Clouds and lightning flashed overhead as the storm set upon the valley, darkening the sky and lashing everything with cold showers. A boy riding his Rapidash steered it into a nearby cave and dismounted it. His Arcanine followed into the dry cave, shaking water from its fur. The boy, who was almost fifteen years old, patted his fire dog Poke’Mon on the head and peered out into the storm.

"This brings back bad memories, Loyelite." The boy’s face twisted as he recalled that awful night . . .   His Rapidash noticed and nudged him gently. He rubbed the horse’s firey back, which wasn’t too hot for him at all. "Thanks for trying to cheer me up, FlareMare. We’ll spend the night here, till the storm passes." He fingered the Fire Stone that hung around his neck, still staring out into the storm. "Someday I’ll get you back for this . . ."

The overnight storm passed to reveal a cloudless morning. Kenta slung his pack over his shoulder as Krista and Rick struggled to keep up his pace. He sighed, crossed his arms and tapped a foot. "C’mon, guys, you’re taking forever to clean up camp. We’ve got things to do today!"

Krista grumbled in response while struggling to cram her things into her backpack. Rick was almost done, except he was fumbling around for his glasses. Dratini, the Poke’Mon of the group, leapt onto Kenta’s shoulder and cried out. "Dratini, dra! Tini, tini, drati!" I’m with Kenta. Let’s go, I wanna win another victory for us!

Dratini soon got its wish. Kenta’s party was moving along at a fair pace. Krista was complaining, "Walk, walk, walk. No action. Boo-ring!" Rick was taking in the sights, and Kenta looked around for wild Poke’Mon or trainers as they walked. But even when you are looking for certain things, you’re not always ready for them. Kenta was checking his Poke’Gear for the time when a girl about his age made a sudden appearance from a woodland area along the road.

"Yowp! Don’t scare me like that!"

"Hey, you’re a Poke’Mon trainer, aren’t you? I’ve been looking for a challenge."

"You want to battle me?"

"Yeah! Let’s go right here!"

Kenta pulled out a Great Ball and spun it on his finger. "Okay then. I hope you know how to challenge this! I choose you, Scyther!"

"Then I’ll use Poliwrath! Demolish that insect!"

Flash! "Scy!" Flash! "Poli . . . wrath . . ."

Rick and Krista edged to the side as the two combatants charged into battle.

"Poliwrath! Water Gun technique!"

"Scyther! Wing Attack!"

Scyther easily dodged the jet of water, then struck Poliwrath with its thin but rapidly moving wings. The oversized frog Poke’Mon flinched and held up its arms in meek defense. "Okay Scyther! Now strike it with Slash technique!"

The boy with the Arcanine and Rapidash was passing by the area when he heard the sound of Poliwrath’s Water Gun attack. Water . . . I hate water . . . He crept curiously into a clump of bushes close to the battle area and, taking care that Loyelite the Arcanine didn’t burn the vegetation, watched the fight from undercover. The kid with the Scyther seemed to be doing well . . .

"Poliwrath! Mega Kick!"

"Scyther! Double Team!"

Poliwrath swung a foot at one of the Scyther that had broken away from the original, only to find that it was a fake. "Poliwrath! The one on the right! Strike that one!"

"Scyther! One more Slash!"

"Scy!" Scyther zipped around Poliwrath to catch it off-guard, and sliced at it. "Oh, darn!" hissed the girl. "Poliwrath, return before you pass out."

"I don’t think so!" yelled Kenta as the red beam started shooting out of Poliwrath’s Poke’Ball to bring it back. "Scyther, Pursuit attack!"

Scyther made a last quick slam into Poliwrath. It fainted as it was withdrawn back into its Ball. "Too late," said Kenta quietly. "Sorry about that, but I can’t afford to let Poliwrath regain its fighting will while inside its Poke’Ball. If it makes you feel any better, your Poke’Mon is very good, which is why I had to do that. It’s not like you’re a bad trainer."

Spoken like a real sport, thought the boy in the bushes. He suddenly smelled smoke. "Hey, Loyelite! Watch where you put your fiery tail."

The girl Kenta was facing, though he had tried to make the loss easier for her to bear, had already taken it very personally. "If my Poliwrath really was good, it would’ve been able to beat your Scyther! But I’ll show you!" She flung another Poke’Ball. "Sandshrew! Let’s beat ‘em!" Flash! The ground-type shrew Poke’Mon emerged with a squeak. "Slanshrewww!"

Kenta was mildly impressed. "Pretty good Poke’Mon. Scyther, return for a while." As Kenta’s mantis Poke’Mon flew back to his side, the girl began protesting. "Hey, hold on, my Poliwrath wasn’t allowed to escape from battle! No fair!" Kenta attempted to quiet her. "Hey, no, it’s not like that! Look, I won’t bring Scyther back in again. Just consider you beat it."

"But I do want to beat it!"

"Please, don’t say things like that. No offense, but you’re going to have enough to worry about in a moment." Kenta looked down at Dratini. "Are you ready to fight?"

"Dratini!"

"All right, then! I choose Dratini for this round!"

As the energetic dragon Poke’Mon leapt eagerly foreword, the boy in the bushes watched the girl’s eyes widen. "Well, well, I guess that girl’s finally realized who she’s up against. I’ll tell you one thing, that Dratini looks like one tough creature to beat. I hope the poor girl’s not going to be too disappointed."

Sure enough, Dratini used one critical Surf attack, and Sandshrew was down and out. It never stood a chance. Kenta wished Dratini would’ve eased up on the gas just a bit, but all the same, he had won. His defeated opponent ran to her Sandshrew.

"Sandshew! Are . . . are you okay?"

"Shreww . . ."

She turned her gaze from Sandshrew to Kenta. "You . . . you big bully! I swear I’ll stomp you with all my Poke’Mon at once!"

"No, please, I’m no bully, you wanted to battle-"

Flash! Pidgeotto appeared. Flash! Nidorina. Flash! Weepinbell. Flash! Butterfree. All the Poke’Mon glared down at Dratini. "Everyone-!" started the girl. "Please, don’t do that-!" warned Kenta. Too late.

"Attack!" Dratini’s four opponents charged in at it.

I warned her . . . thought Kenta. He had no choice. It was them or Dratini. "Dratini, Fire Tornado! I’m sorry this had to happen." Dratini curved itself into a loop and blew out a firey blaze. The colossal Fire Tornado whirled around the four attacking Poke’Mon, halting them where they were. It then caved in on them and exploded outwards forcefully. When the sparks cleared, four "very well done" Poke’Mon lay smouldering on the road. Kenta felt a bit guilty for what he had just done, it wasn’t the fault of his opponent’s Poke’Mon that they were now fried to a crisp. They were just following orders from their master. Dratini, on the other hand, felt quite proud that it had overcome superior numbers. The dragon wiped its brow with its tail, then did a victorial back flip.

"No!" The girl rushed to her four defeated Poke’Mon. "I . . . can’t believe it. C’mon, guys, I’ve got to get you back to the Poke’Center . . ."

"A Poke’Mon Center?" repeated Kenta as he recalled Scyther. "There’s a place close by?"

The girl shot him a look of rage, and he shrunk back a bit in fear. "Yes, bully, I come from Sunset Village. It’s a three minute walk from here. Though I doubt your Poke’Mon need healing half as much as I do?" Kenta sweatdropped, and his defeated battle partner recalled her barely moving Poke’Mon. Rick and Krista walked to her, now that the fight was over.

"My Poke’Mon need healing too, we’ve come a long way."

"Don’t mind my big brother. Kenta bullies me all the time, too."

"Krista! Quit lying, normally it’s the other way around! And remember, you’re supposed to be on my side."

Still arguing, the brother and sister, and the others walked away from the scene. The boy in the bushes turned to his Arcanine. "Did you see that, Loyelite?? That kid- Kenta’s- Dratini . . . it’s the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen! That flame attack . . . what was it, Fire Tornado? It made second-degree burns on four Poke’Mon! That’s got to be the ultimate fire-type move!"

The kid pulled himself out of the brush and stood up. "I’ve gotta meet that Kenta kid with the G/S cap. He could be a powerful alley. Or enemy. Who knows? Come, Loyelite. We will meet up with him later." With that, the boy mounted Rapidash and rode off, his Arcanine following.

"Whew!" Kenta stopped for a moment to look around. Sunset Village had just come in sight, and boy, what a sight it was. Though the village in the distance was quite small, it seemed impressive all the same. Because a short distance away from Sunset Village was a gigantic mountain that gave it a respectable appearance. Rick turned to the girl whom Kenta had battled. She had introduced herself as Cyncorthia ("Weird name", mumbled Krista), and seemed very pleased when he asked her a question. "Um, why is this place called ‘Sunset Village’? Any particular reason?"

"Yes, actually. The sun rises in the east like always, but we never see it. That’s because the mountain close by known as Mount Rubyfire always blocks the sunrise. We only see the sun set around here."

"Mount Rubyfire?" echoed Kenta. "Why’s it called that?"

Cyncorthia had forgiven him a little by then, so she answered. "That mountain was once a powerful volcano, where many mysterious fire-type Poke’Mon lived, and still thrive today. Eventually, the volcano quieted, leaving fertile soil around the area. Many people, farmers in particular, moved here and built the village. It’s quite old, but we still keep up with time. The Poke’Center there is like one anywhere else."

When the quartet did reach the Poke’Mon Center, both Kenta and Cyncorthia went to the front desk at the same time. Nurse Joy, like all her other identical family members, was sitting there typing on a computer.

"Hi, Nurse Joy. Would you please clean these six up for me?"

Joy looked at Cyncorthia. "Tough battle, huh?"

"Unbelievably. I was stomped by this jerk."

She pointed at Kenta accusingly. She sounds just like Kris! he thought. "Stop, it’s not like that. Dratini had to defend itself from four enemies somehow. I warned you not to all-out attack it."

Dratini popped up from Kenta’s shoulder. "Dra, ti!" That’s right! Cyncorthia ignored the little blue serpent and instead called out her Weepinbel. Flash! Nurse Joy gasped as she saw the wrecked plant. "Oh, my! Cyncortia, what have you put it through?! You should know not to fight your Poke’Mon to this condition!"

"But . . . but only one move hit it! It’s not like Weepinbel endured hit after hit after hit! Some fire-type move . . ."

"Fire Tornado."

"Right, whatever. It turned my poor Weepinbel into fried Zuccini! And my sweet Pidgeotto became roast chicken, and my cute Butterfree was reduced into some smoked African delicacy, and-"

"All right, already! Chansey, get them on a stretcher. Listen, Cyncorthia, next time don’t battle such a tough opponent. You have to quit doing that."

"I’m . . . sorry."

"Don’t apologize to me, apologize to your Poke’Mon when you get them back."

Kenta didn’t want to listen to any more. He just left his Scyther’s Great Ball at the desk and walked to the visual phone corner of the Poke’Center. It was time to trade his three powerful Beedrill of the Striped Patrol to Mom in exchange for Oddish, and (regretfully) Spearow.

A few minutes later Kenta was back with his renewed Poke’Mon, and he walked to Rick to relay the first message that entered his mind. "Hey, Rick, I’m starved! Let’s go find some good restaurant for lunch." Rick and Krista both agreed without hesitation and the trio and Dratini went out to eat. Afterwards, Krista and Rick went back to the Center to pick up their Poke’Mon, and Kenta had some time on his hands.

"So, Dratini, as long as we’re here what do you want to do?"

"Tini! Dra, dratini, ti! Drati!"

"Yeah, that mountain does look intriguing, doesn’t it? I wonder if we might be able to find a really cool fire Poke’Mon inside . . ."

"Dratini!"

"Hah! I’m all for it too, then. Let’s go!"

The boy with Arcanine and Rapidash watched as Kenta and Dratini made their way toward Mount Rubyfire. "They’re coming toward us. Now’s the best time to have a Poke’Mon match!"

Kenta and Dratini were almost at the mountain when the mysterious boy walked out from behind a mountain boulder. "Greetings, fellow trainer. Kenta, is it?"

