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Pokemon: Legend of the Blessed Aura (Southern Seas)

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kemix0711

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Prepare for trouble! And make it triple! That's right, it's time for saga number 3!

In the last installment, Mike McCarver and his traveling companions Alexis and Ed traveled through the Kanto region, collecting badges and Frontier Symbols until they conquered the Pokemon League and the Battle Frontier. Now Mike and Alexis are headed south for some new adventures, with new traveling companions, new rivals, and new challenges as they make their way through the Sevii and Orange Islands! Don't miss it at...oh. It's starting right now? Dang, I thought this was just a teaser.

Anyway, enjoy, you guys!
 
Chapter 105: Shadows on the Horizon

“Take care of yourself, Ed. It’s been a blast traveling around with you,” I said, shaking Ed’s hand.

“And keep in touch,” Alexis added, giving him a hug.

“Hey, come vist me sometime after you guys get back. My family would love to meet you two,” Ed said.

It was right after the end of the Kanto Pokémon League, and Professor Birch had sent Zapdos to bring me and Alexis to the Seafoam Islands for our vacation. Ed was going to take a blimp back to his home in Lilycove City, so we had to part ways.

“See you!” Ed said as we took off. His Pokémon waved as well.

“Bye!” Alexis and I responded. “Okay, Zapdos! Full speed ahead!”

“DOOOS!” Zapdos replied. It seemed to be in a good mood as it zipped towards the Seafoam Islands.

Two days later, Alexis and I were on the beach on the Seafoam Islands, just sunbathing. Our Pokémon were out and about.

“So, Lexi. What do you want to do after this?” I asked.

“Well, I was in the mood for some of that special juice I heard they made, and then-” Alexis responded.

“I meant after our vacation. I mean, I’m not sure I want to do any more Gym Battles just yet, so where do we go?” I asked.

“…well, maybe we should go home. Take some time off. You know, that kind of thing. After all, I’m sure everyone back home would love to hear of our adventures,” Alexis responded.

“Hey, every one of these days has been an adventure. And I’m glad I’ve been able to share it with you,” I said, putting my arm around her waist.

“Me too,” she responded. “So, we’re going to stop adventuring?”

“I never said that. I just feel like something new. Something like this. I mean, it’s not like new and weird things just come out of nowhere!” I replied. Just then, thunderclouds popped up overhead. “Well, THIS is new.”

“That’s weird…look!” Alexis said, pointing to the waves. Something was stirring them up.

“Everyone, return!” I said, and we recalled our Pokémon. Suddenly, the waves became larger until they formed a typhoon in the sea.

“Mike, we’d better run!” Alexis said. Just then, my scar burned like never before. I fell to the ground due to the intense pain. After a while, I could finally hear Alexis. “…Mike, what is it?! Answer me, please!”

“What is-what happened?!” I asked. Just then, I saw a black figure in the typhoon. I looked intensely at it, and could see a dark aura around whatever it was. “That-that’s a Shadow Pokémon!” I said.

“How can you tell?!” Alexis asked.

“If you can’t see a black aura, then that’s definitely a Shadow Pokémon! Just like Gorigan’s Hypno!” I replied.

“That can’t be!” Alexis said. Sure enough, out of the typhoon came a large, purple bird-like Pokémon with bright red eyes. “Mike, my Pokedex says it’s a Lugia!”

“Do all Lugia have their colors inverted?” I asked. Just then, Lugia summoned up a Shadow Storm attack, getting me caught in the tornado.

“MIKE!!” I heard Alexis shout. It was then that I saw her get caught in one too.

“ALEXIS!!!” I shouted as I was moving further and further away. It was then that I was face-to-face with this Shadow Lugia. It opened its mouth and fired a blast of dark air.

I was unconscious.

“…ude…ke up…on…hael…”

“…aar…”

“…huh? Who-who’s that?” I asked, half-asleep.

“Michael! C’mon, bro! Wake up!”

“WAH!” I said, waking up. I was out on the open ocean atop my old buddy, Red Gyarados. On his back was Mark, surprisingly. Gyarados squeezed me with its tail, elated to see me. “Hey, you guys! Where’d you come from?”

“I was about to ask you the same thing! What are you doing here in the Sevii Islands?” Mark responded.

“…Sevii? Not Seafoam?!” I asked.

“Yeah. Dad gave me instructions to take your Gyarados here to live in these islands. These waters and those in the Orange Archipelago have the nutrients to sustain its health, apparently,” Mark answered.

“Really?! That’s great, Gyarados!” I said.

“Gyar!” Gyarados replied happily.

“I figured that since there were contests here and in the Orange Islands, it suited me as well, so I immediately accepted. Hey, where’re Alexis and Ed?”

“Ed went back home, so it’s just me and…LEXI! Oh, no…WHERE ARE YOU, ALEXIS?!?” I shouted.

“Not so loud, bro! Anyway, what happened to the two of you?!” And so I explained to him the Shadow Lugia incident. “THAT…SUCKS,” he responded.

“And what’s worse, that Lugia seemed stronger than Gorigan’s Hypno. Its heart must be more shut off than I could ever imagine. But one thing’s for sure, we’ve gotta inform Dad about this!” I said.

“Gotcha. Let’s head back to Knot Island and make some calls,” Mark suggested. “Full steam ahead, Gyarados!” Gyarados took us to an island. It was a pretty small town on that island, and number one of the Sevii Islands. We went to the Pokémon Center, where I called Mom and Dad.

“That’s unbelievable! Pokémon with artificially closed hearts! This group must be stopped!” Dad said. “We’ll look into it as much as we can.”

“Dad, at some point, I think I should be involved in this mission. Something tells me I should be a part of taking down the Shadow Pokémon,” I said.

“Of course, but only when we’ve gathered more information. I’ll keep you posted,” Dad replied.

“Thanks, Dad. Mark and I are going to stay around here for a little longer. I need to find Alexis, and Mark’s competing in more Contests.”

“Have a good time, boys. And be sure to check in with us!” Mom said.

Later, we left the Center, and Professor Oak had sent Togetic with my things. I changed into my clothes, and we played with Togetic for a while. It then left, and we went back to where we made dock.

“So, where do you think we ought to look first?” I asked.

“Floe Island is closest to us, so let’s start there. After that, we’ll go to Boon Island, then Kin Island, where my first Contest will be,” Mark responded.

“Just like old times, eh?” I said.

“You know it! Hey, before I forget, do you want to compete in the Orange League while we’re here?”

“Huh?”

“Well, it’s a little different from the Pokémon League. Basically, it’s Gyms with a little twist. You go to compete in four of them and earn their respective badges, then you go to Pummelo Island to face the Leader of the Orange Crew for a trophy and a place in the Orange League Hall of Fame. You in?”

“AM I EVER! So much for a little time off, but screw it! I’m pumped up, and there’s another League to conquer!” I said confidently. “Speaking of which, how’d it go in Johto?”

“I won! Oh, and I got to face that Paul guy you mentioned; he...wow, what an emo kid.”

“Figures,” I said, not at all surprised.

“But I saw your last match. WHY have you not been putting that kind of effort into your matches with me?!” Mark asked furiously.

“Well, er…that was, uh…okay, I’m sorry! I’m sorry if I was holding back!” I stammered.

“*sigh*…whatever. Anyway, let’s get going. Alexis isn’t going to be found anytime soon if we just stand here,” Mark said. He then pressed a button on his watch.

“What was that?” I asked. Just then, Gyarados popped out of the water. I freaked while Mark laughed.

“It sends out a signal to Gyarados that tells it when we’re ready to go! Gyarados here has agreed to be our transport while island-hopping!”

“Gyar!” Gyarados agreed.

“Great! It’s good to have both of you back!” I said. “Get ready boys, we’re headed for a new adventure! TO FLOE ISLAND!”
 
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Chapter 106: Spheal the Deal

After a day of riding the waters on Gyarados’ back, we finally made it to Floe Island. It had a lively town in it, but no Alexis. On the outskirts was Icefall Cave, so Mark and I decided to extend our search to there.

“So, how will we know Gyarados will be safe?” I asked.

“My watch will beep if Gyarados is in danger. It’ll be fine. It’s Alexis you should be concerned about. If she IS in Icefall Cave, then she could freeze to death,” Mark responded.

“Don’t even say that! I can’t think of it without…” I stopped, worried.

“C’mon, I’m sure that some Ice Pokémon who live there would help her if she was there. Now we don’t have time to waste; let’s move!”

With that, we made our way into the Icefall Cave. It was pretty damn chilly in there; about 30 degrees, probably. Anyway, there was a distinct lack of wild Pokémon in there; a few Slowpoke and Shellder here and there, but they all looked afraid of something.

“I wonder what’s gotten into them?” I asked.

“Must have to do with the lack of Pokémon,” Mark said. “We’d better hurry; maybe somebody’s been stealing their friends and family!”

“Yeah,” I said. It was then that a Spheal, a blue, round sea lion-like Pokémon rolled up to us.

“Spheal! Spheal Spheal! Spheal!” it said frantically.

“Whoa whoa whoa, calm down, little buddy! What’s the deal?” I asked. “Deoxys, can you translate?”

“It says two humans have stolen its friends and to please help. Take one guess who they are,” Deoxys commented.

“Team Rocket,” Mark and I said.

“Let’s go! Spheal, don’t worry! We’ll get every one of your friends back!” I said.

“Spheal Spheal!” Spheal said, clapping. It then pointed towards the water.

“Seems there’s a shortcut down there,” Deoxys said. Mark and I whipped out Golduck and Empoleon and followed Spheal. I don’t know how we didn’t freeze from going into freezing water, but we soon emerged on the other side. There were some Poliwhirl, Marill, and Slowpoke gathered in a bunch, and they were talking amongst themselves. When they saw us, they swarmed us, apparently asking us for help. According to Deoxys, they said that their friends had been abducted as well.

“Okay, guess we need to track down whoever it was that took them! Spheal, think you can help us?” I asked, recalling Golduck.

“Spheal!” Spheal replied, attempting to salute. It then sniffed at the ground, listened with its ears, but got nothing.

“Okay, you tried. Hmm, Deoxys can’t extend its aurora too far indoors…” I pondered.

“I may have an idea. Ninetales, go!” Mark said, recalling Empoleon and sending out Ninetales.

“I never got to find out about this one!” I said, getting out my Pokedex.

“Ninetales, the Fox Pokémon. It has a golden fleece and nine tails that each contain mystical powers. Ninetales are said to live very long lives.”

“Ah, so Ninetales’ tails…” I started.

“That’s right! Ninetales, do you think you can use some of your power to locate the stolen Pokémon?”

“Nine!” Ninetales responded. It then closed its eyes and concentrated. One of the tails whipped up and pointed to an entrance to the right.

“Great! Let’s go!” Mark said. He, Ninetales, Spheal and I made our way through the cave. Along the way, I found a Heat Rock, as Mark called it. At the end of the cave, we found a giant waterfall. “Man, Empoleon and Golduck won’t be able to scale this! What do we do?” Mark asked.

“We count on our round little buddy here! Spheal, do you think you can use Ice Ball?” I asked.

“Spheal!” Spheal said, nodding.

“Good, here’s how I want you to do it…” I said, then explained it to Spheal. Spheal got it and then fired Ice Balls where I told it to, making an icy path upward. It extended so that the smaller Ice Balls froze the sides while the larger ones went up the middle until the whole waterfall was frozen.

“Great, bro. You froze the waterfall. Now how do we get up there?” Mark asked sarcastically.

“Golduck, come back out!” I said, sending out Golduck. “Everyone grab onto me! Golduck, I’m going to need you to use Rock Climb!”

“Golduck!” Golduck said, its claws glowing. Everyone else grabbed onto me as I grabbed onto Golduck, and with time, Golduck managed to scale the frozen waterfall.

“Way to go, Golduck! You too, Spheal!” I said when we’d made it to the top. Spheal jumped up and down for joy, and an exhausted Golduck gave a thumbs-up. I returned Golduck to its Poke Ball and we moved onward. Ninetales pointed us towards another cavern, and so we moved on. “Hmm, what's that up ahead?”

In the next cavern, we saw a few cages filled with Pokémon who inhabited the cave.

“Ninetales, Extrasensory!” Ninetales focused and used Extrasensory on the cages, and they all broke, freeing the Pokémon inside. They all took the route to the waterfall. Spheal, at this point, was jumping up and down, elated.

“All right! Let’s keep moving! There’re sure to be more ahead!” I said. We made our way into the next room, where the path split in two.

“Which way, Ninetales?” Mark asked.

“Nine?” Ninetales said. Its tails pointed in both directions. It then wobbled a bit because a Hypnosis and Confuse Ray combination hit it. It then used Overheat on us, knocking us back a ways. It was then that we heard a familiar laughter.

“TEAM ROCKET!!” I shouted angrily.

“Yup, it’s us!” Ashley said, her and Mismagius stepping forward.

“Back and badder than ever!” Olson said, him and Gengar coming forward.

“Man, how’d they trick us?!” Mark said.

“We saw you runts coming, so we decided to lay out the trapped Pokémon in separate places!” Olson explained.

“That way, when you got disoriented, your Ninetales would be dazed and confused, in more ways than one!” Ashley added. “And now it’s ours! Have it use Fire Spin!” Ninetales readied a Fire Spin to launch at me and Spheal, but Mark shoved us out of the way and got hit.

“MARK!”

“Guh, go stop them! You have to!” Mark said amidst the Fire Spin.

“Okay! Spheal, use Water Pulse!”

“Spheal!” Spheal said, nailing Gengar with Water Pulse.

“Mismagius, use Magical Leaf!” Mismagius fired a Magical Leaf at Spheal.

“Spheal, Blizzard!” Spheal’s Blizzard froze the Magical Leaf and damaged Mismagius. “Now use Water Gun!” Spheal fired a Water Gun.

“Gengar, Shadow Ball!” Gengar’s Shadow Ball negated the Water Gun and nailed Spheal. “Now use Hypnosis!” Gengar’s Hypnosis entranced Spheal.

“Oh, no! Spheal, hurry and wake up!” I said, but Spheal was still affected.

“Mismagius, use-” Ashley started.

“WALREIN, ICE BEAM!” a voice said. A Walrein, a giant sea lion Pokémon, used Ice Beam to freeze Ashley and Olson as well as their Pokémon. I looked around and finally saw Gerardo running up.

“Hey, Mike! It’s been a while!” he said, coming up to me.

“Gerardo! Great timing!” I said to him. “Mark, how are you and Ninetales?”

“Been better,” Mark said, singed. Ninetales was starting to recover from the effects of the combo.

“Spheal, you awake?”

“Spheal!”

“All right, let’s do this! Blizzard!” Spheal fired a Blizzard.

“Walrein, Hydro Pump!” Walrein fired a Hydro Pump.

“Ninetales, Flamethrower!” Ninetales’ Flamethrower was added to the mix, creating an explosion that sent Team Rocket flying out of the caves.

“WE’RE BLASTING OFF AGAAAIN!” they said as they flailed into the distance.

Later, after introductions and freeing the Pokémon, we gathered outside the cave.

“You did great, Spheal! I hope to see you again!” I said, petting Spheal’s head.

“Spheal, Spheal! Spheal!” Spheal said happily. It jumped up and down and waved as we left.

“So you’re doing Contests as well, Gerardo?” I asked.

“That’s right. But I’m going to the Orange Islands! There’s a Contest about to start there on Pummelo Island, so my team and I are going to try our luck at Double Performances!” Gerardo replied.

“Double Performances?” I asked, confused.

“They’re basically Contests, only done with two Pokémon in both the appeals and battles. It can be easier, but also trickier, so I’ve been debating about it. Anyway, I’m going to the Contest on Kin Island because we need to stick around here and find Alexis, but we’ll be coming to the Orange Islands after that!” Mark responded.

“I see. Well, maybe we’ll be able to face off in the Orange Islands!” Gerardo said.

“Here’s hoping!” Mark responded. He then shook Gerardo’s hand. We then made our way to Gyarados and shoved off.

“Good luck in your quests! See you around!” Gerardo called out.

“Take care!” Mark and I responded.

And so, having helped a bouncy little friend and reconnecting with an old one, our spirits were high as we continued the search for Alexis.
 
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Chapter 107: The Delcatty’s Mew

It was the day after we’d helped Spheal and defeated Team Rocket. We had just started on our way to Boon Island when Gyarados caught a glimpse of something.

“What is it?” I asked. It pointed at an island-like structure to the east.

“Oh, that’s Navel Rock. Quite literally: a giant rock. No inhabitants on it; just a home for many cave-dwelling-” Mark said.

“Oh my god, a giant rock! Alexis MUST be here! Let’s go, Gyarados! Full speed ahead!” I interrupted.

“Dude, how many times have we been through thiIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSS!” Mark shouted as Gyarados zoomed toward the island. As it came into view, it was as Mark said: a rock. Still, I was willing to look UNDER every rock until I found Alexis, so I couldn’t pass this up. As soon as we got on the island, Mark went to go take care of his green face while I searched around. I made it to the entrance to the cavern, but Mark was taking his time, so I decided to wait. I looked around, and saw a white cat-like Pokémon floating on a pink bubble a distance away. I was flabbergasted when I saw it, because I hadn’t heard of a Pokémon that could do that. It then popped its bubble and floated down to where Mark was, as far as I could tell. I ran down to them to find the Pokémon in Mark’s arms. It looked injured and passed out.

“What’s wrong with it?” I asked.

“I don’t know, it just floated down to me and passed out! We’d better keep it with us for a while,” Mark said.

“Hmm, wonder what it is?” I pondered, getting out my Pokedex.

“Mew, the New Species Pokémon. Mew’s DNA is composed of the genetic codes of all Pokémon, so it can use all kinds of techniques. It most often appears to those who are pure of heart.”

“All kinds of techniques, eh? Say, that could be useful! You should catch it!” I said.

“Don’t be ridiculous! It’s not feeling well, so why would I catch it while it can’t defend itself?” Mark responded.

“Well, maybe it would ensure nobody else would catch it while it’s injured,” I replied.

“True, except there’s nobody else here!” Mark said.

“I beg to differ,” I said, pointing to a figure in the sky. Somebody was coming in on a hang-glider. It was a girl, by the looks of it. And on her back was a Delcatty, a purple cat-like Pokemon.

“Hmm, okay. I’ll catch it, nurse it back to health, and then release it after that,” Mark said. He got a Poke Ball out and touched it to Mew’s tail. It got Mew in, wiggled a while, and then caught it. “Okay, now let’s just allay suspicion. Ooh, show me Espeon’s technique you beat Andrea with!” Mark said.

“Well, I can’t do the second part of that all that easily, but I CAN show you the first part! Espeon, showtime!” I sent out Espeon. “Okay, let’s show ‘em the Neon Homerun Attack!”

“Espe!” Espeon said. It then prepared for it while the girl and her Delcatty came up to us.

“Excuse me, but you two wouldn’t happen to have seen a Mew around here, would you?” she asked.

“No, we haven’t. Why?” Mark asked, his eyes widening.

“I’ve been hearing rumors about Mew appearing here, and I have just GOT to catch it! Oh, I’m Katie, by the way.” she said.

“It’s that important?” I inquired.

“To me it is! I just LOVE Pokémon like my partner Delcatty! Cat Pokémon are just so gorgeous!” she said, hugging Delcatty.

“Myarr!” Delcatty replied.

“I see. Well, if we see one, you’ll be the first to know!” Mark said. “Now go on, Michael. Show me.”

“Right! Espeon, Shadow Ball times ten (it's Mike, by the way)!” Espeon fired ten Shadow Balls into the air. “Now Quick Attack and spinning Signal Beam!” Espeon leapt up and used Signal Beam to power up the Shadow Balls. “And now use Iron Tail!” Espeon’s Iron Tail rammed into all of them. They eventually formed one big one in the sky, which then exploded into a neon glow.

“Wow. That’s real Contest material, right there! Speaking as a Top Coordinator, I’m impressed! No wonder you-” Mark started.

“Yeah, that was cool!” Katie added. “Say, we’re trying to learn to do Contests too. Would you have a Contest battle with me?” I looked at Mark. He nodded. We were probably thinking the same thing: if I could distract Katie, then Mark could nurse Mew back to health without her catching on.

“Yup. Let’s do it!” I agreed as Espeon returned to my side.

“I’ll just be in the cave if you two need me. I need to, uh, check on something!” Mark said. He then ran off.

“Okay, let’s see what you’ve got! Sneasel, go!” Katie sent out her Sneasel, a dark cat-like Pokemon.

“Gallade, showtime!” I sent out Gallade, who did a bow. “Sneasel’s a Dark-Type, so be careful!”

“Sneasel, use Icy Wind, then combine it with Shadow Ball!” Sneasel’s Shadow Ball was powered up with an Icy Wind, giving it a larger range.

“Gallade, dodge it!” Gallade jumped out of the way, but got nicked by the Icy Wind, taking some damage. “Use Leaf Blade!” Gallade charged forward with a Leaf Blade.

“Sneasel, Metal Claw!” Sneasel’s Metal Claw defended against the attack.

“Gallade, spinning Leaf Blade!” Gallade whirled into a green tornado, but the attack only did minimal damage because Sneasel was still defending with Metal Claw.

“Sneasel, use Ice Shard, then break it up with Metal Claw!” Sneasel created an ice shape, then broke it into pieces of ice with Metal Claw. “Now use Dark Pulse!” Sneasel’s Dark Pulse propelled the ice toward Gallade.

“Gallade, spin to dodge!” Gallade did a spin right over Sneasel’s head. “Now use Fire Punch and Thunderpunch with that same spin!” Gallade’s spin got a fire/electric whirl to it. It then came down on Sneasel’s head, doing incredible damage. Sneasel then passed out, unable to continue.

“Sneasel! Are you okay?!” Katie asked. Sneasel slowly got up and nodded. “That’s a relief. Thanks for the battle!” she said to me.

