Chapter Text
Deep blue seas and bright blue skies surrounded the scenic island city of Alto Mare. Tourists and locals alike were excited for the upcoming Tour De Alto Mare, an annual race through the canals of the bustling city. One group of the many excited for the festivities was the traveling trio of Ash Ketchum, Brock Harrison, and Misty Waterflower. Looking out over the railing of the boat as it sailed to the city, Ash thought to himself ‘This place is beautiful! And I can’t wait to compete in the race, Totodile has got this in the bag for sure!’
“Ready to lose, Ketchum?” Misty said confidently.
“As if! You’re gonna be blown away by me and Totodile!” Ash replied.
On the island itself, deep within a breathtaking garden unknown to most of those in the city, a Pokémon spoke to her brother.
“The festival is the perfect time to go out, Latios! No one will be paying attention to us when so much is already going on!”
“It’s our duty to guard the Soul Dew, sister. I know you want us to go out, but with so many people around I’m worried someone could sneak in while we enjoy the day.”
“Would you please at least stay out with me to watch the race? You can go back to guarding things in here right afterwards, but I want us to have at least a little fun together.”
Latios sighed “Alright Latias, it would be nice to spend some time enjoying the day with you.”
Latias cooed “Thanks brother! It’s gonna be really nice today, I just know it.”
In the very center of the garden, held underwater in an ornate fountain, the Soul Dew pulsed brightly.
Standing on his chariot at the starting line of the race with Pikachu on his shoulder, Ash looked over at Misty and smiled. He was bursting with excitement. ‘This is great! So many people and Pokémon together like this is gonna be awesome!’
With a cry of “Xatu!” from the starter the competition began. Ash shouted “Let’s go!” as the racers and their Pokémon all shot off into the winding maze of canals that made up the route of the race.
Taking each turn as tightly as he could, Ash grinned to himself ‘Racing is exhilarating! Not quite like battling, but I’m still just as in sync with Totodile as always!’ He thought to himself as the spray of the water and the bite of the wind flew past him.
Just above the racers Latias and Latios flew along invisibly while watching the front runners. Latias imagined what it would be like to take part herself. ‘It looks so fun! Racing Latios around the garden is wonderful, but it must be so cool to really compete like that.’
She saw one of the racers down below start to lose his balance as a turn came up. She swiftly dived down as the trainer flew off his chariot, just barely saving him from a hard crash into the wall of the canal.
“Latias!” her brother reprimanded telepathically.
“I’m okay! And if I didn’t get in the way that boy could have been seriously injured.”
“Just please be careful, alright?”
Latias nodded, then grinned. She decided to tow that racer along to give him a little help getting back into the race.
As Latias helped the boy speed up, Latios sighed to himself before following his sister to make sure she didn’t do anything even more ridiculous.
Ash coughed as he got back on his chariot and helped Pikachu back to his shoulder. “We got this Totodile! Let’s keep it moving!” he shouted.
As they started to build speed Totodile suddenly started blitzing forward faster than Ash had ever seen. “Woah what’s gotten into you!?” Ash cried as he struggled to keep his balance.
Getting used to the pace, Ash thought to himself ‘If we can keep this up we might be able to catch up to Misty!’
“Woooooo!” he shouted, his heart racing in sync with Totodile. Turning a corner he saw Misty and the other frontrunner, he was filled with confidence and grinning as he gained on them.
“Do you really think he would be happy winning if he knew it was only because of you?” Latios questioned.
“Probably not, I guess I got a little caught up in the excitement.” Latias admitted.
As she led the boy down a canal that led deeper into the city, she heard him shout from behind her.
“Hey! Wrong way, Totodile!”
She let go, feeling slightly guilty as she watched the boy and his Pokémon drift to a stop. Latios spoke telepathically to his sister. “I’m going back to the garden, are you coming with me?”
“I think I’ll disguise myself and stay out for a while.”
Latios nodded and flew off. She watched him go, then flew into an empty alley to take on the illusion of a teenage girl.
