FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Mark hardly slept at all that night, spending what was left of the evening on his computer to do research for his new journey, studying the other regions and who among their trainers were considered the best, and planned to book passage on a ship from Slateport with his first choice. He decided to start with the Kanto Region, where there were three names that stood out to him; the current Champion, Lance the Dragon Master –a world-famous trainer of Dragon-type Pokémon, was the first.

Everyone knew Lance, or at least knew of him. He had ascended to world renown for being the only trainer to train and master all Dragon-type Pokémon; a feat that required one who could instill self-control within them, as well as have presence enough for them to follow their command; Dragons were not only powerful, but prone to battle rage and difficult to control, yet despite all of that, Lance had not only managed to train them all, but win over their loyalty; it was rumoured his usual team consisted of dragon-types from all regions, so it was safe to say that he had also travelled far and wide to build his team.

Next on the list was Blue Oak, grandson to world-renowned Pokémon Professor Samuel Oak. He had been the Champion of Kanto only briefly, before having the title wrested from him by his rival, the famous Red of Pallet Town. Since then, Blue had become the Gym Leader of Viridian City, and was considered the strongest of all the Kanto Gym Leaders, having beaten each Gym Leader on his journey prior and at multiple competitions, with his apparent runner-up being Brock of Pewter City. He was the only Gym Leader in Kanto that didn’t depend on a single type of Pokémon; supposedly Viridian used to be home to a Ground-type Gym, but when Blue took over the gym, he turned it into the region’s only Variety Gym, employing multiple types instead of just one.

‘So, Blue is the third of Kanto’s top three,’ thought Mark. ‘I’ll probably start with him, then, unless I find Red or Lance first.’

Last on the list was Ex-Champion Red, who although was only a former champion just like Mark, he hadn’t lost his title to a challenger; he had resigned the position, and left it to be taken by Dragon Master Lance instead. Mark stared at the picture of Red with mild confusion after reading that paragraph. ‘He gave up his title willingly? Why? Everything he went through to get there an he just throws it away?’ It just didn’t make sense to Mark, to fight so hard for something, only to decide after that you don’t even want it.

Regardless, Red was a legendary Pokémon Trainer, perhaps even more famous than Lance. His list of crowning achievements included being the first trainer in all of the Regions to complete a Regional PokéDex , defeating the criminal organization Team Rocket, and becoming the Kanto Champion only one year after beginning his journey; he and Blue had both only been pre-teens when they had become Champions, even! And Red’s prize Pokémon, the one that had made him a legend, was his Charizard.

‘Kanto is home to some tough trainers,’ thought Mark. ‘I’m right to expect one hell of a battle against each of these guys. But that’s just what I’m striving for, isn’t it?’ He chuckled a little to himself.

The next boat to Kanto wasn’t leaving for eight days; that gave him plenty of time to work on training with his Pokémon and get them back into shape for the journey. He would start immediately -his eyes fell upon the clock next to his bed. Two o’clock in the morning...

“Right after I get at least a few hours of sleep,” he muttered to himself, walking around the bed to his side, tip-toing past the Mightyena sleeping at the foot of his bed, crawling into the opposite side and laying down on his pillow to finally allow himself to drift off the sleep.

The next day, he announced his plans to his Pokémon, and was rewarded with excited cheers and calls at the idea of a new adventure to a land none of them had ever seen before, but they had been out of action for a while, and it was time for some serious training, to give all his Pokémon a refresher course for their respective talents and combat strategies. Mark did not actually choose his Pokémon based on typing alone; he had his own method of battle, choosing Pokémon with different specialties, and using this knowledge to develop tactical fighting styles that complimented their specific traits.

Vitesse was the pinnacle success of this method, being the first one with whom he had tried it. As a practitioner of martial arts, Mark had trained directly with Vitesse since she had been a Combusken, where they combined her Pokémon attacks with human techniques. For example, her Blaze Kick was often performed as a flaming roundhouse kick for up close or, if her enemy was airborne or far away, a flying sideways kick. Vitesse had also been tutored and trained to have a highly diverse move set, including other-typing moves such as Dual Chop, Bounce and Thunderpunch. Between this wide variety of attacks, paired with excellent strength and speed, she was his crowning achievement as a trainer, for with this skillset she had fought and defeated several Pokémon of every typing, even ones that would normally be resistant to her own.

Not counting dual-typing, of course. Mark counted Steven’s Steel/Psychic-type Metagross as being one of the Steel-types she had beaten, and not on the list of Psychic-types she’d fought.

Every day as he waited was spent giving one of his Pokémon specialized training. Those waiting for their turn would be sent off to undergo routine exercises to ensure they were in the best shape possible for the new journey. For some Pokémon, he needed sparring partners from his group to test them; his defenders, Tanker and Siren, needed to be put up against Vitesse and Palm Tree respectively to truly test how strong their defenses were.

Day by day, he put his Pokémon through familiar but still gruelling exercises, feeding them wholesome food at breakfast and dinner that was tailored to a specific diet Mark had created for them. The seventh day -the last before they would begin, was used to pit his Pokémon against each other in sparring sessions, putting their battle tactics to the test for one round each, during which Mark made close observations and thought of possible ways his Pokémon could compensate for these vulnerabilities. By the time the day was out, they were ragged, but they had satisfied Mark’s expectations. They were ready to begin their journey.

Mark urged everyone to sleep early that night; though he had twelve hours before the boat to Kanto was due to leave, there were still a few things that needed to be done before they set out. He fed them hearty portions of their favorites, rewarding them for their efforts over the last week of training, before he went to prepare some supper for himself, and a guest he had coming over.

Speaking of, just as he put on a pot of water to boil, his doorbell rang. Fang let out a bark; Mark shushed him, before he made his way through the house to the front door, opening it to reveal said guest; a woman, closely resembling himself in skin and eye colour, but she had platinum blonde hair as opposed to his yellow-blond hair. She was a little shorter than him, with an average figure about her, neither slim nor overweight, and dressed in a white cotton shirt and blue lady’s jeans.

“Hello, Mark,” she said, smiling up at him.

“Hi mom,” Mark replied, stepping up to the woman and sharing a loving hug with her. “Glad you could make it.”

“Of course,” his mother, who went by the name of Diana, replied. “We hardly get to see each other anymore; I was so glad when you called me over.”

“I did mention it was for a favour though, right?” Mark asked, hoping he hadn’t left that part out.

Thankfully, it seemed he hadn’t. “Yes, you did. Doesn’t mean we can’t still catch up.”

A whinny caught Mark’s attention; he turned, and found himself staring back at a Rapidash; a pale horse-like Pokémon with a horn growing from its forehead and a pale white body, thick with muscle. But unlike other Rapidash Mark had seen, this one stood out for its flaming mane and tail –for most Rapidash these were red, but for this one standing before him, it was blue fire, trailing from the back of its head and from its hindquarters where the tail ‘grew’ from –what other term do you use when a Pokémon’s tail was made of fire and not actual horse hair?

Mark gawked at the sight of the Rapidash; it took a second to dawn on him just who it was, his mind flashing back to a little Ponyta he had seen at his mother and uncle’s ranch –his home throughout his childhood, located west at the southern foot of Mt. Chimney. He had been mystified by the unique colour of that Ponyta ever since his mother had showed her to him -ever since her Rapidash had given birth, but now here she was standing before him, evolved.

“Holy crap is that...?” Mark began.

“It is,” his mother finished. “Say hello to the new Fantasia. She evolved just last month.”