“No problem. But if you really want Contest advice, my brother should be able to help you better than I can! He’s a Top Coordinator, so-” I started.

“TROUBLE!” Mark shouted, carrying Mew out. “There’s a Rhyperior on a rampage in there! And it’s chasing after us!”

“Wait, you DID have a Mew! You guys lied to me!” Katie said, enraged.

“It was sick. I suggested Mark catch it, treat it, then release it! How’d that go, anyway?” I asked Mark.

“Mew’s almost there. I just need more time!” Mark said.

“We’ll buy some for you! Gallade, get ready!” I said.

“Gallade!” Gallade responded. It was then that a Rhyperior, a rock-covered dinosaur-like Pokémon, came charging out of the cave at us.

“Okay! Use Close Combat!” Gallade hit Rhyperior with Close Combat, but Rhyperior looked as if the attack had done nothing at all. It grinned and landed a Horn Drill on Gallade, knocking it out. “Gallade, no! Return!” I said, recalling it.

“Rhyperior, stop it!” Mark said. Rhyperior just charged forward with stones circling around it.

“It’s using Stone Edge! Watch out!” Katie said. Mark just turned his back and braced for impact. Mew woke up, jumped up and used Aura Sphere to blow it back.

“Mew…” Mark said, flabbergasted. Mew just chuckled to itself and bounced around on a pink bubble. It then used Giga Drain on Rhyperior, regaining full health while Rhyperior got even madder. Rhyperior then charged up a Rock Wrecker, which was a giant red boulder.

“Delcatty, use Iron Tail!” Katie’s Delcatty smacked Rhyperior with Iron Tail, causing it to drop the Rock Wrecker on itself, knocking it out.

“Yeah! Way to go, you two!” I said. Espeon used Psychic to throw Rhyperior back into the cave.

“Huh? Oh, thanks!” Katie said. “Now, release Mew like you said you would!” she said to Mark.

“Yeah, okay. Mew, return!” Mark said, aiming the Poke Ball at Mew. The red light fired out, but Mew flipped to avoid it, chuckling again. “What? Mew, RETURN!” Mew kept flipping to avoid the beam. “What’s going on?”

“I think Mew’s made it clear who it wants to stay with,” I said. “Is that all right, Katie?”

“Well…” Katie shouted. “I’m not happy with this…but I’ll go along with it! Besides, no other Pokémon can match the cuteness of my Delcatty here!” she said, hugging Delcatty again.

“Myarrr!” Delcatty purred.

“With that kind of love and care for your Pokémon and its beauty, I’m sure you’ll be a Top Coordinator soon enough!” Mark said to Katie. “So…” he said, holding out his hand.

“Of course. Bygones be bygones and all that, right?” Katie replied, shaking it.

We may not have found Lexi, but we found a playful new friend to add to Mark’s team. I knew that it could keep the cheeriness in our party going as we continued the search for Alexis.
 
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Chapter 108: Brothers in Arms

“…and so, after Mime Jr. evolved into Mr. Mime, I sent it to Professor Rowan since I need a Pokémon for Cuteness,” Mark said.

“That makes sense. Well, there’s Boon Island. Think we’ll find Alexis there?” I asked.

“It’s possible. I mean, this is one of the northern islands in the Sevii Islands. It’s unlikely that she went very far. I mean, YOU didn’t.”

“That’s true. So we just went to Floe Island and Navel Rock to cover all our bases, right?”

“Yup. See you later, Gyarados!” Mark said as we got off.

“Gyar!”

We had finally reached Boon Island, our next destination in the Sevii Islands. This was another possible spot where Alexis could have been after the Shadow Lugia incident, so we had to. Besides, Gyarados needed a rest, so we disembarked. After looking around for a while, we came across a town. I started asking around town, but nobody had seen Alexis anywhere. Finally, I was starting to get the impression that Alexis wasn’t on the island.

“Sigh…well, we should probably go to the next island, right?” I suggested to Mark.

“Guess so. But not before staying the night at the Pokémon Center!” Mark replied.

“Mark, there’s really no point to stopping. We should move on and cover more ground as soon as possible!” I argued.

“Overdoing it can hinder us more than help us, little brother! You’ve got to have faith that Alexis is okay and that we’ll find her!” Mark answered.

“Well, let me ask you: which comes first? Alexis or the Contest?” I asked.

“That isn’t fair! I’m going out of my way to-” Mark snapped.

“Are you guys looking for something?” a familiar voice said. We turned to see Eric Waters, the guy I had faced in the Hoenn League Championship preliminaries. “Wait…you’re Mike!”

“Eric! Wow, it’s been a long time!” I said, shaking hands with him. “So, do you live here?”

“Nah, I’m just visiting my girlfriend,” Eric responded. “She’s having something done with this old woman who lives up north. She teaches the most powerful moves! You should come with me; I was about to check on things over there. I bet the woman would teach your Pokémon too!”

“Sure thing!” Mark said. “We can spare some time! Besides, Alexis isn’t going anywhere, wherever she is, right?”

“Yeah, I guess…” I said half-heartedly.

“Whoa whoa whoa, Alexis? Who’s she?” Eric asked.

“She’s MY girlfriend. We had a bit of a mishap on the Seafoam Islands, and…she’s missing,” I answered.

“Wow. That’s gotta be rough. Maybe we can find out where she is from the old woman!...I forget her name, but she really helped me and my Typhlosion! Come on!”

With that, Eric led us to the northern part of the island, where a cottage was. Eric led us around back where a Frenzy Plant was being used over and over again. We looked to see a Venusaur using it, and with it was Lauren Hitzhusen, the girl I’d faced at the quarterfinals in the Hoenn League Championship.

“Ah-heh heh heh…hey, Lauren!” I said nervously.

“Oh, HEY! Mike!” Lauren said, tackling me. “C’mon, get up get up get up! How’s it been?” she asked, getting up.

“…it’s been better…” I said, still dazed from the impact.

“How’s the training going?” Eric asked, giving her a kiss.

“Great! Venusaur’s finally got it down!” Lauren said. “Thanks a lot, Kimberley!”

“Just remember to feel at one with Venusaur!” a voice said. It was from an old woman dressed in an…interesting…kimono (don’t ask). “Ohhhhhh…it’s you, Mark! How’s that Hydro Cannon working out for you?” she asked Mark.

“Pretty well, except my brother here used it against me, giving me my first loss,” Mark answered.

“Yeah. That was fun!” I said, suddenly perking up.

“Don’t start!” Mark said, glaring.

“Brothers, huh? Well, why don’t you have a Tag Battle with me and Eric? I need to try out Venusaur’s new move!” Lauren suggested.

“I suppose we can,” I said.

“Sure,” Mark agreed half-heartedly. I could tell that this was turning out to be “one of those days”.

We stood across from each other in teams.

“Go get ‘em, Venusaur!” Lauren said. Venusaur stepped up.

“Let’s do this, Typhlosion!” Eric sent out his Typhlosion.

“I’ll use the same Pokémon Kimberley taught! Empoleon, action!” Mark said, sending out his Empoleon.

“Well, since everybody else is thinking big…Metagross, showtime!” I said, sending out Metagross.

“That’s a terrible choice!” Mark said.

“Bear with me,” I replied.

“Typhlosion, Blast Burn!” Typhlosion launched a Blast Burn at Empoleon.

“Metagross, get in front and use Light Screen!” Metagross floated in front and used Light Screen to defend against the attack.

“All right! Now, Empoleon! Use Hydro Pump!” Empoleon jumped on top of Metagross’ back and fired a Hydro Pump.

“Venusaur, defend with Protect! Then use Razor Leaf!” Venusaur blocked the attack with Protect, then nailed Metagross with Razor Leaf.

“That’s not gonna do much against our Steel-Types! Empoleon, use Hydro Cannon!” Empoleon fired a Hydro Cannon.

“Venusaur, Frenzy Plant!” Venusaur sent out Frenzy Plants to counter the Hydro Cannon and slam Empoleon into the ground.

“Empoleon, try to get out of there!” Empoleon struggled, but found its way out of Frenzy Plant. That’s when Typhlosion was there.

“Eric, if you please?” Lauren said with a wink.

“With pleasure! Typhlosion, Focus Blast!” Typhlosion nailed Empoleon with a Focus Blast, knocking it far away.

“No! Michael, do something!” Mark shouted.

“…”

“FINE! If you’re not going to help…Empoleon, Steel Wing!” Empoleon hovered above ground and flew at the two with Steel Wing.

“Typhlosion, Blast Burn!”

“Venusaur, Frenzy Plant!”

The two Pokémon stood their ground and readied their respective attacks. I knew that my opportunity had come.

“NOW, METAGROSS! MAGNET RISE!” Metagross used Magnet Rise to lift the opponents into the air, throwing off their coordination. Empoleon used the opportunity to land a Steel Wing attack on them both, dealing critical hits.

“Ohhh, so that’s what you were waiting for. Uh, sorry about that, little brother,” Mark said, embarrassed.

“No worries. I guess I should’ve told you Metagross was purely support in this battle. Maybe now we’ll be able to get in sync!” I responded.

“Absolutely!” Mark responded. We then high-fived. “Okay, Empoleon! Get above Metagross’ head!” Empoleon floated over to Metagross.

“Typhlosion, Flamethrower!” Typhlosion fired a Flamethrower. Fortunately, Metagross still had Light Screen to deflect it.

“Ready?” Mark asked.

“Ready! Metagross, Gravity!” Metagross fired purple waves into the air that forced everything downward, slamming Typhlosion and Venusaur into the ground and Empoleon onto Metagross’ head. “Now use Earthquake!” Metagross slammed the ground for an Earthquake, causing the opponents to take heavy damage while Empoleon was unharmed.

“Yeah! Got ‘em!” Mark said. “Empoleon, what say we use Bubblebeam!” Empoleon fired a Bubblebeam at Typhlosion and Venusaur.

“Venusaur, Vine Whip to defend!” Venusaur got out several vines.

“Metagross, Magnet Rise!” Metagross reversed the flow of gravity, causing the foes and the vines to rise up, preventing the defense. The Bubblebeam hit its mark.

“Empoleon, Flash Cannon!” Empoleon flew below the opponents and launched them into the air with Flash Cannon. Metagross then floated below and got Empoleon on its head again.

“Lauren, we’ll have to finish this now! Typhlosion, Flamethrower!” Eric said as Typhlosion launched another Flamethrower.

“Okay! Venusaur, Solarbeam!” Venusaur charged up and launched a Solarbeam.

“Let’s do this! Drill Peck, Empoleon!” Empoleon spun with Drill Peck.

“I’ll back that up! Metagross, Gyro Ball!” Metagross used Gyro Ball to increase the spin of Drill Peck. The two then burrowed into the ground, dodging the attacks. When Typhlosion and Venusaur returned to the ground, Empoleon and Metagross popped up and landed a hit on Typhlosion, knocking it away. They then came back around and slammed into Venusaur, causing tons of damage there as well. It was then that the gravity returned to normal and Typhlosion and Venusaur slumped to the ground, knocked out.

“Typhlosion and Venusaur are unable to battle! Empoleon and Metagross are the winners, and victory in this match goes to the McCarver brothers!” Kimberley said. Mark and I high-fived again.

“Way to go, bro!” we said at the same time. Upon realizing this, we laughed out loud.

“Wow, I’m having trouble telling you two apart,” Eric said, coming over with Typhlosion.

“I’m impressed, you guys! Your teamwork is totally awesome!” Lauren added.

“Thanks, you two! You guys rocked as well!” I replied. “And Mark, I guess we do make a good team when we aren’t arguing. I’m sorry, and…I think we should do the Contest first. I have faith that Alexis is fine, and that we’ll find her safe and sound.”

“Well…thanks,” Mark said.

“If you’re looking for somebody, I might be able to help!” Kimberley said, rushing over. She then put a hand on my shoulder, muttered some incantation, and held up her staff. On it were several rings, each with one of four symbols: flame, leaf, water, and dragon. The ones with leaves lifted up all of a sudden and emitted a green beam to the south. Kimberley then drew the staff back and opened her eyes. “It seems this Alexis girl is on Birth Island! That much I know!”

“Great! That’s south of Kin Island!” Mark said. “So after Kin Island, it’ll be a straight shot from there to Alexis!”

“Right. We’ll be with her before we know it,” I said, more determined than ever.

“Good luck finding her!” Eric said.

“And come back for another battle! We’d REALLY love to face you guys again!” Lauren said enthusiastically.

“And remember this advice: be at one with your Pokémon!” Kimberley added.

“Right!” I said. As we left, I looked to the setting sun. “Lexi, I’m coming.” At that moment, I caught a glimpse of something familiar. As I focused in, I could see it was that same bird-like Pokémon I saw flying over Mt. Moon. I knew that somehow, it was connected to my travels, but didn’t realize how…at least, not yet. And so, with the knowledge of Alexis’ location, I kept my spirits high as the journey continued.
 
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Chapter 109: Stainless Steelix

After staying the night on Boon Island, Mark, Gyarados and I trekked to Kin Island, the destination of Mark’s first Contest as part of the Southern Seas Grand Festival. We made it there, then healed up our Pokémon. It was then that we saw a girl a little older than us enter. She was wearing a short light blue dress with a white sweater and had tan-colored hair.

“Jasmine?!” Mark said. He then ran over to her. “How have you been?”

“Um…do I know you?” Jasmine asked.

“Maybe this will jog your memory!” Mark said, getting out his Sephiod mask.

“The Great Sephiod! Mark, it’s great to see you!” Jasmine said excitedly. “But what are you doing out of costume?”

“This is how I normally dress when not in Contests. What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be back in Olivine City?” Mark asked.

“I had to come here; I have a student wanting to learn about Contests! And I’m here to compete in the Kin Island Contest myself!” Jasmine replied.

“Great! It’ll be fun to face you again! Here, this is my younger brother!” Mark said, introducing me. “And this is Jasmine, Leader of the Olivine City Gym in Johto!”

“Nice to meet you! I'm Mike,” I said to her, shaking her hand. “So let me get this straight: you dressed up as Sephiod for your Gym Battles?” I asked Mark.

“What about it? I don’t think it’s a crime,” Mark responded.

“I just didn’t imagine doing it before, that’s all,” I replied.

“That’s a good thing about Gym Battles: you and your Pokémon can express yourselves in any way you want! And if you feel that same sense during Contests, there’s no reason to refrain from doing it in battles!” Jasmine explained.

“Huh. I never thought of it like that! That’s good to know!” I said.

“So, you ready to do this?” Mark asked.

“Ready as ever!” Jasmine replied.

We left for the Contest Hall, getting Mark a new Pass and registering both him and Jasmine. Mark snuck away, donned his Sephiod outfit, and returned. I wished both of them luck, then went out into the stands to see their appeals. Mark also gave me Mew so that it could see what was waiting for it in the future.

“And now, we’d like to present entry number twenty-nine! All the way from Olivine City, it’s the Gym Leader and mistress of defense: Jasmine!” Jasmine then emerged on stage.

“Ampharos, let’s go!” Jasmine sent out an Ampharos. “Start off with Cotton Spore!” Ampharos sent out a flurry of white cotton balls that circled around it. “Now use Thunder Wave!” Ampharos sent out a Thunder Wave that attracted the Cotton Spore to Ampharos’ fur, making it white as a ghost. “And now, Thunder!” Amphraos used Thunder, sending static Cotton Spore balls everywhere. “Now wrap it up with Fire Punch!” Ampharos’ Fire Punch incinerated the Cotton Spore, leaving embers and sparks all around. Jasmine and Ampharos then took a bow.

“Amazing! She certainly stepped outside her element and made a big risk pay off in a big way!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Indeed! The two were remarkable!” Suzuki said.

“I loved how much fun the two seemed to have throughout the entire performance!” Nurse Joy said.

“Well, you heard it from the judges, folks! And now,” Anne, the MC, said as Jasmine left the stage, “…it’s time, folks! We’ve saved a spectacle for last! A seasoned Top Coordinator from Hearthome City, now making his Southern Sea debut here on our beloved Kin Island: The Great Sephiod!” At that, Mark entered, grinning. This time, he was wearing a slightly large top hat.

“Umbreon, action!” Mark sent out Umbreon, who nabbed Mark’s hat and placed it on the ground next to him. “Use Swift!” Umbreon used Swift, merging the stars together to form one big one. “Now use Shadow Ball times five!” Umbreon fired five Shadow Balls into the air. “Now use Psychic, then Dig!” Umbreon’s Psychic not only placed the Shadow Balls in random locations, but targeted the Swift as well. Umbreon then dug into the ground. It jumped out to strike the Swift, making it spin in place and catch one of the Shadow Balls on its point. Umbreon then dug back into the ground and repeated this process until all the points had Shadow Balls on them. “Now use Faint Attack!” Mark said as he bent down toward his top hat. Umbreon jumped up from behind him and attacked the Swift with Faint Attack. There was a bright flash of light, and the next thing I knew, there were black stars everywhere. Mark then picked up his top hat and put it on his head. We all looked around, but Umbreon was nowhere. Mark then took his hat off again to reveal Umbreon sitting on his head. Umbreon then jumped in front, and the two bowed together. This appeal got a huge round of applause.

“Simply stunning! Umbreon’s precision was just incredible!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Yes! And its techniques were remarkable!” Suzuki commented.

“I loved the bit of magic the two displayed at the end! It was a fabulous show!” Nurse Joy added.

“And there you have it, folks! The Great Sephiod and Umbreon!” Anne said. Mark and Umbreon then went off. I looked at Mew, who was in complete awe of the performance. I then took it backstage, where I congratulated both Mark and Jasmine for their performances.

“And now, we’ll announce the finalists! These eight will compete in Contest Battles to determine who gets the Kin Ribbon!” Anne said. Both Mark and Jasmine made the cut and battled their way to the final match.

“All right! Both of you show me a great match!” I said to them. I then went to the stands to see the match.

“And here we are: favorites to win, now facing off! Jasmine and Sephiod, your five minutes begins now!” Anne said.

“Empoleon, action!” Mark said, sending out Empoleon.

“Steelix, let’s go!” Jasmine said, sending out her Steelix. “Use Sandstorm then Iron Tail!” Steelix whipped up a Sandstorm then spun at Empoleon with Iron Tail being used like a propeller, making Steelix look like a sandy torpedo. Mark lost points.

“Empoleon, Aqua Jet to dodge!” Empoleon dodged the attack with Aqua Jet, costing Jasmine some points. “Now use Drill Peck in conjunction!” Empoleon did a spinning Aqua Jet/Drill Peck attack. “And now use Whirlpool!” Empoleon fired a Whirlpool in front of itself to ensnare Steelix as it got hit by the spinning Aqua Jet. Jasmine lost some major points.

“Way to go, Mark! Keep it up!” I cheered.

“Steelix, Crunch!” Steelix quickly recovered from the blow it took and grabbed Empoleon with a Crunch attack. Mark lost points.

“Empoleon, use Avalanche!” Empoleon fired an Avalanche, causing Steelix to lose its grip and Jasmine to lose points as Empoleon freed itself.

“Steelix, don’t let it get away! Bind it now!” Steelix wrapped its tail around Empoleon as soon as Empoleon touched down on the ground.

“Empoleon, try to get out of there! Use Aqua Jet again!” Empoleon, however, couldn’t move.

“Now use Slam and then Headbutt!” Steelix threw Empoleon up against the ceiling, then when Empoleon fell, Steelix jumped up and hit it back into the ceiling with Headbutt. This continued for a while, and Mark lost more and more points until he had about a fourth of his original score left.

“Empoleon, you’ve gotta fight it! Spin to dodge!” Empoleon finally managed to dodge Steelix’s Headbutt, causing it to fly into the ceiling, losing Jasmine some points. She had about half her original score left.

“Steelix, get out of there! Use Sandstorm!” Steelix squirmed for a while, but used Sandstorm to spin its way free.

“Gotcha! Ice Beam and Whirlpool!” Empoleon launched a Whirlpool into Steelix, then froze it with Ice Beam. The result froze Steelix and Jasmine lost a major amount of points.

“There’s no way!” Jasmine said.

“Now, Empoleon! Shadow Claw and Metal Claw!” Empoleon’s claws glowed white with purple surrounding them. They shattered the ice, hitting Steelix in the head. Steelix toppled over and fell to the ground, knocked out. The judges then buzzed Steelix out.

“That’s it! Steelix is unable to battle! This year’s Kin Island Pokémon Contest winner is…The Great Sephiod and Empoleon!” Anne said. Her announcement was swiftly followed by cheers.

“Empoleon, super job! That was awesome!” Mark said, running over to Empoleon.

“Pol!” Empoleon replied as it and Mark chest bumped each other.

“You’ve done it again, Ma-I mean, Sephiod,” Jasmine said, coming over. “I may have lost today, but I’ll improve! I hope we’ll meet in the Contest world again!”

“Count on it!” Mark replied.

“And now, Mr. Contesta will present our winner with the coveted Kin Island Ribbon!” Mark received a yellow Ribbon from Mr. Contesta.

“Congratulations on your amazing victory!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Thank you very much! YEAH! WE WON THE KIN ISLAND RIBBON!” Mark said, holding it up proudly.

“Empoleon!” Empoleon added.

That evening, after autographs, Mark and Jasmine finally made it outside, where I was waiting.

“Well, I suppose this is goodbye, Mark,” Jasmine said. “I learned a lot from you.”

“The same to you, Jasmine! I hope we meet again!” Mark said.

“And Mike, I look forward to the day we battle! In the meantime, good luck with finding your friend!” Jasmine said to me.

“Thank you, Jasmine. Take care,” I replied.

And so, with his first Ribbon under his belt, Mark took his first step on his new journey. Filled with confidence and satisfaction, we resumed the journey towards Birth Island and Alexis.
 
