Nyss stepped closer toward them, slow and uncoordinated, unused to moving after so long. They expected her steps to echo. The ground to shake and crumble under her feet, but it did not. They were weightless, delicate steps, like feathers falling on snow, because she was not entirely there. The ashen of her hair, the ebon of her armor, the furious lines of red running across her arms, they looked pale and insubstantial, as though the woman were only an illusion, yet one willing itself to occupy space.

The three behind Cynthia stared gormlessly, out of words, and Nyss stared back at them, curious. Confused. Like someone who'd just woken up from a long slumber, trying to remember what the world was like.

Inyssa opened her mouth to say something, but the words caught in her throat. She couldn't take her eyes off Nyss. She was… striking, all-encompassing. In that taut, scar-ridden face, in those exhausted eyes and in that rusty, dirty and misshapen suit of armor she found more awe and beauty than any tale or painting could ever hope to invoke.

Even with the proof in front of her eyes, though, Inyssa could hardly believe it.

"Are…" She swallowed hard. "Are you really…?"

Those golden eyes fell on Inyssa, and she instinctively recoiled at the intensity behind them. Like opening an oven and having her face blasted with heat.

"Inyssa… Dawn." She pronounced the name softly, lovingly. "I've felt your presence through the veins of Sinnoh as well."

"Y… y-you have?"

"And the same goes for the two of you," she said, passing her gaze through the rest of them. "Barry… and Metchi."

Both of them shivered at the sound of their name coming through Nyss' lips, as though hit by an electric current.

"R-really?" Barry whispered.

Metchi chuckled only out of nervous instinct. "W-well… always nice to learn I've got a tall handsome woman keeping her eyes on me."

Nyss' expression softened and she let out a short 'Ha'. It was only there for a second, but the way the corners of her eyes wrinkled with laughter looked so incongruous with the mental image they all had of the woman, yet so natural at the same time.

"I've… stood here, in the heart of Sinnoh, for longer than I can remember. Longer than I could care to count. Holding Chaos… Giratina, at bay." She looked down, wistful. "I kept myself sane… for a time. I am aware that only a few thousand years have passed in the outside world, but this valley, this… depression in between the two realms, exists outside the confines of space and time. That is what allowed us to meet here, for the second time."

That last part caught everyone's attention. Even Cynthia raised an eyebrow.

"Second time?"

Nyss didn't answer, just continued speaking.

"It has felt… so much longer in here. At some point, I had to give up in keeping track of time or I would have lost myself. Faster than I eventually did, in any case." She sighed, then looked up at them with an apologetic smile. "For a long time, I served as Giratina's vessel in our world. They were the instinct, the urge. Pure feeling, without understanding. I gave them context, without allowing myself to feel. And so, we kept each other at bay. It was a much more understanding relationship than I would have expected. But they were eternal, and I, despite my best efforts… was not."

Nyss unconsciously grabbed a tuft of her own hair, and they understood what she meant. Everything about her, from the ashen of her hair to the light in her eyes was… striking, yes, but also faded. Frayed.

"Souls are not meant to linger for so long," she said. "Time, eventually… started taking a toll on my mind, my will, my feelings. I was losing myself. I would sometimes wonder, if what I was doing was worth it, if letting Giratina loose would not be a mercy upon the world, since all was fated to nothingness, in the end.

"And, though I did not expect it… it was Giratina who brought me back from the brink, time and time again. They reminded me that those were not my thoughts. They were theirs, flooding into and slowly filling the cracks forming in my Spirit. They were also the ones to finally suggest I pass the mantle on to another, once my deterioration became dangerous and unstable."

They all blinked in surprise at that, even Cynthia.

"Giratina… aided you in stopping them?" she asked, baffled.

Nyss smiled sadly. "What pleasure is there in cutting a story short, before it has concluded? Perhaps it was simply Giratina's mindless intent filtered through my own Spirit, but they never felt eager or impatient to me. They knew that they would eventually claim all that lived, so why hurry? Living outside of time, outside of space, Giratina knows and has always known the names and voices, the beginnings and ends of all those who draw breath and… at least to my perception, they seemed so enamored with each and every one of them."

