"Axem what?"

"Axem Green."

"That outfit is awful. Who's your tailor and can I tell them what an awful job they're doing?"

"It's about as well designed as your outfits—"

"I said I am Axem Green and I'm reporting for duty!" He yelled as he swung his axe around, causing all of them to step back.

Ethan got to his feet and chuckled. "Axem Green huh? Just who are you reporting to duty?"

He swung his axe around a few more times. "Quiet! How about you show some respect for your would be conquerors?"

Silver groaned. "Conquerors of what exactly?"

"This region! Unova is the first stop on our road to global domination!"

"You guys never struck me as the type to conquer the world."

Axem Green sighed. "We actually need money so we can rebuild the Blade."

Silver looked at him with a confused look. "The Blade, what's that supposed to be?"

"It's their massive airship they used to travel around and cause trouble," Ethan said.

"So…why not just give them the money so they and…their gaudy outfits can take a hike?"

He stomped his foot. "I'm not going to give money to criminals! Didn't you just hear me?"

"Would you stop ignoring me?!" Axem Green said as he swung his axe at them. "I am Axem Green, member of the Axem Rangers and I will make you pay for your ignorance."

Everyone looked at him with confused looks. "Who are the Axem Rangers?"

"A bunch of Power Ranger wannabes who came from a videogame. They were minions of a guy named Smithy who wanted to make weapons. Lots and lots of weapons."

"Yes, and it's terrible our boss was defeated-"

"Hold up! Don't tell me you are actually from the videogame. That doesn't make any sense! Besides, you were destroyed in the end so how could you come back in the first place?"

"Our origins are known only to us—"

"Which means you guys are just full of it," he said. He shook his head. "This is stupid anyway. Why don't you just go back to the rock you crawled out from under and leave us alone? I was liking the peace and quiet."

He pointed his axe in Ethan's direction. "Not until we get what we want! Until then you can expect more wanton destruction and mischief—"

"So you'll act like bratty children and throw a temper tantrum until you get your way? Got you," Silver said.

"And on another note, just why did you target the people you did? The only reason I can see is targeting people similar to your personalities but…uhh…that still doesn't explain why."

"Our reasons are too vast to comprehend—"

"So you're still full of it," Ethan said. Axem Green shook a fist in his direction and hopped onto the plane. He hopped down, swinging his axe down with him, damaging the plane further. He continued his assault until soon the plane was nothing but a pile of wreckage.

"You know, that was gonna turn out to be a radical looking plane until you smashed it up."

"I warned you, didn't I? If you don't allow us to get the money to rebuild the Blade, this is what your precious Unova will look like!"

"I think you guys have your work cut out for you. Wiggler, could you do something about this guy?"

As Wiggler bounced over, suddenly the four other Axem Rangers appeared, causing him to stop dead in his tracks. "Wow, their outfits are even worse than I imagined. The colors are so bright and—"

"Ethan, since you're the Champion, I'll deliver this message to you. If you and the rest of Unova do not give into our demands and give us the money to rebuild the Blade, Unova will pay!"

"Why would I give you the money to rebuild your airship? What do you even want to do with it?"

Axem Red raised his fist. "What do you expect us to do with it? We will return to Mushroom Kingdom and get our revenge for the defeat of Smithy and his gang!"

"Smithy? Mushroom Kingdom? What?" May asked but he waved her off. Were these guys serious? They couldn't really have come from the videogame…could they? Nope nope, nope!

"That's not a good reason at all!"

"We don't have time for this. All I'm saying is that if you do not give in to our demands, Unova will pay. We will blanket Unova in a poorly knitted blanket…of fear!"

"I bet you've been waiting all day to say that one," Silver said.

Ethan cast an eye toward him. "I think you're giving them too much credit."

"Are you even listening? Fine, don't heed our warning!" He said as the five of them vanished. Ethan shook his head and folded his arms. Now what?

"Ethan…we can't just let those fashion failures run havoc on Unova!"

