Fire, Ice, and the Red Sun

[Mizagium]

(The following is to be read as if it were a news program)

"...And today marks the three-month anniversary of the now-famous Battle of Burlain, where a group of Trainers, calling themselves Paladin, halted the advance of the villainous Team Phoenix, and caused their collapse. While commended for their actions, the vigilante group was ordered to disband by local police. And they wish to remind everyone that vigilantism is still frowned upon.

"On that note, there have been no sightings of the elusive Team Phoenix for over two months. No members were ever apprehended by police, but the group appears to have either broken apart or gone underground. Police are still searching and are urging anyone with information to call the number listed below.

"In other news, the Fabulous Red Sun Circus is in town. The famous Pokémon circus is setting up in Ipronen City in the Sliph Co. Dome. Come and see the famous Leamnin and other rare Pokémon not seen in Novien. They will be in town for the next few weeks, but tickets are going fast..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tyler and Archie faced the Urein City Gym. the last three months they had spent training for this. Archie was stronger and faster, Terrance evolved into a Tentacruel, Tallon into a Crobat, and he had obtained a Scyther, which he named Ithica.

"This is it Archie, the start of our Gym Challenge. Kaz, the Normal Gym Leader is our first League opponent."

Archie barked ferociously.

"Let's go!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Darrien sighed. Life was boring now that he accepted a post as an Elite. All his Pokémon had evolved, save Pinky. He was the sound Elite, and basically the weakest of the Elite Four.

And still no one had challenged him yet...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yolanda dropped the two cans of spray paint in the street and shoved her hands into the pockets of her red-and-black trench coat. She blended into the crowds of Ipronen City, and vanished.

Some time later, someone noticed her message and alerted the police.

EX CINIS CINERIS

[Nel]

Peter walked the noisy streets of Burlain with his smeargal, Leanardo, and his Natu, Soren. He had Leonardo's drawing of the Burlain Wall in his hands and had come here looking for the actual Burlain Wall. He had come from Johto, Cherrygrove to be exact, with his smeargal and natu. His smeargal, Leonardo had drawn a picture of what looked like people fighting a phoenix at a wall. He didn't think much of it until he saw the news about the group called Paladin fighting team Phoenix at the Burlain Wall. It seemed Leonardo had drawn that fight, so Peter came to Burlain to see for himself.

Peter found a bench and sat down. He had come a long way from home and had a long day. He watched Soren fly high above the buildings, now only a speck in the blue, cloudless sky. It was nice day.

He was interrupted when he felt Leonardo's drawing get pulled out of his hands. He looked over and saw Leonardo drawing frantically drawing with his tail on a blank paper. He saw the tip was glowing silver, it only glowed silver when he was drawing the future. Peter watched Leonardo was finished, then he handed Peter the drawing. This one also had a phoenix in it, but it was not fighting anything. It looked like it was toward the ice with fire inside of it. In the background there was a what looked like a circus tent and a sun on it. None of it made any sense to Peter. He handed the sketch pad back to Leonardo and got up. He whistled for Soren and she came down and landed gracefully on his shoulder. He turned around and noticed a crumpled flier on the bench on he was sitting on. He picked it up and read:

COME SEE THE FABULOUS RED SUN CIRCUS!

He read only the first line when he suddenly realized what Leonardo had drawn. Peter snatched the drawing back from Leonardo and looked at it again. Of course! Team Phoenix would be going to the Red Sun Circus. He would as well, to try and stop them. It seemed he would be staying in Novien longer than he expected and he would be going back to the circus.

[Xelwes]

Wes sat atop Aero as they drifted lazily through the skies. Paladin may have disbanded but he went from town to town collecting badges, and looking for any remnants of Phoenix. So far he hadn't found anything worth doing. He wasn't really looking to challenge the Elite Four, but it was a good prospect. Suddenly a girl on a Pidgeot soared by nearly knocking Wes off of Aero.

"What the...?" He said as he re-situated himself. The girl laughed. She pointed towards the ground then dove sharply. "I guess she wants to talk."

[Razgat]

Nicole lounged on the edge of a cliff overlooking Lavatown. The rock wall they had used to keep Phoenix out had been removed, and the fire damage had been fixed. It looked to be normal again. "Normal is no fun."

