The ketchum conference

Mt. coronet

Lance: "I understand you were at this one, Cynthia?"
Cynthia: "That's correct. We've had Team Rocket, we've had Teams Aqua and Magma... I know that our Unovan colleagues have had to deal with Team Plasma recently, well, this was the Sinnoh team, and I'd say this was the most dangerous of the lot."
Alder: "Really? Didn't Team Aqua and Magma want to wipe out huge chunks of the world?"
Malva: *looks uncomfortable*
Cynthia: "Team Galactic - who, by the way, dressed like this:"
*slide change, sniggers*

Cynthia: "Much more dangerous than they appear, not that that's hard. Their ultimate goal was to use the Lake Guardians - Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf - to construct a Red Chain with which to bind Dialga and Palkia to their will, and then use them to create an entirely new universe."
Diantha: "That's... thinking big, I suppose?"
Lance: "The biggest."
Cynthia: "I wasn't able to stop their plan before it entered the later phases - they called on Hunter J in order to capture the Lake Trio. Fortunately, though, the Lake Guardians had previously encountered Ash and his friends."
Will: "Encountered meaning?"
Cynthia: "Repeated close psychic contact, one-to-one - Mesprit contacted Dawn, Uxie Brock, and Azelf Ash, because of - respectively - their great compassion, knowledge and willpower."
Lucian: "That's... formidable. Not just Ash, his two friends as well - he really does surround himself with remarkable people."
Lorelei: "Indeed."
Cynthia: "I drove them to Lake Valor, but we were too late and made the decision to head up Mt. Coronet instead."
Shauntal: "Why Mount Coronet?"
Cynthia: "You've met Looker?"
*mass nods*

Cynthia: "He was tailing Team Galactic and contacted me. While on the way up the mountain, we heard Ash's childhood friend Gary Oak had been involved with trying to stop J - unfortunately he was unsuccessful."
Grimsley: "Okay, is there something in the water in Pallet Town? What the heck?"
Cynthia: "Don't ask me... I've managed to piece together the timescale, roughly. As we were heading up, Team Galactic were constructing the Red Chain from the Lake Trio - and, in desperation, each Legendary reached out to its friend. They vanished out of my SUV."
Caitlin: *whistles* "Nice trick if you can do it."
Cynthia: "I thought they'd fallen out!"

Cynthia: "Capturing Ash and his friends, Cyrus - who was, as far as I can tell, a truly raging egomaniac - took them with him to the Spear Pillar to witness the creation of his new world. I followed on the ground, and managed to arrive shortly after their chopper did."
Alder: "I'm guessing you took out a bit of frustration?"
Cynthia: "Garchomp destroyed the Galactic admins and I freed Ash and his friends. We headed together up to the Spear Pillar - where Cyrus was already using the Lustrous and Adamant Orbs to summon Dialga and Palkia, before using the Red Chain to control them."
Aaron: "I'm guessing they recognized Ash?"
Cynthia: "...thinking about it, I suspect they did. Actually... hm. I think Giratina may have been present as well, though I only caught a glimpse - the Reverse World is often only visible in reflections. In any case, I provided cover while Ash and his friends freed the Lake Guardians - though that wasn't enough, since by then he had control of Dialga and Palkia."
Siebold: "You were how close, exactly?"
Wikstrom: "She did not have time to get out a tape measure..."
Cynthia: "A couple of dozen feet, maybe? More? I was kind of distracted. Anyway, Cyrus made them create a dimensional rift - his new world - and I think it was growing - at first. It slowed down very quickly, though."
*clip plays - shaky camera footage from a helicopter closing in on Mt. Coronet. A swirling vortex dominates the frame, dwarfing the humans and even Dialga and Palkia, and the occasional attack spears across - including some incandescent lightning from Pikachu.*

Lance: "Yes, I - well, I think I see what you mean. It appears, grows fast, then slows down."
Drake: "Sounds like some help from Giratina, there."
Cynthia: "Thinking about it, it probably was. Working together with the Lake Guardians, we neutralized the Red Chains and the portal - thankfully - closed."
Phoebe: "I like a happy ending."
Cynthia: "Yes, well, there was still the little matter of the black hole."
Diantha: "What."
Cynthia: "We stopped it. But... well, Dialga and Palkia calmed down remarkably quickly. I wonder if it's because they recognized Ash and his friends."
Alder: "I wonder where Arceus was during all this."
Sidney: "Probably waitin' on the other side of that portal with a grin on his face!"

Cynthia: "...now I lay it all out, I can barely believe it even happened - it was all a bit react-immediately at the time. But then again, this is probably what passes for normal in Ash's life."
Alder: "The universe nearly ended how many dang times around this kid?"
Cynthia: "More than enough. And, to answer my own question... if Ash had not been there, or Dawn, or Brock, then one or another of the Lake Guardians would not have had their helper - and I doubt I could have stopped the Time and Space Pokemon without everything that was there."
Bruno: "Please tell me they were arrested."
Cynthia: "Cyrus went through the portal, but apart from that - Looker made a clean sweep. I understand the Lustrous and Adamant Orbs vanished from custody a day or so later, but I suspect I know how that happened."
Malwa: "Giratina again?"
Cynthia: "And Shaymin - there was a Gracidea flower on the floor of the room, which I now understand."

Alder: "So... can I just check. Did anything top that?"
Diantha: "Possibly."
Grimsley: *glances around at his co-workers* "Nothing from Unova, boss."
Diantha: "Kalos may lack the impact, but there was certainly something."
Siebold: "He's there right now... we'd better hurry back as soon as this is over."
Lance: "Indeed. Was there anything else from Sinnoh?"
Lucian: "I'm afraid this one's a bit less... spectacular... but there are certainly Legendary Pokemon involved."
Cynthia: "Because of course there are."
Lucian: "Four, in fact. Now, this happened in Crown City..."