Loose Cannons
The trio of trainers soon arrived in Virbank city with Ryan eager to battle Roxie and gain his second badge.
Firstly, however, they decided to wander around the city and see if anything was going on.
As they walked past a TV store, however, May noticed something.
"Hey, loot at this" She told the boys.
As they came over and looked, they could see what May was going on about.
On the TVs in the windows, the news was being shown.
Only this time, it the news reporter was talking about them.
Video footage of them walking out of the Aspertia City Pokémon centre appeared on-screen.
"The people of Aspertia City and indeed the Unova Region have come to expect many things in their lives, including the fact that both Aspertia City and Nuvema Town have birthed two Pokémon masters, one of whom is the reigning Unova Champion. One thing that Aspertia City didn't expect, however, was the arrival of Brendan, the Hoenn region champion and Pokémon master in his own right. Not just that, he arrived in Aspertia City with his girlfriend, May, and a rookie trainer by the name of Ryan"
Cheren then appeared on-screen.
"Well, those three walked into the gym with Ryan asking to challenge me. They then walked away with a Basic Badge" He told the interviewer.
"So, this Ryan kid. The students of the school are saying good things about him. Do you see any potential in him?"
"Oh absolutely! I've had many trainers challenge me, but I've seen something between him and his Pokémon that really puts them head and shoulders above the rest".
The image changed.
"It is currently believed that the three trainers are currently heading to Virbank City to challenge Roxie, the local gym leader there. Whilst many things can be said about this new trainer, if Cheren's words are anything to go by, he might just be a force to be reckoned with".
As the news broadcast ended, a huge smile appeared on Ryan's face.
"Wow. You're already making waves, mate" Brendan said, patting Ryan on the head. "The way you're going, you'll become a celebrity in no time."
Just as the word "Celebrity" slipped out of Brendan's mouth, the news came back on the telly.
"Amateur film fans, cameras at the ready!" Declared the news reporter. "Pokestar Studios have announced they are starting a brand new competition to find the best young director. All those who want to enter are required to sign up at pokestar studios to be in with a chance to win a mystery prize".
The three trainers looked at each other.
"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Ryan asked with a big smile on his face.
Brendan and May both nodded vigorously.
"Well then, let's go!"
The three trainers dashed off in the direction of pokestar studios in the hopes of winning the mystery prize.
Thankfully, the three trainers managed to find the place to sign up once they arrived at pokestar studios.
They noticed a long line of people queuing up in front of a small stand with a sign on the top.
All Contest entrants here for entry forms.
The trio then spent the next hour standing in line and waiting to get the entry form.
Once they finally got the form, they checked over the list of contest rules that came attached to it.
"Let's see here" May muttered as she began to read through the list. "In order to compete in the competition, you must come up with a short movie to give to the judges. The movie must be 15 minutes long at most, but it can be whatever genre you wish. Contestants will also be allowed full access to the pokestar studios props, costumes, makeup, equipment and special effects departments. You must hand in your finished movie to the contest representative by midday Saturday. That's three days from now".
Brendan had been having a small look around as he'd been listening to May reading out the rules.
"May" he said tapping her on the shoulder. "Is that who I think it is?"
As May and Ryan looked in the direction, they instantly recognised the unkempt cyan hair of the person Brendan was talking about.
"BRAWLY!" Brendan called out to him.
The figure with the unkempt hair turned around to reveal that they were indeed the Dewford town gym leader.
He gave a massive grin when he recognised Brendan.
As Brendan motioned for him to come over, the trio discovered that he was with two other people. The first was a male, not much older than Ryan, wearing blue shorts, red jacket and had spiky black hair. The other was a female, roughly the same age as hugh. She was wearing long black tights, a yellow skirt, a white and blue top and a white and pink cap. She also had long brown hair.
Brendan and May went up and embraced Brawly in a massive hug.
"It's great to see you two again!" Exclaimed Brawly as they broke the hug.
"Same here. What might you be doing in the Unova region?" asked May.
"Well, I felt like having a time out from being the Dewford town Gym Leader and decided to visit the Unova region. I heard that there was a film competition on, so I was heading to sign up. It just so happens that Hugh and Rosa were showing me around when they decided to sign up as well" Brawly told them, indicating to the two trainers next to him.
"Glad to meet you" Hugh told them, shaking hands with the two Hoenn trainers, as did Rosa.
Rosa then noticed Ryan standing next to Brendan.
"Who's this?" She asked.