Bronco, her Rapidash, galloped around the mountain, having a blast while Edana, her Ninetales, sat beside her. After the whole Phoenix thing, Nicole had snuck away and returned home. No one seemed to notice, and she had gotten her Fire Fighters pin back. She did, however, recieve some critisizm from travelors for their resemblance to Team Phoenix. The Fire Fighters club had considered changing their uniform, but all they ended up doing was making their pin bigger. They also put a sign up to warn trainers before they entered. "It was a lot more fun before that. I got to fight some of the trainers because of it."

Nicole looked towards the lift that took passengers up and down the mountain. The last one was making its way to the bottom. Nicole knew her grandma would be on it, so she called to Bronco and hopped on to gallop home.

---------------------------------

Janie sighed heavily as another customer came to the stall she worked at in Roi Rill. "Hello, sir may I help you?" She almost talked in a monotone voice as she served them, but she couldn't help it. She was totally bored.

In her free time, she had managed to evolve Mary into and Azumaril, and she had caught a Shelder she named Clammy and a Goldeen named Queeny, but she didn't have many people to battle. Her parents had been happy, of course, when she came back, but she still missed everyone. She hoped they would visit soon.

[Xero]

Michael looked out the window of his secret base. His Waspear, Xero, was flying around, keeping the base in order, as usual. His Grovyle, Scar, was sparring with Breeze, his Swellow, in the treetops. Cell, his Ditto, had transformed into a Kingdra to swim with its image, Checkers. Michael's new Shedinja, Zeus, which he had caught as a Nincada a few days after the Battle of Burlain, was fluttering about, zigzagging around the streams of sunlight that shone through the forest canopy.

Things were to quiet now that Phoenix had been defeated. Michael had considered staying in Novien for a while, which he was obviously doing, and he had even thought of traveling the region to earn gym badges, something he had never done before. His sister, Kallie, had left to travel and win badges years before, when he had been too young to even have a Pokémon. He did not know what had become of her, but she had always been successful in everything she had done, so there was no doubt she was off fighting yet another gym leader somewhere in a distant region.

That settled it. Michael stood from his bean bag chair and slid down the chute in his second tree to land softly on the ground outside his base. Returning all his Pokémon except for Xero to their Pokéballs, Michael clicked a button in his Running Shoes and took off toward Durgood Town to begin his journey.

[Xero]

Eric walked around in the large Silph Co. tower next to the dome, browsing various items and vitamins for his Pokémon. He had his orders from HQ: grab as many vitamins as possible and return to headquarters. Phoenix would make its return. But until then, they would remain dormant in society. The public believed Team Phoenix to have fallen apart and to no longer exist. People no longer feared the Phoenix jacket, although some still looked at Eric suspiciously when he passed by them. But they would soon be proven wrong, and Phoenix would rise again from the ashes left behind at the Battle of Burlain.

Eric picked up five bottles of Carbos, three of Protein, two Iof ron, and eight of Calcium. He took them to the front desk and reached for his back pocket to get his wallet. But just as his hand slipped into his pocket, his finger nudged the button on one of his Pokéballs, and a Sableye appeared on the counter, grinning mischievously at the cashier. The cashier threw her hands up when the Sableye pointed its glowing hands at her chest. Eric scooped the vitamins into the bag on his belt and released another Pokémon from its ball. A Hypno emerged and held its pendant up in front of the cashier. The young woman was mesmerized by the object, and soon her eyelids became heavy and began to droop.

"When you wake up, you will not remember any of this," Eric said in an urgent, hushed voice. "None of this ever happened. When you take inventory, you will count the missing items. Got it?"

The cashier mumbled in a monotone voice, "Yes, master."

"Good. Haydn, release her. Renegade, let's go."

Haydn, the Hypno, lowered his pendant, and the cashier slumped forward onto the desk, sound asleep. Renegade, the Sableye, jumped from the counter and hurried after Eric, Haydn following soon after. Renegade stopped and let Haydn pass him. Turning back to the front desk, he pointed a finger at it, and dark energy shot from it, scratching into the wood of the desk. Satisfied, Renegade turned to catch up with Eric.

Three words were scrawled into the desk: EX CiNIS CINERIS.

[Mizagium]

Tyler and Archie ignored the looks he received from other Trainers (many older) as he walked down the isle to the Gym Leader's arena. All of these people were here to trainer and learn. None of them even considered challenging Kaz. In their eyes, Tyler was just another stupid kid who thought this was going to be easy.

But they were wrong. He new how tough the Gym Leaders were, how respected they were. But he had gotten stronger since Burlain, his whole team. His friends from Paladin taught him a lot, and more he learned through his own work. He could do this, he could win a Mirror Badge...

