After Arya

After Arya: Part 1

Relief. When I saw Dialga collapse, that's the feeling that flooded my body. It had been ages since I'd felt it – to be honest, I couldn't even remember the last time that I'd been so at peace with something. Why, you may ask? Because Primal Dialga's demise meant that Arya and I had succeeded in our quest to save the world. And right after I thought of that, I collapsed in pure exhaustion.

The next thing I remember is Arya shouting my name. "Ben! Ben, wake up!"

I groaned. "...Ugh...Urrgh..." Slowly, I began to take in my surroundings, and I realized what had happened. "Hey...Arya..." I began. I glanced at the alter where the time gears were placed, still not fully understanding where I was. "Wh-where...?" I trailed off.

Suddenly a loud voice shattered the relative quietness of the tower. "This is...Temporal Tower," the voice said.

Finally, all the pieces fit together. Dialga had said that! Arya and I spotted him and ran towards him.

"Wah! Dialga!" I exclaimed, remembering the fierce battle I had just had with him.

"You have no cause for alarm. I have regained my reason."

"Huh?" Could that really be true? Dialga was pretty crazy not 10 minutes ago...

"Temporal Tower has taken heavy damage...but it has survived. Now, observe," Dialga explained.

Dialga turned around, and a bright light emanated from this chest. Suddenly, unexplainably, I began seeing images of places I had explored in the past.

"Th-this is...This place...It's Treeshroud Forest. But it's different! When we were in Treeshroud Forest, time was stopped! Time is...Time is moving again!" I had explored there long ago, but it was also the first area that time had stopped. Only now, a breeze was blowing, and dew was dripping off the trees. I had never seen a more wonderful sight in my whole life.

Next was an image of Arya and I's home, Treasure Town. "It's Treasure Town! Everyone looks happy!"

Finally, there was an image of Temporal Tower. The place looked like a complete mess. The path leading up to it was almost nonexistent, with stones that had fallen off frozen in place. The tower itself was dilapidated, and it looked as if it could collapse on itself at any moment. Which is not comforting news when you're the one standing at the very top of it. "It's Temporal Tower. It looks pretty beaten up...But...it's still standing! Temporal Tower didn't fall apart...It survived!"

Dialga ended the vision, and we were once again looking at him. I felt warm after seeing all the happiness in the vision he showed us.

"Temporal Tower survived the crisis. Time has returned to normal here...Thus, time has resumed in places where it had stopped. Because you stopped the ruin of Temporal Tower...the planet's paralysis has been prevented. The world's peace...has been restored."

I couldn't believe my ears. We had really done it. "R-really?!" I exclaimed. "We did it, Arya! We finally did it! We brought peace to the world!"

"Allow me to thank you. I thank you for reaching the Hidden Land...You had the courage to stand up to me, even as I raged out of control...And you prevented the ruin of Temporal Tower in the nick of time. Thank you. All this, I owe to you."

Wow. It wasn't every day that you got thanked for saving the world by the legendary Pokemon of time. Dialga was someone I had read about in stories, but I was a little skeptical of his existence before I became an explorer. "D-Dialga..." I stuttered.

"But all is not yet as it should be...it will take time. I must see to the repair of Temporal Tower. The Hidden Land, too, has been ravaged...But the Rainbow Stoneship should still be operable...And Lapras should be awaiting your return."

It was then that I realized how ready I was to be home. Arya and I had been away for so long that I forgot what it was like to not be on the run or completing the mission of saving the world tirelessly. "Ok! Let's go home, Arya! Back to Treasure Town!"