=Author's Note=
	Okay, this one is not quite as thrilling as I had hoped.  However, here it 
is; the first installment of BadgeQuest's Hidden Machine Saga.  Be prepared to 
change the way you see Pokémon and the BadgeQuest story itself.  Or, you could 
just read the story...

=Legal Disclaimer=
	Pokémon is a registered trademark of Nintendo and Game Freak.  Any and all 
original characters included in the story are not to be duplicated without prior 
consent...although, it's not like I would ever know, considering how many, MANY 
fanfictions are out there.  And it's not like I could really do anything about 
it, either.  Look, just don't steal Dixie, okay?


BadgeQuest: The America Chronicles #2
The HM Saga 01

	Jessie snuggled up tightly against the soft, downy folds of her well-worn 
sleeping bag, moaning with pleasure as that wonderful feeling of blissful 
restfulness settled over her.  The rising sun threatened to peek in on her, 
shining through the tiniest of cracks in her tent's defense, but that hardly 
concerned her.  After a solid week of searching, she, James, and Meowth had been 
completely baffled as to the trail of their elusive targets.  It was the first 
time in a long time they hadn't been able to capture Pikachu...or at least, 
'attempt' to capture.  None of that was an issue, though.  Right now, all Jessie 
cared about was staying in that sleeping bag all day and snoozing until late 
afternoon.

	"Jessie!"

	The feminine Rocket tried desperately to ignore the frantic cries of her 
counterpart, if not for her own sake, then for his; if he got her out of this 
bed right now, it would most likely mean that she was going to have to kill him.

	"Jess-ie!"

	...And now she would have to kill Meowth as well.  Wonderful.  "Where am I 
going to find a replacement pair of idiots for the ones I'm about to frag?" she 
mumbled, still half asleep as she sat up, her stiff, swooping hair brushing the 
top of the green army tent.  Rubbing the sleep from her bloodshot eyes with 
delicate hands, Jessie pulled on her black sleeveless top and a pair of sweat 
pants.  "James, Meowth," she muttered in a deadly tone as she exited the tent, 
"I'm not sure what all the fuss is about, and I don't c-" she stopped, frozen in 
place.  The buzzing of nature in the dark Vermont forest seemed to freeze in 
step with Jessie as she halted her threat.

	There was a man she had never seen before, standing calmly next to the 
roaring fire that James had constructed earlier this morning.  His appearance 
was strange...and to appear strange to a Rocket master of disguise was truly a 
feat of tremendous proportions.  He stood taller than either Jessie or James, 
with sparkling silver hair that jutted upwards in short, sweeping spikes.  His 
face was unreadable, but his body language was unmistakable; wiry muscles drawn 
tight, eyes darting back and forth, and hand kept near a long, sheathed saber.  
This was not a man she wanted to screw with.

	"Uh...hello?" she asked a thousand questions with a single word, tilting 
her head with curiosity.

	He glanced over at her, sizing her up with his cold, cobalt eyes.  "My 
name is Alpha." he said in a low, smooth, crisp voice.  "Giovanni told me I 
could expect to find you while tracking the targets."  He looked back to the 
forest, searching it for something.  "You will assist me."

	"Listen, Mister...Alpha?" she stopped, wondering why that name caused a 
flash of fear and panic within her.  He was obviously a member of Team Rocket, 
but what kind of code name was Alpha?  The only agents that used words like that 
for pseudonyms were...Oh God.  She exchanged glances with James and Meowth, who 
confirmed her fears.
	
	Omega Red.

	It was a name whispered back in the hallowed halls of Headquarters, never 
said aloud for fear of drawing the attention of those who held the title.  They 
were the cream of the crop, the elite, hand-picked by Giovanni himself.  They 
were his best agents, used for the most important missions.  Assassination, 
infiltration, covert operation...any time one of Giovanni's competitors was 
found mysteriously dead in their homes, the name Omega Red was passed around 
Headquarters like a secret password.

	And now, one of them was standing right in their camp, as calmly as could 
be.

	"Yes?" Alpha swung around to face her again, his eyebrow raised with 
curiosity.

	Jessie rubbed the back of her neck, grinning nervously.  "Um...would it be 
all right if we stopped for breakfast before we went to kill this target of 
yours?" she stopped, frowning.  "Who is the target, anyway?"

	"Breakfast will be fine." he said.  "It will be of little consequence..." 
his hand drew the saber on his hip quick as a flash.  He made several lightning 
strikes, the blade singing as it cut through the morning chill.  "A small 
reprieve for Ash Ketchum."
*		*		*

	Unaware that there was yet 'another' person in the immediate area trying 
to kill him, Ash Ketchum shoveled Brock's delicious breakfast stew into his 
mouth as if it were his last meal.  He hadn't thought it possible to make a 
thick soup out of traditional breakfast ingredients-sausage, bacon, toast...even 
eggs-but their Rock Master had managed to come through with another culinary 
delight.  Pikachu sat next to its trainer, its tiny black nose buried up to the 
snout in a tiny dish of Brock's breakfast.  Like Ash, Pikachu only stopped 
eating to come up for large breaths of air.  Dixie sat atop a log, facing the 
pair.  Her spoon was halfway to her mouth, frozen with fascination as she 
observed Ash's eating habits.

	"My god..." she whispered, mesmerized, "It's like something offa the 
Discovery Channel..."

	Brock set his empty bowl down, reaching for the pot's ladle in order to 
pour himself another bowl.  "Nah," he remarked to Dixie, "That's taking way too 
much away from all those cute little animals on Discovery."

	"Very funny." Ash shot from around a mouthful of soup.  Slurping the last 
tidbit from the bowl, he wiped his mouth on the back of his gloved hand and 
sighed, patting his stomach.  "That was fan-tastic, Brock.  What's for lunch?"  
He picked his hat up off of the ground where he had set it for the meal, 
brushing it off and tugging the bill down over his brow.

	Brock looked through their collective supplies, shaking his head.  "We 
might have to skip lunch today, Ash...I don't know this area very well, and I'm 
not sure where the next place to pick up more supplies'll be."  Brock began to 
pack up some of the cooking tools, setting aside the ones that needed to be 
washed.  "It's not like we're in the city anymore."

	Ash and Pikachu sighed in unison, both depressed about the fact that their 
stomachs wouldn't know food until sometime that evening.  "Man, it's too bad 
there isn't a city nearby...I could really go for some tacos, or maybe some 
Chinese food."

	Dixie tilted her head, regarding Ash curiously.  "Didn't y'all eat that 
stuff all the time at home?"

	"Huh?"

	"Chinese food, I mean."

	Ash looked at her as one might look at an Eevee that had just evolved into 
a Tauros.  "What in the world are you talking about?"

	"Chinese food..." Dixie was confused as well.  "You know, 'cause 
you're...Chinese, right?"

	Ash exchanged glances with Brock and Pikachu, still not quite 
understanding.  "Um, no.  I was born on the Island...my dad was from Japan, and 
my mom was a native, just like me."

	Dixie looked flustered, covering her wide-open mouth.  "Ohmygod, I'm so 
sorry..." she stammered, "I just assumed from the eyes...Oh god, I'm doing it 
again.  I'm sorry, I'm sooo sorry, I-"

	Ash laughed, picking up Pikachu and placing the Pokémon on his shoulder.  
"What's wrong?" he chuckled, "You're acting like you just backed over my 
favorite Pokémon with a truck."  Pikachu squealed at this, chittering and 
sparking at the cheeks in protest.

	"Well, it's just...here in America," Dixie tried to explain herself, "We 
try to be really careful about insulting people of other races."

