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"Maybe," Owen replied. "This whole Overworld business makes that hard to judge. How time passes from world to world and things like that. There's really no telling when we'll meet again, but, well, forever's a long time. And kind of scary. But... y'know. One day at a time." Owen looked at Mia...

"It's a figure of speech," Owen explained. "I don't really know for Dave, since I don't know how his world works, but for Cal and I... Well. Back home, I don't age the way normal Pokemon do, so I'll probably be alive for a long, long time." Assuming things work out. "You and Cal are probably the...

"Ah, well, goodbye, Bahamut. Don't be a stranger, now!" The silver dragon of light waved.

"Take care, Bahamut," Maple said. "You're always welcome to visit, you know. Joule could learn a thing or two from your meditation." "Hmmm? What was that?" Joule asked, peering around the corner. "Ah! Hello, Bahamut!"

"Ah. Well." Maple looked away again. "Right. Apologies for that. ...I'll be sure it doesn't happen again." An easy promise to make now that the Parasite was gone, at least. The bedroom suddenly became a lot brighter--Joule must have opened a portal.

"Of course." Maple seemed to recognize the half-lie and her smile didn't waver. "Though, I do have one question. I wasn't quite myself during your assault on the Tree. I would like to know... Are you aware of any weaknesses Diyem has in battle?"

Maple smiled wryly. "Accepting help from the likes of him... Tell me that one year ago and I wouldn't have believed you." She nodded at Bahamut. "Well, thank you, then. I hope you'll be there to witness it in the Colosseum once I tell him I accept. Perhaps something will come of it, perhaps not."

"Oh?" Maple glanced at Bahamut. "I'm surprised to hear that from you. Did Diyem tell you about his plan?"

"Mm." Maple looked down. "We've seen our fair share of worlds that have failed. Cibus is lucky to have a god that cares." She glanced left. "We will see. I have faith that whatever happens between Joule and I will work out. The only uncertainty is... myself. Perhaps I should take Diyem on that...

"Perhaps so," Maple said. "We'd saved countless worlds until now. It would be a shame to put that to a halt. But... I am a Voice. Whether I used to be one or not. If Telum returns... then I shall return to Telum. I'm... sure Joule would understand. And I would understand if he..."

Owen nodded. "That means you and Cal are going to have to be ready to say goodbye to us," he said. "We might see you again someday, but 'someday' could be centuries from now. We might be totally different people in how we behave... both you and us. So, it will basically be goodbye." And when...

"Perhaps..." Maple leaned back, thinking it over. "...Perhaps... there is a way that we can tell definitively. Diyem has a Voice, after all. He'd acquired the powers of a Voice. He can sense life and manipulate spirits. Perhaps he can tell if I have more than one, now that the Parasite is no...

"Your sister, Cal, feels the same way about me. And I don't like it either." Owen sighed, wondering how they'd grapple with that. "But when we came here in the first place, we knew it was going to be temporary. We didn't expect to be leaving anything behind..."

"...Well, I didn't fear that until now," Maple muttered, squeezing her arm. "What I do not fully understand, if your premise is true, is how Blade within me seemed to understand what had happened to me externally. He was vaguely aware of what I was doing. When he 'woke up,' he spoke to me like...

"I understand," Maple said with a nod. "But I am glad that you are approaching me anyway with your concerns. There is a chance that Eternatus in some form is... related to how I am now. The fact that Diyem and I can enter similar forms is proof enough for me. But the possibility that I am not...

[Tamato > Team Spectrum]: Giovanni. Not sure how, but he's apparently traveled to a bunch of worlds. Got thwarted in most of them, so he moved on and cut his losses. But he apparently lost that technology after what happened on Telum.

"What lie am I repeating?" Maple crossed her arms. "How would I have possibly done all this if I wasn't a Voice? Just because Hydreigon and I are separate now doesn't mean we're..." She trailed off, pensive. "Well... I must certainly be a Voice in some capacity. I can change my form the same way...

[Tamato > Team Spectrum]: It was because Red and Silver were chasing Giovanni, who was chasing that Eternatus. That's what made everything on Telum go the way it doesn't usually go--outside influence from another world entirely.

Maple chuckled. "Really, I'm an Eternatus?" she said. "I don't have any memories of being an Eternatus, and I'm sure something that powerful wouldn't be so easily taken over by me as a Voice... But perhaps I acquired its power during some subconscious struggle."

Owen was leaning forward, fascinated. Yes, it all made a lot of sense. It was very methodical, and perhaps that was a good thing. Mia had a handle of what she preferred, and she didn't seem all that distressed by how concrete it all was. Maybe some people liked being concrete, too. Dave...