"Someone's coming!"

Marc was pressing his ear against the door, trying to listen for the sound of approaching footsteps. Nearby, the others sat listlessly, overwhelmed by the seeming hopelessness of their situation. They had been locked in this cell for goodness only knew how long, bereft of their Pokemon and with no contact with the outside. This was the worst situation they had been in yet, made worse by the fact they still had no knowledge of Kevin's fate.

"Are . . . are you sure?" Autumn stammered fearfully, wishing desperately that she still had Pikachu with her.

"Yeah, sounds like at least two people . . . Wait! I think they're unlocking the door."

This news triggered mixed feelings among the group. Part of each youngster was hoping it might be an ARM sympathiser, possibly even Kevin, come to rescue them. But what if that wasn't the case? What if Team Midnight had come to inflict some unspeakable punishment for their attempted escaped? Autumn shuddered as she remembered her ordeal in the Tank, the cold water cascading into the enclosed room, her frantic struggle to keep her head above the surface . . . What if Team Midnight did the same thing again? How could they survive?

Candida noticed her friend shivering with fear and patted her reassuringly. "Don't worry - we've beaten Team Midnight before and we can do it again."

"Yeah, you're right," Autumn brightened momentarily as she recalled previous encounters.

"Er . . . I hate to spoil the party," Jeremy cut in. "But we had our Pokemon then . . ."

"So?" Candida shot back. "Listen, we've got to at least try to fight back! We can't let . . ."

She was cut off as the lock clicked and the door's handle began to move . . .

The six of them exchanged glances. It was now or never - they had to charge the approaching Team Midnight agents and try to take them out themselves. It would not be easy; six untrained teenagers against the highly skilled agents did not carry very favourable odds. But they had to try. They had to stop the agents before they could call out any Pokemon.

"OK," Kelly whispered as she exchanged glances with the others. "Three . . . two . . . one . . . charge!"

Yelling loudly, they charged towards the agents, determined to put up a fight no matter what the outcome. But, as they drew closer, something caused them to stop in their tracks. There, in the midst of the enemy, stood Kevin and his Sneasel and Houndour; Murkrow was perched on Kevin's shoulder. The friends exchanged puzzled glances. What was going on here? Why was Kevin with Team Midnight?

"K - Kevin?" stammered Sandra, who was rendered almost speechless by this sudden turn of events. "But why . . .?"

"Silence!" Kevin's voice sounded oddly stilted, as if it was not his own. "From now on Team Midnight shall reign triumphant!"

"No way!" shouted Jeremy. Instinctively, he reached for Charmeleon's Poke Ball, blushing with embarrassment as he recalled that the Poke Ball was not in his possession. He gulped - this did not look good. Not only did Team Midnight have the upper hand, it also looked as though one of his friends had turned traitor. He did not want to believe it, but the evidence was right there in front of his eyes. And what was that pendant Kevin was wearing? He had never been one of those boys who openly wore jewelery so why had he started now?

The pendant - it resembled a piece of jet - glowed an angry red, a glow echoed in the eyes of Kevin and his Pokemon. In the next instant, Kevin grabbed Jeremy by the throat and lifted him off his feet as if he was nothing more than a feather.

"Yes," Kevin said in the same flat voice. "Team Midnight have won. Soon, they and their mighty Dark Pokemon shall rule the world. But first . . ." He tightened his grip and Jeremy began struggling to breathe. " . . . you meddling brats must die!"

Candida could only look on helplessly. A Team Midnight agent was restraining her, but, even if she had been able to move, there was little she could do. Tears pricked her eyes as she saw Kevin fling Jeremy to the floor and brutally kick him in the stomach. Jeremy struggled to avoid another kick as his friends all winced in unison, wanting to help him but unable to do so because of their captors. Then, Kevin's Houndour used his Flamethrower, breathing a hot jet of flames at the prone Jeremy. Fortunately, Jeremy managed to roll out of range, but Sneasel was hot on his heels . . .

"Sneasel sneasel!" Sneasel cried as he launched into his Slash Attack. The small Dark Type Pokemon's razor sharp claws moved like lightning, slicing violently at the air as Jeremy struggled to keep clear. It wasn't just Sneasel's physical Attacks he had to worry about; the little creature could use some pretty nifty Ice Type moves as well. Not only that, Kevin had taught him to use Faint Attack so he could make himself invisible and zip in for a close-range ambush. A Sneasel could be a deadly opponent, quicky and agile like a ninja.

"Kevin!" Autumn shouted desperately. "What are you doing?! Why are you using your Pokemon against us?!" Next moment, she cried out as Kevin's Murkrow swooped down and pecked her sharply.

"Merely dealing with you bothersome brats," was all Kevin said. "Now, my loyal Dark Pokemon, des . . ."