	"Well, out on the Island, we don't give a Ratticate's butt about what race 
a person is." Brock chuckled.  This got Ash and Pikachu laughing even harder, 
which made Dixie feel a little better.  "Still, though, it might be a good idea 
to keep a low profile while we're here.  Which means that you, Ms. Mason," he 
pointed at her with his ladle, "Are going to be our guide to America.  So keep 
us in line, and make sure Ash doesn't do something that would get us arrested or 
sued."

	Now it was Dixie's turn to laugh.  She stood up, sauntering over to Ash.  
"If that's the case, then the first thing we need t'change is this."  She yanked 
Ash's cap off of his head.  Ash protested loudly, until she slipped it back onto 
his scalp, reversed from its previous position.  "No one wears their cap the 
right way anymore.  If you want to blend, you'll keep it like that."

	"Yes ma'am." Ash saluted, brushing a lock of hair out of his eyes.  Dixie 
gave him a thwap upside the skull, which got them all laughing and carrying on 
once more.  Only the sound of a throat being cleared loudly caught their 
attention away, shifting it over to a dripping wet Misty.  She stood on the 
outer edge of their fire's circle, bare feet scraping against the dirty forest 
floor, a pair of towels her only protection from the elements.  One was wrapped 
around a gigantic mound of sopping wet hair, and the other clung tightly to her 
body, covering her coverables.

	"Ugh," she said, tugging on her towel, "I had forgotten exactly why I hate 
camping out so much."  She walked over to her tent, entering carefully so as not 
to give her friends an eyeful of something they didn't need to see.  "I'm done.  
The river's free, and it is CO-OLD."  She disappeared into her tent to change.

	Ash and Pikachu chuckled at Misty's complaints as Brock grabbed his own 
washing gear, as well as a towel.  "Chinese," Brock chortled, throwing the towel 
over his shoulder.  "That's a good one."  He started his walk to the river, but 
was pulled back at Dixie's protest.

	"So then where do y'all guys come from?" she asked, her voice filled with 
curiosity.  "I mean, I've told you guys about me, and my family, but don't know 
anything about you."

	That gave Brock pause.  "Well, we were all born on the Island..." he 
started with a shrug, retaking his seat on the log.  "Me, I come from a family 
with a whole mess of brothers and sisters.  I'm the oldest."  Brock couldn't 
help but smile at the memory of his plethora of siblings.  He was starting to 
miss them fiercely.  Perhaps a quick visit sometime soon would be a good idea.  
"I ran the gym out of Pewter City.  Brock 'The Rock' Stone." he flexed a bit, 
drawing a laugh from Ash, Dixie, and a pika-giggle from Pikachu.

	"Well, so now we know about 'The Rock,' but what about Misty?"  Dixie 
glanced over at the shaking tent, presumably where the Water Mistress was still 
dressing.

	"Cerulean Gym Leader." Misty called out, grunting.  "Three sisters [darn 
pants, c'mon!], all of 'em unbearable.  Parents are constantly [you stupid 
pants, you fit just last week!] on the road, they like to globetrot and see [I'm 
gonna freaking KILL someone if the river water shrunk these!] the world.  I left 
with Ash after he and Pikachu blew up my bike."  A loud thudding sound followed 
the end of her story, followed by a string of cursing, and finally, a cry of 
success.  Misty emerged from the tent with a hairbrush in hand, her clothes in 
place.  She smiled uneasily.  "Uh...button wasn't undone."

	Ash blinked.  "Right..."

	Dixie began digging through her bag, obviously in search of something.  
"What about you, Ash?" she asked with her head half-buried among her traveling 
gear.  "Misty and Brock are just along for the ride; what're you doing so far 
from home...besides this little chore." Dixie nearly snorted at her own words; 
calling the quest for her grandfather's greatest works a mere chore.  It was 
almost funny.  "I mean, Pokémon Island is *the* place to be for an up-and-coming 
trainer."

	Ash smiled, sharing a glance with Pikachu.  "I'd hardly call a former 
League Champion an "up-and-comer," but-"

	"Oh, heavens no!" Misty clutched the sides of her face in mock horror, 
gasping.  "Why, Dixie, don't you know?  This is *THE* Ash Ketchum."

	Brock couldn't help but get in on the fun.  "Yeah!" he grinned, gesturing 
with his hand as if giving a proclamation to the people across the land.  
"Ashlan Terrance Ketchum himself.  Why, he's battled Team Rocket 
supercriminals..."

	"Horrifying genetic monsters," Misty added, patting Ash on the head.  He 
took the ribbing with good humor, at least until he could figure out how to get 
them back.

	"Legendary birds bent on destroying the world,"

	"Insane megalomaniac geniuses bent on taking over the world,"

	"Ancient evil that would suck the brain right outta your head,"

	"And all the while," Misty finished off, folding her arms and resting her 
elbows on Ash's head as if he were a table, "Coping with a desperately crippling 
lack of talent, brains, and common sense."  Her armrest sighed heavily, heaving 
the lithe redhead off of himself.

	Dixie pulled herself out of the bag, holding up her hands as a sign of 
defeat.  "Okay, okay!" she laughed, her southern accent pleading for mercy.  
"Sounds like y'all guys have seen a lot."

	"A lot?  We've seen it all."  Ash wrapped an arm around Misty's and 
Brock's shoulder, grinning from ear to ear.  Pikachu leapt on top of his head, 
completing the invincible quartet.  "There's nothing we haven't seen, nothing we 
can't do."

	"So then why'd y'all leave?"

	Ash opened his mouth to respond, but stopped.  His jaw snapped shut as he 
strained his mind to find an answer.  Why was he here?  Well, because Professor 
Oak had asked him to come...no, he had been planning on coming to America even 
before Oak had called him about the HMs.  Well, then it had been because America 
was the next logical choice in his journey; it had some of the toughest 
competition on the planet, and if he was ever going to complete his quest-

	What was his quest, anyway?

	"Uhhhh..."

	"Tell ya what," Dixie pulled a pile of clothes, towels, and soaps from her 
bag, bundling them up in her arms.  "I'm gonna go hit the river.  You stay here 
and think about it, then tell me when I get back...and no peeking."  She turned 
on her heel, making her way towards the river.

	"Huh?  But I thought-"

	"I needed a distraction to get my stuff together so I could go ahead of 
Brock." Dixie called over her shoulder before she disappeared into the brush.

	"That little sneak!" Brock tossed his ladle down onto the pile of other 
dirty dishes, snorting in disgust.  Ash, however, was still lost in thought.  No 
matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember what had possessed him to leave 
his home.  Adventure?  He had already experienced more than most do in a 
lifetime, and then some.  Fame?  He didn't need it, didn't want it, and didn't 
care about it.  Destiny?  His destiny was already set, and it never said 
anything about gallivanting around the globe.  What had it been?
*		*		*

	"Badges!"

	The outburst startled Ash's friends, who had been enjoying the peaceful 
hike through the forest up until then.  After all morning preparations and 
duties had been fulfilled, Brock had borrowed Ash's wrist-complete with its 
Pokégear accessory-and found a suitable town for their next stop no more than a 
day's hike away.

	Dixie looked at him as if he had grown a Nidoking's horn out of his 
forehead.  "What in the world are you talking about?"

	Ash beamed triumphantly, obviously proud of the results of his memory-
straining remembrance.  "Badges!  That's why I left the Island."  When her 
confused appearance failed to vanish, he continued, "I had already earned all 
the badges I could on the Island, or anywhere near it.  You know; Indigo, Johto, 
Orange..." He could feel his Indigo badges pressed up against his chest inside 
his jacket.  He had left his other badges with his mother for safekeeping.  
"Wow.  What with all the world-saving stuff and the League, I must've 
forgotten."

