Thread: Pokemon: Legend of the Blessed Aura (Southern Seas)

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Chapter 124: Go Teali on the Mountain

After some training and rest, we made it to the Grapefruit Islands, seven islands that were famous for their astounding grapefruit.

“There it is! Grapefruit Island Number 3!” I said, pointing to the island.

“I can’t wait to have some of the delicious grapefruit!” Alexis said.

“And I can’t wait to get add two more ribbons to my collection!” Mark said excitedly.

We disembarked on the island and made our way to the Contest Hall.

“Well, here we are. The Contest doesn’t start for another hour. What do we do?” I asked. I then looked to see Alexis holding two giant grapefruits. “…I mean, BESIDES the obvious.”

“Meh, let’s split up. I need to get changed,” Mark said, going off.

“I’ll let Mightyena share some of this with me!” Alexis said, getting out Mightyena.

“Good idea! Espeon, come on out!” I said, letting Espeon out. The four of us sat there for a while, eating grapefruit. “I doubt Mark’s ready for two consecutive Contests. Maybe he should…what?” I asked, noting Alexis giggling.

“You’ve got some on your face, silly!” Alexis said. Mightyena snickered.

“Whoops! Heheh,” I said, trying to get it off. Alexis took it off and then we laughed. We then kissed a little bit, then went back to eating grapefruit.

“So, you don’t think Mark’s up for two Contests?” Alexis asked.

“The idea might be new to him, so he might want to THINK a little before just rushing in.”

“Think second, act first!” a voice said. Just then, two robotic arms grabbed Espeon and Mightyena.

“NO! Espeon!”

“Mightyena! Grr, Team Rocket!”

“HAHAHAHAHAH! You runts just make this too easy for us!” Ashley said, laughing.

“We’ll leave you two lovebirds to your fruit!” Olson said, piloting the hovercraft upward.

“Get down here! Right now!” I shouted. Just then, a Shadow Ball came out of nowhere and blasted the hovercraft. Team Rocket, Espeon, and Mightyena fell into a thick, wooded area. We heard some grunting, then a shadowy figure that looked just like me came out, carrying Team Rocket in its arms. With it were Espeon and Mightyena, who ran back to us.

“Mightyena! I’m so glad you’re all right!” Alexis said, holding Mightyena.

“You too, Espeon!” I said. “But I wonder…who is that?”

“I’m nobody to be trifled with. That’s all you need to know,” the figure said.

“I see. Thanks for your help.”

“But my master and I want to know this: are the plums ripe?”

“What the f-” Alexis started.

“Master. Heh! Chris, I know you’re around! Come on out!” I called out.

“Heh, you’re good,” another voice said. Out came a rather tall person with long, brown hair and glasses. He was wearing a maroon polo shirt and was grinning. “Thanks, Zoroark.” As soon as he said that, the figure that looked like me transformed into a dark fox with a long, red mane.

“Wow,” I said, getting out my Pokedex.

“Zoroark, the Illusion Fox Pokémon. No available data.”

“No data? Where’s it from?” I asked.

“From the Unova region, my good friend,” Chris answered. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been doing great! It’s good to see you again!” I said, shaking Chris’s hand. Chris Graber was another one of Mark’s childhood friends and also a Top Coordinator. He won in Sinnoh, Hoenn, and the Unova region, a place far from where I knew. By this point, however, the Unova contests had been discontinued. “So, you entering the Contest?”

“You know it! I just need one more ribbon!” Chris said, showing me his ribbons.

“Nice job!” Alexis said. “You remember me, right?” she asked.

“…Little Lexi? Well, hel-LO! You’ve certainly grown up!” Chris said, eyeing her creepily.

“And we’ll be having none of THAT,” I said, pushing him away. “Let’s just get to the Contest.” And with that, we left for the Contest Hall.

“Hey, Chris!” Mark said backstage in his Sephiod costume.

“Hey! That’s The Great Teali to you!” Chris said, dressed like a mad scientist.

“Oh, sorry!” Mark said.

“You guys made these names up together, didn’t you?” Alexis asked.

“They did it while picking names on pieces of paper. Actually, they had me do it because they accidentally ended up in the trash,” I said.

“Oh, it wasn’t THAT uncomfortable. Oh, I’m on!” Mark said, going out.

“And now, without further ado, here’s our first Coordinator of the day: the Great Sephiod!” Anne, the MC, said. Mark went out.

“Aerodactyl! Let’s do this!” Mark said, sending out his Aerodactyl, an ancient Pokémon.

“Aerodactyl?” Alexis asked, getting out her Pokedex.

“Aerodactyl, the Fossil Pokémon. Equipped with saw-like teeth, it is a savage Pokémon that lived in ancient times. It was resurrected from DNA extracted from amber.”

“Aerodactyl! Use Rock Slide!” Aerodactyl created a Rock Slide. “Now use Steel Wing!” Aerodactyl’s Steel Wing sliced through the rocks to where they were progressing from small to large. Aerodactyl then flew to the smallest one. “Finish up with Giga Impact!” Aerodactyl smashed through the rocks with no effort at all, even as they got larger.

“An impressive display of power and skill! That’s the Great Sephiod, ladies and gentlemen!” Anne said.

“Nice job!” I said when Mark got back.

“You did awesome!” Alexis added.

“Impressive,” Chris said. Later on, they called for Chris to go up.

“And here’s the Great Teali! Go!” Anne announced.

“Dusknoir! Onstage!” Chris sent out a Dusknoir, a bulky ghost Pokémon, and the evolved form of Dusclops. “Start off with Trick Room!” Dusknoir created a square of light around the stage. “Now use Will-O-Wisp!” Dusknoir, with incredible speed, sent Will-O-Wisps to each corner of the Trick Room. “And now use Focus Punch!” Dusknoir zoomed around the Trick Room, smashing the Will-O-Wisps with Focus Punch. “And finish up with Psychic!” Dusknoir used Psychic to gather the Will-O-Wisps to its stomach, making the face on its stomach look like it was on fire, making the audience shudder.

“A frightening finish, and very creative! Let’s hear from our judges!” Anne said.

“Quite an impressive tactic, using Trick Room to increase its speed!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Dusknoir’s strength is simply remarkable!” Sukizo said.

“I was impressed by Dusknoir’s mastery of such tactics, and was surprised by such a finish as that! Excellent!” Nurse Joy said.

“And that’s the Great Teali!” Anne said. We congratulated Chris when he got back.

“Thanks for your much-deserved praises!” Chris said. “Ready to do this, Mark?”

“You know it!” Mark said. Sure enough, he and Chris passed the prelims and battled their way to the finals.

“And here it is: a rival match! The Great Teali to my right, and The Great Sephiod to my left! Begin!” Anne said. The five-minute timer started.

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

“Dusknoir, let’s go!” Chris said, sending out Dusknoir.

“Aerodactyl, Giga Impact won’t work on a Ghost-Type! Start off with Rock Slide then Steel Wing!” Aerodactyl created a Rock Slide then launched it at Dusknoir with Steel Wing.

“Dusknoir, Shadow Sneak!” Dusknoir crept into a shadow, sped over to Aerodactyl, and punched it from below, docking Mark a few points.

“Aerodactyl! Use Crunch attack!” Aerodactyl used Crunch to grab onto Dusknoir’s hand, costing Chris some points.

“Heh, the doctor has a cure for everything! Thunderpunch!" Dusknoir’s Thunderpunch activated, throwing Aerodactyl off and paralyzing it. Mark lost several more points.

“Aerodactyl! Try using Air Cutter!” Aerodactyl fired several Air Cutters at Dusknoir.

“Something’s up! Mark’s just not playing at the top of his game today!” Alexis said. “You know what’s up?”

“Hmm...the ceiling?” I joked, earning a punch to the face from Alexis.

“Dusknoir, Shadow Sneak!” Dusknoir crept into its shadow to dodge, taking a couple more of Mark’s points.

“All right! Use Earthquake!” Aerodactyl slammed the ground for an Earthquake, causing Dusknoir to fly out and taking more of Chris’s points. “Yeah! Dusknoir can use Levitate, but not while it’s IN the ground!”

“You catch on quick! But your Pokémon is about to catch something worse! Use Curse!” Dusknoir glowed and sort of keeled over, but Aerodactyl began to glow with the same dark light.

“Oh, no! I knew this was coming!” Mark said.

“What does Curse do?” Alexis asked.

“It’s an attack that works differently. With non-Ghost Pokémon, it increases stats, but with Ghost-Types, it takes some of the user's strength and puts a curse on the opponent! Aerodactyl’s going to lose power until it can’t battle anymore!” I said. Then it hit me. “Of course! Mark knew this was coming! He couldn’t think straight because he wanted to end this ASAP!”

“Oh, man! Come on, Sephiod! Finish this up quick!” Alexis cheered.

“…oh, wait! DUH! Aerodactyl! Use Foresight!” Aerodactyl sent out a red beam from its eyes that hit Dusknoir, causing it to become vulnerable to Normal-Type moves. Chris lost some more points.

“Dusknoir, use Psychic!”

“Aerodactyl, quick! Use Dig!” Aerodactyl dove into the ground before Dusknoir could grab it with Psychic. “Now! Combine it with Giga Impact!” Aerodactyl came out of the ground, ramming Dusknoir with Giga Impact, taking a ton of Chris’s points. Unfortunately, Curse had taken out many more of Mark’s points, so the two were down to about a fourth left.

“That was impressive! Combining a series of attacks to make non-damaging moves powerful and effective! What a tremendous comeback by the Great Sephiod!” Anne said.

“Dusknoir, let’s finish this up with the Elemental Punch!” Chris said.

“What the hell?!” I said.

“It works like this: Fire Punch, Ice Punch, Thunderpunch, and Shadow Punch all at once! GO!!” Dusknoir sent out a Shadow Punch with electricity, ice, and fire spiraling around it. The attack collided with the immobilized Aerodactyl, causing an explosion. When it cleared, Aerodactyl was knocked out, so the judges buzzed it out.

“And with that, The Great Teali and Dusknoir have defeated the Great Sephiod and Aerodactyl! And this year’s First Grapefruit Island Contest winner is the Great Teali!” Anne said. As the audience went wild, Chris and Dusknoir did a fist pump into the air together. Mark just picked up Aerodactyl and encouraged it. It seemed that after our battle, he’d become a little more accustomed to losses.

“Mark, you did great!” Alexis said to him after the Contest.

“Yeah. You’ve definitely got the skills to win!” I added.

“Yeah, thanks guys. We’ll do better next time,” Mark said, downhearted.

“Dude, I’ve gotta jet,” Chris said. “You’ve come a long way! But we’ll see who’s better in the Grand Festival! See you on Mandarin Island North!” Chris said.

“I’ll be there! Just wait: there’s another Contest today! And I’ll win it!” Mark retorted.

“I’m expecting no less from you, pal!” Chris said, shaking hands with Mark. He then left.

