A pressure snapped around Kate's ankle. Kate's stomach lunged down into her throat, sweat dripping into the emptiness.

She tilted her head up as the strained grunts reached her ears.

"Keith, let go," she whispered. Her voice was hoarse as her husband struggled. Half of his body was already slipping off. Sweat dripped from his nose to hiss beside Kate's ear. His biceps quivered as she slipped slowly out. "Kieth, I said let go! If you don't we'll both fall!"

"No!" Keith shouted. He shook his head over and over. The stone beneath him crackles and flaked down, struggling to support the weight. Each crack of the earth rattled in Kate's head as she saw Kieth die. Over and over it played in her mind. Each nightmare she watched him die or killed him herself. Blood painted over her eyes as she screamed at him to let her fall away.

Cresselia didn't let up her ambush as spirals of raw energy flew over Keith's head. The attacks licked at his hair and over and over Kate imagined the attacks taking off his head. Kate couldn't stand it. So she began to writhe around, her leg flailing to get Keith to release.

Keith's grit his teeth with each heave, "Arceus Dammit, Kate! Stop squirming!"

"Just let me fall!"

A smirk split across his face. A bead of sweat broke down his forehead as he said, "It's my turn to save ya'." His arm swung her once, twice. 

Three times. She was up in the air.

Kate's expression shattered as her finger grasped the ledge. Her glazed eyes watched as Keith slipped passed. His lips shaping into the words, "I love you". He used his weight to counteract and throw her up to reach the surface.

She didn't know what else to do but scream. Wordless noise crackling her throat as he thumped down at the bottom. A small voice told her to let go. To join him.

No, no, no, no, shut up!

Her arms trembled in an attempt to lift her back up. It told her she was a waste, destroying others potential.

That's not true!

Tears that seemed to flow so freely fell against the grey brick bridge as she found herself on all fours. Kate's entire body shook as she was finally on solid ground. This was her fault. All her fault. She should just stop. She should've fallen. She should be dead.

No. Better.

She shouldn't have existed in the first place.

Kate tore her fingers into her scalp and pulled out strands of hair by the root. The shouting thoughts of darkness corroded her insides. Death would just feel so much better than this migraine in her head. Her head. Her head. Her head. Her head.

Get out of her head!

Kate's chest crushed and contracted. As if her ribs were made of lead. They pulled closer and closer to the Earth and her heart throbbed. Her breathing slowed. The situation running into a game in her brain.

She looked up with a sort of tilted smile, "This is a dream. It has to be." Kate erupted into laughter. Tears continued to drip down her chin, but the manic grin stayed plastered on. "Come on, time to wake up now!"

Still, it all remained.

"Wake up!"

"I will wake up!"

But Kate's pleas weren't answered. She shook her head and slammed her fist against her shoulder. Over and over. Dark bruises formed within seconds, "Wake up, wake up, wake up, come on, time to wake up!" But nothing changed as she continued to hurt herself.

her fists moved to slam her forehead. One hit after another, the weaker her words became. Her entire body shook as she curled over herself.  Kate's curled fingers tore at her temples as she just yelled at the top of her lungs, "I said wake the hell up, bitch!"

Tears speckled the stone beneath Kate as she sobbed. Hyperventilated breathing doing nothing but riling Kate up more. Her face and fingers tingled with each meaningless shout to the void. In all her mourning, she had forgotten the enemy waiting just behind.

A wave of psychic shock just kissed the air next to Kate's cheek, hissing into her ear. Flying back, Kate steadied herself back to her feet. Cresselia's violet eyes just stayed tiredly gazing at the human, "Get up and fight, Ranger. The battle is not over."

"This is a dream, though! This can't be real. This stupid, stupid battle isn't real!" Kate threw her arms about the desolate ruins as if trying to exemplify the meaninglessness of it all.

Cresselia shook her head, throwing out another purple sphere, just exploding over Kate's head. "Delusional human, you think after just losing one person makes this all a dream?" Her ice laced voice stabbed like a headache into Kate's mind, "I have lived for centuries, watching so many of my friends die. I can guarantee you, none of this is a dream. Welcome to reality. Now fight!"

Kate ducked as another psychic attack rammed just above her scalp. Her mind screamed no, told Kate to argue, but her gut saved her life with each swift dodge. Starly crowed above, institutionally already flapping her wings to blow the legendary back. Kate's hair swarmed wildly around her tear-stained face.

Floatzel, trembling but still in one piece, threw out bubbles in an attempt to catch the Cresselia, if only for a moment. His voice calling out to Kate.

She had to do this. She had to finish this battle. Kate clicked her styler, familiar words dripping from her lips, "Capture on."