"Yeah, that’s me . . ." said Kenta uncertainly, wondering how this strange kid knew his name. He looked the stranger up and down. His clothes were entirely red, from t-shirt to pants. Even the kid’s headband was red, though his hair was unnaturally white. Two gigantic bangs of hair hung from the headband on each side of his head, only just keeping out of his eyes. "Call me Leonn. Leonn Ambitionate." said the boy.

"Uh . . . okay, Leonn. Hey, your last name sounds like a word I once heard," said Kenta. "Ah, I’m glad you noticed," replied Leonn. "The word ‘ambition’ is part of my last name. But it’s not coincidence, I gave myself that name."

"Really? But why?"

Leonn’s face twisted, as if recalling a painful memory. "Actually, I can’t remember my real last name. I wasn’t old enough back then to remember much of anything. My parents . . . they were real geniuses. That’s mostly all I can recall about them. I wasn’t with them long enough to know much else. What was I, two years old back then? Anyhow, a flood took both my parents one horrible rainy night, and I happened to be in a wooden bed close to an open window when it happened. They . . . they couldn’t swim. Neither could I, but my bed floated on water. My best friend was sleeping with me at the time, the family puppy, a Growlithe named Loyelite. Strange name perhaps, but it makes a lot of sense if you break it up. Like my last name, Growlithe’s name meant something. Loyelite is two words, ‘loyal’, and ‘elite’. Anyway, Loyelite was in my bed with me when the tide swept the bed straight through the large window and out of the house. It was pretty much a boat by then, rather than bed. But it saved us from drowning like my parents . . ."

Leonn broke down then, and struggled to control his emotions. Kenta took the advantage to comfort him. "I’m really sorry that had to happen to you, Leonn. At least I have a Mom. But you . . . how did you survive after the flood?"

Leonn looked up at his Arcanine. "Loyelite, though he was a tame puppy, still had natural instinct. He helped me find our way around, and we wandered a far distance from what was once my home. In the wilderness, we ate mostly fruit. When I was old enough, I went close to people again, and they didn’t recognize me as the child who’d disappeared in the flood. They saw me as an eight-year-old explorer who needed decent clothing rather than some outfit of bark and leaves. Boy, that was embarrassing . . ."

Kenta gawked. This trainer he had only just met seemed to have been through a lot more than himself. "Anyhow, the people who momentarily cared for me had a son about my age who wanted to fight me in a Poke’Mon battle one day. I didn’t want to, but he offered quite a bit of money if I won. See, he was rich. Since nothing was at stake if I lost, I reluctantly agreed. Loyelite was my fighter, and his was some turtle Poke’Mon . . . a Wartortle. It was a water type, and when it hit Loyelite with some water move . . . Bubble . . . it made him mad! He started using Take Down over and over, then singed it with a Flamethrower attack. He was amazing, and he won the battle, despite his type disadvantage."

Leonn patted Loyelite on the head. "Loyelite even evolved after the battle. And since then we’ve won win after win, and we’ve traveled for a very long time. I started buying Poke’Balls with my money, but I’ve only captured fire Poke’Mon with them. Like me, they dispise water, so I had little trouble taming them. Even some of the hardest-to-train ones."

With that, Leonn finally stopped talking. Kenta was very interested by the story and wanted to ask a question. "So, you’ve gone from a jungle man (no offense), to a fire master. That’s incredible! What is your dream in life?"

The reply turned Kenta pale from its surprising coldness. "Revenge."

"R-revenge? On whom? That unfortunate flood . . . it was an accident, wasn’t it?" asked Kenta hopefully.

"No. A legendary sea guardian was responsible for this. It could have controlled the weather to spare my parents, but it didn’t. It’s name . . . Lugia."

That sure hit Kenta hard. "What-? No way! Lugia’s not evil!"

"Oh, it’s not, is it? That murderous creature-"

"For your information, that ‘murderous creature’ spared my life! I once nearly drowned in a storm at sea, but Lugia showed up and lead Dratini to rescue me!"

Leonn’s eyes flashed. "So, your Dratini was actually your savior, was it? This could’ve been coincidence. For all you know, that cursed beast could have started the storm, and Dratini just might have been lucky enough to see you."

"That’s not true! Lugia spoke to me telepathetically, and said that I would be spared from a watery grave. It did the opposite of try to kill me!"

"Listen, Kenta, you must’ve swallowed too much salt water or something. But I’m telling you, that thing is a menace!"

Kenta had heard enough. "Alright then Lugia hater, if you feel that way, I challenge you to a Poke’Mon match! Three-on-three. Nothing at stake, but our pride."

"Agreed. I met you to challenge you from the start. Let’s go."

Kenta pulled the Safari Ball off his belt. "I’ll do something you’ve probably never seen anyone else do. I’m not starting off with a water Poke’Mon. Instead-" He threw the Ball- "I choose Chansey!" Flash! Cheyansa appeared, looking around. "Chansey, chan chan? Chansey?" Okay, who needs healing?

The fat pink Poke’Mon then turned around. "Chansey, chance, chan?" Uh, Kenta? Who’s that other guy? Did you just send me out into a Poke’Mon battle?

"Uh-" Kenta decided to avoid the question for the moment. He looked up at Leonn instead. "I figure you’d expect a water Poke’Mon to start me off. So because I used Cheyansa, this’ll be a totally different experience for you. And even if I am wrong, there’s still a major flaw in your training party. If all your Poke’Mon are fire, they are all easy targets for types like rock and ground. And water, of course. . . . So then, make your move."

Leonn was definitely impressed. "Pretty good. That wasn’t something I had expected to have happen. All the same, I’m still prepared for it." Leonn held up an Ultra Ball with a wide grin on his face. "Now here’s something you should get ready for, Kenta. Don’t bother to get out your Poke’dex, this Poke’Mon is unidentifiable." He tossed his Ultra Ball. "Come out! Hundragon!"

Flash! "GROWRL!" The creature standing before Kenta was unlike any Poke’Mon Kenta had ever seen. True, it was a dragon Poke’Mon, and a colossal one at that. But this creature looked nothing like Rick’s Charizard. The monster had a neck and tail that seemed at least ten feet long each. Compared to them, its body was tiny. Two wings were wrapped around the body, each with a wingspan Kenta guessed was not too much shorter than the tail and neck. But then . . . it should be a dragon/flying type, right?

"Hold it, Leonn!" called Kenta. "I thought you only trained Poke’Mon with a fire-type characteristic."

"I do. Hundragon is type dragon/fire. Those wings do let it fly, though. But even so, it doesn’t seem to suffer the effect most flying Poke’Mon do when hit with an ice or electrical attack. Therefore, it is a fire dragon with wings. Pretty cool, huh? I captured it just recently in Mount Jadefire."

If that’s a recent catch, it shouldn’t be as hard to beat as it looks, thought Kenta. Leonn had a different thought. Hah! Kenta obviously if fighting a Poke’Mon he is not used to. Now I’m the one with the element of surprise. He should be glad I gave him as much lowdown on Hundragon as I did. Now he will watch it in battle! "Hundragon! Ember attack!"

Just as I thought. Like any other beginner fire Poke’Mon, Hundragon has basically weak moves. And something else, Leonn should know better than to use a special type move on Cheyansa. All Chansey are resistant to special attacks. "Cheyansa! Light Screen maneuver!" called Kenta. There! Now she’s even more resistant. Counter that, fire boy.

The Ember attack flattened itself against the sparkling Light Screen, but couldn’t break through. It went out after a few seconds. "Not too bad," said Leonn, "but physical attacks can still squash that undersized pink blimp!"

"CHANSEYYYY!?!" WHAT WAS THAT!?! Enraged at the insult, Cheyansa leaped higher into the air than Kenta ever dreamed it could. The Chansey flipped over in the sky, just above Hundragon’s head, then used a furious Body Slam right on the dragon’s head. Cheyansa and Hundragon’s head and neck plunged to the ground, and Cheyansa leaped off at the last second, adding to the blow. Still extremely angry, the pink Poke’Mon started using Doubleslap attack, and smacked the Hundragon’s face silly.

"Hundragon! Shake her off!" shouted Leonn with obvious surprise. Cheyansa, now using Pound attack on her opponent’s giant eyes, was suddenly lifted high into the air and thrown back. With difficulty, the fat Poke’Mon got up. "Headbutt!" BAM! Hundragon’s enormous head crashed into Cheyansa, sending the Poke’Mon flying backwards into a mountain boulder.

"Now finish it! Hyper Beam!" roared Leonn.

"No! Stop!" cried Kenta. Hundragon, who had started building up power in its mouth, eased off. "Hey, what are you doing?" demanded Leonn. Kenta recalled Cheyansa. "Consider you won the first round. A while ago, I promised Cheyansa that she’d be doing mostly healing and little battling. Hundragon won . . . this time. But watch out, because my next fighter is . . . Oddish! Let’s go!"

Flash! Oddish appeared with a fancy leap. "Odd, oddish!" it squeaked. "What?" Leonn laughed. "You really think that puny little weed can beat my big powerful Hundragon? You have a level disadvantage, type disadvantage, strength disadvantage, and evolutionary disadvantage. Hundragon isn’t an evolved Poke’Mon either, but jeez! An Oddish?"

Kenta allowed himself a smile. "True, you do have quite a few advantages, but there are two things you’ve forgotten. Things that I will show you very shortly. Oddish! Leech Seed!"

"Huh-?" gasped Leonn as Oddish spun in the air and let go some seeds. They landed on Hundragon, already starting to sap its strength. "How-? No Oddish can learn that move! They’re unable to!"

"Yeah, just like no Dratini is capable of learning Fire Tornado. These aren’t any old Poke’Mon, they’re my Poke’Mon. Oddish! Poisonpowder!"

Now Hundragon was poisoned.

"That won’t be enough!" shouted Leonn. "Hundragon, Ember! Burn up that annoying little plant!" Hundragon opened its spore-covered mouth and breathed out its fire attack. Oddish was burned pretty badly, and for a moment, Leonn thought it was finished. But then the tiny grass-type Poke’Mon spat out an Acid attack and hit Hundragon right between the eyes.

"No way! How did it survive through that?" choked Leonn. "It couldn’t have normally," answered Kenta, "But you’ve forgotten about my Light Screen. It cut your attack’s power in half." Leonn gritted his teeth in frustration. "Argh! Okay, Hundragon, finish off that pesky weed once and for all! HYPER BEAM!"

Hundragon roared and fired off a beam of white light with high energy. But it missed Oddish. "What the- Hundragon, I taught you accuracy! How could you miss your opponent?"

"Remember, Leonn," called Kenta, "Oddish is small and hard to hit. And Cheyansa already did considerable damage to your Hundragon’s face. Its eyes are swelled almost shut, and even as I speak, the poison and Leech Seed are taking effect. Oddish, blow on it."

Hundragon was already slumping in weakness. Oddish walked casually up to the big dangerous beast, and blew lightly on it. Whoosh. BOOM! Hundragon hit the ground, and didn’t get up. "Hundragon is out! Oddish wins!" cheered Kenta. Oddish squeaked out in delight, then glowed white without warning. Kenta stopped cheering and he and Leonn stared at the bright-white Oddish. "Woah! It’s evolving!" breathed Kenta in awe. The white light brightened and grew rapidly, then faded to reveal . . . "Gloo . . ."

"All right! My Oddish became a Gloom! Yea!" Gloom ran to Kenta and jumped, and he slapped it high-five. "Hahaa! Thanks Oddish-er-Gloom, you just made my day!"

Kenta’s happy session was interrupted by Leonn’s comment. "Look Kenta, I’m very glad for you that your Poke’Mon evolved, but could we get back to the match? I’m going to bring out my next Poke’Mon." Kenta stopped celebrating, and bent down to the face level of Gloom. "Listen, we haven’t won yet. Whatever Leonn’s about to use, get ready for it."

"Gloom, gloom."

Leonn smiled grimly. "You’d better be ready, because this next one is another complete surprise! Goooo . . . SACRED PHOENIX!" Flash! "Eyraagh!" Kenta gasped out loud as the fiery bird made its impressive appearance. "Moltres?! It . . . it can’t be! There’s only one in the world!" Leonn faked a bored look. "Well, this one looks pretty solid to me. Are you sure there’s only one Moltres in the world? Because I found an egg in a place that I’d rather not reveal. It contained a Moltres chick. So I raised it until it became supreme like this! Your Gloom may now be evolved, but it is no match whatsoever for a type fire/flying. Sacred Phoenix, prepare a Sky Attack! That Gloom is as good as gone."