"Who is Smithy? What is Mushroom Kingdom?"

Silver shook his head. "I think they're all pretty messed up in the head, if you ask me—"

"Yea well no one asked you," Lyra said.

"Stop it, both of you. Well I'm not going to give into their demands, which would be silly. I'm a bit worried about how they plan to blanket Unova in a…well you know. I wonder if they'll just commit random acts of violence?"

"Well that would be one way to get people unnerved. They are still trying to recover from the menace of Team Rocket."

"The menace of…Team Rocket came back?" Silver asked.

"Uh, duh! Where have you been at Silver, living under a rock?"

"Taking care of the Olivine City Gym, thank you very much!" He said.

"Team Rocket did come back and it seems they were trying to take over with a bunch of altered Pokemon, in the same vein as Mewtwo. We were finally able to chase them out after a big struggle."

"Well actually…yea I think that about sums it up!" Lyra said. "Oh and Ethan got tricked into joining and then got all the blame thanks to Giovanni so he had to stay in hiding until his name cleared."

At the mention of Giovanni, Silver's face twisted just a bit, as if trying to control the rage he felt for that name. Man Lyra…could you just shut up for once? "S-so…I think I'll let everyone know to be on the lookout for those guys. We can't let Unova fall into a state of fear like that. Way too soon for that stuff again."

"Where is Giovanni?" Silver asked.

"Probably cooling his heels in jail—" She began to say before Silver stomped off. She watched him leave and looked at him. "What's with him now?"

"It's a long story. Well I guess—hey!" He said as Lyra walked over and snatched his cap off his head. She looked it over and dropped it.

"Ewww! Eww eww eww…ewww! That thing is filthy!"

"I just washed it and why are you taking my hat away? Give me that back!"

She picked it up and held it away from her body. "This thing is disgusting E! How long have you this hat?"

"I've had it for awhile, now give me it—"

"No way, I'm burning it! You can't wear this anymore, it's filthy! I'll make you a better one!"

"It's gonna sparkle!" He said. He grabbed for the hat but she pulled it away from his grasp.

"It won't sparkle, I promise! It'll look fitting of a Champion. Much better than an old hat that should have been burned years ago."

He tapped his head. "But it feels weird without a hat. I can't go around without a hat."

She waved him off. "Oh you'll live E. Trust me, the hat I have prepared for you…it'll be just great. You will love it."

She left as well and he let out a loud grumble. Skyla sat on the wreckage of the plane. "Well it was gonna be an awesome plane."

"Don't worry, I'll make it up to—"

"M-make it up to me? You're pretty funny. You didn't do anything to cause it to be destroyed. It's the Axem Rangers' fault'."

He nodded. "I know but I almost feel if it was my fault."

"What?" May asked. "How is what they did…your fault?"

He folded his arms and chuckled. "Its well…how do I explain this? I guess it's because of my reputation. I've got one for being tough on crime and helping to take down a bunch of notorious Pokemon gangs. I was thinking that maybe that attracts a lot of unwanted attention as well. That others see what I've done and they think they could earn a lot of rep by taking me down—"

"Stop thinking so much! You always think too much! Isn't that what got you in trouble last time?" May yelled.

"What she said," Skyla said with a laugh. "I wonder…how do you think those guys are getting around?"

"Looks like that could be something you might try tracking down for us. I know they don't have their usual airship but I figure they must have something that lets them get around. You got all the fancy radar here so…well you might be able to come with something."

"Right o boss!"

"I'm not the boss though—"

"Well I don't know…who's the Champion of Unova?" She asked, cocking her head to the side.

"Well…me."

"And last I checked, the Champion is pretty much head of the gym leaders. Or at least he or she carries a lot of clout in the region."

He nodded. "Yea…"

"So then wouldn't it make sense to kind of consider you like the boss? You're the single most powerful trainer in Unova; a lot of people kind of depend on you. They see you as the first line of defense against whatever troublemakers come their way. Though, aren't you used to that by now?"