	"World-saving stuff?" Dixie was now more confused than ever.  "What are 
you talk-"

	"Ohhh, I remember that!" Brock cut Dixie off, laughing.  "Gosh, that was 
over a year ago."

	Misty rubbed her chin thoughtfully.  "That's right.  We were at The 
Quarry.  Ash was being his normal moody self, and suddenly he pulled that lame 
idea out of thin air to get all the badges in the world."  She took a long swig 
from her canteen, then offered it to Dixie, who accepted the water flask gladly.  
"Good thing you forgot all about that." Misty chuckled.

	Ash didn't flare up with a violent retort as he normally would.  Instead, 
he seemed lost in deep thought.  After a moment, he turned to Dixie.  "Dixie, 
how many gyms are in the US?"

	The Southern Belle pulled the canteen from her lips, looking over at Ash.  
"Uh...let's see."  She thought back to her registration packet, trying to call 
up a number.  "Nintey-five, I think."  She began to take another long drag of 
water.

	"Great!  Let's get started, then.  I only have a year until the next 
Indigo games, and I'll need a few battles under my belt.  Guess those gyms'll 
have to do."

	Dixie gagged, sending a spray of water and saliva out her crimson lips.  
Coughing, she wiped her mouth, then turned on Ash with a vengeance.  "Are you 
INSANE?"

	"What?"

	"You want to," she began ticking off on her fingers, "One: Travel across 
the ENTIRE United States within a single year, and Two: Beat every single gym in 
the country while you do it?"  He nodded, which only amazed her more.  "You 
'are' insane."  She turned to Misty and Brock, talking to them as if Ash wasn't 
even there.  "He's insane!"

	"We know." Brock said sadly.  He already foresaw a long, long trip ahead 
of them.

	Misty nodded.  "It's one of his quirks.  You get used to it after a 
while...if it doesn't kill you first."

	Ash rolled his eyes, taking the ribbing with good humor.  He had heard it 
all before, and knew that Brock and Misty would stay by his side, no matter 
what.  "I don't care what anyone thinks," he stated matter-of-factly with arms 
folded defiantly across his chest, "I can do it, as long as I have Pikachu by my 
side."  He looked down, reading his partner's reaction.

	Pikachu wasn't there.

	"Huh?"  Ash began looking around wildly, trying to find Pikachu.  
"Pikachu?  Hey, Pikachu, where are you?"  The rest of the group soon followed 
suit, calling the Pokémon's name as they began to backtrack.  After only a 
moment or two of walking, they found the yellow mouse caught in some underbrush 
beneath a lonely apple tree.  Pikachu had somehow entangled himself while trying 
to scramble up the tree to get at its shining red fruit, and now struggled with 
embarrassment at its predicament.

	"There you are!" Misty bent down, giggling at the Pokémon's problem with 
good-natured fun.  "Ash, he's over here!"  Her call soon drew the group.  Once 
they had arrived, the first thing they did was to stand back and chuckle at 
Pikachu.

	"Pika!"

	"Okay, okay, no need to get snippidy." Ash held up his hands, laughing.  
He began to examine the problem, then pulled a Pokéball off of his belt.  With a 
quick press of the device's single control, he expanded the ball from marble 
size to softball size.  Then, depressing the button until he felt the capture 
latch disengage, he tossed the ball out.  "Bulbasaur, I choose you!"

	The Pokéball hung in the air for a split second, then opened on its unseen 
hinge, releasing a dazzling waterfall of pure white energy that charged the 
crisp, cool air.  Within an instant, the energy hit the ground and began to 
coalesce into a creature, a Pocket Monster only about a foot high.  It soon 
formed short, stubby legs with sharp claws, a pointed saurian head with small, 
beady eyes, and an enormous bulb protruding from its back, reminiscent of a 
large garlic clove.  "Bulba!" Bulbasaur barked happily, overjoyed at being 
released from the Pokéball after such a long trip.  The Pokéball, now devoid of 
its Pokémon, snapped back into Ash's waiting hand.  He re-belted the ball, then 
turned to Bulbasaur.

	"Bulbasaur, y'think you could help Pikachu out a little?" Ash asked his 
walking seedling.  The Grass Type gave him a nod and a grunt, then scowled with 
concentration as it took careful aim.  With a short war cry, Bulbasaur let loose 
with a pair of razor-sharp leaves from the base of its bulb.  The Razor Leaves 
sliced through part of the underbrush, then became embedded in the rest of the 
tangled twigs and roots, quivering in place.

	"Bul?" Bulbasaur tipped its head curiously.  The Pokémon had been 
expecting its attack to split the brush right down the middle, letting Pikachu 
escape easily.  "Bulba!"

	"Huh." Ash scratched his head.  He reached down and latched onto Pikachu's 
tiny arms, then gave the electric mouse a sharp tug.  Pikachu was jerked from 
its entrapment, but not without some parting scrapes and cuts from the 
underbrush as a consolation prize.  Cradling Pikachu, he looked down at his 
Bulbasaur, who appeared distressed at having failed.  "S'okay, Bulbasaur," he 
consoled the despondent Pokémon, "That brush looked pretty tough."  

	The teens decided to continue their walk along the trail again.  As they 
traveled, Ash pulled out a mild Potion Creme and began applying it to his petite 
partner's lacerations.  Bulbasaur remained out of its ball at Ash's discretion; 
he figured a little stretch break for the Pokémon would do it some good.  The 
entire time, though, Dixie simply stared at Bulbasaur, sizing it up with her own 
trainer's eye.  Finally, she couldn't contain her curiosity any longer.

	"Ash, what is the deal with you and this here Bulbasaur?" she asked him.
He finished tending to Pikachu's wounds, placing the mouse on his shoulder.  	
	
	"What do you mean?" he replied with a question of his own.  He glanced 
down at Bulbasaur, wondering if Dixie had spotted anything wrong with it.  "Is 
he okay?"

	"Well...probably not." Dixie folded her arms, shaking her head.  "Look, 
I'm not one of y'all's Fan-Boy types, but you've had that Bulbasaur for a while 
now, right?"  He nodded, still not catching on.  "Well, what's his story?  I 
mean, I've only been training for a year, and my Chikorita evolved into a 
Bayleef in only a few months."

	"Hey!" Ash couldn't believe what he was hearing.  This...this upstart was 
questioning not only his training techniques, but Bulbasaur too!  "There's 
nothing wrong with Bulbasaur.  He just doesn't want to evolve!"  Brock and Misty 
secretly exchanged looks, vowing to stay out of the argument.  They had been in 
discussions similar to this before, and had no desire to become part of one 
again.  "Besides, Bulbasaur could beat your stupid Bayleef any day!"

	"Oh really?" It was Dixie's turn to shout.  She ripped a Pokéball from her 
own belt and activated the release, tossing it to the side.  In a second, the 
young trainer's Bayleef was released, reforming in midair and landing with a 
sharp grunt.

	"Leeef!" It was a fairly large specimen of Bayleef, its dorsal leaf easily 
reaching Dixie's slim waist.  The ring of leaves encircling its neck hid the 
small attack vines and poison glands, as Ash knew all too well.  He had fought a 
few Bayleef in his career, and didn't expect this one to be much different.

	"Well, Big Shot?" Dixie shot, sneering.  "You ready to put your money 
where your mouth is?"

	Ash grinned, aching for a good battle.  He caught Bulbasaur's eye, who 
nodded to him.  "Bring it on, Rookie.  I could use a nice diversion for a moment 
or two."  Bulbasaur took several steps forward, snarling at the Bayleef.  The 
other Pokémon simply snorted, taking its own battle stance.  They began to 
circle each other, each sizing up the opponent.  Bayleef looked completely 
confident as it gazed into the eyes of its smaller, seemingly lesser opponent.