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Chapter 110: Fit For a Kingler

After a while, Gyarados was getting tired on the way to Birth Island, so we had no choice but to stop on the northernmost part of Chrono Island, an island south of Kin Island.

“Ugh, I just can’t stand waiting around! I’m getting more and more worried about Alexis by the minute!” I said, anxious.

“And how far do you think Golduck would take you? Huh? You need to relax. She’s a strong girl!” Mark said.

“Yeah, she is, but…” I said in despair. I then sighed and sat down.

“Look, you just need to have faith that we’ll find her and that she’ll be fine. Did giving up hope help you win the Pokémon League?”

“I guess not. Well, let’s see what we can find around this place,” I suggested.

We searched around for a while until we found a lone island with a mansion on it.

“Who builds a mansion in such a place?! Seriously,” Mark said.

“Now’s not the time for that! Let’s move on…uh?” I said. Just then, the doors opened, and a bunch of women that looked like painters walked out. They all waved to the person inside, who waved back before they left. It was Selphy! “Selphy! How’ve you been?” I asked as Mark and I ran up.

“Ah, the young man from before. How nice to see you again,” Selphy said. “Please, do come in.” We followed her into her home, which was filled with expensive items and such. She brought us to her tea room, where her two Persian were waiting. We sat down as Sebastian brought us tea. “Now, what became of your friend’s endeavor?” she asked me.

“Ed? He won in the Battle Frontier and is all set to become a Frontier Brain!”

“Splendid. I suppose Sebastian helped him well. And you?”

“Me? I’m Mark, a Top Coordinator from Hearthome City!”

“Hmm, interesting. So you two are brothers?”

“Yes ma’am. We’re currently looking for-” I started.

“The girl that was with you. Yes, I noticed by the lack of people in your group. Now then, can you two do something for me?” Selphy asked, bored.

“I, um…what do you need us to do?” I asked.

“Dude!” Mark interjected.

“I would like you to catch me a Kingler. They can be found here around Resort Gorgeous. Do that and I will give you this!” she said, snapping her fingers. Sebastian brought out a giant Ruby.

“Wha-?!”

“This has no place in my house. If you catch me a Kingler, it’s yours,” Selphy said.

“What do you think?” I asked Mark.

“…eh, okay,” Mark replied. We then went outside and started fishing. Sebastian came with us to facilitate and catch Kingler in a Poke Ball, since we had six Pokémon each and couldn’t carry more. We hooked some Krabby, but not Kingler for a while. It was then that we both got a hold of something.

“Hey, I’ve got a bite here!” I said.

“Yeah, me too! It’s a big ‘un!” Mark replied.

“You said it! Mine’s struggling!” I said, pulling as hard as I could.

“C’mon, you! Get up here!” Mark said. It was then that our hooks came out of the water…hooking each other. Mark and I fell to the ground.

“That’s…that’s pathetic,” I said. It was then that we heard chuckling. We looked out into the water to see an orange crab-like Pokémon with six spikes on its head.

“THERE! That’s a Kingler!” Mark said.

“Perfect! Golduck, go!” I sent out Golduck. “Use Aqua Jet!” Golduck used Aqua Jet to make circles around Kingler, distracting it. “Mark, if you would be so kind?”

“But of course! Breloom, Mach Punch!” Mark said, sending Breloom into action. Breloom jumped up and came down with a Mach Punch, but Kingler used Protect to defend against the attack.

“Damn! Golduck, Rock Climb!” Golduck dove underwater, and the next thing I knew, a rock formation brought Kingler out of the water. Kingler frantically tried to scurry away, but Golduck’s swimming speed helped it catch up and strike Kingler with its claws. It then fished Breloom out of the water, who just scowled.

“Okay Breloom, use Thunderpunch!” Breloom used Thunderpunch to spike Kingler onto the shore, and it was trapped between us and the rock formation. In desperation, Kingler used Bubblebeam to try and strike Golduck and Breloom at the same time.

“Golduck, use Confusion and Blizzard!” Golduck’s Confusion stopped the bubbles, and Blizzard froze them.

“Breloom, Mach Punch!” Breloom used the speed from Mach Punch to dart from bubble to bubble, then struck Kingler head-on for a critical hit.

“Nice work, bro! Ready, Sebastian?” I asked. He brought out his Smeargle.

“Most definitely! Smeargle, use Thunder Wave!” Sebastian’s Smeargle sent out a Thunder Wave that paralyzed Kingler. “Poke Ball, go!” Sebastian threw a Poke Ball that ensnared and eventually caught Kingler. “Yes! Very well done, Masters Mark and Mike! Lady Selphy will be most-wah?!” He was cut off by a giant net that caught Golduck, Breloom, and Smeargle at once. I heard familiar laughs and looked up to see Team Rocket in their usual hovercraft.

“Nice work, boys! Seems like you made quite the catch!” Ashley commented.

“But here’s the catch of the day: a 3-for-1 deal!” Olson added. They then laughed and sped off with their stolen Pokémon in tow.

“Man! Those guys-Aerodactyl, let’s chase ‘em!” Mark said, sending out his Aerodactyl.

“Good idea! Deoxys, let’s go!” I said, sending out Deoxys. “You’ll have to bring Sebastian as well!”

“Sheesh, too many requests! How about you stay here while I examine from the skies?” Deoxys replied.

“Better idea! Go for it!” I said. Deoxys nodded and sent out its aura, which exploded into an aurora. When it returned, Deoxys turned to me.

“They’re heading for the main part of Chrono Island! We’ve gotta hurry!”

“Roger! Let’s go, guys!” With that, we were off: Aerodactyl carrying Mark and Deoxys levitating me and Sebastian with Psychic (actually, Sebastian was holding onto my leg). Soon, thanks to their speed, our Pokémon managed to catch up with Team Rocket’s craft.

“Okay, Aerodactyl! Giga Impact!” Mark said.

“Wait! That might hurt the Pokémon as well!” I said.

“I have an idea! Kingler, use Vicegrip!” Sebastian threw Kingler’s Poke Ball ahead and it emerged and grabbed onto Team Rocket’s hovercraft with Vicegrip.

“Hey, bub! No hitchhikers!” Ashley said.

“Rotom, hit it with Thundershock!” Olson’s Plasma Rotom emerged and fired a Thundershock.

“Kingler, Protect!” Kingler used Protect to defend against the Thundershock. “Now use Bubblebeam!” Kingler’s Bubblebeam knocked Rotom away and out. “And now, set the Pokémon free with Guillotine!” Kingler’s Guillotine cut through the net holding the Pokémon.

“Golduck, grab the others and use Aqua Jet!” Golduck used Aqua Jet while holding Breloom and Smeargle to stop the fall.

“Great! Now it’s my turn! ZAP CANNON!” Deoxys said as it fired a Zap Cannon to disable Team Rocket’s hovercraft.

“Wha-?! Orson, the craft stopped!” Ashley panicked.

“You know what didn’t stop?! YOU NOT CALLING ME OLSON!!” Olson shouted.

“Nice, Deoxys! All right, Mark! It’s all you!”

“Got it! Aerodactyl, Giga Impact!” Aerodactyl used Giga Impact to blow up Team Rocket’s craft.

“Maybe next time we should go fishing!” Ashley said.

“Seems we’re always bait for shrimps like those two, doesn’t it?” Olson added.

“TEAM ROCKET’S CASTING OFF AGAIN!!” they screamed as they disappeared into the sky.

“We did it!” “Great job, everybody!” Mark and I said. We all went to the ground and convened.

“Golduck?” Golduck asked Breloom, holding out its hand.

“…Bre. Breloom!” Breloom said, finally smiling and shaking Golduck’s hand.

“That’s great! Looks like those two are becoming fast friends already!” I said.

“Well, they work well together. They’re both extremely skilled, so I’d hate to see what happens when those two face off!” Mark said.

“I don’t mean to interrupt, young masters,” Sebastian said, “…but Lady Selphy is sure to be getting impatient!” With that, we scurried on back to Resort Gorgeous and showed Selphy the Kingler.

“Yes, a fine catch. Sebastian, please give them their reward!” Selphy said.

“Of course!” Sebastian said. He then handed us the Ruby.

“Thank-thank you!” I said underneath the weight.

“So, what will happen to Kingler?” Mark asked.

“I’ll keep it with me, Master Mark. It seems to have taken a liking to me,” Sebastian said. Kingler nodded happily.

“Take care, you all!” we said as we left later.

Another day, another adventure. This time, having done a favor for someone else, we felt satisfied and good inside. Now that Gyarados had fully recovered, we were all set to head for Birth Island to finally find Alexis.
 
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Chapter 111: Suicune of the North Wind

“According to my PokeGear, we should be just a few miles away from Birth Island.”

“I still don’t know why YOU have a PokeGear and I don’t.”

“Because you weren’t there the day when Professor Oak gave them to us. Plus, you could’ve bought one in Johto! Don’t they COME from-”

“Shut it and drop it. Let’s just get moving!”

“Okay! Let’s kick it up a notch, Gyarados!”

“GYARR!”

After a week of touring the Sevii Islands, we were finally nearing Birth Island, where Kimberley had told us we would find Alexis. Just up ahead, the area became slightly misty, almost foggy.

“Uh-oh. We’re not gonna be able to find the island now!” Mark said.

“Leave that to me! Espeon, use Flash!” I said, bringing out Espeon. It used Flash to guide us towards the shore. We disembarked, and Gyarados went to the ocean floor to take a nap. “Okay, let’s split up! We have a better chance of finding her if we cover the entire island!” Mark sent out Mew, and it lit up its paw with Flash to light Mark’s way. At that, the four of us split up.

Lexi, I’m almost there. Please be okay… I thought to myself. After about an hour of wandering through the woods on the island, I found a giant red crystal in a clearing.

“Mike! Take a look inside! Do you see what I see?!” Deoxys shouted.

“Wha-?! I don’t believe it!” I said. Sure enough, inside the crystal was another Deoxys.

“Let me out! I think I need to get hands-on with this!” Deoxys said. I let out Deoxys, who went over to the crystal. “Well, it looks like it’s in hibernation. I’m trying to read its thoughts…but all I can get is that it’s from space SOMEwhere. Maybe if I take it into space, it’ll find its way back home.”

“All right. But be careful!” I warned.

“Will do! Be back in a jiffy!” Deoxys said as it lifted the crystal, adopted Speed Forme, and took off into the sky.

“Wonder what it was doing here…huh?!” I said, then noticed a figure on the ground. I ran over to it, and to my relief, it was Alexis! Sure, she was unconscious, but she was there, so my mind was put at ease. “Lexi! Alexis, wake up! Alexis!” I shouted, but it looked like Alexis wasn’t going to wake up for a while. “Hmm, Deoxys picked a bad time to leave. I could’ve contacted Mark…but then again-uh?!” I was about to use my PokeGear to send Mark a message, but my attention was diverted by a beast-like Pokémon. It was surprisingly easy to see amidst the haze: it was a blue wolf-like Pokémon with a purple mane, a crystal-shaped crest on its head, and two white ribbon-like tails streaming in the wind. It was standing on top of a nearby boulder, but it jumped down and moved towards us. “Are you the one who did this to Alexis?!” I shouted.

“…” The Pokémon just stood there.

“Hey wait…I saw you in the Mirage Tower! You’re one of the three Legendary Beasts! But you’re not Raikou…so what ARE you?” I asked. The Pokemon continued to stand there.

“That would be Suicune!” I heard Mark’s voice say. He and Mew came up to me. “That’s a reincarnation of the North Wind, and it’s indigenous to Johto! I learned about it while I was there! What do you want, Suicune?” Suicune stepped back and growled at Mark.

“Okay, let’s take it easy! Mark, you watch Alexis! I think whatever Suicune wants, it has to do with me! Isn’t that right?” I asked. Suicune nodded, stepping forward again.

“Fine. Good luck,” Mark said, moving back to Alexis.

“Suicune, I don’t know what you’re doing here, but if you had something to do with Alexis’ condition, I won’t show any mercy!” I said. Suicune grinned and adopted a battle pose. “Okay, you’re asking for it! Espeon, Shadow Ball!” Espeon fired a Shadow Ball at Suicune. Suicune dodged with ease and nailed Espeon with an Aurora Beam. “C’mon! Espeon, use Quick Attack!” Espeon rushed at Suicune with Quick Attack, but Suicune dodged at the last minute. “Okay, use Psychic!” Espeon’s Psychic lifted Suicune into the air. Suicune just grinned again. At once, a Gust attack whisked Espeon and me into the air. It was then freed from Psychic and knocked us far back with a Hydro Pump. “Urgh, Espeon, Signal Beam!” Espeon fired a Signal Beam at Suicune, but Suicune’s Aurora Beam cancelled that out. “We’re completely outmatched!”

“Suicune has far more power than you can imagine, Mike! You need to fight harder!” Mark shouted.

“Right! Espeon, Trump Card times ten!” Espeon fired ten Trump Cards, but none managed to hit Suicune. Suicune continued to dodge with a smile on its face. “Rrgh! It’s like we can’t even hit him! There’s gotta be a way!...okay, let’s clear things up a bit first! Sunny Day!” Espeon used Sunny Day to clear the haze a little bit, but Suicune then used Rain Dance to thicken the fog again. “Oh, no!”

“Espe…” Espeon said to me, discouraged.

“Hey, don’t worry about it! We’ve just gotta fight a little harder and finish this now! GIGA IMPACT!” Espeon rushed forward with Giga Impact. Suicune merely fired a Hydro Pump, powered up by Rain Dance, to stop Espeon and send it flying into a boulder. “NO! ESPEON!” I then glared at Suicune, who grinned and started to make its way towards Espeon. “Stop it! It’s hurt enough!” I said. Suicune stopped, then looked at me. “No matter who you target…” I said, “I’ll stop you from hurting them! They’re my friends, and I won’t let anything happen to them! It’s bad enough I let Shadow Lugia hurt Alexis, but I’ll make up for that mistake! I’ll protect them…humans AND Pokémon!” I said angrily. Suicune then made its way over to me. I just stood my ground. Suicune then fired a Hydro Pump in front of my feet, but I still managed to hold my ground. It then fired an Aurora Beam, but that wasn’t enough to make me move.

“ESPE! ESPEON!” Espeon shouted.

“…” Suicune then turned towards Mark and Alexis. Mark looked more and more worried as Suicune got closer. At that time, I turned to Espeon and nodded. Espeon got up. Suicune was about to fire a Hydro Pump at Alexis and Mark.

“GOTCHA! LAST RESORT!” Espeon rushed over and nailed Suicune with a Last Resort. “KEEP IT GOING!” Espeon hit Suicune with Last Resort after Last Resort until stars were everywhere. “STAR SHOWER GIGA IMPACT!” Espeon unleashed all the stars on Suicune and hit it with Giga Impact, sending it flailing into the boulder, which crumbled. Espeon and I just stood our ground, waiting for the result. Suicune got out from the rubble, to my surprise. It was injured. “No matter what I have to do to you…I will protect them!”

“GUYS! I’M BACK!” Deoxys said, returning. “Whoa…what’d I miss?!”

“A lot,” I said. Suicune then growled a little bit, but it didn’t look angry. “Is that its way of communicating?” I asked Deoxys.

“Yeah, sounds like it. Let me translate: ‘You are indeed powerful. Your strength is admirable, but what’s astounding is your devotion to others, human and Pokémon alike,’ Suicune said.”

“And you are strong as well, Suicune,” I replied, still ready for anything.

“‘Forgive me for testing you like that. You see, your friend here landed on the island, and I have been watching over her. As for her condition, I do not know. But that you would risk your life for her and your friends…no wonder my master has deemed you the one,’ Suicune said.”

“The ‘one’?” I asked.

“‘Indeed. You were subject to the horrors of the shadows, according to my master. You know very well what they are capable of. That is why my master asked me to test you and bestow upon you the task of clearing their tainted hearts should you prove yourself worthy,’ Suicune said.”

“Clearing their tainted hearts? But why me?” I asked.

“‘You bear within you the Blessed Aura, a light that can expose the shadows. But more importantly, your heart is strong. It will be able to connect with those lost in the darkness and help them find their way back to the light,” Suicune said.”

“I…I don’t know if I can. I mean…” I stammered.

“‘Fear not, for my master has forseen another like you. You will undoubtedly meet him on your journey, and the two of you shall rid the world of the darkness forever. That much we are sure of,’ Suicune said.”

“…I see.”

“‘Yes, it does sound perilous, but if you believe in yourself and in the bonds between you and your friends, you will triumph over this evil and restore peace. I must go now,’ Suicune said.”

“Suicune, before you go…” I said, “…thank you for watching over Alexis. Th-thank you very much.”

“‘Be sure to especially not let your bond with HER go. She seems important to you,’ Suicune said,” Deoxys translated. Suicune grinned again, then jumped off into the fog. It was then that a North Wind blew the fog away, and there was sunlight again.

“Wow…Suicune…” I said, awed by Suicune’s majesty.

“Michael, I’m not sure what we should do about Alexis here!” Mark said.

“We should just let her sleep. She’ll come out of it eventually. And by the way, could you call me Mike?” I asked, picking her up.

“Dude, that’s never gonna catch on,” Mark argued.

“And whose fault is THAT, you stubborn-!” I argued back.

“Turn off the light…” Alexis muttered.

“Well, well! Rise and shine, sleepyhead!” I said, still holding Alexis.

“Wha-? Where are we?” Alexis said, still half-asleep.

“We’re in the Sevii Islands. We got blown here by that…thing,” I said, cautious not to tell her about Shadow Lugia.

“Oh, yeah…I…remem…ber…” she said, dozing off again.

“Lexi!” I said.

“It’s okay, she’s still exhausted. Let’s just get her off this island,” Mark suggested.

After being reunited with Alexis, my heart was put at ease. But my mind continued to plague me with what Suicune had said: I was the one to drive away the darkness. But with a force like that Lugia, I couldn’t help but wonder…how?
 
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Chapter 112: Running Like the Winds of Fortune

“So…I was unconscious for a week?”

“Yup. It was about a day for me, then Mark and Gyarados here found me, and we ventured out to find you.”

“Well, what are we doing now that you have?”

“We’re at Fortune Island to heal up, then going to Quest Island for Mark’s next Contest, then to the Orange Islands, where I’ll be competing in the Orange League...and Mark will be doing more Contests.”

“Cool! Well, I look forward to seeing more Gym Battles, then!”

“What about my Contests?!”

We’d finally gotten Alexis to wake up, and were on Fortune Island, an island northwest of Birth Island. We were taking a breather that night so that Alexis could come back to reality, and then were going to head to Quest Island for Mark’s…yeah, I already explained that.

“So, what exactly WAS that Lugia doing there, anyway?” Alexis asked.

“Oh. Uh…I’m not sure. It seems to me that with a Pokémon like that, we definitely CANNOT underestimate Cipher. Their acts aren’t so huge now, so we can only wait for the PWE to get enough information on them before taking action. In the meantime, I can only hope that we find something…because if that’s a Pokémon who’s got the door to its heart shut, then I’d hate to see the others,” I said.

“Well, Team Rocket’s actions aren’t so huge, yet you guys are trying to arrest THEM,” Mark said.

“Yeah, but they’re smart. Well, MOST of them, anyway,” I said, thinking about Ashley and Olson.

“In any case, we shouldn’t try to worry about it right now. I need to get ready for my Contest! I wonder what Pokémon I should use this time…” Mark pondered.

“Hey, what is that in your bag?” Alexis asked, pointing to my backpack.

“Oh, this is a Ruby we got from Selphy at Chrono Island!” I said, pulling out the Ruby.

“Wow, it’s beautiful!” she said, taking it. “But this is awfully big for jewelry…”

“Well, she didn’t need it, apparently,” I said.

“Ah. That explains it.”

“But I wonder if…hmm? Did it suddenly get warmer?” I asked.

“You know, now that you mention it, it is a little hot!” Alexis replied.

“But more behind us than in front, I notice.” Mark said. We all looked at each other with worried faces and nodded. We then glanced behind us to see a Moltres right there.

“YAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!”

“Mike, you screaming like a little girl is kind of a turn-off!” Alexis said. She then got out her Pokedex.

“Moltres, the Flame Pokémon. Moltres scatters embers with every flap of its wings. The fire dust it spreads is said to bring spring to wintery lands.”

“MOOOOOOLLLT!!” Moltres shouted, then nearly incinerated Alexis with a Flamethrower.

“….ow….” she said. I grabbed her, and we ran through the town back to where we got off. Moltres, for some reason, chased after us.

“Girafarig, use Thunder!” I said, sending out Girafarig. It fired a Thunder at Moltres, but Moltres managed to dodge. “Crap! Use Crunch then!” Girafarig’s tail head chomped onto Moltres’ wing, but Moltres quickly blew it off with an Overheat, knocking it out. Moltres then used Sunny Day to intensify the heat and moon’s rays.

“I know! Nidorina, come on out!” Alexis said, sending out Nidorina. “Use Ice Beam!” Nidorina froze Moltres’ wing with Ice Beam, but the heat from Moltres’ wing melted the ice. “Oh, no!” Moltres then hit Nidorina with a Flamethrower, causing major damage. “Nidorina!”

“I’m on it! Ninetales, use Extrasensory!” Mark brought out Ninetales and had it use Extrasensory to hold Moltres, who struggled. Nidorina slowly got up and howled at the moon. At that, it looked like its energy was replenished.

“Okay, what IS that attack?!” Alexis asked, confounded.

“It-it can’t be! Your Nidorina knows Moonlight?!” Mark said, shocked.

“Can it not learn that?” I asked.

“NO! Not at all!” Mark said.

“Huh. Well, back one night when it was a Nidoran, it did it in front of me. Mike and Ed were asleep, but-”

“Let’s just forget about it for now,” I said. “It’s just one of those things. Now, about Moltres…”

“MOOOOOLLLLT!” Moltres shrieked, still chasing us.