After consoling Totodile about making a wrong turn, Ash met up with Brock and Misty who told him that Misty had won the race. They also introduced him to Ross, who had offered Misty a gondola ride after narrowly losing to her.
Taking him up on the offer, the group drifted around the city to see the sights. Misty showed off the medal she received, pointing out the vaguely draconic figures etched into it. “Hey, there they are again.” she said, gesturing to a pair of pillars with the same draconic figures carved into them.
“Those are the guardians of Alto Mare, Latios and Latias. Legend has it that they watch over our city and protect us from any threat.” Ross spoke wistfully.
“It’d sure be amazing to see them.” Ash said.
Misty nodded in agreement, and Ross spoke up again. “It’s been peaceful for ages here, so I guess they haven’t been seen for so long because they haven’t been needed.”
Running off with his friends, Ash noticed that Pikachu had disappeared. After promising to meet back up with them he ran back, and noticed a girl turning on a water fountain for Pikachu. As he walked over the girl noticed him, and started circling around and examining him. Before he could say anything she dashed away, leaving him to give a confused shrug to Pikachu.
He started to turn around to leave, but then saw Pikachu start to run off in the same direction as the girl.
“Hey wait Pikachu!” He shouted, sprinting after the mouse.
Turning a corner, he saw the same girl trapped between an Espeon and an Ariados that seemed to be following the orders of two ladies with elaborate haircuts. “Why are you attacking her!”
“We’re just trying to prevent a fashion disaster here.”
“What does that have to do with anything, get away from her!” he shouted.
“So the girl has a bodyguard, huh? Espeon, Ariados, capture them.”
“Pikachu, get us a chance to get out of here! Use thunderbolt!”
Pikachu let loose a blast of electricity, stunning the two Pokémon and knocking the Espeon into one of the ladies. Ash grabbed the girl’s hand and dashed away, as Pikachu turned to follow along.
“C’mon, we gotta get out of here!”
“That brat! Espeon, don’t let them get away!”
“You too Ariados!”
Frantically dashing from alley to alley, Ash could only hope those people were as unfamiliar with this city as he was. After sprinting aimlessly around he started to slow down, realizing he didn’t know where he was in relation to his pursuers. Right as he was about to stop, the girl grabbed his arm and kept them moving. As she moved with purpose he wondered what the plan was.
“Hey, where are we going?” he questioned as she led them through the winding backstreets of the city.
They burst into an open plaza, by the same water fountain he met the girl at originally. He looked around and noticed Misty and Brock in the distance.
Misty waved, then shouted. “Hey Ash! We’re going to the museum!”
Though he was confused about how he ended up where he did, he was more worried about the girl who had been attacked. “Are you okay? Why were those people-” cutting himself off, he noticed the girl had completely disappeared while he was distracted.
“Where’d she go?” he mumbled to himself.
Ash, Brock, and Misty were walking through the museum, listening to the elderly curator describe the storied history of the city. “These fossils are the remains of two Pokémon that once attacked our town under the command of a vicious trainer.”
Always the most knowledgeable of the group, Brock spoke up. “Those are Kabutops and Aerodactyl, right?”
The curator nodded, before continuing to guide them through the museum. They stepped into a large chamber that contained a gigantic mechanical contraption. Ash looked around, and noticed what seemed to be the same girl from earlier on an upper level of the museum. ‘There she is again! She looks like she’s okay, but I still wanna get some answers about what was going on earlier!’
Distantly, he heard Brock and the curator saying something about a defense mechanism as he thought about the strange girl. He saw her start to walk away, and quickly started to give chase while shouting a goodbye.
“Hey thanks for the tour- it was super interesting! See you guys later!”
As he dashed away, he heard Misty say something about how excitable he is. ‘So what if I’m excitable? There’s just always interesting stuff going on!’
Following what he could of the girl’s path, he found himself outside the back of the museum. Looking around frantically he heard a “Pikaaa!” from his buddy and saw Pikachu pointing to the girl.
“There she is! Thanks buddy!”
