A Journey's Link

Chapter 34 - Anistar

Ash and Serena reached Trevor and Tierno, giving them each a high five and forming smiles on their faces. "Hey, you guys!" Tierno exclaimed in his jolly voice. "What are you doing in Anistar City?" Trevor asked, putting away his camera that he took with him everywhere into his bag.

"We're going to see Olympia," Ash said, looking over at Serena as he did so, nodding towards the crystal necklace. "There's a lot to explain, but basically, we've got to go there to figure something out." Both Trevor and Tierno nodded, understanding that he couldn't tell them something but also saddened that their curiosity wasn't being quenched.

"But we're also pretty nervous because something is going on with one of the Zygarde Cores," Ash added, remembering everything that Azelf told him. Trevor's eyes widened as he asked, "Wait? Zygarde Core? Like Squishy?"

Ash nodded and explained everything that had happened the last few days, leaving out Rustboro City's incidents on account of his guilt. He explained the core's appearance in space, the Lake Trio Guardians, and even his Lucario, who was still in Vermillion City and doing fine according to Nurse Joy.

"Wow," Trevor whispered, going through all the information Ash had given him. Tierno suddenly blurted, "Wait, I thought the Zygarde cores were good guys? Why is it trying to hurt us?" Trevor looked curiously at Ash, also wanting to know the answer to Tierno's question.

Ash shrugged and said, "We still don't know. I don't even think the Lake Trio knows." Trevor and Tierno looked at each other with a worried look; the prospect that not even three Legendary Pokemon could figure something out was terrifying.

Ash felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see a shy Goh and Chloe. "So, who are these people?" Goh asked quietly, gesturing towards Tierno and Trevor. "Whoops," Ash said, realizing he forgot to introduce his friends to each other. Goh has had to meet a lot of my old friends recently, Ash thought. I'm glad he's okay with it.

"You two, this is Goh and Chloe," he said towards Tierno and Trevor, who smiled and held out their hands. "I'm Trevor," the orange-haired photographer said. "I like to take pictures of Pokemon. Nice to meet you!" Goh and Chloe shook his hand and turned towards Tierno.

"I'm Tierno," the dark-haired dancer said. "I like to move and groove! Oh, I'm also a Pokemon Coordinator!" As Goh and Chloe shook his hand, Ash and Serena looked at each other in surprise. A Coordinator? Serena thought.

Trevor must've seen their surprised faces and walked over to them to explain the situation further. "After Tierno heard that Serena was leaving for Hoenn to become a coordinator," he explained, watching as Tierno showed off his dance moves, "He wanted to become one, too, so he went to Sinnoh in pursuit of becoming a Top Coordinator!"

"Wow," Serena said. "Tierno a Coordinator? That's a new one," she said, slight amusement on her face. Ash chuckled and said, "It makes sense. Look at how awesome his dancing is!" Serena giggled and nodded, seeing the connection. Ash turned towards Trevor and asked, "So did you go to Sinnoh, too?"

Trevor smiled and nodded, answering, "After I heard that Tierno was going to try out Contests, I decided to tag along so I could try to take pictures of the legendary Pokemon of Sinnoh." His eyes widened in realization. "Wait, since you guys know the Lake Trio Pokemon, do you think you could let me take a picture of them?" His eyes gleamed with excitement, only to disappear when Ash shook his head.

"See, we don't even know where they are," Ash said, remembering how, to even talk to Azelf, he had to be transported to a separate place in his dreams. "They were put in danger because of the Zygarde core so they had to teleport to some weird place."

Now Trevor was intrigued for an entirely different reason. "A different place?" he asked, looking curiously at Ash. "What do you mean?" Ash thought for a moment trying to think of a comprehensive answer for Trevor. "Well, it's kind of like... it's a...a place where..." he stuttered, not quite sure how to answer Trevor.