“C’mon, Gyarados!” Mark said, clicking the transmitter on his watch over and over. Sure enough, Gyarados came out of the water.

“Gyarados, use Hyper Beam!” I said. Gyarados’ Hyper Beam was enough to knock Moltres far back.

“Quick, while it’s distracted! Let’s go!” Mark said as we sped off Fortune Island at high speeds. Moltres came after us, firing Twister attacks after us.

“Hmmm…” Alexis said, curious.

“What could it possibly want with us?!” Mark shouted.

“I dunno, but we’ve just gotta keep running!” I replied, holding on to Alexis. Suddenly, high winds blew me and Alexis off Gyarados’ back.

“NO! You guys, hang on!” Mark said, then immediately gulped as Moltres hovered above us.

“I…I’m honestly worried now,” I said. “Hey, isn’t that that Ruby?” I said, noting the Ruby floating on the water. Moltres turned from us, hovered to it and tried to pick it up with its talons, but couldn’t. So it placed a device on it and lifted up into the air, leaving the Ruby floating in the water. It then turned back to us, its former angry face gone.

“W…wait. It wanted the Ruby?” Mark asked.

“But for who? Do you belong to somebody?” Alexis asked. Moltres shook its head. “Well…I think that’s about to change!” Alexis said confidently. Moltres got ready to battle.

“Okay, let me give you some footing! Golduck, come out and use Rock Climb!” I sent out Golduck, who used Rock Climb to bring out some land from under the sea while I climbed back onto Gyarados. Mark sent out Mew, who did the same.

“Grovyle, let’s do this!” Alexis said, bringing Grovyle out. “Let’s start out with Bullet Seed!” Grovyle fired a Bullet Seed, which Moltres incinerated with its wings. It then fired a Flamethrower, which Grovyle just barely dodged.

“Alexis, switch to Seadra! Grass-Types have a disadvantage here!” I said.

“If I want to be a Gym Leader, I have to think like one!” Alexis replied. “Grovyle, give it a Rock Slide!” Grovyle slammed onto part of the footing, nailing Moltres with it. Moltres then used Overheat, which majorly damaged Grovyle. “Grovyle, Drain Punch!” Grovyle’s Drain Punch did little damage to Moltres, but regained some energy for Grovyle. Moltres then used Twister. “Gotcha! Rock Slide, then Quick Attack and Leaf Blade!”

“Groooo-VYLE!” Grovyle said as it slammed the foothold to make another Rock Slide. It then used Quick Attack to speed through the Twister, taking the Rock Slide with it. In addition to the Rock Slide landing its mark, Grovyle sealed the deal with its Leaf Blade, knocking Moltres into the water. It resurfaced, screaming out.

“We need to save it!” I said. At that, Alexis dove in and dragged Moltres onto what foothold they had left.

“Moltres! Are you all right?” Alexis asked.

“Molllt…Molt!” Moltres said, feeling better. It used Sunny Day to bring up the heat, intensifying its flames again. It then put its wings down and bowed to Alexis.

“Uh…what does this mean?” Alexis asked.

“It means that Moltres surrenders and acknowledges you as its new master!” Deoxys translated.

“That’s nice, but…” Alexis said, going over to it, “…how about we acknowledge each other as friends?” Moltres nodded. Alexis then got out a Dusk Ball, a ball that worked better on Pokémon at night, and used it to capture Moltres. “I think you’ll make a powerful friend!” she said to the Ball.

“Alexis, that’s amazing! And your skills are awesome!” Mark said.

“Yeah! Your sense of strategy is really improving! You’re gonna be a GREAT Gym Leader, I know it!” I added.

“Thanks, you guys! I never would’ve done it without you!...yeah! I CAUGHT A MOLTRES!!” she shouted.

The thought of Moltres, a wild spirit, being tamed by Alexis was something none of us had foreseen in our travels. Nontheless, it was pleasantly surprising. And so, with our new friend along for the ride, the adventure could continue.
 
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Chapter 113: An Unown Aid

After surviving the incident with Moltres and adding it to Alexis’ team, we finally made it to the last stop in the Sevii Islands: Quest Island, home of the Tanoby Ruins, and Mark’s next Contest. The only problem was: we were at the wrong end of the island! And the upside? The Contest wasn’t until the next day.

“Okay, we ARE at Quest Island, just…a little to the south,” I said, looking at my Pokegear.

“But why wouldn’t these things register on the open seas?” Alexis said, looking at hers.

“Well, while we’re here, we might as well set down on one of those islands and practice Contest moves!” Mark said.

“Okay. Gyarados, you heard him: to the islands!” I said.

“Gyar!” Gyarados said, bringing us to an island with a stone structure on it. Mark brought out Mew and began to practice with it.

“Okay, show me those bubbles you make,” Mark said to it.

“Mew!” Mew replied, creating a pink bubble. It then started to bounce on it like a trampoline.

“Wow, that’s good! Let’s see…think you can learn Bounce?” Mark asked.

“Mew! Mew mew!” Mew replied.

“Translation, please?” Mark requested.

“It said it needs to see another Pokémon do it to get a good idea!” Deoxys translated.

“That’s no problem! Seadra, come on out and show Mew Bounce!” Alexis said, bringing out Seadra. Seadra used Bounce for Mew, who set up another bubble for Seadra to bounce on, and so the two bounced together.

“It’s a great appeal, but there’s gotta be something to add more to it…hmm…” Mark pondered. Suddenly, Mew bounced so hard it accidentally flew into the ruin that was by us. Just before hitting the door, said door opened, causing Mew to fall inside.

“MEW!” Mark said, chasing after it.

“Come on, Lexi! Seadra!” I said. We then gave chase, going into the Tanoby Ruins. It was a dark, dreary place, so we had Ninetales and Espeon light things up. On the walls were pictures of symbol-like things that looked like they had eyes in the center.

“What the heck are these?!” Alexis asked.

“Looks like Unown, the Symbol Pokémon,” Mark answered. “They tend to form the shapes of letters, so, by logic, there should be 26 confirmed species…”

“Better double-check your math there, bud,” I said, pointing at one that looked like a question mark.

“Wh-how can this be?! This kind of Unown hasn’t been discovered!!” Mark said. He pressed his hand against the wall, unknowingly pushing an Unown tablet looking like the letters S, U, and C.

“Anything?” I asked, leaning against another part. I didn’t realize that I had leaned on one with the letters K, E, and R on it. At that, both walls opened into pits. Mark managed to avoid falling, but I fell through. At that, the door closed, and I landed somewhere in the dark. “Hello?” I asked into the darkness.

“…re?” a faint voice asked.

“HELLO!! I’m over here!!” I said.

“..ay rig…I’ll…ou!” the voice said. I waited for a bit, then saw a light approaching. As it got closer, I saw that it was coming from a flame…more specifically, a flaming monkey. It looked like a baboon of sorts with a flame on its head.

“What the hell?!” I said, getting out my Pokedex.

“Infernape, the Flame Pokémon. Infernape is the evolved form of Monferno. Its crown of fire is indicative of its fiery nature. It uses unique fighting moves with fire on its hands and feet and uses all its limbs to attack.”

“Infernape? Was that you?” I asked.

“Well, well, well! Mr. McCarver! Long time no see!” a voice said. It belonged to a guy with brown hair, a dark blue button-down shirt, and khaki pants. It was Sean Thompson, one of Mark’s two best friends and fellow Top Coordinator, having won in Kanto, Johto, and Sinnoh.

“Sean! Great to see you! What are you doing here?!” I asked, high-fiving with him and shaking his hand.

“I’m here for the upcoming Contest! The Great Daico has come to conquer the Southern Seas!” he said, striking a pose. “But I figured while I was here, I’d check out the secrets of the Tanoby Ruins!” Sean responded. “In doing so, I unlocked the Tanoby Key back in Sevault Canyon so that this place could open up!”

“Why’d you do that?! The Unown will probably get angry!” I said loudly.

“According to one of the elders, the Unown have been asleep for centuries!” Sean replied, also booming. “If they were to get angry, it would probably be at loud noises made in this area!”

“……….crap,” we both said at the same time. At that, several Unown appeared before us. They all fired Hidden Power at us, causing us to run away.

“Dammit, why does this stuff always happen?!” I shouted, continuing to dodge the Hidden Power attacks.

“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Sean asked.

“Well, maybe we could use Confusion to reverse it! Girafarig, come on out and use Confusion!” I sent out Girafarig, who reversed the attacks with Confusion.

“Chimecho, you too!” Sean said, sending out a Chimecho. It used Confusion to reverse Hidden Power back at the Unown also. However, it wasn’t enough to take them down.

“It’s no use! There’re too many!” I said. “We can’t fight them all!”

“Okay! Chimecho, use Astonish!” Chimecho’s Astonish caused the Unown to draw back. “How many Poke Balls do you have?!”

“Plenty!” I said, patting my backpack.

“Okay, how about this? We shock them-trying to paralyze them-and then capture them!” Sean suggested, recalling Chimecho.

“Sounds like a plan! First one to get to one of each! And the loser pays for sundaes!” I said competitively.

“You’re on! Infernape, Luxray! Go for it!” Infernape took the front, while Sean also sent out a Luxray, a Pokémon that looked like a black lion with a yellow star-like shape on the end of its tail.

“Girafarig, Deoxys! Let’s do this!” Girafarig took point while I also sent out Deoxys.

“Wha-oh, a Master Ball. Never mind. Infernape, Thunderpunch! Luxray, Discharge!” Infernape and Luxray started to attack the Unown with those attacks, paralyzing whatever they hit.

“Don’t leave me out! Girafarig, Thunder! Deoxys, Zap Cannon!” Girafarig and Deoxys also fired their electric attacks, paralyzing the Unown as they went along.

“POKE BALLS, GO!” Sean and I said, throwing Poke Balls to capture the Unown we’d paralyzed. No matter how many we’d capture, there would always be more. It went on for a while, but it soon got to the point where our Pokémon were taking hits from Hidden Power.

“Man, this is harder than I thought!” I said, then checked my Pokedex. “I’m up to 23, how ‘bout you?”

“25 for me. Let’s…haah…keep this gravy train rolling!” he said on the ground, exhausted.

“Tell that to Infernape and Luxray!” I said, noting how tired they were.

“Mike, look out! They’re targeting you!” Deoxys said. At that, I looked to see the Unown attacking with a collected Hidden Power.

“ESPEON!” Espeon shouted as it fired its own Hidden Power to counter the Unown’s Hidden Power, creating an explosion.

“Espeon, you made it! Just in time! USE NEON HOMERUN ATTACK!” Espeon fired several Shadow Balls into the air, then powered them up with Signal Beam. It then leapt at them with Quick Attack and slammed them into the Unown with Iron Tail, knocking them out. “POKE BALLS, GO!” I said, throwing the Poke Balls and capturing the remaining Unown. “Whew…and that brings me to 28! Game, set, match!” I said to Sean, helping him up.

“Well played, good sir. Well played indeed. Sundaes on me!” Sean replied. “And your Espeon’s technique is dazzling!”

“Espeon, I’m glad you’re all right!” I said, hugging Espeon.

“Espe espe!” Espeon said happily.

“Hey, Espeon! I’ve got a friend for you to meet!” Sean said, sending out a Glaceon.

“EspEeEeE!” Espeon said, its heart beating out its chest. Glaceon simply turned away.

“Wow, that Glaceon’s beautiful!” I said.

“Thanks! I raise all my Pokémon’s attributes to their best! By the way, it seems your Espeon agrees with you!” Sean said, noting Espeon’s attempts to catch Glaceon’s eye, but it turned away with a huff. Espeon just sat down in despair.

“C’mon, don’t give up just yet! You’ll get it!” I encouraged. Espeon nodded. “Let’s go find the others!”

“I’m Deoxys, by the way,” Deoxys said, introducing itself.

“Oh. Hi,” Sean said, awestruck by Deoxys. As soon as we made it outside, we found Mark and Alexis waiting at the entrance.

“Mike! What happened? We sent Espeon in there to find you, but didn’t think it had found you! Are you okay?” Alexis asked.

“Not to worry, Lexi. I’m just fine, thanks to Sean’s help,” I replied, putting an arm around her.

“Seems you’re having more luck than your Espeon! Great job, my man,” Sean said, noting me and Alexis. She and I looked at each other, laughed, then hugged.

“Long time no see, ol’ buddy!” Mark said, shaking hands with Sean. “So, you ready for another Contest run?”

“You know it! And I’m going to win! But FIRST…sundaes! C’mon!” Sean said, leading us to Quest Island.

“Say what…?” Mark asked, befuddled.

“What exactly happened in there?” Alexis asked.

“Long story,” I answered. “I swear, somebody’s gonna write something about all the stuff that happens to us.”
 
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Chapter 114: The Great Daico’s Great Conquest

The day after the Unown fiasco in the Tanoby Ruins, we all got ready for the Quest Island Contest. Mark and Sean were pumped up; not just because they were going to compete in another Contest, but because they’d be able to face each other as well.

“Well, I certainly hope THE GREAT DAICO can make it to the final stage with me!” Mark said, in his Sephiod costume.

“Wait and see, Mr. GREAT SEPHIOD! This case is mine!” Sean said, in a lawyer-like costume.

“Good luck, you guys!” I said.

“We’re expecting great things from both of you!” Alexis added. We then went into the stands, where they began the appeals. There were some good appeals, but nothing too fancy. Then Sean got called out.

“I wonder what he’ll do,” I puzzled.

“What kind of Pokémon does he use?” Alexis asked me.

“They seem to be on par with Mark’s Pokémon in that they signify Contest attributes,” I replied.

“Glaceon, you’re on!” Sean said, sending out Glaceon.

“Glaceon, eh?” Alexis asked, getting out her Pokedex.

“Glaceon, the Fresh Snow Pokémon. Glaceon is the evolved form of Eevee. It can freeze the fur on its body and make it stick out like sharp needles.”

“Glaceon, Ice Shard!” Glaceon fired an Ice Shard into the air. “Now use Hidden Power!” Glaceon fired a Hidden Power that made several holes in the Ice Shard. “And now use Blizzard!” Glaceon fired a Blizzard thatwent through the holes in the Ice Shard. “And finish up with Shadow Ball!” Glaceon fired a Shadow Ball that hit a part of the Ice Shard but also went through the holes, creating a both light AND dark Blizzard. By the time the Ice Shard was shattered, white and black snowflakes were falling back to the ground. Sean and Glaceon took a bow.

“And there it is, a beautiful Blizzard finish!” Anne said. “Let’s see what our judges think!”

“That contrasting Blizzard was a unique and gorgeous combination!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Yes! Remarkable, too!” Suzuki said.

“I was dazzled by Glaceon’s natural beauty being enhanced by the falling snow! Truly magnificent!” Nurse Joy said.

“And now for our next performer! Another veteran and Top Coordinator: The Great Sephiod!” Anne said, introducing Mark.

“Mew, action!” Mark said, sending out Mew. The crowd and judges were in awe.

“Oh, my! A Mew! Let’s see just how this will affect the outcome!” Anne said, shocked.

“Mew, start out with some of those bubbles!” Mew spread the pink bubbles everywhere. “Now use Silver Wind!” Mew fired a Silver Wind at each of the bubbles, giving them glitter. “Now Bounce!” Mew bounced off of each and every one of them, causing them to fly off to the sides as it moved on. Soon, when all of the bubbles had been bounced on, Mew was covered with glitter. “Now, use Iron Tail!” Mew spun through the now gathered bubbles, leaving a silver stream as it popped them all with Iron Tail. Silver glitter scattered everywhere, including the glitter that was on Mew. Mew flew up in the air, and landed on a new pink bubble for the finish. With that, Mark took a bow as the audience went wild.

“Amazing! Mew used its combination attacks for a glamorous appeal! Absolutely beautiful!” Anne said.

“Mew’s natural cuteness contributed to its appeal with the bubbles!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Indeed! A truly remarkable appeal!” Suzuki said.

“Mew’s clever use of Silver Wind made for a stunning appeal! I was on the edge of my seat!” Nurse Joy said.

“And there you have it! That’s the Great Sephiod and Mew!” Anne said.

After the appeals, Alexis and I went backstage to congratulate Mark and Sean.

“You guys were fantastic!” Alexis said. “You had the crowd going wild!”

“Yeah, you’re going to make it to the final stage together! I know it!” I said.

“We certainly will!” Mark and Sean said, getting the competitive fires burning.

And later on, the Contest Battles were announced. Sure enough, Mark and Sean made their way through the battles to the final stage.

“And finally, it’s down to two rivals and Top Coordinators!” Anne said. “The Great Daico faces the Great Sephiod for the coveted Quest Island Ribbon! GO!” And with that, the five-minute timer started.

“Infernape, you’re on!” Sean said, sending out Infernape.

“Empoleon, action!” Mark said, sending out Empoleon.

“Good choice, but you’ll need more than that to beat me! Infenape, Close Combat!” Infernape used Close Combat to start fighting Empoleon, but Empoleon kept dodging, causing Sean to lose points.

“I’ve trained Empoleon to be fast as well as tough! Use Drill Peck!” Empoleon nailed Infernape with a Drill Peck, causing Sean to lose even more points. “And now give it a Hydro Pump!” Empoleon fired a Hydro Pump.

“Dodge and use Mach Punch!” Infernape’s speed caused it to dodge and spiral around the attack, hitting Empoleon for major damage and taking some of Mark’s points.

“Empoleon, use Steel Wing!” Empoleon flew into a Steel Wing, but it was caught by Infernape. Mark lost more points.

“Infernape, throw it and use Flamethrower!” Infernape flung Empoleon to the side and nailed it with a Flamethrower, costing Mark some more points.

“Rrgh, Empoleon, use Bubblebeam and Ice Beam!” Empoleon’s Ice Beam froze its Bubblebeam, creating a sparkling effect. Sean lost some points. “And now use Steel Wing!” Empoleon’s Steel Wing launched the bubbles into Infernape, doing moderate damage. Sean lost a lot of points. His score was down to about half.

“Infernape, hang in there!” Infernape continued to take damage until the bubbles were all used up.

“And now, use Hydro Cannon!” Empoleon fired a Hydro Cannon at Infernape.

“Endure!” Infernape defended against the attack, but got thrown off its feet. “You okay?!” Sean asked.

“Amazing! Infernape just couldn’t stand up to an attack like tha-” Anne said, but was cut off by Infernape standing up. Even though Sean had lost about 70% of his score, he was grinning. At that moment, Infernape’s head flame got larger, and Infernape itself glowed with a red light. “Incredible! Infernape has activated its ability, Blaze!” Anne said. Mark lost points to the point of having half of his score.

“Empoleon, use Hydro Pump!” Empoleon used Hydro Pump.

“Infernape, Flare Blitz!” Infernape dodged with amazing speed and nailed Empoleon with a Flare Blitz. Mark lost more points. “And now use Mach Punch!” Infernape landed a series of Mach Punches, draining Mark’s score, bit by bit. “Case dismissed! BLAST BURN!” Infernape launched a Blast Burn that sent Empoleon into the air.

“EMPOLEON!! NO!!” Mark shouted. Empoleon landed on the ground, knocked out, so the judges buzzed it out.

“And with that, The Great Daico and Infernape have defeated The Great Sephiod and Empoleon!” Anne said. “This year’s Quest Island Contest winner is the Great Daico and Infernape!”

“I…can’t believe it…” Mark said, dropping to the floor. “…*sigh* Empoleon, you did great,” he said to Empoleon, who looked discouraged.

“You BOTH did great,” Sean said, going over to him. “I hope this doesn’t-”

“No, no! Of course not!” Mark said, getting up. “It just makes me that much more ready to beat you in the Grand Festival!”

“Right on! But I’ll be the one to win!” Sean said, grinning.

“In your dreams!”

And so, after a heated argument, Sean accepted his ribbon from Mr. Contesta.

“Mark, I’m sorry about how it turned out,” I said, patting his back.

“Don’t worry. This isn’t over by any means! I’m the best, after all!” he said, standing proudly.

“…didn’t you lose to me once?”

“WHAT WAS THAT?!?” And so, we got into another fight.

“*sigh* Men,” Alexis said, standing to the side.

Even though Mark had suffered a loss this time, there was no way it would deter him from his goal of being the greatest Coordinator. And so, with the Sevii Islands behind us, the journey through the Orange Islands could begin.
 
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Chapter 115: A Tropius Island Getaway

After leaving the Sevii Islands behind, we made our way to the Orange Islands, where I could compete in the Orange League and Mark could continue Contests to qualify for the South Seas Grand Festival. Our first stop was Tarroco Island, an island to the far north in the Orange Archipelago.

“Man, this place sure is happening!” I said sarcastically. There was little around except trees.

“I can’t seem to find any indication of a Pokémon Center anywhere!” Alexis added, checking out her Pokegear.

“Well, it’s a good thing we healed up before coming here! Anyway, let’s look around; maybe we’ll find some interesting Pokémon around here!” Mark said. “…and some food, too! Man, I’m starved!”

“Well, you only ate four lunches before we left Quest Island, you know!” I said, irritated at his appetite.

“C’mon, a guy needs to eat, right?” Mark said, then eyed a bunch of bananas. “Wha-?! Where’d all these bananas come from? Maybe there’s DIFFERENT fruit around here, too!”

“Huh, beggars CAN be choosers,” Alexis said, amused. “Still, all these bananas seem pretty…whoa.”

“What is it?” I asked.

“Look at THAT!!” she said, pointing to a Pokémon that looked like a brachiosaur with fruit growing on its neck and leaves for wings.

“Whoa! It’s a Tropius!” I said. “So THAT explains where the fruit came from!”

“Hey, you’re right!” Alexis said, noting the bananas on its neck. “Hey, what’s up?” Alexis asked.

“Pi…” Tropius said sadly.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“It says the fruit on its neck just keeps falling off too quickly, and it doesn’t know how to slow it down,” Deoxys translated.