Thus the dance continued. Pounding desert sands leached into the field. The grains were kicked around by Starly's whirlwind, and Floatzel's bubble beam took them down and made mud. In any other battle, mud would be great for catching the enemy off guard. However, when the enemy is a Psychic-type, legendary who can levitate, it was more of a struggle for Kate as she spilled onto her butt. Dark dirt stained her red uniform, tears tore through her shirt leaving bear and bloody patches at her side.

Her lungs heaved with each circle. Every click, white sparks flew but changed nothing. It only told Kate how much longer she had. And at this rate, that would be about a century before completing this capture. Sweat blurred Kate's vision and burned all the open cuts, but she couldn't stop. If she did, then what was the point of all this?

Sand lodged itself into Kate's throat, and she was left in a coughing heap, but still, she rose. Each breath hitched in her throat, but her dashing blue line never stopped as she raced to defeat Cresselia. Sun burned into Kate's neck, her flushed skin beating like an ambulance light.

But still, she forced each step further. One circle after another. One attack slamming against her shoulder after each step. Her eyes focused on the gauge on her styler.

Just a little bit more...

Psychic energy blazed in a fight to keep Kate at bay. Starly and Floatzel were already knocked out, panting on the sidelines. Nothing stopped Kate as her left arm steadied her right for each circle. Narrowed blue eyes meeting violet ones. Cresselia's shield only surged more with power, sending Kate a slip back.

"Capture complete!"

Kate's voicemail chirped.

All the swirling winds vanished, leaving Cresselia to calmly float in front of Kate. She bent her crescent head to Kate's still extended hand, nuzzling it gently, "You have won, Kate Valentina Hitmoi-Dazzle."

With the simple gesture, every ounce of energy that kept the ranger tumbled down with her down to her knees. Her hand retracted down.

"What is your wish, Kate?" Cresselia hushed, "You had a boon to ask of me, no? Let us finish this."

Kate nodded, her broken voice knowing exactly what she needed, "Bring him back."

"What do you mean?"

"Keith... The man who gave his life for mine. Bring him back to me," Kate said, a fire of life still burning at the end of her no longer empty eyes.

Cresselia didn't question anymore. She just closed her eyes, and from the pits of darkness, Keith's limp body emerged. She gingerly set him into Kate's tired arms, "I... I am no miracle worker. I cannot restore life to the dead. But luckily for you, he's not dead."

Kate's eyes shot up from the body she cradled.

"But he is dying. I was able to bring him up and momentarily stabilize him, but I am in an extremely weak state." Cresselia continued, starting to disappear with a teleport, "You must save him, Kate. Get him to a hospital. And hopefully, I won't have to see you again."

A small smile broke across Kate's face as the legendary left, "Thank you."

Once she was left alone, Kate opened her styler, "Paging Rhythmi of the Ranger Union, Paging Rhythmi of the Ranger Union. This is extremely urgent. Two rangers injured and one's in critical condition."

She didn't even have to wait a second before Rhythmi's melodic voice chimed on, "Dear Arceus? Kate, you're in the field. Is everything okay? Where are you? What happened?"

"Haruba desert. Send me the nearest hospital directions ASAP," Kate ordered, "I'll explain everything to you later. I promise."

Rhythmi's words hitched, as if she wanted to say more, but stopped. A couple moments passed and Kate's styler lit up with a map, "sent. I'll hold you to that promise, Katie. Over and out."

Starly rose from her roost with Floatzel at her side. The team was moving out. Kate swept her husband up, "You've carried me so far for so many years. Now it's my turn." She tore at her jacket to wrap a mask around Keith's half-open mouth. Kate gave herself a mask as she left the Temple.

A savage sandstorm tore across the desert. No one could see even a foot ahead as the trudged through the needle-striking sand. Starly flapped over to shield Kate's head while the ranger struggled to stay walking straight. Occasional stolen glances to her map made sure she didn't turn off the wrong way.

Heat boiled Kate and the sand blistered all skin she had exposed. The grains filled her guts. each strike like a knife digging into her. Still, she walked. The make-shift mask often flew up, and the razor sands lodged into her nose. Kate coughed and heaved with each step she took.

Her map blinked, "You have arrived at your destination!"

Kate rose her head slowly, barely making out the silhouette of a building. She knew Rhythmi was never wrong and continued forward. 

The electric doors slid open as it sensed her presence. Kate stumbled through with a weak grip on Keith. Nurses and doctors all turned and you could hear the horror in their gasps. One nurse in a pink set of scrubs raced over, "My Arceus, Ma'am! Just breathe, you're safe. Joe, get a gurney here, stat!" The nurse did her best to steady Kate, but at no avail.

Kate's body gave up. She crumbled down and let Keith's body sag down to the tiled floors. A small lunar feather materialized between Kate's open hand. her eyes momentarily caught it, the vibrant blue and green swirling in her mind as people swarmed them.

Her sore face broke into one more smile before the dark overtook her.