“She’s beautiful,” Mark bade, stepping up to the Rapidash standing at the edge of his porch. “Hey girl; remember me?”

She bobbed her head as if nodding, watching his hand as he brought it up and stroked her neck, the flames of her mane miraculously causing no harm to him as he petted her, and the horse-like Pokémon snorted slightly bumping his arm with her nose. “A Rapidash now, huh?” Mark asked. “She has been battling at the Chateau with you?”

“She has indeed,” replied Diana, stroking the other side of Fantasia’s mane. “She’s been showing her strength in many battles; she really loves running circles around slower opponents too.” She looked into the house. “Oh, and here comes her favorite playmate.”

Mark turned to look over his shoulder, and stepped aside as Vitesse and Coal stepped out of the house, both locking eyes with Fantasia as they walked across the porch towards her, studying her as if trying to recognize the Rapidash. Vitesse clucked curiously, tilting her head side-to-side, and it was only after Fantasia nickered that she seemed to realize it was her. Vitesse stepped closer to her and petted her neck as Mark and Diana had been seconds ago, and she received a lick to the face from the Rapidash in return.

“They remember each other,” Mark said, smiling.

“Of course,” Diana agreed. “A true friend never forgets.” She then let out a coo of awe as she saw Vitesse pick up Coal and hold him at eye level with Fantasia, as though to introduce him. “Now that is just adorable,” she said.

Mark chuckled. “Yeah, Vitesse and Fantasia did hit it off pretty well when they first met, even though Vitesse was right to her competitive roots when she challenged her to a race.”

“I wonder if she’s gotten any faster?” Diana asked, looking at Mark as if to suggest they find out the answer to that question.

But Mark shook his head. “Normally, I’d take you up on that challenge, mom, but unfortunately time’s not my friend tonight,” he said. “I have to catch a ship tomorrow at six o’clock in the morning; I’m heading to Kanto.”

Diana turned her head slightly, eyeing him with curiosity. “Kanto?”

“It’s part of my new journey,” Mark explained, going into detail as he and his mother headed into the house, leaving Vitesse and Coal to catch up with Fantasia. He explained his plan to her as they crossed the house, passing through the living room before entering the kitchen, where the pot of water he had put on was already boiling. He added some pasta to the pot, turning down the temperature on the element before turning back to his mother to finish his explanation.

“So, you’re going to battle the top trainers of the other regions,” she began. “Because you doubt your own skills?”

“Well... sort of,” Mark began. “After I saw Randy lose that battle, yes; I questioned if my win at the Hoenn League was legitimate or just lucky.”

“Mark, you beat Steven Stone,” Diana pointed out. “That man lost his Champion title years back only to win it again, holding it for three years, and then he lost it to you. Just because you didn’t hold the title as long as he did doesn’t mean you aren’t a good trainer; the world of Pokémon Trainers moves forward at a constant pace. To even think that trainers of new generations won’t be as strong if not better than the last is just narrow-minded thinking.”

“I know; I had that exact same thought the day Randy beat me,” Mark replied. “If nothing else I’m at least one of the top five trainers in Hoenn; I’ve battled so many here, and now I know of at least two I can’t beat; Randy, the guy who took my title, and Brendan, the son of the Petalburg Gym Leader, who just became Champion.”

“And why is it you think you can’t beat Brendan? You have kept up with your training, haven’t you?”

Leave it to Diana to render him speechless and struggling for an answer; his mother had always managed to do that to him, especially when she was right... because she always was. He fought to find an answer as the pasta finished cooking, quickly taking it off the heat, shutting off the burner and draining the contents of the pot into a strainer in the sink.

“I’ll take your incoherent mumbling as a ‘no’,” Diana finished for him.

“H-Hey I’ve still done some training,” Mark replied, a little defensively, as he went on to return the pasta to the hot pot, placing it back on the burner and adding some alfredo sauce from a jar and parmesan to it while trying to defend himself against his mother’s undeniable logic. ‘I hate when she can read me like a book... how do mothers always do that?’

“Oh, you have?”

“Yeah; you saw Coal’s evolved now too,” Mark replied. “I’ve been training him all year and everyone else has kept fit. Plus, over the last week, we did a recap; everyone’s up to snuff. So of course I’m ready for this new journey.”

Diana looked up at him, appearing unconvinced as she met his gaze. “We’ll discuss that more in a moment,” she said. “For now, let’s eat; can’t think on an empty stomach after all.”

Mark chuckled at how she had diverted the topic to their dinner instead, and gave her a nod before serving the now sauce-coated pasta onto two plates, taking it over to the table and placing one plate in front of his mother before realizing he’d forgotten to grab utensils. He face-palmed, before setting down his own plate and heading back over to the counters to retrieve them from a drawer, giving a fork to his mother before sitting down across from her so they could eat their meals.

They didn’t say much more to each other, making the dinner feel slightly awkward. Mostly his mother asked questions such as how long he would be gone or question if he was truly ready to challenge the strongest Pokémon Trainers in the world. Mark would of course answer her ‘yes’, but he knew her just as she knew him; words would not go far in convincing her.

When they were both finished eating and Mark put the plates and any remaining others into his dishwasher, switching it on, while taking the pot he’d used to cook the pasta to wash by hand as it was too big for the dishwasher. When he was finished, Diana stood up from the table.

“Come with me, son,” she bade, heading for the front door.

Mark complied, following his mother through the house and to the front door, where she exited the building and crossed the porch before descending into the yard. The other Pokémon out there looked up as she appeared, especially Fantasia, as if sensing something was on Diana’s mind, and she proceeded to go stand by her trainer as she walked across the lawn before turning to face Mark.

“You and I,” she began, “are going to battle first.”

Though her challenge was not unexpected, Mark still felt somewhat surprised by her sudden manner, seeing the serious look in her eyes and hearing it in her voice as she spoke. “Right now? Why?”

“I want to gauge your strength,” she returned. “You say you haven’t been training regularly; I want to make sure that hasn’t made you complacent. Only then will you be ready for this journey.”

Mark frowned. “Mom, I live on my own now; even if I accept your challenge and lose, I’ll still go on this adventure regardless.”

“I know,” she returned. “But think of it this way; if you cannot even beat me, son, a trainer who never made it to Champion, what chance will you have against trainers like the ones you are hoping to battle?”

‘Ah damn it, she did it again!’ Mark thought in defeat, once more left speechless. He tried to come up with a good answer to give her, but he struggled to do so; once she had him in a corner like this, she could always backpedal everything he said. Mark had learned long ago arguing with his mother was fruitless; she was always right, or she would dare you to try and prove her wrong.

Mark knew well not to underestimate his mother, even if she had never made it to Champion herself; she was a strong and experienced trainer, on par with –if not exceeding, the Elite Four.

“Alright, mom,” Mark stated. “If I know you, you’re not going to take no for an answer.”

She smiled at him. “Not really.”

“Fine; I’ll accept your challenge. But it has to be quick; I’ve got to get up really early tomorrow.”

“One on one, then,” she said. “And, if I may make a suggestion?”

“Yeah?”

She pointed towards Coal, who was standing over by Vitesse. “I’d like you to use him.”

Mark followed where she was pointing, before he looked back at her with an arched eyebrow. “Coal?” He asked. “Why him?”

“You said he’s the one you’ve been training for the past year,” reminded Diana. “I want to see how well you’ve trained him. Don’t worry; I’m not going to be so unfair as to use my Sharpedo or Gardevoir.” She reached over to the Rapidash standing by her side, patting her mane. “I will use Fantasia; if you can beat her, then you know you’re ready.”

