At All Costs {Pokémon Fanfiction}

Prologue: Future Memories

The nightmare is after me.

I rush through the maze of thick tree trunks. The area surrounding me is complete darkness. My small body frantically flees through the dense forest. Hanging tree branches smack my face as I press through them. A pond basks in the moonlight where the trees don't hide the forest floor from the night sky. Grass rustles restlessly as the nightlife of Ilex Forest doesn't understand what's going on.

The shiver in my spine tells me it's futile. I'm trying to run from time itself—it's only a matter of time before it catches up to me. Even if I can traverse time, one being still has the upper hand on my existence. Despite the fact I try to only exist in times of peace, there are other times—both literally and figuratively—where I must be present as well.

Like this time when a huge metal dragon who has power over time itself wants to show up and give me a hard time.

I continue to dash through what I consider my home. Then again, a simple whisking away can put me in a different time period with a different forest and surroundings. The scariest thing? Either of us have the power to whisk me away.

I'm not exactly sure why Dialga is after me. Maybe it's jealous that I can manipulate times despite the fact it was created first.

The lengths some Pokémon go through for a bit of ego astounds me.

"Celebi!" roars the forest from behind. It's ironic that the voice in the forest is yelling at me, whom—in legends that humans create—dub as the "Voice of the Forest" in Johto.

In a frenzy, I accelerate my escape. I can feel Dialga getting closer with every tree I whiz by. If this was in the daytime, it'd be much easier. Fumbling around in the dark though? It's not my forte.

In front of me, I hold out my short arms with three-fingered hands. If anything, I need to push on to the Ilex Forest's shrine. If I can make it to the shrine, even Dialga can't stop me from escaping. My ultimate source of my time traveling power is strongest when at the shrine. All I need to do now is push through the dense trees to it.

I pant as my clear wings sap the last bit of my energy left with their flight. Out of breath, I muster whatever I have left to make a mad flitting dash to the forest shrine. I lunge and turn corners, pass over standing water ranging from puddles to ponds, and somehow try to flee Dialga's grasp. I'm almost there with just a few more bushes to pass.

But I can't make it in time.

The encroaching tenebrous pursuit swallows my being whole. I feel a shadow grab my toeless foot at the base of my light green ankle. I look up and see it: the Ilex Forest's shrine. I'm practically within reach of it.

"Celebi, you have run long enough," a voice booms. I cover my ears from the sheer volume the voice has. It's almost as if it's in my head or something.

"Dialga, can we not do this? Seriously, I still don't understand why you've been chasing me this whole time."

"The reason? Celebi, you're a fool."

"So foolish in fact that I need an explanation. Why don't you start?" I ask, gritting my teeth. I try to pull away from the shadow's grasp. It's to no avail as I remain secure in place.

"You think you can do whatever you want in my domain? I am the ruler of time! When I roar, time bends to my will!"

I chuckle to myself. "Well, I'd bend too if I had to smell the breath of your roar. Seriously, when was the last time you've had decent hygiene?"

"Celebi, you have fled long enough! I will show you what true power over time is!" Dialga roars. My blue eyes blink in blank confusion. There is no reason whatsoever for Dialga to go out of its way to do this. Seriously, is it some sort of initiation for a Mythical Pokémon to get bullied by a legendary?

"Please don't tell me you've been listening to—"

"Darkrai knows! It knows I'm the ruler of time! It bows to me when I deserve it!" Dialga roars again. Dialga is getting mixed up in Darkrai's tricks and schemes? What is the world of Pokémon coming to?

"Show a legendary a nightmare and he's suddenly out for my head. This is beyond my understanding," I mutter to myself, glancing over at the Ilex Forest's shrine. If I could just move a few inches closer to it...

"Celebi! I will show you the true power of time itself!" Dialga roars.

"There is no reason for you to do that. I only appear in times of peace in different time periods. You are the almighty time manipulator or whatever. Can you just let me do my thing?" I ask him, tugging my leg from the shadowy grip. I can feel my leg starting to slide, but I can't quite wriggle free.

"Silence, Celebi!" roars the dragon. I look back behind me and see green eyes glinting in the darkness of the forest. Did Dialga always have green eyes?

I finally squirm free of the shadow's grip on my leg. I zip back up, my clear wings flitting towards the shrine. I dart for my means of escape. A fearsome, booming roar echoes in the forest, even vibrating the air around me. The forest around me flees for safety as I press forward.

"You can't escape, Celebi! Wherever you're going, you can run, but you can't hide!"

"It's not where I'm going, it's when." I reach my hand out and touch the shrine. A blinding light envelops me, the telltale sign I'm going to a different time. It's a good way to escape, especially from irritable legendary Pokémon. In another instant, I'm surrounded by a light pink scenery, where I can freely drift through timelines. It sporadically has five-foot radius circles that show flashing images of different time periods that I could possibly jump into. Many carnation pink lines criss-cross the space, showing how every place in whatever time period connects somehow. Traversing the place feels like if you were going at the speed of a rapid river with the control of being able to stop and go wherever you want to.

But, one thing I've never experienced happens: a loud roar echoes once more. It's not just any roar: it's Dialga's roar. I look at my body and feel it begin to stretch. My limbs lengthen, shooting in pain. My ovaloid head begins to round out into a spherical shape. The time travel space around me begins to warp in odd wave-like patterns, like it's being attacked with Extrasensory. What was a light pink is now an eerie purple pattern with green jagged lines cutting through it like lightning bolts during the storm. I realize the doom I'm in: it's not the trademark color scheme of Darkrai.

Pain throbs in my head. I suddenly lose control of my time travel and begin spinning end over end out of control. I lose my coordination and my sense of direction. Before I know it, I'm taking a nosedive into wherever this interference is trying to send me.

"I am supreme!" a voice booms. I know Dialga isn't here. It can't be here. This is my time travel domain, and I am the only one who should be able to affect it.

Or so I thought.

In my tired dizziness, I spot a small crack in the time rift. I don't recognize the time period, but I know it's a way out of this chaos. I muster the last bit of my strength and launch myself towards the crack. I focus the last bit of my power and jump towards the hole. I approach it head first like a speeding Ninjask using Quick Attack. I reflexively shut my eyes and I feel the chaos fade away as I jump into whenever time period I escaped to.

I feel my body crash, presumably on the floor. My eyes open for only a second, but I affirm that I'm out of time drifting. I don't know where, or more appropriately when, I am. All I know is that I'm somewhere, and sometime, I'm not familiar with.

I can't help but succumb to my exhaustion. I collapse on the floor, wherever and whenever it is.