was:
Because it can use all Moves,
many scholars believe it's an ancestor of Pokémon.
Leaving aside that Pokédex says "many scholars believe it's an ancestor of Pokémon,"
in fact, the origin of Pokémon World after that can already be completely confirmed.
It was Arceus who created the Pokémon cosmos.
And the first Pokémon in the world were also Giratina and its "Six Spirits."
That had nothing to do with Mew at all.
If you really had to say it,
Mew could be the ancestor of ordinary Pokémon.
That isn't impossible.
Can Mew use all Moves?
That actually depends on which perspective you're using.
Without transforming, Mew can't use a lot of Moves.
In the Pokédex, scholars write that Mew can use all Moves.
That Pokédex description isn't "wrong,"
it's just not accurate enough.
Because Mew really can learn all Moves on Technical Machines—that part is fine.
But there are still a lot of Moves.
And Moves that can't be recorded in Technical Machines.
Mew can't use those either.
So Pokédex stuff has way too much subjectivity, speculation, and exaggeration.
You can trust it—
but you can't trust it completely.
After all, in the Pokémon World, the Pokédex is filled in by humans.
Damian could even write Pokédex entries himself.
As long as he applies to famous Professors like Professor Oak, Elm, and Birch.
And for Xerneas's Pokédex entry—
whether it's truly real or not—
was something Damian couldn't confirm.
So he asked directly.
"Strictly speaking, no."
Xerneas answered Damian that way.
"Can you explain it more specifically?"
Damian wasn't too surprised.
Because if Xerneas really could make someone immortal…
then why would Lysandre need the Ultimate weapon?
The Ultimate weapon needs Xerneas's energy to start.
And then it uses the Ultimate weapon to get immortality.
If Xerneas itself could make people immortal, then Lysandre wasn't doing anything but creating redundancy.
Unless it was because Xerneas couldn't actually make people immortal.
Lysandre caught Xerneas in the game,
so he found out about that.
That's why he used the Ultimate weapon.
"The life energy I share can extend the life force needed for humans to exist."
"But your human bodies keep growing, getting older, and aging."
Hearing that, Damian understood roughly.
In simple terms—
the life energy Xerneas provided let people live forever.
But it couldn't stop them from aging.
Because human bodies had limits.
"Damian."
"You want to live forever?"
Xerneas looked at Damian.
It probably picked up on that already.
"Yeah."
"These days, I don't lack anything anymore, Xerneas. You understand, right?"
Damian admitted it straight.
"For me, everything is within reach."
"My life is already infinitely close to perfect."
"But I still lack one thing."
"Damian,"
"for humans, immortality doesn't represent happiness."
"Long-lasting life can also be a curse."
Xerneas said this.
As a long-life species, it understood very well the longing and pursuit a short-life species like Damian had for immortality.
But immortality…
was it really happiness?
Xerneas didn't think so.
"And in your future, you'll have a wife and kids."
"Your family, your friends, all your bonds…"
"you'll watch them grow older and die one by one with the passage of time."
"While you yourself stay in eternal youth."
"Can you accept an outcome like that?"
Xerneas couldn't make Damian immortal.
But with its life energy, it could still make Damian's soul immortal on the inside.
It could also slow down physical aging.
Even if it couldn't make him truly immortal,
it was absolutely possible to make him live for hundreds of years.
But that kind of fake longevity—
wasn't a good thing.
And when she heard Xerneas's words, Caitlin felt a tight squeeze in her chest.
That was right.
If Damian got immortality…
and she herself saw her youth fade away—
that was absolutely not what she wanted.
"Then as long as I can have the one I love…"
"stay with me forever, won't that be enough?"
That was what Xerneas said.
Damian had thought about it too.
"Looks like you've already made your decision."
Xerneas didn't say much more.
Humans pursuing immortality was nothing unusual.
Xerneas had already reminded him.
It didn't plan to talk more.
It just stepped on Yveltal again—knocked it out, then it woke up.
And then it made Yveltal stay "asleep."
It didn't let it wake up and cause trouble.
"Mm."
"I already have a way."
"But I'll need Xerneas's help for it."
Damian nodded.
He said his solution.
"There's a person with extremely superior talent."
"They manufacture a divine item that can help me get immortality."
"But to activate that device, it needs your energy, Xerneas."
"I see."
Xerneas's eyes rippled slightly.
Humans really were the kind of species that could create miracles.
"Since it's your request, Damian…"
"then I'll agree."
Xerneas consented.
It didn't think immortality for Damian was a bad thing.
It could feel that Damian wasn't a villain.
And that was enough already.
Having such a long-life-species human in this world wasn't a bad thing either.
Besides—
if Damian lived longer, Yveltal would always be kept by Damian.
Then Yveltal wouldn't be able to wreak havoc on a large scale either.
That was also good.
"But, Damian…"
"please promise me."
"If there ever comes a day you get tired of this world…"
"then please don't go destroy it."
"Okay?"
Xerneas's gentle Telepathy carried a request.
"When that time comes…"
"please look back on your original heart."
"Don't step onto a road you can't take back."
Yes.
This was Xerneas's final request.
If Damian—because of long life—developed a negative, world-weariness mood…
then he would be far more terrifying than Yveltal right now.
"Don't worry."
Damian smiled and nodded.
He understood what Xerneas meant.
But Damian couldn't possibly "go insane."
Because Damian clearly knew—
even if this world didn't have any fun left…
there were parallel worlds he could mess around with.
Besides, he didn't plan to live alone forever.
He had a wife.
Xerneas's eyes held a smile as it nodded.
Then it looked down at the Yveltal on the ground.
"Alright, then."
"I'll catch it next."
Damian took out an empty Ultra Ball.