“I... suppose,” Mark replied, looking over at Coal. “What do you think, little guy? You up for your first real battle?”

The Charmeleon let out an excited growl, running over to stand at Mark’s side. Vitesse looked at Mark with mild concern, evidently worried that Coal might be outclassed against Fantasia. But Mark gave her a reassuring nod; he had faith Coal could manage. They had trained for months, and for a Charmeleon Coal was pretty strong.

“Alright,” Mark muttered as he waited for his mother to take her position, with Fantasia stepping forward in front of Diana, waiting to begin. ‘Fire-type vs. Fire-type; neither Coal or Fantasia can know any attacks that would be doubly effective against the other, unless mom taught Fantasia something I don’t know about. Unfortunately, she’s also going to be faster; Coal’s quick, but no Charmeleon is faster than a Rapidash.’ He narrowed his eyes. ‘Going to have to be a little tricky here.’

_ _ “Ready, son?” Diana asked.

“Ready, mom,” Mark returned. “Coal, let’s show ‘em what we got.”

The Charmeleon growled, stepping forward and standing in front of Mark, smoke billowing from his nostrils as he let out a snort, his gaze meeting that of the Rapidash as the two of them waited for the first commands from their trainers. Mark and Diana’s eyes met, son and mother staring each other down waiting for the other to make the first move...

Mark made the first call. “Okay, Coal; Flame Burst!” He called.

Coal inhaled sharply, before spitting out a fireball at the Rapidash; Fantasia dodged the fireball, but upon its impact with the ground, she was showered by scattering embers from the fireball. She did not react to the ember shower, and Diana did not look perturbed by the attack.

“As impatient to launch an assault as ever, my son,” she said.

“You weren’t looking too ready to go first,” Mark returned, giving his mother a wry smirk.

Diana chuckled at that. “Maybe so, but if your opponent is not keen on striking first, it pays to use something to hinder them or bolster yourself...” She grinned. “Like this. Fantasia; Agility!”

Off the Rapidash went, galloping past Coal before turning back to run at him, zig-zagging side-to-side with her body a blur as she charged. Coal narrowly dove out of the way, turning to face her just as she circled around to charge him again, her attack turning to Flame Charge at Diana’s command. “Coal; Smokescreen!” Mark called.

The Charmeleon belched a cloud of black fog from his maw, which rapidly expanded to a large enough size to encompass the area around him as Fantasia rushed him with the Flame Charge, but she struck nothing, and was suddenly surrounded by smoke. She stopped in place, snorting as she looked around herself, trying to locate the Charmeleon.

“Dragon Pulse!” Mark called.

A burst of light purple energy exploded from the cloud to her right; she did not even have time to dodge, even with her speed. She was struck directly, reeling away from the point of impact and shaking her head to clear it. Diana ordered her to use Flamethrower; she exhaled a cone of fire in the direction the Dragon Pulse had come from, but Coal had long since relocated, circling around to the other side of the smoke cloud and blasting the Rapidash again with another Dragon Pulse.

“Fantasia; get out of the cloud!” Diana called.

The horse Pokémon hurriedly complied, charging forward and getting out of the smoke cloud back into clear air where she could see what was happening around her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Coal coming around the cloud, once more trying to flank her only to stop in his tracks when she emerged from the smoke. She turned, rearing up on her hind legs and attempting to land a Stomp on the Charmeleon, but Coal darted out of the way just in time, sending her powerful hooves striking into the ground instead.

“An agile little adversary, isn’t he?” Diana asked, impressed by the Charmeleon’s speed.

“We’re just getting warmed up,” Mark returned with a confident smile.

Diana smiled before issuing Fantasia her next command. “Let’s put that to the test; Fantasia, Fury Attack!”

The Rapidash lowered her head, bringing her long, pointed horn to bear as she rushed at Coal again, jabbing at him repeatedly with the spiked horn, forcing him to dodge side-to-side, hopping about to keep clear of the horn. Mark counted by ordering Coal to use Slash, and he did, smacking the Rapidash across the face with his claws and leaving a mark on her cheek, but Coal’s physical strength was not on par with the much larger Rapidash. She reared up to Stomp again, but as Coal moved to dodge, Mark ordered him to charge forward instead.

Coal hesitated, unsure what Mark was planning by having him actually run toward the Rapidash while she was reared up to kick him, and that hesitation head cost him; Fantasia struck him with her hooves, sending him skidding across the ground and kicking up a dust trail as he slid. Mark cursed under his breath, but couldn’t think about it at that moment –Fantasia was closing in to attack again, once more rearing up for another Stomp, and Mark had to think fast what to do, eventually giving Coal another command. “Dragon Pulse again!”

The Rapidash was struck almost point-blank as Coal launched a burst of Dragonic energy from his mouth, sending Fantasia flying off her rear hooves and falling to the ground with a crash. She struggled to get up, fighting to bring her hooves under her. Coal was intent to attack her while she was vulnerable, but Mark ordered him to stop.

“You don’t strike an opponent while they’re down, Coal,” Mark stated firmly.

The Charmeleon complied, staying where he was even as Fantasia stood up back onto her hooves. Diana regarded Mark with an approving smile, before she ordered Fantasia into her next attack –one that Mark was not expecting; Poison Jab. Her horn turned a dark purple, and she charged at Coal, but at Mark’s order the Charmeleon strafed to the side, avoiding the charging horse. Fantasia pursued, repeatedly jabbing at Coal with her horn, but he was so small and quick, even with the superior speed of the Rapidash he was outmaneuvering her.

“Coal, tuck & roll!” Mark called.

The Charmeleon complied following another dodge of the Rapidash’s Poison Jab, before he dove forward, rolling under her head and uncurling beneath her, staring up at her belly. Suddenly it dawned on the Charmeleon why Mark had urged him to charge forward before when the Rapidash was up on her hind-legs; from underneath, she was completely defenseless. He fired another Dragon Pulse, straight into her belly; once more her hooves left the ground for only a second, forcing Coal to cross his arms over his chest to roll out of the way as she collapsed, falling to where he had been only a second before.

“Enough,” Diana called, ordering an end to the battle.

With that, she approached Fantasia, watching and standing by as the Rapidash rose back to her hooves, where Diana proceeded to stroke her mane reassuringly. Mark appeared at her side, and produced an item from his pocket; a compact bottle of Super Potion, offering it to his mother. She smiled at him gratuitously, accepting the bottle from him and spraying its contents over the areas where Fantasia had been hit by Coal’s attacks.

“Quite the little Pokémon you have there, my son,” Diana commented.

Mark chuckled. “You don’t know the half of it,” he muttered.

“But,” Diana continued. “I noticed Coal seemed uncertain of your instruction earlier in the battle, when Fantasia was using Stomp. You have clearly trained him well in battle; his speed and power are impressive, but he does not quite seem to understand you yet.”

“What do you mean?”

“Your strategies are sound; outside the box and yet simple,” Diana stated. “But how often has Coal seen you use them?”

Mark stiffened at that, struggling to find a response to give his mother, before letting out a defeated sigh and just giving her the truth. “This... was his first battle –his first non-training battle, that is,” he stated.

Diana arched an eyebrow at Mark, studying him for a moment before she shrugged. “Well with that in mind, he did quite well, all things considered,” she complimented. “That said it appears you and he are not in full sync yet; he clearly adores you but he’s not in tune with your way of thinking. It’s part of why I wanted you to use him instead of your usual go-to Pokémon, Fang or Vitesse.”

