The bell rang, clear and musical, and light poured from the heavens.
Celebi and Shaymin, who had been guiding John, immediately took off, soaring toward the radiant glow.
All around, the Gracidea fields burst into bloom. Buds opened in unison, petals shimmered with ethereal brilliance, and waves of tangible energy rolled across the island.
John stood amidst the spectacle, momentarily speechless.
It was like standing in the middle of a dream, or heaven itself.
"Is this the energy inside Gracidea erupting?" he murmured, crouching beside a flower. Its petals were faintly singed, releasing soft trails of glowing mist.
The air hummed with vitality. Celebi and Shaymin darted through the light, energized by the flood of gratitude-infused power.
Shaymin bounced joyfully among the blossoms, their hedgehog-like Land Forms shining bright white. One after another, they transformed, shedding their spiky forms and taking flight as graceful Sky Formes.
Within moments, the sky was filled with flurries of wings and shimmering green trails. Celebi and Shaymin together painted the heavens in a living symphony of light.
John chuckled softly. "So that's what this is… the Thanksgiving ceremony."
He remembered reading legends that said when humans celebrated the end of a harsh winter and gave thanks to the heavens, Shaymin would appear, turning barren lands into fields of flowers.
Those flowers, Gracidea, were both their blessing and their key to transformation.
Now he was seeing that legend come to life.
The ceremony wasn't just beautiful, it was spiritual. The soft light washed over him, filling his body with warmth. His muscles loosened; his mind cleared.
But then he noticed something strange.
The three Orbs inside him, were absorbing the same energy flowing through the field.
The power spiraled around him like a whirlpool.
"Great," John muttered under his breath. "If Celebi or Shaymin saw this, they'd think I was stealing the festival buffet."
The "song" gradually ended. Celebi and Shaymin descended from the sky, the last notes of their voices fading into the wind. One by one, the Celebi disappeared into temporal rifts, vanishing back into their timelines.
Only one remained, their apparent leader.
"Goodbye, everyone~!" it chirped, waving its tiny hands. Then, remembering John, it floated closer, scratching the back of its head sheepishly. 'Ah, Lord Messenger! I almost forgot you were here!'
'Lord Messenger, what brings you to me?'
The leader of the Shaymin clan stayed behind as well, curiosity gleaming in its eyes. Although uncertain about John's divine "title," it couldn't deny the strength radiating from him and his Pokemon.
John hesitated. With this powerful Celebi around, capturing one by force wasn't exactly realistic. Best to be direct.
"I need to travel through time," he said plainly. "Two thousand years into the past. Can you send me there?"
Celebi blinked. 'Two thousand years ago?' Its antennae drooped. 'I'm sorry, Lord Messenger… I can only travel about one thousand years in human time.'
"Not even you?" John frowned, disappointed. If even a [LV 98] Celebi couldn't manage that, the only option left was… Dialga.
Then Mega Gardevoir stepped forward, holding out the Ancient Adamant Orb.
"What if we use this?" John asked.
Celebi gasped, eyes sparkling. 'The token of God!' It circled the orb excitedly, humming with joy as it confirmed the pulse of time energy. 'Yes! With that, it should be possible!'
John nodded, encouraged. "If we do it, can we come back?"
Celebi's expression turned thoughtful. 'Mmm… traveling that far would tire me greatly. But—" It brightened again. "If Lord Messenger lends me the token's power, I could recover quickly! Only one month of human time.'
That wasn't bad at all.
John exhaled, finally relaxing. Even if he made it to the ancient Sinnoh Region, he still needed to locate clues to the Ancient Adamant Orb and Ancient Lustrous Orb. A month would be plenty of time.
"Perfect," he said with a smile. "But instead of jumping from here, let's first go to Sinnoh. Better to travel from the right place."
After all, who knew what Hoenn looked like two thousand years ago, probably just a few confused Wurmple rolling in the mud.
Celebi giggled and nodded. "Alright!"
Just as they were preparing to leave, a frantic cry echoed from the nearby meadow.
"Shay min! Mi! Shaymin!"
A tiny Land Form Shaymin came bouncing out of the Gracidea garden, tears glimmering in its eyes.
During the ceremony, all of its friends had evolved into Sky Formes, but it hadn't. Now it was desperately squeaking at its clan leader, pleading for help.
Thanks to the Soothe Bell John wore, he could clearly understand every "Shaymin" as words of panic.
"Who told you to be napping during training?" the Shaymin leader sighed, half-scolding, half-amused. "The power of gratitude's already been given away! If you want to evolve, you'll have to wait for the next ceremony."
John chuckled. The little Shaymin froze mid-bounce, eyes wide.
So the "Thanksgiving" wasn't just a random celebration, it was the culmination of centuries of gathered gratitude, stored in Gracidea across the world.
If he understood right, the energy released today came from generations of Shaymin collecting it for decades, maybe even hundreds of years.
"Guess you'll have to be patient, little guy," John said softly.
He looked around. The once-glowing island was dimming again. The energy had faded, and the Gracidea were just flowers now, ordinary, delicate, and quietly swaying in the breeze.
"There's no reason to stay any longer," John said, turning to Celebi with a confident smile.
"Let's go make history."