"Oh, this is Ryan. He's a rookie trainer we've been travelling with"
"Pleasure to meet you" Ryan said as he shook the hands of Hugh, Rosa and Brawly. "So anyway, you said you were heading to sign up for the competition, right?"
"Yeah. We've always wanted to try our hand at making movies" Rosa told them.
"Well then, instead of you guys going off to sign up, how about you guys join our group, so all six can make the short movie?" Ryan asked.
"You think so?" Enquired Hugh.
"I think it'll be a good thing" May told them. "With the six of us, we could make this thing much better than anything three of us could make".
The three other trainers thought about this for a minute.
"Very well then, we'll do it" Hugh told them.
The group of six soon found themselves sitting in the mess hall, deciding the premise of their film over lunch, with Ryan taking down the notes.
"Okay. Firstly, the genre of the film. What should it be?" He asked.
"Martial arts" Brawly said.
"Action" Countered Brendan
"Sci-Fi" Countered Hugh.
"Okay then, how about it's a Sci-Fi action movie with some Martial Arts elements added to it?"
The group nodded in agreement.
"Okay, what should be the main premise of the movie?"
"Giant robots"
"Aliens"
"Saving the Damsel in distress"
Ryan pondered for a moment.
"Okay. I have an idea for the main plot". He told the group.
They all leaned in, listening eagerly.
"The movie begins with aliens attacking the Unova Region in giant robots. The Unova Defense Force try to counter the aliens, but to no avail. So, as a last resort, the UDF commander calls in two former members of the UDF who were disavowed for being loose cannons. However, just as they're about to lay waste to the aliens, they discover that the aliens have captured the daughter of the president and threaten to exterminate her if they don't surrender. From there, the loose cannons have to sort out the aliens, whilst trying to rescue the damsel in distress. How about that."
The other five thought about this for a minute.
"That sounds like the most awesome thing ever" Hugh told them.
The other four nodded their heads in agreement.
"Alrighty then, lets get this done!" Declared Ryan.
The six then finished off their lunch and ran off to begin filming their piece.
What had originally started as a good week for the people of the Unova region had now become a fight for survival.
Whilst the week had indeed been peaceful for most of it, the attacks had caught them off guard.
Now, the UDF and their allies were the only thing that stood between the people of the world and total enslavement at the hands of the Zugonian space empire.
Now, Commander Brawly, leader of the UDF, was sat at his desk, wondering as to how they would possibly be able to counter the Zugonians.
However, there was one major flaw to everything he thought of.
When the Zugonians launched their crusade on Humilau City, they'd arrived in 300ft tall fighting robots.
Now matter what the forces of the world threw at the robots, they glanced off the robot like they were just sticks and stones.
All the UDF and their allies could do was slow the advance of the robots.
Behemoths, they called them.
In Brawly's eyes, there was nothing they could do to win the war.
Just then, however, the phone on his desk rang.
The commander answered it.
"Hello?...Yes sir, this is Brawly speaking...Yes, I know that this situation is looking bad!...No sir, there nothing much else we can do by the looks of things...What do you mean "we need them back"? You don't mean...I'm sorry sir, but I swore that I'd never let those two re-join the UDf if they were the last soldiers on the planet... Yes, I know they're incredibly skilled and get the job done well...Sir, the fact that they're loose cannons was the reason they were disavowed to begin with!"
Brawly sighed as he opened one of his desk drawers, took out a personnel file and placed it on his desk.
"Very well then, sir. I'll bring them in...Goodbye sir".
As Brawly hang the phone, he dreaded having to do this.
He opened the personnel file and looked at the personnel's pictures.
Whilst Brawly knew that these two had a habit of ignoring command and doing their own thing, he had to admit, when it came to getting the job done, they were in a league of their own.
The two in question were Sergeants Brendan and May. The two of them had originally joined the UDF a few years before the war began and had rapidly risen through the ranks for getting their missions done quicker and more efficiently then anyone else in the force.
However, they had a knack of regularly ignoring orders from their commanding officers and completing their missions in their own way. They did this once too often and ending up paying for this with their jobs.
This, however, didn't stop them from selling their stories as books and making a ton of cash from that.
With the cash they had acquired, they'd been able to retire to a large house outside of Dewford town.
As Brawly prepared to give the call, Brendan and May were relaxing on their balcony in their pyjamas, eating their breakfast and looking out over the horizon.
Below them, on the porch, their beloved Pokémon, Brendan's Sceptile and May's Blaziken were sparring with each other.