Before he could complete his sentence, a powerful jet of water suddenly knocked him off balance. He tried to stagger to his feet, only to be knocked back down by a plump pink form, which ran at him from the side in what the friends instantly recognised as a Body Slam Attack. This was swiftly followed by Cotton Spore, wafts of white fluff which drifted down and caught Kevin full in the face as he struggled to throw off his pink assailent.

"Squirtle!" shouted Marc as he turned to see his turtle Pokemon and realised he must have been behind the water.

"Pinky! Drifter!" cried Kelly, seeing her Clefable sitting on Kevin's chest and her Skiploom hovering overhead, surrounded by drifting Cotton Spores.

"All our Pokemon are here!" said Candida.

And indeed they were, all those that could move on land at least. Marc's Squirtle, Autumn's Pikachu, Jeremy's Charmeleon and the other walking Pokemon stood side-by-side. Candida's Togetic and Kelly's Delibird were flying at ceiling level and Sandra's Dratini was slithering along the floor. The latter's eyes were glowing as if she was about to launch into one of her powerful Dragon Type Attacks.

And she did. She reared up and let fly with a Twister, blowing a small tornado out of her mouth and sending the nearest Team Midnight agent flying through the air. He hit the floor with a thud and got up, panting as he reached for a Poke Ball. "Grimer! Get that Dratini!" he called, throwing the Ball. A purplish blob materialised, but Sandra was ready for it.

Dratini! Don't let it touch you!" she shouted, remembering how Dratini had once been poisoned in a battle with a Tentacruel. "Use Protect!"

As the agent's Grimer prepared to launch a Sludge Bomb, Dratini began to glow as an invisible barrier surrounded her. Seconds later, Grimer belched loudly and a ball of foul-smelling ooze blasted towards Dratini. But, with Protect in effect, the Sludge Bomb couldn't hit the Dragon Pokemon and, instead, exploded in mid-air, spraying everyone with ooze.

"YEEEEEEUCK!" cried Marc as he received a faceful of the stuff.

"Squirt!" shouted his Squirtle, looking around for the culprit.

The appearence of their Pokemon gave the friends fresh fighting spirit and they began to wriggle free from their captors' arms. It was plain that none of the Team Midnight agents had been expecting this; they appeared totally unprepared for the assault the Pokemon had launched. Indeed, only the agent with the Grimer had any Pokemon of his own with him - and that wouldn't do much good against so many other Pokemon.

"Looks like the shoe's on the other foot!" Candida said as she broke free from her captor, catching Lapras' Poke Ball as Charmeleon tossed it to her. "Togetic!" she called to her dainty Flying Pokemon. "Use Shadow Ball!"

Togetic's body glowed as she brought her hands together. Then, she sighted on the Grimer and let fly with a ball of shadowy energy; the Poison Pokemon had no time to react before it was sent flying across the room. Next, Pikachu leapt into the air, his cheeks sparking with electricity, and zapped the Grimer as it landed. Its trainer hurriedly raised its Poke Ball.

"Grimer, return!" he ordered, drawing the Grimer into the Ball. "Curse you brats!" he snarled at the youngsters. "That was the only Pokemon we had between us!"

The agents stalked off, their faces resembling thunderclouds. "We ain't finished yet," one of them warned. "Oh no! This battle is only just starting!"

As soon as the agents were gone, the friends called their Pokemon together and returned them to their Poke Balls, which Cheeky, Pinky and Squirtle had been holding the whole time. As she recalled Togetic, Candida couldn't help feeling puzzled. What exactly did the agent mean by the battle having only just begun? And why had Kevin and his Pokemon been acting so strangely? Could it have something to do with why he had been separated from the others?

"Quick," said Marc, wiping the ooze from Grimer's Sludge Bomb off his face. Luckily, the Attack's poison hadn't affected him. "We'd better get out of here before . . ."

"Before when, kid?"

Everyone looked up with a start. It was Kevin's voice, but it sounded very different from how it usually sounded, cold and emotionless. Any hopes that the ambush by Pinky, Drifter and Squirtle might have brought Kevin to his senses were immediately dispelled. He was standing there impassively, his Houndour, Murkrow and Sneasel at his side, an eerie red glow in all their eyes. "If you want to get out of here," Kevin said flatly, "you'll have to battle me."

His Pokemon all snarled or squawked as one. Houndour's hackles were raised, his pearly white teeth bared ready to attack. And it plainly wouldn't be an ordinary Pokemon battle; the very future of Aquarius could depend on the outcome of this. But which of the friends should battle first?

"I'm waiting!" Kevin glared at the little group of youngsters as if he had never been their friend. A decision had to be made soon.

"I'll do it," Kelly said at last, stepping forward and beckoning to her Pokemon. Pinky, Drifter, Delibird and Cheeky stopped what they were doing and assembled obediently at their trainer's side. "Three against three?"

"As you wish," Kevin replied in the same flat tone. "But, if you lose, you will all be turned over to Team Midnight!"