“Any way it could drop more kinds of fruit?” Mark suggested. I smacked him upside the head.

“What we NEED to do is help Tropius out!” I said.

“But how? It’s not like changing Tropius’ condition is that simple, little brother!” Mark said.

“I know, but there’s got to be a way!...hmm, Alexis! Why don’t we see what happens when Tropius is asleep?”

“Gotcha! Grovyle, come on out and use Grasswhistle!” Alexis said, bringing out Grovyle. It then used Grasswhistle while we covered our ears, and Tropius went to sleep. However, that just caused the fruit to fall again, then more fruit instantly grew back, and the cycle kept repeating.

“GAH! Tropius, wake up wake up wake up!” I said, shaking it. Tropius slowly but surely woke up, then looked around in horror, seeing the fruit that it had accidentally created.

“Hmm, seems that sleeping makes the fruit grow even more,” Mark noted.

“Then it’s time for Plan B!” Alexis said. “Butterfree, come out and use String Shot!” Alexis sent out Butterfree, who fired a String Shot into a rope. “Okay, let’s try this!” Alexis said, looping it around Tropius’ neck. “This should keep it from falling!”

“Pi! Pi!” Tropius said happily. So we sat, eating bananas for a while, waiting to see what would happen. Suddenly, the fruit on Tropius’ neck grew inside the String Shot.

“Huh?” I said. I looked to see what happened, but then it grew again. Suddenly, three fruits fell out of the String Shot, hit me in the face, and caused me to fall on Butterfree. “Whoa, sorry!”

“Well, THAT failed,” Mark said. Alexis scooped up Butterfree, and I started to think about what we’d do next.

“Hmm, I don’t know what to do next,” I said almost immediately.

“Maybe we could hold it in place with Psychic?” Alexis suggested.

“That would take too much energy, and we’d have to keep Tropius with us! We need to think of something else…” Mark pondered. “Okay, I think I’ve got it! How about-”

“PI!!” Tropius said as it was lifted into the air by a metal claw.

“Oh, no!” Alexis said. “Team Rocket!”

“You were expecting Elvis?” Olson asked.

“Don’t be cruel, Olson! Oh wait, what am I saying?!” Ashley added.

“HAHAHAHAHA!” they laughed as they started to fly away with Tropius.

“Rrgh! Butterfree, follow them!” Alexis said. Butterfree then flew after Team Rocket.

“Let’s help out, Metagross!” I said. I sent out Metagross to follow after Team Rocket as well.

“Bro, I’ve got an idea! I’ll get to work on it, you guys follow Team Rocket!” Mark shouted. I nodded, and we went off after them.

“Man, they’re surprisingly fast today!” Alexis said while we gave chase.

“I know! Even with Tropius in tow, we just can’t catch up!” I said. “Let’s do this! Metagross, hold up a sec!” Metagross came to a halt, and me and Alexis got on its back. We then flew ahead, and managed to catch up with Team Rocket.

“Butterfree, String Shot!” Butterfree used its String Shot to grab hold of the hovercraft.

“No, you don’t! Armaldo, come out and use Ancientpower!” Ashley sent out Armaldo, who blasted Butterfree with Ancientpower, knocking it out.

“Butterfree!” Alexis said, catching it.

“It’s okay, we’ll still get them! Metagross, use-” I started.

“Rotom, use Overheat!” Ashley said, sending out her Heat Rotom. It used Overheat to blast us to the ground.

“Man, they’re just on top of their game today!” I said. “But we can’t let them get away!”

“The problem with that is we just did!” Alexis said. Sure enough, we’d lost them.

“But where could they have gone?!” I asked in frustration. Alexis just put her hand on my shoulder.

“I think we have a clue,” she said, noting a trail of bananas.

“…I knew that!” I said. We rushed along the trail until we came to where Team Rocket had stopped to examine Tropius.

“This is great! With Tropius expending so much fruit, we’ll be able to sell it all for a fortune!” Ashley said.

“Fortune’s been smiling on us since this morning, after all!” Olson added.

“And why, may I ask, would that be?” I asked.

“THE RUNTS!” Ashley and Olson said together.

“But it doesn’t matter!” Ashley said.

“We’ll definitely win today because…” Olson started.

“…our horoscope said so!” they said together.

“………….” Alexis and I just stood there.

“FIRE IN THE HOLE!” Mark’s voice said. At that, a large amount of bananas were flung at Team Rocket. “Now, Umbreon! Use Hyper Beam!” Mark and Umbreon flew out of nowhere, and Umbreon fired a Hyper Beam at the arm, freeing Tropius.

“Pi! Pi!” Tropius said gratefully as it came back over to us.

“All right! Great job, Mark!” I said. Team Rocket slowly got up from the wrecked hovercraft.

“Our fruit-bearing flyer is getting away, Orson!” Ashley shouted.

“IT’S OLSON!!” Olson shouted back. “Cradily, Sludge Bomb!” Cradily came out and fired a Sludge Bomb. Tropius used Gust to blow it back, then charged up and launched a Solarbeam at the hovercraft, causing an explosion.

“TEAM ROCKET’S BLASTING OFF AGAIN!!” they screamed as they disappeared into the sky.

“All right, we did it!” I said. “Great job, Tropius!”

“Pi!” Tropius replied happily. At that, we heard rustling in the bushes. We looked to see several Oddish, Sandshrew, and other Pokémon come out, eyeing the fruit.

“Looks like there’s a use for your gift after all, Tropius!” Alexis said to Tropius, who nodded. At that, Tropius said something to the Pokémon, and they all began to eat the bananas.

“Nice thinking. With Tropius around, there’ll always be fruit!” I said.

“That’s nice, but how about something I’ll actually eat?!” Mark said. I smacked him again.

Everybody may have deficiencies, but with a little hard work and faith, you can find a purpose for everything. And so, helping Tropius turn its downs into its ups, our spirits remained high as the journey continued.
 
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Chapter 116: Jade Star in Your Eyes

After a while of sailing on the high seas, we finally reached Kumquat Island, the first inhabited island of the Orange Archipelago that we’d seen as of yet. It was a paradise, yet industrial as well: it had buildings around, but there were beaches everywhere with people littered on them.

“Wow, this is quite the island!” I said.

“Yeah, but as for finding Pokémon here, I doubt it. Maybe from Trainers, but…” Alexis said.

“Well, this place IS a tourist trap. And quite an attractive one at that. Anyway, let’s get to the Pokémon Center,” Mark said.

“Yeah, I need to find a way to register for the Orange League anyway,” I added.

With that, we started on our way to the Pokémon Center.

“Hey, you! Bring that back!” a voice said. We turned around to see a Shellder, an oyster-like Pokémon, carrying a bone. Chasing it were a red-haired woman with a yellow shirt and her Marowak, a Pokémon that looked like a dinosaur with a skull on its head.

“Don’t worry, we’ll get it!” I said. “Girafarig, Thunder!” I said, sending out Girafarig. It used Thunder, but Shellder dodged and fired an Ice Beam at us. “Mirror Coat!” Girafarig’s Mirror Coat dealt the attack back with double damage, and Shellder dropped the bone in the process, allowing Marowak to pick it up. Shellder then leapt at us with a Clamp attack.

“Grovyle, use Leaf Blade!” Alexis sent out Grovyle, who used Leaf Blade to knock the Pokémon away. “Now use Grasswhistle!” Grovyle’s Grasswhistle put Shellder to sleep, and Mark carried it to the sea and let it drift away.

“Thank you, you kids! You really helped my Marowak here! Without its bone, it’d be like a canoe without a paddle!” the woman said.

“Wak Morowak!” Marowak added.

“It was our pleasure!” Alexis said.

“Happy to help!” I added.

“There’s got to be some way I can repay you! Honestly!” the woman said. “I know! How about I let you stay at my super-deluxe hotel?”

“Oh, that’s okay! We’re just going around, looking for Gyms and Contests!” Mark said. The woman got a glint in her eye.

“Well, I can help you with that! You see, I’m Luana, the Gym Leader of Kumquat Island!” she said proudly.

“Wh-WHAT?!” I said.

After that, we’d finally made it to the hotel she had mentioned. It was a four-star place, with some of the best rooms, food, and facilities money could buy. We rested the night, and then Luana helped me get registered for the Orange League, informing the Nurse Joy from Tangelo Island.

“There! Now that everything’s set up, why don’t you follow me?” Luana asked.

“Great! I’m psyched to get my first badge!” I said excitedly. Luana led us to an indoor Gym in the hotel.

“Okay, Mike! Here’s how it goes: we’re going to have a Double Battle…in the spirit of tennis!” Luana explained.

“Uh, tennis?” I asked.

“It’s simple: substitutions are not allowed until one of your Pokémon is unable to battle! But the first challenger to knock out two of their opponent’s Pokémon in a row will be the winner!” Luana said.

“I see! Just like Deuce in a tennis match!” Alexis said.

“Okay! Then let’s go!” I said excitedly. We took our places at either end of the arena, while Alexis and went to the stands and Mark acted as a judge.

“I’ll make the first serve! Alakazam, Marowak! Game on!” Luana sent out an Alakazam and her Marowak for battle.

“Wait ‘till you see my return winners! Girafarig, Golduck! I choose you!” I sent out Girafarig and Golduck, who nodded to each other.

“Alakazam, use Focus Blast!” Alakazam fired a Focus Blast at Girafarig.

“Girafarig, Mirror Coat!” Girafarig’s Mirror Coat reflected the attack back, but Marowak rushed in front and used a spinning Bone Rush to shield Alakazam. “What?!”

“Don’t let yourself get focused on just one! Marowak, use Skull Bash!” Marowak rushed at Girafarig and nailed it with Skull Bash.

“Oh, no! Golduck, use Aqua Jet!” Golduck activated Aqua Jet.

“Alakazam, Psychic!” Alakazam’s Psychic stopped Golduck and held it in midair.

“Rig! Rig!” Girafarig called out, running over.

“Help Golduck out! Use Thunder!” Girafarig fired a Thunder at Alakazam, but Marowak rushed in front and intercepted with its bone again. “Man! How does it…!”

“Marowak is used for defense, and Alakazam is used for attacking! As long as Marowak has high defense, it’ll repel all of your attacks while Alakazam keeps hitting those two!” Luana said. Alakazam and Marowak adopted a pose, like players in doubles tennis.

“I’ve got to think of something! Those two are nearly invincible!” I said. “There’s got to be a weakness! I could try to hit them both at the same time, but they’re always in close proximity to each other!”

“Alakazam, Psychic!” Alakazam got Psychic ready.

“Girafarig, get ready to use Confusion!” Girafarig got Confusion ready.

“Gotcha!” Luana said. At that, Alakazam used Psychic on Marowak and guided it towards us. “Bonemerang!”

“Wha-?! Girafarig, look out!” Girafarig, despite my commands, got hit by two subsequent Bonemerangs.

“Now, Marowak! Bone Club!” Marowak, still guided by Psychic, nailed Girafarig with Bone Club.

“Golduck, Aqua Jet!” Golduck used Aqua Jet to dash around the Gym.

“Follow it!” Luana said. Alakazam had Marowak follow Golduck around, and the two zig-zagged from one end of the Gym to the other.

“Girafarig, use Thunder!” Girafarig fired a Thunder at Alakazam.

“That still won’t work!” Luana said, as Marowak’s Lightningrod ability drew the Thunder to its bone.

“Rrgh! Golduck, use Aqua Jet from behind!” Golduck sped at Alakazam’s back.

“Marowak, Bone Rush!” Marowak jumped behind Alakazam and nailed Golduck with Bone Rush, sending it flailing into the air. Girafarig caught it.

“There’s just no way to win!” I said, despairing.

“Don’t give up, Mike! We know you can win!” Alexis called out.

“There’s no perfect strategy! Everything has its flaws!” Mark advised.

“Flaws…Marowak’s defenses are extremely high, and with that bone, it’s invincible! Hmm…Alakazam’s defenses aren’t that high, so it needs its partner to…THAT’S IT! Golduck, zoom around them with Aqua Jet!” Golduck made circles around Alakazam and Marowak with Aqua Jet.

“Alakazam, try locking on with Psychic!” Try as it might, Alakazam just couldn’t catch the speedy Golduck. Marowak tried to hit Golduck with Bone Rush, but couldn’t.

“Okay, Girafarig! Use Power Swap on Alakazam!” Girafarig sent out a white light that hit Alakazam. It looked shocked as the white light returned to Girafarig, who then looked stronger than ever.

“Marowak, keep defending Alakazam!” Marowak got back in front.

“That’s what I was hoping you’d do! Girafarig, use Guard Swap on Marowak!” Girafarig sent out another white light that went into Marowak. It, too, looked shocked as the light left it and returned to Girafarig, who again looked stronger than ever. It was at this time that Golduck returned to Girafarig’s side. “Golduck, use Psych Up!” Golduck focused on Girafarig, and then looked just as tough. The two then winked at each other and adopted battle poses.

“Marowak, Bonemerang!” Marowak threw its bone at the two.

“Golduck, Confusion!” Golduck used Confusion to make the bone fly back at Marowak. Marowak tried to defend with its head, but it got knocked away with ease. Golduck then brought the bone to its hand.

“Alakazam, use Hyper Beam!” Alakazam used Hyper Beam to blast Girafarig, but Girafarig got up pretty quickly, as if it hadn’t even been hit. “What’s going on?! Alakazam’s Hyper Beam is supposed to do so much! And Marowak’s defenses are super-high!”

“Girafarig used Power Swap and Guard Swap, so it gave the two of them its lower stats while boosting itself with theirs! And with Golduck’s Psych Up copying Girafarig’s stat changes, WE’RE the stronger ones now! Golduck, Girafarig, ATTACK!!” Golduck and Girafarig nodded, then Golduck threw the bone into the air, and the two blasted it with Blizzard and Charge Beam. The attacks reflected off the bone and blasted Alakazam and Marowak for double critical hits. “Now finish them off with double Psychic!” Golduck and Girafarig used Psychic to slam Alakazam and Marowak into opposite walls, then slammed the two into each other. Marowak managed to get up, but then got knocked out by the bone, landing on top of a fainted Alakazam.

“Marowak and Alakazam are unable to battle! Girafarig and Golduck are the winners, and victory in this match goes to…MIKE…of Littleroot Town!” Mark said reluctantly.

“Awesome job, you two!” I shouted. We then got into a group hug. “You guys were just incredible!”

“Duck! Golduck!” Golduck said.

“Rig, Rig!” Girafarig added.

“That was incredible! You all rocked!” Alexis said, coming up.

“Yeah, I couldn’t have asked for a more intense match! You and your Pokémon make an excellent team!” Luana said, also approaching. “And to commemorate your teamwork, here’s the Jade Star Badge, proof of your victory here at the Kumquat Gym!” She handed me a badge that looked like a silver conch shell with a green gem in the middle.

“Thank you very much, Luana! YEAH! WE WON THE JADE STAR BADGE!” I shouted ecstatically. My Pokémon did the same.

“I’m glad that you’re off to such a great start, Mike!” Luana said. “And Mark, if you’re doing Contests, then you’re in luck! There’s one coming up at Shamouti Island!”

“Really?! All right! Second ribbon, here I come!” Mark said.

“But you better hurry! It’s tomorrow!” Luana said.

“WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTT?!?! Then what are we doing here?! Let’s go!!” Mark shouted, grabbing me and Alexis and dragging us out the door.

“Thanks for a great match, Luana!” I shouted to her as I was being dragged away.

“We’ll be sure to come back!” Alexis added.

“Our doors are always open to you kids!” Luana called back cheerfully.

With my first Orange League Gym Battle over and a new badge in hand, we continued our journey through the Islands. But this particular battle made me wonder; would the other Gyms be as different as this one? And what new challenges might they bring? No matter what, I had to be ready for them.
 
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Chapter 117: Entei of the Volcano

It was a dark and stormy night. And that’s where we came in.

“C’mon, Gyarados! We can make it to that island!” I said amidst the weather.

“Give me a break! Shamouti Island isn’t far away! We can make it there instead!” Mark shouted.

“Wake up, dumbo! The waves are too high, the rain is too heavy, and we’re in the middle of it all! Tomorrow is when we’ll have to be at your Contest!” Alexis shouted back.

“Of course tomorrow’s the day of the Contest! Did the rain give you brain damage?!” Mark shouted, unable to hear her.

“I’LL show you brain damage!” Alexis snapped. She got up, but the winds caused her to fall off Gyarados’ back.

“Alexis! I’m coming!” I shouted, diving in to save her. As soon as I caught up to her, I grabbed her hand and tried to swim back to Gyarados. I couldn’t exactly do that, because the waves kept pushing us farther and farther away from each other. I got so tired that I started to lose energy, even with Alexis prompting me.

“Mike, c’mon! We can still make it! Seadra, come out!” Alexis sent out Seadra, and we grabbed onto it and tried to swim back to Gyarados. However, by this time, they were too far away. I was just too tired, so everything eventually went black.
By the time I woke up, I found Alexis asleep next to me, along with Seadra. It was the next day, according to my Pokegear. We were surrounded by a circle of flames that certainly provided some good heat, especially after possibly getting hypothermia.

“Hey! Hey, Lexi! Rise and shine and…and…and all that jazz!” I said, shaking her awake.

“…ungh…Mike? Hey, where are we?” Alexis asked, slowly getting up.

“Not sure. But this must be one of the islands across from Shamouti Island,” I replied.

“How can you tell?”

“Because Shamouti Island’s over there,” I said, pointing to Shamouti Island. By now, the storm had cleared up.

“Brilliant deduction, Holmes,” Alexis said sarcastically.

“Who?”

“No, HOLMES!...anyway, why is fire surrounding us?”

“That’s a mystery too,” I said.

“Hardy haw haw. You’re SUCH a riot today!” Alexis said.

“What’s eating you today?” I asked.

“Ehh, I guess Mark’s comment got me down. I’m sorry,” Alexis answered downheartedly.

“It’s okay. Mark can be like that sometimes. Maybe we should try to put this fire out?” I asked.

“Good idea! Seadra, use Hydro Pump!” Seadra, woken up by this time, used Hydro Pump to douse the flames. The two of them walked outside of it, but by the time I began to walk, the flames reappeared, and I was trapped. “Mike!!”

“I’ll be fine! Golduck! Come on out and-WAH!” I said as the flames began to close in on me.

“Seadra, Hydro Pump! Hurry!” Seadra fired another Hydro Pump. This time, it did nothing.

“Oh, man! This is gonna singe!” I said as the flames got ever closer and higher. “C’mon c’mon c’mon! If there’s any power that prevents me from getting burned, activate it!” I said to my scar. Just as the flames were about to touch, the scar burned, and a yellow bubble emerged and surrounded me. Unfortunately, the flames were surrounding it on all sides, so I couldn’t figure out how to escape.

“Mike! Are you okay?!” Alexis called out.

“I’m NOT singed, but I don’t know what to do!” I said. That’s when I saw a figure jump down near Alexis. “Alexis! Watch out!”

“Huh?” Alexis said, spinning around. It was then that the figure emerged, slowly walking towards us. It was a brown, lion-like Pokémon with armlets on its limbs and a red and yellow emblem on its head. It looked like one of the beasts alongside Suicune that made up that one statue I’d found in the Mirage Tower. “Who are you?”

“…” The Pokémon just stood there.

“I don’t think it’s friendly, whatever it is!” I said.

“That’s Entei, the reincarnation of the Volcano!” Deoxys said.

“Really? So that means you know Suicune?” Alexis asked. Entei nodded. “Well, we’re gonna douse your flames! Seadra, Hyd-” Alexis started to give a command, but Entei used Roar to return Seadra to its Poke Ball. “What the-?!”

“Lexi, be careful! We don’t know what to expect!” I shouted.

“Okay! Let’s go, Nidorina!” Alexis said, sending out Nidorina. “Use Ice Beam!”

“Alexis, no!” But Nidorina fired an Ice Beam anyway. It froze Entei’s feet, but Entei heated up the area around it and melted the ice.

“Okay, THAT didn’t work. Try Shadow Claw!” Nidorina leapt at Entei with Shadow Claw, but Entei dodged the attack. It then used Sunny Day, making things heat up more. “Uh, that might be bad. Nidorina, Double Kick!” Nidorina leapt at Entei ready to do Double Kick, but it used Fire Blast to send Nidorina careening into a rock.

“Sunny Day powers up Fire-Type moves, even if it isn’t sunny! What’s your plan, Alexis?” I asked.

“I’m not sure…for now, it’s stalling! Nidorina, use Ice Beam to freeze its feet again!” Nidorina fired an Ice Beam that froze Entei’s feet. “Now! While it’s distracted, use Moonlight!” Nidorina’s Moonlight restored its strength.

“I get it! With Sunny Day, Moonlight’s power increases as well! Smart thinking!” I said, to which Alexis responded with a thumbs-up. By this time, Entei had cleared the ice and launched a Flamethrower.

“Dodge and use Poison Sting!” Nidorina jumped to the side and fired a Poison Sting. Entei just took the attack without so much as flinching. “Use Shadow Claw!” Nidorina jumped at Entei with Shadow Claw, but Entei’s Flamethrower stopped Nidorina. It went flailing into Alexis, and both of them fell to the ground. I could see Alexis’ Moon Stone fall out at her feet.

“ALEXIS-! Rrgh…” I said, starting to faint from the heat and using energy to keep the barrier up.

“MIKE, NO!” Alexis shouted. She then turned to Entei in tears. “Please, let him go! I don’t care what happens to me, just spare him! Please!”

“Lexi…” I said in surprise. Entei then looked at me and shook its head.

“Ni!” Nidorina shouted at Entei angrily. It then stepped forward, but accidentally stepped on Alexis’ Moon Stone. As soon as it made contact with Nidorina, the Moon Stone glowed and spread the glow to Nidorina. It stood up on its hind legs, doubled in height, and its tail grew. When the glow disappeared, the Pokemon was now dark blue and had a horn on its head.