Just then, however, May's Pokegear started ringing.
Her face was like thunder when she recognised then number of the person who was calling her.
She and Brendan still considered Brawly the one who cost them their jobs.
"B, I thought I told you to never call me on this device again" She snapped as she answered.
"Nice to here you too, M" Brawly replied sarcastically.
She sighed.
"Look. If you're calling just to get Brendan and I to run an errand for you and the UDF, I'd advise you hang up right about now".
"No need" Brawly replied. "This request comes straight from high command".
This caught the duo's attention.
"High Command? I thought they were done with us, us being so...reckless and all" Brendan said.
"Let's just say that your impressive track record has led them to give the order for you two to come back. So are you two up for a little bit of freelancing?"
"What's in it for us?"
"Better facilities, better resources and a large pile of cash. Still got your colours?"
"Yeah I... think we've got them somewhere."
"So, when can I expect you to be in the Unova Region?"
"We'll be there before you know it" Brendan finished before May hung up.
Not too long after making the call, Brawly found himself wandering around his almost empty barracks.
Most of his soldiers were elsewhere in the region, trying to halt the advance of the Zugonians.
The rest of his men were prepping to leave.
He walked out onto the main landing strip, lost in deep thought.
Just then, however, he noticed a small black speck in the sky.
This then became two black shapes.
As they got closer, Brawly realised that they weren't a new form of Zugonian fighting vehicle, but Brendan and May, flying in on a Swellow and a Tropius.
They were wearing the uniform of the UDF. The main difference, however, was the fact that these uniforms were all black instead of red and silver.
"Well, that was quick" Brawly told them as they landed next to him.
"Let's just cut the crap and get this thing over and done with" May replied as she hopped off her Tropius.
"Very well then" Brawly replied, pulling a small holographic projector out of his pocket and turning it on, showing the image of the Zugonian's behemoths attacking Humilau City.
"As you know, the Zugonian army has launched an all out attack on the Unova region. We've tried to hold them off, but their behemoth robots have proved more than a match for our defences. In fact, they've managed to push us back to Opelucid city and they're currently marching in that direction".
"So where do we come in?" Asked Brendan, hopping off his Swellow.
The image on the screen changed to show the leader of the Zugonian army. It had almost exactly the same shape as a human. The main differences were the four large, luminous, disk like eyes on it's head, the various strange spikes coming out of it's head and it's blue skin that looked like putty.
"Well, the original plan of action was to assassinate the Zugonian army leader, Zyphodia Hughonis".
The image changed to show a girl, bound and gagged, hanging upside down from something.
"The only problem was, however, was that Zyphodia had taken Rosa, the president of the Unova region, hostage. Zyphodia also threatened to have the girl killed if he and his personal guard happen to be attacked. That's where you two and your Pokémon come in. Your job is to infiltrate Zyphodia's personal behemoth, neutralise him and rescue the girl. Do what you want with Zyphodia, but not a scratch on Rosa. Got it?"
"Yeah, yeah" May replied, climbing back onto her Tropius as Brendan climber back onto his Swellow. "So, where might they be?"
"The Main Behemoth strike force is heading for Opelucid City, but Zyphodia and his personal guard are heading for Castelia City".
Without another word, Brendan and May took off and flew in the direction of Castelia City.
"Well. Some things never change" he said to himself.
When the two arrived there, they found the Behemoth group marching into Castelia City unchallenged
"Hey. Is it me or do those Behemoths look a bit like Genesect?" Asked Brendan.
"Yes. Yes they do" Replied May. "So which one is the girl in?"
"Well, seeing as one of them is black whilst the others are red, I'm going to guess that one". Brendan guessed.
The two decided the best way to attack was to take them by surprise.
They decided to go about this by flying directly above the lead Behemoth and silently dropping down onto it.
As they stepped off their pokemon, May reached into her pocket, pulled out a pokeball and released her Blaziken from it.
"Blaziken! Use Flamethrower!"
Blaziken then unleashed a long trail of flame from it's mouth, melting away part of both the top and side of the Behemoth's head.
Brendan and May returned Swellow and Tropius to their pokeballs before they and Blaziken jumped inside.
Inside, they discovered a lone chair, sitting in front of a control panel with a screen that was illuminating the room with a dark blue light.
They noticed a rubbery blue hand gripping the arms of the seat.
Zyphodia Hughonis stepped out of the seat and turned to face the three.
"Ah, who is this? Another group of humans to subdue?" He asked, with a strange mutant husk in his voice.