And so, with a third rival to add to the mix, the Grand Festival seemed like it would take a while to get to. However, we all knew that Mark had the skills to beat anyone in his way.

Chapter 125: It’s Delightful, It’s Delicious, It’s De-Luvdisc

Although Mark had just lost to Chris in the first Grapefruit Island Contest, he remained confident that he’d earn the one at the second Grapefruit Contest on island number 6.

“Man, I just don’t know if I can win this!” Mark said worriedly.

“Hey, which Pokémon do you think you’ll use?” I asked.

“I think I’m going to have to go with Mew. It’s got great appeal!” Mark answered.

“God forbid I use a legendary Pokémon, but YOU can use it?” Alexis asked sarcastically.

“…sorry.”

At last, we’d made it to island number 6. As soon as we stepped off, we saw a boat with a blue Pokémon with a spiked shell on its back pulling it. On it was Chris, to our surprise, and following them was a giant bird-like Pokémon with brown and white marks and a red mark on its head.

“Hey, guys! I changed my mind; I wanted to see this Contest before I left!” Chris said, disembarking. “Look, I got a good trade: my Dusknoir for this one person’s Staraptor!” he said, noting the bird that landed next to him.

“Well, nice Staraptor! And it looks like you completed our ancient trio with Omastar!” Mark said.

“Ancient trio?” I asked, getting out my Pokedex.

“Omastar, the Spiral Pokémon. This extinct Pokémon is believed to have used its sharp fangs to break through the shells of its prey in order to feed.”

“Ohh, so that’s what you meant!” Alexis said.

“Yup! We were all digging for fossils in Sinnoh and we each found one! Then we revitalized and trained them! Mark here got Aerodactyl, I got Omanyte, and Sean got Kabuto! Interestingly enough, we all got Sinnoh starters as well!” Chris said, sending out his Torterra.

“Ah yes. How great to see that Pokémon,” I said sarcastically, thinking of Paul’s Torterra.

“So thanks to Pokemon like those, we’ve always been connected! And we each have won three Ribbon Cups, so this is our tiebreaker! But in the meantime, I don’t see why I can’t support Mark and his attempt to CATCH UP!” Chris explained.

“Hey, I’ve been busy!” Mark argued. “And I’m not just gonna catch up, I’m gonna win!!”

“Yeah, we’ll just see!” Chris said. “Besides, you can’t expect to win unless you sign up!”

“Gah! Thanks for waiting until now to tell me!” Mark said, running off.

“I don’t envy him at all. With such rivals for the next Ribbon Cup, Mark’s going to have a hard time!” I said.

“Yeah, right?” Alexis agreed.

“So…what’s the story with you?” Chris creepily asked Alexis.

“Uhhhhh…” Alexis stammered, grabbing my hand. Chris just gave me “the look”, then grinned and turned away.

“He scares me,” Alexis said.

“That’s just what Chris does. Don’t worry about it,” I said. “Hell, he’s the reason for that period of time I did it to you, remember?”

“You were being CUTE,” Alexis said, giving me a peck.

“Hey! I tried really hard at that!” I said, following her to the Contest Hall. Just then, a Luvdisc jumped in front of me. “Huh?”

“Sorry! My Luvdisc tends to find couples to share good tidings!” a guy said, picking up the Luvdisc. “That’s in their nature, but my Luvdisc here takes it to the extreme!”

“Oh, that’s okay! It’s actually quite flattering. I’m Mike,” I said to the guy.

“I’m Austin!” he said, shaking my hand. “Well, I’ll see you in there!”

“Huh?” He and Luvdisc left. “Interesting,” I mused.

The Contest started later on. We wished Mark well as he was called up.

“Here’s a Sinnoh favorite: the Great Sephiod! Go!” Anne said.

“Okay, Mew! Action!” Mark said as he sent out Mew. “Use Aura Sphere!” Mew fired Aura Spheres in all directions. “Now stop them!” Mew created its pink bubbles to stop the attacks in place. “Now use Psychic!” Mew’s Psychic moved the attacks towards it. “Use Metronome!” Mew used Metronome.

“What?! That’s quite a gamble!” Chris exclaimed.

“Too late!” Alexis said. Mew used Metronome to use Rapid Spin. Its tail flipped out and hit the bubbles, causing them to bounce away and then back into Mew. They collided, and pink bursts came with the blue explosions. Mew popped up with a smile on its face and landed on Mark’s shoulder, at which point they took a bow.

“Wow! That was amazing!” Anne said. “Let’s go to the judges!”

“Mew’s Metronome was a high risk with an even higher return!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Indeed! Simply remarkable!” Sukizo said.

“Mew’s cuteness never faded for a minute! I was so enamored with it!” Nurse Joy added.

“And that’s the Great Sephiod, people! Now for the next contestant: Austin! GO!” Anne said.

“Austin?!” I exclaimed.

“AUSTIN?!” Mark said as he came back.

“Austin?” Alexis and Chris asked, confused.

“Mark, how do you know him?” I asked.

“I met him back in Hoenn. He and I spent some time travelling, and he kept emphasizing on his Luvdisc to the point of annoyance. I left when I learned you were near Lilycove City, but we didn’t exactly leave on the best of terms!” Mark said worriedly.

“Luvdisc, let’s go!” Austin said, sending out Luvdisc. “Use Captivate!” Luvdisc’s Captivate won over the crowd. “And now use Sweet Kiss!” Luvdisc sent out a Sweet Kiss to add a layer to the Captivate. “And finish up with Attract!” Luvdisc’s Attract had little hearts surround the Captivate/Sweet Kiss. Just then, Luvdisc jumped in the middle of it all, taking it down to the ground and standing on its mouth, which made Luvdisc look like a three-layer heart with more hearts coming from it.

“Simply beautiful! Let’s hear from the judges!” Anne said.

“Luvdisc’s body made it the perfect addition to that combination!” Mr. Contesta noted.

“Quite right! It was truly remarkable!” Sukizo added.

“Luvdisc just made me fall in love, pardon the pun!” Nurse Joy finished.

“And that’s Austin, everyone! Let’s move on!” Anne said.

“Wow, that IS kind of annoying,” I said. “But hey, if it ain’t broke…”

“That’s kinda the point: it IS broke,” Mark said.

“Hello there, Mark. Ooh, I mean ‘The Great Sephiod!’” Austin corrected, snickering.

“Right. Hey, Austin. We’ll settle this today,” Mark said.

“We sure will. I’ll make you pay for just ditching me back in Hoenn!” Austin exclaimed.

“Whoa whoa whoa. You mean that the reason for your falling out is because you two split up?! And just because of Mark’s dislike of Luvdisc?!” I inquired.

“Pretty much,” Mark answered.

“…okay, whatever,” I said, exasperated.

Pretty soon, Mark and Austin climbed their way to the final match.

“And here’s the final stage! The Great Sephiod and Austin are here and ready to win the Ribbon! 5 minutes on the clock…and…GO!” Anne announced.

“Mew! Action!” Mark said, sending Mew out.

“Luvdisc, let’s do this!” Austin said, sending out Luvdisc. “Start off with Water Pulse and Sweet Kiss!” Luvdisc sent out a heart-shaped Water Pulse. Mark lost some points.

“Mew, use Confusion!” Mew grabbed the attack with Confusion, then spun in place until it flung the attack back, making it look like its tail was doing it. Not only did it hit, but Austin lost points.

“Luvdisc, don’t take that! Use Ice Beam!” Luvdisc formed a heart with its Ice Beam, taking a few more of Mark’s points away. “Now use Water Pulse!” Luvdisc’s Water Pulse broke the heart and sent ice shards all around Mew.

“Mew, use Bounce and Psychic!” Mew bounced off the ground, taking the ice shards with it with Psychic. It looked like a stream of sparkles following Mew’s jump, so Austin lost many points. Mew then bounced onto Luvdisc, showering it with the ice and taking away more of Austin’s points.

“Wow, that was awesome!” Alexis said.

“Can’t you just feel the love?” I joked.

“Oh, that’s just me. Sorry,” Chris said.

“Mew, let’s wrap this up! Silver Wind!” Mew used Silver Wind to nail Luvdisc, taking more of Austin’s points. “And now, use Transform!” Mew glowed, then transformed into Luvdisc. “Now, use Ice Beam!” Mew’s Ice Beam froze Luvdisc and the Silver Wind, creating a gorgeous shimmer. This took away the last of Austin’s points.

“And with that, The Great Sephiod and Mew have defeated Austin and Luvdisc, making The Great Sephiod this year’s winner!” Anne announced. The Contest Hall went wild as Mark hugged Mew.

“I can’t believe it. How could we have lost? Our love combo was perfect!” Austin said backstage.

“Had Mark ever talked about your strategy with you? I mean, in Hoenn?” I asked him.

“Yeah, that was right before he left. We argued about it, and he just stormed off,” Austin answered.

“I think that might be it. He was probably trying to tell you something!” Alexis suggested.

“Excuse me?”

“Look,” Chris started. “…Mark was trying to tell you that your combo WASN’T perfect. He needed you to know that you needed work, but you were being too stubborn and absorbed into the theme of your idea to take what he said to heart. Nothing’s perfect, but we all have to work to being as close as we can.”

“…..I see. Luvdisc, I’m sorry,” Austin said apologetically.

“Luvdisc,” Luvdisc said, shaking its head and smiling.

“I guess things are worked out now?” Mark said as he came back.

“Yeah. I’ve got some work to do. Until we meet again, Sephiod,” Austin said, leaving with Luvdisc. Luvdisc, before it left, gave a happy nod to me and Alexis, causing us to blush.

“Well, great job! I’ll be waiting for you at the Grand Festival!” Chris said to Mark. “And you two!...too.”

“Take care, Chris,” I said.

“See you soon,” Alexis added half-heartedly.

“Be ready!” Mark said. Chris then left.

“Well, great job!” I said to Mark.

“Thanks! ALL RIGHT! WE WON THE GRAPEFRUIT RIBBON!” Mark said, holding out a pink ribbon.

“Mew, Mew!” Mew added happily.

“All right! Let’s trek on!” Alexis said. And with that experience over, that’s just what we did.

Chapter 126: Don’t Make Me Bagon

After Mark’s third Contest win, our next Orange Island stop was Kinnow Island. Since Mark’s next Contest was taking place in a week on Murcott Island, the southernmost island of the Archipelago, we would go island hopping until then, training. We had finished training for the day, so we were taking a lunch break.

“Well, this island seems to be quite lively,” I said, seeing all the wild Pokémon around.

“Yeah! But it’s real peaceful, too!” Alexis added.

“Then the sudden change is going to be our fault,” Mark said, pointing to Girafarig and Seadra.

“Rig, rig rig!” Girafarig shouted.

“DOO! Doo Doo doo!” Seadra argued back.

“Deoxys? Care to translate?” Mark asked.

“Forget it. I just don’t care anymore,” Deoxys said.

“So we’re to figure it out on our own?” I asked.