“Wow! Nidorina evolved!” Alexis said, getting out her Pokedex.

“Nidoqueen, the Drill Pokémon. Nidoqueen is the evolved form of Nidorina. Its entire body is covered by a thick skin that protects it from whatever techniques are used against it.”

“Unbelievabllllleeee…” I said, slowly passing out. I could see Nidoqueen running over and punching the barrier, causing me to roll into the ocean. When I resurfaced, both the barrier and flames were gone. “Pthtth! Pthah! What the hell was that?!” I asked.

“I think Nidoqueen learned Superpower!” Alexis said, pulling me out. “Nidoqueen, you rock!” Nidoqueen smiled, then turned back to Entei. “I think we’re ready to end this with you, Entei! Nidoqueen, Ice Beam!” Nidoqueen fired an Ice Beam the same time Entei fired a Flamethrower. The attacks created an explosion, and Entei rushed forward to use Bite. “Nidoqueen, Earth Power!” Nidoqueen glowed yellow and sent out cracks in the ground that made contact with Entei, stopping it in its tracks. “Now finish it with Poison Jab!” Nidoqueen nailed Entei in the face with a purple fist. Entei got up, but its face looked slightly pale.

“I think…your…attack…poisoned it!” I said.

“Oh, no! I didn’t mean to go that far! Mike, have anything for poison?” Alexis asked.

“There should be some Pecha Berries in my…pack…I’m so weak…” I said.

“Don’t try to move, OK?” Alexis said, giving me a quick peck. She then fished into my backpack and got a Pecha Berry out. She then went over to Entei. “Here, eat this. I’m sorry.” Entei looked a little distrusting at first, but gradually moved closer until it took the Berry from Alexis. It ate it, almost immediately looking better. “You OK?” Entei nodded. It then let out a noise.

“Deoxys, go ahead…” I said.

“Okay. Hmm:

‘Indeed, you two are far different from many Trainers I’ve met. I heard of you from Suicune, but wanted to test your skills. In the end, I think it was the compassion that you had that was my downfall. I’m truly sorry for any inconvenience I may have caused,” Entei said.”

“It’s all right. I’m sorry for the misunderstanding,” Alexis answered.

“Entei…what do you…know…about Shadow Lugia?” I asked.

“‘I’m sorry, but our knowledge of the dark one is limited at this point, so we can only watch and wait,’ Entei said.”

“And we can have faith that we’ll win!” Alexis said.

“‘Exactly. In the meantime, keep in mind the prophecy of Lugia, as foretold on Shamouti island. The prophecy referring to the legendary birds of these waters has already passed, but to know it will be beneficial when you finally come face-to-face with the dark one,’ Entei said.”

“Okay. We’ll keep it in mind!” Alexis said.

“‘Good. There is a Slowking living on Shamouti Island. It will surely help you. Now we must part, but we will meet again,’ Entei said.”

At that, Entei moved to higher ground. Lava spouted from the mountain, and Entei jumped into it. By the time it cleared, Entei was gone.

“Well, I guess we’d better find that Slowking,” I said, feeling a little better. “URK!” I said, keeling over.

“Don’t try to overdo it!” Alexis scolded as she caught me. “I’ll take care of things. Moltres, let’s get to Shamouti Island!” she said as she got Moltres out. Nidoqueen held me while Alexis guided Moltres to the main island. By this time, the storm had passed, and Mark and Gyarados had most likely made it to the island. We found an altar at the edge, so we decided to stop there. Alexis and I went up to it, and saw three spheres in the altar in front of the three islands surrounding Shamouti Island.

“So, I take it you two have come to see me?” a voice inquired. We spun around, and saw a Slowking standing behind us.

“Yes. We need to learn more about Lugia and the prophecy,” Alexis said, as I was still too weak to say anything.

“The prophecy has already passed. But to learn to tame the beast of the sea, remember one specific part of the prophecy’s words: ‘The guardian of the waters shall rise to quell the fighting; Alone its psalm will fail, thus the earth shall turn to ash.’ To defeat Lugia, the powers of fire, ice, and lightning are needed,” Slowking explained.

“We’ve got two of them,” Alexis noted. “Mike captured a Zapdos in New Mauville, and I caught a Moltres in the Sevii Islands!”

“Yeah…sure wish…Ed and Articuno were…still with us!” I added, still not able to speak well.

“I have forseen the coming of this darkness. But never you fear; it’s always darkest before the dawn,” Slowking said.

“Let’s hope the dawn breaks for that Lugia soon,” Alexis said, concerned.

“Or else…it’ll be…eternal night for…the entire world,” I said.

The horror of the situation continued to plague our minds, but all we could do was keep moving forward for the time being. Besides, nothing would keep us from obtaining our goals and ensuring our future.
 
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Chapter 118: Opposites Attract

“Guys, where have you been?! You look terrible!”

“Long story. How are your preparations going?”

“I’m just about ready. Hey, is Michael going to be all right?”

“I’ll stay with him backstage. Good luck out there!”

Those were the voices I kept hearing of Mark and Alexis as I slowly came back to reality. However, when I looked up, the face I saw wasn’t that of Alexis’, but a tanned face with black hair and glasses and a creepy smile.

“WAH!”

“Hey there!” Gerardo said, happy to see me. “Surprised?”

“Something like that, yeah. Where’s Lexi?”

“Well, Alexis went to go see if Nurse Joy could help you out in any way before the Contest starts, but I don’t know if you need it,” Gerardo said. “I mean, the Contest is starting in five minutes! Besides, you’re looking better than before!”

“Yeah, I feel okay now. So, you’ve been doing well, I presume?”

“Yup! I’ve already got two Ribbons from Double Performances!” Gerardo said, showing me his ribbon case.

“Nice! Ooh, ooh! It’s starting!” I said. Anne introduced the judges and then called Mark up to the stage.

“Ninetales, action!” Mark said, bringing out Ninetales. “Start things off with Toxic!” Ninetales fired a Toxic into the air, creating a purple misty cloud. “And now use Will-O-Wisp!” Ninetales fired several Will-O-Wisps into the Toxic, but they couldn’t be seen.

“That’s weird! Usually a flame would cause sort of a glow in the fog! So why not with this one?” I pondered.

“With a blue flame like Will-O-Wisp, a purple cloud won’t give the blue a chance to stick out. He just needs more color,” Gerardo concluded.

“And now, let’s add some more color! Ninetales, use Ember!” Ninetales fired the same number of Embers into the Toxic as there were Will-O-Wisps. One by one, red glows appeared in the Toxic mist.

“There you go!” Gerardo said.

“I see! With the red flame, the Will-O-Wisp creates a contrast!” I said, realizing what he meant. “Mark’s a true artist, I tell ya!”

“And now, use Extrasensory!” Mark said. Ninetales used Extrasensory to move the Will-O-Wisps around in all sorts of directions. He created zigzags, spirals, and all manner of things. The crowd was in sheer awe and applauding the whole time. “Let’s bring it to a close!” Ninetales then used Extrasensory to put it all together, then used its nine tails to grab the result, a single purple flame. It then tossed it high into the air.

“Whoa,” Gerardo said. I could tell Gerardo was really into this.

“NOW! FIRE SPIN!” Ninetales fired a Fire Spin through the purple flame, making the attack purple as flames scattered throughout the stage. Mark and Ninetales bowed as purple embers fell about them, accentuating Ninetales’ beauty.

“That was an incredible finish! The Great Sephiod truly is an artist among Coordinators! Let’s hear it for him!” Mark received an abundance of applause from the audience as well as a very high score. By that time, Alexis had come back.

“I’m sorry guys, I couldn’t get Nurse Joy to-Mike! You’re all right!” Alexis said, squeezing my head in an embrace.

“That…remains…to…be…seen!” I grunted. “Anyway, how are you after…you know.”

“Oh…I’m fine. It was a bit of an experience for me, fighting Entei like that. Now I know that’s the level I have to be at if I want to become a Gym Leader! But…” she said, looking down, “…I’m sorry I couldn’t get you out of there sooner…”

“Alexis, when I was fighting Suicune to protect you from it (as I interpreted at the time), it wasn’t looking good for me and Espeon. But I didn’t give up, and neither did you! Trust me, you’re at an exceptional level!” I said, reassuring her.

“I-I don’t know what to say! Thanks, Mike!” she said. We then kissed.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! You two battled legendary Pokémon?!? When was this?!” Gerardo shouted. We then hauled him back a ways.

“Talk later, Contest now!” Alexis whispered, holding his mouth shut.

“We don’t want something like this getting out!” I said to him. He muffled an "OK", then we let him go.

“Hey guys,” Mark said from behind us, “Who called this meeting?”

“MARK!” we shouted. We then avoided the subject by praising his performance.

“Hey, Gerardo! You’re up!” I said. “…what the-?!”

“You like it?” Gerardo said, suddenly dressed in a prince’s outfit. “I am Caliph Gerardo, come to rule the kingdom that is Pokémon Contests! Let the conquests commence!” he said as he ran out of the area.

“Wow. That guy’s a couple tacos short of a fiesta,” Alexis said. “How did he change so fast?”

“…meh,” Mark and I said, shrugging.

“And now, we present out next performer, Caliph Gerardo! Go!” Anne said as Gerardo went onstage.

“Watch the ice prince do his work! Frosslass! You’re up!” Gerardo sent out a Frosslass, a Pokémon that looked like a water drop for a head with a kimono-like body underneath.

“It’s so cute!” Alexis said in awe.

“It’s beautiful!” Mark said in awe.

“It’s…nope, I got nothing,” I said in confusion. Alexis and Mark slapped the back of my head.

“Frosslass, use Captivate!” Frosslass sent out a pink heart that exploded in the air, causing the whole audience to look entranced, as if they couldn’t get enough of it. “Now use Icy Wind and Blizzard!” Frosslass started off with Icy Wind, then whirled it \around with Blizzard, until the two started to form a cyclone. “Use Hail, then use Ominous Wind!” Frosslass summoned a dark cloud that sent pieces of hail around that got sucked up into the icy cyclone. Frosslass then used Ominous Wind to enhance the cyclone to where it came up. As soon as the cyclone came up to Frosslass, it disappeared.

“Where’d it go?!” I asked.

“Looks like it used Snow Cloak! When there’s hail or a snowstorm, Frosslass can use its ability, Snow Cloak, to keep itself out of view!” Mark said.

“I guess since it used Captivate, having it disappear from view must get the audience on the edge of their seat wanting to see it again!” Alexis guessed. Indeed, the crowd was stirring.

“Finish up with Powder Snow, then Weather Ball!” For a while, nothing changed. Suddenly, from the middle of the now white and black cyclone, a ball of wind that turned to ice appeared. It went up to the cloud causing Hail, and when it hit, the cloud and the cyclone dissipated, leaving Frosslass on the ground. A series of Powder Snow flakes fell to the ground around Frosslass as it adopted a pose. Gerardo then bowed, and the crowd went wild.

“Wow! Creating such a storm after luring the audience in, then dissolving it to reveal a serene and graceful atmosphere with Powder Snow! What a beautiful appeal!” Anne said.

“That Frosslass’s technique with twin attacks certainly added to that appeal! Quite extraordinary!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Indeed! And remarkable, too!” Mr. Suzuki added.

“I was anticipating Frosslass’s return so much, I nearly went to tears seeing it like that at the end! So beautiful!” Nurse Joy said.

After Gerardo got back, we congratulated him as the appeals continued. Afterward, Anne announced the top eight, and Mark and Gerardo both made it. We got to watch the two’s battles, but we paid special attention to Gerardo’s, hoping to find his Frosslass’s weak point.

“Frosslass, use Shadow Ball!” Frosslass’s Shadow Ball, combined with Hail’s misty fog, created a dazzling contrast that deducted the opponent’s points, and even more after hitting.

“Magcargo, Flamethrower!” Magcargo, although heavily affected by Frosslass’s Attract, shot a Flamethrower at Frosslass.

“Frosslass, Water Pulse!” Frosslass fired a Water Pulse that nullified the Flamethrower, but Frosslass flew towards Magcargo, speeding from side to side of the mist from Hail, until it was right in front of Magcargo. “Finish it with Ominous Wind!” Frosslass fired an Ominous Wind that knocked out Magcargo, causing the judges to buzz Magcargo out.

“And there you have it, folks! Gerardo and Frosslass are moving on to the final round!” Anne announced, as Gerardo and Frosslass celebrated.

“Hmm, that Attract could be troublesome,” I said.

“And even if Mark found a way around that, he’d still have that Hail combo to deal with!” Alexis added.

“I don’t need to worry about Attract, guys. But you’re right about Hail,” Mark replied as he left for the final stage. Alexis and I then went to the stands.

“And now, to finish this Contest up, it’s Caliph Gerardo against the Great Sephiod! Let the five-minute countdown…START!” Anne said as the timer started.

“Frosslass, let’s get ‘em!” Gerardo said as he brought out Frosslass.

“Ninetales, action!” Mark said as he sent out Ninetales.

“Fire means nothing to me! Frosslass, use Ominous Wind!” Frosslass fired an Ominous Wind at Ninetales.

“Ninetales, Extrasensory!” Ninetales used Extrasensory to grab Frosslass and have it take the attack, costing Gerardo major points.

“Frosslass, use Attract!” Frosslass sent out an Attract at Ninetales. Ninetales, after being hit by it, just looked around, confused. Gerardo lost more points to where he’d lost a fourth of them. “What the-?!”

“My Ninetales is female! Half of your strategy has been frozen, so to speak! Ninetales, Will-O-Wisp!” Ninetales sent out Will-O-Wisps at Frosslass.

“Frosslass, Water Pulse!” Frosslass used Water Pulse to nullify the Will-O-Wisps, docking Mark points. The attack then hit Ninetales, costing him even more points. Unfortunately, Ninetales looked around in a daze, its eyes glowing.

“Ah, nerts! Ninetales got confused by that Water Pulse!” I said.

“Come on, Mark! The show must go on!” Alexis shouted.

“Ninetales, use Flamethrower!” Ninetales fired a Flamethrower at the ground, causing it to fly into the air.

“What an interesting move! Ninetales is actually being propelled by the Flamethrower!” Anne said. I could see Mark’s sweat as Ninetales kept going.

“Uh, Ninetales! Use Toxic!” Ninetales spun around and around, still confused.

“Frosslass, let’s go! Hail!” Frosslass used Hail, thereby activating its Snow Cloak ability. “Now use Astonish!” Frosslass popped up from the cloud to scare Ninetales over and over. The creativity of the move took more of Mark’s points.

“C’mon, Mark! Get it together!” I shouted.

“…Ninetales, use Extrasensory!” Ninetales, through sheer luck, fired an Extrasensory into the hail. However, Frosslass spun and dodged the attack.

“Frosslass, Ominous Wind!” Frosslass fired an Ominous Wind, which, when combined with the mist, created another beautiful contrast, taking more of Mark’s points. He had lost more than half by this point. “Now use Ice Beam!” Frosslass’s Ice Beam froze Ninetales’ feet, taking out another fourth of Mark’s points.

“…I’ve got it! Ninetales, you with me?” Mark asked.

“Nine!” Ninetales said, grinning. It was no longer confused.

“Great! Use Toxic on the Hail cloud!” Ninetales fired a Toxic into the Hail, surrounding it.

“What? That’ll just add to the storm!” Gerardo said.

“Time to clear the air! OVERHEAT!” Ninetales fired an Overheat at the Toxic, creating an explosion. Not only did Hail get obliterated, but Frosslass was damaged. The resulting red and white sparkles created a beautiful appeal, taking out many of Gerardo’s points.

“No way! I won’t let it end like this! Frosslass, Ice Beam!” Frosslass fired a spinning Ice Beam from above at Ninetales.

“Counter that with Fire Spin!” Ninetales fired a Fire Spin that was frozen by the Ice Beam and prevented Ninetales from taking damage. “And now use Extrasensory!” Ninetales used Extrasensory to grab Frosslass and slide it down the resulting ice slide right down to Ninetales. “FINISH IT! FIRE BLAST!” Ninetales’ Fire Blast carried Frosslass to the ceiling, melting the ice as it went. It slammed Frosslass into the ceiling, and Frosslass then fell to the ground, knocked out. The judges buzzed it out.

“And with that, The Great Sephiod and Ninetales have defeated Gerardo and Froslass! This year’s Shamouti Contest winner is The Great Sephiod!” Anne said as Mark hugged Ninetales. We watched as Mark was awarded a blue ribbon by Mr. Contesta.

“YEAH! WE WON THE SHAMOUTI RIBBON!” Mark said, holding up the ribbon.

“Nine, Nine!” Ninetales added.

Later on, we gathered at the docks to say goodbye to Gerardo.

“No hard feelings?” Mark asked.

“None. You’ve got some skills! I look forward to seeing them again at the Grand Festival!” Gerardo said, shaking his hand. Then we heard a loud blaring.

“…uh, your boat!” Mark quickly said.

“GAH! OH NO!” Gerardo said as he watched his boat leave. “WAIT FOR ME!” Gerardo shouted as he got out his Walrein to chase after the boat. “Bye, guys! See you soon!” he called back.

“Well, that was…interesting,” Alexis said, confused.

“You feeling better?” Mark asked.

“Yeah. I mean, it was a trial to be sure, but I’m better now. Let’s get going to the next Gym!” I said as we went to find Gyarados. But I still couldn’t stop thinking of Slowking’s words. How would we use Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno to beat Shadow Lugia? How would we be assured a victory? Would we even make it? The questions filled my mind as we set sail for the next island.
 
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Chapter 119: Full Speed Alexis

After Mark’s second Contest win, we advanced further on our journey through the Orange Islands. The next stop was Cleopatra Island, where we stopped to do some training.

“Now blast it with Flash Cannon!” Empoleon nailed Butterfree with an extremely powerful Flash Cannon, knocking it onto its back.

“Butterfree, use Tackle!” Butterfree zoomed at Empoleon with a Tackle.

“Nice try! Empoleon, Ice Beam!” Empoleon launched an Ice Beam at Butterfree, who dodged and nailed Empoleon with Tackle.

“Butterfree, Solarbeam!” Butterfree charged a Solarbeam and nailed Empoleon with it.

“Time!” I called out. “Great job, guys! Alexis, Butterfree’s getting faster and faster!” I said.

“Yeah! We wouldn’t be putting in the effort for becoming a Gym Leader if we didn’t try to make progress!” Alexis said.

“No doubt. I wonder where you’d have your Gym,” Mark wondered. Suddenly, a purple blur zoomed by and nailed Butterfree with a purple X-like attack that knocked Butterfree out of the air.

“NO! BUTTERFREE!” Alexis shouted, picking Butterfree up.

“Cro, Crobat!” we heard. We looked up to see a Crobat as the source of the sound.

“What the-?!” Alexis exclaimed as she got out her Pokedex.

“Crobat, the Bat Pokémon. Crobat is the final evolved form of Zubat. The development of wings on its legs enables it to fly quicker but makes it incredibly difficuly to stop or even walk.”

“Yeah, I remember that from my battle with Janine!” I said, reminiscing.

“This one seems rather mischievous. Wonder what its beef is with Butterfree?” Mark asked.

“Actually, it’s OUR beef!” a voice said. We looked to the bushes to see a guy walking out of it. He was in a blue jumpsuit and had short, brown hair. “My name’s Joe, a Pokeathlete!” he said.

“I’m Mike!” I said.

“I’m Alexis!” Alexis added.

“And I’m Mark!” Mark finished.

“Hello. I was just calling your claim for Butterfree being so fast. Seems you can’t live up to your word!” Joe said.

“Why you-!” Alexis growled.

“A Pokeathlon is like any other Pokémon competition: your Pokémon need to be at their best! And if Butterfree there can’t dodge Crobat’s Cross Poison, it won’t live up to your expectations!” Joe explained.

“You’re right about Pokémon being at their best, but you can’t justify sneaky tactics like a sneak attack!” I shouted.

“Pokémon are about more than training. They’re for creating unseverable bonds with, enduring hardships with, and so much more!” Mark added.

“Feh! Then why don’t we see what’s better: my practice or your faith! Right this way!” Joe said as he and Crobat went off. We followed them to a large stadium-like place. There, several people were training with their Pokémon; a girl was lifting weights with her Machamp, a guy was running a treadmill with his Raticate, and other types of workouts were going on.

“Wow, they’re certainly committed,” Alexis noted.

“You bet! Here we strive to be the top Pokeathletes! Now Alexis, let’s see your stuff! I challenge you to three events, one-on-one! First up, the disc jump! Without using their wings to fly, our Pokémon must knock away several discs thrown into the air!” Joe challenged.

“You’re on!” Alexis answered. The two got onto pedestals with see-saw like things beneath them. Betterfree and Crobat were waiting at the opposite end to be launched.

“Get ready…” Mark called. “GO!!” With that, the discs were launched. Alexis and Joe jumped down and launched their Pokémon into the air.

“Crobat, Wing Attack!” Crobat used its Wing Attack to knock away several of the discs.

“Butterfree, String Shot!” Butterfree’s String Shot formed a wrecking ball, which it used to knock away just as many discs.

“Huh, not bad,” Joe said, seeing that the score was exactly the same. “Now for the second challenge: the hurdle dash!” We all went out to the track, where Butterfree and Crobat took their places at the starting line and Alexis and Joe got on treadmills and put special visors on. As I observed everything, I noticed Crobat steadily looking down, occasionally looking at Alexis.

“Hmm, that’s weird. I wonder what’s got Crobat so down. Deoxys, think you can check it out?” I asked.

“Leave it to me,” Deoxys answered. Its aura then left me and went to Crobat.

“You noticed it too?” Mark asked.

“Yeah. That’s why I sent Deoxys over,” I replied. “Oh, here it comes.”

“Well guys, it wasn’t hard to find out what was wrong with Crobat,” Deoxys said as it got back to me.