Mark let out a chuckle at that. “So, this wasn’t just to gauge my readiness; you wanted to test my Pokémon too?”

“Yes,” Diana replied, finishing administering the potion to Fantasia, looking past Mark to the Charmeleon standing at his side. “Debatably Coal may be your weakest Pokémon in terms of experience. But a good trainer can fight well with even an amateur Pokémon, as long as they understand each other. You can Coal need some work yet.” She smiled at Mark again. “But I think you have more than proven you’re ready for this new journey of yours.”

Mark could only laugh again as he replied. “I’ve been out on my own for two years, beat the Elite Four, fought the Champion –became the Champion, and you’re still schooling me,” he said.

“Of course; I’m your mother. It’s what I live for.” She returned in a half-jest.

Throughout his life, Diana had not only been Mark’s mother –the woman who raised him, practically by herself as his dad never seemed to want anything to do with him, she had also trained him, educated him and was practically his first rival when he became a Pokémon trainer; many times, throughout his journey she would appear before him and challenge him to battle, testing him to see how far he had come. His last battle with her had been a year ago, at Ever Grande City, where she had barred him from entering Victory Road until he finally defeated her. That battle was the first and, until now, the only time he had ever managed to win against her.

The fact was, she had always been there. Everything he was, he owed to her; if that made him some momma’s boy, so be it, but Diana had made him into the man he was. But on this new journey Mark would be embarking on, she would not be following him this time; her days of testing him were past. Now he would stand alone with the trainers he sought to battle to serve as his new trial.

“Now,” Diana chimed suddenly, breaking Mark out of his melancholic trance. “It is time you go get some rest. I will take care of your house while you’re away.”

Mark nodded gratefully to his mother. “Thank you,” he said. “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone but I’ll get all of my expenses sorted out before I go.”

“Just make sure you have enough to live on while you’re travelling too,” Diana pointed out. “And, don’t be afraid to ask for some help.”

“You know I don’t like taking money from you,” Mark reminded, rubbing the back of his head absently. “What’s the point of living on your own when mom’s still buying your groceries?”

“It’s called family, Mark,” Diana stated. “I’m not saying come to me for all of your travel expenses; if you run out of money and need help getting home, that I’m willing to do.”

Mark nodded again. “Okay, okay,” he returned. “Either way, thanks mom. I’ll be sure to keep you posted on how the journey is progressing.”

She smiled at him, and once more the two shared a loving hug. “Take care of yourself, my boy,” she said.

“I will, mom,” he said “Love you.”

“Love you too,” she replied.

When they pulled apart, Mark looked at Fantasia, noting her weakened state. “You got here riding on her, right?” He asked. “I could lend you the truck if you need to drive home.” He could always fly to Slateport on Palm Tree’s back if it came down to it.

But Diana shook her head. “We drove; I parked my car down by the highway,” she replied. “Thank you for offering.”

Mark nodded. “Okay mom,” he said. “Drive safely.”

Diana chuckled. “I remember when I was always saying that to you. Oh, how time flies.”

They shared a brief laugh as Diana and Fantasia began to depart from Mark’s home, with the Hoenn trainer waving after her as they descended the hill towards the highway. He watched them until they were just about out of sight before looking down at Coal. “Alright little fella; time for bed,” he said. “We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

Coal looked up at him, eliciting a slight purr from his throat in response, before he felt a pair of hands grasp him below his arms and lift him up, looking behind him as Vitesse placed him onto her shoulder, cooing softly at him as if congratulating him on his first win. With that, the three returned to the house, heading inside to get a good night’s sleep for their new adventure.

~~~~~

The sun was not even up yet when Mark and his Pokémon, safely resting in their Poké Balls –apart from one sitting in the passenger seat next to Mark, were on their way, leaving their house behind and jumping onto the highway to head south towards Slateport. With four hours to spare before his boat was to leave, Mark could safely take his time, sipping a mug of hot coffee to help wake himself up as they sped down the road.

The drive seemed to take forever. He could feel his heart beating with anticipation as he imagined the challenges that awaited him across the sea on the northern continent where Kanto, Johto and Kalos all shared a landmass. So much to see, so many challenges to face; he was so ready for it. This long drive was almost torturous to him, leaving him constantly fighting the urge to floor the gas pedal to drive faster –getting pulled over by the police and paying a speeding ticket was not going to do him any favours.

The sun was just beginning to glimmer over the horizon when finally, he arrived in Slateport, making his way through to the docks where his ship would be leaving from. Finding a place to park his truck, which he had to register in advance, he pulled his belongings out of the box and walked, with Vitesse accompanying him, towards the docks.

It was somewhat crowded in the terminal when he entered, making his way through the clusters of people and Pokémon as he tried to find his gate, retrieving his boarding pass and going through Security –forced to put Vitesse back into her Poké Ball briefly, letting her back out once they were heading for the ship. Following directions from one of the guards, he found his way to his transport. On the side of its hull in bright, bold, black letters was the name of the ship –the S.S Julia. It was a large vessel, clearly of a slightly older model, but remarkably well maintained, with a freshly polished hull, very few signs of rush, new chrome-coloured handrails and portholes along the sides of the hull.

When he joined the other passengers ascending the gangplank, he stepped onto a freshly varnished wooden deck, and was greeted by multiple sailors, one of whom –the captain, he guessed, by the look of the hate, was an elderly man with a nearly trimmed mustache, wearing a uniform shirt that had countless naval emblems and medals decorating its front over the left pectoral. He greeted Mark with a warm smile, introducing himself as Captain John Raven and welcoming the trainer aboard the S.S Julia.

It had been a long time since he had travelled by boat; not since the ferry to and from the Battle Resort when he had gone there a while back. But that boat had been nowhere near as big as this one; a passenger liner meant for travelling across oceans. Judging by how many people were still climbing the gangplank, he guessed that at least a thousand people were on this ship if not more. And, from what he heard, even this was not all of them; the ship would be making a brief stop in Mossdeep City to pick up more passengers.

“Not going to have much privacy on this trip, I think, eh girl?” Mark asked Vitesse, glancing at the Blaziken, who merely clucked in reply. “Let’s find our cabin, then, before we get lost in this crowd.”

After finding his cabin and dropping off his luggage, Mark changed out of his usual attire into a pair of shorts and sleeveless shirt, waiting until after the ship began to disembark before he headed to the roof where the pool was located, finding himself a deck chair and laying down in the sunlight, applying some sunscreen to his body so he wouldn’t burn.

Vitesse was laying down in the chair next to him; he wanted to let out his other Pokémon as well but the ship only allowed trainers to have one out at a time, and they had a weight limit; no Pokémon over five hundred pounds could be let out onto the deck, or they risk breaking through the floorboards themselves, so Tanker would be forced to remain in his Poké Ball all the way to Kanto.

‘I’ll have to let him out in Mossdeep and feed him; this will be at least ten hours of sailing,’ Mark thought, making a mental note.

An announcement began over the loudspeakers as the ship started to leave port. “Good morning passengers; this is your captain speaking. We are now ready to get underway; all passengers bound for Kanto, please enjoy the many facilities our fine vessel has to offer, including our nice and cool swimming pool, our onboard five-star restaurant -Pokémon-friendly of course; we offer full-course meals for everyone aboard the S.S Julia. We also have courts for basketball and tennis, a relaxing hour at the massage clinic, and our onboard fighting ring for restless Pokémon trainers. Please refrain from battling anywhere on the ship except for these facilities –weight limit of Pokémon still applies. Now, allow me to take this time to remind everyone of the ship’s other rules. To begin...”

Mark stopped listening to the announcement by then, only catching part of when the Captain was going over the rules of the ship, which he already knew. He started to feel himself nod off; he wanted to stay awake but he was so comfortable on that deck chair, finding the salty sea air and the sun’s warm rays so relaxing. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Vitesse going slack in her chair as well, her eyes shut and breathing shallowed as she basked in the sunlight beaming down on them. She looked as ready to sleep as he felt.

‘Ah the hell with it,’ Mark capitulated, folding his arms across his lap and yawning once more before shutting his tired eyes and letting himself slip away into the world of dreams...