Moltres began glowing and building power. Kenta acted quickly. "Gloom! While it’s at bay, use Stun Spore!" Gloom rushed at Moltres and shook off yellow spores from its body. The spores landed on the phoenix Poke’Mon, and paralyzed it. The attack was good, but still wasn’t enough.

"Greawww!" Moltres swooped at Gloom and plowed right into it. The glowing bird disappeared, but reappeared back in the same spot it had been from the start. Gloom croaked strangely, and collapsed to the ground. "Gloom!" cried Kenta. "You did very well, Gloom. You deserve a good rest." He recalled the plant Poke’Mon into its Poke’Ball, then looked down at Dratini.

"Dratini, you’re my last hope, little pal. Give it your all, buddy!"

"Dratini!"

Leonn watched in amusement as Dratini jumped forward. So this was his last attempt. "Sacred Phoenix, fly up high and get ready to pulverize that oversized worm!" As the bird of flames blasted into the sky, Leonn turned his attention back to Kenta. "Listen, Lugia boy, I saw your Dratini use Surf earlier today. Just so you know, my Moltres has taken water attack after water attack in the past, so Surf won’t hurt it very much. And now that my phoenix is high in the air, Surf won’t be able to reach it anyway."

Leonn grinned in triumph at Kenta, and saw that he was chuckling. "Huh? What do you think you’re laughing about?"

"Did you honestly think that Surf is the only move Dratini knows that can hurt your bird Poke’Mon? It happens to know two electric attacks as well. I normally would use Thunderbolt attack on a flying-type opponent, but this is a battle that I risk losing."

"Oh, come now," laughed Leonn. "Sacred Phoenix has been struck by numerous electrical attacks, too. It’s used to those, just like water-type moves."

"But is it ready for this?" challenged Kenta. "Dratini, Thunder Blast!"

"Thunder Blast?" echoed Leonn as Dratini began to glow blue and clouds started to form overhead. "I’ve never heard of that." Kenta just smiled. "Draaa-TII!" Dratini shot a massive amount of voltage up into the clouds. Then things were quiet for a moment. "That’s it?" asked Leonn sarcastically. As if to prove him horribly wrong, a massive lightning bolt suddenly roared down from the heavy clouds, and blasted relentlessly straight into the flying Moltres. The bird’s augushed screech could be heard over the following clap of thunder. "Sacred Phoenix!" cried Leonn. The bird wasn’t glowing brightly anymore. It looked very beat-up indeed. And the following shower of rain wasn’t helping its flaming body one bit. Even as they watched, Leonn’s Poke’Mon began a long descent from its spot. While Leonn mouthed wordlessly, Kenta gave Dratini the finishing command. "Now use Surf. That oversized sparrow looks dirty from all those charred ashes on its body."

Dratini nodded and summoned unseen power. A water wave surged up from underground and Dratini rode it to the spot Moltres was about to land on. The water cushioned Moltres’s would-be crash to earth, but it also considerably weakened the fire bird.

"Sacred Phoenix!" repeated Leonn in a miserable wail. As the water soaked through the ground, he ran to his beaten Poke’Mon. It gave a feeble cry and didn’t stand up. Leonn looked up in frustration at Kenta. "You . . . look what you’ve done! You ruined it’s beautiful figure, and crushed it’s pride! How could you?"

Kenta did feel bad for hurting such a beautiful bird, but he still held firm. "I apologize, Leonn, but you sent it out to fight. Phoenix or not, it’s still an enemy. Now we both have one Poke’Mon left to use."

Leonn turned his head to the Arcanine next to him, sitting obediently. "Loyelite. Win this for us!"

"Arrrrc!"

Loyelite the Arcanine jumped to its feet and ran at Dratini. "Take Down attack!" ordered Leonn. "Dratini, Agility!" countered Kenta. Arcanine was about to ram Dratini when the dragon Poke’Mon seemed to teleport. The next moment, it was behind the flaming dog. "Pretty fast!" Kenta complimented to Dratini. The little Poke’Mon winked. Showing off, it zipped around and around Arcanine, confusing it. Agility is really speedy, thought Kenta. Dratini is especially fast. Or maybe I’m just thinking that because I’ve never ordered it to use that move before.

Leonn confirmed Kenta’s thought. "Loyelite, show off your own Agility!" he called. Hah! Kenta thought his Dratini had speed . . . just let him see this! Loyelite zoomed around Dratini, once again gaining the upper hand. "Dratini, slow it down with Thunder Wave!" called Kenta. "Loyelite! Use Extremespeed!" barked Leonn. Loyelite easily dodged around Dratini’s paralysis attack, then struck the small opponent with a lightning-fast charge. Dratini was flung backwards toward a mountain tree, and only Kenta’s equally fast reflexes allowed him to jump between the tree and his Poke’Mon. Dratini slammed into Kenta’s chest, knocking the wind out of them both. Kenta collapsed, holding onto Dratini, still. Loyelite rushed back to Leonn, and sat back down. It wasn’t even panting.

With much effort, Kenta got up again. He looked down at Dratini in his arms. "Dra . . . tini . . . you gonna be okay?"

"Ti . . ." Dratini’s face showed obvious pain. It could have continued battling, but Kenta didn’t want it to. "It’s all right, Dratini . . . I’ve accepted defeat before, I can do it again. You’ve been through enough." Since Kenta still didn’t have much wind in himself, he limped up to Leonn. "I . . . forfeit . . . you win."

Leonn’s attitude changed. "Don’t feel bad, Kenta. I’m glad you did that. No one else has ever beaten Loyelite, so losing to him is no big deal. You put up a strong battle though, I haven’t had a good one like that in a while. I guess it was all for the best, you taught me a couple things, your Oddish evolved, I say both of us gained something."

Kenta’s mood also changed. "You’re right," he said with the ghost of a grin on his face. "And now that the fight’s over, we could be fr-"

"Hey, KENTA! I saw you loooose! Hahahaha!" Krista, as usual, had popped up at just the wrong time to mock Kenta. She was holding an umbrella, since the rain was still pouring. "That’s two defeats now! Hee hee hee! The word ‘defeat’ is plural with you! And I’ve still only lost once!"

"Oh geez . . ."

"Uh, Kenta? Who’s that?"

"My annoying sister."

"No, who’s that?"

Leonn was pointing at a second figure with an umbrella. Kenta gaped. "Rick? All right, how did you know I was out here?" Rick shrugged. "Easy. We were looking for you when we saw clouds gathering overhead. They were moving faster than normal, and I figured only one Poke’Mon could make them do that . . . a Dratini about to use Thunder Blast. A certain Dratini. So Krista and I followed the clouds and arrived to see you throw yourself between Dratini and that tree."

"And I heard you admit defeat!" sang Krista, happy as could be. "And now you’re a loser, and standing in the rain getting soaked, and I’m all dry under this nice big umbrella, and-"

Kenta blocked her out and stepped under Rick’s large umbrella. "Rick, you are soooo lucky to be an only child . . . And thanks for the umbrella spot."

Leonn hurried under Krista’s umbrella. "Sorry. Mind if I stay here for the moment? I hate water, and I’ll make sure Loyelite doesn’t burn the umbrella."

"Uh, okay . . . will your Rapidash be all right out in the rain?"

Leonn realized Krista was talking about FlareMare. He quickly looked around, but the flaming horse was gone. "Oh, he’ll be fine, even if it’s pouring. He likes wandering off now and then."

"Okay . . . hey, what’s that rock on your neck?"

Leonn held up the Fire Stone. "What, this? It’s my symbol. I’m never going to use it to evolve a fire Poke’Mon, I prefer it right where it is. This reminds me what I am, and somehow gives me strength."

Krista blinked dumbly. "Sorry, but I’m not into poetry."

"Wha-?" Leonn slapped a hand to his face, Arcanine rolled its eyes, Dratini started laughing, Kenta held in a wisecrack, and Rick pretended not to notice.

"So, where are we headed?" he asked, trying to move on. Leonn shrugged to Rick. "I avoid going near people when I can. Maybe we should dry off in Mount Rubyfire." Kenta was all for it. "Yeah! And maybe I’ll capture my own Hundragon!" Dratini added in a feeble squeak, and Kenta suddenly realized that his Poke’Mon needed healing. "Oh . . . never mind. We’ll have to go back to the Poke’Mon Center if I’m to stand even half a chance against a wild Hundragon later on."

Flash! Cheyansa popped out of her Safari Ball. "Chansey, chan, chansey!" No need. I’m a born healer! Just revive anyone who’s fainted with this rain, and I’ll take it from there. "Oh, that’s right! Here, (Flash!) Gloom’s the only one who really fainted."

Cheyansa stared at the Gloom on the ground. Chan? Cha, chansey?" Gloom? Since when did you catch a Gloom, Kenta?

"I didn’t. Oddish evolved! Isn’t that great?" Cheyansa nodded. "Chansey!" Yeah . . . but I’m still rarer, right? While Kenta heaved an exasperated sigh, Rick nudged Krista with his elbow. "Heheh . . . Kenta just became a little harder to beat, O worthy rival."

"Hmph."

"Hey . . . where’d that guy in the red go? One moment he was here under your umbrella, and the next moment, he’s gone." Krista jumped and looked around. "Well, at least he’s not a ghost. See, there are some footprints in the mud leading to Mount Rubyfire. I wonder-"

"Gloom, gloom! Gloo." Don’t you dare say, ‘Who was that masked man anyway?’.

Gloom was awake.

After a few minutes, Kenta’s party was walking into a cave in Mount Rubyfire. Rick’s Charizard led the way, its tail providing a decent amount of light. Being a flying Poke’Mon, it had Claustrophobia, but Rick convinced it to help out eventually. *Flashback* "Rowrgh! Growlrr, rroah!" Please, I don’t wanna go! You know I’m a coward in tight spaces! Kenta translated for Rick, and he protested convincingly. "Oh, come on big guy! You’re in your Poke’Ball all the time."

"*whine* Grrowm . . . roargh." But I could get out of there anytime without even really trying! In this case, I can’t just teleport out of this tiny passage!

"Oh, are you a scaredy Meowth? Meow, Meow! Listen, Charizard, you should feel right at home in this mountain cave. It is home to many other fire-type Poke’Mon. See that light in the distance?" Rick pointed down the cave tunnel at a small flame at the other end. "That’s the tail flame of a Charmander, your youngest relative. Hee hee hee! Imagine what it would say if it knew you were scared of the tight spaces in here."

Krista decided this was a good time to be funny. "It would say, ‘Charman! Charmander, char!’" she joked. "Rrr . . . rorr, rowgh!" If that puny little lizard makes fun of my Claustrophobia, I’ll make his body even hotter! Kenta finished translating, and Rick answered Charizard with a clever solution. "In that case, show that Charmander and all the other fire-types in the cave that you’re not afraid! Lead on, amigo!" And Charizard found itself walking in front of everyone else. "Rrr?" Wha-? How did that just happen? *End of flashback*

And so, Charizard was just following the cave passage when it saw a distant light. It was no Charmander, this light was much bigger. There was also fierce roaring that could be heard easily. Krista leapt so high in terror that her head nearly cracked into the cave roof. She clung to Kenta’s neck in a death grip. "Yow! Don’t let it eat me! Let’s get out of here now while we still have-"

"Oh, will you get off!? Rick, can one of your Poke’Mon move ahead and go see what’s going on?" As Kenta forced his sister’s arm off his neck, Rick threw a Poke’Ball ahead. "You got it, Kenta. I choose Ditto!" Flash! "Ditto, transform into a cave pebble and move to the end of the tunnel. Go see what’s making that roaring sound."

"Ditto!"

