In the southern reaches of the Sinnoh region, a storm drenches Pastoria city and the surrounding wetlands. In the midst of this storm, on the fourth floor of a five story hotel building, lies a Lucario, sitting on his bed, meditating over the events that had passed over the last month. Suddenly, he got up, and walked over to the window. He looked out, scanning the area in the front of the hotel for a minute for any signs of pursuers. Although he was grateful that he had finally found a place to sleep that wasn't outdoors, that didn't mean he was going to let his guard down.

After he was content that there didn't appear to be a threat outside, his gaze turned skyward to the waning crescent moon. It shone brightly in the sky, more so than any of the surrounding stars. It soothed him to see it, reminding him that whatever he did, wherever he was, at the end of the day it will always be there, watching over him. It made him feel small, yet secure.

He was about to walk back to his bed and hit the hay, when a small glimmer of light coming from the ground caught his eye. He looked back to the area in front of the hotel. A small group of five Pokemon were walking up to the building: a Combusken, a Ferret, an Electabuzz, and, leading the other three, a Krookodile. Nothing really seemed suspicious about them. They obviously weren't a family, that much was clear. Maybe just a group of friends traveling or something? But the light he saw earlier still puzzled him.

He almost missed it. Right as the Krookodile was walking in, he could make out a small golden shield across its chest. Crap! It's the cops. He looked around. He knew their presence here meant he had to run. To where? It didn't matter, as long as it was away from here, for if they caught him, he'd be locked up for life.

Okay. Think this through. They first have to check with the guy at the front desk. That'll take about a minute at most. Then they'll take the elevator up to my room. They won't be in a hurry, seeing as I didn't give my real name. But they'll still probably check. So I have about two minutes to get out of here. There's an emergency exit at the bottom of each stairwell. If I'm lucky, they'll have used the elevator, and I'll be out of here without them ever seeing me. If I'm not lucky…He stopped thinking. Not only could he not waste any more time thinking, but it would be counterproductive to think of the worst case. He took a quick moment to take his wallet, which contained the money he had left, off his nightstand, and bolted out the door.

In the hall, he instinctively went left, not wasting any time, and sprinted toward the staircase. He had been in the middle of the hallway, so it took little time to get there. But when every second counts, that's all you have time for. He barged into the staircase door, knocking it open. The wolf rushed down the stairs, and almost made it to the second floor, when his ear twitched. Not taking any chances, he stopped his movements, and quickly opened his mind, searching for any nearby auras. To the wolf's dismay, he found two auras that seemed to be moving up the stairs. He uttered a quick curse, and then ran up the stairs and pulled on the third story door.

It didn't budge. He quickly tried pulling again, but it appeared to be locked. Today is not my lucky day. The Lucario ran up to the fourth floor, and looked out the small window on the door overlooking the hall. The Electabuzz and Furret were exiting the opposite stairwell and walking towards his room. Not even worth trying to go out that way. He headed up to the fifth floor. He gave it a pull, but, again, to no avail.

Crap, they must have locked down the place. Okay, think. He took a quick deep breath, and then exhaled. I can't go down. There are Pokemon looking for me. I can't go forward. There's a huge-ass metal door in my way. He looked behind him, and saw that the stairwell continued. Up.

After a quick flight of steps, he saw the door which opened up to the roof. Knowing it was the only way he could go, he took no haste in opening it. It gave an audible creek as it opened and the wolf walked out onto the wet rooftop. As the rain drenched his fur, he looked around. It was dark enough that he couldn't make out much past his immediate surroundings, but most of the rooftop was clear enough that he could make it out. He looked forward, toward the back side of the hotel for any way he could get down. Nothing. He then checked to his sides. Neither direction had anyway down. In desperation, he looked behind himself.

IDIOT! He saw the fire escape, hanging down the front side of the building, and cursed himself for not using it directly from his room. Hurriedly, he rushed toward it, but as he started running, the door to the roof opened revealing a Krookodile and a Combusken. As they exited, they quickly looked around and saw him before he could reach the escape.

