Based on my Explorers of Sky game. This was just something I mused on after I beat Primal Dialga, and decided to write a story about it. Nothing really special about it, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.

Relic

As Riolu stood on the Rainbow Stoneship, he couldn't help but gaze up at the pillar already so far above him.

"Temporal Tower is…getting farther and farther away…" he murmured, watching as it continued to fade from his sight. He clenched the minty ribbon tighter in his paw. "And Meilin…I'm getting farther away from Meilin…" The tower blurred against the surrounding clouds as tears once again began to fill his eyes, and he clutched the ribbon closer to him. "Oh, Meilin…"

He wasn't sure how Meilin managed to remove her bow as she disappeared, but he found it on the ground after she was gone. He took it with him, unable to leave behind the only thing he had left of his beloved friend and partner. Just moments ago, the soft fabric was still warm from the light that surrounded her, and it was heavy with her scent. But now all traces of her, like Temporal Tower, were quickly beginning to fade.

Riolu was so focused on staring after Temporal Tower, even after he could see it no longer, that he didn't notice the ground approaching until the Rainbow Stoneship settled on top of the temple of the Old Ruins. The rough landing caught him off guard and knocked him off his feet. As he landed on his paws and knees on the ground, he found himself looking at the strange pattern of the Relic Fragment.

He blinked, unable to tear his eyes away from the small piece of stone that had popped out of its place. After everything that took place, he had somehow forgotten about the artifact that was once his most prized possession. The item that once meant the world to him…until he met Meilin…

One day I'm sure I'll solve the secret of my Relic Fragment. That's the dream I have. If it ever came true, I'd surely faint from sheer happiness!

He swallowed hard, glaring down at the pattern on the stone. He had been right about one thing, at least. Indeed, now that he knew what the Relic Fragment was for, he felt about ready to collapse. But after everything he'd been through, it wasn't at all in the way he expected…or wanted.

Slowly he reached out, his body shaking as he picked up the Relic Fragment and grasped it tightly in his paw. His heart pounded painfully in his chest, urging him to crush the stone into pieces or to cast it away, to let it be lost so no one could find it again. The rush of blood roared between his ears, screaming that if it wasn't for the Relic Fragment then Meilin would still be with him. Discovering the secret of the Relic Fragment and its connection to Temporal Tower is what took Meilin away from him, and his body commanded him to be rid of the thing for good.

Instead, he took the minty green ribbon and wrapped it around the piece of stone, tying it into an awkward bow before putting it away in the treasure bag. Because deep down, he knew; perhaps it was true that if he never learned what the Relic Fragment was for, Meilin would have remained with him. But if it wasn't for the Relic Fragment, he never would have partnered with her in the first place, and she never would have come to mean as much to him as she did now.

So he would keep the Relic Fragment with him as another reminder of everything that he and Meilin went through. It was Meilin's last wish, after all…for him to remember, so he could tell her story and prevent such a disaster from ever happening again. And he would remember everything…her…always.

No matter how much it hurt…

The End