The pink blob of Poke’Mon stretched itself around and changed its color. Then it was gone. "Woah!" gasped Kenta. "It blends in perfectly! No wonder Ditto’s not afraid of whatever’s ahead." Kenta, Krista, Rick, Dratini, and Charizard waited patiently, listening to the roars for a couple more minutes. Then Ditto popped out of nowhere, right before them. Rick went down on one knee to face it head-to-head. "What did you see? What is making that noise?" Ditto answered by transforming again. It became so big that the light up ahead of the tunnel was blocked out. Dratini breathed a bit of fire toward Ditto’s newest shape, and Kenta got a shock. "You’re . . . you’re a Hundragon! Only much bigger than the one I saw. Rick, Krista, we’re in luck! I might be able to get this one!"

Kenta started a sprint down the tunnel, but then stopped. "Hey, Ditto . . . do you know why it’s roaring?"

"Toh! Ditto!"

Ditto pulled its shape tighter and became smaller. Everyone got another surprise then. It was a human with a lash in his hand. "Ditto?! You saw that??" Kenta immediately rushed as fast as he could toward to roars. No wonder he couldn’t identify them, they were roars of pain, not ferocity! Kenta reached the end of the tunnel passage, finding himself in a huge open area. But the sight before him was what made his jaw drop.

A gigantic Hundragon, possibly the very creature that had turned the mountain into a volcano in the past, was struggling against some very tight bonds wrapped cruelly around it. Despite the immense fireballs it blasted on the ropes, they still held. It was as if these ropes had some special power that prevented them from being broken. Five people with glowing whips were lashing the poor Poke’Mon, making it cry out every time they connected. Dratini, who was always right behind Kenta, stared in stunned disbelief at the sight. But Kenta was quickly getting over the shock, his horrified face changing to a different expression. Dratini jumped off its master’s shoulder, sensing a transformation taking place within him.

Kenta’s eyes narrowed, his face darkening at the horrific sight of Poke’Mon abuse. A sense of power surged through his veins, and Kenta’s eyes burned the same warrior’s fire that Rick always seemed to get. Reaching one hand into his jacket, Kenta pulled out his boomerang, a weapon he didn’t often use. With the other hand, he pulled an Ultra Ball out of his pack. "Dratini . . ." Dratini perked up. Kenta’s voice was the same, but even though the cave was burning hot, Dratini felt a chill. Kenta actually can sound like that?? it wondered. "Dratini, use an attack. Any attack. Just get those . . . people. I want to confirm that all five of them are permanently crippled for what they’re doing. Humans like that make me ashamed that we’re the same species."

Dratini nodded, a building rage also starting to swell up inside of it. By now, Rick and Krista had reached where Kenta was. "(Pant, gasp) Please, Kenta, we know you’re all excited about a Hundragon, but sheesh, I’d swear you run faster than Leonn’s Arcanine. Next time- . . . Hey, are those the Rockets up there?"

Ditto nodded. Krista knocked Kenta on the head. "Hel-ooo! Anyone home? We’ve got to do something! . . . K-Kenta?"

Krista turned to Rick. "He’s possessed! He’s got that glimmer in his eye that you always have when you’re in a barbaric fighting mode!"

Rick sweated nervously. "Uh-oh. I think I know what this means . . ."

"Eyyyyugh!" Kenta threw his boomerang at the people torturing the Hundragon with all the strength he could muster. At the same time, Dratini let go a wrathful Dragon Rage attack. "Draaaaaaaaa-TIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!"

The five humans lashing the defenseless Hundragon were unaware of anything else happening at the moment. They seemed to take their job of whipping the fire dragon Poke’Mon quite lightly. In fact, one guy lashing Hundragon was talking to another as casually as you please. He was quite clueless to the fact that in a few moments, he and two other teammates were going to get a harsher beating than even they had given to Hundragon.

"You know, Bob, I’m glad we dropped outta Team Rocket and joined this new guy. Unlike our old boss, Giovanni, this man actually knows what he’s doing."

"I’ll say! He’s already led us to four different spots where a rare and powerful Poke’Mon is supposed to live, and he was right every time! And even better, we’ve caught every one of them each time."

"This Hundragon is taking forever to weaken, though. Geez, the stubborn beast just won’t give up. If it weren’t for this new rope the boss invented, it’d be practically impossible to capture. Now, how much is Boss paying us for whacking this brute up?"

"I think it’s- (CRACK!) Ughhhh . . ."

"Bob?! BOB!!"

As "Bob" slumped to the ground, the whirling boomerang sailed back into Kenta’s hand. Just in time too, because seconds later, Dratini let go the mighty Dragon Rage attack. It blasted the man who had just been talking to Bob, and a lady who was working next to him. The remaining two criminals caught on to the fact that they’d been ambushed, and ran for it. With the way clear, Kenta dashed up to the abused Hundragon.

"Spearow! Drill Peck those bindings on the dragon Poke’Mon." Flash! Spearow popped out of its Poke’Ball, and naturally dove for Kenta’s head to give him the usual peck. But it stopped short, seeing Kenta’s eyes. "I’m warning you, Spearow. Now’s not the time for being funny. Cut open those ropes, or else . . ." Spearow, once the wild uncontrollable bird everyone knew and avoided, finally respected Kenta’s wishes in that moment. It turned its dive for Hundragon’s binds and tore at them. But it was no use, they were too strong. Kenta heaved a sigh and prepared to throw his Ultra Ball. "I used to want to fight and capture you, Hundragon. But a few minutes ago, I changed my mind. Really, I don’t want to battle and catch you anymore. But now I have no choice. Please, this is all for the best." Kenta gently tossed the Ultra Ball, and it absorbed Hundragon inside. The Ball shook a few times, and everyone held their breath.

The Ultra Ball finally stopped. Ping! Kenta didn’t say a word. He picked up the Ball and pocketed it instead of putting it on his Poke’Ball belt. Krista was, needless to say, surprised. "Kenta? Why aren’t you cheering and doing that usual little chicken dance and everything?"

Kenta’s voice carried no emotion. "Did I not just say that I didn’t want to catch Hundragon anymore? I did that only to release it from those ropes."

Krista and Rick looked at each other. He meant it. They looked back at Kenta. "Okay, so now what?" asked Rick.

"Now the fun begins."

The three Poke’Mon trainers jumped and looked up where the voice had come from. A dark shadowy man appeared on a ledge overlooking the wide area inside the mountain. Even though the light from Poke’Mon fires brightened the place, his face could not be seen. But his hair could. It was flaming red, and the man wore it in a style similar to James’s. The man spoke again. For a man, his voice was higher than normal.

"You have angered me. You cheated me of a powerful Poke’Mon that should’ve been mine. But I’ll be fair and let you out of here unharmed if you throw me that Ultra Ball containing my Hundragon."

Kenta felt a strong sense of hostility emitting from this mysterious man, and also undeniable strength. Nevertheless, he stood his ground. "This Hundragon doesn’t belong to you. It’s not mine either. But I’ll fight for it if I have to!" Rick, Dratini, and Krista stepped foreword next to Kenta. "Face Kenta, and you’ll have to face us, too." rumbled Rick, the warrior’s flame now in his eye.

"You seem to underestimate me," called the man in an amused voice. "Ti, tini ti!" On the contrary, you seem to underestimate me, snarled Dratini. "Drati-ni." C’mon, Kenta, let me torch his backside as red as his hair! Kenta held back his little serpent dragon, and called angrily up at the man. "Who are you to abuse Poke’Mon worldwide?? Huh? Who do you think you are?"

The man on the ledge smirked. "Hah, to think a lowly little kid like you should have the honor of knowing my name. You’re not worthy enough to know my true name, so you will just know me as Hakujou Darkenwrath. And I’m going to be the unstoppable Poke’Mon Champion of the earth."

"Poke’Mon Champion? You should be ashamed of yourself! I’ll bet you ordered those Rockets to attack Hundragon because you weren’t man enough to do it yourself! What are you, a rich spoiled snob?"

Hakujou decided to ignore that. "Those five weren’t Rockets. The ‘R’s on their uniforms stand for rebellion. My motto is: win using any way possible. I started Team Rebellion because I hate rules. Rules are for weaklings, and I hate the weak even more. The world belongs to the strong. I can’t stand weaklings, like you or Rocket grunts. Get ‘em alone and they’re toast. Get one of my guys alone, and they still actually stand a chance. We maybe few in number, but that’s only because I choose quality over quantity."

The three members of Team Rebellion that Dratini and Kenta had knocked out were coming to.

"See? They’re waking up already." Hakujou sneered at Kenta. "And though we are low in numbers, we still outnumber you! Sic these wimps, team, and I’ll raise your salaries 15%. Fail to get the Hundragon, and your paychecks lower 50%."

"What are you five, his attack dogs?" shouted Krista as the members of Team Rebellion raced to do their leader’s bidding. Rick, thinking quickly, reached into Kenta’s backpack and pulled out a certain Ball. Seeking a way to buy them time without fighting, he held it up.

"Wait, wait! Call off your goons. Here, Hakujou, you can have the stupid dragon Poke’Mon, just leave us alone!" Hakujou smiled in satisfaction. He’d still beat up those pests, but first he’d get his Hundragon. "So, one of you does have a brain. Right then, give it to me!" Rick tossed the Ultra Ball up at Hakujou, then signaled to the others to run. "Let’s get out of here."

Still laughing to himself, Hakujou caught Rick’s Ball and opened it. Nothing happened. The smile was immediately wiped off his faced, replaced by a most unpleasant scowl. In a temper fit, Hakujou threw the Ball away.

"Argh! Empty! How dare you defy my wishes! Everyone, seize them!!"

"Run!" said Kenta. "There’s no time to think, just pick a tunnel and let’s move!" Krista, who’d been trying to decide which passage leading out of the clearing within the mountain led the way outside, ducked into the nearest exit. The others followed her, and Dratini fired a brief Thunderbolt attack at the pursuers to slow them down.

"C’mon, Dratini, hurry!"

Hakujou himself leaped off his perch, and threw a Poke’Ball out from under him. In a flash, another new Poke’Mon appeared from under him, one with a blunt beak and muscular wings. Hakujou landed on it and pointed down at where the last of his cronies was disappearing into the tunnel. "Acrostryke! Fly me down there!" The type flying/fighting Poke’Mon gave a screech and pummeled at a 180 degree angle. It righted itself at the last millisecond and shot off through the narrow passage.

Kenta’s party blasted down the tunnel when it came to a split. Without stopping to plan whether to stay together or separate, Krista, Rick, Ditto and Charizard bolted off to the left and Kenta and Dratini took the right.

The five Team Rebellion members arrived at the same junction. "Follow the larger group!" shouted the woman in the lead. The member behind the pack tripped over a stone on the ground and fell on his face. Rubbing it and swearing, he watched as his teammates disappeared off into the left tunnel. Before he could get up to follow, Hakujou and Acrostryke flew up behind him. Hakujou’s face was furious.

"Where is that- @#!%*/! boy with the G/S cap?!? He still has my Poke’Mon!"

"Th-that way, Boss!" The Rebellion grunt pointed down the right passage. Hakujou growled and kicked his mount in the sides. Acrostryke flapped away down the tunnel.

Rick and Krista hurried through a maze of tunnels before finding themselves trapped at a solid wall. "It’s a dead end!" whined Krista, pounding on the wall hopelessly. Rick spun around, and the flame in his eye flared up again. "If we can’t run, we’ll just have to fight!" he barked, yanking a Poke’Ball off his belt. The four Team Rebellion grunts reached them as Krista also pulled out a Ball.

"Huh, huh, huh," laughed the leader of the pack. "So, nowhere to run and hide now eh, you little pests?" He stopped snickering as Rick’s eyes burned into him. "Uh . . . don’t you look at me like that! Golem, Rhydon, go!"

Flash! Out of one Poke’Ball came a stocky Poke’Mon that looked like a boulder with legs and a head. The other Poke’Ball revealed another rock Poke’Mon that looked like a Triceratops on its hind legs.

"Staryu! Take care of that Golem!" screamed Krista, releasing her strongest Poke’Mon. "Ditto! Transform into the Rhydon!" commanded Rick. A series of orders were then shouted out to both sides.

"Golem, Rock Throw!"

"Staryu, Water Gun!"

"Stop it, Rhydon! Horn Drill!"

"Don’t let it reach Staryu, Ditto! Strength attack!"

Amidst the chaos and confusion, other Team Rebellion members threw their Poke’Balls and commanded other Poke’Mon into battle.

"Go, Hitmonchan!"

