Pokemon: Skybound

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"Rainbow Wing and Silver Wing?"

Kurt narrowed his eyes the moment he heard the names. As a master Poké Ball craftsman, he knew exactly what they represented.

Though Professor Elm and Erika didn't know the full story, their insight allowed them to make educated guesses about the feathers' origins.

Only little Maizie, innocent and wide-eyed, looked at her grandfather with curiosity.

"Grandpa, what are those? Are they from a Pokémon?"

Erika, charmed by the girl's pure curiosity, stepped in kindly to explain. "The Rainbow Wing comes from Ho-Oh, and the Silver Wing from Lugia. Both are Legendary Pokémon. Even their feathers are said to hold extraordinary power."

"Ho-Oh… Lugia…"

Maizie repeated the names in a whisper, her eyes sparkling with wonder. Growing up in Johto, she had heard the legends of the two majestic Pokémon all her life. Her imagination wandered about what kind of Poké Ball could be made using their feathers?

While Maizie's thoughts were filled with wonder, Kurt and Professor Elm looked much more serious.

In Poké Ball crafting, rarity isn't everything. The most important aspect is compatibility. If materials clash instead of harmonizing, the result can be not just useless but dangerous.

Kurt exhaled slowly. "One feather represents Ho-Oh's flame, the other Lugia's sea. They are elemental opposites of fire and water. For someone to merge them in a single Poké Ball… their craftsmanship must've been exceptional."

What he didn't say was: Even he, the region's most renowned craftsman, couldn't make something like this.

Professor Elm turned to Kai. "The Poké Ball you mentioned earlier are you talking about the GS Ball?"

Kai didn't answer directly. Instead, he said thoughtfully, "I've heard it carries two letters on its casing. One stands for 'Gold,' the other for 'Silver.'"

Both Kurt and Elm turned to examine the GS Ball again. They paused as their eyes settled on the faded letters engraved on the surface.

"So it really is this Poké Ball…"

Kurt muttered, "Gold and Silver… Is that the maker's initials? Or maybe it hints at the materials?"

Kai shrugged noncommittally.

He couldn't very well tell them that the 'GS' referred to the Gold and Silver versions of a video game they didn't even know they were part of.

Elm frowned slightly. "But to go through all this trouble… Why make a Poké Ball like this?"

"To capture an extraordinary Pokémon," Kurt replied, almost reverently. "That's the whole point of Poké Balls, isn't it? But if you already have something from Ho-Oh and Lugia… what else could possibly demand more?"

Professor Elm glanced at Kai. "You already know, don't you?"

Kai nodded. "This is a Poké Ball made to capture time itself."

Kurt and Elm both gasped. "Time?!"

Kai continued, "Using the Rainbow Wing and Silver Wing as conduits… it was built to capture a Pokémon that controls time."

Everyone except for Maizie knew immediately which Pokémon he meant.

"Celebi…"

Maizie looked around, puzzled, then turned to Erika. "Miss Erika… What's a Celebi?"

Erika gently smiled, then explained, "Celebi is a Mythical Pokémon. It's said to travel through time, appearing in places where nature thrives. Some people call it the guardian of the forest. Wherever it appears, it brings lush greenery and can even heal wounds."

"Mythical Pokémon?" Maizie tilted her head, clearly unfamiliar with the term.

Professor Elm nodded. "They're incredibly rare Pokémon. Sometimes they're classified alongside Legendaries, sometimes not but they're just as important and powerful."

Once again, a heavy silence settled over the room.

Each of them was thinking the same thing who would create a Poké Ball just to capture the Pokémon that commands time?

After a long pause, Kurt sighed. "This is going to be… difficult."

Everyone turned to him.

"If it were just an odd Poké Ball, we could put it away and forget about it. But now that we know what the GS Ball is… if word got out, it'd be chaos."

Professor Elm fell silent, understanding instantly.

If the GS Ball's secret were revealed, people would come for it. Some would want to study it. Others would want to control what it captured.

Elm hesitated, then said, "Maybe… maybe we should turn it over to the police."

Kurt shook his head firmly.

Turn it over?

He knew better. Once it entered official channels, it wouldn't stay safe. It would be pulled into politics or experiments never seen again.

Elm realized the same thing and sighed again.

But keeping it here was no better. Even if they didn't say a word, the GS Ball had changed hands too many times. A determined pursuer would eventually track it here.

What a mess…

Kurt glanced at Elm who seemed just as conflicted.

Then, as if struck by inspiration, Elm's gaze landed on Kai.

"Kurt… I have a request."

"Oh?" Kurt looked at him. "Go ahead, Elm. Say it."

Elm took a breath. "Now that we know what this Poké Ball was meant for, I don't think further research is necessary. And keeping it here is dangerous. I believe we should entrust it… to the person most capable of protecting it."

Kurt didn't need to ask who he meant.

He followed Elm's gaze and his eyes settled on Kai.

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