As he ran after her, several thoughts raced through his mind ‘She looks so calm after being attacked, I wonder if that sorta thing happens to her all the time like it does with me and Team Rocket. Was she wearing that hat before? Maybe she went back and picked it up after she disappeared. I really didn’t expect to do this much running when we came here for a water race!’
Finally catching up, he shouted out over a canal to her. “Hey, wait up! Why’d ya disappear like that earlier?”
“I don’t know you.” she said in a dismissive tone.
‘Huh? What’s that supposed to mean!’ he thought, before noticing she’d walked off into an alleyway.
“Hey wait!” he said, starting to chase her once again. He followed her into the alleyway, dashing around a corner and finding himself at an intersection. ‘No sign of her, dang it!’
Turning around a few times, he hesitates before deciding to head left. “Let’s try this way, Pikachu.”
Running through the alleyway, he thought about that last encounter with her. ‘She acted like she’d never seen me before! There’s no way she’d forget about being attacked like that, even if she’s like me and it happens often!’
Coming out of the alley, he looked around and saw the girl standing on a bridge casually.
“There you are! Hey, what’s the big idea, acting like you’ve-” he cut himself off, seeing her start to run away while gesturing for him to follow.
‘This is getting ridiculous! How much longer is it gonna take to get an answer about what’s going on around here? And why isn’t she wearing her hat anymore?’
Disguised as a human, Latias idly looked into the distance as she thought about the events of the day
‘How did those women know I’m not human? One of them just shouted out Latias as if it was obvious. I’m lucky that boy and his Pikachu showed up when they did, I don’t know how I would’ve gotten out of there otherwise.’
An idea popped into her head. ‘Maybe it’d be okay to bring him to the garden, he was so heroic in stopping those ladies from capturing me. Plus I’d really like to do something nice for him after he helped me. The garden is a beautiful sight, I’m sure he’d appreciate it.’
Out of the corner of her eye she noticed someone walk into the clearing. She turned towards the figure, and then grinned, noticing that it was the same boy she was just thinking of.
‘Wow, he sure does have incredible timing, doesn’t he? Well there’s no time like the present!’
“There you are! Hey, what’s the big idea, acting like you’ve-”
Before he could finish she gestured for him to follow, and started to run to the garden. She navigated easily, intimately familiar with the twists and turns of the city.
‘This is gonna be so fun! It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten to spend time with anyone other than Bianca and Lorenzo’
She grinned to herself, waiting around a corner for him to catch up. ‘Though he did sound a bit upset at me earlier, I wonder what could’ve started that? Maybe he ran into Bianca, she can be pretty aggressive, and he wouldn’t be able to tell us apart.’
‘There's the entrance!’ she thought, coming to a stop just before it. She looked over her shoulder at him, smiling. ‘Come on in!’
Catching up with the girl, Ash took a moment to catch his breath.
“Hey! What’s-” he cut himself off in shock. ‘Did she just run straight through that wall?’
He skidded to a stop, suspicious of what could be up ahead. Before he could think about what to do, Pikachu sprinted ahead through the illusory wall.
“Pikachu!” he shouted. Deciding to not waste anymore time, he cautiously crept through the corridor concealed behind the illusion. Catching up with Pikachu, he found himself in a gigantic and dimly lit garden.
He looked around, noticing gigantic trees that filtered most of the light, leaving the garden with an almost ethereal look. There were beautiful flowers, small pools with wild Pokémon around them, and statues that depicted strange shapes. Momentarily forgetting about the odd girl he was chasing, he marveled at the breathtaking scene around him.
“This place is amazing.” he said quietly. Looking around, he noticed the girl who led him here, and started to run towards her again. Before he could get close to her, he saw Pikachu sharply turn towards something.
“What is it buddy?” he questioned. Suddenly he was nearly knocked over by a strong wind. Startled, he quickly looked around, spotting a trail of grass being pushed downwards as if something was flying at high speeds just above it.
“It must be invisible! Pikachu, try and hit it!”
Pikachu let loose a thunderbolt that speared through the air, but didn’t catch on anything. Before he could come up with a plan, the invisible attacker tackled Pikachu.