"Machamp!"

"Kadabra!"

"Vileplume!"

As further commands were given, trainers on both sides did all they could do just to avoid getting hit by their own Poke’Mon.

Kenta and Dratini were rapidly progressing through the tunnel they’d taken when Dratini heard wings flapping. It dared a quick glance back, and . . . .

"DRATI! Dratini, tini, tini, tini, dra! TI!!" Kenta! That nasty guy is catching up! He’s riding some weird bird I’ve never seen before!

"Really? Shoot, I’ve gotta run faster! Dratini, hold onto my neck for dear life, but don’t choke me. I’m gonna speed up."

The gap between Hakujou and Kenta was getting smaller. But only bit by bit. Hakujou decided to try and unnerve Kenta with a threat.

"You can’t hide from me, you underling! Run as fast as you want, I’ll still catch you eventually. For your own good, you’d better stop while the punishment I plan to give you is still light."

Kenta didn’t respond, it would be a waste of breath. He was tiring quickly now, but . . . speaking of light, there was a light at the end of the passage. Daylight! With a new burst of speed, Kenta dashed ever faster toward the outside. Wrapped tightly (but gently, thank goodness) around his neck, Dratini peered ahead. Kenta has to make it now, the young dragon Poke’Mon thought. We’re so close, we’ve gotta make it!

Kenta had his own thoughts, too. I can make it out of here before Hakujou catches me . . . that’s for sure . . . but then what? I know, maybe I can beat him in a battle. Hiro’s gonna be a tough opponent though, even if he does seem all talk. I could sense it. Still, though I hadn’t planned on having this happening, I’ll bet the odds would even out if I were to send Hundragon into battle. I know it’s still weak, but this is a situation when every little bit helps. . . . Hey, what’s that thing at the end of the tunnel? It looks like an Arcanine! Well, I hope it has the sense to move out of the way, I couldn’t stop if I wanted to by now.

Sure enough, though it was at the last minute, the Arcanine did leap out of the path. Kenta burst out of the cave mouth and into sunlight. He slowed to a stop, a few more seconds of running and he would’ve dropped anyway. Kenta could feel Dratini relax on his shoulders, but still only half the fight was over.

"I’m sorry, Dratini, but we can’t rest just yet." Dratini slid off Kenta’s shoulder, and the trainer once again took a ready stance with his boomerang. "Thunderbolt attack the cave opening! It should be safe, that Arcanine’s gone."

"Draaaa . . . tiii!!" Dratini let off a stream of electricity. "Hyah!" Kenta flung the boomerang with hard determination. Their timing was perfect. As Hakujou and Acrostryke shot out of the mountain cave, Acrostryke was struck hard by Dratini’s effective attack, and Hakujou was slammed in the chest by Kenta’s spinning weapon, knocking him off his mount. Luckily for him, Hakujou’s fall was only about three feet down, and he managed to land so that no bones were broken.

Acrostryke wasn’t so lucky. Thunderbolt had paralyzed it in midair, and the giant bird fell heavily on the ground. Hakujou pulled himself to his feet, then started yelling at Acrostryke.

"Get up, you lazy buffoon! We have to win so I can take back my Hundragon. I said, get up! You useless, weak animal . . ."

Kenta was on one knee, panting for breath. He heard every word Hakujou said. Now Kenta felt bad for beating up Acrostryke. "You evil thing! How could you say that to your Poke’Mon!? Can’t you see it’s paralyzed, wounded, and utterly exhausted? You know, it’s a wonder all your Poke’Mon don’t run away!"

"Yeah? Who are you to question my way of training?" snarled Hakujou.

"Who am I?? ‘Question’ is an understatement! You are practically killing your Poke’Mon, rather than treating it with love and care. And you dare think that no one’s going to ‘question’ your brutal and savage ‘training’ methods?"

"Love and care is for saps. Wimps, like you! I don’t know how your pathetic little Dratini managed to pound my Acrostryke, but it was probably a fluke."

"You just don’t get it, do you? But I challenge you to a trainer battle, and we’ll see who’s training method is better."

"Ha! I’m Hakujou Darkenwrath, and-"

"I already know your name."

"QUIET! I am Hakujou Darkenwrath, and I will be the unstoppable trainer champion of the world!"

"And I am Leonn Ambitionate, the one who will stop you!"

"What? Who said that? Show yourself!"

Two shadows appeared on the ground, and the next moment, Leonn and the Arcanine had landed in front of Kenta.

"Yow!"

"Arrk . . ."

"Huh? Loyelite?"

Loyelite turned and nodded briefly, then came to attention as Leonn pointed an angry finger at Hakujou. "Loyelite’s been watching you for a long time, Darkenwrath! And I don’t like what I’ve been told about you."

"Oh?"

Flash! Hakujou released a massive Poke’Mon that was almost as big as Hundragon. Scales as hard as steel, teeth that were able to crush boulders, a serpent body, this could only be . . . "Woah. A Gyarados!" choked Kenta. Dratini let out a small squeal, and ducked into the back of his shirt. Then it popped its head out. "D-d-drati . . . dra, tidra, dratini, ni!" A dragon . . . a big scary one! I was about to fight that? Don’t leave me, Kenta!

Kenta rubbed Dratini’s head to soothe it. "Don’t worry, we’re safely off to the side, Leonn’s taking over, now."

"Ti, tini, ti?" But what if he loses, Kenta? Then what?

"Leonn won’t lose. Just you watch. And besides, we’ve got Hundragon to back us up. I don’t want to use it, but I don’t think I’ll have to."

"Dra, tini . . ." Whew . . . for a moment, I thought you were going to use me.

"And send you to your doom? No, I’d just as soon be eaten by that thing with you. Now let’s see how Leonn deals with this situation."

Leonn’s face was twisted, not by fear, not by concentration, but by fury. He reached for his Poke’Ball belt, and snatched one off. "I-" He expanded its size. "Hate-" Leonn let go the Ball as he threw. "-Water!" Flash! A golden fox with many tails appeared, and Kenta recognized it. "Ninetales . . . the mythical fox of fire . . ."

Hakujou’s mouth hung open stupidly. "What-? What do you think you’re doing? That idiotic little pup won’t last three seconds in battle with my mighty Gyarados! Or is this some measly hidden trap?"

"You’ll see soon enough what I’m hiding," responded Leonn. Then his eye seemed to catch something. "But while we’re on the subject, let me show Kenta something you think you’re hiding. Burning Desire! Flamethrower!"

The Ninetales, obviously named Burning Desire, blasted Hakujou with a wave of flames. When it cleared, Hakujou coughed out a bit of smoke, and the cloak he was wearing crumbled off of him into a pile of ashes. Under it was normal clothes, but that wasn’t what Kenta noticed. "Hey! I thought your voice was too high to be a man’s voice! You’re nothing but a twelve-year-old like me, pretending to be older than you really are. I give that cloak some credit though, it hid your elevator shoes quite well back there."

Hakujou glared at Leonn. "So, you know my true form. But I’m still a genius for my age."

"Genius?! You’re more like a mad scientist!"

Hakujou chuckled quietly just then. Leonn stared at him. "And what do you think you’re so happy about?"

"Your parents were scientists, too. That’s why my dad captured them. To help him in the quest I’m completing for him."

Kenta noticed Leonn’s expression change. "What are you talking about? My parents died a long time ago in a flood."

"No, that’s what you think. Ever wonder what your parents researched in science? . . . no, I see you have no clue. Fine, I’ll tell you. They studied the mythical master of storms, the extremely rare Lugia."

Kenta and Dratini stared at Leonn’s face. He looked like he’d just been smacked by an iron mallet. "Lugia . . . so it did wipe out my parents. Must’ve been angry because it was being studied."

Hakujou looked annoyed. "No! Didn’t I just say that my father captured them? His name was Lawrence III, and he was the ultimate Poke’Mon collector. Two years ago, he attempted to capture all three legendary birds, Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres . . ." At that, Leonn’s eyes flickered down to a Poke’Ball on his belt. "At the time, there was only one of each in the world, and the prophecy went that when all three balances of nature were disrupted (ice, thunder, and fire) the guardian of the sea would set the balance straight. And that guardian, the ultimate Lugia, was what Lawrence III was really after. He would’ve succeeded in capturing it too, if it hadn’t been for some punk kid . . . named Ash Ketchum."

Kenta fell backwards and accidentally squashed Dratini a little, who was still hiding on the inside of his jacket.

"Did he say . . . A-A-Ash?"

"Drati! Tini!"

"Oops. Sorry."

Hakujou was smirking again. "But anyway, even Ash won’t stop me this time. I’ve spent six months of endless searching and capturing only the best and strongest of Poke’Mon. Nobody’s ever beaten me."

Leonn bared his teeth. "Then this will probably be a shocking new experience for you. Burning Desire-"

"Hold it," said Hakujou with a malicious grin on his face. "Leonn-y boy, you do want to see your parents again, don’t ya?"

Silence.

"Well, that can be arranged can’t it, Gyarados?"

In all the talking, everyone had forgotten about Hakujou’s Gyarados. During the entire time, it had been taking in extraordinarily high amounts of energy. Kenta, even from where he sat clean out of the way, he could feel the power of the attack. Solarbeam, Sky attack, Hyper Beam, Thunder, Hydro Pump, Fire Blast, all fused together into one incredible attack. Hakujou’s voice could be heard. "Massive Outburst attack."

With that simple command said, Gyarados blasted a colorful beam of energy right at Leonn and Burning Desire the Ninetales. Kenta could see both the trainer and Poke’Mon jump to the side in time to avoid the unstoppable beam of wrath, but he guessed it still wasn’t enough. The sound waves that resulted after the blow were unbearable, and Leonn and Burning Desire had been too close.

BOOOOOOOOMM!!!!

When Kenta could finally open his eyes and let go of his ears again, he saw Leonn and Burning Desire unconscious on the ground.

"LEONN! No!"

Kenta dashed to his alley on the ground and checked his pulse. Leonn was still alive, at least. But definitely out cold. Kenta looked up in disgust at Gyarados, who had that same rotten grin that Hakujou was wearing. A Poke’Mon trained by a bad person turns bad itself . . . Dratini, however, was so mad that Gyarados only got a few seconds to savor the glory before getting struck by a deadly charge of electricity that knocked it out real good.

But Hakujou still sneered even after his monster hit the ground with an earth-shaking thud. "So, you took out my Gyarados. Big deal. You’re still going to end up the way stupid Leonn did."

"He’s still alive, you know. But you said he’d be seeing his parents again."

"Weren’t you listening? How many times do I have to say that they’re not dead, you fool? My father only captured them, of course I’ll want Leonn alive! But as for you, I think I’ll give you a choice. Either give back that Hundragon you’re hiding from me, or wind up on the ground just like your buddy."

"You won’t take Dratini and me without a fight."

"Then I guess I’ll just have to stop you from fighting. Gengar! Hypnosis attack!" Flash! Gengar, a dark-purple ghost Poke’Mon with a spiked back, emerged from another of Hakujou’s Poke’Balls. "Gen . . . garrr . . ."

Kenta felt the ghost’s eyes bore into him, ensnaring him in darkness. He couldn’t fight it. Dratini slumped over on Kenta’s shoulder, and he also whited out.

A few seconds before Kenta and Leonn’s defeat, Rick and Krista were holding off multiple opponents quite well. The Team Rebellion members were frustrated at the strength of just two little children. Over half of their Poke’Mon were knocked out, while Krista had lost Clefairy and Staryu. Golduck was still performing quite well. Rick, meanwhile, still had Cloyster and Ditto out in fighting. Charizard took out three opponents before being smashed with a heavy rock from the narrow cave ceiling. During the commotion, nobody noticed that the Team Rebellion Rhydon and Rick’s Ditto duplicate were lashing at each other and missing. Every time, they drilled a hole in the wall with their horns. It was getting larger and larger, and could collapse outward anytime to the outside of Mt. Rubyfire.

The collapse was confirmed when Gyarados’s Massive Outburst attack created a shock wave that hit anything within a quarter mile. The Team Rebellion members in the tunnel was suddenly blinded when the rocks creating the dead end shattered like glass, revealing sunlight. Krista and Rick though, because their backs were to the light, saw their chance.