"See Mick," said the chicken in a female voice, "I told you I heard something up here!"

"Yeah, yeah." The reptile, whose attention never left the convict, started walking forward. At this point, Lucario had stopped running. In a test of speed, he knew the Krookodile could easily best him. "That's him. Hands behind your head. You're coming with us."

The aura Pokemon, ignoring the policeman's order, looked him back in the eye. "We can work this out. Just let me go, and you will never have to deal with me again. I didn't do anything wrong. It's all just a huge misunderstanding!"

"You honestly expect us to believe that you are innocent? Ha! We have indisputable evidence that you killed her." His partner nodded in agreement. "How can you possibly deny that?"

He thought for a few seconds. He wasn't denying it, but confessing would certainly screw him over. He decided that the best road for now was to remain silent; wait for his pursuers to make the next move. The Combusken spoke again. "Come on, hands behind your head already! We don't have all night."

This is going to end with a fight, why not start it now… "Make me." He held out a paw, and motioned them to come at him.

The two cops looked disappointedly at each other, until Mick stated what they were both clearly thinking. "Ugh, really, another fighter? Come on Colleen, let's just get this over with." He sighed, and then his partner shot out a flamethrower at the Lucario, who, not expecting a special attack, took most of the heat and fell on a knee. That one will be trouble. She needs to go first. When the stream of fire subsided, he charged her and shot a punch at her head. She ducked, but he had prepared for this, and swept his leg in an arc behind her feet, tripping her. As she lied on the ground, her attacker raised a foot, preparing to stomp on her belly, but he was caught off guard from behind. The Krookodile pushed him out of her way, sending him into the wall of the stairwell exit. He then extended a hand to his fallen partner.

"You good?"

Colleen shook her head. "Think I sprained an ankle when he tripped me. Think you can take him?"

He gave her a confident grin as he retracted his arm. "Leave it to me. This shouldn't take long."

The wolf had recovered from the impact on the wall, and was running towards the crocodile. Remember. Injure. Don't kill. You can't afford to be any more wanted. He tried the same move he tried on the fallen Combusken, aiming a jab at the head, but his opponent caught his hand. He struggled to pull it free, but Mick had an iron grip, and it wouldn't budge. The Krookodile took advantage of this opportunity, and punched the wolf in his open stomach.

Instinct took over as Lucario ducked slightly, aligning the spot his foe would hit and the spike on his chest. The punch landed and both participants recoiled in pain, Mick not quite at the same level as the Lucario. They both took little time to recover, and resumed their fight. The aura pokemon, for a third time, shot a punch towards his rival's face, making the reptile laugh. "Hah. How many times do you have to try that before you realize it won't work," Mick said while twisting the fist he held in his hand, making a loud cracking noise as Lucario winced in pain.

Lucario didn't verbally respond. Instead, he kicked his leg at the Krookodile's knee cap, hyperextending the joint. The surprised reptile loosened his grip on Lucario's fist, allowing him to pull it back. Not allowing the stunned officer to have any time to recover, he lifted his leg and roundhouse kicked him in the face, sending him to the ground, barely conscious.

He had done it. Even when they found him, he still escaped a free man. Now, all that was left was to disappear into the wind, and continue on his quest. He turned to the fire escape, for the other two cops that had walked in would eventually come looking, and walked to it without regard for his two fallen foes.

As he got to the stairs of the fire escape, he realized his mistake. One of his previous enemies wasn't finished. The Combusken had ambled over to the center of the roof. She opened her beak, and took the Lucario by surprise by unleashing an extraordinarily powerful blast of fire at him. He shielded himself the best he could from it, but not only did the heat take its toll on him, but it also pushed him fiercely against the railing. Not having enough time to react, he was pushed over the edge.

Damn. So close. This can't be it. I still have to get my revenge on him. I can't give up now, even though I can't do anything now. Everything I've done, everything I was meant to do…This can't be it. This can't be it.