	"You guys!" Misty stepped in, moving between the two Pokémon.  It was a 
calculated risk; she knew for a fact that Bulbasaur wouldn't try anything with 
her in the way, but she had no such assurances with Dixie's Bayleef.  "Take it 
easy, will you?  We've got a lot of ground to cover, and I think we should be 
paying attention to where we're going, not fighting each other."

	"She's right about one thing."  The audible click of a loaded gun cut off 
their dialogue.  Turning slowly, the group of teens and their Pokémon saw a 
familiar pair standing behind them.  Looking completely out of place in their 
expensive suits, Shades and Spike stood ankle-deep in leaves and twigs, each 
with a tech 9mm firearm gripped in the left and right hand, respectively.  It 
had been Spike, the longhaired, blue-eyed blonde who had spoken.  He now wore a 
vicious grin on his face as he put his gun to bear right between Dixie's eyes.  
"You should pay more attention."

	"Now, Ms. Mason," Shades began affably, wiping a thin bead of sweat from 
his dark-skinned forehead, "I believe we were attending to some 'unfinished 
business' before we were rudely interrupted."  He waved his gun at Ash, 
motioning for the boy to step away from Dixie.  Ash complied under protest, 
running options through his head rapidly.  "Give us the TM Prototypes."

	"I don't have 'em."

	He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose momentarily.  "Ms. Mason, 
believe it or not, I have no real desire to see you lying in a pool of your own 
blood.  My partner, on the other hand," he indicated Spike, who waved to them 
with his free hand psychotically, "Feels differently."

	"She's caused us a lot of trouble, Shades." Spike spoke of Dixie as if she 
weren't even there.  "I say we plug her now.  Those kids, too...'Specially the 
one with the Z's." he sneered, "That one's starting to bug me."

	"Look, are you both completely stupid?" she threw her hands up, losing 
control.  "I *don't* have them.  If I did, I wouldn't be walking in the middle 
of a forest, now would I?" a bit of panic leaked into her voice, usurping her 
stony, frustrated demeanor.  "They aren't here!"

	Spike growled, "Shades, let's just kill them already!  We can use the 
Itemfinder to locate the god-blasted TMs."  His trigger finger itched 
desperately, and he saw several ample targets in front of him that could scratch 
it very well.  "I'm gettin' sick of all this talkin'."

	"An excellent suggestion, Spike." Shades once again brought his gun to 
bear, choosing Dixie as his target.  "I'm sorry we couldn't work things out, Ms. 
Mason."

	Ash's mind clicked into panic overdrive.  "Oh yeah?" He squeaked, his 
voice quavering with fear, "Well, you forgot just one thing..." With an alarming 
tone, he pointed straight behind the pair, screaming, "Oh my GOD, what's THAT?"  
Shades and Spike whirled around, their guns ready to destroy whatever the 
frantic teen had seen.  They were a bit surprised to find that there wasn't 
anything there.

	"What the...?" Spike muttered, turning around.  "AH!  They're getting 
away!"

	And indeed they were!  Ash and his friends had seized the opportunity with 
a vengeance.  Their Pokémon were not far behind, running for their very lives.  
Furious beyond all reason, Spike opened fire with his custom-built weapon, not 
particularly caring where he hit, and Dixie's unfortunate Bayleef just happened 
to be in his sights.

	"Leeeef!" Dixie's Grass type screeched as its wounded body pounded against 
the leafy forest floor, tumbling and rolling, soaking the leaves with a crimson 
hue.  Ignoring the screaming voices in her head, the brave, bubbly blonde turned 
around and started to go back.  Only Ash's hand, powered by a mixture of terror 
and adrenaline, managed to stop her before she could run full bore back for her 
Pokémon.

	"Bulbasaur, grab Bayleef with your Vinewhip and let's go go go!"

	Bulbasaur did as it was ordered, hauling the casualty into the air with 
its thick, powerful vines and taking off in a sort of half sprint, half froggy 
leap.  Together, the group ran off through the woods with the dirty pair on 
their tail, firing blindly ahead of them in an attempt to hit one of the teens, 
or another of their Pokémon.  Left, right, left again, right again...no one was 
sure exactly who was leading, or where they were going.  
*		*		*

	After ten minutes of the lethal marathon, they could no longer hear the 
duo behind them, yet still they ran.  Each of them was exhausted, and wanted to 
stop, but they were terrified for their very lives.  After what seemed like an 
eternity, they ran around a bend and came across salvation; a lone building 
standing in the middle of a small clearing.

	"Who in their right mind..." Ash had to pause for breath, trying 
desperately to get his heart back down under a thousand beats a second, "Who 
would build a cabin in the middle of nowhere?"  

	He leaned against the object in question, which 'was' in the middle of 
nowhere.  There was nothing particularly eye-catching about the construction; 
plain wooden siding, seemingly normal windows, a short, squatty chimney adorning 
the crown of its simple thatched roof, and a single, haphazard door stuck in the 
middle of what the teens could only assume was the front.  With Bulbasaur's 
help, they leaned the injured Bayleef against the wall of the cabin, hoping that 
its inhabitants wouldn't mind.

	Dixie was about to respond when a strange, foreign beeping sound cut her 
off.  They looked around vainly for the source, though there was hardly anything 
among them that would make a sound like this; Ash checked his Pokédex and 
Pokégear, but both were silent...blissfully silent in Dexter's case.  Brock and 
Misty both exchanged helpless shrugs.  Pikachu was the detective of the day, 
however, pointing to Dixie's bag and shouting to gain their attention.  Taking 
her pack off, the southern belle dug through the bag until she finally found the 
culprit.

	"What in the world?" Dixie scratched her head, drawing the Itemfinder, out 
one of her grandfather's last inventions.  Curious, she strapped the small 
device to her head and peered through the single lens that covered her left eye.  

	"What is it?" Misty tried to read the information readout from her 
backward position in vain, succeeding only in staring straight into Dixie's eye.  
Dixie ignored her, however, mumbling as she scanned over the data the 'Finder 
was feeding her.  "Yada yada, blah blah blah...Prototype One?" She was now more 
confused than ever.  "What on earth is a Prototype One?"

	Before anyone could answer, a cry rang out behind the teens, giving them 
cause to freeze in their tracks.  "Who in blazes are you?" a weathered voice 
demanded.  The unmistakable click of a shotgun being pumped rang through the 
air, and the forest seemed to grow deadly quiet.

	"Oh, crap." Brock muttered.
*		*		*

	"Crap!" Spike practically screamed at the forest around him, kicking up a 
large cloud of dirt and leaves as he vented his frustration and rage openly.  He 
fired several shots into the air with his pistol, only succeeding in knocking 
down more leaves and branches in their path as they tried to track the intrepid 
teens through the trees.  "I can't believe that!  I just can't believe it; twice 
with the same trick."  He switched his aim to a nearby tree, blowing several 
small holes into its trunk and spraying bark and sap across the forest floor.  
"From the SAME KID!"
	
	Shades started to reprimand his partner, but stopped.  He felt a bit 
humiliated himself, and could understand and overlook Spike's outbursts...for 
now.  His own frustration was beginning to cloud his judgement, and his anger 
grew more and more as the trail grew less and less distinct.  "Relax, Spike." he 
attempted to reassure the raving gunman, all the while trying *very* hard to 
stay out of the tech 9's deadly path, "We'll find them.  When we do, the 
prototypes will be in our possession, and the Board of Directors will reward us 
for our perseverance.  Have patience."
	