“Pikachu!” he screamed, grabbing his partner off the ground. Feeling those same strong winds coming towards him, he hunched over his partner and shut his eyes. He waited a few moments before opening his eyes and seeing that strange girl standing protectively in front of him. A shimmering light appeared in the air, before revealing the Pokémon that had been attacking them invisibly.
The Pokémon trilled angrily, but the girl shook her head in response.
“That’s Latios! Why’s he so mad at us?”
“What’s going on here! What are you doing to Latios?” he heard someone shout from behind him.
Turning around, he saw a girl who looked the exact same as the one who was protecting him.
Baffled, he started stammering “Uh, um, um, hold on a second! We weren’t doing anything, really! We just followed this girl here! I’m Ash, and this is my friend Pikachu.”
“Oh really? I doubt it, get rid of him Latios!”
“That’s enough! Bianca, Latios, I’m sure this boy means no harm.”
“Hey I know you, you’re that guy from the museum.” Ash said
“Indeed I am! My name is Lorenzo. Latias, did you want to play with your new friend?” Lorenzo asked.
The girl who had protected him from Latios nodded excitedly, before dragging him towards a swing attached to one of the smaller trees.
She directed him into the swing, and started to push him back and forth.
Nervously, Ash asked a question. “Hey no offense, but I thought Latias was the name of a Pokémon?”
As he looked back at her, she grinned before that same shimmering light that surrounded Latios earlier appeared. When the light faded, he accidentally flung himself off the swing, shocked to see the girl has transformed into a Pokémon.
Cooing apologetically, the dragon lifted him off the ground.
“I’m okay! Thanks for helping me up.” he said, leading to her excitedly flying circles around him. Looking around, he saw Latios apologizing to Pikachu, and then letting Pikachu climb onto him to fly around together. Latios shot off to join them, and Ash grinned to himself as he watched them.
‘She just wanted to play! And this is such a beautiful place for it.’ he thought to himself, wandering back towards Bianca and Lorenzo.
“Sorry for nearly attacking you earlier. I guess I should introduce myself properly, I’m Bianca.”
“It’s okay, nothing too bad happened. I do have a few questions though.”
“I imagine so!” Lorenzo said, chuckling. “You’re probably wondering how Latias and Bianca looked identical.”
Ash nodded, and Bianca spoke up. “That’s one of the things she can do! She has the power to disguise herself with illusions, and since we’re best friends she likes to disguise herself as me.”
“That's really cool!” he responded.
Latias flew down towards him, and Pikachu jumped off her back onto his shoulder, nearly knocking him over. Latias hovered right next to him, before snatching his hat and flying away.
“Hey, what are you doing? That’s my favorite hat! Come back here!” he laughed, chasing after her.
Latias danced around Ash, keeping his hat just out of reach. She slowed down for just a moment, but that was enough for him to snatch it back.
“Should I take them on a tour of the canals?” her brother asked telepathically.
“Oh that would be a wonderful thing to show off!” she responded giddily.
Latios dove into the water, and after a moment Latias channeled her psychic powers to show his perspective to everyone else.
It was dark momentarily, before Latios burst into the main canal system of the city, flooding their collective view with light filtered through the water.
“Woah, what’s going on?” Ash said.
“This is sight-sharing, Latias and Latios can connect to each other, and then show everyone what the other is seeing!”
Flowing through the mossy canals, they saw schools of Remoraid and Chinchou. Latias was used to seeing the underwater sights like this, but it always seemed to impress humans and Pokémon who couldn’t navigate the waters like her.
“Latias, this is amazing! Tell Latios we say thanks, okay?”
She nodded, passing it along to Latios. “Ash says thanks for showing us this. Sounds like it makes up for you attacking them earlier.” she teased.
“Latias, you brought someone to the garden on the day I specifically said I was most worried about someone breaking into the garden and stealing the Soul Dew. What did you expect?”
“Would you believe me if I said I forgot?”
“Unfortunately, yes.” he teased back.