He laughed. "Well I'm not used to being the first line of defense—"

"But you have a really stellar way of finding troublemakers. And I think the opposite is true. I bet you being around scares off a bunch of criminals. Why my friend in Hoehn told me that a couple of Pokemon gangs went into hiding while you were in Hoehn. As soon as you left, out they came."

"Hmm…I guess."

Later on that day, he was back at Homika's trailer…or rather one of her larger trailers, which had several beds, a large entertainment room and even a large spa. It dawned on him that…he had never seen where she actually lived. Did she just live in these trailers? Seems like he would have been in on the know, she knew where he lived in Johto. Wasn't much, pretty modest but at least it wasn't a trailer. He laid out on one of the beds, staring up at the ceiling. "Ugh…what do you think Wiggler?"

Wiggler let out a confused squeak and he chuckled. "I mean…where do you think the Axem Rangers would strike next? I've been racking my brain for hours but I can't seem to think of anything."

Wiggler didn't seem to have an answer either. He grumbled and rolled over on his side. What made it worse is that…he was the Champion. Like Skyla said, people were counting on him now. It was a bit different when he was just a regular trainer, no one really expected him to step in, though they weren't surprised when he did. Now he was expected to do it. He heard the door open, interrupting his thoughts and he sort of felt glad about it. To his surprise it wasn't Homika who stepped in but May. She looked around before noticing him. "Oh hi E! Is this where you've been hiding?"

"Well not hiding—"

Wiggler let out a squeak of disagreement and she giggled. "He said you are hiding."

He rolled over and shot Wiggler a look. "Well…maybe I am."

She closed the door behind her and locked it. "Finally, I can get out of these dumb clothes."

Wiggler let out a terrified squeak as she pulled off her top and he shrugged. What was Wiggler freaking out about? "You act like this is the first time this has happened."

Wiggler squeaked. "What? I'm not some sort of pervert!"

May grumbled. "I'm his partner, remember? He got that flower from the dangerous cliffs and presented it to me after that!"

Ignoring the part where he got tricked into that because Koopa had no interest in having a human partner but he had decided to take responsibility anyway. It hadn't been so bad…aside from convincing her to wear clothes in public. That had taken some time to explain and get her to agree to but once they said she could go with less clothing in private, she seemed to accept the deal. Which is why he wasn't sure why Wiggler was still confused by it. "Yes, partner."

"Do you guys have another word for it here?"

"Yea, wife but still haven't gotten to explaining that to…well a lot of people so partner works for now."

May stretched out her arms. "People keep giving me odd looks, especially boys. They just stare."

"Well you aren't wearing any…underwear. Things…tend to show…"

May looked at her somewhat impressive chest. "So…what? They never seen a girl before?"

He felt like laughing. Oh May, would you ever get used to the norms of life? "They have…a lot but most guys aren't used to seeing a girl wear clothes like that…in public. Most girls wouldn't be caught dead wearing the bear minimum like you do. And most guys…if they see a pretty girl and she isn't wearing much, well they will stare."

She walked over to one of the windows and closed the blinds. "And you just blushed and looked away."

"Well yea, it's rude! I mean it's okay now since I'm used to it and you're my partner and all."

May sat down on the edge of the bed. "So why were you hiding?"

"I was thinking?"

"Oh about those Axe…I mean Axely…or was it—"

"Axem Rangers," he said as he moved over a bit. "They're a gang of Power Ranger wannabes that came from a videogame. Obviously I don't think they stepped out of the videogame—"

"Why not?" She asked as she lay down next to him. "There are so many mystical Pokemon, right? On Dino Island, we had a Pokemon that could cause volcanoes to erupt and drought. It's greatest rival is a…well I think it's some sort of whale and it causes powerful storms, hurricanes and monsoons."