	"I'd rather have those kids' heads on a platter." he growled, putting a 
fresh clip in his gun and holstering it.  "I swear, after this mission, I'm 
never looking behind me again."
	
	Ironically (or perhaps the obvious plot device of a struggling writer), it 
was just then that a small dart hit Spike in the base of his neck.  He managed 
to snarl the first half of a four-letter word before tumbling to the ground, 
completely devoid of consciousness.  Shades whirled around with his gun at the 
ready, not quite sure what to expect.  Whatever it was, he certainly didn't find 
it.  "Who in blazes are you?"
	
	Standing behind the now solo Shades was a trio of humans and a single 
Meowth.  Two of the three had assumed jaunty, arrogant poses, while the third 
had a blowgun he was lowering from his lips.  The centerpiece had blinding 
silver hair that shimmered in the dim forest lighting, and wore dark black robes 
that hung loosely from his wiry body, and was armed with a nasty looking saber.  
The other pair, what appeared to be two women, looked like escapees from the 
circus; garish white costumes with a bold red 'R' emblazoned on their matching 
jackets, and ridiculously unnatural hair coloring that would make anyone with a 
sense of taste weep with pity.
	
	"Prepare for trouble..." the redheaded woman sneered, pulling out a 
Pokéball and gesturing wildly.
	
	"Make it double." the second woman with blue hair announced in a 
surprisingly deep voice.
	
	Before they could go any further, the silver-haired ninja hit Shades with 
another of his darts, and the corporate hit man's world faded to blackness.
*		*		*	
	
	Jesse froze, not quite believing what she was seeing.  Red began to creep 
into her face as she felt her anger growing.  "Now just why did you do that?" 
she demanded of Alpha, pocketing Arbok's ball in her jacket.
	
	"Yes, we were in the middle of our motto!" James was equally irate with 
the assassin.  "You can not interrupt a member of Team Rocket when they are 
performing the-"
	
	"Silence." Alpha muttered, studying the forest floor.  Wisely, the 
dastardly duo decided to zip their collective lips as the master Rocket studied 
the ground intently.  After several moments, he drew his sword and pointed the 
end southwest.  "This way," he ordered, starting off in a run, "They are not 
more than a few moments ahead of us."
	
	Meowth sighed with frustration, rubbing his temples with his gigantic 
paws.  "Dis guy's three pancakes short ova shortstack...Da Boss musta been nuts 
to pair us up with him."

	"Less talk, more walk, Meowth." James grunted, starting off in unison run 
with Jessie after the shadow warrior.  The large-headed cat took off after them, 
grumbling with every step.
*		*		*

	"So you're Jack Mason's granddaughter."

	The teens' would-be attacker sat down at a small, unassuming kitchen table 
situated in the dining area of her small, rustic cabin, cradling a cup of 
steaming tea in her hands and smiling at Dixie.  The slight, petite woman in her 
mid-fifties with graying brown hair gave Dixie an appraising eye, drawing her 
yellow shawl tighter over her narrow shoulders.  "I thought I recognized you..." 
she said, taking a long, slow sip of her tea before continuing.  "Little 
Dixieland Mason, my goodness, how you've grown."

	Dixie sat down across from her, casting a glance above her to make sure 
Ash and Misty were still with her.  Her two friends had taken up position right 
behind her, staying silent but offering moral support nonetheless.  "You 
know...knew my grampa?"  Dixie finally gathered the courage to ask the woman.

	She nodded, setting the teacup down.  "Mm-hmm.  We go way back, Jack and 
I."  She chuckled, popping herself on the forehead with the heel of her hand.  
"How silly of me."  Extending her hand, she started off with an introduction to 
Dixie, slightly flush with embarrassment.  "I'm Gynn...Gynn Sue.  I was one of 
your grandfather's research assistants."  Dixie took her hand and shook it 
warily, still unsure of the woman who had been pointing a shotgun at them only 
ten minutes before.  "When I heard about what happened to Jack..." her gaze 
dropped into her tea as her heart began to break all over again.  "I'm so sorry, 
Dixie."

	Before Dixie could respond, Brock walked into the room, interrupting the 
discussion as he crossed through the door.  Pikachu and Bulbasaur bounded in 
behind him, staring intently at the Pokéball he carried in his hand.  "I patched 
Bayleef up as best I could," he explained to Dixie, tossing her the containment 
sphere, "But we don't have a lot to work with.  A Nurse Joy wouldn't be bad 
right about now..." his eyes grew glazed over, "Though I can't think of a bad 
time for a Nurse Joy."

	"Nurse *Who*?"

	"Long story." Ash muttered, waving her off.  He turned back to Gynn.  
"What are you doing all the way out here in these woods, anyway?  I mean, 
running into an old friend of the Professor's must be a hundred-to-one odds."  
He caught Pikachu, who came bounding up into his arms with a gleeful 'Pika!'

	Gynn smiled, standing up and walking over to a safe sitting in the corner 
of the dining room.  "Actually, the odds aren't as bad as you would think.  As a 
matter of fact, I've been waiting for you to arrive."

	"Us?" Misty couldn't believe it.  "We just got here a few weeks ago, how 
could you possibly know about us coming?"

	"Not you," she chided Misty for her foolish outburst as she bent down to 
fiddle with the safe's tumblers, "Dixie.  Dixie, will you lend me your 
Itemfinder for a moment?"

	Dixie nodded, retrieving the device from her bag and handing it to Gynn 
obediently.  Gynn stopped her activities with the safe long enough to readjust 
some of the Itemfinder's controls, peering through the eyepiece without actually 
strapping the headset on.  As soon as she pressed the activation button, the 
device started beeping again.  "There we go...the range on this darn thing was 
only a few meters.  I managed to reset the range function for its primary search 
parameters."  She handed the device back to Dixie, then finished the safe's 
combination, hauling the heavy door ajar and digging through the scores of 
papers and small boxes strewn about the interior.  "You shouldn't have any 
problem finding the rest of them now."

	"Huh?" Dixie shoved the Itemfinder back into her pack, now more confused 
than before.  "What do you mean?  Find the rest of what?"

	"These." Gynn found what she had been looking for, and pulled her head out 
of the safe to offer it to Dixie.  It wasn't large, only about half the size of 
a computer disk at three times the thickness.  It was almost like a computer 
chip, gleaming in the window-filtered sunlight with its mix of metallic contact 
points and plastic translucent casing.  The top front portion of the chip was 
embossed with the golden numerals zero and one.  Dixie took the chip, holding it 
breathlessly as she stared at it in awe.

	"I-I-is this what I think it is?"  When Gynn nodded, Dixie leapt into the 
air with joy.  "OH MY GOD!  Wa-HOO!!!!"  She grabbed Ash's hands and began to 
swing the klutzy boy around in a bizarre victory dance.  "We found it, we really 
found it!"

	"F-f-fou-nd wh-wh-what-t-t?" Ash managed to force out of his mouth as 
Dixie forced him into her waltz.

	"This is the first of your grandfather's prototypes." Gynn explained, 
though it was hardly necessary in Dixie's case.  "Hidden Machine Oh-One teaches 
the Cut ability to a Pokémon...provided it's compatible."  With that, she 
returned to her tea, a small smile slowly blossoming on her lips at the sight of 
the girl's pure ecstasy.

