Three days later, inside the temporary council chamber of the rebuilt Cyllage City, the wooden beams were still stained with uncleaned ash, yet it was already filled with Kalos's core subordinates.
AZ sat in the main seat, the petite Floette perched on his shoulder, softening the exhaustion in his eyes.
"The selection for the delegation to Unova has been decided." AZ's voice was hoarse but firm, his gaze sweeping over the bowing crowd below. "Led by the veteran official Callen, with twenty elite guards and three artisans skilled in agriculture, architecture, and medicine. They will depart in three days."
Callen was a veteran official who had followed AZ for decades, witnessing Kalos's peak and experiencing the catastrophe of Cyllage City.
Upon hearing this, he stepped forward, his eyes beneath his white hair full of solemnity: "This old servant will surely not fail his mission!"
"One more thing." Draconis raised his hand and took out a Poké Ball. With a flash of white light, Dragonite appeared before everyone: "I will have Dragonite escort the delegation to Unova. Its speed is twice as fast as a conventional journey, and it can handle threats from wild Pokémon along the way."
Dragonite flapped its massive wings and let out a gentle low cry, as if responding to everyone's peace of mind.
Callen and the others looked at these three Pokémon that understood human nature, and the doubts in their eyes faded a bit more.
Three days later, at the first light of dawn.
Before the port outside Cyllage City, dozens of carriages were ready to depart. The shafts were tied with the Fleur-de-lis emblem symbolizing Kalos, and the carriages were filled with seeds, medicinal herbs, and some Pokémon unique to the Kalos region.
Callen was dressed in plain-colored martial attire, holding the credentials personally written by AZ. Standing at the front of the team, he bowed deeply toward the royal city.
And at that moment, AZ's figure suddenly appeared.
Seeing him arrive, everyone was shocked.
"Your—Your Majesty?! Why have you come here?"
"I will go to Unova with you," AZ said softly.
Hearing this, Draconis was somewhat surprised.
"Are you sure? Kalos is currently in a state of post-war recovery. If you are not here, there might be some repercussions."
"I have already handed over all affairs to my younger brother; he will oversee Kalos on my behalf," AZ said. "After everything that has happened, I am no longer fit to be king. Once the reconstruction of Kalos is complete, I will resign from the throne."
Hearing this, Draconis nodded and did not press further.
Everyone boarded the ship docked at the port, which bore the insignia of the Kalos royal family.
The team slowly set off, leading the delegation toward the Unova region in the north. The land of Kalos behind them gradually shrank into a blur of light green, as the smoke from reconstruction fires rose in curls, blending with the distant dawn.
Although Kalos's shipbuilding technology could not compare to Unova's steam train and ships, this kind of vessel powered by oars and sails sailed quite steadily on the sea.
Callen stood on the deck, looking out at the boundless sea in the distance, while the artisans beside him were busy taking care of seasick companions.
He said to AZ, "Your Majesty, over in Unova, they say Pokémon can help with farming. I wonder what that will look like."
"And their agriculture—they say everyone has food to eat and fields to plant. I want to see just how much help these Pokémon can really be," Callen said, stroking his beard with a look of anticipation in his eyes.
AZ's face showed a thoughtful expression: "Regardless, we will know once we arrive there."
Mastering the power of Pokémon and living together with them? It truly makes one look forward to it!
In a corner that no one noticed.
A tiny green cell was perched on a wooden crate, observing everyone.
*
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was June of the year 152 in the Alliance Callendar.
After several days of sailing, a prosperous city appeared on the distant horizon.
The Kalos delegation had finally arrived in the Unova region.
"That is the core city of the Unova region—Castelia City," Draconis introduced with a smile.
The ship docked, and Callen looked up to see the entire city situated by the sea, with clean and wide streets and no sense of dilapidation whatsoever.
The delegation disembarked, and the mayor of Castelia City, Gross, had received the news early on and hurried over with his people to welcome them.
Seeing Draconis disembark, they immediately knelt: "Your Majesty!"
"Mm." Draconis nodded faintly.
Meanwhile, the members of the delegation were involuntarily drawn to the unfamiliar sights within the city.
In the fields by the road, someone was directing a Bouffalant to pull a plow and turn the soil, while another Venusaur used its vines to sow seeds; next to a workshop on a street corner, a Charmander was obediently staying by the furnace, helping an artisan dry wood; even in the market, beside a stall owner selling fruits and vegetables, followed a docile Lillipup, helping to watch over the stall.