A big man blocked his way.

"Would you please move, sir?"

"You goin' in there?" The big man jammed his thumb at the door to Kaz's arena.

"Yes, sir."

"Well, ain't no snot nosed kid gonna beat him 'fore me, see?" He crossed his arms indignantly, a wide grin on his ugly face. Apparently, he was supposed to be intimidating.

"So... are you going to move, or are we going to have to humiliate you?" Tyler sighed.

"What?"

"Well, you're obviously in charge in this part of the Gym, at least you think you are." The man's smile faded, and his mouth twitched. "And yet, you still have no power to keep me from challenging Kaz. Whether or not I can beat him is none of your concern."

"What are you saying, kid?" the big man spat.

"Wow, you're not very bright are you? Alright, I'll use small words then. You: move."

This made the big man VERY angry. With a yell of rage, he threw out a Poké Ball, releasing a Slaking. (DUH!) Tyler sighed. "Archie? Looks like we have to embarrass the poor thing..."

[Nel]

Peter read the rest of flier and learned that the Red Sun Circus would be in Ipronen's Silph Co. Dome. He arrived in the city the next day. When he got there, he was amazed. He had never seen a city like this before after all he grew up in a very small town in Johto. Immediately, he was lost. He had thought that it would easy to find a dome large enough for a circus, but had underestimated the size the city. He saw a girl with brown hair walk by with a Vulpix.

"Excuse me," he said to her, " Do you know how I can get to the Silph Co. Dome?" The girl turned around, realizing he was talking to her.

"Yes, actually, I'm going there too." She spoke in a cheerful voice. "Are you going to see the circus too?"

"Yes"

"Then we'll go together. By the way I'm Alianna."

" I'm Peter and this is Leonardo," he gestured to his Smeargal, " and this is Soren," He gestured to his Natu on his shoulder.

"This is Leora," she gestured to her vulpix. "now, off to the circus!"

[Xero]

Michael looked down on the small town of Durgood from the top of a tree. He had become a great fan of tree climbing as he had grown older. His parents used to make jokes all the time about how he was devolving into a monkey. He smiled at the memory. He missed his family. Maybe he would run into his sister sometime. He thought about his father's berry farm again. He wished he could see his family again, but he had other plans for now.

Snapping back to reality, Michael slid down the tree and started walking toward the town. Professor Birch of Hoenn had told him that Professor Maple had her lab in Durgood. He decided it would probably be best to check in with her before starting on his quest to win enough badges to gain entrance to the Elite Four.

He reached the lab and pushed the door open, knocking first, of course. Seeing nobody, he ventured further into the lab. Maybe he could leave a message for the Professor and come back later.

"Ah, you must be Michael," a female voice said suddenly from behind him. Michael jumped and spun around to see a medium-height, thin woman with purple hair and glasses. She looked shockingly like Professor Ivy of the Orange Islands...

"Y-yes," Michael replied. "Are you Professor Maple?"

"Yes, I am," the woman replied. "Professor Birch told me you would be coming to see me. I've been expecting you. So... What can I do to help you?"

"Well," Michael started. He hadn't really thought about that. He already had Pokémon, so he didn't need a new starter to begin his journey. He had Pokéballs, so he didn't need any. He knew enough about Pokémon to get started already. He didn't know why he had come to the lab.

"Haha," Professor Maple laughed. "No reason? Well, you could use a Novien PokéDex. New Pokémon everywhere you look. You may even see a few from as far away as Kanto. Novien is a very diverse region." She walked into a side room in the back of the lab and began rummaging around in a drawer in her desk. She pulled out a small, red hand-held device. It slid open with the touch of a button, and a light streamed out of a sensor to scan Michael's face. When it was done, a robotic male voice said, "Michael Zenith; Pokémon Trainer, Forester; Hometown: Fortree City, Hoenn. Status: Experienced Trainer. Identification complete."

"Here," the Professor said, handing Michael the PokéDex. "This will log information about every Pokémon you see. It'll keep track of the ones you've caught and the ones you haven't, and it will also serve as your ID and passport."

"Thanks," Michael said excitedly, taking the PokéDex and putting it in his shoulder pocket.

"Well, if that's everything," Professor Maple said, "good luck on your journey! In the meantime, I must be on my way. I've got some field work to do in the Durgood Forest."