	Dixie couldn't contain herself.  She slung Ash away and immediately began 
digging through her bag again, letting the hapless dancer crash into the wall 
and slide down in a dazed heap.  After a moment of fruitless search, she pulled 
out the HM Accelerator with a triumphant cry and plugged the HM chip into the 
accelerator's port and began reading the small display screen.  "Hmm..." she 
muttered thoughtfully as the information scrolled past her scanning eyes.  
Misty, Brock, and Pikachu, in the meantime, had collected Ash from the floor and 
returned him to a state of semi-standing.  Together, they walked over and tried 
to read along with Dixie, only catching small snatches of what the machine was 
offering.  "Ah-hah!" Dixie finally cried, "I've got it.  According to this, the 
best match I have for this one is...Bayleef." she trailed off.

	The room grew deadly silent as they pondered the problem.  Gynn, for her 
part, remained out of the discussion.  She could almost feel the weight lifting 
off of her shoulders now that the prototype had been passed on to Jack's 
granddaughter.  'I kept it safe, just like you asked,' she thought, wondering if 
he could hear her.  'The rest is up to her.'

	"Hey, lighten up!" Ash slapped the morose girl on the back, laughing 
heartily.  "I mean, it's not like Bayleef's dead, right?  We don't have to do 
anything with the prototype now."  He scratched his head, grabbing hold of the 
accelerator and pondering it.  "Besides, I'd feel a lot better if Professor Oak 
looked at it before we started frying our Pokémon's' brains with it."

	Ash's pep talk was cut short by the sound of shattering glass; Gynn Sue's 
windows exploded inward with a hail of razor-sharp shards as several edged 
throwing stars flew into the cabin.   They lodged themselves into the wall on 
the other side of the room, quivering harshly against the hard wooden wall.  
Before even a peep could be uttered, a voice called out from beyond the 
shattered windows.

	"Ash Ketchum, come and meet the face of your killer!"
*		*		*

	"This is something new..." Ash muttered.  He stood outside the cabin's 
door with Pikachu and Bulbasaur taking point ahead of him, growling at the 
strange man standing in front of them.  He had flowing, jagged silvery hair and 
a dark, midnight black cloak that covered him from head to foot.  Jessie and 
James stood on either side of the cloaked stranger with Meowth at their feet, 
all three chortling and waving at Ash as if he were already beaten.  "I'm going 
to forgo the standard question-and-answer routine and just assume you're working 
for Team Rocket." he quipped, jabbing a finger at the three most annoying 
aspects of his life.

	The stranger smirked, removing his heavy gloves and cracking his knuckles 
loudly.  "You use humor and false confidence to hide your fear.  Excellent: This 
will prove to be more satisfying than I had first believed."  He removed the 
cloak completely, revealing a black bodysuit trimmed in crimson red, labeled 
only with a small, stylized 'R' logo on the left breast.  Strapped to his back 
was a long black sheath with the handle protruding just above his right 
shoulder.  "You may call me Alpha.  I am of the Omega Red, and I have been 
ordered to eliminate you."

	"Hightail it outta here before I spread your Omega BUTT all over this 
lousy forest, buster!" Misty called out from her hiding spot, halfway protruding 
from the doorway.  Supporting Ash was all fine and dandy, but caution was a must 
when there was some kind of crazy ninja assassin with throwing stars involved.  
"Just TRY me!"

	"Thanks, Misty..." Ash muttered.  He looked down at his two Pokémon at his 
feet, mind racing at a mile a minute.  'I could call out another Pokémon,' he 
thought, 'But from the looks of it, this Alpha guy is pretty fast...he'd 
probably cut me down before I could even trigger a release.'  "Bulbasaur, I 
choose you.  Let's mop the floor with these Rocket Pansies!"

	"I am NOT A PANSY!" James protested loudly in a tone three octaves higher 
than usual.  "Why does everyone keep saying that?"  The battle warm-ups stopped 
only long enough for the rest of the spectators, as well as the combatants, to 
give James a long, hard look.  "Sorry...don't know what came over me." James 
coughed.  When the staring continued, he grew angry again.  "Weren't you two 
supposed to be fighting???"
	
	Jessie cradled her face in her hands, moaning.  "James, James, you 
foolish, stupid man." she muttered.

	"That was pretty disturbing." Ash mumbled.  "Where was I?  Oh, right.  
Bulbasaur, GO!"  Bulbasaur was about to rush forward, but was stopped short in 
his tracks as Alpha drew his long, nasty saber and made several swipes in the 
air.  The singing of the blade froze the seedling with fear.  Pikachu stepped in 
between Alpha and Bulbasaur in a futile attempt to shield his friend at Alpha's 
advance.  Ash began sweating bullets, trying to figure out what to do now.  The 
sword could easily cut Pikachu apart, then move on through Bulbasaur until it 
ended up hilt-deep in his own chest.  "Cripes..."

	"Ash!"

	At the mention of his name, Ash whirled around to see Dixie, who was 
leaning out the broken window and holding the HM Accelerator high above her 
head.  "Catch it and use it!"  She threw the device straight and true, giving 
Ash only a split second to catch the metallic/plastic shell before it crashed 
into his skull.  He stared down in disbelief at what Dixie was offering him.

	"Are you insane?  It's untested!"

	"Do you have a better idea?"

	He didn't, and so split the device into its two halved components.  
"Bulbasaur, hold still a second."  He bent down, placing the halves over 
Bulbasaur's temples and, saying a quick prayer, tapped the activation panel.  
Responding instantly, the accelerator sent twin beams of streaming emerald light 
into Bulbasaur's head.  The seedling squealed, its small reptile eyes flashing 
green for a brief moment before returning to normal.  Its mission done and 
information transferred, the accelerator fell silent once more.  With a grunt, 
Bulbasaur extended its twin vines, which had somehow changed; each tip, instead 
of being a tiny bulb, now sported a razor-sharp edge.

	"Bulba?" Bulbasaur examined its new add-ons, swinging them in front of its 
face with curiosity.  "Bul...bulba, bulbasaur!"

	Alpha shook himself out of his astounded stupor, once again brandishing 
his sword.  "A very clever trick, my foe, but you will require more than cheap 
tricks to defeat me."  With a shrill battle cry, he swung the katana up over his 
head and ran forward.  In one swift move, he leapt forward and brought the saber 
down, cleaving Ash Ketchum straight down the middle.  That was the plan, anyway.  
Unfortunately for Alpha, Bulbasaur's new blades blocked the shot, forcing the 
assassin's saber back into his own face.  Undaunted, Alpha struggled against the 
Pokémon, concentrating all of his weight and strength into his blade.  Steel 
sang out against organics as the three blades struggled for supremacy.  In the 
end, though, it was Alpha who won; with a cheap shot, he kicked the Bulbasaur 
aside, sending it tumbling towards Jessie, James, and Meowth.  Then, in another 
instant, he was behind Ash, holding the sword to the teen's throat before he 
could even yelp in surprise.

	"Ash!" Misty screamed in horror.  Surprising enough, Dixie did exactly the 
same, with just as much passion and fear as Misty had.
	
	"Now," he growled into the ear of his target, "Beg me for your life."  He 
could feel the boy swallow against his blade, but there were no whimpers to 
speak of escaping from his lips.

	"Pika!  Pikapi, pi-cha-kachoo!"  Pikachu ran over to its fallen comrade, 
trying to shake Bulbasaur out of its punch-drunk stupor.  Before he could even 
reach the seed Pokémon, though, he was scooped up and jammed into a small glass 
bottle, courtesy of none other than Meowth.  "CHAAAA!"

	"Hahahahahahaaaa!" Meowth cackled gleefully, holding the thundering 
Pikachu over his head triumphantly.  "Dis is perfect!  Not only is the twerp 
gonna be outta our way, but we finally got dat Pikachu!"