"Hey, now’s the time to run for it! Ditto, Cloyster, return."

"Golduck, come back. C’mon, let’s vamoose!"

The lead Rebellion grunt saw that Rick and Krista were trying to escape. Without thinking, he roared, "Golem! Selfdestruct! Don’t let ‘em get away!"

As the two Poke’Mon Trainers vanished in a cloud of "manga dust", the four other of the Rebellion grunt’s comrades shot him looks of terror, angry sarcasm, "You’ve sent us all to our doom" looks, and sick looks. The main look was the obvious, "You’ve sent us all to our doom" glare. Golem, just taking orders, turned white and exploded.

From where he stood, about forty feet from the mountain cave, Rick watched Golem blast rocks everywhere. For some miracle reason, nobody other than Golem seriously got hurt, but the exit out of the mountain cave was blocked up again by ceiling rubble. Krista wiped her brow.

"Phew . . . I thought we’d had it back there. Rick, you think we should try to find Kenta?"

"No, sorry, but our Poke’Mon aren’t in the best of conditions. We should go to a Poke’Mon Center and heal them. While we’re waiting, we should call the cops."

"Yeah! The K9 Growlithe police squad can track where my big brother is!"

Rick began an immediate run toward Sunset Village in the distance. Krista started to follow when she noticed a bright form standing on the side of Mount Rubyfire. It was Leonn’s Rapidash, FlareMare.

"Rapidash! Where’s Kenta? Is he with your master, Leonn?"

The horse nodded.

"Then take me to him, will you?"

"*Neigh!*"

"Ouch! You’re hot! Oh well, guess I’ll have to follow you on foot."

Krista chased FlareMare for several minutes before they arrived at a spot where broken trees and bush leaves lay scattered about. "Woah . . . what happened here?" squeaked Krista with a gaping mouth. Flare Mare looked around the wreckage. Leonn, Kenta, Hakujou, everyone had disappeared.

". . ."

"Psst! Kenta!"

" . . . oww . . . hah?"

"Good, you’re finally awake."

"My head hurts . . ."

Kenta opened his eyes slowly. He and Leonn appeared to be tied in a standing position to a post. Realization kicked in, and Kenta jumped awake. "Leonn! Where are we? What is this place?"

Leonn tried to shrug, but the rope around him was too tight. "I just regained consciousness too, Kenta. We seem to be in a small room in some building."

Kenta didn’t feel right. His shoulders were lighter than usual. "Hey, where’s my backpack? And what happened to Dratini? And . . . waugh! My Poke’Ball belt is gone!"

"I guess that demon child Hakujou stole our Poke’Mon from us. Rrrgh . . . the little creep. I swear, if I ever get the opportunity, I’m gonna grab hold of his head and-"

"Ssh! I hear something!"

Kenta and Leonn could hear muttering and soft curses through a door in front of them. Though it was dark where they were, light came through a crack from under the door, and a shadow was pacing around outside.

" . . . is it?!? . . . secret pocket! . . . . . . dumb backpack . . ."

"It’s Hakujou! Can you make out what he’s mumbling, Kenta?"

"Sounds like the dirty little rodent is shuffling through my backpack. Obviously, he’s still searching for that Hundragon I captured."

"You caught a Hundragon? Where’s its Poke’Ball?"

His eyes used to the dark by now, Kenta looked down at his shorts pocket. There was a lump in it. "I still have it! It’s hard to believe Hakujou didn’t search my clothing. I suppose either he felt it was too awkward to do, or he was expecting some hiding spot more sophisticated."

"Either way, you still have one Poke’Mon with you. Think you could release it?"

"Sorry, no can do, Leonn. Reason one, my arms are tied up too tightly already. Reason two, even if I could, it would be disastrous to release a gigantic Hundragon in a teeny little room like this. ‘My’ Hundragon is almost twice the size of yours, and it would crush u-"

BAM! The door flew open, and Hakujou stormed in. Kenta flinched as the outside light hit his eyes. Hakujou was in a flying rage.

"All right, Macauttum, let’s do this the easy way. My patience has reached its bare limit, and DON’T think I won’t try something chaotic to get what I want! I’ll ask you for the last time, GIVE ME MY HUNDRAGON!"

Kenta gave Hakujou a defiant look, and demanded, "Where’s my Dratini? Where are we? Why do you want Hundragon so bad? I may be tied up, but I still know where I hid Hundragon’s Ball, and you don’t. So answer me, and maybe you’ll get an answer!"

Hakujou shook with anger, but clenched a fist and gritted his teeth. "Alright . . . kid . . . your petty blue worm is in a sealed room with fireproof, water-tight, and shock-proof walls. That horrible little beast woke up before I could get out of there. See my fingers? See how swollen they are from a dragon bite?"

Hakujou held up his hand, and a small bite pattern showed on three fingers and his palm. Kenta fought down a laugh. "The stupid Dratini also singed my shirt. That flame-happy monster . . ."

"Speaking of flames, where’s Loyelite?" demanded Leonn.

"Your pathetic puppy is in another fireproof room, with walls two feet thick. Stupid dog, it gave me a lot of trouble when you both passed out. Anyway, Kenta asked what this ‘building’ is? It’s actually a ship, and we’re all on a coarse set for Lugia. My father’s computer is tracking it down as we speak."

Kenta sensed something odd. "Heyyy . . . why are you speaking so calmly all of a sudden, Hakujou? A minute ago, you should’ve seen the spit fly from your mouth while you were having a tantrum."

Hakujou ignored the remark, and made a sudden snatch at Kenta’s pocket. Triumphantly, he held up the Ultra Ball. "Hahahaha! No need for me to be angry now! I’m disappointed in you, Kenta, I was expecting you to hide something as valuable as this in a tougher spot. Unless, of course, you don’t realize the value of an all-powerful Hundragon! Heeheeheeheehee, this’ll make my battle with Lugia a snap! Come out, my elite weapon!"

"Wait!" shouted Kenta in panic. Don’t do that here-"

FLASH!!

"Uh-oh."

Kenta was right, Hundragon was way too gigantic for the tiny room. The light of the called-upon Poke’Mon forced its way into anything. Hakujou himself was thrown into the back of the room as the growing light shoved him away. The post Kenta and Leonn were tied to snapped, and the ropes slipped off. The two escaped trainers threw themselves out the door as Hundragon’s massive body emerged from the light. Kenta and Leonn rushed through different corridors to escape their prison and Hakujou. They finally stopped at a closed door, worn out.

"(Wheeze . . . wheeze) What an idiot. I cannot believe a so-called smart kid like that was capable of doing something so stupid."

"True, Leonn (pant, pant . . .), but at least stupidity went in our favor this time. Hakujou should have his bitten-up hands full for a few minutes, trying to get out of a room filled with ‘his’ own Poke’Mon. Meanwhile, we’ve got to get our Poke’Mon back. Hakujou never told us where he stashed our Poke’Ball belts, so we should start looking for-"

"Dratini!"

"Read my mind, Leonn."

"That wasn’t me, Kenta."

"Huh? Dratini, are you behind that door?"

"Dra! Dra! Tini!"

Kenta and Leonn spun around and pounded on the door. "It’s no use, Dratini! The thing’s locked."

"Password, please." came a feminine robotic voice from the door. Leonn jumped backwards. "Woah . . . where does he get the money to afford this kind of stuff?"

"Password, please." said the door again. Kenta wracked his brain.

"Okay, uh, password, password . . . Hakujou Rules?"

"Try again."

Leonn joined in. "Errr . . . This Door Better Let Us In Or Else I’ll Bust It?"

"Ha ha. Very funny."

"Hakujou must’ve paid an extra twenty bucks to program it to say that."

"Stay focused, Leonn! Hmm . . . Hakujou’s Da Man?"

"You’re getting cold."

"Shut up, you dumb door."

"Let’s see . . . My Name’s Hakujou, The Future Poke’Mon Champ?"

"Open Sesami?"

"Stay Shut, See If I Care?"

"Hakujou Darkenwrath?"

Leonn was getting frustrated. In furious sarcasm, he shouted, "I’m Hakujou, The Demented Redheaded Freak Who Couldn’t Catch A Cold, Let Alone A Poke’Mon!"

The door buzzed, then slowly opened. Kenta stared in wonder. "That’s the password?" Leonn blinked dumbly. "Guess so. Leave it to Hakujou to think up a password that nobody would dream he’d say to open the door."

Dratini joyously leaped out of its cell into Kenta’s arms. "Drati, tini, dra!"

Leonn smiled. "Guess you trained that little guy pretty well. It missed you."

"Not quite a strong enough word," answered Kenta, squeezing Dratini back. "Yeah, I ‘missed’ you too, buddy," he said, beaming at Dratini. The trio continued down the halls, Leonn still sniggering to himself as he pictured Hakujou saying his self-insulting password to open the cell.

"Finally!" Hakujou snatched the Ultra Ball off the floor and managed to recall Hundragon back in it. He’d dropped it when the gigantic Poke’Mon emerged from its container, and had to squeeze around the large dragon’s body to pick it off the ground. With Hundragon back in its Ultra Ball, Hakujou heaved a sigh of relief then darted out of the mini-room he’d been trapped in. That darn Kenta kid had escaped, Leonn too, and Hakujou was going to make them pay now for choosing to resist his cause. Hakujou stomped down the hall to the main control room.

Kenta, Dratini and Leonn marched through the halls of the ship, looking out the windows and listening through the doors occasionally. The first time Kenta peered out a window, he immediately became dizzy from the height they were. "Sheesh, I didn’t realize this thing was flying already. It’s pretty smooth flight, too. Well, any sign of Arcanine yet, Dratini?"

Dratini was sniffing and listening for Loyelite, but couldn’t sense the fire dog yet. "Tini." Nope.

"Darn. Let’s keep looking."

The small team had bumped into a couple Team Rebellion members while exploring, but Dratini had fried them each time. With that kind of problem out of the way, progress went a lot quicker.

"Hey, there’s a door up ahead. And it’s open! I’m going to check it out." Leonn jogged to the lead and peeped through the open door from around a corner. Inside was a wide room, with a lone chair at the center. Someone was in it, but the chair was turned so the back faced the open door. Leonn heard the person’s voice. He apparently knew Leonn was there.

"(Sigh) Back again, Hakujou?" The voice belonged to a man who sounded sad and depressed. Kenta and Dratini popped up on either side of Leonn and listened in curiously. The man continued speaking, thinking he was talking to Hakujou.

"You know, I tried to do what you’re doing right now, Hakujou. Two years ago. But I was three times your age then and I still failed. I learned the hard way that it’s just not the right thing to do when you upset nature for your own purposes. Once again, for your own sake, please go back on your mission of capturing Lugia. I know you’re smart, Hakujou, but you’re only twelve years old. Don’t make the same mistake I did. Please, Hakujou, release those two boys that you tied in the empty storage closet, and give them their Poke’Mon back. It isn’t worth hurting others just to attempt to capture Lugia, the storm god. I nearly destroyed the world when I got carried away doing that. If it hadn’t been for Ash . . ."

The man stopped talking. "You’re awfully quiet back there, Hakujou! Normally, you’d interrupt me at about this time. Is something wrong?"

Kenta cleared his throat. "I’m really sorry sir, but I’m not Hakujou. Leonn and I are those two boys that were imprisoned by him."

The chair "leaped", and the man in it spun around. He was in his mid-thirties, and obviously was in great shock. "What- I- you- . . . ." The man moved his mouth wordlessly. Kenta, feeling awkward, continued.

"Um . . . my name’s Kenta, and this is Leonn and Dratini. Excuse us for startling you, but we’ve gotten lost. Could you help us?"

But the man wanted a question answered first. "Ugh . . . How much did you hear?"

"Everything. But we don’t understand it all."

The man sighed, and slumped in his chair. After a few seconds, he spoke up. "My name is Lawrence III. I was once a Poke’Mon collector, aiming to get the rarest and strongest Poke’Mon in existence. I-"

"We already know your story," interrupted Leonn, not wanting to waste time. Hiro could be coming at any moment . . . "You’re Hakujou’s father, and you tried and failed to catch Lugia two years ago. Then some kid named Ash stopped you and you came to your senses. We know. What we don’t understand is why you’re not stopping your son Hakujou from attempting to do the same thing."