"Thank you, Professor," Michael said. "And good luck to you too."

They both walked out the door, and Michael headed off down the path to the south of Durgood while Professor Maple locked up the lab. Then the Professor walked toward the Durgood Forest, and both were lost from each other's sight.

[Xelwes]

"Nice Pidgeot. But could it beat mine?" The girl taunted. "I'm Baylee, the gym leader for Eryio." She informed Wes. Wes, who had taken to chewing on a piece of straw, had found a comfy patch of grass and laid down.

"I bet, we train like crazy." Wes said confidently. Aero landed next to him and began preening its feathers.

"Well I challenge you to a battle. If you win then you get my badge, if you lose you're stuck with me." Well either way you are. Baylee got ready to battle.

"K, lets go." Wes got up and Aero took place on the ground.

"Pidgeot use steel wing!" Baylee commanded. Her Pidgeot obeyed with a steely calmness.

"Dodge it and use Brave Bird." Aero followed through just barely dodging the attack. It's foe, however, was not. Pidgeot fell to the ground, but hopped right back up.

" Agility than Peck." Baylee called out. The bird began to speed up until it was just a blur. Soon Aero was on the ground from th foe's attack.

[Xero]

Eric pushed a button on his collar as he walked.

"Yolanda," he said into the speaker, "I've got the goods from the department store. I'm heading over to the dome to get ready for the circus. You know the plan."

He pressed the button again and pushed the back door to the dome and entered, making sure no one was around.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Alright, Xero," Michael said. He was now well on his way toward Hivelum City. "Let's check out my new PokéDex!"

"Fsst!" Xero responded eagerly.

Michael pressed the button on his PokéDex, and the cover slid open, revealing the screen. He looked up Hivelum, and a picture of the buzzing Bug city popped up with a description. The Dex's voice began to read the description as Michael read along.

"Hivelum City: the Bug capitol of the Novien region. Built in 1989 (current year = 2015), this city serves as a home away from home for Bug trainers and their Pokémon. The Hivelum City Gym Leader's strategy in battle consists of a flitting movement while delivering sharp, swift attacks. Her motto is, 'Float like a Beautifly, sting like a Beedrill!'"

"Hmm," Michael said. "A Bug gym leader. This should be interesting, eh, Xero?"

"Fsst!"

"Well, let's not waste any time! To Hivelum City!"

[Mizagium]

"Right. Be there soon." Yolanda whispered into her collar. Shadow stalked alongside her as she walked. From a pocket in her coat, she produced a flyer for the circus. She ignored most of the advertisement and instead focused on the Pokémon depicted at the bottom.