"Then…" Metchi gulped. "Then why do we even have to stop them? Can't they stop themselves?"

Surprisingly, it was Barry that answered. "They… can't, right? It's like…"

"Like a natural phenomenon," nodded Inyssa.

"Yes," said Nyss. "When a river offers its water to those who thirst, when a flame offers its warmth to those who shiver, is that not love? Yet when out of control, they cannot stop themselves. A flood drowns, a great fire burns. Such is their nature."

The smallest gasp left Cynthia's lips, and in her face there was suddenly a sharp realization.

"Spirit… Spirit is the same, is it not?"

Nyss turned toward Cynthia, and a look of pure sympathy crossed her face. "We know it well, don't we? To love is a wonderful thing, yet it can so easily overwhelm us, growing into an unstoppable flame that consumes all."

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"I…" Cynthia's shoulders dropped. "I realized it too late, I suppose."

"No. You realized it just in time," Nyss countered. "For me, it was too late. I cultivated and grew my Spirit until it was so powerful not even death could quench it. You… are close, but not yet over the edge. You have a chance to succeed where I failed."

Cynthia said nothing, or maybe she couldn't, overwhelmed by Nyss' words. For a few seconds, it was silent. Then Metchi spoke.

"You…" She frowned, stopped herself and then continued. "You're not at all like in stories."

Nyss turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow, amused.

"You're not the monster legends paint you as," Inyssa clarified. "We read your log. We know you made the world believe you'd done all those horrible things, but…"

"Why?" Barry asked. "Why would you want people to remember you like that?"

Nyss smiled and breathed out something that almost sounded like a laugh.

"It's… hard to remember, the crazed rationalizations from so long ago," she admitted. "Maybe it was self-loathing, maybe it was caution, not wanting others to end up like me. I fed the world an easy lie, and the lorekeepers were more than eager to accept it, after what I'd done to them. But… make no mistake."

She raised her arms slightly, looking down at the chain-like scars running through their surface.

"I… am a monster, though one tamed and muffled through the weight of time and regret," she said. "No amount of time would be punishment enough for what I did. And no apologizing could ever make up for the troubles I've caused you."

Then, she approached. Inyssa's heart jumped to her throat at the sight of the massive woman standing right in front of her, and the other two's reactions weren't much different.

But there was no malice in Nyss' face. With a sad, tender smile she raised a hand and gently pressed it against Inyssa's cheek. It was warm, rough. It sent a hot shiver down the girl's spine.

"You have suffered so much because of the mess I've left behind, haven't you?" she whispered. "To think someone would actually name their child after me. I imagine it's brought you nothing but trouble. I'm… sorry."

Inyssa felt something sting behind her eyes, but she ignored it and… somehow, managed to put a smile on.

"I… think I ended up growing into it," she admitted. "Made it my own."

"As you should," Nyss nodded. "I've seen your triumphs, your struggles. Your compassion. In life… I never had the time nor opportunity to continue my bloodline, but if I had, I would have loved for my child to be like you."

Those words stunned Inyssa, but before she could even think of a way to reply, the woman had already moved on, looking from her toward Barry.

"You… I've felt your presence and your warmth countless times, and it always reminded me of my brother's," she said with love and pain in her voice. "My actions have done you as much harm as they did him, but regardless… I hope you will continue blessing the world with that warmth. I hope you will always be yourself."

Leaving the boy similarly speechless, Nyss then turned toward the last of them, Metchi. Their eyes met, and there was silence for a moment.

"What, you're gonna tell me how much of a special snowflake I am?" asked Metchi, irony in her voice. "Not that I mind being sweet talked to, but…"

"I don't think there is a need for that," Nyss replied with an amused smile. "You already know. You've known it ever since you spoke those immortal words with Azelf at your side."

Metchi's smile dropped, and after a moment of consideration she gave a curt nod of understanding.

"…Yeah. What Will is, and how it's kept me going all this time," she said. "Always forward, without stopping."

"Relentlessly, without looking back," Nyss confirmed. "As we burdened should."

