"Raaaawr!!"
After enduring the relentless barrage of ice spears, the battered and bruised Koraidon let out a furious roar at Black Kyurem, its primal instincts fully provoked.
"Fusion Bolt."
Dylan raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. It seemed Black Kyurem hadn't gone all out yet.
Black Kyurem's eyes glinted with feral light as radiant blue-white energy gathered around its body, forming a crackling, electric arc.
Fusion Bolt!
With a thunderous roar, Black Kyurem charged at Koraidon, electricity surging wildly around its massive form.
"Collision Course!"
Sada AI immediately gave her command. There was no way to dodge; she had to counterattack head-on.
Koraidon roared, its body glowing once more with orangish-yellow Fighting-type energy. It transformed into a blazing wheel of light and lunged forward to meet Black Kyurem.
BOOM!
The two attacks collided with an earth-shattering impact. The overwhelming energy rippled out in shockwaves, shaking the crystalline cavern.
But just a moment later, Fusion Bolt overwhelmed Collision Course, breaking through and slamming into Koraidon's body for the second time.
Crash!
Koraidon was sent flying, slamming into the crystalline walls with a heavy thud. The searing pain and frost accumulating on its body left it completely immobilized. It fell to the ground, gasping for air, barely able to move.
Two Fusion Bolts, combined with the earlier ice spear barrage, had brought Koraidon to its absolute limit.
"Avalanche."
Dylan smiled faintly. It seemed Koraidon had reached its breaking point.
Black Kyurem roared, summoning massive chunks of ice high above Koraidon.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The avalanche of ice crashed down on the incapacitated Koraidon, burying it entirely. When the ice settled, Koraidon lay unconscious, unable to continue the fight.
"Wow~!! Kyurem is so strong!"
Ilene's eyes sparkled as she watched the display of power. It was her first time seeing Kyurem in action, and its sheer dominance left her in awe.
That Koraidon was clearly a tremendously powerful legendary Pokémon—its strength was palpable.
But against Black Kyurem, it had been defeated so quickly!
"Kyurem really is incredible," Lillie agreed wholeheartedly.
"Yeah! Reshiram and Lunala haven't even taken down Miraidon yet!" Ilene exclaimed in amazement.
Hearing this, Reshiram and Lunala, both blessed with heightened senses, instantly caught Ilene's comment.
Their expressions changed.
How infuriating!!
How could that second-born finish its battle so quickly?!
"Grrr!!"
"RAAA!!"
Reshiram and Lunala let out determined cries, doubling down on their attacks. Their relentless assault left Miraidon scrambling, unable to find an opening to counter.
Cold and calculating as it was, even Miraidon was now inwardly cursing.
What's wrong with these two?! It felt like they were on steroids, ganging up on it with such ferocity.
Fight me one-on-one if you dare!!
Finally, under the onslaught of Reshiram and Lunala's relentless attacks, Miraidon was forced to collapse in defeat, its body sparking faintly as it fell.
With both Paradise Guardian Dragons defeated, the light in the cavern returned to normal. The strange glow in Sada AI and Turo AI's eyes faded, and their bodies relaxed.
But the forced battle had clearly taken a toll on their systems.
"You… you're truly incredible!"
Turo AI, supporting his now-limp left arm, looked at Dylan with a mix of astonishment and respect.
"You even defeated the Professors' ultimate failsafe. Dylan, your strength is truly unparalleled," Sada AI added, her voice filled with admiration. With the system interference gone, their speech patterns had returned to normal.
"Have they returned to normal? Does this mean the time machine has been shut down?" Lillie asked excitedly.
"No," Dylan shook his head, his gaze fixed on the black, mechanical "flower" atop the platform. Though it had stopped momentarily, it wasn't truly deactivated—only paused because the Paradise Defense Protocol had been broken.
It wouldn't be long before the time machine restarted. The reason why…
"It seems you've realized the truth, Dylan," Turo AI said with a faint, resigned smile. "As long as we exist, the time machine cannot be shut down. It appears we've become part of its self-repair system."
Turo's calm admission stunned everyone.
"What… what does that mean?"
Arven froze in place as the weight of those words hit him, while Ilene and Lillie seemed to grasp the implications as well.
"As long as we, who are part of the time machine, remain here, it will continue to function," Sada AI explained with a faint smile.
"And so, we've decided to use the time machine to travel to the worlds we've always dreamed of—the ancient past and the far-off future."
Sada AI's voice carried a hint of bittersweet emotion.