"I'm not going to lose!" Kelly retorted, trying to hide her disbelief at his last words. "And I'll start with . . . Drifter!" She pointed to the Skiploom, who promptly leapt into the air and hovered there, ready for battle. Drifter might appear to be a lightweight, but Kelly knew she could hold her own in battle; her array of Grass Attacks, with the odd Flying Attack thrown in, had taken out many opponents in the past. "The rest of you, keep back," Kelly told her other Pokemon. "This is between Drifter and Kevin's Pokemon."

"Then I'll roast your Skiploom!" Kevin responded, the red light glowing in his eyes. "Houndour - go! Ember Attack!"

With a fierce snarl, Houndour leapt into battle, his mouth slightly open as a small ball of fire formed in his throat. Kelly shuddered; maybe using Drifter hadn't been such a good idea. But it was too late to back out now. Switching Pokemon once you had selected the one that was going to fight counted as a knockout and she didn't wanted to end up down one Pokemon . . .

"Drifter! Dodge it!" In response, Drifter nipped to one side just as Houndour unleashed his Ember. The small flame scorched the Skiploom's flank, but she was otherwise unhurt and whirled the petals on top of her head as she waited for Kelly's next order. "Now! Aerial Ace!"

"Houndour! Double Team!" countered Kevin.

In the same instant Drifter sped into the air and prepared to dive down at high speed, Houndour was suddenly joined by two exact copies of himself. These copies were essentially mirages, designed to confuse the opposing Pokemon and trick it into wasting Attacks, but Kelly was familiar with this trick. She had used it with Cheeky on more than one occassion. She also knew the best way to deal with it was to take out the fake Houndour as fast as possible, before launching her coup de grace on the real one. "Wait for it . . . wait for it . . . now!" she called, watching as Drifter launched herself at one of the Houndour standing opposite her. Time seemed to slow down as the Skiploom sped towards her quarry and, then . . .

. . . Drifter's body glowed white and began to change shape. She grew larger. Her once slightly flattened body turned into a ball as her wide mouth grew steadily smaller. The yellow flower on her head shrunk to nothing and was replaced with a large white powder puff, with two smaller powder puffs appearing on the ends on her hands. And her once green body turned blue.

"Drifter . . ." Candida whispered from the sidelines.

". . . evolved into Jumpluff!" finished Autumn. "Let's just hope it'll be enough to take out Houndour."

"Hah!" Kevin gloated. "A Jumpluff is still a Grass Type! Houndour! Flamethrower!"

In response, Houndour leapt into the air and breathed a hot jet of flames at the newly evolved Drifter. The Jumpluff had no time to react, no time to launch any Sleep Powder, before the flames caught her full in the face and she was knocked out of the air, the powder puff on top of her head on fire. Marc quickly turned to his Squirtle and told him to use Water Gun to put the flames out. Squirtle did so, but, as Kelly caught hold of Drifter, she could see that the damage had been done. Where, moments before, there had been a white powder puff there was now a singed mess.

"What do we do now?" asked Candida, watching as Kelly put Drifter back in her Poke Ball. Given time, Drifter's powder puff would grow back, but she would not be able to battle effectively until it did.

"Not give up," Kelly replied, turning to Pinky. "Pinky, go!"

The Clefable stepped forward, a steely gaze fixed on her face as she faced down the furiously snarling Houndour. Instinctively, she knew there was something strange going on, that Kevin and Houndour were not behaving like their usual selves, but . . . Before Pinky had time to think of anything, Houndour sprang at her, his teeth bared in a Crunch Attack.

"Pinky! Minimize!" Kelly shouted as the lethal teeth homed in on her Clefable. In response, Pinky's body glowed and she shrank to the size of a pea, far too small for Houndour's Crunch to be effective. Indeed, the black dog-like Pokemon's face bore an expression of stunned surprise as his teeth clamped shut on empty air. "Now," Kelly added as Pinky resumed her usual size, "try a Mega Punch!"

Pinky raised her fist and prepared to ram it into the Houndour's flank, but before she could do so, Houndour caught her with a close-range Flamethrower. The force of the flames knocked the Clefable to the ground, where she lay in a crumpled heap. Kelly ran over to her. "Pinky, don't give in!" she whispered urgently, well aware that, if Pinky couldn't fight, she would have only one Pokemon to take out all three of Kevin's. "Try to get up!"

"Clef," Pinky grunted, attempting to pull herself up on her arms.

Kevin scoffed at the struggling Pokemon. "Pathetic!" he sneered. "Houndour, finish it off!"

Before Houndour could move, however, Pinky was back in her Poke Ball. "Stop it, Kevin!" Kelly pleaded. "Why are you doing this? You know this isn't the way Pokemon are supposed to battle!"

Kevin rested his hand on Houndour's back. "Yes, I used to think like that. But, then, Team Midnight taught me that the only way to battle Pokemon is to win at all costs. And that's exactly what I'm going to do, no matter how much your Pokemon get hurt! Go on, I dare you to send out another one of your pathetic wimps!"