After an exhausting day, Zoroark desperately wanted to leap into Elias's arms and proudly show off what she'd achieved.
I've grown up, too!
She had finally lived up to Elias's expectations and driven Giratina away.
Even from this distance, she could faintly hear the cheers from the Pearl Clan.
Maybe now... I can finally be the hero of Sinnoh!
Smiling happily at the thought, Zoroark turned around eagerly to where Elias had been waiting.
But as her eyes landed on him, her joyous expression quickly froze, her pupils shrinking sharply into thin vertical slits.
Elias… What happened to Elias?
Why is he turning transparent?!
The bizarre sight defied logic, sending her into a daze.
"Elias!"
She stumbled frantically towards him, panic flooding her as she saw how weak he looked.
"What… What's happening?"
"Did that monster hit you earlier?"
Zoroark stood helplessly beside him, torn between wanting to touch him and fearing he might vanish completely with the slightest contact.
Hearing her anxious voice, Elias forced open his eyes, mustering all his remaining strength.
eting Zoroark's terrified gaze, Elias quickly looked away, overco by a wave of guilt.
For once, calm and collected Elias appeared fearful, unable to admit the truth or face her devastated reaction.
Initially, he'd planned to quietly disappear while she was busy fighting.
But he couldn't bear the thought of leaving without a word—such abrupt parting would hurt her even more.
Seeing Elias look away guiltily and remain silent, Zoroark unconsciously stepped back.
"Elias! Say sothing!"
Her voice shook dangerously, taking on a threatening edge.
"This joke isn't funny! Y-you need to go back to normal, right now!"
She couldn't accept it.
She couldn't believe the Elias who had comforted her and given her strength only monts ago was about to vanish completely from her life.
Hearing Zoroark's trembling voice, Elias's fading consciousness montarily sharpened.
Suddenly, he wondered if his decision had been the right one.
Yet…
Even now, he knew he could never just watch Zoroark fall in front of him.
She deserved to live a long and peaceful life in Hisui.
[Your ti is nearly up.]
Arceus's voice echoed in his mind once again.
It seed the deity had been closely observing him this whole ti.
Accepting this, Elias stopped questioning his decision.
With the last of his strength, he reached out and gently caressed Zoroark's soft cheek once more.
He opened his mouth as if trying to say sothing—
But in the end, the words remained stuck in his throat. Instead, he simply offered her a complicated, bittersweet smile.
As he smiled, his body seed to reach its limit.
His translucent form began breaking apart, dissolving into countless golden flecks of light.
Zoroark's crimson eyes widened in horror, their color deepening ominously as her pupils narrowed to thin slits.
"W-wait, stop!"
"It's the Plates, right? They're causing this, aren't they?"
"I don't want them—I don't want any of these Plates anymore! You can take back all their power! Throw them away, anything!"
"Just please, wait!"
Desperately, she lashed out with a flurry of [Shadow Claws], frantically trying to grab the drifting lights.
She even tugged fiercely at the Plates hovering near her, hoping to break their hold.
Yet, no matter how desperately she tried, the golden lights slipped through her claws, floating steadily away, and the Plates rely wobbled slightly, completely unaffected by her attempts.
"No… No, no, NO!"
Seeing her efforts futile, Zoroark lunged toward Elias, desperate to embrace him one last ti.
But her arms passed through empty air, clutching at nothing.
His familiar, comforting scent had nearly vanished.
She stared in disbelief at the now-empty ground, wondering desperately if she was trapped in an illusion.
"Elias…is gone?"
The worst nightmare she'd never dared to dream about had just unfolded before her very eyes.
"Elias, please stop playing around…"
"I promise, I know I ssed up this ti, so please…don't punish like this."
"Please…"
Large tears spilled from her eyes, falling uncontrollably onto the ground.
Her remaining hope evaporated entirely with Elias's disappearance.
Thump—
Zoroark collapsed to the ground, eyes blank, looking utterly lost and abandoned.
No one seeing her would have guessed she'd just defeated the feared master of the Distortion World.
"Elias…all I want is for you to co back…"
She buried her head between her knees, quietly sobbing into the cold night.
...
"He should be just ahead," Lucario said, sensing their surroundings with his [Aura], glancing back at Cynthia following close behind.
It had taken considerable effort to track Elias down to these ruins.
Fortunately, only a little more than a day had passed since Elias left.
If they hurried now, they could still catch him.
"Wait a second," Cynthia called out suddenly, clutching her chest as she lay against Garchomp's back.
Her heart ached terribly, as if a heavy stone had been placed on her chest, making it difficult to breathe.
The pressure had grown steadily worse, yet she was certain she had no heart condition.
Realizing Elias might be in danger, she took a deep breath, waving Lucario forward.
"Let's keep going."
Lucario nodded and resud leading the way.
He could sense Zoroark clearly now, indicating they were very close.
Yet strangely, Elias's aura today felt extrely faint.
Is Elias deliberately hiding himself? Lucario wondered.
As they passed through a shattered landscape of broken timber, Lucario finally spotted Zoroark's distant silhouette.
"It seems everything's fine after all," Lucario said to Cynthia, sighing with relief.
It made sense; with Zoroark there, Elias was unlikely to have been hard.
He'd been worrying for nothing.
---
T/N: no... lucario and cynthia dont look! that stupid mutt killed Elias!
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