He felt like arguing but it just caused him to think of some of the legendary Pokemon from Sinnoh. Wasn't Palkia the Pokemon of Space? Would it really be that outlandish to believe? If Charon could use Arceus to change the entire world, couldn't Palkia drag some characters out of a videogame and make them real? "Yea but…"

"I don't understand how you would drag people out of a TV. How do you even get people in those things anyway? Do they shrink people in it or—"

"I'll explain it one day."

She reached over and grabbed his arm before draping it over her warm body and across her chest. He froze up as he fingers fell on her breasts. Darn it May, if you were cold, why not grab a blanket? "Are you going to relax?"

"Well…I would be a lot more calmer if you weren't draping my arm across your naked chest."

"But all Shamizard mates cuddle together like this. It's how they bond and shows who belongs to whom. Don't people do that too?"

"Ahh well…people usually don't have to go that far to show others that. Usually a word or two is enough—"

She pulled him a bit closer. "You know what? You're like Iggy…one of the…what do you call them again?"

"You mean the Shamizards?"

"Shaman…I mean Shamo…well them! He's one of the smarter guys in the village, the one who comes up with all the big plans, the whatchamacallits …but he was a big worrier. He would worry about this little thing or that big thing…or that not so big thing. Worry, worry and worry some more just so he could worry about worrying about why he was worrying about something to worry about!"

"W-what?"

"Stop worrying! I thought you said these guys were supposed to be a joke! If they're a joke…doesn't that mean—"

"Well I do think they're a joke but I can't take them lightly either."

"Worry."

He tried to pull his arm away but she wouldn't have any of it. Well she could move the hand to other places so he would just have to live. "I'm not worrying. I just want to be cautious. I don't want to look like—"

"Worry."

"May would you stop that?"

"Then stop worrying so much! You are E. You beat Team Rocket…Team Gally—"

"Galactic."

"Yea those people. Then you beat Team Rocket again! And you're worried about five people dressed like the rainbow."

Ugh…she kind of had a point there. While he was so busy worrying about the Axem Rangers, he had forgotten that he had taken out a lot of Pokemon criminals, time and time again. Team Rocket had posed a serious threat to the world with their gang of super Pokemon, Charon and Team Galactic had successfully remade the world and…he was worried about four guys and a girl, armed with axes? Maybe instead of worrying, he should just take care of business so things could go back to normal? He sighed. "This would be so much easier—"

"Worry."

"May…if you don't want me to worry, then what?"

"You're my partner…and I want my partner to be comfortable with me. You become cold and hard like a rock…you fall over your tongue…you don't—"

"I'm still getting used to you. And you're still getting used to me. That…kind of thing happens."

She tugged on his arm a tad. "Then get used to me. You want me to get used to…umm people but you have to get used to me."

"Okay…so other than holding you…how does the Shamizard get closer to each other? Spending time together?"

"Fighting each other to see who is the best. Walking the path of death. Sharing blood with each other. Mating. Sharing things."

"Uh…walk the path of death?"

She turned over to face him, touching noses. A mischievous smile appeared on her face. "Yes…it's in the volcano. A long narrow road where you must walk over hot coals, dodge the lava rocks, scale the cliffs and then earn the trust of Groudon."

"That…sounds terrifying."

She frowned. "Terrifying for the man who takes on Pokemon bad guys?"

"Well I guess you have a point there."

"We should go back and do it together. All members of the village do it. I've always wanted to do it but I never had a partner to do it with. Now—"

The door to the trailer burst open and May sat up, pulling him up with her. She covered her chest with his arm but somehow he didn't think it was because she was afraid of being seen. "Ethan…where the f*** are you?" Homika yelled. She turned around and saw the two of them before grumbling. "I leave you alone for just a minute and—"

"Didn't you two say that in private, I could stop wearing clothes?"

"Lock the door!"

He cleared his throat. "She did lock it. You just kicked it in!"

Homika looked over at the door. "Oh…it was locked."

"Do I have to put on a shirt now?"

"Yes!"

