Elias approached Giratina along with his two Pokémon companions and Cynthia.
Giratina appeared completely unconscious, not reacting at all as they drew near.
Only when Elias and Cynthia stood beside its enormous head did they take a careful look at the fallen Renegade Pokémon.
Despite being knocked out, Giratina's expression remained ferocious.
Its unconscious form still radiated an aura of savage hostility, even with its blood-red eyes tightly shut.
Seeing this, Elias quietly detached a red Poké Ball from his waist.
"Is that…?" Cynthia began to ask, though she already had a hunch.
"An [Origin Ball]," Elias answered simply. "A genuine one, this ti."
As he explained, he handed the smooth, spherical [Origin Ball] over to Zoroark.
"How about you give capturing it another try?"
Failing to capture Giratina with the incomplete [Origin Ball] back in Hisui had always troubled Zoroark deeply.
Though she never spoke of it, Elias had noticed her eyes often lingering on the Poké Ball at his belt.
Perhaps now, he could finally help lift that shadow from her heart.
Zoroark blinked, montarily startled, but quickly understood Elias's intention.
Warmth spread through her chest as she nodded gently, accepting his kindness without hesitation.
Taking the [Origin Ball] carefully into her paws, its residual warmth imdiately cald her nerves.
She stepped forward, crouching down near Giratina's massive head.
Thunk—
With a gentle tap, she touched the [Origin Ball] to Giratina's armored skull.
It opened instantly, shooting a red beam that swiftly enveloped Giratina's enormous body.
Unlike in Hisui, this ti Giratina's form shrank rapidly, easily vanishing into the ball.
The red sphere rocked lightly once, twice, before coming to rest with a satisfying click.
Giratina had been successfully captured.
"Elias, we did it!"
Seeing this, the tense expression on Zoroark's small face finally relaxed into genuine delight.
She eagerly offered the Poké Ball to Elias with both paws, like a proud child showing off a prized treasure.
Clearly, resolving this old regret had brought her trendous relief.
Elias took the [Origin Ball] gently from her paws, softly stroking her fluffy head in praise.
"Congratulations."
Nearby, Cynthia softly clapped her hands, smiling warmly as she joined in the congratulations.
As expected, Elias hadn't changed a bit, even after centuries.
Only Elias could capture a Pokémon of Giratina's caliber without surprising her.
But…
"We should probably head back soon," Cynthia reminded softly. "Your friends outside must be getting anxious."
Recalling Steven and Lance's concerned expressions, she suggested this with a slight urgency.
She had countless questions for Elias, and this wasn't the place for lengthy explanations.
In a rare show of agreent, Gardevoir nodded her approval of Cynthia's suggestion.
With a faint smile, Elias tossed the [Origin Ball] gently into the air.
Pop—
White light flashed, and Giratina's massive form reappeared.
This ti, Elias held nothing back, pouring a steady stream of the [Power of Viridian] into Giratina's battered body.
Gardevoir quickly joined in, using Heal Pulse to speed up Giratina's recovery.
Under their combined efforts, Giratina stirred shortly after, weakly opening its hazy eyes.
Upon seeing Elias standing right before it, Giratina's imdiate impulse was aggression.
However—
To its horror, Giratina discovered an invisible bond had ford between itself and this human.
Its instincts firmly resisted the urge to harm Elias, leaving it utterly baffled.
Quickly scanning Elias's body, Giratina's eyes fell upon the [Origin Ball] at his waist, and the realization hit like a bolt of lightning.
It—Giratina, the Renegade Pokémon and lord of the Distortion World—had been captured like so common Pokémon.
In other words, this human was now officially its trainer.
The thought caused Giratina's mind to montarily stall.
Unlike Arceus, it couldn't defy the fundantal rules governing captured Pokémon.
Having been caught in a Poké Ball, it was now bound to obediently accept this new reality.
"Grrrr—"
Giratina glared nacingly at Elias.
But after glancing warily at Gardevoir and Zoroark nearby, it quickly abandoned any suicidal thoughts of retaliation.
Not that it didn't wish to—but it simply lacked the strength now.
Seeing Giratina's grudging obedience, Elias calmly approached, accompanied by Gardevoir.
"Hey, big guy, lend us your power," Elias requested, lightly tapping Giratina's sturdy mandibles. "Send us back to the real world, would you?"
Giratina snorted contemptuously, turning its head dismissively aside.
Though unable to harm Elias, it could still refuse his requests. There was no way it was going to do him any favors.
Unsurprised by Giratina's stubbornness, Elias casually tapped the [Origin Ball] at his waist.
"If you help us leave, I'll let you remain here in the Distortion World instead of inside a Poké Ball," Elias proposed smoothly.
"You don't like being confined either, so it's a fair deal, right?"
Then he pulled out a pouch of Pokéblocks borrowed from Cynthia.
"I'll even provide these Pokéblocks regularly. Interested?"
After spending considerable ti here, Elias knew how scarce resources were in the Distortion World.
Though Giratina could endure long periods without eating, it would certainly never turn down good food.
As Elias listed these tempting offers, Giratina involuntarily swallowed hard.
Well...that...actually sounds pretty good.
Moreover, Elias didn't seem particularly eager to keep Giratina around, which, though sowhat insulting, also significantly eased its mind.
After a long pause following Elias's words, Giratina reluctantly turned back its gaze.
"Troubleso human," it muttered irritably, lifting its head to activate its powers.
Though currently unable to freely cross between worlds on its own, sending a few individuals back to the real world was a simple enough task.
"Rember your promise, human," Giratina telepathically reminded Elias.
Suddenly, Giratina considered that perhaps, with Elias's help, it might one day free itself from Arceus's restraints.
Viewed from that perspective, perhaps being captured wasn't all that terrible after all.
---
Hello, dear readers.
It seems we've reached the end of this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did watching the story unfold. If you'd like to see more, there are a few ways to help the author continue this journey.
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Until next ti—thank you for reading.
—Nico Robin
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