Lawrence III sighed and shut his eyes. "I could stop my son if I wanted to," he whispered. "But I have no right to do that. Because I was a greedy Poke’Mon collector myself, it isn’t my worthy position to stop someone doing something I myself did. I don’t deserve it."

"Lawrence, snap out of it!" shouted Kenta. "Your state of misery is keeping you from preventing a serious trouble! Hakujou’s a danger to the world, his power is getting out of hand! If he does manage to capture Lugia, we’re going to have real problem. No offense, but he’s a poor trainer who cares more about winning than his Poke’Mons’ well-being. He’s gotta be stopped before we run into Lugia!"

Still, Lawrence III didn’t budge. "I cannot go against my own son. I gave him the money to go through with this, even though I tried to persuade him not to. Hakujou is blinded by his dream of becoming all-powerful."

"And you are blinded by your own stubborn depression!" shot back Leonn. "If you won’t help us, at least let me see my parents!"

"Your parents?" repeated Lawrence III, giving him an odd look.

Leonn’s eyes burned angrily. "You don’t remember? Don’t remember capturing my scientist parents 13 years ago to speed up your search for Lugia? I believe I was two years old when you flooded them out of their own house one night with some . . . I dunno . . . some flood machine, I guess? Anyway, however you got the flood into my room, my baby cradle floated on the water like a boat. I suppose the wood was floatable. Me and my Growlithe were swept out the window, and we ‘disappeared into thin air’ for a few years. By the time Loyelite and I came back out of the wilderness, nobody recognized us. But I still remembered my first name, and what I thought had happened to mom and dad. Yeah, I thought they’d been killed in the flood, and that’s how I developed my hatred for water. And for Lugia, whom I thought was responsible for their deaths. But now I know my parents aren’t dead at all, they’ve just been slaves to you for thirteen years! The last two years count for your bratty kid Hakujou-"

"Easy, Leonn . . ." said Kenta quickly, wanting to stay on Lawrence’s good side. Leonn caught himself, and quietly said, "Please take me to my parents." Lawrence III stared straight into Leonn’s eyes, and did some deep thinking. Leonn waited.

"Fine." Lawrence III finally stood up from his seat. "Follow me." Wordlessly, he strode past Leonn and Kenta and out the open door. The two boys and Dratini followed Lawrence III out into the hall and through the passages. Kenta glanced to the side at Leonn, but his face was emotionless. Still, Kenta could sense that he was tense and nervous. But then again, why shouldn’t he be? What would you say to your parents if you hadn’t seen them for 13 years?

Dratini stayed quiet. Kenta noticed that all this was a lot for a young dragon to take in. I wonder about Dratini’s parents . . . Kenta thought. But that was as far as he got. There was a sudden clack! on the floor, and a Poke’Ball rolled out from under Lawrence’s cloak. "Hey!" Leonn bent down and snatched it up. "I . . . I recognize this Poke’Ball. It’s mine! Burning Desire is in this one!" Leonn gave Lawrence III a suspicious glare. "Hakujou took our Poke’Ball belts away, and he never told us where he hid them. But I think I just figured out where he put our Poke’Mon. Lawrence! You’ve been keeping them for him!"

Lawrence III looked awkward, but not guilty. "Leonn, let me ask you something. Would you rather have had me be in charge of your Poke’Balls . . . or Hakujou?"

Leonn seemed confused. "I . . . don’t know. You two seem just as bad."

Kenta caught on quicker. "Leonn, you should have seen the way Hakujou treated his Acrostryke when it took an overwhelming Thunderbolt from Dratini. It was too beaten to get back up, but Hakujou screamed at it anyway. He called it weak. He’s completely savage. I would’ve preferred Lawrence looking after my Poke’Mon. Maybe he was bad, but at least he’s learned now."

Lawrence III looked relieved, but Kenta wasn’t finished. "Alright, Lawrence, I know you’ve also got my Poke’Mon under that cloak, so can I have ‘em back now? There’s no point in protesting, so . . ."

Kenta held out his hand, and Lawrence III actually gave him his belt. As he moved to give Leonn his own belt back, Lawrence said, "These are rightfully yours, so I don’t feel guilty for returning them to you. Though I do think I’m beginning to go too far in helping you and betraying Hakujou . . ."

"Nonsense, you’re doing great. Now can we see my parents?" asked Leonn, in a much better mood. Kenta sensed that Leonn was aching to ask about Loyelite too, being that the Arcanine was the only family he’d ever really known. But they didn’t want to drive Lawrence III too far, he’d already returned their Poke’Mon, given them some information, and was leading them to Leonn’s parents. Hopefully. The quartet (counting Dratini) continued through the halls.

Rick slammed down the Poke’Center video phone. "Darnit, darnit, darnit! The police are all busy, every last one of them. I cannot believe this. What on earth could make them this occupied? I swear, people must be getting worse and worse these days, keeping the entire police force on their toes! Guess saving Kenta and Leonn is up to us, Krista. Kris? Krista! Where’d you go?"

Rick twisted around, and looked through the Poke’Mon Center for Krista. No luck. "Let me rephrase that . . . I guess it’s up to me." Grumbling like a grumpy old man, Rick sat in a chair and waited for Nurse Joy to heal his Poke’Mon.

"Here we are." Lawrence III stopped at a closed robotic door to the main control room. He cleared his throat as Kenta and Leonn stopped beside him.

"Ahem . . . A Pikachu basked on a sunny trail,

When suddenly a Wartortle stepped on his tail,

Wartortle clearly wasn’t paying attention,

‘Till Pikachu shocked him to the next dimension. . . . Hey, why didn’t the door open?"

"Another strange password," whispered Leonn to Kenta.

"Yeah, but the door’s still closed," answered Kenta. "What’s up with that?"

"Now you’ve done it! You guys are busted!" laughed a horribly familiar voice inside the door. It opened, and none other than Hakujou stood sneering at his intruders. "I figured you would come he-" Hakujou stopped short as he caught sight of his father. "You! What do you think you’re doing, helping these prisoners?! You should’ve informed me immediately, Father!"

Lawrence III stared down at his son. "I am not helping them. This boy wanted to see his parents, that’s all. Why can’t we-"

"No! I know what you’re about to say! I will not let these two scientist fools go, just to be with their child! We’re this close-" he put his finger and thumb a millimeter apart- "THIS close . . . to finding Lugia! I’m not gonna blow it like you did before. This time there’s no Ash, and no meddling Zapdos, Articuno and Moltres to get in the way!"

"Wrong."

Kenta took a step forward. "Instead of Ash, there’s Kenta. And I’ve got all my Poke’Mon back."

Leonn also moved forward. "I’ll also stop you in any way I can." He threw one of his Poke’Balls. "And while there may not be any Articuno or Zapdos, there’s still Moltres to slow you down!" Flash! "Greawwww!" The great dignified figure of Sacred Phoenix appeared in a burst of light and flame.

Hakujou’s face twisted into a snarl. "Fatherrrr!" he roared. You gave back their Poke’Mon, didn’t you!?!"

Lawrence III looked very pale. "No . . . they discovered it . . . I-I . . ."

"Do not blame your father!" rumbled Leonn. "Now take me to my father and mother before I turn you into a walking lava lamp! NOW!"

He’s really mad . . . thought Kenta. I’d best keep silent, like Dratini.

Hakujou glared furiously at Leonn, then looked up at the hovering Moltres and had second thoughts. "Very well then . . . let’s get this over with, the sooner the better." Nobody noticed Hakujou pull a switch out of his jacket sleeve and press the button. He led everyone to the next room where two people in lab coats were working on their surrounding environment, endless amounts of machines and controls. They stopped as Hakujou’s group entered.

Hakujou opened his mouth, and Kenta knew he was probably about to tell them to keep working. Kenta stamped on his foot. "Ouch! You b-"

Leonn, unaware of anything else, looked at the two people. "Dad?" he horsed. "Mom?" The woman spoke up. "Leonn, is that you?"

"You recognize me?"

"Hakujou told us you were here. Leonn, you’ve grown so much . . ."

Leonn’s mother ran up to him and smothered him with kisses, then broke down in his arms. Kenta felt a big sweatdrop form on his head. He noticed movement on his left. Lawrence III, for the first time since Kenta’d seen him, was smiling. Hakujou, on the other hand, looked absolutely disgusted. Leonn’s father just stood where he’d been standing since his son arrived. He must’ve been having trouble taking this all in. Finally, he also ran up to Leonn and looked down at him. "Leonn . . . you look just like your ol’ dad . . ."

"Except that my hair went white sooner than yours," Leonn responded in a happy joke. "ALL RIGHT! THAT’S ENOUGH!" screamed Hakujou. "Rod! Jenna! What are the status reports on the Lugia search?"

"Hakujou!" growled Kenta angrily. "You’re interrupting a reunion!"

Leonn’s parents, Rod and Jenna, got a hold of themselves and gave their usual report. "Uh . . . Lugia’s right at the center of our radar screen, sir."

"WHAT!"

Hakujou rushed to the window and peered around outside. "But I don’t see it! Is this a trick?"

"Have we ever been wrong before?"

"Check the radar computer yourself if you don’t believe us."

"Lugia’s actually been there since my son and this boy were taken aboard."

Hakujou spun around to face the two scientists. "Why didn’t you tell me that before?!"

Rod shrugged. "You weren’t in the best of moods then. You’ve told us never to talk to you when you were in a bad mood."

Leonn leaned toward Kenta to whisper, "That jerk! These last two years he’s been ordering my mom and dad around like slaves! What a bully . . ."

"Okay, you got to see your kid, now get back to work!" snarled Hakujou at Leonn’s parents. But before anyone could move, Leonn grabbed Hakujou by the collar and pulled him in close to his face. Being fifteen years old, he easily towered over his twelve-year-old enemy. "Don’t ever order my parents around again." Leonn rumbled, his breath blasting into Hakujou’s face. "You seem to be forgetting that we outnumber you five to one, including Moltres."

Even though he was in a dangerous position, Hakujou smiled. "Are you so sure about that? Care for a second glance at your precious phoenix?"

Leonn stiffened. Kenta slowly turned fearfully around to see several members of Hakujou’s Team Rebellion holding down Sacred Phoenix, the Moltres. Hakujou grinned victoriously and walked over to his men (and a few women). "You stand to be corrected, Leonn: We outnumber you five to one. Guys, keep these prisoners hostage, and don’t let a single one go. I’m going out to catch Lugia once and for all."

"Lawrence, do something!" yelled Kenta as Team Rebellion surrounded him, Leonn, and his parents. Lawrence III looked away miserably and pretended to watch out the window. Hakujou disappeared out of the room with a final laugh. "See ya, chumps! I’ve got a Poke’Mon Legend to catch and own. Hahahahahaha!!"

Then there was silence.

A Team Rebellion woman menaced Kenta with a whip. "Don’t try to follow him, you, or you’ll get a taste of our power." Kenta sighed and went limp. He watched as other Team Rebellion grunts pulled out a rope to tie him and the other good guys up. Kenta noticed, though, that these were normal ropes, not the special ones that were used to bind Hundragon.

Kenta was tied between Dratini and Leonn. A man hesitated before pulling the ropes securely tight. "Hey, G/S cap kid. Does that Dratini know any fire attacks?" He was answered with a harsh glare and an irritable response. "Even if Dratini did know a flame technique, it’s not like it could reach these ropes, if that’s what you’re wondering. And even if it could, do you really think we would all want to burn with these bonds?"

The guard seemed satisfied with the response. Leonn leaned in toward Kenta’s direction. In a whisper he said, "Nice quick thinking. Too bad we’re busted all the same. Wonder what’ll happen to us when- er- if Hakujou captures Lugia?"

"Then he won’t need us anymore," answered Rod. "He might let us go home."

"You really think he’d do that?" challenged Kenta. "This is Hakujou we’re talking about. He’s mean, cruel, intelligent, (and kind of ugly too, but that doesn’t mean anything.) He’ll probably force all of us to work for him since we know all about him now. That good-for-nothing spoiled-"

Shoom!