Once she'd spoken those words, she sighed and took a few steps back and away from the three of them, the pressure of her sheer presence easing somewhat. Yet it was still there, impossible to ignore. Like the warmth of a fire that burned just a bit too strongly.

"…Like I said, I cannot ever hope to make up for my failings. And despite that, I must… shamefully, be selfish once more."

She raised her hand as though to show them something, and out of nowhere a thin slab of dark rock materialized between her fingers. The Dread Plate. Cynthia and the three of them tensed at the sight of it.

"I know this is what you seek," Nyss said, looking at Cynthia. "And I know that behind me is the path you three must walk. But before you do so… could I ask a favor of you?"

The four exchanged a few quick glances, and despite the sudden tenseness and surprise of the situation, they all seemed to have come to the same conclusion. They all understood.

"You… are exhausted, aren't you?" asked Cynthia, voice full of compassion. "After so long, it must be…"

Nyss' lips pursed, and a sight that felt almost impossible met them. Tears welled in her eyes. And when she spoke, that deep, powerful voice shook ever so slightly.

"I… I just want to rest," she said, weak and desperate. "I want to see my brother again. I know it's selfish. I know you're pressed for time and it might just turn out just like last time, but… could you please…?"

Inyssa, Barry and Metchi looked amidst themselves, then at Cynthia.

"We got a bit of time left before we go, right?" asked the latter.

Cynthia closed her eyes and smiled.

"…We do, I believe."

In unison, all three trainers produced Pokeballs in their hands while Metchi dug into the hidden pockets of her jacket and pulled out a pair of long, thin knives.

"I assume no easy struggle will be enough," said Cynthia, her voice filled with strength once more. "Only an honest fight, and an honest death, will truly put you to rest."

Nyss nodded. "Only Spirits such as yours could, when combined, burn strongly enough to finally quench mine. However, I won't be able to hold back either, so…"

"Don't you worry your pretty little head about that."

It was Metchi who spoke. Despite the seriousness of the situation, she looked up at Nyss with her usual irreverent smile, as though this was totally normal.

"Like I said, I always appreciate a bit of sweet talk from a beautiful woman, so I figure I can do you a solid this time. What do you two say?"

Barry nodded slowly. "I… don't think you're the monster you say you are. I definitely think you've atoned enough for everything, so… I'll help you out, however I can."

"I know what it's like to live hoping to die," Inyssa followed, gripping her Pokeball tightly. "You deserve to rest, and I'll help you do so, but only if you don't go into this hoping to lose. Stoke that flame one last time. Go out like a true legend would."

The corners of Nyss' eyes shook ever so slightly, and an appreciative smile formed on her lips. She looked down and laughed, wiping her tears away with the back of her palm.

"I… certainly will," she said. "And what of you, Cynthia? Are you willing?"

The look on the blonde's face was all the response she needed. The storm behind her eyes raged, and for a moment the pressure exuding from her matched Nyss' own.

"I am just as selfish as you," Cynthia admitted. "After all the troubles I've caused my homeland, here I am getting all excited for a fight I previously only thought possible in my dreams. But I suppose it is a fine way for this obsession of mine to end." She took a step forward, raising a Pokeball toward Nyss. "We shall put you to rest, and in exchange you'll finally satiate this hunger I've felt all my life. In defeating you, I will finally become the strongest trainer that has ever lived!"

The wild, hungry smile that formed across Cynthia's lips was soon mirrored by Nyss, whose tears from a few seconds ago seemed to have dried up due to the sudden heat and tension between them, the sudden burst of excitement.

"You really know how to stoke the flames of my soul, don't you?" she whispered, closing her eyes and raising a hand toward her hair. "As you wish. If you want to claim the title of strongest…"

Her fingers closed around a single strand of hair, and as she pulled it out it flashed and changed as though it were a mirage, falling hard and heavy onto her hand in the form of a weapon. A long, ornate blade of pure black that looked as natural in Nyss' hand as though she had always had it. Obsidian, the most famous and renowned of all swords.

"…then come!" she snarled, her voice suddenly echoing with power. "Here in the fading twilight of this world, let us flare our Spirits one last time!"