Leamnin. Fire, and ice. That Pokémon was one-of-a-kind, and only bonds to one trainer at a time. After they stole it, they'd have to use that shadow machine they swiped from the Cipher group in Orre. Then they'd be able to use its power for themselves...

~~~~~~~~~

Tyler and Archie walked triumphantly past the defeated man who had blocked their way. They had beaten him - easily - but he still refused to let them pass. Of course he did. So, Terrance moved him. Hard.

The room that awaited him was a large arena, with a stadium that rivaled any sports dome. Thousands of people could be seated here at any one time.

"Impressive, huh?" Came a voice from across the floor. Kaz was seated a few rows up. "They use this as an arena during the League Tournament every year. Gotta win in this dome to go on to the finals." He ruffled his hair, then smoothed it. "You here for a Badge, eh?"

"That's right."

"Surprised you got past Daniel back there, he usually doesn't let anyone in."

Tyler smiled. "He wasn't that tough."

"Hm." Kaz nodded. "Well, if you want to challenge me, go right ahead, but I won't go easy on you just cus this is your first Gym match."

"How did...?"

"Everyone comes here for their first Gym Battle. I guess they think it'll be easy or something..." he sighed.

"I don't think that."

"No, I bet you don't. Alright, let's do this." He hopped up and leapt down to ground level, taking a place at one end of the field; Tyler at the other. "Purugly, let's go!"

"Ithica!"

[Nel]

It was evening in Ipronen and the circus was alive. Jugglers, Pokemon and human, juggling many things. Clowns danced around entertaining people and people were filing into the tent to see the main attraction.

Inside the tent, Eenar prepared for the show with the legendary Leamnin. They had been inseparable since Eenar had awakened Leamnin. He later found out that Leamnin lays dormant until a trainer with a very strong comes and awakens him. Though Eenar never thought he was that strong of heart, Leamnin had stayed with him ever since. Since Eenar was the ringmaster of the Red Sun Circus, Leamnin became a part of it as well. He became the main attraction. everyone paid to see the legendary Pokemon of heart.

Eenar checked his watch. Not time yet. The show would start as soon as it got dark.

[Xero]

Inside the dome, Eric went to the bathroom and quickly turned his Phoenix jacket inside-out, revealing plain black leather. He took a hat and sunglasses from his pack and donned them, pulling the hat down so the shadow just barely touched his sunglasses. He checked himself in the mirror. Good. Nobody would recognize him. After all, this was the Pokémon world, and people were notorious for being unable to see through even the worst disguises (i.e. glasses and a fake mustache).

Leaving the bathroom silently, Eric snatched a flier from a newspaper boy's hand and scanned the paper. So Leamnin would be with Eenar, the ringmaster. That was fine with him. He would get a chance to relax and enjoy the show. He hadn't gotten to enjoy himself in a long time. This would be good for him. He would just snag the legendary at the end.

He snapped open a Pokéball, and Renegade appeared beside him.

"You know what to do," he said to the Sableye.

"Sableye!"

With that, Renegade ran off, disappearing in the crowd of people bustling around inside the dome. Stuffing the flier in his pocket, Eric slipped into the arena and took his seat.

[Xero]

Michael clicked the button on his Running Shoes and slowed to a halt in front of the gate to Hivelum City. The city was encased in a gigantic beehive, and tubes and rails wired the entire city. Several buildings stood on platforms jutting out into the city from the hive wall high up in the air. This buildings were reached either by rail car or by an air-powered tube elevator. On the ground level, a large park took up the majority of the land. Children played with their Pokémon in the park, and some older trainers went for jogs with their Pokémon on the path that circled the city. The only building on the ground floor, naturally, was the Pokémon Center.

Michael gazed in awe at the technology and planning the city's builders had put into it. He neared the gate and saw a scanner on the wall beside the door.

"Identification, please," a robotic voice said, coming from the scanner.

Michael held up his PokéDex and slid it open. His picture popped up on the Dex, and the scanner emitted a light that examined the picture and Michael's face.

"Welcome, Michael, to Hivelum City," the voice said. "Enjoy your stay."

The doors slid open as Michael replaced his PokéDex in his pocket, and he entered the walls of the impressive city.

[Razgat]

Irene stretched in the dressing room, getting ready for the show. She bent over back wards, curving her back, and grabbed her ankles. She stretched for a bit like that until one of the pokeballs on her skirt clicked open. An Arbok popped out and wrapped itself around Irene. Irene pekked up from her pose and smiled at the pokemon. "Squiggly, we don't have to perform yet. I'm just stretching."

The Arbok inwound itself and slivered over to a pillow to curl up. Irene straightened back up and sat in her stool infront of one of the mirrors. Guess I have a little time to myself, then.

[Xelwes]

"Aeroblast." Aero disappeared, then reappeared behind Pidgeot. She fired releasing the blast that fainted the bird on contact. The blast however put to much strain on Aero causing her to faint.