~~~~~

Randy sighed long and hard as he sat waiting on the bench for his ship to arrive, staring at the handheld game in his hand, flipping it shut with annoyance. “Couldn’t have even had one more level for me to play?” He asked, stuffing the portable game into his backpack and shaking his head.

Next to him, Cairo was sitting legs crossed, eyes shut with both paws folded across his lap. A light breeze blowing around them from the sea, tossing the scarf he wore around his neck as he sat in a seemingly meditative state, silent and focused, as still as a statue. Randy looked at his Pokémon, grimacing as he stared at Cairo’s closed eyes, wondering how such an active Pokémon –such a fighting machine could be so cool-headed out of battle, like a robot that could just shut itself off.

‘I envy how he can remain so chill,’ he thought.

On a whim, he turned to look out to sea, and noticed a ship approaching the dock. Wondering if it was the vessel he was waiting for, he stood up and looked at his watch, checking the time; seven twenty-six. The boat he was waiting for was set to arrive at seven thirty. “That must be it,” he said, nodding before lowering his arm. “Cairo?”

With a twitch of his ears, Cairo’s red eyes reopened, and he looked up at his trainer. “Time to get moving, boy,” he said, shouldering his backpack. “Our ship is about to come in.”

Cairo nodded, uncrossing his legs and hopping off the bench, stretching his legs before joining his trainer as they headed for the terminal to get through their gate. Once through the metal detectors and onto the docks, he let Cairo back out of his ball once more, and fell in with the crowd, bouncing on his heels as he waited for the ship to make port.

“A trip to Kanto, to go to a convention,” Randy muttered, chuckling. “Hell, of a way to start my retirement from Champion.”

They stood waiting patiently as the ship slowly docked. It was a long process, watching it come in and drop anchor in the harbour, and it took even longer for the crews to get the gangplanks up to allow any passengers that were going ashore to disembark. He and the rest of the crowd around him were standing for at least an hour before the lines started to move towards the boarding ramps, ascending to the ship.

Randy was mere steps away when someone bulled their way past him, catching him off guard and ruining his balance. Cairo caught him before he could fall onto his backside, helping him stay on his feet as he got his bearings. “Hey, watch out, will you?” He asked his assailant, looking up to face them.

He was greeted instead with a wall of men and women, all dressed identically in white suits and dark sunglasses, hair styled back and with briefcases and tickets in hand, ignoring Randy and the other passengers as they marched in near-perfect sync towards the boarding ramps, ascending to the deck of the ship. Randy arched an eyebrow at the spectacle, unsure of what to make of it as he watched the group pass by.

‘The hell is the story with these guys; secret society or some shit?’ He thought.

He looked at Cairo, noticing an intense look on his face. He apparently liked these strangely dressed individuals even less than Randy; his red eyes were fixed into glares as he watched each one of them pass, never losing that expression until the last of them disappeared over the top of the ramps.

“Suspicious looking bunch, huh boy?” Randy asked, earning a nod and a grunt from the Lucario. “We better keep our eyes open on this trip.”

Rejoining the line of people boarding the ship, they eventually made it up to the deck; Randy flashed his ticket to the crew waiting on top, before receiving the keys to his cabin and making his way there to drop off his luggage. He had little difficulty finding it as the ship had a very simple layout with many signs to guide passengers to the common areas; a short walk along the deck and he found a door with a number matching the one on his key.

Opening the door, he dropped his bag inside, before shutting the door again. Tipping his glasses, he glanced at Cairo. “Let’s go exploring,” he suggested. “It’s a long six hours to Kanto; might as well get cozy.”

Cairo nodded to him again, and followed his trainer back up the corridor. But halfway down, Cairo suddenly froze mid-step, the dreadlocks on the back of his head twitching as he halted. He shut his eyes, and said locks splayed out as he stood, focused. It took Randy a few seconds to notice Cairo wasn’t at his side; he turned, seeing the Lucario standing in his meditative state, tilting his head curiously at his Pokémon.

“What’s wrong, Cairo?” He asked.

The Lucario’s eyes opened, letting out a grunt to his trainer before he strode past him, waving for Randy to follow. With a helpless shrug, Randy did so, striding after Cairo and dodging an incoming couple as they headed along the rail of the ship, towards the stern.

They cleared the wall of cabin doors, stepping out onto the open deck and finding themselves by the pool area, where previously boarded passengers were gathered; children and adults were swimming in the pool, teens playing basketball at the courts and an odd number of others were relaxing in the sun... including a pair that Randy recognized.

Ahead of him were two deck chairs, occupied by a Pokémon –a Blaziken, and its trainer. The Blaziken, a female by the size of the crest growing from the back of her head, stood out for the accessory worn across her body –a harness that slung around her collar and around her side at the base of her ribcage. On her shoulder was a plate imbedded with a Blazikenite; a Blaziken’s mega stone, light yellow on the outside with a twisting shape in the middle that was red and black in colour.

As for her trainer, it was a fair-skinned, blond-haired youth wearing a white sleeveless shirt and blue shorts, over six feet tall –probably even the same height as the Blaziken sleeping in the adjacent chair. He had a stocky upper body –not exactly muscular but certainly athletic, and he wore nothing on his feet, showing calloused and well-travelled plantar.

“No freaking way,” Randy muttered as it dawned on him just who he was looking at, eyes wide and glasses sliding down his nose slightly until he pushed them back up. “Well what are the odds?”

Cairo let out a rumble of agreement, glancing at his trainer. Neither one had anticipated they would run into Mark Taylor again anytime soon after Randy wrested the Champion title from him, and yet there he was, sleeping on a deck chair in the hot summer sun, with Vitesse –the Blaziken that had beaten two of Randy’s Pokémon and nearly defeated a third all in one battle- free from her Poké Ball and sleeping in the next chair over from her trainer, both happily oblivious to who had joined them on the ship.

“What do you think, boy? Should we wake them up and say hello?” Randy asked.

Cairo eyed him questioningly, as though to ask if he was being serious.

“No, boy; of course I’m joking,” Randy returned. “Last thing I want is a grumpy Blaziken kicking me in the face.”

Almost as if she knew someone was talking about her, Vitesse suddenly stirred, raising her head from its resting point and shaking it to clear it before glancing sleepily over at Randy, her blue eyes widening in recognition after staring at him for a few seconds.

“Not the face!” Randy said, partly in jest and mockingly putting up his arms.

Vitesse reached over to Mark, gently poking him in the shoulder and clucking at him until he awoke. The blond-haired trainer rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked over at her. “What’s wrong, girl?” He asked, groggy, before following where she was looking and spotting Randy and Cairo staring back a him. His eyes bugged wide open, and he rubbed them again as though doubting what he was seeing. “Randy Calvin?” He asked, shocked.