Even many Commoners were accompanied by a Pokémon, as they leisurely strolled through the city or rested.
"This..." The artisan beside Callen stared with wide eyes, rubbing them with his hand. "Those 'magical beasts' are actually helping humans do work?!"
He had seen Galar's Corviknight army, which were fierce creatures bred as weapons; he had also seen the wild Pokémon within Kalos, which either fled or attacked upon seeing humans.
But the sight of Unova before him completely overturned his understanding—Pokémon were no longer threats, but partners living side-by-side with humans.
When Dragonite landed in the plaza of Nimbasa City, it immediately attracted the attention of many Unova citizens.
A round Oshawott came hopping over, rubbed its cheek against the back of Callen's hand, let out a soft Growl, and even pulled out a fruit from its body to offer it to him.
"This—this is?!" Callen could not help but let out a cry of surprise.
"This is the Pokémon's sentiment." Draconis smiled and stepped forward, reaching out to pat the Oshawott's head. "In Unova, every Pokémon is my subject, just like humans. And to the humans of this land, they are family and partners, not tools."
Callen took the peach, and as his fingertips touched the Oshawott's warm fur, the ice in his heart finally melted.
He looked down at the credentials in his palm, then looked up at every corner of Castelia City where humans and Pokémon coexisted harmoniously, and a light gradually ignited in his eyes.
Over the next few days, AZ and Callen led the delegation through the villages and cities of Unova.
They went to Unova's agricultural zones and saw Landorus guarding the crops, and Simipour collaborating with the Farmer for irrigation.
They went to Unova's workshops and saw Klinklang helping to assemble farm tools, and Machoke helping to carry ore in the mines.
They also went to Unova's villages and saw villagers building houses and treating the injured together with Pokémon, and watched children laughing and playing with Pikachu and Eevee in open spaces.
What touched Callen the most was a certain Unova village.
According to the villagers here, this village had once suffered greatly from the ravages of war, but now every household had surplus grain and a warm home.
Under the old tree at the entrance of the village, an old grandmother was sitting in a rocking chair, while the Wigglytuff beside her used a gentle Confusion to help massage her back. The old grandmother smiled and fed the Wigglytuff fruit, her eyes full of kindness.
"The people here used to be afraid of Pokémon too," the village chief told Callen. "Until His Majesty Draconis inherited the throne. He sent people here to tell us that Pokémon are not the enemy."
"We tried to get along with them, tried to let them help with farming and protecting the village. Gradually, everyone became inseparable from these little fellows."
As Callen gazed at this heartwarming scene, he suddenly remembered the ruins of Cyllage City and the subjects who had lost their homes in the war.
He suddenly understood why His Majesty AZ chose to ally with Unova. It wasn't to seek protection, but to find a way for Kalos to truly survive.
AZ followed the team in silence throughout, Floette resting quietly on his shoulder, the flower of the eternal flower swaying gently with his steps.
He saw how Unova's fields yielded bountiful harvests with the assistance of Pokémon, saw the seamless cooperation between Pokémon and artisans in the workshops, saw children running in the sunlight hugging their Pokémon, and saw this stable scene where no one went hungry or was displaced.
All of this was the peace that the former Kalos had dreamed of but never touched.
AZ's gaze was moved.
This place was so prosperous.
Within Castelia City, on top of a roof.
A Zygarde core was observing the scene of humans and Pokémon living together in this city.
This image was transmitted through the vision of this core to the eyes of Zygarde, located within the Terminus Cave.
The heart of this God of Order was greatly shaken.
Humans and Pokémon could actually live together like this?
No oppression, no harm, just living together like partners.
After the war, the Kalos region was filled with negative energy cores everywhere.
But in this place, Zygarde actually did not sense any trace of negative energy cores existing.
"Draconis? Did you do all of this?" Zygarde murmured in its heart.
The delegation stayed in Castelia City for a full seven days.
Seven days later, everyone began to set off for Nimbasa City.
The members of the Kalos delegation were full of anticipation. If even an ordinary city like Castelia City could reach this level, then as the capital of the Unova Kingdom, what kind of prosperous scene would it be?
Looking at everyone packing their bags, Draconis said with a smile, "No, we won't be taking carriages. That would be too slow."
Callen was somewhat confused: "Then how should we get there?"
Draconis did not explain.
Twenty minutes later, the group looked at the iron train before them, which was constantly emitting white steam, and their eyes widened into circles.
"His Majesty Draconis, what—what is this?!"