She laughed, before her thoughts turned back to the boy she was trying to impress. ‘It’s really great to have made a new friend, it’s been years since I became friends with Bianca. I’m really glad he’s enjoying this so much!’
“So how long have you known Latias and Latios?” Ash asked.
“Well, Grandpa’s known them since they were babies.” Bianca responded.
“Yes, I was around when their father stopped those vicious Pokémon that now rest in the museum. He used everything he had to bring water to the city, drowning them, and flooding the streets that are now our canals.” Lorenzo said.
“He used all his power to do that, and vanished into thin air the same day. Left in his place was a beautiful crystal we call the Soul Dew.” Bianca continued.
“Wow. So he died saving his children and the city.” Ash said somberly.
“I’m afraid so.” Lorenzo responded quietly..
“Hey, this looks like the defense mechanism that’s in the museum.” he said, gesturing to a huge stone mural.
“That diagram depicts how the Soul Dew can be used to power it.”
“Is the Soul Dew somewhere here in the garden?”
Lorenzo nodded, leading him to an ornate fountain that overlooked most of the area. Leaning over the fountain, Ash saw the beautiful orb, watching as it swirled with misty whites and blues, like an endless cloudy day. It emanated a sense of something old, wise, and calm. Just being around it made him feel peaceful.
“We believe it contains the spirit of Latios. And not only that, but in the wrong hands it would have the power to destroy our town. Considering what I’ve told you, I hope you understand why you mustn’t tell anyone about this place, Ash.”
“Of course! This place is amazing, I wouldn’t want anything to ruin that!” he shouted.
Latias cooed, flying down and then nuzzling him. “Hey that tickles!” He laughed.
“Looks like she wants to play some more.” Bianca commented.
“Sorry Latias, I gotta get back to my friends. I ran off without explaining anything, so they might be worried. I’ll be back soon though, I promise!”
The dragon looked down dejectedly, before nodding. Lorenzo and Bianca began leading him out of the garden. He looked back to the dragons floating in the garden and waved goodbye, getting a coo in response from the two of them.
Ash took in the sights of the city as Bianca led him back to the Pokémon Center. ‘I’m really glad we decided to come here. The race was amazing, seeing the garden was amazing, and meeting Latias and Latios was incredible. I do wonder what happened with- oh I can just ask.’
“Hey Bianca, why were those two girls chasing you earlier, did you know them?”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“You don’t remember? Oh, it must’ve been Latias.” he realized.
“Someone was chasing Latias even though she was disguised?”
“Yeah, they had an Ariados and an Espeon. It didn’t look friendly as far as I could tell.”
“That’s worrying. Maybe Latias and Latios should stay in the garden for a little while, it should be safe there.” she mumbled to herself.
Latias and her brother were settling down in a tree, getting ready to sleep after the exciting day. ‘It was really nice to meet Ash. I hope he comes back like he said he would. It’s kinda funny, I saved him from hitting that wall, even if he doesn’t know it, and he saved me from those ladies. Oh, I never told Latios.’
“Brother, I’m sorry I forgot to tell you before now, but earlier today I was being chased down by these ladies, and they called me Latias even though I was disguised.” she explained.
Latios startled, and started rambling. “You should’ve told me sooner! It’s super concerning that someone could see through your disguise- We should stay in the garden for a while, or maybe that wouldn’t even help! What if they see through the fake walls like they did with your-”
“Latios! Calm down, you’re right about it being concerning, but even if they can see through the fake walls they’d have to find them first. Plus they need to heal their Pokémon before they come after us again.”
“Heal their Pokémon? Did you fight them?”
“No, it was the boy who was here earlier. He saved me from them, and that’s why I trusted him enough to bring him here. Look, we’re both tired, I think we should sleep and plan more in the morning.”
“That’s fair, rest now and figure things out tomorrow. I’m glad you’re safe, Latias. It was lucky he was there.”
Latias nodded, shifting to get comfortable before she slept. Her last coherent thoughts before she drifted off were about the boy who saved her, and how friendly he was.