“Well?” Mark inquired.

“Apparently, it envies Butterfree for its being able to travel around freely, as opposed to Crobat’s having to be here on the island,” Deoxys answered.

“Huh. You know, I could swear I’m getting the opposite from Butterfree. It seems more eager than usual when presented with challenges from this particular environment,” I noted.

“Really?” Mark asked. He then looked at Butterfree. Usually, it had a laidback, friendly attitude, but now it was overly excited and energetic. “You’re right. If you ask me, I think Butterfree’s experiencing what your Medicham did back at the Battle Arena!” I got startled at this thought, then looked down, missing Medicham and wondering how it was doing.

“Think we should suggest that Butterfree stay here?” I asked Mark.

“That might be a good idea. It seems to be in its element when it stays active,” Mark said.

“But how would Alexis feel about this?” Deoxys asked.

“I’ll talk to her about it after the second event,” I said. “Speaking of which…”

“GO!” a girl on the sides shouted. Alexis and Joe started running on the treadmill, and Butterfree and Crobat began to fly through the course. Two hurdles came in front of the Pokémon, and Alexis and Joe jumped. At the same time, the two Pokémon flew above the hurdles. A few feet later, more hurdles appeared, but slightly higher. Alexis and Joe ducked, and Butterfree and Crobat dove beneath the hurdles. Crobat seemed to lose momentum, and Butterfree zoomed ahead. For the rest of the race, the two dodged hurdles until the finish line came, and Butterfree won by a hair.

“Way to go, Butterfree! That’s showing ‘em speed!” Alexis said as she hugged Butterfree.

“It’s not over yet!” Joe shouted angrily. “Now for the final event: a one-on-one Pokémon battle!”

“What?!” Alexis said in shock.

“Ten minutes to get ready!” Joe said as he stormed off. Crobat looked at us, then followed him.

“Alexis, we need to talk,” I said, coming over.

And so we did.

“…I see. What would you like to do, Butterfree?” Alexis asked Butterfree.

“Free…” Butterfree said, thinking.

“Tell you what, we’ll ask Joe about it after the battle; see if he thinks it to be a good idea,” I said. “Meanwhile, get in there and knock ‘em dead!”

“Yeah!” Alexis said as we high-fived. We then went to the battlefield.

“This one-on-one battle between Alexis and Joe will now begin! Battle between Joe’s Crobat and Alexis’ Butterfree will end either when five minutes have expired, or either contestant is unable to battle! Begin!” I announced.

“Butterfree, start off with Stun Spore!” Butterfree blew a Stun Spore at Crobat.

“Dodge and use Cross Poison!” Crobat zoomed toward Butterfree, dodging its attack, and nailed it with a Cross Poison.

“Butterfree, Sunny Day!” Butterfree created Sunny Day to intensify the sun’s rays. “Now use Solarbeam!” Butterfree fired a Solarbeam at Crobat.

“Double Team!” Crobat used Double Team to split up, dodging the Solarbeam.

“Butterfree, Aerial Ace!” Butterfree dashed through the clones, eventually hitting the real Crobat. “Not fast enough!”

“We’re faster than you’ll ever be! Crobat! Brave Bird!” Crobat rose up, then dove down, surrounding itself with fire. Before it reached the ground, it rose, flying horizontally. The fire then turned into a blue energy.

“Butterfree, get out of there! Use Silver Wind at the ground!” Butterfree fired a Silver Wind to propel itself upward. However, Crobat was able to point up and collide with Butterfree, doing major damage. “NO!!”

C’mon, Alexis! You can beat him! That or hold out as long as you can! I thought to myself.

“Crobat, Cross Poison!” Crobat nailed Butterfree with another Cross Poison, sending it to the ground.

“Butterfree, get up! Please get up!” Alexis called. Butterfree slowly but surely got up.

“Crobat, let’s use their move against them! Heat Wave!” A ball of fire appeared in front of Crobat, and then, with Crobat’s wing, the ball turned into two streams of fire that launched at Butterfree.

“Butterfree, dodge that!” Butterfree zigzagged through the streams, not getting hit once. “Now use Stun Spore!” Butterfree launched a Stun Spore at Crobat, paralyzing it.

“RRRGH! Crobat, Cross Poison!” Crobat flew at Butterfree, this time going behind it and hitting it with Cross Poison. Butterfree looked poisoned from the attack.

“Oh, no!” Alexis said.

Just one more minute! Keep it up! I thought.

“Let’s wrap this up! Crobat, use Cross Poison!” Crobat launched another Cross Poison.

“Butterfree! Psychic!” Butterfree used Psychic to grab Crobat, then flung it into the Cross Poison, making it so that the attack hit both Pokémon. The two then fell to the ground, passed out.

“Butterfree and Crobat! Both Pokémon are unable to battle!” I said.

“Great job, Butterfree,” Alexis said, going to Butterfree and picking it up. She then shared a look with Joe, indicating hard feelings.

“Joe, we have something to tell you,” Mark said. “We think you and Alexis should trade these two Pokémon!”

“WHAT?!?” they all shouted.

“Trade?” I asked.

“Think of it! Butterfree wants this kind of life: where it can be active and fit! And Crobat wants our kind of life, being able to see things and go to new places! It would work out for both parties!” Mark explained. We all stared at him in silence.

“Huh. Never would’ve thought of that,” I commented.

“It would seem to be the best solution,” Alexis said.

“I guess I tried to go too fast and ended up missing Crobat’s feelings,” Joe said, looking down. “Well, Crobat? Do you really want to venture out into the world?”

“Cro, Crobat,” Crobat answered, nodding.

“And you, Butterfree? Is this the life you want?” Alexis asked.

“Free!” Butterfree replied, also nodding.

“Then let’s do it!” Joe said. We went to a machine that allowed the trading of Pokémon. Alexis and Joe had returned their Pokémon to their Poke Balls, and placed them on the table. The machine turned them into electricity, then sucked them up through the two hoses. We saw the Pokémon’s silhouettes through the monitor as they switched places. The Poke Balls then emerged and returned to where they were.

“Come on out,” the two said. Sure enough, Butterfree and Crobat had been traded.

“Thanks, Alexis. I’ll make Butterfree a Pokeathlon star!” Joe said.

“And I’ll do my best to train Crobat! Just make sure to keep going as fast as you can!” Alexis replied.

We then left, waving goodbye to Joe, Butterfree, and the others as we walked along.

“Take care, Butterfree! You’ll definitely make it to the top! See you again!” Alexis said happily, even though she was crying.

“Free, Free!” Butterfree called back.

“You going to be okay, Alexis?” I asked.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” Alexis said, taking my hand. “Now, last one to Gyarados is a rotten egg!” she said, dragging me along.

“Hey, wait up! You’re going too fast!” Mark called as he followed us.

Saying goodbye is never easy, but it’s part of life. Believe me, I know it all too well. But as we said goodbye to one friend, we also said hello to a new one. With Crobat along for the trip, we strengthened our spirits and moved forward, full speed.
 
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Chapter 120: Case of the Munchlax

Still on our journey through the Orange Archipelago, we stopped on Butwal Island to give the Pokémon some time for lunch.

“Eat up, guys! I made this with a special Pokeblock!” I said as I handed my Pokémon their food.

“Pokeblock, feh. You need to try making some Poffins!” Mark said, pulling out a pink bun-like thing.

“Poffins?” I asked, confused.

“They’re like Pokeblock, but have additional berry ingredients from Sinnoh! This one’s my Bluk-Sitrus-Special!” Mark said, holding out a green Poffin.

“Let me try,” Deoxys said as it took in the Poffin. “Oh, wow. It’s just like my favorite Pokeblock! You, sir, have quite exquisite taste!”

“Huh. Well, it must be sweet and sour, then,” I noted.

“Yeah! It’s one of the best Poffin combinations around, in MY opinion. Smoothness and level can’t compare to taste!” Mark said, throwing Poffins about for the other Pokémon to scramble for.

“Okay, just calm down!” I said, horrified. Just then, a blue, roundish Pokémon jumped out of the bushes and caught a Poffin that was about to fall to the ground. Of course, it caught it in its mouth.

“Wow! That Munchlax has amazing reflexes!” Alexis said, consulting her Pokedex.

“So? SO? What did you think?” Mark asked Munchlax excitedly. Munchlax stood there for a minute, then made a face as if it was going to puke. It then walked away as Mark just stood there, staring off into space.

“Uh…Mark?” Alexis asked.

“RUN!! HE’S GONNA BLOW!!!” I said, grabbing Alexis and running off with everyone else. We were a safe distance away when we heard Mark blow up.

“WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, YOU LITTLE @*@%&^(%#%?!” Mark shouted.

“Mark, calm down!” I said as we came back to him.

“NOBODY, and I mean NOBODY disses my Poffins! I put my pride into them! And they’re one of the key ingredients that have made MY Pokémon become the stars that they are!” Mark growled. His Pokémon looked embarrassed and flattered at the sound of that.

“That’s no reason to-” Alexis started.

“We’re going to get that mother-#@(%#% and we’re going to make him pay for this insult!!” Mark said angrily. “Empoleon! Breloom! Let’s go!” He recalled his other Pokémon, and then the three of them went off into the forest.

“Boy, he doesn’t know how good he has it,” a voice said. Alexis and I turned to see a young boy and his Gloom. “That Munchlax NEVER turns down food! It even eats all of ours week after week!”

“Who are you?” I asked.

“My name’s Gulzar, a resident of this island!” the boy said.

“Hi, I’m Alexis!” Alexis said.

“And I’m Mike. Week after week, huh?” I asked.

“Yeah. See, since this island’s too small to have an airport, food gets dropped in once a week. Because of Munchlax’s speed and eating habits, it’s able to scarf tons of food before we even get to the crate!” Galzar said despairingly. “I’m not sure how long we’re going to last with that Pokémon around!”

“That’s horrible!” Alexis said.

“So, if that Munchlax could be stopped, you all could be guaranteed food, huh?” I said. “Okay, we’d better do our part to help out!”

“Really?” Gulzar asked eagerly.

“I agree! We just can’t disregard people in trouble!” Alexis said.

“Right! Let’s go get that Munchlax!” I said.

“Thanks so much! With you guys, Butwal Island will surely be saved!” Gulzar exclaimed. We then went in the direction that Mark had gone minutes before.

“If I were a ravenous eater, where would I be?” Alexis asked.

“I’d probably be around food. So how would we find food?” I guessed.

“We’d follow a scent!” Gulzar said.

“Right! Gulzar, if you please!” I said.

“Okay! Gloom, use Sweet Scent!”

“Gloom!” Gloom said as it spread Sweet Scent through the area. We waited for a while, and then three Pokémon came toward us. When they came out into the open, they were Munchlax, Empoleon, and Breloom, all mesmerized.

“C’mon, you guys!! Snap out of it!” Mark yelled as he followed them. “Hey, what…?”

“Hey Mark,” I said.

“Why’d you do that?!” Mark shouted. “I’d just about had Munchlax in my grip!”

“Of course,” Alexis said sarcastically. “Anyway, now’s the time to take out Munchlax! Crobat, I choose you!” She sent out her Crobat. “Give it a Wing Attack!” Crobat flew at Munchlax with a Wing Attack, but Munchlax bent down to pick up one of Mark’s Poffins that had fallen, inadvertently dodging the attack. It ate the Poffin, then grimaced again.

“GAAAAAAAAAHHH! YOU LITTLE-!!” Mark raged. “Empoleon, let’s teach this gourmand a thing or two! Hydro Cannon!” Empoleon fired a Hydro Cannon at Munchlax’s head.

“Muuuunch…” Munchlax yawned while leaning back. It leaned back so much that it dodged the Hydro Cannon, which ended up hitting me.

“Mike! Are you all right?” Alexis asked, helping me up.

“Just drenched,” I replied. “Okay, we’re going to have to try something else! Call off Empoleon, Mark!”

“Right, right. Breloom, you’re up! Use Sky Uppercut!” Breloom charged forward with Sky Uppercut at the ready. Munchlax responded with a Solarbeam, which knocked Breloom away.

“Mark, try something else!” Gulzar shouted. “Munchlax is just too quick!”

“Oh, yeah?! I’ll show you quick! Breloom, combine Sky Uppercut with Mach Punch!” Breloom readied Sky Uppercut in one fist and used the other to zoom at Munchlax. Before it could dodge, Breloom nailed it with a series of jabs that were supereffective. Munchlax, after the attacks, yawned and used Rest.

“It…it’s asleep,” I said.

“Yeah, that’s how it regains energy! We’ve gotta try something else, Breloom!”

“Breloom!” Breloom responded. Its fist then flowed green.

“What the-?!” I said, surprised.

“All right! Breloom just learned Drain Punch!” Mark said. “All right! Time for a new Contest move! Start off with Mach Punch!” Breloom punched Munchlax with Mach Punch, sending it into the air. “Now use Thunderpunch!” Breloom jumped up and used Thunderpunch to keep Munchlax in the air. “Now use Sky Uppercut!” Breloom nailed Munchlax with Sky Uppercut, keeping it in the air.

“Breloom’s starting to look tired,” Alexis noted.

“Let’s do something about that! Drain Punch!” Breloom’s fist glowed green and it nailed Munchlax, taking some of its energy which revitalized Breloom. “Now finish it! Dynamicpunch!” Breloom then jumped above Munchlax and came back down with Dynamicpunch, slamming Munchlax into the ground. When the dust cleared, Breloom was standing atop a defeated Munchlax.

“All right! He did it!” Gulzar exclaimed.

“That’ll teach you not to insult MY cooking! POKE BALL, GO!” Mark said as he threw a Poke Ball at Munchlax. It went in the ball, wiggled a little, and eventually was caught. “Yeah! I caught a Munchlax!”

“Way to go!” I shouted as I high-fived with him. “You saved the island!” All of a sudden, a robotic arm grabbed Munchlax’s Poke Ball.

“HAHAHAHAHAH!” the same two voices laughed.

“Team Rocket,” I said.

“And now we’ll just take this little Pokémon back to Giovanni!” Ashley said.

“Thanks for doing all the sweaty labor, runts!” Olson added. Just then, Munchlax’s Poke Ball disappeared.

“Don’t sweat it! Oh, and by the way, I can’t have seven Pokémon in my party! So sorry,” Mark replied.

“THIS IS YOUR FAULT, ORWELL!” Ashley yelled.

“THE NAME’S OLSON!” Olson shouted.

“*sigh* Gulzar, care to take care of this?” I asked.

“Yeah! Gloom, get ‘em with Sludge Bomb!” Gloom fired several Sludge Bombs at their hovercraft until it exploded.

“This might’ve gone better if we’d prepared for that possibility,” Ashley said.

“This might’ve gone better if we’d prepared a parachute!” Olson responded.

“TEAM ROCKET’S BLASTING OFF AGAIN!!” they shouted as they disappeared.

“Man, they’re just getting more and more pathetic every day,” I said.

“Hey, look!” Gulzar said. He saw a plane coming toward the island, and as soon as it came over, a package fell from the sky. “It’s the food! Let’s get this to the Pokémon Center right away!” We made our way to the food crate and delivered it to the Pokémon Center.

“Thank you all so much!” Nurse Joy said. “I just hope that Munchlax doesn’t come by to eat any of this again!”

“Nah! That problem’s taken care of,” Mark said. “Sorry, Professor Rowan.”

“Professor Who?” I asked.

“No, ROWAN!” Mark said. “Oy vay.”

“You guys, I couldn’t have done this without you! The entire island and I are in your debt!” Gulzar said, shaking our hands.

“No problem. It’s just what we do!” I said. “Well guys, let’s shove off!”

Having saved an island from a ravenous Munchlax, our hopes were high as we moved forward in our journey through the Orange Islands.

“MARK!! This Munchlax you’ve sent me has an eating frenzy! Where did you get it?! Any chance you can take it back?!” Professor Rowan called over my Pokegear.

“I’m sorry, even if you have the right number, I think you have the wrong number!” Mark said, then I sheepishly hung up.
 
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Chapter 121: This Means Wartortle

Gyarados was getting tired, so we had to make a stop at Ascorbia Island, an island northeast of Butwal Island.

“So, it’s been a while since my last Gym Battle. Where’s the next one?” I asked.

“Let’s see…” Mark said as he checked the Pokegear. “Ah! It’s due south of here on Navel Island!”

“Looks like a day’s trip. This battle better be worth it,” Alexis said.

“Well, I know Gyarados has got the power to make it there! We’ll give it some break time, then we’ll shove off!” I said.

“Gyar!” Gyarados said, delighted at the sound of that.

“Wow! That’s some Gyarados you guys have!” a voice said. We turned to see a guy in a jumpsuit standing with a bunch of turtle-like Pokémon with long, white ears and fluffy tails. One of them standing in front was wearing an orange bandana.

“Thank you, sir. And you are-?” I asked.

“I’m Captain Aidan, head of the Pokémon Firefighters! And this is my Wartortle Squad!” the man said.

“Tortle!” the Wartortle said, saluting.

“Pleasure to meet you! I’m Mike!”

“And I’m Alexis!”

“Hello! I’m Mark!”

“Pleased to meet you all! Say, do you think your Gyarados could try a little test of mine?” Aidan asked.

“Test?” I asked.

“We train our Pokémon to be top-class firefighters! Our Squirtle are for rescue missions, our Blastoise are for heavy-duty fighters, and our Wartortle are for all-around purposes! I’d like to see how your Gyarados matches up with my top Wartortle here!” Aidan said, motioning to the Wartortle with the bandana.

“Okay! Let’s do it! What do you say, Gyarados?” I asked.

“Gyar!” Gyarados said eagerly. With that, the Blastoise were set up at several spots on the beach. Wartortle and Gyarados were standing side-by-side, ready to make their move.

“GO!!” Mark shouted. The Blastoise then fired tennis balls from their cannons.

“Wartortle, Water Gun!” Wartortle fired several Water Guns to hit tennis balls.

“Gyarados, Hydro Pump!” Gyarados’ Hydro Pump hit just as many tennis balls.

“Okay, next!” Aidan called. We spun around to where several Blastoise were set and the Squirtle used Rapid Spin to spin around, creating moving targets while bouncing off of the Blastoise.

“Wartortle, go get ‘em! Water Gun!” Wartortle fired Water Gun to knock several Squirtle away.

“Gyarados, Hydro Pump again!” Gyarados fired a Hydro Pump to match Wartortle’s moves.

“Wow, Gyarados sure knows its stuff!” Aidan said. “But now comes the real test!”

“All right! We’re ready for this!” I said. Just then, several nets came out from under the sand and captured the Blastoise and Squirtle. “What the-?!”

“HAHAHAHAHAHAH!!” the same two voices laughed.

“Team Rocket,” I said.

“In the flesh!” Ashley taunted.

“Why you-!! Give me back the Squirtle and Blastoise!” Aidan yelled.

“No chance! They’re going from putting out fires to putting out resistance!” Olson replied. “Once they’re made an official part of Team Rocket, they’ll help us conquer the world!”

“My, some people are just SO original,” Mark said sarcastically.

“Wartortle! Use Water Gun!” Wartortle fired a Water Gun at the net, but nothing happened.

“Hah!” What did you expect! We outfitted our nets with a special resistor! Those attacks aren’t going to do anything!” Ashley sneered.

“Okay, then how about this?! Gallade, come out and use Ice Punch!” I said, sending out Gallade. It punched the nets, freezing them.

“Now, Blastoise! Squirtle! Use Skull Bash!” The Blastoise and Squirtle rammed the frozen bars with their heads, breaking them.

“Gotcha!” Ashley said. “Mismagius, Psywave!” Mismagius sent out a Psywave into the air.

“Gengar, Hypnosis!” Gengar sent out its Hypnosis at the Psywave, which caused it to spread out towards all of the Pokémon, putting them to sleep. Fortunately, Gyarados and Aidan’s Wartortle dove under the water before the attack could hit them. The hovercraft then shot out a giant net which captured the Squirtle, Wartortle, Blastoise, and Gallade.

“NO!” I shouted.

“If at first you don’t succeed…” Ashley started.

“…bring a bigger net!” Olson finished. They then laughed as they flew away.

“We’ve gotta go after them!” Mark said.

“But how will we catch up to them?!” Alexis asked.

“We split up! Mark and Lexi, follow on land! Aidan and I will go around and trap them!” I said.

“Good idea!” Aidan noted as Gyarados and Wartortle popped up out of the water.

“Be careful!” Alexis said as she and the others went off.

“Ready?” I asked.

“Ready!” Aidan replied. We then got on our respective Pokémon and sped toward the other edge of the island. We dodged tons of boulders as we went, and eventually made it. “Okay, we’ll need perfect timing on this one!” Aidan said to me.

“Got it,” I responded.

“One…” Aidan said, watching Team Rocket move in our direction.

“C’mon…” I said anxiously.

“Two…” Aidan said as he got on Gyarados’ back and Wartortle got on Gyarados’ head.

“Okay, Gyarados…” I said.

“Gyar…” Gyarados replied, just as anxious.

“THREE!” Aidan shouted. Wartortle hopped up.

“Gyarados, Hydro Pump!” Gyarados fired a Hydro Pump to launch Wartortle high into the air and onto Team Rocket’s hovercraft.

“What in blue blazes-?!” Ashley said, startled.

“Wartortle, use Aqua Tail!” Wartortle’s tail emitted a light and erupted into a whirlpool that damaged the hovercraft.

“Wow, that’s a handy attack!” I said.

“Thanks, but you’ve never used it before?” Aidan asked. “Gyarados can use it as well!”

“Really? Gyarados, try out an Aqua Tail!” Gyarados used Aqua Tail to knock Ashley and Olson into some trees.

“That’s just not right, double-teaming us!” Ashley said.

“Look out!” Olson said.

“Grovyle, Bullet Seed!” Alexis said. Grovyle launched a Bullet Seed at Team Rocket.