“I’m just tired of getting involved with their pointless bickering. It’s pretty obvious what the situation is.”

“Yeah, that’s true. Golduck, they’re at IT again, aren’t they?” Alexis asked.

“Golduck…” Golduck said, nodding.

“Figures. Well, we’ve got to find some way to keep Girafarig and Seadra on good terms!” I said.

“There’s no way that’ll happen as long as they both love Golduck,” Mark said.

“Golduck?! GOLDUCK!” Golduck shouted, running over and pushing Girafarig and Seadra out of the way. It then got grabbed by a tentacle. Out of the water came a robotic Tentacruel with a red R on it.

“Gah! Team Rocket!” I shouted.

“Sorry to break up this lovers’ quarrel, but we’ll be taking all of your Pokémon!” Ashley said.

“Our robo-Tentacruel will ensnare them all and we’ll whip ‘em back to the boss!” Olson added.

“HAHAHAHAHAHA-huh?!” they laughed, then stopped as a figure jumped into the sun. It was a small, dragon-like Pokémon with a shell on its head, and it came down on the robotic Tentacruel with a Skull Bash.

“HEY! Keep your heads to yourself!” Ashley shouted. “Armaldo, come out and use Water Pulse!” She sent out Armaldo, who used Water Pulse. The Pokémon dodged and hit Armaldo with Dragonbreath.

“Vaporeon, use Ice Beam!” Olson said as he sent out Vaporeon. It used Ice Beam, but the Pokémon’s Flamethrower overpowered the attack and blasted Team Rocket. The Pokémon then used Dragonbreath on the robot, causing it to explode.

“I TOLD you this plan was for the birds!” Ashley scolded.

“Just wait, we’ll be flying by some before you know it,” Olson said sarcastically.

“WE’RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!!!” they shouted, disappearing into the sky.

“Golduck!” I said as Golduck fell into the sea.

“Empoleon, go get it!” Mark said, and Empoleon swam out to the sea to get Golduck. Riding on top of it when it came back was the Pokémon that helped out.

“Oh, it’s a Bagon!” Deoxys said.

“A Bagon, huh?” Alexis asked.

“Golduck! You okay?” I asked.

“G-Golduck…” Golduck said, dizzy and rattled.

“Rig! Rig rig!” Girafarig said to Golduck worriedly.

“Doo…” Seadra said, its rage building.

“It’ll be okay; it just needs to rest,” Mark said. “In the meantime, we owe thanks to this Bagon!” Mark said.

“Bagon!” Bagon said. Our Pokémon all thanked it as well.

“Here, have some lunch with us!” I said, offering it some food. Bagon agreed and joined us.

“Team Rocket never seems to quit, huh?” Alexis stated.

“Yeah. Going from Gym to Gym is enough of a challenge without them causing us trouble. I mean, why stalk US?! There are plenty of Trainers out there to steal from!” I said.

“Well, I find it flattering that they’re after us. That just means they think highly of the quality of our Pokémon!” Mark said, beaming.

“O-kay…uh?” I said, looking at Bagon. Its eyes were fixed on the argument between Seadra and Girafarig. “Hey buddy, what’s up?”

“Bagon…” Bagon said, completely drawn into it.

“Deoxys?” I asked.

“Seems we might have a fourth wheel. Bagon’s developed a crush on Seadra!” Deoxys said.

“Oh, that’s so sweet!” Alexis said. “We should do everything we can to get them together!”

“It’s kind of confusing, what with the love going in all different directions, but yeah! Let’s try it!” I said.

“Hmph. We’re just getting more and more filler, aren’t we?” Mark said.

Later on, we were walking through the island, and Alexis had Seadra out. I motioned to Bagon, and Bagon came up, walking with us. It proudly walked ahead with a very distinct walk, right in front of Seadra. I looked to see Seadra’s reaction, but Seadra was looking upward. I motioned again, and Bagon used Skull Bash on a tree ahead, knocking tons of fruit down. Seadra was now looking to the right, so I buried my face in my hands.

“Okay, that didn’t work. Maybe if we-” I was interrupted by Team Rocket’s Tentacruel robot appearing on land again.

“We’re baaack!” Ashley said.

“And we’ve got a better GRIP on things now!” Olson added as the tentacles grabbed all of us.

“Oh no! I can’t reach my Pokeballs!” I said, struggling.

“Rrgh! Let us go!” Alexis shouted.

“No choice! Bagon, use Flamethrower!” Mark shouted.

“Bagon! Ba-GON!” Bagon said, shooting a Flamethrower at Team Rocket.

“Vaporeon, use Water Gun!” Vaporeon’s Water Gun overpowered the Flamethrower and did some damage to Bagon.

“That’s all the fire you’ve got? Armaldo, get it with Ancientpower!” Armaldo fired an Ancientpower at Bagon, doing a little more damage. Bagon landed on the ground, struggling to get up.

“Doo! Doo Doo!” Seadra said to Bagon. It then fired a Bubblebeam at Team Rocket, which did nothing. Bagon then looked like it got an idea.

“Bagon, Bagon! Bagon!” it said to Seadra, who looked surprised. Bagon then fired another Flamethrower at Team Rocket. Seadra then turned and picked up something that looked like a scale with its mouth.

“Is that…a Dragon Scale?” Mark asked. Seadra then began to glow with an intense light, becoming much taller and slimmer. When the light faded, it had significantly changed.

“Duwa!” it said, then fired a Dragonbreath at the robo-Tentacruel.

“Bagon!” Bagon said, then fired an additional Dragonbreath. The increased power caused the robo-Tentacruel to overheat and explode, freeing us.

“NOO! NOT AGAIN!!!” Team Rocket shouted as they blasted off once again.

“All right! Way to go, you two!” I said, getting free of the tentacle. However, Bagon was nowhere to be found.

“And now Alexis has a Kingdra!” Mark said.

“Wow, a Kingdra?” Alexis asked, getting out her Pokedex.

“Kingdra, the Dragon Pokémon. Kindgra is the final evolved form of Horsea. Kingdra sleeps on the uninhabited seafloor, and its yawns are powerful enough to create whirlpools.”

“Wow! That’s so awesome!” Alexis said.

Later, we introduced all our Pokémon to Kingdra, who was well-received. But then something unexpected happened.

“Golduck!” Golduck said happily, holding out its hand to Kingdra. Kingdra simply turned away, leaving Golduck confused.

“Duwa, duwa. Duwa.” Kingdra said.

“Uh, what are they saying?” I asked.

“It seems that since Kingdra’s evolution, it no longer has any interest in Golduck! Wow, never expected that,” Deoxys translated.

“Duwa,” Kingdra said, turning away and towards its Poke Ball. However, I saw a tear come out of its eye as it went inside.

“Golduck?”

“Yeah, it’s over.”

“Golduck!” Golduck said, breathing a sigh of relief. We all fell to the ground.

“Well, THAT should relieve some of the tension!” I commented.

“It just goes to show that you become more mature as you grow up,” Alexis said.

“Well, SOME of us more than others,” Mark joked.

“Shut your wordhole!” I shouted.

“I rest my case,” Mark said. “Well, let’s get moving!”

“I wonder if Bagon is all right. It really helped us back there, but it looked hurt,” Alexis said as she and Mark went to find Gyarados.

“Yeah, but Bagon’s a hardy one. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of it soon,” I said, my scar showing me a familiar Dragon Pokémon stalking us nearby. I just grinned and waved to it, then followed the others on our ever-continuing journey, but not before seeing it wave back.

Chapter 127: Expect the Onix-pected

Our next stop in the Orange Islands was Golden Island, where we decided to do some more training before Mark’s next Contest on Murcott Island.

“Okay, Girafarig! Use Thunder!” Girafarig fired a Thunder at Umbreon.

“Umbreon, use Psychic!” Umbreon’s Psychic caught the attack, whirled it around, and fired it right back.

“Girafarig, Mirror Coat!” Girafarig reflected the attack with Mirror Coat, but it did nothing to Umbreon. “GAH! I forgot about that.”

“That’ll cost you! Umbreon, Dark Pulse!” Umbreon nailed Girafarig with a Dark Pulse, knocking it out. "Good, solid strength triumphs again!"

“Girafarig is unable to battle! Umbreon is the winner, and victory in this match goes to Mark of Hearthome City!” Alexis announced.

“Man, that was a good battle!” I said to Mark.

“The same to you!” Mark said to me. “Now then, let’s go exploring for a little bit!”

We went to look through the island, and we kept seeing this one Meowth, a catlike Pokémon with a golden charm on its head. It was carrying some things called Rare Candies, vitamins that boosted a Pokémon’s level.

“Huh, I wonder where it’s taking those,” I said.

“Let’s follow it; that many Rare Candies must mean something,” Alexis suggested.

And so, we followed the Meowth until it reached an Onix. It looked weak and tired, and Meowth was stockpiling Rare Candies by it.

“What’s wrong with Onix?” Alexis asked. Just then, Deoxys’ aura popped up and Meowth saw us, looking unsure of what to do.

“It appears that Onix lost a fight to some other Onix and there’s a shortage of Sitrus Berries here, so Meowth is using its Pickup ability to gather Rare Candies to build Onix’s strength back up,” Deoxys said after examining Meowth and Onix’s minds.

“Well, that is just so sweet of you, Meowth!” Alexis said, stroking Meowth’s ears.

“Meooooowth…” Meowth swooned, clearly liking that.

“Maybe there’s something we could do to help? I mean, Rare Candy isn’t going to help heal Onix!” I said.

“You’re right. We need to get some Sitrus Berries. We’ll send Mew and Deoxys back to an island that’s northwest of here. That sound okay?” Mark asked as he brought out Mew.

“Mew!” Mew said eagerly.

“And you, Deoxys?”

“You can count on us!” Deoxys said as it came out of its ball. “Teleport!” Deoxys and Mew teleported away.

“So now all we can do is wait,” I said.

“Yup,” Alexis said.

“I heard that the people here worship Meowth, saying that the Meowth of Bounty would come and use Pay Day to bring them riches,” Mark said.

“Pay Day?” I asked.

“Meowth!” Meowth said to get our attention. “ME-OWTH!” Meowth fired several white balls into the air, and they then turned into coins and scattered all over the ground.

“Ahh…so THAT’S what Pay Day is,” I said, enlightened.

“Man, I wonder how long it’ll take the two of them to get back here!” Alexis said.

“Mew!”

“We’re back!”

“I guess not very long,” I answered.

“Okay, let’s give Onix these berries!” I said. We formed an assembly line, gathering the berries from the pile and giving them to Meowth, who administered them. Onix showed progress, as it slowly but surely got stronger. Soon, we’d given it all of the Sitrus Berries, and we waited to see what Onix would do. Suddenly, it reared up and roared into the air, stronger than ever.

“We did it!!” I cheered, as the others cheered with excitement as well.

“Oooon!” Onix said, thanking us for our help. Meowth got onto its head and pointed all of us toward the village, and then the two went off.

