John caught a direct flight to the Sinnoh Region, then made his way to Jubilife City.
His plan was simple: travel back two thousand years from Jubilife City's location. If he remembered the game correctly, the ancient settlement called "Jubilife Village" had stood on this very spot millennia ago. It served as the region's main hub.
Starting from the village would give him the best chance of finding leads.
After healing his team at the Jubilife City Pokemon Center, John spent considerable time at the PC, carefully selecting his roster. He finally settled on his core four: Lugia, Gardevoir, Garchomp, and Tyranitar.
He had no idea if he'd be able to swap Pokemon through his Secret Power base once he arrived in the past. Since his real body would be meditating in that space crack, bringing his A-team from the start just made sense.
The remaining two slots were spoken for. Celebi had to come, obviously. And Shaymin would tag along too. Better to keep the little guy close for now. Plus, if they ran into low-level wild Pokemon, it'd be perfect for grinding experience.
After stocking up on healing items, John found a secluded corner of the city. He opened his Pokemon menu, selected Celebi, and initiated Time Travel.
Immediately, Celebi materialized and conjured a swirling black portal in front of him before diving through.
John moved his character toward the portal. A prompt flashed across his Gameboy screen.
[Travel to the year 2081? (Plot mode will activate!)]
"Looks like we're going full immersion in ancient Sinnoh," John muttered, tapping "Yes."
Everything went dark.
When his vision cleared, John found himself standing in a dense forest.
Compared to the manicured landscapes of two millennia in the future, this era embraced untamed wilderness. Vegetation exploded in every direction, thick, wild, and primal.
The air hung heavy with humidity. A warm breeze stirred the canopy above.
Click!
Click!
Two Pokeballs on John's belt snapped open automatically. Gardevoir emerged in a defensive stance while Shaymin popped out with characteristic enthusiasm.
"Shaymin~!" ("Your adorable guardian has arrived!")
The little hedgehog scrambled up John's shoulder in seconds, curling into a comfortable ball and looking incredibly pleased with itself.
"Sir Messenger, I must rest now." Celebi's voice came weakly as it floated in the air, clearly exhausted.
Even with the Ancient Adamant Orb's assistance, jumping two thousand years had drained the Level 98 Celebi significantly.
"Of course. Take all the time you need." John held out a Pokeball.
Celebi didn't resist. For most Pokemon, Pokeballs represented confinement. For Celebi, it was just a convenient portable rest stop that let John carry it safely. The ball couldn't actually hold it against its will anyway.
Once Celebi was secured, John surveyed his surroundings. Trees everywhere, untouched wilderness stretching in all directions. This definitely wasn't Jubilife Village.
"So we missed the landing zone?"
Not surprising, really. Modern Jubilife City sprawled far larger than its ancient predecessor, and probably wasn't built on the exact same foundations.
Still, they couldn't be too far off.
"Gardevoir, scout the area," John ordered habitually.
"Garde~" Gardevoir raised her hands and began spreading Psychic in widening circles.
Before she could finish mapping the surroundings and relay the information, distant sounds cut through the forest, Pokemon roars mixed with human shouting.
"SNORLAX!"
"Pikachu, Thunder Wave!"
"Pika-CHU!"
"Let's check it out." John headed toward the commotion.
After pushing through dense undergrowth for about a hundred meters and weaving between massive tree trunks, he emerged onto a beach.
On the sand, a Snorlax the size of a three-story building was locked in combat with a Pikachu.
The Snorlax fought with surprising aggression, throwing haymakers like Pikachu had insulted its entire family line. Each punch came with murderous intent.
The Pikachu looked desperate. Against Snorlax's relentless assault, it could only dodge frantically, unable to find any opening for a counterattack.
Pikachu's trainer stood some distance away, a young woman dressed in thick blue clothing, straw sandals, and a white headband that marked her as local.
Their situation looked grim.
Snorlax had backed them against the shoreline. The ocean lapped at the girl's heels. A few more steps and she'd be swimming.
And if Pikachu retreated into the water and used electric moves? Well, the girl would end up flash-fried regardless of her swimming ability.
"Garchomp, Dragon Rush!" John acted without hesitation.
He launched a Pokeball skyward. A massive dragon wreathed in dark green flames burst forth, plummeting like a meteor.
In a blink, it crashed into Snorlax.
"SNORLAAAX!"
The massive Pokemon wailed and collapsed, completely knocked out.
Garchomp landed on the fallen Snorlax with one clawed foot, looking absolutely menacing.
The girl and her Pikachu stared in shock at the sudden reversal. Before they could even process what had happened to the Snorlax, they watched John approach, and then witnessed something even stranger.
Ten red and white spheres sailed through the air, pelting the unconscious Snorlax.
The massive body vanished in a flash of red light, absorbed into one of the balls.
Talk about lucky timing. John had just arrived in the past and already run into one of the game's protagonists.
If his memory served, in "Pokemon Legends: Arceus," the player's main contact and partner was a girl named Akari.
"Are you alright?" John called out.
"Y-yes, I'm fine!" The girl waved her hands frantically, still processing the sudden rescue. "Um, excuse me, but who are you?"
"I'm a traveler from another continent. Name's John." He kept it simple. She probably wouldn't believe the whole "from two thousand years in the future" thing, but travelers from distant lands? That made sense.
After all, whether it was the Diamond Clan , Pearl Clan, or the Galaxy Expedition Team, the major factions in Jubilife Village, none of them were native to this land. They'd all come from other continents.
"I'm Akari, a survey corps member with the Galaxy Expedition Team in Jubilife Village," the girl introduced herself with a slight bow. "Thank you so much for saving me. I might have actually died here today without your help."
"Akari?" John couldn't hide his surprise.
"Is something wrong?"
"No, nothing." John waved it off with a small smile. "You just remind me of an old friend, that's all. By the way, could you guide me to Jubilife Village? I'd like to visit."
"Of course! Please, follow me," Akari agreed readily.
Since he was clearly associated with Team Galaxy based on his timing and helpfulness, he should be trustworthy enough.
"What about you?" John asked as they began walking.