	"Nice grab, Meowth."  James commended him.  "That was positively-AUGH!" he 
screamed as a Razor Leaf struck his cheek, cutting a small line all the way from 
his lip to his ear.  Looking down, he saw Ash's Bulbasaur as the culprit.  It 
stood at his feet, snarling and barking at him.  "You miserable little mongrel, 
are you still here?"  With a swift kick, he sent the Bulbasaur flying into the 
air, tumbling like a hopeless lost Pidgey with a bum wing.

	"Bulbasaur!" Ash cried out, struggling to get free.  The blade held fast, 
though, and he was trapped within the deadly embrace of the villain.

	Team Rocket laughed as Bulbasaur hit the ground, rolling in the dirt and 
leaves until finally coming to rest a few yards from where James had kicked it.  
"I guess they don't make Bulbasaur like they used to." Jessie sneered, laughing 
at her own joke.  James and Meowth joined in, busting a gut as Bulbasaur weakly 
pulled itself back onto its haunches.

	"Bul..."

	"Huh?"  Their laughter quickly ceased as Bulbasaur began to quiver, its 
eyes closed tight with concentration.  A strange light began to emit from its 
bulb, pulsing and throbbing like a heartbeat, continuing to grow in intensity 
and rhythm.

	"Bah!" The glow spread to the rest of Bulbasaur's body, and its eyes 
snapped open, instantly focusing not on Team Rocket, but instead on Alpha, who 
still had Ash under his blade.  Bulbasaur rose to all four of its feet, growling 
as the pulsating glow grew greater and greater.

	"SAUR!"

	"Oh no..." James squeaked.

	Bulbasaur began to grow; its legs grew longer, accommodating its rapidly 
expanding body.  New, sharper fangs grew, protruding from its lip like the fangs 
of a vampire.  The bulb on its back blossomed, blooming into several palmlike 
leaves with an enormous flower bud situated in the center.  Bulbasaur, now an 
Ivysaur, leered at Alpha, beckoning him with all four of its now longer and even 
sharper vines.

	"What?" Alpha couldn't believe it; one little kick from James, and 
suddenly it evolved!  What were the odds of that happening?  Off-balance from 
the sight of the evolving Pokémon, the rocket agent was caught unawares by Ash's 
elbow, which the teen drove squarely in Alpha's stomach.  Shoving the sword 
aside, Ash ran out of Alpha's grasp and turned on the agent, standing with 
Ivysaur at his side.

	"Bul...I mean, Ivysaur?" Ash looked down questioningly at his longtime 
friend, who gave him an encouraging nod and a quick 'Ivy'.  "Okay, let's give 
this another shot.  Ivysaur: CUT!"  Ivysaur responded instantly, its four vines 
leaping from the bloom on its back and streaking towards Alpha's chest, their 
points gleaming in the forest-filtered sunlight.  Only Alpha's lightning fast 
reflexes saved him as he parried the vines, grunting with effort and falling to 
one knee.

	"If it is to be a Pokémon match, then so be it!" he snarled, using his 
free hand to draw a black Pokéball and activate the release.  With a flash and a 
river of white energy, Alpha's solitary pocket monster was released; a gleaming 
crimson warrior with a shell of iron and crushing claws on the end of each 
powerful arm.

	"Sieeee!" The blood red Scizor snarled, snapping its claws at Ash and 
Ivysaur menacingly as Alpha smirked.  "Sissor, sor Sissor siiiiii!"

	"Scizor, bring me the boy's head." Alpha ordered, putting his sword back 
in its sheath.  "I want the Pokémon alive, however."  Giving the Ivysaur an 
appraising eye, he could see quite a bit of potential in the fearsome beast, 
especially with its newest 'add-ons'.  "He could be useful."

	"Useful?" Jessie gave James and Meowth confused looks.  "It's just an 
Ivysaur...Pikachu's the real prize, isn't he?"  All she received were shrugs 
before they turned back to the action.  "Hmmf.  We'll just see."

	Ash was sweating bullets now.  As powerful as Ivysaur had become with its 
HM/evolution combo, it was no match against a Steel type.  Steels were only weak 
against a handful of types, neither Grass nor Poison didn't happen to be one of 
them.  Alpha's Scizor began to beat its insectlike wings, and it lifted off the 
ground to hover several inches over the forest floor.  Giving one last war cry, 
Scizor launched itself towards Ash and Ivysaur at lightning speed.  Ash 
flinched, expecting the claws to snap his head right off of his shoulders.

	Fortunately for Ash, salvation came in the form of a certain spiky-haired 
Rock Master and his fire fox.  "Vulpix, Fireball!"  Right in front of Ash's 
eyes, Scizor was struck down by a raging ball of fire, caught flatfooted in mid-
charge, drilled straight in the chest by the attack and driven to the ground.  
Ash cast a glance back towards the broken window, seeing Brock giving him a 
thumbs up as his Vulpix stood on the windowsill, preparing for another shot.  
"Steels are weak to fire, remember?" his beefy friend called out to him with a 
grin.
	
	"Thanks for the assist!  I knew that bug-brain wasn't anything to worry 
about." Ash gave him his own thumbs-up, then turned back to face Alpha...only to 
find that Scizor had recovered a lot more quickly than he would have 
anticipated.  It hovered eye to eye with him, clicking its claws in 
anticipation.  "Oh.  Hi." Ash gave Scizor a small, pathetic smile, and prepared 
for oblivion for the second time in thirty seconds.

	"Typhlosion, Flame Wheel!"

	This time it was a ring of fire that struck Scizor, engulfing it in flames 
from the sidelines and sending it flying off to the side.  By the time the 
Pokémon landed, it was obvious that there wouldn't be an instant recovery; 
Scizor's hard metal exoskeleton was glowing white-hot, smoldering the leaves and 
twigs beneath and around the fainted Pokémon as it moaned, flat out on the 
ground.  Both Ash and Ivysaur looked over their shoulders.

	Dixie patted her Typhlosion on the head, flashing Ash a smile.  
"Surprised?"

	"A little..."

	"Well," she pointed behind him, "You're gonna be surprised again, 'cause 
that sword guy's comin' atcha again."

	"What?" Ash swung around just in time to see and dodge Alpha's singing 
blade.  As it was, it managed to scrape the top of his hat.  Furious, Ash shoved 
Alpha aside in a modified tackle and began sprinting towards the trees.  "This 
is getting old..." he muttered, calling for Pikachu and Ivysaur.  "Let's finish 
this!"

	"Just what I had in mind." Alpha snarled, chasing after Ash and his 
fleeing Pokémon.  Jessie, James, and Meowth ran after him, leaving Ash's 
dumbfounded friends to climb out of the house and survey the damage done.

	"We have to go after them!" Dixie pulled another Pokéball out of her pack, 
expanding it.  Brock, however, placed a hand on the capture sphere and shook his 
head.  "But-" she started.

	"Nu-uh." he shook his head firmly.  "We'd just get in the way."

	"You mean, Ash has some kind of plan?"

	Misty rolled her eyes, sighing.  "Knowing him, he's come up with some 
harebrained, crackpot scheme that'll either work, or it'll get him killed." Her 
tone sounded off-handed, but her mind spoke otherwise.  'For Goddess's sake, 
Ash...don't die.  Please.'
*		*		*

	"Oh man, I'm gonna die."

	Ash muttered the sentence over and over again as throwing stars lodged 
themselves into the trees around him as he ran, narrowly missing him by mere 
inches.  Alpha's shots seemed to be getting closer every time.  At this rate, he 
was going to be sushi in another minute.  'It's now or never...' Digging his 
heels into the ground, Ash screeched to a halt and spun one-eighty, scanning the 
forest for the stealthy ninja.  Pikachu and Ivysaur hadn't been prepared for the 
sudden stop, and plowed into his legs, knocking him on his butt.