“Maybe we should follow them!” Mark said.

“That’s usually what that kind of motion means,” Alexis said.

“AAAAAAAA!!!” I shouted. In the place of the Rare Candies was our old friend Bagon, who breathed a sigh of content. “Bagon, you glutton!”

“Bagon!” Bagon said, oblivious to my scolding. I fell to the ground. At that, Bagon pulled me in the direction that Meowth and Onix were going.

Soon, we made it to the village, and by that time, Meowth had disappeared. The village elder came to us.

“This Onix…it was the one that didn’t come back!” the elder said. “We were training with all of our Onix, but this one lost the battle and got lost! I thought we’d never see it again!”

“Well, it was pretty weak, so it wouldn’t have been coming back anytime soon had it not been for the efforts made to help it!” I said.

“This is surely the will of the Meowth of Bounty!” one of the villagers said. They all went and bowed to a giant golden Meowth statue, thanking it.

“Oooon!” another Onix said. Our Onix’s kin had gathered around it, welcoming it back. However, a giant one went up to it and glared. The two stared at each other for a while until the elder stepped in.

“If you are going to fight, we must take you to the colosseum!” the elder said. With that, everybody went to their colosseum, where the two Onix were to square off. “GO!!!” With that, the battle began.

“This is cruel! Making them fight just for sport!” Alexis said.

“Not true; there’s another motive,” Mark said.

“That Onix lost, so it’s fighting to belong here. It’s fighting to discover its strength and its place,” I added.

“I see…Bagon?” Alexis asked, noticing Bagon’s abnormal motions.

“Ba…Ba…” Bagon said, choking on something.

“OOON!” our Onix said, suffering because of the big Onix’s Bind attack.

“There’s gotta be something we can do!” I said.

“We can't! It's hopeless!” Mark said. “Good, solid strength, remember?”

“BAAA!” Bagon said, coughing up a Metal Coat. It fell onto the field, where our Onix had fallen after a Rock Slide. It touched the Metal Coat as it came crashing towards us.

“WATCH OUT!!” Alexis shouted. Just then, Bagon used Dragonbreath to cushion Onix and send it flailing towards the other Onix, ramming its horn and causing it to come off.

“Whoa, thanks Bagon!” I said, relieved.

“Bagon!...gon?” Bagon said, then it emitted a bright glow. At the same time, both the Metal Coat and our Onix glowed. It grew in size and got spikes on sections of its body, and evolved into a Steelix. At the same time, Bagon got much larger and bigger, and when the glow faded, it looked like a giant shell with four limbs and two eyes.

“A double evolution?! There’s something you don’t see every day!” Mark said.

“Wow, a Shelgon!” Alexis said after consulting her Pokedex.

“Wow, look at that!” “It’s so huge!” “Thanks be to the Meowth of Bounty!” the villagers said.

“This Steelix has proven its strength! We would be honored to have you lead our Pokémon in our quest to find the Meowth of Bounty!” the elder said. Steelix bowed at this, humbled. The giant Onix went to it and bowed apologetically. Steelix extended its tail, which the Onix shook, making their peace known.

“Look at that! They made up!” Mark said.

“Shelgon, you did great!” I said to Shelgon.

“Shel!” Shelgon said, thanking me. It was then that I noticed the Meowth of Bounty out of sight from other people.

“Hey, why don’t you reveal yourself to the villagers?” I asked.

“Meowth meowth, Meowth!” Meowth answered.

“It says, ‘just like Steelix needed to realize its own power, so too do the villagers. Once they do, I will be there to fulfill my promise,’” Deoxys translated.

“Thank you, Meowth. You really HAVE brought bounty to us all,” I answered. Meowth nodded and left.

“Mike, who are you talking to?” Alexis asked.

“Uh, nobody! I’m just weird like that!” I answered. “C’mon, let’s go. I’m sure Gyarados is waiting!”

And so, having brought a new friend back from the brink, our resolve was much stronger as we continued our journey.

Chapter 128: Positively Gastly

Before getting to Murcott Island for the Contest taking place the next day, we decided to rest on Moro Island.

“Wow, this place is certainly a lively island!” I said, seeing people all around.

“Moro Island is most famous for its art museum, on par with that of the one in Lilycove City!” Mark explained.

“Cool! Let’s go there first! I’d love to see some beautiful paintings!” Alexis said, grabbing our arms.

“Okay, okay!” we said.

We went off to the museum and viewed all there was to view; paintings, sculptures, etc. I knew Deoxys had an eye for art like this, so I brought it out to join us.

“And if you’ll look to your right, you’ll see the Tin and Brass Towers like they were before Ho-oh burned the latter down,” Deoxys said, pointing us to a painting.

“That’s not even the half of it; it’s a wreck over there in Johto!” Mark commented.

“Ho-oh…” I said, thinking about that Pokémon I saw at Mt. Moon.

“Hey, what’s over there?” Alexis said, pointing to a blocked-off room with no lights.

“Hmm…” Deoxys said. It extended its aurora to see into the room, then came back. “That was an exhibit for an Orange League trophy belonging to a winner from over two hundred years ago, but due to an incident, it’s gone. However, it looks like they’re in development of a fake one; there was a fabrication in there.”

“The nerve! Making fake art! Well, I won’t stand for it! I’ll-” Alexis said before we clamped her mouth shut.

“Lexi, it’s about more than just art!” I said.

“It’s to inspire those who are aiming to win in the Orange League themselves!” Mark added.

“Oh. Well, still! The indignity of it all!” Alexis said, scowling. She really loved art, in case nobody could tell. Suddenly, there was the sound of glass breaking in that direction. We looked to see Team Rocket break in and steal the fabricated trophy.

“TEAM ROCKET!!” I shouted. At that, everybody screamed and ran out of the museum. “Me and my BIIIIIIIIIIIG mouth. Put that down!”

“Sorry, runt! This thing’s just way too valuable to let sit in a museum!” Ashley said.

“We’ll make millions!” Olson said, the dollar signs in his eyes flashing.

“Heh heh. Let’s just make it seem like we’re trying, but they get away with the fake!” Mark suggested, snickering.

“That’s fine by me; fabricated art doesn’t belong in a museum anyway!” Alexis concurred.

“The museum will probably get on my case, but what the hell,” I agreed. “Okay, Team Rocket! Let’s get it on! Espeon, showtime!” I said, sending Espeon out. “Try a Signal Beam!” Espeon fired a Signal Beam at Team Rocket.

“Gengar, Psychic!” Olson said, sending out Gengar. It used Psychic to reverse the attack and damage Espeon.

“Kingdra, use Whirlpool!” Alexis said, sending out Kingdra. It used Whirlpool and was about to launch it at Gengar.

“Jolteon, use Thundershock!” Jolteon came out, using Thundershock to negate the Whirlpool and damage Kingdra.

“This is our chance, Ashley! Let’s jet!” Olson said. The two then ran away.

“We won’t let you get away! Breloom, after them!” Mark said, sending out Breloom. “Use Mach Punch!” Breloom leapt at them with Mach Punch.

“Gengar, Psychic!” Gengar’s Psychic grabbed Breloom and flung it at Espeon and Kingdra. They then escaped through the ceiling. We chased them outside, but by then, they were about to fly into the sunset on their hovercraft.

“You can’t escape! Espeon, use Homerun Attack!” Espeon fired a Shadow Ball and knocked it towards Team Rocket with Iron Tail.

“Jolteon, Shadow Ball back!” Jolteon’s Shadow Ball cancelled out Espeon’s, but the explosion rattled their hovercraft a bit, causing Olson to drop the trophy.

“OH, NO! ORSON, YOU RETARD!!” Ashley screamed.

“C’mon, now you’re just doing it on purpose!” Olson snapped. “Gengar, get in there and grab that trophy!” Gengar chased after the trophy, but just then, a gigantic figure emerged from the sea. When it fully emerged, it was a ship, and the trophy was on the deck. Out of the ship came a Gastly, a floating gas Pokémon, and its buddy, Haunter. They both grabbed Gengar’s arms and playfully spun it around, much to Gengar’s confusion.

“Whoa, what are those Pokémon doing?” I asked.

“Maybe they like seeing a fellow Ghost Pokémon!” Mark said.

“Guys, while they’re distracted, we’d better get the trophy back!” Alexis said. Just then, Jolteon had cornered us.

“Gotcha now! Jolteon, Thunderbolt!” Jolteon was about to fire a Thunderbolt. Just then, a Flamethrower launched Jolteon onto the ship.

“Where’d that come from?!” Mark asked, confused.

“Shel!” a familiar voice called.

“Hey, it’s Shelgon!” I said, seeing Shelgon over a ways. “Thanks, buddy!”

“Shelgon!” Shelgon said, then started over to Kingdra, who just slowly backed away.

“Rotom, Thundershock!” Ashley and Olson shouted. All six Rotom had us surrounded and used Thundershock…or at least, they would have if Gastly and Haunter hadn’t started playing ring-around-the-rosie with them all.

“O…kay,” I said. “Deoxys, let’s go get that trophy!” I said.

“Yeah!” Deoxys said, lifting me into the air and onto the ship.

“I’ll take care of things down here!” Mark shouted. “Breloom, Thunderpunch!”

“Hey, wait!” Alexis shouted as she came up with Kingdra's Bounce. “I want to come as well!”

“All right, all right. Let’s go!” I said. We went down into the ship, but soon found ourselves followed by Shelgon. How it got onto the ship, I’ll never know. Soon, we made it into the captain’s cabin, where the real trophy was.

“That’s…that can’t be the real thing, can it?!” Alexis asked excitedly.

“It is,” I said, my scar glowing. “Apparently, it belongs to Gastly and Haunter,” I said, seeing the two of them enter.

“Gastly, Gastly!”

“Haunter, haunt!”

“And they’re saying…?” I asked.

“The trophy belonged to their master, a former Orange League Champion. They learned of the fabrication being stolen, so they thought they should help to keep the dream alive any way they could,” Deoxys translated.

“That’s very kind of you two,” I said. They smiled as they handed me the fabrication. Just then, there was a huge explosion upstairs, so we went out. Team Rocket was on the deck and Mark was nearly wiped out.

“No! We’ve got to do something!” Alexis said.

“Shel!” Shelgon said. It then ran over to Mark and glowed orange. It then fired from its mouth a Draco Meteor, which exploded and nailed all of Team Rocket’s Pokémon. Gastly and Haunter then hit Team Rocket with Night Shades, sending them into the air.

“You think we could fabricate an excuse for the boss?” Ashley asked.

“I’m thinking this whole thing is starting to seem phony!” Olson replied.

“TEAM ROCKET’S BLASTING OFF AGAIN!!” they shouted, disappearing into the sky.

Later that evening, we were seeing Gastly and Haunter off.

“Bye, you guys! Have fun sailing the seven skies!” I called.

“Be careful! That trophy is valuable!” Alexis added.

“Take care!” Mark said. The two waved at us as the ship flew away.

