"Where am I?" Amethio asked himself as he opened his eyes. He looked around uneasily. Amethio was on a meadow surrounded by many beautiful, fragrant, colorful flowers. On a slight rise, a few wild Pokémon were sleeping. Everything was shrouded in a mysterious pink mist.

"Wasn't I just in the Explorer base? Didn't Grandpa just kick me out? And where am I exactly, and how did I get here?" he asked into the void, as if someone could answer him. He rubbed his fingers over his left eye. There was no one around except for the Pokémon, which woke up and fled at his words. Now Amethio was alone. "Didn't I have a scar? Oh no, probably not," he muttered, slightly confused. "Well, it doesn't matter now. First, I need to find out where I am."

He stood up but briefly held onto a tree behind him because he felt dizzy. "I'd better look around," Amethio decided with a worried feeling. He walked along the green meadow for a while until he came across a dirt path and was almost about to run into a stone wall. "With all this mist, I can't see a thing," Amethio cursed and followed the path. The longer he walked, the darker the area around him became, and the pink mist grew thicker and thicker. "Why is it so strange here?" he asked himself, fear in his eyes.

Suddenly, Amethio felt an icy hand on his shoulder. He quickly spun around and shouted in fear, "WHO'S THERE?" But no one answered. As he looked around, he couldn't see anyone. "What was that?" he whispered, terrified, and tightly grasped his grandfather's amethyst brooch. His heart raced, and he swallowed. "I must have just imagined it. Better keep going."

With every step, his fear grew that something terrible could happen at any moment. Out of the corner of his eye, Amethio saw a shadow quickly approaching him. He immediately started running away from the shadow and screamed desperately, "LEAVE ME ALONE!" In the darkness, he couldn't see where he was running and tripped over a stone. He fell to the ground, raising his hands defensively in front of his face. "PLEASE NO!" he screamed in panic and felt the ground beneath him disappear. Amethio tried to grab onto something to save himself, but it was too late. He fell at high speed toward the ground. "NO, NO, NO!" he cursed desperately before crashing painfully.

Everything around him went silent, and Amethio lay exhausted on the ground. "Where am I?" he asked with tears in his eyes. "Look around," a rough voice coldly responded. Amethio immediately opened his eyes and looked behind him. He could hardly believe who he saw standing there. Behind Amethio stood his grandfather, staring at him seriously. "Master Gibeon," Amethio said with relief and got up from the cold ground. He took a few steps toward him, but his grandfather only raised his hand in a dismissive gesture, and Amethio stopped in his tracks. "Where are we, and how did we get here?" he asked his grandfather. "You'd better ask why you're here," his grandfather replied irritably and turned away, disappearing into the mist.

"Wait!" Amethio called, scared to be left alone again. He hurried after his grandfather and found himself on a clearing surrounded by large rocks. In the center stood a massive pink crystal. "Rakurium," Amethio exclaimed, recoiling a few steps backward. "Correctly identified," his grandfather said coldly, standing directly in front of the crystal and staring at it with an almost obsessive gaze. Amethio took a few steps toward him, but his grandfather suddenly turned around sharply and glared at him with anger. "YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BRING THIS TO ME!" his grandfather shouted at him hatefully. "YOU HAVE DISAPPOINTED ME! JUST LIKE YOUR FATHER! I THOUGHT YOU BOTH COULD MAKE ME PROUD! BUT YOU'RE INCAPABLE!" These words struck Amethio deeply, and a tear ran down his face. "But Grandpa..." Amethio began, but his grandfather cut him off. "DON'T CALL ME THAT! SINCE YOU AND YOUR FATHER FAILED TO GET ME THE RAKURIUM, I'LL TAKE IT MYSELF!" His grandfather rushed toward the Laquium and broke off a large piece of it.

From the crack, more and more pink mist poured out, clouding Amethio's vision. He held his arm to his face and struggled to breathe. His grandfather laughed manically and continued to break off more pieces. "So that's where the mist is coming from. I have to stop him!" Amethio decided firmly. He reached for Ceruledge' Poké Ball and released it. "Ceruledge, use Psycho Cut!" Amethio commanded. Ceruledge fired the powerful psychic energy, hitting Amethio's grandfather. "YOU ATTACK ME? YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS! ZYGARDE, Core Enforcer!" Master Gibeon commanded his Pokémon. It jumped out of the darkness and attacked him. Just as Amethio was about to be severely injured, Ceruledge pushed him out of harm's way. "Thank you," Amethio said, relieved, but still in shock. Zygarde did not relent, however, and kept using the attack until it struck Amethio, throwing him against the hard stone wall. He lay in pain on the ground. Through his half-opened eyes, he saw his grandfather approaching. "You shouldn't have attacked me," his grandfather said maliciously. "Soon, it will be over for you. But no, I won't finish you off, Ceruledge will."

Ceruledge was just as shocked as Amethio, even though it couldn't show it, as it was still battling with the pain. When his grandfather approached Ceruledge, it charged toward him with Bitte Blade. Just before it could strike Gibeon, he pulled Rakurium from behind his back, and through the mist, Ceruledge stopped. It was enveloped by the mystical energy of Rakurium. "NOW, ATTACK THIS TRAITOR!" Gibeon ordered Ceruledge. It readied the Bitte Blade and slowly walked toward Amethio. It stopped directly in front of him and pressed Amethio back to the ground as he tried to get up. "No, please don't. This isn't you. You're under the influence of the Rakurium," Amethio pleaded, hoping his Pokémon would hear him. "NOW END IT WITH HIM!" Gibeon yelled with sadistic glee.

A tremendous pain shot through Amethio's body, and he could barely breathe from the agony. It felt as though all the remaining life in him was leaving his body. Everything before his eyes blurred, and he found himself in a dark, black space, huddled in a corner. "What's happening?" he desperately asked himself, and a tear ran down his cheek.

"And I thought you were smarter," said someone in front of Amethio. He saw Spinel, who was grinning as he approached. "You shouldn't have betrayed Master Gibeon," he laughed at Amethio. "Everything that's happening to you, you deserve." "I didn't betray him, you just made it look that way!" Amethio contradicted him with firm conviction. "Possible," Spinel admitted. "But he'll never believe you after what you did." "NO!" Amethio shouted angrily.

"You haven't even seen the worst yet," Spinel laughed, patting Amethio on the head. "But don't be sad, okay?" Spinel fiddled with a small remote in his hand, and a screen appeared in front of them. Amethio feared the worst. A projection appeared. It showed Ceruledge, chained in a room that was slowly filling with water. "CERULEDGE NO!" Amethio screamed in panic and desperation. "There's no escaping for Ceruledge," Spinel said calmly, staring at the screen. Amethio jumped up and grabbed the screen as if trying to save Ceruledge through it. "NO!" he cried and collapsed onto the floor, sobbing, as the room Ceruledge was in filled completely with water, with only its head remaining above the surface. "IT WILL FEEL SO MUCH PAIN!" Amethio screamed with tears in his eyes. "LEAVE IT ALONE, TAKE ME INSTEAD!" "Too late," Spinel responded coldly. "CERULEDGE NO!" Amethio cried.

Suddenly, he was no longer in the dark room with Spinel but sitting on his bed in his room at the Rising Volt Tacklers, his heart racing, his cheeks wet with tears.