"Good job." Baylee stuttered shocked at the attack. "Go Pelipper." A large Pelican formed from the red energy.

"Eliandas. Thunder" Wes' loyal Luxray burst from its pokeball. As soon as it was free it released a large bolt of blue energy into the sky.

"Dodge it Pelipper!" The water bird began moving erratically, but it was futile. The bolt struck the pokemon, knocking it out. "That was fast. Go Skarmory!" Her pokemon took its place. "Air slash." Skarmory rushed Eliandas, reaching its full speed in seconds then stopped releasing a frightening rush of air that struck Eliandas sending it flying.

"Eliandas you ok?"

"Lu-Luxray!" And it stood back up, just before it was struck by a second one that he didn't stand back up from. "Aristar. Shadow ball." Aristar drifted out of the ground, and laughed excitedly. A large black purple ball followed then shot forward into the steel bird. It seemed to not faze the foe. "Why'd I leave Ragnorak, Masamune, and Walrein at home? Once I catch those new Pokemon I'm getting them back."

"Skarmory. Flash Cannon." The bright attack rammed into Aristar knocking him back a few feet.

"Hyper beam!" Aristar grinned and disappeared. Skarmory, confused, landed. that was its fatal mistake. A crater cracked the ground as the Hyper Beam shot from under the steel type into its abdomen. Skarmory landed next to Baylee unconscious.

"Go Staraptor. Use Brave bird." Staraptor glowed then shot into Aristar. Slowly the Gengar got up.

"Shadow ball!" Wes was nervous he didn't know how long Aristar would last, or how long Staraptor would. The Shadow Ball collided with the Staraptor. A Wing attack to Aristar, a Dark Pulse to Staraptor. This continued for to long.

"Aristar Shadow Claw!" Aristar soared into Staraptor holding on tight. He pulled back and jabbed as Staraptor pecked. The two stood for a second, then together they fell.

"Aristar!"

"Staraptor!" Slowly Aristar stood, but fell.

"You win." Baylee muttered disappointed.

"That was really close." Wes sighed. He hadn't had that great a battle since he fought Yolanda. He was shocked he had won, both battles.

"Here, take the wing badge. You deserve it." Baylee pulled out a blue angel's wing medal and handed it to Wes. "Now where are we going?"

"Wait I won though!" Wes said bewildered.

"So?"

[Xero]

Michael stepped away from the front desk in the Pokémon Center and moved to the café to get some food. With a burger in hand, he roamed the PokéCenter, looking at all the TV screens until one caught his eye. It was a news report from outside the Ipronen Silph Co. Dome. Apparently, the Red Sun Circus was performing tonight. Hmm. He hadn't been to the circus in years. Maybe they would be in town a little longer. He would stop by Ipronen City tomorrow and check it out.

In the meantime, he had a gym badge to win. Finishing the last bite of his burger, he returned to the front desk to pick up his Pokémon and left the PokéCenter. He released Xero from his Pokéball, then started looking for the nearest airevator (lol u c wut I did thar?). When he had picked one, he walked over to it and entered, pressing a button that shot a burst of air from the ground, sending him up into the air. When he reached the top level where the gym was, he had decelerated to a halt, and a platform jutted out from the ground to catch him. Still amused by the technology, Michael stepped out from the airevator and approached the gym.

The gym level was occupied mainly by a small forest with a miniature copy of the park from the first level in the middle. On the opposite end of the park stood large shack with the words "Hivelum Gym" painted over the doorway. Ironically, the Hivelum Gym, home to the epitome of Bug trainers and the main attraction in the city, was the least technologically advanced building in all of Hivelum.

Michael neared the gym and raised his fist to knock on the door, but the door swung open before he even touched it. A girl of about 20 stood in the doorway, rubbing sleep from her eyes. She squinted at Michael through the sunlight for a second before recognition hit her. Michael simply stared in shock as his sister threw her arms around his neck.

"Michael!" the girl exclaimed. "I knew we'd run into each other again some day!"

"Kallie!?" Michael said, incredulous. "What are you doing here?"

Kallie released her brother and stepped out of the shack, making a sweeping motion over the entire level with her hand. "Why, I'm the Hivelum City Gym Leader, silly!"

Michael's eyes widened. "What!? Really? That's great!"

"I-is that Xero??" Kallie asked, peering around Michael at the hovering Waspear. "Wow! He's really grown since the last time I saw you two. The last time I saw him, he was just a newly evolved Kakuna! And look at you! You're taller than I am! Haha!"

Michael simply smiled, overjoyed that he could be with his sister again. But then he remembered the reason he was there.

"Kallie," he stammered, "sorry to cut this reunion short, but I think you know why I'm here."

Kallie's face suddenly turned serious. "Yes, of course. You want the Locust Badge. Well, whenever you're ready, we'll begin. We can catch up later!" She said this last statement with a smile and a wink, then skipped off to a small box drawn on the ground, making her appear much younger and more childish than her age would have allowed. Michael chuckled and took his place on the other side of the battle field.