“I think I understand what you guys meant: the trophy may be fake, but the ideal is real,” Alexis said. “Mike, you’re going to be holding your own soon. I know it.”

“Thanks, Lexi,” I said, giving her a kiss.

“That’s very romantic, but let’s get going. I’ve got a Contest soon!” Mark said.

And so, having protected the spirit of the Orange League, our resolve to conquer it became ever stronger as our journey continued.

Chapter 129: Play it Cool

After a long trek, we finally made it to Murcott Island, the site of Mark’s next Contest. It was a heavy forest-like island, but it had a good-sized city.

“Well, here we are!” I said.

“Yeah! I wonder what the city’s like, and what the forest is like!” Alexis added.

“Or what kind of Pokémon live here!” Mark pondered.

“Mostly Bug-types; kinda like the Viridian Forest,” Sean answered.

“SEAN?!?” we shouted.

“Hey! What’s up?” Sean said, having come out of nowhere with Glaceon and a Roserade, a Pokémon with boquets for arms and a green body.

“Where’d you come from?” Mark asked, scared out of his mind.

“So, how many ribbons now?” Sean asked.

“Three! Here to get my fourth!” Mark replied. “So, we gonna face off?”

“Nah, most of my Pokémon are in the Center healing up, so I’m gonna sit this one out. Maybe one of those two could go for it instead?” Sean suggested.

“Sorry, I’ve hit my Contest quota for a while,” I replied.

“I’m guessing that’s because you don’t want me getting payback for the Tohjo Falls Contest,” Mark said, irritated.

“...say what?” Sean asked.

“You know what, I’ll take you on!” Alexis challenged. “I want to make you EARN that ribbon!”

“Huh, sounds like your relationship is making you two more and more alike,” Mark commented.

“Really?” Alexis and I replied.

“Case in point. All right, let’s do this!” Mark said confidently. He and Alexis then went off to register.

“*sigh* This will not turn out well. Say Sean, let’s meet up with-” I started, then stopped to see Sean in my face.

“Tell me what Mark just talked about a minute ago!” Sean said intensely. “Tohjo Falls on the where now?”

“Oh…uh, I kinda beat Mark in the Tohjo Falls Contest? Eheheheh…” I said, realizing that Sean hadn’t learned of what happened between me and Mark at the Tohjo Falls Contest.

“I can’t believe it!! I WASN’T the one to end his unbeaten streak?!” Sean exclaimed. “That’s it; after this Contest, we’re battling! There’s a deserted island southwest of here; we’ll go there and face off!”

“Yeesh! All right, all right!” I said, trying to get him out of my face. We then went into the Contest Hall and took our seats. Anne announced the beginning of the Contest, and then the Appeals round began.

“And now, here’s Alexis Jameson from Littleroot Town! Go!” Anne said as Alexis came out.

“Grovyle, let’s do this!” Alexis said, sending out Grovyle to the stage. “Start things off with Grasswhistle!” Grovyle used Grasswhistle, putting everybody into a trance. “Bullet Seed!” Grovyle fired a Bullet Seed into the air. “Go after them with Fury Cutter!” Grovyle’s Fury Cutter smashed each of the Bullet Seeds into pieces. “Finish this up with Dragon Pulse!” Grovyle fired a green ball of light at what was left of the Bullet Seeds, gathering them up. The Dragon Pulse exploded, sending sparkles of two shades of green everywhere, catching everybody’s attention.

“Way to go, Lexi!!” I shouted.

“Amazing! The Dragon Pulse created a shower of dazzling sparkles! Let’s hear from the judges!” Anne said.

“Grovyle’s speed and dexterity were quite impressive!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Indeed! Simply remarkable!” Sukizo added.

“That combination of attacks created such a wondrous sight that put me out of MY trance! I was so impressed!” Nurse Joy said.

“I dunno; Grovyle’s coolness factor is astounding, but I don’t know if the appeal was all that,” Sean said.

“Oh, lay off! She hasn’t had as much Contest experience as you!” I snapped.

“All right! And now for our next performer: The Great Sephiod! Go!” Anne said as Mark came out onstage.

“Breloom! Action!” Mark said, sending out Breloom. “Use Sky Uppercut!” Breloom jumped into the air with Sky Uppercut, spinning as it went. “Now use Headbutt!” Breloom spiraled into a downward Headbutt, slamming the floor. Its Effect Spore sent Sleep Powder about, unnerving the audience. “Now use Mega Drain!” Breloom sucked up the Sleep Powder into its head with Mega Drain in record time. At that, it folded its arms and grinned.

“And a cool pose to end it off! What a thrilling appeal! Let’s hear from the judges!” Anne said.

“A most impressive way to use Breloom’s special ability! What creativity!” Mr. Contesta said.

“Yes! Quite remarkable!” Sukizo added.

“Breloom was just ebbing coolness! I was on the edge of my seat!” Nurse Joy finished.

“And that’s the Great Sephiod! Let’s move on!” Anne said.

“You see that? THAT’S what I call coolness! It adeptly moves from move to move without changing its form at all, blah blah blah-” Sean went on.

“Dude, chill out! I get it!” I said, annoyed. We then snuck out to go backstage. “Way to go, Lexi! You too, Mark!” I said.

“Thanks, Mike!” Alexis said, high-fiving with me.

“You guys did good! But I’m still gonna win the Southern Seas Grand Festival!” Sean said.

“Let’s just wait and see; we’ve still got a ways to go,” Mark retorted.

“So, Grovyle! How are you liking Contests so far?” I asked Grovyle.

“Gro,” Grovyle shrugged, clearly indifferent.

“Heh, doesn’t seem to like it as much as Breloom!” Mark said.

“Breloom!” Breloom agreed.

“We’ll just see which one of them is cooler!” Sean said.

“What’s this about coolness? I think all of our Pokémon are cool!” I argued.

“I mean coolness in Contests. Sure, it’s about making your Pokémon’s moves look good, but the factor of coolness in your Pokémon is also vital to a good appeal! It’s not just coolness, but every Contest attribute there is!” Sean explained.

“Oh. Well, that may be, but…” I started.

“Yes, Grovyle is still cool, regardless.”

“I’m glad you feel that way.”

“And now, here are the results!” Anne announced. The top eight appeared on the screen, with Alexis and Mark included.

“All right! I made it!” Alexis said.

“Well, see you in the finals, Alexis!” Mark said, going off to his first match. Alexis struggled, but managed to win her way there, as opposed to Mark, who effortlessly defeated his opponents. “It’s the Great Sephiod against Alexis Jameson! Aaaaand…let the countdown begin!” The five-minute timer began.

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

“Grovyle, I choose you!” Alexis said, sending out Grovyle.

“Breloom, Mach Punch!” Breloom rushed forward with a Mach Punch.

“Grovyle, Quick Attack!” Grovyle rushed forward with a Quick Attack.

“Breloom, Energy Ball!” Breloom fired an Energy Ball at Grovyle, throwing it off balance. Breloom then nailed Grovyle with Mach Punch, ending on a cool pose. Alexis lost many points.

“Grovyle, use Pound!” Grovyle rushed forward with a Pound, but Breloom grabbed the leaf. “Now, hurry! Use Grasswhistle!” Grovyle grabbed the end of its leaf, still held by Breloom, and blew into it. The close-range Grasswhistle tune caused Breloom to become entranced. Mark lost some points.

“Oh, no! Breloom, wake up! Wake up!” Mark shouted. Unfortunately, Breloom wandered around in a trance, releasing Grovyle from its grip. Grovyle kept playing its leaf. It then played a different tune, almost folk-like. The two then began to dance together, costing Mark more and more points.

“Wow, what a dance! It certainly is a contrast to their usual demeanor, but wow!” Sean said.

“Ready to take back what you said?” I said.

“Fine, Grovyle and Alexis have talent.”

“Grovyle, let’s be fair! Go ahead,” Alexis said.

“Grovyle! Grovyle,” Grovyle agreed, getting the Blue Flute out. The tune it played woke Breloom up, and it just stumbled around in a daze. Mark lost more points.

“That’s some amazing sportsmanship! Grovyle used a Blue Flute to wake Breloom up, despite having the advantage!” Anne said.

“Wow. Um, thank you, Alexis,” Mark said.

“No problem! I don’t want this to be TOO easy!” Alexis said.

“Oh, you don’t need to worry about that! Breloom, use Force Palm and Energy Ball!” Charging up an Energy Ball, Breloom grabbed Grovyle with its hand. The hand then glowed green, and the two attacks nailed Grovyle with a bright green glow. Alexis lost more points, but Grovyle managed to get up.

“Grovyle, use Dragon Pulse!” Grovyle fired a Dragon Pulse at Breloom.

“Breloom, another Energy Ball!” Breloom’s Energy Ball cancelled out Dragon Pulse, costing both of the two points.

“Grovyle! Use Rock Slide!” Grovyle launched a Rock Slide at Breloom.

“Breloom, Dynamicpunch!” Breloom’s Dynamicpunch cancelled out the attack. Fortunately, Grovyle was hiding amongst it.

“NOW! FULL POWER QUICK ATTACK!” Grovyle slammed Breloom with a full-on Quick Attack, costing Mark some points. Breloom quickly got up, with it and Grovyle ready for more.

“TIME!” Anne said, the clock at zero. “And this year’s Murcott Island contest winner is…” The screen showed Mark and Breloom by a small margin. “…the Great Sephiod and Breloom! Congratulations!”

“Way to go, Breloom!” Mark said, fist-bumping with it.

“Breloom, Breloom!” Breloom said, returning the sentiment.

“Grovyle, I’m proud of you. You were so cool out there! And we almost won!” Alexis said to Grovyle.

“Grovyle,” Grovyle said, shrugging.

“You both did awesome!” I said, coming onstage and giving Alexis a hug.

“Thanks, Mike,” Alexis said, returning it.

“Not bad, buddy boy,” Sean said to Mark.

“Just wait, it’ll be even better when I get my next ribbon!” Mark said, “Speaking of which…” He then went to receive a red ribbon from Mr. Contesta. “ALL RIGHT! I WON THE MURCOTT RIBBON!”

“Breloom!” Breloom said, fist-pumping.

Later, we were about to meet up with Gyarados.

“So, where to next?” Alexis asked.

“Um…I guess wherever has the next Gym, bro,” Mark suggested.

“Forget that for now! We’ve got something else on the agenda!” Sean said.

“You know it!” I said, grinning.

“What’s up?” Alexis asked.

“Whatever it is, it can’t be cool,” Mark answered.

Chapter 130: Sharp as a Sickle

“This battle between Sean of Sandgem Town and Michael-”

“MIKE!!”

“…my brother of Littleroot Town will now begin! Each Trainer will use two Pokémon using double battle rules! No substitutions are allowed, and battle will end when both of either Trainer’s Pokémon are unable to continue! Begin!” Mark finished.