"Where is the girl?" Asked May.
This was greeted by a loud scream of "I'M DOWN HERE!" Coming from somewhere down a nearby ladder.
"I'll deal with this guy. You go for Rosa." May whispered to Brendan.
May then cracked her knuckles.
"I'm really going to enjoy this" May rasped.
"Well, if that's the way you want to sort this, so be it." Zyphodia replied.
May and Blaziken then charged the Zugonian leader, launching an array of martial arts attacks against it.
Now, if it had just been May fighting Zyphodia, May would've been destroyed by Zyphodia.
But the simple fact that Blaziken was there really caused a problem for the commander.
As the three fought on, Brendan slipped down the ladder.
He arrived in a small, dark chamber within the Behemoth's torso.
Next to him, Rosa was chained to the ceiling, upside down.
"Oh thank god you're here. They took me onboard and chained me up and thought I was never going..." She began.
"Save it for later" Brendan interrupted as he began pulling at the chains. "Right now, I'm getting you out of here".
After spending a few minutes struggling with the chains, he decided to release Sceptile from its ball.
"Sceptile! Use Leaf Blade!"
As Sceptile landed a powerful leaf Blade attack on the chains, they shattered into many small pieces.
Brendan then picked up Rosa and put her over his shoulder.
"Okay, now we need to make a way out of here. Use Leaf Storm!"
Sceptile then released an even more powerful leaf storm attack on the side of the chamber, creating a big hole in the wall.
Brendan then released Swellow from his ball.
He then jumped onto Swellow's back, still carrying a screaming Rosa, followed by Sceptile.
"Please stop screaming, you're damaging my eardrums" Brendan moaned, exasperatedly.
This caught the attention of Zyphodia, May and Blaziken, who were still battling in the head of the Behemoth.
"What?! NO!" Roared Zyphodia as he stared up at the Swellow.
This proved a good enough distraction for the Zugonian commander.
"Blaziken! Hi Jump Kick!"
As Zyphodia turned round, he received an almighty kick to the jaw from Blaziken.
This was enough to send him through the burnt hole and plummeting to his death, screaming all the way.
May then rushed over to the controls.
They were tricky to figure out, but May was soon able to control the cannon on the Behemoth's head.
As the cannon swung round, it unleashed a burst of energy at one of the nearby Behemoths, causing to explode in a giant fireball.
This was the fate that also befell five others.
However, as May came to the final one, she knew she wouldn't have enough time to take it out.
As it energized it's cannons, May and Blaziken made a dash for the hole, leaping out just as it fired, narrowly avoiding being cooked alive.
As they fell, May released Tropius from it's ball.
She and Blaziken then grabbed onto Tropius's back as it flew away.
They then met up with Brendan as they flew away.
"Great job back there" Brendan told May and Blaziken, giving them a high five. "So now what?"
"Now we take down that last behemoth before we head for Opelucid City".
"Sounds good to me" Brendan replied.
As Swellow and Tropius flew alongside each other, Brendan and Sceptile leaped across, catching hold of Tropius.
"Swellow, you take Rosa back to base. Head to Opelucid City once you're done".
Swellow obliged, flying off into the distance as Rosa hung on for dear life.
Tropius then swung round to take on the final behemoth.
Despite it's best attempts to shoot it out of the skies, Tropius easily dodged out of the way of its energy blasts.
As Tropius flew overhead, Sceptile and Blaziken both leaped down, landing on the head of the behemoth before continuously striking it, trying to break through.
Eventually, this proved successful, with the two Pokémon dropping through a small hole they created into the cockpit of the behemoth.
The piloting Zugonian immediately tried to take them down, but the alien was easily overpowered by the two Pokémon.
With that, the two began launching furious attack after furious attack to the innards of the behemoth, easily causing lots of damage.
As the cockpit began to blaze, warning lights began to flash.
The two Pokémon decided to take this moment to evacuate, leaping out before the whole thing exploded in a ball of fire.
"Good job you two! Return!" Brendan said as he and may withdrew the two.
As the last behemoth went crashing to the ground, Tropius then began flying away.
"Alright then. Opelucid City, defeat the army, win the war, get paid, go home. How about that?" May asked.
"I couldn't put it better myself" Brendan replied.
As the duo flew off into the distance, the film cut to black and the credits began to roll.
For a short moment in the movie theatre, there was silence.
This was then stopped by wild clapping and cheering from the audience.