“The one and only,” Randy replied, beaming and shaking his head in disbelief. “Mark Taylor; never thought I’d run into you, here of all places.”

“That makes two of us,” Mark returned, standing up from his chair and looking around. “Are we in Mossdeep?” He asked.

“Yeah; ship made port here.”

Mark exhaled sharply, tilting his head a little. “I slept the whole trip,” he said. “I must have been tired.”

“You disembarking here?” Randy asked, jerking his thumb over his shoulder with an arched eyebrow.

“No; I’m on my way to Kanto, actually,” Mark replied, looking at Randy.

“Same here,” Randy replied. “Going there for a convention, actually.”

“What kind of convention?”

Randy shrugged. “Comic books, video games, popular culture; what other kinds are there?”

“The kind teachers go to,” Mark returned bluntly. “Whatever the heck they do on those. My mom always just said they were looking for excuses to close school.” He shrugged.

Randy looked at Mark as though he were a weirdo, an eyebrow arched and his head turned to the side slightly. “Have you ever been to a convention, man?”

“No,” Mark returned, plainly.

“Dude. You need to get out more.”

Mark gave him a stern look. “I have more important things to do with my time, thank you.”

“Oh yeah? Well then, what’re you heading for Kanto for?"

“A new journey,” Mark replied, looking over his shoulder at Vitesse briefly; the Blaziken had by now stood up from her chair and was standing with Mark, just behind him.

“To do what?” Randy asked, drawing out the third word of the question.

Mark scowled at him. “What interest is it to you?” He asked. “You’ve got your destinations, I’ve got mine. That is all that either of us need to know.”

“Well hey; I told you where I’m going, didn’t think it’d hurt to ask,” he replied. “Didn’t think you’d take it so personally.”

Mark scoffed at him, and Randy gave him another quizzical look. “Hey, come on; you’re not still upset over losing the Champion title to me, are you?”

Mark stood, unflinching, for a few seconds as though processing what Randy had just asked him, before letting out a long, defeated sigh. “I was never upset,” he replied. “Well, okay maybe that’s a lie; disappointed probably counts as being upset, in its own way. But it was a legitimate win on your part; I was ill-prepared for your deceptive tactics, and your team was pretty well-trained.” He looked past Randy, towards the Lucario standing behind him. “Especially him.”

At that, Cairo beamed, adjusting his scarf and humming contentedly to the compliment. Randy glanced back at Cairo briefly before turning to Mark again. “Well if that’s not what’s bugging you, what’s wrong with telling me?”

Mark sighed again. “It’s... just something personal,” he replied.

Randy rolled his eyes in exasperation, only to perk up again a second later as he had an idea. “Tell you what; how about a rematch?”

Mark glanced at him. “Rematch?” He echoed.

“Sure,” replied Randy. “I did say I wanted to battle you again sometime after we last met; we’ve got six to seven hours to kill before this ship reaches Kanto so why not?” He crossed his arms. “You win, I leave you alone. If I win, you tell me why you’re heading to Kanto. Sound like a deal?”

“You really want to know that much you’d fight me for it?” Mark asked, questioningly.

“Like you have anything better to do?” Randy countered in a very matter-of-fact voice.

Mark twitched at that, unable to deny that Randy indeed had a point. He had slept the whole trip to Mossdeep, and now that he was awake and with time to spare as they headed north, there really wasn’t any reason for him not to accept the challenge. Although he had intended to battle Randy again someday –maybe as a way to conclude his journey since he was the first trainer, besides his mother, to beat Mark in quite a while.

In fact, prior to facing Randy, the last battles Mark could remember losing were only against Gym Leaders, particularly Brawly of Dewford Island, as at the time he didn’t have anything to counter Fighting-types, Winona of Fortree City, who used Flying-types, and Wallace of Sootopolis City, a Water-type trainer. He had eventually won against them, but after that he never lost, not against any trainers on Victory Road, his mother, the Elite Four or against Steven Stone, or any title matches after for several months running. Could that have attributed to his loss against Randy; overconfidence? Complacency?

He didn’t think about it for long, as he had left Randy somewhat hanging, waiting on his answer. With a slow, exaggerated shrug and a shake of his head, Mark replied, “why the hell not?” Letting his arms fall at his sides, he looked at Randy again. “Okay; you’re on, Randy. Let me go get the rest of my Pokémon, and then I’ll join you in the fighting ring.”

“The ship has a fighting ring?” Randy asked.

Ironically, in the midst of their conversation, the captain had been giving his welcome speech over the intercom. No sooner did Randy ask about the ring did the announcement mention the ship’s recreational facilities. “... massage clinic, and our onboard fighting ring for restless Pokémon trainers. Please refrain from battling anywhere on the ship except for these facilities –weight limit of Pokémon still applies.”

“Does that answer your question?” Mark asked.