We had made it to the deserted island adjacent to Murcott Island after Mark won his fourth ribbon, and Sean and I were ready to battle.

“Refresh my memory: why are you two doing this again?” Alexis asked from the sidelines.

“Because I was the one to end Mark’s unbeaten streak,” I answered.

“That’s the lamest reason ever!”

“Hey, it’s not MY reason!”

“Okay, enough of all that! Let’s go! Glaceon! Kabutops! You’re up!” Sean said, sending out Glaceon and Kabutops, a Pokémon that looked like an assassin with sickles for hands.

“Whoa whoa whoa! What’s that?!” I exclaimed, getting out my Pokedex.

“Kabutops, the Shellfish Pokémon. A slim and fast swimmer, Kabutops slices its prey with its sharp sickles and drains their fluids.”

“Yeesh. I’d hate to meet THAT thing in a dark alley,” I said.

“This Kabutops is part of our ancient trio, right Mark?” Sean said to Mark.

“Yup!” Mark said, holding Aerodactyl’s Poke Ball.

“Right. Espeon! Gallade! It’s showtime!” I said, sending out Espeon and Gallade. At once, Espeon fell into a daze, seeing Glaceon again.

“Here we go,” Alexis said.

“Espe…” Espeon said, completely mesmerized by Glaceon’s appearance. Glaceon just turned away.

“Gal-LA-de. Gallade!” Gallade said, trying to bring Espeon’s attention back to the battle.

“Glaceon, use Quick Attack!” Glaceon rushed at Espeon with Quick Attack.

“Espeon, Signal Beam!” Espeon fired a Signal Beam at Glaceon, who dodged to the side.

“Ice Shard!” Glaceon fired an Ice Shard at Espeon.

“Gallade, Night Slash!” Gallade’s Night Slash sliced the Ice Shard into pieces.

“Kabutops, Aqua Jet!” Kabutops rushed at Gallade with Aqua Jet.

“Espeon, Psychic!” Espeon’s Psychic redirected the Aqua Jet to Glaceon, doing damage.

“Not bad! But try this on for size! Aqua Jet and Ice Beam!” Kabutops formed another Aqua Jet and Glaceon froze it with Ice Beam, causing a gigantic icicle, striking both Espeon and Kabutops at the same time.

“What the-?!” I said, astonished. “I can’t believe it! What a combo!”

“Wow…that was incredible,” Alexis said, shocked.

“That’s Sean for ya!” Mark said. “He’s like a lawyer; he finds every possible aspect of the case and hits you with it!”

“Okayyyyyy. Interesting comparison there, bro,” I said. “Espeon! Let’s try Shadow Ball!” Espeon fired a Shadow Ball at Kabutops.

“Glaceon, use Shadow Ball back!” Glaceon’s Shadow Ball nullified Espeon’s. “Now use Ice Beam!” Glaceon fired an Ice Beam at Espeon, freezing it.

“Oh, no! Espeon!” I said. “Wait…”

“Glace!!”

“Kabu?!”

Wouldn’t you know it; a giant claw grabbed both Glaceon and Kabutops, and we heard the same evil laugh.

“NO!! Put them down!” Sean said.

“Team Rocket, what a surprise,” I said sarcastically.

“Hate to go and spoil your fun and all…” Ashley said.

“But these Contest Pokémon are just perfect for the boss!” Olson said. “Catch us if you can!”

“Gallade. Psychic, please.” Gallade used Psychic to bring Team Rocket’s hovercraft down.

“Rrgh! I forgot about that!” Olson said.

“He’s a Psychic trainer; how could you possibly forget that?!” Ashley shouted. “Gah! Mismagius, come out and use Psywave!” Ashley sent out Mismagius, who hit Gallade with a Psywave.

“Gengar, Night Shade!” Olson sent out Gengar, who hit Espeon with Night Shade, accidentally freeing it from the ice.

“C’mon, guys! You can take them down!” I encouraged. Espeon and Gallade nodded and got back up.

“No! Leave this to me! Infernape, come out and use Mach Punch!” Sean sent out Infernape, who used Mach Punch to free Glaceon and Kabutops. “All right! Let’s do this!”

“Yeah! Espeon, Shadow Ball!”

“Glaceon, Shadow Ball!”

Espeon and Glaceon fired Shadow Balls at Mismagius and Gengar, knocking them far back.

“Let’s wrap this up! Kabutops, Night Slash!”

“Gallade, Night Slash!”

Gallade and Kabutops rushed forward and nailed Team Rocket with Night Slash, bumping them all together.

“Infernape! Finish this up with Flare Blitz!” Infernape rushed at Team Rocket with Flare Blitz, causing a massive explosion.

“NOOO! NOT AGAIN!!!” Team Rocket screamed as they flew into the sky.

“Way to go, guys! Those two have nothing on y’all!” Alexis said, coming over.

“Or…or anybody else, for that matter,” Mark commented.

“So, let’s finish up!” Sean said.

“Yeah. I’m ready if you guys are!”

“Espe!”

“Gallade!”

We took our places and resumed the battle.

“Okay, Kabutops! Fury Cutter!” Kabutops leapt at Gallade.

“Espeon, Trump Card!” Espeon moved in front of Gallade and fired a Trump Card. Kabutops’ Fury Cutter nullified the attack. “Keep going!” Espeon fired increasingly powerful Trump Cards while Kabutops slashed away at them with increasingly powerful Fury Cutters.

“Not too bad! But we’re not done! Glaceon, get in there and use Ice Beam!” Glaceon rushed forward and fired an Ice Beam at Espeon.

“Okay, now’s as good a time as any! Gallade, use Confusion!” Gallade’s Confusion caught the Ice Beam. “Now use Ice Punch!” Gallade’s Ice Punch gathered the Ice Beam onto its hand. “Now combine it with Psychic!” Gallade’s Psychic turned the resulting ice into pieces.

“Glaceon! Another Ice Beam!” Glaceon fired another Ice Beam at Gallade.

“Espeon! GO!”

“Espe!” Espeon said, nodding. It jumped into the pieces of ice that Gallade had created. Espeon then took in the Ice Beam attack, letting the ice fill in the cracks. Pretty soon, Espeon was surrounded by ice.

“It-It turned the ice into armor?! It can’t be!” Sean said, flabbergasted.

“Oh, it be! Thanks for making it possible! Espeon, use Iron Tail!” Espeon slammed Glaceon with an Iron Tail, the force of which was amplified by the ice armor. “Gallade, Close Combat!” Gallade rushed at Glaceon and nailed it with Close Combat, sending it flying into the air.

“RRRRRRGGHH! Kabutops! Superpower!” Kabutops ran at Espeon and shattered the ice armor with Superpower. Espeon grinned, apparently having taken no damage at all.

“Both of you! Psychic!” Espeon and Gallade used Psychic to grab Kabutops and pelt it with the ice shards. “Gallade! Use Leaf Blade!” Gallade’s Leaf Blade hit Kabutops for a critical hit. “Espeon! Finish this up with Giga Impact!” Espeon initiated a Giga Impact, hitting Kabutops and doing massive damage. Kabutops fell to the ground, and at that time, Glaceon fell right next to it, both of them down for the count.

“Glaceon and Kabutops are unable to battle! Espeon and Gallade are the winners, and victory in this match goes to M…Mike of Littleroot Town!” Mark said hesitantly.

“Yeah! You guys were awesome!” I said, running out to my Pokémon.

“Espe, Espe!” Espeon said, jumping on me.

“Gallade!” Gallade added, patting me on the back.

“But…but…what cheek!” Sean said, then heaved a sigh. “All right, you win. Great job.”

“You too! And I hope this doesn’t sour any relations,” I said, shaking his hand.

“No way! I enjoyed our battle! And I’ll be rooting for you all the way!” Sean said.

“Uh, I wasn’t talking about us,” I corrected him.

“Ah. Point taken,” Sean said when he saw Espeon and Glaceon.

“Espe, Espe?” Espeon asked. Glaceon simply slapped it in the face with Iron Tail.

“I’d say that’s more sour than Mark’s Poffins!” Alexis said.

“Thanks, I try my best!” Mark responded.

Later that day, we’d gotten onto Gyarados and were saying goodbye to Sean.

“The next Gym is at Trovita Island. Good luck there, Mike! And Mark, be ready! It’ll be you and me in the finals of the Grand Festival!” Sean said.

“You know it!” Mark said.

“Take care, Sean!” Alexis said.

“And good luck to you, too!” I added.

We then set off, ready for the next Gym, the next battle, and the next leg of our adventure.

Chapter 131: Tauros! Ole!

After my battle with Sean, our crew set out for Mandarin Island South, so as to give Gyarados some free time while we went to catch the ferry to Trovita Island, the site of my third Gym Battle. But Alexis decided to stop to get some battling in.

“Nidoqueen! Use Superpower!” Nidoqueen launched a Superpower at the opponent’s Fearow, knocking it out of the sky and knocking it out.

“Fearow is unable to battle! Nidoqueen is the winner, and victory in this match goes to Alexis of Littleroot Town!” Mark announced. The trainer grabbed his Fearow and ran off.

“Way to go, Alexis! You’re on a hot streak today!” I said as I came over.

“Yeah! I think you’re off to a good start in becoming a Gym Leader!” Mark said.

“Thanks, you guys! I’ve been practicing on my spare time, so we’re getting stronger and stronger! There’s no challenge we won’t rise to!” Alexis said confidently.

“Good! Then how about helping us get lunch ready?” I asked. At that, we got lunch together and all started eating. “So, Lexi. Any special moves you’ve been teaching your Pokémon?”

“Well, I’ve gotten each of them a move for Sunny Day, but I’m still concerned with Kingdra. It hasn’t learned such a move, nor can it, I believe,” Alexis replied.

“Why not just teach it Draco Meteor?” Mark asked.

“Draco who?”

“No, METEOR! It’s easy! Just ask our feisty lit-I mean, big friend over there!” Mark said, pointing to our old friend, Shelgon. Somehow, it had followed us to the island and was again hitting on Kingdra.

“Oh, good idea!” Alexis said. She then went over to Shelgon. “How you doing, buddy?”

“Shel, Shelgon!” Shelgon replied.

“Good! Hey, could you do me and Kingdra a favor?”

“Shel?! Shelgon! Shelgon!” Shelgon said excitedly.

“Eheh. Anyway, show us how to do Draco Meteor!”

“Shel! Shel…GON!” Shelgon said, sending a Draco Meteor into the air. It exploded into other meteors.

“Nice! Kingdra, think you can do that?”

“Duwa…” Kingdra responded, uncertain.

“Shelgon! Shel shelgon Shelgon!” Shelgon said.

“What it just said was to find the Dragon energy inside of it, then bring it up. That’s the basics of how to pull off a Draco Meteor,” Deoxys translated.

“Okay, so that’s what we’ve got to do! Think you’re up to it?” Alexis asked.

“Duwa. Du…WA!” Kingdra glowed and sent up a Draco Meteor, which evaporated.