	A harsh, barking laugh from above caught his attention, shifting his gaze 
upward.  Alpha stood atop a high branch, his sword thrown over his shoulder as 
if it were a silvery rifle.  "This is the boy that is worthy of Omega Red?"  The 
assassin leapt from his perch, tumbling through the air to land perfectly a mere 
ten feet away from Ash.  "Pathetic," he spat, brandishing his sword.  "Still, I 
will not fail."

	"Don't count on it." Ash leapt to his feet, Pikachu and Ivysaur at his 
side.  "All right, Ivysaur.  You know what to do.  CUT!"  Ivysaur snarled, 
launching two of its vines in a long, wide sweep that carried far past Alpha.  
The assassin easily leapt over the vines, coming back down to the ground as if 
nothing had even happened.

	"Was that your best shot?" Alpha laughed his horrible, guttural laugh once 
more.  "You missed."

	Ash grinned.  "Nope.  'Fraid not."

	A loud creaking sound from behind warned Alpha of danger.  He turned just 
in time to realize Ivysaur's true target; the tree behind him.  It now began its 
descent, crashing down upon him faster than he could react.  "Son of a-" was all 
he could say before the mass of branches and leaves engulfed him, plunging his 
vision into darkness.

	Ash waited a moment, wondering if the ninja would pull another of his 
tricks.  Then he leapt up into the air, whooping with their victory.  "YEAH!"  
He picked up his Ivysaur, which was substantially heavier than Bulbasaur had 
been, but swung him around nevertheless.  "We did it, Ivysaur!  We did it!"

	Alpha's three stooges arrived just in time to see Ash's celebration.  One 
look at the protruding sword from the fallen tree told them enough.  "Alpha 
lost?" James simply couldn't believe it.  He stepped over, picking up the fallen 
assassin's saber and holding it in awe.  "He can't lose.  He's Omega Red, he 
can't lose!"

	"Huh?" Ash stopped, placing Ivysaur back on the ground.  "Oh, it's just 
you three."

	Jessie gritted her teeth, clenching a gloved fist.  "You, boy, are 
beginning to get on my nerves..." she growled.
	
	Ash couldn't help but laugh.  "Six years, and all I've managed to do is 
get on your nerves?  Guess I'd better try harder."

	"THAT'S IT!" she cried, stripping her arms clean of the latex gloves and 
tossing them aside.  "The gloves are OFF, little man." She began marching 
forward, intent on giving Ash the beating of his life.  No Pokémon battles, no 
gigantic robots, no holes in the ground...this time, she just wanted to beat the 
stuffing out of him.

	Ash looked down at his thunderous counterpart.  "Pikachu; show these three 
the door."  Pikachu nodded, gathering a good dose of electricity.  With a 
warcry, the lightning mouse let loose with a devastating Thunderbolt, blasting 
Jessie back into James's arms.  Before Jessie could even recover, Pikachu 
followed up with another blast.  With a thunderclap and an explosion of dirt and 
leaves, the trio was blasted high into the stratosphere.

	"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!!!"
*		*		*

	Giovanni sat in his office-his 'real' office-and waited patiently for the 
conversation next to him to cease.  Off to his left sat a plain-looking man 
dressed in a simple midnight black jumpsuit.  He wore a flattened black cap atop 
his head and a Glock sidearm strapped to his hip, and little else.  At the 
moment, he was speaking into Giovanni's vidphone, and his tone was less than 
pleasant.

	"You let him escape, Alpha."

	Alpha, the lethal bladesmith, hung his head in shame on the other end of 
the connection.  His arm was wrapped in a makeshift splint, and much of his face 
and body was bandaged.  The eye that wasn't wrapped up featured a beaut of a 
shiner, puffing out in all the colors of the rainbow.  "I am sorry, Omega.  I 
underestimated the boy and his Pokémon.  It will not happen again."

	"It will not." Was all Omega said.  "What of the three agents assisting 
you?"

	"I sent them ahead."

	"Good.  I will send Delta ahead to rendezvous with them.  You will return 
here.  Punishment for your failure will be swift." With that, he cut the signal.  
He couldn't help but sigh with frustration, rubbing the bridge of his nose.  
Alpha would someday become one of the most feared assassins in the world...if 
only he could control his ego.

	Giovanni chuckled.  "Try not to be so hard on him, Omega." he told the 
handpicked leader and namesake of Omega Red.  "He is only a child, after all.  
He will learn, if given the opportunity."

	"He underestimated the target." Omega sneered, disgusted by the very 
thought.  "He was beaten by a sixteen-year-old boy and an Ivysaur."

	Despite his own hatred for the Ketchum boy, Giovanni couldn't help but 
smile.  "We've all been guilty of underestimating the boy.  His skill is 
impressive for one of his age, and his luck is uncanny."  Giovanni leaned back 
in his office chair, electing a loud creaking sound from the aging piece of 
furniture.  "We won't make that mistake twice, will we?"

	"No sir."

	"Good." Giovanni smiled.  The next time Ketchum crossed paths with a 
member of Omega Red, he wouldn't live to tell of it.  Victory was guaranteed.
*		*		*

	"Gear, how far is it to the next town?"

	Ash's innocent-looking watch projected a holographic map into the air 
above his wrist, displaying the surrounding area.  Gynn had recommended that 
they head due south to reach the nearest semblance of civilization, and Gear 
seemed to confirm those directions.  "At present rate, ETA will be in 
approximately three hours," Gear informed him, "Provided there are no further 
battle activities to hinder progress."  Pikachu looked at the map curiously from 
Ash's shoulder, poking its finger through the floating picture.

	"I wouldn't worry about that, Gear." Misty laughed, hefting her pack into 
a more comfortable position.  "We sent Team Rocket packing."

	"I do not worry." Gear informed her.

	Ash quieted the Pokégear with a flick of its power switch, turning to 
Misty with his hands on his hips.  "Excuse me?  'Who' sent Team Rocket packing?"

	"Not bad work, Ash." Brock praised him as they continued to walk through 
the forest.  "Taking down a ninja assassin...I'm impressed."

	Ash pulled a Pokéball off of his belt, grinning from ear to ear.  "Yeah, 
well, I couldn't have done it without Ivysaur...or the new HM!"  He 'V'ed his 
fingers for victory.  "One down, four more to go."  He looked over at Dixie.  
"Right?"  Dixie had been unnaturally quiet, keeping her eyes down on the forest 
floor.

	"Are you really going to get all the badges in the Star League?" she asked 
him.  "AND help me find all the HMs?"

	"You better believe it." Ash laughed.
	
	She smiled.  "Well then, you'll have to beat me to the badges and the HMs 
first!"  With that, she took off running.  Ash cried in protest, starting off in 
a dead sprint to try and catch up, and nearly knocking Pikachu off as he did.  
Brock merely sighed, shaking his head.

	"Think we can keep up with 'two' Ashes?" He asked Misty.

	She moaned.  "I was having problems dealing with the one we had already." 
she grumbled.  She didn't know if she could deal with another person with Ash's 
spirit and enthusiasm.  "C'mon, we'd better hurry if we're going to catch them."

	"Maybe we should leave 'em alone." Brock grinned, starting off in a run.  
"They make a cute couple."

	Misty scowled, following Brock.  Wasn't that what he had always said about 
her and Ash?
End

Quiet Hindsight
	One down, and four to go.  I realize that the HM saga will take up most of 
Season 2 of Badgequest, but unless I miss my guess, it'll all be worth it in the 
end.  So stick around, because there's a lot more coming up.  I guarantee it.

Next:		BadgeQuest: The America Chronicles #3
		The Hidden Machine Saga 02