“Yes... yes it does.”

~~~~~

Mark and Randy, accompanied by Vitesse and Cairo, pushed open the doors to the fighting arena and stepped inside, finding a few trainers already lined up to battle. Mark had hoped that with the ship having only just begun to leave Mossdeep and new embarked passengers settling in the arena would be clear. No such luck, unfortunately, and so they were forced to wait, watching a battle taking place between two trainers a little younger than they were.

One of them, a brown-haired trainer wearing a sports jersey for a baseball team, was battling using a Cacturne –a scarecrow-like Grass/Dark-type Pokémon, evolved from a Cacnea, with a lime green body covered in thorns and spikes, as well as having a head shaped to look like it was wearing the stereotypical hat you might find on a scarecrow. Meanwhile, their opponent, a black-haired trainer wearing a sleeveless shirt, was using a Grumpig –a Psychic-type pig Pokémon, light purple and black in colour, with a tail shaped like a coiled spring –carried over from its pre-evolved form, Spoink.

As a Dark-type, Cacturne had the advantage off the bat; the trainer with the black hair had made a poor choice. Mark had battled enough Grumpig to know that it could not naturally learn moves that might have some effect against Cacturne –such moves being Bug, Ice, Flying, Fire, Fairy and Fighting-type –sure, Cacturne had a lot of weaknesses to exploit, but its advantage lay in its good-all-around ability –it could fight at any range, even at a distance.

Although, he recalled, it could learn one move that might help...

As if reading his mind, the owning trainer of the Grumpig ordered his Pokémon to use Bounce. The pig Pokémon leapt forward, turning himself over to let his tail catch him before launching himself airborne, arching through the air and plunging at the Cacturne.

But he would turn out to regret his move; the Cacturne used a Spiky Shield to defend itself, crossing its arms in front of it and sprouting a protecting carapace shell covered in spikes; the Grumpig collided with this shield, suffering a few shallow puncture wounds before the Cacturne threw him off, and then finished him with a Needle Arm attack, dropping his shield and instead backhanding the Grumpig with his spiky right arm.

With that, the Grumpig’s trainer had lost the battle. After collecting their Pokémon, the two trainers left, and allowing the next pair to step up for their own turn as Mark and Randy waited for theirs. Fortunately, to make sure everyone could have a turn in the battle room, only one-on-one matches were allowed, and the room had video surveillance to make sure that rule was followed.

The battle was thankfully short; a contest between two very common Pokémon –a Swellow and a Mightyena, which the former won due to being able to fly and being faster. After that was a much more heated matchup, between a Machoke and a Hariyama, which the former won due to having superior strength, successfully subduing its opponent. With that battle concluded, now it was Mark and Randy’s turn.

The two took their positions, accompanied by their respective Pokémon partners. Vitesse and Cairo both clearly thought their trainers were going to pick them for the rematch, as they were already starting to step into the arena, when Randy seemed to have an idea, and said. “Hold up a sec, Cairo.”

“Ar?” The Lucario asked, questioningly, looking back at his trainer.

Randy then called out across the field to Mark, using one hand to amplify his voice so that Mark could hear him clearly. “Hey Mark; do you have any new Pokémon –any you didn’t use in our battle?”

Mark was about to answer Randy when he caught the words on his tongue, remembering that there was indeed one he had that Randy hadn’t seen yet, that being Coal. “Yeah, I’ve got one. Why?”

“Just got to thinking,” Randy called. “When last, we battled you only saw four of my Pokémon. At this moment, I’m carrying the same team I had then, including the two I didn’t get to use. I thought I’d level the playing field by having us both use one that the other hadn’t seen yet.” He glanced at Cairo. “Originally, I had this whole idea of Mega Evolving Cairo and having him duke it out with Vitesse in some sort of epic rematch, but I think this would be even more fun –picking up where we left off, so to speak.”

Mark couldn’t remember what other Pokémon Randy had even though he saw them appear on the screen at the Hoenn League when Randy had registered himself as Champion. All he could remember were the four he battled; a Zoroark, a Salamence, the Sceptile named Thorn, and of course Cairo. Still, the idea intrigued him, and the day before he’d had a good battle with Coal already; knowing the little Charmeleon for who he was, he wanted to have another go as soon as possible.

“Alright, works for me,” Mark agreed, glancing at Vitesse, who nodded back in understanding. She stepped off the field, walking over to stand next to her trainer to spectate instead.

When Cairo was back at Randy’s side, the trainer felt around his belt and grasped one Poké Ball, lifting it free and expanding it to its full size with the tap of a button, waiting as Mark selected his choice from in his vest.

“You ready?” Randy asked.

“After you,” Mark returned with a wry smile.

“If you insist,” Randy returned, grinning as he tossed the Poké Ball out to the field. “Come on out, Velox!”

The ball popped open before touching the ground, releasing the Pokémon contained within. The white light of energy struck the ground, rapidly taking shape and materializing into flesh and bone, revealing a pale Pokémon that seemed to be crossed between a mongoose and a cat, with the tall pointe ears of the latter, but its remaining features more rodent-like except for the black claws growing at the end of its paws. It stood upon its hind legs, had a bushy tail, and was mostly white except for one ear, a jagged pattern on its chest, and its forepaws all sharing the same shade of pink. Like Cairo, this Zangoose also wore a scarf, but unlike Cairo this scarf wasn’t an ordinary one; it wore a Silk Scarf –a battle accessory for strengthening Normal-type moves.

“A Zangoose,” Mark commented. “Interesting choice.”

“Let’s see what you’ve got for him,” Randy replied, eager to get the battle started.

“Alright then,” Mark agreed, holding up the Poké Ball in his hand, smiling slight. ‘Coal gets a second battle in one week; he’s going to love this,’ he thought_. ‘But I have to remember what mom said; he doesn’t fully understand my strategies yet so I have to keep this simple for him –build up his confidence some more and teach him to think outside the box._’

“Just make sure you don’t underestimate this little guy; he might surprise you!” He drew back his hand and hurled the ball forward. “Coal, you’re up!”

The ball opened, and the Charmeleon took shape before even reaching the ground, letting out a growl of excitement as he landed on both feet in the battlefield, raising his head to meet the gaze of his Zangoose opponent, Velox.

Randy’s eyebrows twitched. “A Charmeleon; where’d you catch that? They aren’t found in Hoenn.”

“Long story,” Mark replied. “You ready to begin?”

Randy shrugged. “Alright; let’s go.”

The two trainers, eyes drifting between one another and their Pokémon, got the battle underway. Mark waited for Randy to make a move first, remembering from their past battle that he was highly dependent on speed over power; it was a safe assumption his Zangoose –another species known for being quick on its feet, would be trained in this manner as well. Even if Coal were to move first Velox might still be too quick for him, and his mother’s advice from the previous day was still fresh in his mind.

‘If your opponent does not intend to strike first, it pays to use that time to hinder them or bolster yourself.’

Mark narrowed his gaze, plotting carefully. ‘Randy uses speed and a bit of trickery to win his battles. I should assume that Zangoose gives testament to that tactic as well. Maybe I can use a bit of trickery myself.’ Mark’s eyes widened slightly, knowing how to begin, and he gave Coal his first command. “Smokescreen!”

Coal inhaled sharply before exhaling a cloud of smoke from his mouth that quickly covered the battlefield, obscuring him from view just as Randy was issuing a command to Velox, causing him to pause as they suddenly could no longer see their target.

“Velox, hold your ground!” Randy instructed. “Wait for the smoke to thin out!”

Mark couldn’t see over the smoke, but he could hear Randy’s command to his Zangoose, bringing a slight smile to his face; Randy thought that Mark was planning to have Coal ambush Velox from inside the smokescreen. A wise precaution, as many Pokémon of the evolution line Charmeleon was part of were powerful physical fighters and getting up close to them without the element of surprise could prove disastrous, but Coal was not among those

Seizing the opportunity, he issued Coal’s next command. “Flame Burst!”

From the concealment of the smoke, a fireball erupted into view, heading for the Zangoose. Velox reacted almost instantly, dodging to the side to avoid the fireball, but not the embers that erupted when it struck the varnished floor; several of the burning sparks landed upon his arm and one on his cheek, making him yowl in annoyance, waving his arm as if it were burning.

“Again!” Mark called.

“Velox, Detect!”

The Zangoose’s eyes flashed, watching the smoke, and even before he saw the fireball he was already moving out of the way again, this time running further to the side to avoid even the explosion of embers. As the smoke started to clear, Randy issued an attack order to Velox, sending him charging at the Charmeleon, approaching swiftly and attacking with Crush Claw. The nimble Charmeleon managed to avoid the attack, but just barely, and he could not get away fast enough use any of his Special Attacks, forcing him into a contest of claws with the Zangoose, to which Velox had the edge.