“Oh well, we just need to practice, I guess,” Alexis said.

“With a move like that, Kingdra will be fine!” I said.

“Or how about a move called Iron Head?” Mark suggested.

“Iron Head?” Alexis asked.

“I can help with that!” a voice said. We turned around to see a tanned guy in a red shirt and khaki shorts standing there. “My Pokémon know that move! Maybe if you take me on in a Double Battle, your Kingdra could learn something!”

“Oh, really? Thank you!” Alexis said. I just glowered to the side.

“Dude, nothing there,” Mark said to me.

“Whatever. What Pokémon do you think he has that can use Iron Head?” I asked.

“Not sure. But if I had to guess, it’d be some big, burly Pokémon like my Aerodactyl! But usually Steel-Types learn it, so they must be Steel-Types! Alexis could have an advantage here!”

“Come on out, Tauros!” the guy said.

“OH, COME ON!!” Mark shouted. Out of the Poke Balls came two Tauros, bull-like Pokémon with three tails each. One of them was sandy brown with a brown mane, and the other was tan with an olive mane.

“Whoa. Those Pokémon look really tough! And you were right; burly!” I said. Alexis just remained calm and collected.

“Kingdra, Crobat. Let’s do this!” Alexis said.

“WHAT?!” Mark exclaimed, earning him a punch to the face from me. “What?! I would’ve gone with-” This time I punched him on top of the head.

“Dude, NEVER go against a woman’s decision. I’ve learned that many times…and always the hard way,” I said. Alexis grinned at that.

“All right! Let’s do this!” the guy said. “Tauros number one! Use Iron Head!” Tauros charged at Kingdra and Crobat with an Iron Head; the shiny Tauros was following it.

“Kingdra, use Hydro Pump!” Kingdra fired a Hydro Pump at Tauros.

“Number two! Get in front and use Protect!” The two Tauros shifted positions and the second one used Protect to cancel the Hydro Pump. The first one then move around and smacked Kingdra with its Iron Head.

“Kingdra! Crobat, use Heat Wave!” Crobat launched a Heat Wave at both of the Tauros.

“Number two! Use Icy Wind!” The shiny Tauros used Icy Wind to block the Heat Wave. “Number one, give it a Wild Charge!”

“What?!” I said. The first Tauros became engulfed in electricity and charged into Crobat, doing damage to both of them.

“No! I’ve never even heard of that move!” Mark said.

“I wonder what Alexis will do? Crobat’s weak against Electric moves!” I stated, seeing Crobat.

“Crobat, try a Leech Life!” Crobat shot out a green ray that absorbed energy from both of the Tauros, replenishing its own.

“Tauros, retaliate with Take Down and Flamethrower!” The first Tauros charged forward with Take Down, while the shiny one used Flamethrower.

“I see! One attacks head-to-head while the shiny one does long-range moves!” Alexis said. “Kingdra, take in that Flamethrower! Crobat, use Substitute!” Kindgra took in the Flamethrower, suffering little to no damage. Crobat got in front of the charging Tauros and created a slightly less colored clone of itself that took in the attack. Upon getting hit, the Substitute faded and Crobat reappeared.

“Crobat, use Cross Poison!” Crobat launched a Cross Poison at the Tauros.

“Protect!” The shiny Tauros blocked the attack with Protect.

“Now, Kingdra! Bounce!” Kingdra bounced into the air.

“Tauros number one! Use Wild Charge! Tauros number two, use Thunderbolt!” The two Tauros launched their attacks at Kingdra.

“Crobat! Wing Attack!” Crobat zoomed at the shiny Tauros and slammed it with Wing Attack, throwing the Thunderbolt off its target. “Kingdra! Change to Hydro Pump!” Kingdra used Hydro Pump in mid-air to send the first Tauros back. Due to its getting wet from the attack, its ensuing collision with the Tauros that was using Thunderbolt did serious damage to it.

“I can’t believe it! Tauros, get up!” The two Tauros rose slowly.

“Kingdra! Whirlpool!” Kingdra used Whirlpool to attack both of the Tauros.

“Protect!” The shiny Tauros got in front and used Protect.

“Crobat! Use Aerial Ace!” Crobat flew in from behind and nailed the first Tauros with Aerial Ace, since it wasn’t protected by Protect. This caused the other one to stop, astonished. “Kingdra, let’s finish them! DRACO METEOR!!” Kingdra, using all its power, fired a Draco Meteor that was perfect this time. It nailed every part of the arena, damaging both of the Tauros. When the smoke cleared, both Tauros were knocked out.

“Tauros and…Tauros are unable to battle! Kingdra and Crobat are the winners, and victory in this match goes to Alexis of Littleroot Town!” I announced.

“Way to go, you guys!” Alexis said, hugging both of them.

“Y’all did great! Again!” I said, coming up to them.

“Wow, great moves! So? Let’s see Iron Head!” the guy said.

“Okay! Kingdra! Try that Iron Head!” Kingdra jumped up into the air, using an Iron Head.

“Wow! Sure is a fast learner!” Mark said.

“Yeah! And we have someone else to thank as well!” Alexis said, stroking Shelgon’s shell.

“Shel, Shelgon!” Shelgon said bashfully.

“Duwa,” Kingdra said, thanking Shelgon.

“Kingdra! Try that Draco Meteor again!” Kingdra fired a Draco Meteor into the air, which then dissipated.

“Oh. Just luck, huh?” I said. That earned me a punch from Alexis. “Sorry!”

And so, with help provided by some capable sources, we learned a lot. Especially Alexis, whose dream was getting closer with every new step she took.

Chapter 132: The Wild, Wild West Mandarin South

Traveling westward to Trovitopolis, we got to a desert in the middle of Mandarin Island South.

“Man, sure wish we had Gyarados around at this point,” I said.

“Oh, stop being a wimp!” Alexis said, rebuking me.

“Yeah! Besides, only a few hundred yards left to go!” Mark said.

“A FEW HUNDRED?!” I moaned.

We continued on, occasionally stopping for water breaks, but we ran out of water quickly.

“If we can just find cover until nightfall, things would certainly go better,” I said.

“Yeah, good point,” Alexis said.

“C’mon, guys! Only a few hundred yards left to go!” Mark said.

“YOU ALREADY SAID THAT!” I shouted.

Later, at night, we were coming out of the cover we’d made.

“Okay! Now, let’s get moving!” Mark said. “Just a few hundred yards ahead!”

“SHUT UP!!” I yelled.

“Hey, what’s that up ahead?” Alexis asked. We saw a thundercloud forming ahead of us.

“Well, Mark? Just a few hundred yards to go to escape that!” I said.

“Too bad none of us have any Ground-Types!” Mark said.

“RUN FOR IT!!” Alexis screamed. We made a break for it until we saw a ton of Magnemite flying our way.

“Oh, are you kidding me?!” I shouted. We ducked, but to our surprise, the Magnemite went right past us. Soon with them came a Jolteon, as well as a guy riding a wagon pulled by two Tauros.

“All right! Do it!” the man said. The Magnemite gathered around the storm and absorbed its electricity. Soon, the thunderhead cleared up, and the skies were clear again. “How y’all doing? Hope the storm didn’t scare y’all too much!”

“No, no! We’re fine! Thank you for your help, sir!” I said.

“No problem. I’m Ethan. My Pokémon and I live around here, gathering electricity for the neighboring town of Trovitopolis. We-Number Six, where are you?!” the guy said, then looked around. A stray Magneton came around, flying all over the place. “Sorry about that one. It’s kind of an oddball. Jolteon, go round ‘im up!”

“Jolt! JOLT!” Jolteon said, then used Thunder Wave to lure Magneton to it.

“Oh, he’s like a rancher! He uses his Jolteon to lure strays back into the group!” Alexis noted.

“Wow! It’s like trying to keep Michael under control around meatlo-!” Mark said.

“DON’T!!” I shouted, clamping his mouth shut. “The very word could make me lose it!”

“Whoah! Thanks, that was a close one!”

“Hahaha! You kids sure catch on quick! How’d you like to come around with me for a while? I need to gather more electricity for the town, and I can take you there when we’re finished!” Ethan suggested.

“Sounds good! What do you guys think?”

“Hell yes!”

“I’m in!”

“Girafarig, why don’t you come on out?” I asked, bringing out Girafarig. “If the Magnemite and Magneton get out of whack, I’ll need you to use Thunder to help Jolteon reel them in, okay?”

“Rig! Rig, Rig!” Girafarig said, nodding. Then it and me helped Alexis on its back and we walked alongside the wagon, with Mark and Ethan riding in it (I felt like walking).

“So, you kids headin’ to Trovitopolis? What are y’all plannin’ to do there?” Ethan asked.

“Well, we need to get to Trovita Island, which we could’ve done on my Gyarados, but carrying three people on its back for days could prove incredibly taxing,” I said.

“So we let it take its time and decided to walk across the island ourselves!” Alexis said.

“See, we’re heading through the Orange Islands in order, trying to win in the Grand Festival and Orange League, so we thought this trek would get us physically and mentally ready for what lies ahead!” Mark explained.

“I see. Well, I reckon y’all might have a ways to go before bein’ mentally ready. I heard some people arguin’ earlier today, so I looked and saw y’all three. I didn’t say nothin’, thinking I might not see y’all again. But now that I have, y’all probably need to know that,” Ethan commented.

“Yeah, I guess we were arguing, huh,” I said, downhearted.

“Thanks for pointing that out, Ethan. We’ll have to do our best in the future,” Alexis added.

“Yeah, thanks. By the way, how many yards from-” Mark said.

“DON’T YOU EVEN DARE!!” Alexis and I shouted. Ethan laughed. Suddenly, we heard a massive roar of thunder nearby.

“Uh-oh, kids. This may be just the thunder we been lookin’ for!” Ethan said.

“We’re going in there?!” Alexis said frantically.

“Apparently so! Let’s go, Girafarig!” I said.

“Jolteon, follow all o’ them Magnemite!” Ethan said as the Magnemite were drawn towards the thunder. We followed them until we saw them circling around another Jolteon.

“What the-?!” Mark said. “Well, THAT was a false alarm!” Suddenly, the Magnemite were pulled upward as the Jolteon grabbed onto them.

“Oh no! The Magnemite!” Ethan said as they were drawn into a giant magnet held by the usual two villains.

“HAHAHAHAHAHA!” they laughed.

“Team Rocket!”

“I don’t know what to say! My Jolteon’s really quite attractive!” Ashley said, stroking Jolteon’s back.

“And what better to attract than a load of magnetic Pokémon!” Olson added.

“And now we ride into the sunset! Let’s go, Orwell!” Ashley said.

“C’mon! SERIOUSLY?” Olson shouted.

“We can’t let them get away! Girafarig, Thunder!” Girafarig fired a Thunder at the magnet, but it got transferred into the Magnemite.

“We can’t hurt the Magnemite! Breloom, come on out and use Sky Uppercut!” Mark said, sending out Breloom. It jumped up and attacked the magnet with Sky Uppercut, but to no avail.