“Empoleon, Hydro Cannon!” Empoleon launched a Hydro Cannon at the same time as the Bullet Seed. It sent the two sailing toward Wartortle.

“Wartortle, Iron Tail!” Wartortle slammed them toward us with an Iron Tail.

“Gyarados, let’s finish this up! HYPER BEAM!” Gyarados intercepted Team Rocket with its Hyper Beam, causing them to go into the sky again.

“NOOO! WE’RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!!!” they shouted as they disappeared into the distance.

“Great job, everyone!” Aidan said. “Now let’s get those Pokémon out of there!” With that, we freed Gallade and the firefighting squads from the nets.

“Gallade, are you okay?” I asked.

“Gallade!” Gallade said, relieved.

“Gyarados, Wartortle, thank you guys for your help! You two make a great team!” I said.

“Gyar?”

“Tortle?”

The two looked at each other, grinned, and high-fived with their tails.

“Thank you all for your help! We won’t forget this! I sure wish Gyarados could stick around as a Pokémon firefighter after seeing what it can do!” Aidan said, shaking my hand.

“Well, you may get your wish here and there!” I said, then explained Gyarados’ condition to him.

“That’s…that’s horrible! But I’m glad the Orange Islands can sustain it!” Aidan said, shocked to learn about Gyarados.

“Maybe it can help fight fires from time to time!” I said.

“Gyar...Gyar!” Gyarados pondered, seeming to like the sound of that.

And so, having assisted in the rescue of the Wartortle and the other firefighting squad, we gained new experience as well as a new friend and rival for Gyarados. I knew that Gyarados would have to stay here, so I knew I had to make its future a bright one, no matter how little I’d be a part of it. After that, we set out, ready to continue through the Orange Islands.
 
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Chapter 122: Fish in the Sea Ruby Badge

After a day of traveling south, we finally made it to Navel Island, the site of my second Gym battle.

“Thanks, Gyarados! Take a break!” I said. Gyarados nodded and swam off.

“Okay, we’re here. So where’s the Gym?” Alexis asked.

“Hmm, from what I understand, this island’s Gym doesn’t have a specific place. So I wonder where you go!” Mark answered.

“You come with me!” a voice said. We turned around to see a guy with short, brown hair, a red shirt with Geodude patterns, and shorts.

“And you are…?” I asked.

“Whoa,” Alexis and Mark said.

“The name’s Danny. I live around these parts! I assume you’ve come to Navel Island to challenge the Gym?” Danny asked.

“That’s right! I’m Mike. Nice to meet you!” I said, shaking his hand.

“Good to see a friendly challenger! That’s something we haven’t gotten for a while!” Danny said, smiling.

“And I’m Alexis! It’s really-really-REALLY nice to meet you!” Alexis said, enamored with him.

“Lexi, are you doing what I think you’re doing?” I asked.

“He’s just so cool-looking; what would you expect?” Mark said to me. “Oh, and I’m Mark, Michael’s brother!”

“Good to meet you all! Well, let me take you to the Gym!” We followed him to a gate near the mountain in the middle of the island. “You two, take that tram over there! Mike, you and I must go up the mountain on our own!”

“On…our own?” I asked. “Wait, does that mean…”

“That’s right! I’m the Gym Leader of the Navel Island Gym!” Danny said. “And this is your qualifying round!”

“See y’all up there!” Mark said.

“Good luck, you two!” Alexis added.

“All right! Here we go!” Danny said. We started our trek up the mountain. It was easy at first, but as the snow started to gather near the top, it got colder and colder.

“Man, it’s really cold up here!” I said.

“You think? What with all the training I do, I adjust to any types of weather! This is like a summer’s breeze!” Danny said.

“Man, Alexis could learn a lot from you,” I said.

“She wants to become a Gym Leader?”

“Yup. That’s why she’s travelling with me; to get experience.”

“So that’s it. Huh, I could’ve sworn you two were in love or something,” Danny said, grinning.

“What?! Well…yeah, that’s…another reason,” I said, frazzled. “Brrr...I wish there was something I could do to heat things up a little!” At that, my scar burned, and a yellow dome formed around us.

“What is this?!” Danny asked, surprised.

“Oh, man. Okay, this scar I have affords me supernatural powers. This dome is apparently one of them. But what’s convenient is I don’t feel cold anymore!...this isn’t against the rules, right?” I asked.

“Technically, no; you have to make it to the top without Pokémon, and your scar isn’t a Pokémon…I think,” he said suspiciously. I shuddered. “Hahah! Just kidding. But anyway, we’re almost to the top, so it’s fine!”

“Well then, I guess I don’t need this,” I said as I willed the dome to dissipate. I then told him how I got the scar as we got to the top.

“Wow, you’ve been through a lot on your journey, haven’t you?” Danny asked, awed by my story.

“Yeah, but having all of my friends around makes it worth it,” I replied. “Speaking of which…”

“Hey, guys!” Alexis called out.

“At the risk of sounding cliché, what took you so long?” Mark asked sarcastically.

“Okay! Let’s start things over here!” Danny said, going to a spot without snow. “Here’s how the Gym challenge works: we will compete in a series of three challenges. The first to win two out of the three will win! The first challenge will start in a couple of minutes.”

“Why not now?” I asked.

“The first challenge involves these two geysers! We are to freeze them with our Pokémon who can use Ice Beam!”

“What?! Oh man, I don’t have a Pokémon with Ice Beam!” I said.

“Wait! Golduck can learn it!” Mark pointed out.

“But I haven’t taught it that! I taught it Blizzard instead!” I said.

“Here! I’ll give you-” Alexis started.

“Hold on! I think Golduck’s Blizzard will be able to freeze the geyser!” Danny interrupted.

“Well, okay. Sounds fair enough. Come on out, Golduck!” I said.

“Nidoqueen! Let’s go!” Danny said, sending out a Nidoqueen.

“Ooh! It looks so tough!” Alexis said, fawning both Danny and Nidoqueen.

“*sigh* Okay. Ready, Golduck?”

“Duck!” Golduck said, pumping his fist.

“Ready…” Danny said. Just then, the geysers popped up. “Nidoqueen, Ice Beam!”

“Golduck! Blizzard!”

The two Pokémon fired their ice attacks and began to freeze the geysers. Since Golduck’s attack was stronger, it moved a little faster than Nidoqueen’s, but just barely.

“All right! Keep it up, Golduck!” I said. However, Golduck’s attack was starting to weaken a little bit.

“Nidoqueen, keep going! You’re doing good!” Danny encouraged.

“C’mon, Golduck!” I said. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to win; Nidoqueen froze the geyser first. However, what was interesting was that my frozen geyser was thicker than Danny’s, which made me wonder whether or not that would give me an advantage.

“Danny and Nidoqueen have won the first challenge!” Mark announced.

“Okay! Great job, Nidoqueen!” Danny said. “The next challenge is depicted right here!” he said, pointing to a sign. It looked like a sled made of ice.

“So we just chip away at the ice until it makes that sled?” I asked.

“That’s right! My three Pokémon will be Nidoqueen, Scyther, and Machamp!” he said organizing his three Pokémon. There was Nidoqueen, a Machamp, and a Scyther, a mantis-like Pokémon with sabers for arms.

“Okay! Golduck, you’re up again! Along with Girafarig and Gallade!” I said, sending out Girafarig and Gallade to join Golduck. Golduck and Girafarig blushed when they saw each other, realizing that they would be working together again (Deoxys told me that later).

“Okay! Ready, set, go!” Danny said. His team got to work; Nidoqueen used its horn, Machamp used two of its arms to hold and the other two to chop, and Scyther’s scythes sliced the ice.

“Let’s do this! Girafarig, use Psychic!” Girafarig used Psychic to hold the ice in the air and spin it around. “Golduck, Fury Swipes!” Golduck used Fury Swipes on the spinning ice, smoothing things out and getting the basic structure.

“Better hurry, Mike! We’re almost there!” Danny called a little later.

“You try it with ice larger than your opponent’s ice!” I retorted. “Gallade, Leaf Blade with a spin!” By this time, Girafarig was just holding the ice with Psychic and not spinning it around. Gallade spun around, using Leaf Blade to slash away at the ice, fine-tuning the structure to where it matched the picture. “Check!” I called. Mark checked, then nodded.

“Mike’s team of Gallade, Golduck, and Girafarig have won the second challenge!” he said.

“Great job, guys!” I said.

“Golduck!”

“Rig!”

“Gallade!”

“Excellent job, Mike! That’s one to one!” Danny said, coming over and recalling Nidoqueen and Machamp. “But now the real battle begins! You two, please take the tram back to the bottom!”

“Um, okay! Good luck!” Alexis said, then went off.

“Gah, I don’t have a good feeling about this,” I muttered.

“Endure it, bro,” Mark said to me, then went off.

“Now for the reason we built these sleds: to race! The final challenge is to race down the mountain in these sleds with a team of three Pokémon!” Danny explained, sending out his Geodude and an Electrode, a Pokémon resembling a Poke Ball.

“Hmm…” I said, thinking. As soon as I formulated everything, I recalled my three Pokémon and sent out Espeon, Metagross, and Deoxys. “Let’s do this, guys!” I said, getting in our sled.

“Espe!” Espeon said, getting in my lap.

“Meta!” Metagross added, getting on the back.

“This’ll be fun!” Deoxys said, getting in between me and Metagross. Danny had positioned Geodude, Electrode, then Scyther in his.

“Okay! Once the glimpse of the sun appears, we’ll begin!” Danny suggested. We then looked up to see the clouds. A few seconds later, a light shone.

“GO!” we shouted. Metagross and Scyther pushed us off and down.

“Okay, Espeon! Do your stuff!” I said.

“Espe!” Espeon said, then got to predicting. It then looked at me and nodded.

“Deoxys!” I said.

“Got it!” Deoxys said, then muned with Metagross. Metagross used its claws to move the sled to the left to avoid a boulder.

And so, we continued that for a while. I saw Danny up ahead, who was using Geodude and Electrode to weigh down the sled and Scyther to steer.

“Nice thinking, Mike! Having Espeon predict the future, then channeling the prediction from Deoxys to Metagross!” Danny said to me.

“You’ve got a great strategy, too!” I responded. “But let’s see who’s strategy wins this!”

“MIKE!!! LOOK OUT!!”

“ESPE!”

“Meta?”

“Wha-AAAAAAAGGHH!” I said just as we crashed into a boulder and flipped into the air.

“Sorry guys, but I’m going to win this! See you at the finish line!” Danny said, speeding ahead.

“Okay, we’re going to have to try something different,” I said.

“I think I might just have our solution!” Deoxys said.

“All right, let’s hear it.”

“First things first: let’s get back in the sled!” And so we did. “Now…AVALANCHE!” Deoxys fired an Avalanche at a part of the mountain, causing an actual avalanche to build up behind us. It picked us up and we rode it down. We were about three-fourths of the way down the mountain when we caught up with Danny.

“Hey, Danny! See YOU at the finish line!” I said, passing by him.

“What the-?! Hahahah! Nice strategy, Mike!” Danny said, surpised and amused. And so, we passed by him and through the finish line, landing in the sea.

“Guys, we did it! We did it!” I said, engaging Espeon, Metagross, and Deoxys in a group hug.

“Espe, Espeon!” Espeon said happily.

“Meta!” Metagross added.

“This has definitely been my favorite Gym Challenge!” Deoxys said.

“Heheh, you remind me of a challenger I faced a long time ago,” Danny said, coming out to us. “You’ve shown true creativity and won two out of three challenges!”

“Aw, shucks! It was all them!” I said, bringing out everybody. They all smiled and/or gave me thumbs-up.

“And it was that drive you shared with your Pokémon as well! I am honored to present you with the Sea Ruby Badge!” Danny said, giving me a badge that looked like a seashell with a green gem in the center of a red emblem.

“Thanks so much, Danny! WE DID IT! WE WON THE SEA RUBY BADGE!” I said as my Pokémon celebrated with me.

Later that day, after Mark and Alexis had gathered with us, we were about to shove off.

“Your next Gym should be the one at Trovita Island. Good luck, Mike!” Danny said.

“Thanks, Danny! I really enjoyed our battle!” I said.

“We enjoyed your company!” Alexis added.

“And how!” Mark agreed.

“Thank you all! Oh, and Mark! I hear that there are going to be two Contests going on at the Grapefruit Islands soon!” Danny said.

“Wait, really?! All right! I’ll win them for sure!” Mark said.

“Well, we’re off! Take care, Danny!” I said.

“You too!” Danny replied, waving us off.

I learned to expect anything after this kind of Gym Battle. And I’m sure that Alexis learned a lot more about Gyms in this experience. And so, with my second badge in hand, we headed forward into the future, ready for Mark’s upcoming Contests.
 
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Chapter 123: Garchomping at the Bit

“Moltres, Ancientpower!” Moltres fired an Ancientpower that nailed Umbreon.

“Umbreon, Faint Attack!” Umbreon leapt at Moltres with Faint Attack.

“Dodge and use Air Slash!” Moltres swerved out of the way and launched an orb of air at Umbreon, hitting it and knocking it out.

“Umbreon is unable to battle! Moltres is the winner, and victory in this match goes to Alexis of Littleroot Town!” I said.

“YEAH! That was awesome!” Alexis said.

“Molt,” Moltres said, nodding in agreement.

“Well, great job, Lexi,” Mark said, recalling Umbreon.

“Yeah! We can take on anybody! I’ll be a Gym Leader before you know it, at the rate I’m winning battles!” Alexis said, proud of herself.

“Y'know, it'd be better if you didn’t use Moltres for the LAST THREE BATTLES!” Mark snapped, irritated.

“Hey, don’t be like that!” Alexis said.

“…” I just stood there.

We had stayed a night on a deserted island near Navel Island, and Alexis had been challenging any Trainers she found there. The only problem was that the more she used Moltres to win, the bigger her ego got.

“Alexis, maybe you shouldn’t rely on Moltres so much. Don’t you believe in your other Pokémon?” Mark reasoned.

“Of course! I have faith they can win, but I KNOW Moltres can win! It’s a legendary Pokémon with amazing power! With that, I’ll never lose! Right, Mike?” Alexis said, turning to me.

“…” I said nothing and walked off.

“Mike?” Alexis asked as I left.

I just wandered to another side of the island. Deoxys popped out of its Master Ball.

“I’m guessing Alexis’ attitude is bothering you,” Deoxys said.

“Yeah,” I answered.

“Well, having a legendary Pokémon can do that to some people, I guess. However, I’VE lost before, so…” Deoxys said.

“But I think she forgets that even happened. We’ve gotta do something to make her see that she can’t win every time!”

“The only way to do that is to either find a strong enough opponent or fake a loss to somebody else. Or both.”

“That begs the question: can we find a powerful enough Trainer?”

“Mind if I take a stab at that?” a voice said. We turned to see a woman in black clothing and blonde hair.

“And you are…?” I asked.

“My name is Cynthia. I’m from Celestic Town in the Sinnoh region,” she answered.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Mike from Littleroot Town.”

“And I’m Deoxys!”

“Hello, you two. So, do you think I could challenge you two to a battle?” she asked.

“Um…”

This might just be the opportunity we’re looking for! Deoxys communicated to me through muning.

Good point! Okay, connect with Mark and tell him to come here! “Okay, Cynthia! I accept your challenge! One-on-one with no time limit!” I said.

“I like your confidence! Garchomp, go!” Cynthia sent out a Garchomp, a Pokémon that looked like a giant shark with limbs and fins for wings.

“Garchomp, huh? Okay! Ready, Deoxys?” Deoxys nodded, its aura having left me and gone to find Mark.

“Garchomp, start off with Stone Edge!” Garchomp fired a Stone Edge at Deoxys.

“Dodge and use Focus Punch!” Deoxys moved out of the way and launched a Focus Punch at Garchomp. It was then that Deoxys’ aura implanted into me again.

“Intercept with Brick Break!” Garchomp knocked Deoxys into the ground with Brick Break.

“What the-?!” I said, shocked.

“Ouch. That didn’t take much effort, did it?”

“Okay, we need to step it up, I guess! ZAP CANNON!” Deoxys changed into Attack Forme and launched a Zap Cannon. It did nothing. “Wha-?! Is it a Ground-Type?”

“That’s right. Sounds like someone hasn’t studied. Garchomp, use Thunderbolt!” Garchomp fired a Thunderbolt at Deoxys.

“Deoxys, Confusion!” Deoxys changed back to Normal Forme and used Confusion to reverse the attack. Unfortunately, it didn’t look like it did much at all.

“Care to try again?” Cynthia suggested.

“Mike!” Alexis called out as she and Mark came running up.

“Wha-wha-WHAAAAT?!” Mark shouted upon seeing Cynthia.

“What’s the big deal, Mark?” I asked. He fell to the ground.

“WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL?!? THAT’S CYNTHIA, THE CHAMPION OF THE SINNOH REGION!!!” Mark shouted.

“…uh-oh.”

“Hmhm, looks like I’ve been exposed,” Cynthia said, shrugging.

“Wow. I guess we can’t hold back anymore! Deoxys, use Extremespeed!” Deoxys adopted Speed Forme and moved at Garchomp with incredible speed.

“Garchomp, if you please!” Garchomp grabbed Deoxys with its claws.

“Oh no!” I said.

“Use Hyper Beam!” Garchomp nailed Deoxys with a close-range Hyper Beam, taking out its arm.

“Urgh, I don’t know how she’s able to read me!” Deoxys said as it regenerated its arm.

“Hmm…I have an idea. Go into Defense Forme.” And so it did.

“Garchomp, use Dig!” Garchomp went into the ground.

“Deoxys, use Protect!” I said. As soon as I said it and Deoxys whipped up Protect, Cynthia smiled slightly. I knew it, I thought.

“Knew what?! Hurry up, Protect is fading!” Deoxys shouted.

“Go back into Normal Forme and use Extremespeed!” Deoxys reverted back to normal and used Extremespeed to go into the air. Cynthia’s eyes widened a little bit as Garchomp leapt out of the ground and its Dig attack missed.

“What was that?!” Alexis asked.

“Yeah, I thought so! Cynthia knows how to read what Deoxys will do…depending on what Forme it’s in! So if we leave it at a form in which she’ll keep guessing, we’ll win this! Deoxys, use Rock Slide!” Deoxys created a Rock Slide to come down on Garchomp.

“Garchomp, use Stone Edge!” Garchomp’s Stone Edge cancelled out the Rock Slide, creating a cloud of dust.

“NOW! AVALANCHE!” I said. Deoxys, who zoomed out of the cloud at Garchomp, nailed it with an Avalanche, finally knocking Garchomp back.

“Impressive,” Cynthia noted. “Garchomp, use Hyper Beam!”

“Double Team…Type-2!” I said. Deoxys split up into clones that swarmed Garchomp and held it down.

“Rrgh…” Cynthia said, losing the confident front she’d had on the whole match.

“Now, close-range Avalanche!” I said. Deoxys launched another Avalanche that again did major damage to Garchomp. In fact, all of the clones that weren’t holding Garchomp down also used Avalanche to damage it. The clones dissipated, and Garchomp looked like it was on its last legs.

“All right! You’re going to win this for sure now!” Alexis said. It was then that I snapped back to reality.

“Deoxys! Finish it…with Focus Punch!” I said, hesitating. Deoxys flew at Garchomp, nailing it with Focus Punch.

“You’ve done well, Mike. But now it ends. Garchomp, Draco Meteor!” Garchomp grabbed Deoxys and launched it into the air, firing a giant orange ball after it. The ball exploded and sent meteor-like attacks all around us.

“DEOXYS!! NOOO!!” I said, seeing Deoxys fall to the ground. I ran over to it and held it up.

“Hey…partner…great job…” Deoxys said, passing out.

“Deoxys is unable to battle! Garchomp is the winner, and victory in this match goes to Cynthia of Celestic Town!” Mark announced.

“Wow…you’re extremely powerful,” I said to Cynthia. “Deoxys, you did great.”

“…urgh…thanks,” Deoxys replied, slowly getting back up.

“Mike, I can’t believe it,” Alexis said, coming forward. “You…lost with Deoxys?”

“…yeah. I guess so. She is a Champion, though,” I answered.

“…huh. I guess…that having a Legendary Pokémon doesn’t always guarantee victory,” Alexis said, thinking. She then walked off.

“Mission accomplished,” I said, high-fiving with Deoxys.

“Wait a minute. You lost on purpose?!” Mark inquired.

“Well, I was planning on it at first, but then I learned that she meant business, so…”

“But all in all, it was your plan to lose to me and Garchomp, wasn’t it?” Cynthia said. “If you had kept using Avalanche, the results could’ve been different. You could’ve won.”

“In a way, I did win,” I answered. “Besides, I doubt that even if we had fought at full strength, we would’ve won anyway.”

“You never know what the future holds. But I do hope that it holds a rematch…’when one life meets another life, something will be born…’” Cynthia said, then held out her hand. I looked at it in surprise, then smiled and shook it. She then shook hands with Deoxys. “I must return to Sinnoh. Oh, and it was nice seeing you again, Mark.” She then brought out her Gastrodon and left the island.

“…again?” I asked.

“Ehh, met her at the Grand Festival in Sinnoh,” Mark explained. “The important thing is you helped Alexis see the truth. I’m surprised, though; you’re her boyfriend, so I would’ve assumed you’d take her side!”

“I AM her boyfriend. And it’s my duty as her boyfriend-and as her friend-to keep her from making mistakes like getting an inflated ego. I love her too much to let her do stuff like that,” I replied.

“Yeah, doing that is YOUR job,” Mark said. I had Deoxys Hyper Beam him into the distance.

“Hey, where’s Mark?” Alexis asked as she came around, riding on Gyarados’ back.

“Dunno. Am I my brother’s keeper?” I asked, grinning. Deoxys and I fist-bumped as we went over to them.
 
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