She looked around, ignoring her shirt that lay off to the side before she turned to him and pulled the shirt off his shirt and put it on. "Hey, I need that!"

"Why is it that he can go around with no shirt but I can't?"

"We've…been over this you…look, here's your shirt right here! Give Ethan his shirt back so—"

"Can't he wear my shirt? We bought it from the boy's section, didn't we?"

"He can't…well he might be able to fit it now that I think about it."

"Now wait just a minute…I like my shirt. It's bad enough Lyra took my hat away, now you'll rob me of my shirt?"

May rolled her eyes. "Sharing."

Homika shook her head. "Anyway Ethan, I was looking for you to ask what's next?"

"Well Unova is a pretty big region, with more people than any other region. It's gonna be hard to comb the entire region looking for them so our best bet is to alert everyone, which I did and catch them in the act."

Her eyes grew wide. "That's it?"

"Well…did you look at them?"

"They do look like the rainbow," May said as she tossed her shirt at him to wear.

"Yea…if they do show up, everyone will notice them quick—"

"What if they aren't total dopes and try to disguise themselves?" Homika asked.

"Well if they do that…I'm not worried. Even if they disguise themselves, I'm sure they'll still identify themselves with the color of their uniform," he said as he put May's shirt on, which was a bit looser than he imagined. "They said they want to cast a blanket of fear over Unova…it would sort of defeat the purpose if they don't go out in full costume."

She sighed. "F*** we just dealt with Team Rocket and now these f******! Can't they leave well enough alone? What's the big deal?"

"Who knows?"

"I just want those b******* gone before the concert. I don't want them crashing it. Remember what happened the last time someone crashed it?"

His phone began to ring and Wiggler bounced over to get it. He tossed it at him and he barely caught it as May giggled. Yea yea. "Hello?"

"Oh hey boss! Listen, I don't have a lot of time but I think I found something really really awesome. Or suspicious."

"What is it Skyla?"

She chuckled. "Well you know how you asked me to look around for anything suspicious? Well I sort of found something in the northwestern part of Unova. It doesn't look like any sort of airplane or helicopter still being used."

"So…what is it?"

"It appears to be some sort of airship, or perhaps a blimp. It could also be a hot air balloon. It's tough to tell from the shape but it is not an airplane or helicopter."

He smiled. "Huh…well it's something. Does anyone in Unova have something like that?"

She burst out in laughter. "Are you kidding? A bunch of Pokemon sees those things floating around and tries to test to see how strong the material is which holds the helium. And…quite a few have failed the test so no one bothers anymore."

He nodded and rubbed his chin. "And you said it's in the northwest?"

"Yep, hiding in the woods northwest of Mistralton."

"Well I guess I'll have to go check it out, thanks!"

He hung up a bit afterwards and looked at the two of them. "So?"

"Skyla said she found a suspicious looking aircraft to the northwest of Mistralton. I said I would check it out. I guess I could have let her do it but she's keeping an eye on the skies for us anyway."

"Oooh, sounds like we get to sneak around!"

He laughed. "I don't know about that but it looks like it's something we have to check out. Are you coming Roxie?"

"Yea…f*** sure. I'm sort of tired of practicing so much anyway. I need a break in the routine."

May frowned. "You don't seem real happy."

"We're following a f****** lead. It's not like we're catching those b*******!"

He sighed. "She was just making a comment. I understand you're nervous and a bit on the edge because of their attack and the concert but we don't need to be attacking each other."

She folded her arms and looked away. "Yea yea…I'm just…urgh, I'm a f****** nervous wreck!"

"I know…and stop it!"

"You two both worry too much."

May pushed a large branch aside and looked around like a dog on the hunt. "I don't see it."

"Are you sure Skyla said it was around here?"

He nodded. "Yep, she said it was similar to a blimp or a hot air balloon."

Homika threw up her hands. "But we've searched this entire area, several f****** times! And nothing! Not a d*** thing!"