He started catching Yveltal.
After all, it was Yveltal.
Damian didn't have Mewtwo "help."
But honestly, catching Yveltal was really hard.
Even though it was unconscious…
its subconscious struggle alone was enough to be shocking.
It took over two hundred Ultra Balls just to catch it.
If Damian hadn't carried enough Poké Balls on him—
he might not have made it.
Worth noting—
Yveltal woke up several times mid-process.
But Xerneas was very enthusiastic every time.
It kicked Yveltal again, helping it fall back asleep.
In the end though…
the result was still good.
"But even if I put it in a ball, it doesn't count as fully caught yet."
"I still need to talk with it properly."
Damian fiddled with the Ultra Ball in his hand.
He wondered how to really make Yveltal "settle down."
Maybe he needed a special "welcome party."
"Yeah, sure."
"Damian, you can definitely do it."
Xerneas looked very confident in Damian.
"Damian…"
"do you need me to help you right now?"
Xerneas asked very thoughtfully.
"Because next, I'm going to share my life with this land."
"After it's done…"
"I'll fall into slumber."
"Then will you be able to wake up in the middle?"
Damian looked a bit troubled.
To be honest, he suddenly thought of something.
If the immortality light from the Ultimate weapon hit him right now…
would he just stay frozen in his current state forever?
He was only seventeen right now.
He wasn't even fully developed yet.
"If there's no special situation…"
"then I probably won't be able to."
"But I can retain a bit of life force."
"That way, if there's an emergency…"
"you can use Yveltal to awaken me."
Xerneas thought it over and told Damian.
Its slumber was, in a sense, slowly recovering the life force it had shared away.
So strictly speaking, it definitely couldn't be awakened.
But occasionally…
there could be some special situations, right?
"Alright, thanks, Xerneas."
"I should be thanking you, Xerneas."
"Damian, your Appears helped me escape that painful cycle of suffering."
Xerneas's gaze and tone were both so gentle.
Even Damian—
he couldn't help but feel moved.
Seriously, this was the first time he had ever met a Pokémon this gentle.
Even though he was the one taking all the advantage.
Xerneas should have understood that too.
But Xerneas still thanked him like this—
selflessly gentle, filled with gratitude.
That sincerity made Damian feel really complicated.
"Then I'll be looking forward to our next meeting, Damian."
Xerneas looked at that lifeless gray land.
It slowly stepped forward two steps.
Shining, dazzling seven-colored light lit up across its body.
The life-giving light swept over everything ahead in an instant.
The dead gray gradually regained color.
Flowers, grass, trees, Pokémon—
every Pokémon whose life had been taken by Yveltal's Wings of Death—
was filled with life again.
And all of this—
came from selfless Xerneas.
It shared its life energy with these Pokémon.
It let them regain life once again.
This was Xerneas and Yveltal's "cycle."
Yveltal awoke and took.
Xerneas awoke and gave.
But really…
was it fair?
It wasn't.
Xerneas was sharing life energy that it had only just recovered after using slumber.
It used its own "life"
to refill these living beings' "life."
But the kind-hearted Xerneas never even bothered to think about that.
Every time it awoke,
it was always like this.
Always "giving" without reservation.
When the light faded, a vibrant, full-of-life land once again appeared before Damian and Caitlin.
Beautiful flowers.
Fresh green grass and trees.
Those wild Pokémon that looked confused but still happy.
What a moving sight.
"Xerneas… it's so amazing—"
Caitlin couldn't help but感叹 from the bottom of her heart.
"Yeah…"
"It really is amazing."
Damian looked at Xerneas.
But the one standing there wasn't actually that same Xerneas anymore.
It was a leafless tree.
It had fallen into slumber.
"And I'm really looking forward to our next meeting, Xerneas."
Damian gently patted Tree of Life.
Then he spoke slowly.
After that, Damian didn't hesitate at all.
He took out his phone.
Under Caitlin's puzzled gaze, he dialed a number.
"Yeah."
"Baraz, it's Damian."
"Yeah—something came up here."
"I need Hoopa to help me."
"Can you call it for me?"
"Okay. I'll wait."
Damian didn't hang up.
Not long after—
"Mae Mae What's wrong?"
Mischief Hoopa's voice came through.
"It's Damian."
"Not Mae."
Damian corrected immediately.
"So, here's the thing, Hoopa."
"I just met Xerneas earlier."
"We hit it off instantly."
"But it fell asleep again."
"I want to move it somewhere else."
"Can you help me with that?"
"Huh?"
"Move Xerneas?"
"Yeah."
"First, scoop it up and take it to you."
"Then deliver it over to Regigigas."
"No problem, right?"
Damian also had no choice.
After all, right now Hoopa was in a Confined state.
It couldn't cross the Gold Ring by itself.
Otherwise, he wouldn't need to make it complicated.
Let Mischief Hoopa go straight to him.
Send Tree of Life over.
Then it was done.
But now it needed one more step.
"Oka oka~ No problem, Mae."
"Leave it to me."
The moment the words finished—
above Tree of Life, a Spatial ring quietly appeared.
It completely surrounded Tree of Life.
When you looked again, Tree of Life was already gone.
"Alright, Mae."
"I've sent Xerneas over to Regigigas."
"Hoopa's awesome, right?"
"Hoopa."
"My Superman~ You're the best!"
Damian couldn't help praising it.
He really did admire how useful Hoopa was.
Meanwhile—
Regigigas, sleeping underground, suddenly felt an itch on its head.
What is this?
Regigigas thought about it.
It got up and grabbed whatever this was in one hand.
Then…
Regigigas stared at the weird little tree in its hand, and couldn't help falling into thought.
Xerneas: "…"
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