“It’s magnetically charged! As long as it’s active, those Magnemite aren’t going anywhere!” I said.

“We’ll see! Jolteon, hit that magnet with Thunder Wave!” Jolteon’s Thunder Wave reached out to the magnet, causing it to come closer to Jolteon.

“Of course! The magnet is attracting Jolteon’s Thunder Wave, bringing it in closer since Jolteon can’t be drawn to it!” Mark said.

“Girafarig, use Thunder!” Girafarig launched a Thunder at the magnet, also drawing it in as we held onto Girafarig and Jolteon.

“Rrgh! Rotom, come out and use Thundershock to counter that!” Olson said.

“NO! YOU IDIOT!” Ashley shouted, but it was too late. Rotom had come out and used Thundershock, accidentally speeding up the process.

“It’s close enough! Now, Mightyena! Come out and use Fire Fang!” Alexis sent out Mightyena, who used Fire Fang to separate the magnet from the hovercraft, freeing the Magnemite.

“ARGH!! This is all your fault, Orson!” Ashley said.

“Don’t you pin this on me! AND IT’S OLSON!!” Olson said.

“What the-?!” Ethan said, looking to his right. The Magneton he’d been herding was just floating in from all over the place. It bumped into Team Rocket’s hovercraft, then got mad and used Zap Cannon to blow the machine up.

“This blast-off couldn’t have been worse!” Ashley shouted.

“Well, on the bright side, at least we’re still going into the sunset!” Olson commented.

“It’s night!”

“Oh, shut up!”

“HAPPY TRAAAAIILLLS!” they shouted, disappearing into the distance.

“We did it!” I said.

“Great job, Number 6!” Ethan said. Magneton floated around in a pattern to show its happiness.

“Call me crazy, but couldn’t we put the electricity in that magnet to good use?” Alexis asked.

“Lexi, I like the way you think,” I said. We took the magnet to Trovitopolis, where we used it and the electricity from Magnemite and Magneton to supply power to the city.

“Y’all would make great Magnemite ranchers! Maybe y’all could help me out?” Ethan said.

“Sorry, but we have our own paths to follow. But I’m sure we’ll meet again!” I said, shaking his hand.

“I look forward to it, kids. Adios!” Ethan said, saddling up his Pokémon and returning to the desert.

“So Mark, how much farther to the next Gym?” I asked.

“Okay, okay. I get it.”

And so, with another exciting experience behind us, we were finally set to hit Trovita Island and the third Gym.

Chapter 133: Can You Say “Benny Hill”? Gooooood.

After spending the night at the Pokémon Center, we were waiting for Gyarados to meet us and take us to Trovita Island. Alexis and I decided to pass the time by perfecting the Homerun Attack for Mightyena.

“Okay, Espeon! Let’s do it!” Espeon used a Homerun Attack, knocking the center of the bullseye we’d made. “Like that! Just at the top of the jump, slam down at it!”

“Okay…Mightyena, go!” Mightyena fired the Shadow Ball into the air, then leapt after it with Quick Attack, but flailed above it, landing on the ground and getting hit by its own Shadow Ball. “Mightyena!!”

“Ooh. That’s not pretty,” Mark said, pulling a facepalm.

“Well, it ain’t ugly either, if it’s any consolation,” Deoxys said.

“YOU SHUT UP!!” Alexis shouted, causing us all to shirk back.

“What’d I do?!” I asked, offended.

“…uh, sorry. Forgot it was Deoxys,” Alexis said, sheepishly giving me a wink. “Anyway, Mightyena! Again!” Mightyena tried again, but just couldn’t get it.

“Maybe Mightyena’s reflexes are a little slow?” Mark suggested.

“You’d think he’d learn by now,” I said to myself, taking cover.

“MIGHTYENA’S REFLEXES ARE JUST FINE!!” Alexis yelled at him. And that’s when Mightyena and Espeon got grabbed by giant claws.

“What?!” I said. That’s when a giant cage trapped the three of us.

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!” we heard.

“Team Rocket! This is a new low!” I shouted.

“Actually, they’ve done it before,” Alexis said, shuddering.

“Let us go!” Mark shouted.

“No chance! We’ve figured out the game!” Ashley sneered.

“We capture you, we can take your Pokémon without interference!” Olson said.

“That’s what you think!” Deoxys said, rushing at them with Extremespeed.

“Armaldo, X-Scissor!” Armaldo came out and blocked Deoxys’ attack with X-Scissor.

“Cradily, Sludge Bomb!” Cradily came out and covered Deoxys’ eyes with Sludge Bomb.

“Crud! I’ll be there as soon as I can!” Deoxys said, distracted by the sludge. Team Rocket then carried us off in the direction of Trovita Island.

“We’ve got to do something!” Alexis said. “Mightyena, try a Fire Fang!” Mightyena bit into its claw with a Fire Fang.

“No! If it frees itself, it’ll fall into that-” I started, but Mightyena was freed and fell into the ocean below, where there were whirlpools. “…whirlpool.”

“MIGHTYENA!” Alexis shouted.

“Just great. All right, let’s go grab it, Orson!” Ashley said.

“IT’S OLSON!! HOW HARD IS IT FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND?!?” Olson yelled. We floated down to the whirlpool, where suddenly, a Starmie appeared and pulled Mightyena out of the whirlpool. “Oh, no! Vaporeon, go after them!” Olson sent out Vaporeon, who swam after the Pokémon.

“Ha-CHA!” Deoxys said as it nailed the cage with a Focus Punch, then caught it when it snapped loose of the hovercraft. “We’re getting out of here!”

“Great job!” I said as Deoxys took us after Mightyena.

“Over there!” Alexis said, pointing to a dock where a brown-haired guy with a vest, green button-down shirt, and khaki pants was waiting with Starmie and Mightyena and a passed-out Vaporeon. As soon as he landed, he got us and Espeon out. “Mightyena! Are you all right?!”

“Rar, rar!” Mightyena said, shaking off the water.

“Thank you so much for saving Mightyena!” Alexis said to the guy.

“Why, my pleasure,” the guy said with a strange tone to his voice. “It’s just a good deed for a beautiful young woman like yourself.”

“Uh…” Alexis said, clearly creeped out.

“Don’t blow up, don’t blow up, don’t blow up…” I kept saying to myself. “Um, who are you?” I asked him.

“Uh? Oh, I’m Rudy, the Gym Leader of Trovita Island! Have any of you come here to challenge me?” he asked.

“Well, I have!” I said, ready to put him in his place.

“Okay, but you’ll need to pass the prelims first! Come with me,” Rudy said, leading us away.

“Hey, bro. I think you should know that Team Rocket crashed into the pier,” Mark said.

“Yeah yeah, fine. Tell them I’ll play with them some other time,” I said, not caring. We went to a boat on a lake in the middle of the island, where there was a passage in front of us.

“It’s nice to have company; I was getting lonely since my little sister went with her Dewgong to tour the islands. Okay, you’ll need some Pokémon for this! Oh, and stand back there,” Rudy said.

“Okay, Espeon and Deoxys! Ready?” I asked, getting in position at the back of the boat.

“Espe!” Espeon said, ready.

“Ready, willing and able!” Deoxys answered.

“HERE WE GO!” Rudy said, starting the boat. We started going through at high speed.

“Uh, what are we supposed to d-AH!” I said, seeing a target appear in front of us. “Espeon, Signal Beam!”

“Espe!” Espeon said as it hit the target with Signal Beam. Soon, several more appeared in front of us.

“I got it!” Deoxys said as it used Zap Cannon on each of them. We were doing good for a while, until we saw one on the bottom left. “Oh, no! We’re going to miss it!”

“GYARR!” I heard, then turned around. Gyarados popped up and destroyed the target with Hydro Pump.

“All right! Great timing, pal!” I said.

“Gyar, Gyar!” Gyarados said happily.

“Way to go, Mike!” Alexis called back, but then Rudy got her attention back to him. I scowled, but got back to the targets.

“Hey, bro?” Mark called.

“Yeah?” I said.

“Finish this sentence: Incoming enemy from the rear...”

“…drop altitude!” I said, ducking as Team Rocket’s hovercraft passed overhead.

“We’re baaaack!” they called, then laughed.

“Man, it’s like a Benny Hill chase!” Mark said.

“Benny Who?” I asked.

“No, BENNY HILL! Jeez!” Mark replied. “Gyarados, take ‘em out! Use Hydro Pump!” Gyarados fired a Hydro Pump.

“Vaporeon, Hydro Pump back!” Olson said, having Vaporeon fire a Hydro Pump, negating Gyarados’ Hydro Pump.

“Okay, THAT didn’t work. How about Psychic, Espeon?”

“Espe!” Espeon said, using Psychic to slam Team Rocket’s hovercraft against the rocks.

“STOP THE RIDE, ORSON! I WANNA GET OFF!!” Ashley shouted.

“THE NAME’S OLS-URP!” Olson cried, sick to his stomach.

“Mike, I’m here to help!” Alexis said, coming back with Mightyena.

“All right! Let’s end this!” I said.

“Shadow Ball!” we shouted together. Espeon and Mightyena launched Shadow Balls into the air. “Quick Attack!” The two leapt into the air. “Iron Tail!” Espeon and Mightyena smacked their Shadow Balls correctly, knocking them into Team Rocket’s hovercraft with tons of power. “YEAH!” Alexis and I said, high-fiving.

“Great job, guys! We’ll take it from here! HYPER BEAM!” Deoxys said, firing a Hyper Beam at Team Rocket.

“GYAR!” Gyarados added, also firing a Hyper Beam. The attacks caused Team Rocket’s hovercraft to explode.

“NOOOO! NOT AGAIN!!” they shouted, disappearing into the distance.

“You’d think they’d learn by now,” Mark said sarcastically.

Later, after the prelims, Rudy met us in a building.

“Not only did you pass your preliminaries, but you showed excellent promise, Mike. And so did you, Alexis!” Rudy said, kissing Alexis’ hand. Alexis gave him a smile, then looked creeped out as Rudy turned back to me (I, of course, changed my scowl to an awkward grin). “So, Mike! Here’s how tomorrow’s battle will work: we each pick three types of Pokémon, and we face each other in three one-on-one battles using Pokémon of the same type. First to two victories wins! So, what three types will you choose?”

I thought about it, then got a killer idea. “I’ll be using a Steel-Type, a Water-Type, and a Fighting-Type!” I said. Little does he know that I didn’t tell him their other types, I thought to myself.

“Perfect! Then I’ll see you tomorrow at the battle site! Alexis, if you could come with me for a few?” Rudy asked.

“Uh, sure. I’ll see you guys later!” Alexis said, going off with Rudy.

“Gah! What is going on here?” I asked, pissed.

“You’re a big kid, Michael. I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” Mark said, throwing up his hands.

“Espe Espe,” Espeon said, agreeing with him.