There was that little issue. If it was as big as Skyla said, they would have found it by now but they had already been out for hours and no dice. May stood up straight and put a hand on her hip. "We like walking in circles."

"Uh, no."

"Roxie, that was a joke," he said. He sat down on a nearby rock and folded his arms. "Well let's just think about this for a second. I trust Skyla's judgment, if her radar found something here, it has to be around here."

"If it was around here, why can't we see it? If it's big, there is no way we could miss it."

"I have an idea! Let's sniff for it!"

They looked at her and May suddenly got to the ground on all fours and began to sniff the ground like a dog. Wiggler let out a squeak of…confusion and he was a bit stunned too. She crawled around a bit before she looked up at him, some dirt on her nose. "I think I smell something…this way!" She said as she pointed off in a direction. She got back down on all fours and crawled along, still sniffing at the ground.

"Are you f****** kidding me?"

He finally snapped to attention. "Ahhh well…I guess that works too?"

"You…you guess that works too? Look at her! She's on all fours, a** in the air and acting like a f****** Growlithe and you say that works too?"

He looked over at the visibly red Homika and laughed. "Well I mean…"

"Weren't we trying to get her to act more like a human? And now you want to encourage her to not…"

"Roxie…she was raised by Pokemon for years and years. She isn't going to transform overnight. It takes time…she may never become fully trained but she's already come a decent way."

Roxie pointed in the direction May had crawled away. "She is on all fours like an animal. We have to really struggle to convince her to stay in clothes or at least something that keeps most of her body covered and…"

"Would you calm down? Why does it matter to you?"

She pointed a finger in his face. "Because…"

He pushed her finger away. "I'll deal with her so stop griping about it. What happened to the nicer and kinder Roxie?"

She folded her arms. "That Roxie doesn't have to deal with a wild girl pretending to be a regular girl."

He followed close behind May while Homika lagged behind, as usual. The only thing he could think was that he was glad May hadn't been around for Homika's tongue-lashing. She seemed like a tough girl but he wasn't sure if she would know how to deal with Homika's sharp tongue. May lead them to a large clearing, one that had been to before and he looked up at the coniferous treetops. "May…we've been here. We even flung rocks in the air to see if it was cloaked…nothing."

She sat up on her knees and wiped the dirt off her nose. "But I smell some gas around here. It has to be around here."

Wiggler let out a squeak and he looked over at him. "Huh…well that's an idea too. Yea, see if you can fire an attack up in the air. Maybe it's a bit higher than we thought."

He bounced forward and heard May clear her throat. He looked over at her. "Ummm…did I get you in trouble with Mika?"

"What do you mean?"

She looked down at the ground. "I overheard you guys arguing about me."

"Oh…that? Haha. You didn't get me in trouble. Don't mind Homika…she has a strong opinion on a lot of things and she can be sort of mean spirited."

She seemed to perk up. "Oh? So you aren't in trouble?"

He put his hand on her head. "Of course not. It was just…kind of strange watching you do that."

"Oh…yea! I'm sorry…I know I'm not supposed to move around like that but I couldn't think of any other way to sniff the dirt for anything. I kind of have to be like that."

He sighed. "You don't have to do that. Humans don't have great noses—"

"But I do! How else was I able to smell that gas?"

"Ahh well…gas is a strong…never mind. Good job May! It's good we can depend on your senses like that."

She cocked her head to the side. "Even if I don't act like a…normal girl sometimes?"

"Sure."

"Good."

Wiggler let out a squeak as he used Aura Sphere to launch an attack up into the air, in hopes of hitting something. The large sphere of yellow energy traveled up in the air for quite a length of time but eventually it exploded in a bright flash of light as it came in contact with something. Soon a large rainbow colored hot air balloon appeared high above their heads. "Oh…wow…I guess that's the aircraft."

"How did they all fit in that thing?"

"Hey Wiggler bring that thing down…permanently!" He yelled before looking at them. "Well they won't be riding in it now!"