"Let's do this!" Kallie called out. "Go! Sammy!" A Scyther popped from the Pokéball in her hand, falling into battle stance on the field.

"Scyyytheeerr!"

Michael pressed the button of a Pokéball, enlarging it, and calmly tossed it into the air, calling, "Let's go, Breeze!"

"Swellow!"

Battle... BEGIN!!

[Xero]

"Breeze! Use Wing Attack!" Michael shouted.

"Sammy! Agility, then Slash!" Kallie called.

Breeze stormed toward Sammy with incredible speed, much faster than she had been able to move months before at the Battle of Burlain. But Sammy was too fast for her. The Scyther blurred into a shaky image, and somehow, Breeze flew straight through him! As Breeze turned her head to look at Sammy in shock, Sammy disappeared and reappeared in front of her. When Breeze turned back around, she flew directly into Sammy's Slash attack, drilling her into the ground.

"Now, Sammy, while she's down, use Swift!"

Sammy raised his claw-wings and swung down, firing a barrage of sharp stars at the fallen Swellow.

"Breeze!" Michael yelled. "Quick! Use Double Team, then Fly!"

Breeze gave a jerky nod, and suddenly, there were ten images of her all around Sammy. The Swift stars exploded on the ground where Breeze had been moments before, but when the smoke cleared, a small crater was all that could be seen.

"Above you!" Kallie warned.

Sammy looked up just in time to see Breeze diving out of the air directly at him. He raised his claws, but Breeze veered off course at the last second and rammed Sammy's stomach rather than his head, and Sammy was sent flying backward into a tree. He slid down the tree and slumped forward in a heap on the ground.

"Sammy!" Kallie started to pull her Pokéball from her belt, but an inconspicuous signal from Sammy told her he still had some fight left in him. Kallie grinned. "Into the trees! Get ready for our special attack!"

Sammy's head snapped up to look at Breeze, his eyes piercing into hers. His claws began to glow as he jumped up into the trees, disappearing from view to prepare for his attack.

"Breeze! Don't let him finish charging that attack!" Michael ordered. "Use Quick Attack! Hit all those trees until you find him!"

All the copies of Breeze suddenly shot toward the area Sammy had disappeared into and began zipping through tree branches and ramming the tree trunks, each copy dissipating with its attack. Finally, with the one and only Breeze remaining, Sammy jumped from the trees into the open.

"Ha! Perfect!" Kallie exclaimed. "Go! Use Razor Wind!"

Sammy swung his claws down, cutting the air and sending razor sharp gusts of wind barreling toward Breeze. Breeze was caught in the wing by one blade, momentarily stunning her, and then another blade drove straight into her chest. Breeze fell to the ground in the clearing, fainted. Sammy landed beside her, panting heavily.

"No!" Michael cried out. With a sigh, he unclipped his Pokéball from his belt and returned Breeze to it. "Good job, Breeze," he said quietly. "We'll get them next time."

He looked up at his sister as he replaced his Pokéball on his belt and chose another one. "Wow, sis, you've gotten pretty strong. I didn't expect for a Bug trainer to be this good. But then again, I didn't expect you to be the gym leader. Looks like I've got to kick it into gear! Go! Cell! Transform!"

He threw his Pokéball into the air, and a Ditto emerged from it, immediately shifting shape and rearranging its appearance to that of a Scyther.

"Ditto!"

"Ha! A Ditto! Well, little bro, you've certainly got an interesting choice in Pokémon. But that doesn't mean you'll win this. Return, Sammy! Your turn, Hector!" Sammy disappeared into Kallie's Pokéball, and a Heracross appeared in his place. "And don't think that just because you're my brother, that means I'll go easy on you!"

"Heh. I wouldn't have it any other way!"

Round two... BEGIN!

(Yeah, this is going to be a long battle. Luckily, Kallie only has four Pokémon in her gym party, so it won't be as long as it could be.)

[Xero]

"Alright! Let's go! Hector, use Takedown!"

Hector lowered his horn and scratched the ground with his foot, then took off running toward Cell. As the Heracross built up speed, his small wings began to flap, and he lifted up off the ground.

Michael smirked. "Cell, use Slash!"

Cell sidestepped the attack and Slashed Hector, adding to the Heracross' already built up momentum and throwing him headfirst into a tree. Hector's horn drove straight through the tree trunk and became lodged in it.

"Haha!" Michael laughed. "Cell, let's finish this! Double Edge!"

Cell charged at Hector, lowering his shoulder, and rammed hard into the Heracross, causing him to break through the tree entirely. Heracross crumpled in a heap, fainted, and Cell stumbled backward, recoiling from the attack.

Kallie grimaced as she returned Hector to his ball and placed it on her belt. She selected her third Pokémon and tossed the ball into the air.

"Go! Zippo! Give it everything you've got!"

A Shedinja popped from the Pokéball, flitting about erratically.

"A Shedinja, eh?" Michael said. "Well, then, two can play at that game! Let's go, Zeus!"

Cell returned to his normal form and beamed back into his Pokéball as a second Shedinja appeared on the field.

"Ha!" Kallie laughed. "This should be very interesting."