Coal was a close second to him in speed, but in a contest of attack power, he would not last long against the Zangoose. Mark thought quickly, searching for a solution before he ordered Coal to use Headbutt, hoping it worked. Just as their claws clashed again, Coal lunged forward, delivering a punishing blow to Velox’s head with his own, making stars dance across the eyes of the Pokémon and stunning him just long enough for Mark to issue the next command.

“Smokescreen again!”

Once more the Charmeleon belched a cloud of dark smoke, this time at close range, causing Velox to get caught in it as well. As he cleared the stars from his eyes, Velox attempted another Crush Claw on Coal, but the Charmeleon dodged, and retreated into the fog until not even his flaming tail was visible.

“Velox, get out of there!” Randy called.

Following his trainer’s voice, the Zangoose strode towards him, running with a half-lidded gaze to keep the smoke out of his eyes, even sneezing as he accidentally inhaled some of it. Within a few seconds, he was back out in the open and within sight of his trainer. “You okay, fella?”

The Zangoose wrinkled his nose, chittering in annoyance before coughing to clear his airways of the smoke. Meanwhile, Mark subtly issued his next command to Coal. “Scary Face.”

As Velox turned to look back into the cloud and waited for it to clear and Randy began to give him instruction on what to do next, the Charmeleon suddenly burst out of the smoke, letting out a horrifying shriek right in the Zangoose’s face and putting on the most wild and intimidating look he could muster, mouth wide open to reveal all his teeth and eyes wide with his pupils contracted to the size of beads. The Charmeleon’s sudden appearance combined with that face sent a shiver right up Velox’s back, startling the Zangoose so badly he jumped away with a yelp. Even Randy was startled by Coal’s little jump scare, flinching and letting out a slight yelp of his own and interrupting the instructions he had been giving his Pokémon.

Hearing that his trick had worked, Mark hurried to give the next command. “Dragon Pulse!”

Coal relaxed his expression, and then fired the blast of dragonic energy from his mouth swiftly. Velox tried to get out of the way, but the successful Scary Face was still in effect, and he was sluggish to respond, taking the hit directly and sending him faceplanting into the floor.

“Velox, you okay?” Randy asked.

The Zangoose rolled over onto his back, sitting up carefully and looking at his trainer with a nod. “Don’t blame you for that one, boy; that face scared me too.”

By now, Coal had withdrawn back into his smokescreen again, returning to his side of the field once more. Sensing the battle was in their favor, Mark ordered Coal to fire another Flame Burst, hoping to draw Velox back into attacking again. The fireball struck the ground outside of the smokescreen, once more showering the Zangoose with annoying embers when the initial blast failed to connect, bringing out an angry chitter from him.

“Hang in there, boy!” Randy called. “The smoke’s starting to clear! Hone Claws!”

The Zangoose began to rub his claws together as though trying to sharpen them, a brief flash of dark energy shining over them he did this, and when it faded the claws indeed looked distinctively sharper as a result of the bolstering move, raising Velox’s attack strength in the process. Randy intended to finish this with one more attack; Velox was already pretty battered up, and if he didn’t take out Coal now, he might lose to Mark this time.

Finally, the smoke dissipated, revealing Coal’s position as he fired another Flame Burst at Velox, and Randy issued the final attack command. “Crush Claw!”

The Zangoose chattered madly before he charged forth, rushing at Coal as fast as he could run. Even after having his speed reduced by Scary Face, the Zangoose was still swift, closing the distance within seconds as he made a beeline straight for Coal, drawing back his claws for the final swipe...

But the attack would never land. Because in just that one use of Scary Face, Coal had become faster than the Zangoose, and dodged out of the path of the attack, dodging the wind-shredding swipe of the claws and leaving Velox wide-open for a counter attack. “Dragon Pulse!” Mark commanded.

Not even at his full speed could Velox have dodged at this range. Coal opened his maw, and blasted the Zangoose with one final attack, sending him flying from the force of impact. The Zangoose cartwheeled through the air before landing outside of the ring, going still and letting out a long moan as he lay there in defeat. Were he not rendered half-conscious by the attack, he would have lost anyway by ring out, and thus the battle was over with Mark’s little Charmeleon standing as the winner.

“Well I’ll be damned,” Randy commented before he left his spot to run over to Velox and check on him.

Mark was positively brimming with pride and ecstasy as the battle reached its conclusion, pumping his fist and smiling widely before he turned to Coal. “Great work, boy!”

The Charmeleon let out a rumble of reply, running over to Mark and launching himself into his arms, where the two embraced. The Charmeleon was practically purring with joy, having his second win in just that week alone, and receiving his congratulations from his trainer filled the Charmeleon with happiness. Even more so when Vitesse stepped view and petted the back of his neck, cooing at him in compliment and letting him know how proud she was.

Meanwhile Randy and Cairo were attending to their defeated comrade, giving the Zangoose some Super Potion for the pain and feeding him a couple of berries. “Good try, fella,” Randy said softly to the Zangoose, rubbing his head gratuitously before producing the Zangoose’s Poké Ball from his pocket. “Now, take a breather.”

The Zangoose nodded, and shut his eyes as Randy activated the ball’s recall function, drawing Velox back into its confines where he’d have a peaceful rest. With that, Randy shrank the ball down, putting it into compact mode where he returned it to his belt and stood up, turning in Mark’s direction to see the trio celebrating the victory. He approached them, accompanied by Cairo as usual, and spoke up to get their attention, offering a hand to Mark.

“Good battle, Mark,” he said. “You sure haven’t lost your touch this past year.”

Mark smiled, and in a show of sportsmanship, he shook hands with Randy. “I was a little worried for a second there, but Coal here had it covered.” Mark bade, looking at the Charmeleon now hanging off his shoulders.

“I’ll say,” Randy replied with a light-hearted laugh. “Not going to lie, that Scary Face of his spooked me too. Little guy could star in a horror movie with that.”

As if to emphasize, Coal put on the face again, eliciting a guttural croaking sound from his throat as if to laugh as Randy backed up instinctively from that face. Cairo, unlike his trainer, was unfazed, blinking his eyes at Coal before glancing at his trainer as if to say ‘Really, you found that scary?’

“Hey, you’re the one with Steadfast, buddy,” Randy retorted.

“Um, Randy? That is not how Steadfast works.”

“Shut up,” Randy said, leering at Mark, to which the other trainer rolled his eyes. “Well anyway,” Randy began, relaxing his gaze and letting out a sigh. “I agreed to leave you alone if you won so, I won’t ask about why you’re going to Kanto.”

Mark pursed his lips in thought as Randy finished speaking, looking over his shoulder at Vitesse, who simply shrugged in reply. With a sigh, Mark turned back to Randy again. “Tell you what,” he began. “Let’s go get something to eat from the dining hall; I’ll tell you about it there.”

Randy arched an eyebrow. “Why the sudden change of heart?” He asked.

“I was cranky, and you were just curious,” Mark replied, shrugging. “Besides, it’s not like I’m really trying to hide why I’m going there so maybe I was being unreasonable.”

Randy smiled slightly before he too shrugged. “Alright; if you want to talk about it, let’s go.” He bade.

With that, the two left the battle arena, turning and heading up the deck in the direction of the dining area. Along the way, though, Mark paused mid-step, and then let out a groan. “Shit...” He said.

“What?” Randy asked.

“I slept through the landing in Mossdeep; I was going to let Tanker out for an hour or two so he could get something to eat himself!” Mark cursed. “Dammit; I shouldn’t have gone to sleep!”

“We’re going to the dining hall; can’t you just feed him there?”

“I can’t let him out; the ship has an imposed weight limit on Pokémon,” Mark replied. “One he exceeds by about four hundred pounds.”

“Oh,” Randy replied, and then put a hand to his chin in thought, snapping his fingers as an idea came to mind. “Let’s go to the onboard Pokémon Centre first; you can send him to the Pokémon Storage Service –they could feed him.”

“I hate to part from him, but I don’t want him to be hungry all the way to Kanto,” Mark admitted. “Alright; I guess that’s what I’ll have to do.”

“Right this way; I saw it when I came on board,” Randy stated, beckoning Mark to follow him as he and Cairo took the lead and continued up the deck, followed close behind by Mark, still with Coal draped around his shoulders and Vitesse bringing up the rear.

During their conversation, one of the white-suited individuals Randy had seen earlier had walked past them, ducking around a corner and watching the three as they left. After which, he looked around to make sure he was alone before reaching into his pocket for a miniature radio, holding it up to his mouth and speaking softly into it. “Starboard Watch #4, in position; already spotted some potential collectibles for the operation. Shall I pursue?”

_ “Negative; do not make a move too soon. Hold position until you hear the signal.”_

_ _ “Copy that; four out.” And with that, he promptly pocketed the radio, vying instead to walk over to the railing and pretend to watch the school of Whailmer swimming alongside the boat, waiting until the time was right...