A sudden burst of light could be seen outside the ship’s window. Kenta caught a brief glimpse of Hakujou in a jetpack, flying through the sky upwards. "Where does he get that kind of stuff??" wondered Leonn. Kenta would have shrugged, but he was tied up. "Dunno. But he knows Lugia is out there somewhere close by. As long as we’re here, I’d like to take the time to wonder why Lugia came so close to radar after we were taken aboard this weird flying craft."

Jenna took that question. "I’m unsure why it was such a coincidence that that happened, but Hakujou’s been on the trail of Lugia for the last two years. And he stops here and there to strengthen up his Poke’Mon team now and then. You know, as long as he’s in the area. Anyway, the stop at Mount Rubyfire was the last one for him before the computer finally sensed Lugia nearby. At the same time the radar went crazy over its find, you two were taken aboard. If I hadn’t known any better, I’d have said that Lugia seemed to be following one of you wherever you go."

"It couldn’t be me, Mom," remarked Leonn. "Until today, I hated Lugia."

"That was just an ‘if’ statement, honey," responded Jenna.

But the simple "if" statement was already taking effect on Kenta. Lugia saved my life that one time, he thought. When I almost drowned back at the S.S. Aqua wreck. Has it been following me around ever since?

"TINI! Tini tini, Drati, tini dratini!"

"Dratini? What are you so hyped up about?"

Dratini poked its tail frantically out the window. Kenta looked and caught a fleeting glimpse at a long tail zooming past the window, so white that it seemed to glow brightly. But that wasn’t what Dratini was so frantic about. As the tail disappeared, a giant mountain took its place in the scene out the window. The ship might crash into it, every crew member of the craft was carefully guarding their prisoners and restraining Moltres. With no pilot, a collision was certain!

The Poke’Center doors opened and Krista hurried in. Rick, who had been sitting stiffly in a Poke’Mon Center lounging chair, hopped from his seat and stood there with an annoyed look on his face at Krista. "Alright Kris, where were you? One minute you were with me running towards the Poke’Mon Center, and the next minute you were gone! What happened?"

Krista pointed out the window. Rick looked out and saw a fire horse’s face peering in. "That’s Leonn’s Rapidash. I saw him, and he led me to an area around Mount Rubyfire that was totally torn up! There was a sign of a huge struggle, but no trail leading away from it."

"FlareMare showed you a scene of destruction?! That could have been Kenta in that area at that time! Hiro was probably following him since he still had Hundragon, and beaten him up to steal that Poke’Mon! Didn’t you check to see if Kenta was lying out there somewhere?"

"All I could find was a couple burnt trees and bushes and some rooted-up grass. Nothing else was left."

FlareMare suddenly started whinnying and crying out. Rick and Krista hurried outside to see what was the matter. The Rapidash indicated with its head for the two trainers to get on its back. Krista didn’t move. "Ohhh no. You’re burning hot. I’m not about to get my backside burnt riding you!" Krista’s jaw dropped as Rick coolly mounted the flaming horse without flinching. "Rick? How-?"

"Oh, get on you big baby."

"Hmpf, easy for you to say. You’ve been around your fire-type Poke’Mon Charizard forever."

Krista hesitantly touched FlareMare’s side, and didn’t burn her fingers! "R-R-Rapidash? How did you do that?" As Krista got on the horse behind Rick, he explained, "Fire Poke’Mon aren’t ever hot when they’re with a human they trust. Flare Mare obviously trusts us in finding its master, Leonn. . . . and Kenta." Rick gently kicked the Rapidash’s sides. "FlareMare, we have no clue where either Kenta or Leonn are, so we’ll leave it up to you to recognize any signs of Leonn. Take us where you will, Poke’Mon!" FlareMare closed its eyes, as if trying to sense something, then bucked and sped off. "I think he somehow knows where Leonn is!" cried Rick. "We’re on the right track!"

Kenta sprang into action. "Auuugh! Everyone, listen up! We’re about to smash into a mountain up ahead! Whoever is the pilot, get to your cockpit and move out of the way!"

Every Team Rebellion member looked dumbly at Kenta and burst into laughter the next moment. A guard shouted disapprovingly at him. "What kind of stoopid oafs do you take us for? If we look out the window for even a second, you’ll probably do some roguish little trick to get out of those ropes. It’s happened before, you know. Now quit using the oldest trick in the book and quiet down. You’ve caused us enough trouble already."

"Hear, hear!" called a guy who had earlier been toasted by Dratini.

"Wait. He’s telling the truth."

Lawrence III, who’d had his eyes closed in attempt to forget he existed for the last couple minutes, had finally opened them. Everyone stared out the window, then the Rebellion grunts exploded into noise.

"Oh my god, we’re all gonna die!"

"Shut your mouth, you fool!"

"What can we do? What can we do?"

"Get the pilot. Anderson! Move us out of the way of that mountain!"

"I’m going, I’m going! But it’s likely to be too late by now."

Lights suddenly flashed red all around, and a robotic voice squawked, "Massive object ahead. Range: Thirty meters. Impact in fifteen seconds."

Amidst the confusion going around, Kenta shouted, "Dratini! Return!"

"What are you doing?" demanded Leonn as Dratini was recalled into its Master Ball. "Watch," answered Kenta. "Dratini, come out again!"

Flash! The tiny dragon reappeared, free of the ropes this time. "Dratini, breath fire on that loose rope spot where you just were. That way, none of us get burned. Now!"

Dratini hastily blasted the ropes with one exhale of flame breath. Leonn was burned a little, but being a fire Poke’Mon trainer, he was used to it. The bindings dropped to the floor as the four former prisoners stood up. Jenna and Rod immediately yanked Leonn and Kenta with them as they headed for the emergency exit. "This way! Out the door with the orange handle."

"Massive object: Five meters. Unable to evade. Have a-"

The exit emergency door was thrown open and Kenta, Leonn, his parents, and Dratini posed to leap out. At the last second before the giant flying craft smashed into the mountain, Sacred Phoenix snatched everyone in its talons and zoomed away.

"-nice day!" Cruncshreeeeech! Behind him, Kenta could hear the sickening sound of the ship’s metal break into its barrier. The horrendous sound grew rapidly fainter though, as Sacred Phoenix flapped away from it. Kenta was surprised that the Moltres was able to carry everyone’s weight at once. From one of its talons Sacred Phoenix held Leonn’s parents, and from the other hung Kenta and Leonn. Kenta soothed a frightened Dratini in his arms, then to his surprise, heard Leonn crying on his left.

"Leonn?" asked Kenta, concerned. "Is something wrong? We made it out."

"I know," sobbed Leonn, "But Loyelite was still in there! We never found him!"

Kenta felt sudden cold. "I’m sorry, Leonn, I really am. But there was nothing we could’ve done."

"Loyelite?" asked Rod. "The family Growlithe? He was a nice puppy . . ."

Kenta felt sick. Loyelite had died, Leonn was miserable, Hakujou was about to capture a close-to-invincible Poke’Mon to use for his own purposes, Kenta’s backpack with vital supplies was gone, and to top it all off, the drop below was dizzying. Only Moltres’s claws hooked on Kenta’s jacket were keeping him and Dratini from falling to their-

RIIIIP! When it rains, it pours. Kenta and Dratini’s combined weight was too much for Kenta’s jacket. It tore where Sacred Phoenix’s talons were holding on, then ripped completely. Kenta and Dratini hung in space for a moment, before starting a long decent to the ground far below. "Kenta! No!" shouted Leonn from above. "Not you too!"

"Dra! Drati, ti, tini, drati!" Not again! Back when we first met, I thought I’d fallen from a death height for the last time! Remember, when you saved me Kenta?

Dratini must be having its life flash before its eyes, thought Kenta. That’s typical, when you’re about to die. But it’s really a pity that Dratini has to pass away early on in life. There’s not a lot of life to flash before you.

Feeling sorry for Dratini led Kenta into the passing of his own life. He saw very realistic memories of his own, some he’d even forgotten about.

* "Mom! Krista’s bugging me again!"

"He thinks he’s actually going to become a Poke’Mon trainer. Hah, isn’t that the funniest thing you ever heard?"

"Krista, Kenta’s going to the finest school of Poke’Mon technology there is. I’m sure he’ll honer the family name to no end as a trainer."*

The memory blurred out and another one took its place. Kenta was in Rick’s former Poke’Mart, looking out the door window to see Rick struggling against Team Rocket’s Poke’Mon . . . and Dratini in the Team Rocket balloon, ensnared in a net! Kenta could see Rick’s Ditto aim a Razor Leaf attack at the balloon, sending Meowth in the balloon airborne, and dropping Dratini. The little blue serpent plunged toward the ground.

* "Dratini, no! I’ll save you!" Jump . . . snatch! "Gotcha! Whew, that was close. Are you okay?"*

And Dratini was beaming at him, seeing Kenta in a new light. It was the best feeling in the world to be true friends in half a second, especially if the one saved the other. The memory faded, and moved on.

Kenta now caught snatches of things said long ago, and occasional images of scenes of his past.

* "Dratini and I are winners! We don’t have to stand here and listen to you brag all day. (Brief image of Kenta arguing with Krista) We came to the Pewter Gym to earn a badge, and we’ll do just that!"*

* "Hlp! Hlp! ‘Tis got me!"* (Brief image of James with Victreebel’s mouth over his head, trying to eat him again. The area is around Mount Moon.)*

* "No way! I’ll join Team Rocket on the day I trade Dratini for a crayon!" (Brief image of Kenta and Dratini facing the boss gangster at his gang’s bridge.)*

* "You know, you’re awfully cute. And so is your little Poke’Mon. I promise not to hurt you too bad."

"Bring it on, we’re not as soft as we look." (Glimpse of Lily the Cerulean gym leader speaking to Kenta before their Poke’Mon match.)*

* "I’m late, I’m laaate!" Klunk! (Short scene of Mystic crashing into Kenta at Poke’Mon Tech. in the halls.)*

* "Can I keep this?" (Kenta with Poke’Mon Tech. boomerang, asking the top student Giselle if he can keep it.)

"Well, uh . . ."

"Thanks! See ya!" Shoom!*

* "Dratini! I can’t believe it! After all this time, I finally have you back again! I missed you so much!" (Brief scene shows Kenta reunited with Dratini at the Safari Zone lake)*

* "All you little brats have been standing up to us for too long now!"

"But now it’s our turn to call the shots . . . and a shot in the mouth is what you’re going to get if I hear another comment from you, Yankees cap boy!" (Quick scene of Team Rocket in a robotic Geodude, threatening Kenta and his friends.)*

* "Oh, no! Dratini?? Speak to me! Say something, please!"

"Ni . . ." (Glimpse of Kenta in Lt. Surge’s gym, cradling the injured Dratini in his arms after it was beaten by Raichu.)*

* "What are you waitin’ for, kids? Go on, have the time of your lives! Spend lots of money!" (Scene with a fat man showing off the End Of June Fesival to Kenta’s surprised party.)*

* "Wow . . . a real G/S cap! Man, I’d kill for one of those . . ." (Brief scene shows Kenta about to buy his trademark G/S cap from a psychic merchant.)*

* (No words, just a slightly longer scene of Kenta undergoing an internal transformation as he sees Hundragon being abused by five Team Rebellion members. Dratini is also building up a fiery rage.)*

The final memory disappeared, Dratini’s ambitious face was replaced by the scared face of Dratini at the present time. Looking down, Kenta realized that they hadn’t fallen a whole lot yet, time must’ve slowed down to allow Kenta time for his memories. And more than half of them were ones with Dratini. That thought made Kenta decided a final decision.

"Dratini . . ."

Kenta looked straight into Dratini’s eyes. "Whatever happens, I want you to live through it. We don’t both have to leave this world. You’re young and show promise as a Poke’Mon. So . . ." Kenta looked down. The ground was zooming up fast to meet him. "If you land on top of my body, your fall will be cushioned. You’ll probably live through it."

"Dratini! Ti, ti. Tini!" Kenta, please tell me your not going to do what I think-

"Dratini. Promise me that whatever happens, you’ll live."

"Dra! Tiiii!" No! You can’t sacrifice yourself for-

"Promise me."

The ground was almost upon them. Kenta forced Dratini above himself and waited for final impact . .