"This is a steam train. Castelia City and Nimbasa City are separated by thousands of miles. If we took a carriage, it would take a full half-month, but this train can take us there in just over an hour," Draconis introduced personally.
"An hour?!" Callen was even more shocked: "How is that possible?"
Callen's voice trembled slightly from shock, and his white beard quivered with his rapid breathing.
The Kalos artisans and guards behind him all stared with wide eyes, fixed on this behemoth before them that was spewing Mist and was built entirely of steel and brass.
The massive wheels rolled over the tracks with a dull roar, and the hot steam condensed into Mist in the air, scattering in the sunlight with the wind. The tracks extended straight ahead, with no end in sight, like a silver ribbon leading to an unknown miracle.
"This is the power of technology." A smile appeared on Draconis's face.
AZ gently raised his hand, letting the Floette on his shoulder fly forward a bit. The glimmer of the eternal flower intertwined with the train's steam. He gazed at this creation that overturned his understanding, and his long-silent heart finally stirred with waves.
He once thought the ultimate weapon was the most powerful force in the world, but only now did he understand that what truly brings prosperity to the land and allows creatures to live in peace is never destruction, but this kind of wisdom that fosters mutual achievement and symbiotic prosperity.
"Please." Draconis made an inviting gesture.
The Kalos delegation, harboring both trepidation and shock, stepped onto the train carriages one by one.
The soft seats, the bright window views, and the Audino shuttling back and forth in the carriage to hand out water—every detail was refreshing their understanding of the world.
With a long whistle, the steam train slowly started, its speed getting faster and faster. The scenery outside the window turned into flowing blocks of color as fields, forests, and rivers flew backward. The sound of the wind whistled in their ears, yet they could not feel the slightest bump.
Callen pressed himself tightly against the window, watching the rapidly receding land, his hands unable to stop trembling slightly:
"Too fast... it's really too fast... If Kalos could have such a means of transport, the materials needed for reconstruction could be transported across the entire territory within days!"
Beside him, AZ did not speak, but simply gazed quietly out the window.
In the fields, Machamp helped a Farmer carry bundles of wheat; on the waterways, Pelipper carried mailbags as they shuttled to and fro; in the villages, Lilligant stood at the entrance, offering a warm smile to every passerby.
This was a world he had never imagined in his entire life.
And in a corner of the roof that no one noticed, that tiny Zygarde core clung tightly to the iron plating, transmitting everything before it back to the main body in the Terminus Cave.
The God of Order sat deep within the cave, and for the first time, ripples appeared in its emerald eyes.
Negative energy dissipating, the fires of war ceasing, humans and Pokémon no longer slaughtering each other but instead working together to create such a prosperous scene...
This was a brand-new order it had never seen in its thousands of years of guarding the land.
"Draconis... just what kind of world are you trying to create?"
Zygarde murmured in a low voice, and the cells throughout its body began to stir slightly. Countless clones spread across the land of Kalos felt this unprecedented vibration at the same time.
More than an hour later, the steam train slowly decelerated.
The moment the carriage doors opened, dazzling sunlight greeted them, and a giant metropolis several times more magnificent than Castelia City appeared before their eyes.
Stone towers soaring into the clouds, crisscrossing streets, a constant stream of people and Pokémon, a statue of Kyurem spouting clear spring water in the center of the plaza, Pidove and Whimsicott soaring freely in the sky, and even on the walls of the palace, Espeon and Umbreon stood guard quietly, protecting the city day and night.
This was—Nimbasa City, the heart of the Unova Kingdom, the ideal home where humans and Pokémon coexisted.
"Welcome to my capital." Draconis smiled as he stepped off the train and said to the Kalos delegation behind him.
AZ stepped off the train onto a smooth stone road, the scent of flowers and food lingering at the tip of his nose, and the laughter of children and the crisp Growl of Pokémon in his ears.
The Floette on his shoulder fluttered gently, circling around him once, as the eternal flower bloomed with an unprecedented bright light, as if cheering for this peaceful land.
AZ raised his head, looking at this royal city bathed in sunlight. In his hoarse voice, there was for the first time a sense of genuine warmth and hope:
"So... this is the future we truly should be pursuing."
Callen and the members of the delegation behind him were already moved to tears.
Looking at everything before them, only one thought remained in their minds—
They must bring all of this back to Kalos.
Let the broken home also bloom with such flowers of peace and prosperity!
....
Power Stones PLZZZZZ
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