"It's been wonderful meeting all of you. We rarely had the chance to interact with humans while confined to the research lab. But now… it's time to say goodbye."
Sada AI and Turo AI took a step back, positioning themselves beneath the "flower" of the time machine. Their departure would disable the system's self-repair function, causing it to fully shut down.
Dylan remained silent.
"But… is this really okay? Professor Sada, you've said it yourself—you cannot leave the lab."
Lillie bit her lip, unable to stay silent.
It was true—Sada AI and Turo AI were creations of Area Zero's mysterious Terastal energy. They couldn't survive outside the lab.
Even if they reached the ancient past or the future, how would they "live"? Surely they understood this…
But they were willing to sacrifice themselves to ensure the time machine could never restart.
Arven's eyes reddened as he lowered his head.
"Maybe so," Turo AI said softly, "but this is the best outcome, isn't it?"
"This isn't just about shutting down the time machine. We've always dreamed of seeing the ancient and future worlds with our own eyes."
Lillie bit her lip harder, feeling her heart ache.
"Brother…"
Lillie turned to Dylan, her voice tinged with sadness.
"What if there's another way to seal the time machine?" Dylan said suddenly, drawing everyone's attention.
Sada AI and Turo AI froze.
"Dylan, you know as well as we do that we're part of the time machine. As long as we exist, it can't be destroyed," Turo AI reminded him.
"Yes, but what if we froze the time machine? If Kyurem's absolute freezing ability can seal the transmission pathways, wouldn't that stop Pokémon from being sent here?"
Dylan rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he spoke. Destroying the time machine outright would likely harm the AIs. But freezing its functionality might work.
"Technically… technically, that could work," Sada AI said after running some calculations. "But the freezing power needed would be…"
"Oh? Conveniently, I happen to have the strongest Ice-type Pokémon," Dylan said with a smile.
Aside from Arceus with the Ice Plate, Kyurem was undoubtedly the most powerful Ice-type Pokémon.
"Roar…"
Black Kyurem grunted, about to argue that it was the strongest Dragon-type, before remembering Reshiram and Zekrom. It fell silent.
Fine, it would let that go for now.
"Kyurem, switch to White Kyurem form," Dylan instructed, patting its leg.
With a low growl, Black Kyurem's body ignited with flames, transforming into White Kyurem.
"Professors, please step aside," Dylan said politely to the AIs.
Sada AI and Turo AI exchanged a glance, then silently stepped back. If there was a way to resolve this without their sacrifice, they were willing to try.
"Kyurem, you know what to do. Use your strongest freezing breath and seal that machine," Dylan said. "Make sure it won't start again, not even in ten thousand years."
White Kyurem hovered slightly above the ground, its tail turbine spinning at full power as a bone-chilling frost began to spread.
The temperature in the space plummeted, and snowflakes began to form in the air.
Freezing!
White Kyurem opened its mouth, unleashing an incredibly powerful icy breath.
Crack… crack… crack…
The freezing sound echoed as the core of the time machine was encased in layers of thick, crystalline ice.
Within moments, the glow of the time machine dimmed completely, frozen solid.
Kyurem descended, its body glowing as it reverted to its neutral form.
"Well done, Kyurem. How long will it stay frozen?" Dylan asked, exhaling into his hands to warm them.
"Without external interference, at least a few thousand years," Kyurem replied via telepathy. "The machine's internal components are frozen too—it's completely inoperable."
"Perfect. You've done great, Kyurem."
"Thank you, Dylan," Sada AI said, stepping forward.
"No need to thank me," Dylan replied. "We couldn't let those Paradox Pokémon loose in the outside world, after all."
The group returned to the research lab's main hall, where Sada AI and Turo AI expressed their gratitude once more.
Before they parted, Turo AI handed Dylan two crimson Luxury Balls.
"These are?"
"Koraidon and Miraidon. They don't belong here anymore," Turo AI said. "Their strength is immense, and their temperaments are difficult to handle. But we believe you can guide them."
Dylan hesitated briefly before accepting the balls.
"Well, looks like I've got two more legendary dragons to train. My dragon collection keeps growing."
He smirked.
"By the way, Professors, do you know where Terapagos is?"
"Terapagos? It's at the bottom of Area Zero," Sada AI replied. "You're interested in it?"
"Of course," Dylan said with a grin.
Since he was already here, he wasn't going to leave without claiming that little turtle known as the Treasure of Zero.
(End of Chapter)