In the middle of the movie theatre, Ryan, Brendan, May, Brawly, Hugh and Rosa were sitting in the seats, giving each other handshakes and high fives all round, with Squirtle still sitting on one of Ryan's shoulders.
How the film had turned out filled him with confidence. At first glance, it looked as if he and his crew would be a surefire bet to win the contest.
However, a quick rundown of the films that had come before made him feel uncertain all over again.
The screening list looked like this:
1) TEAM NAME: THE CASTELIA CONQUERORS
FILM TITLE: THROUGH THICK AND THIN
GENRE: ROMANTIC COMEDY
2) TEAM NAME: X-POWER
FILM TITLE: TERMINAL PUNISHMENT
GENRE: ACTION
3) TEAM NAME: THE WILD PINSIRS
FILM TITLE: THE CABINET
GENRE: POLITICAL THRILLER
4) TEAM NAME: VELOCITY
FILM TITLE: NIGHTSHIFT
GENRE: HORROR
5) TEAM NAME: THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB
FILM TITLE: STONE OF WAY
GENRE: ROMANTIC DRAMA
6) TEAM NAME: THE VIRBANK OCCULT SOCIETY
FILM TITLE: BEAST OF DARKMOOR
GENRE: FANTASY/HORROR
7) TEAM NAME: AQUARIS
FILM TITLE: PROJECT Z
GENRE: PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER
8) TEAM NAME: THE SPECTACULAR SIX (Ryan's team)
FILM TITLE: LOOSE CANNONS
GENRE: ACTION/SCI-FI
Generally, reactions for the eight films had ranged from "this is awesome" to "don't quit your day job". Some looked like something an actual movie studio would produce, whilst others clearly seemed like something an amateur filmmaker would make, be it do to either wonky camerawork, wooden acting, or a dud script.
So far, "Project Z" seemed like the favourite to win the competition. Whilst watching it, the audience had actually felt on edge and cared for the fate of the main characters. It was the most emotionally invested they got for any of the films.
Mind you, whilst "Project Z" had been getting very good reactions, so had "The Cabinet" and "Loose Cannons", so perhaps it wasn't as clear cut as it had originally seemed.
In the audience, Ryan and his fellow crew-members congratulated themselves on a job well done.
Mind you, not everything had been perfect about their final piece. For a start, they had been having issues with their green-screen during the production phase and whilst they had been able to iron out most of the issues, they still didn't think that it looked quite right. Also, they had to be brutally honest and admit that whilst Brendan's performance wasn't bad, it could have been better (Brendan wasn't offended by this. Even he admitted it).
As the applause died down, one of the contest representatives appeared in front of the audience.
"Now, before we announce the winner of the contest, we'd first like to say thank you to all those who participated. You've all made some great movies" They declared. "Anyway, onto the prizes. The group who the judges think have made the best short film will receive the following: A $60,000 cash prize, tickets to the premiere of the final "Brycen Man" Movie, multiple signed boxsets of the "Timegate Traveler" and "Red Fog of Terror" trilogies, a set of six evolutionary stones...and this Pokémon egg!"
The contest representative stepped aside to reveal small table. On it, within a glass case, sat a white egg with light blue and white patches on it.
This was greeted with many people in the audience going "ooooooh".
"The winning team will also have their short movie shown during the build up to a select group of upcoming blockbuster films".
Another contest representative handed the first one a golden envelope.
"As I said, everyone tried their hearts out. But there can only be one winner".
The audience tensed with excitement.
"And the winner is..."
The representative opened the envelope.
"As I said, everyone tried their hearts out. But there can only be one winner".
The audience tensed with excitement.
"And the winner is..."
The representative opened the envelope.
There was a pause that seemed to go on forever, until finally...
"PROJECT Z!"
With that, the entire theatre erupted into cheering, as Aquaris leaped out of their seats, ecstatically congratulating themselves for a well-deserved victory.
As the group of seven walked down to the front to collect their prizes, The Spectacular Six, whilst disappointed that they didn't win, were gracious in defeat.
However, as the seven reached the front, shaking hands with the contest representatives, Brendan's expression changed to one of curiosity as he noticed one of the members of the seven: a girl with long red hair and matching red eyes.
"Is that...no. It can't be...can it?" He muttered to himself.
He leaned across to May and whispered to her.
"Don't mind me saying, but does the girl with the red hair seem kind of familiar to you?"
May took a look at the girl.
However, before she could say anything, the lights cut out.
As pandemonium began to erupt in the darkness, the group heard the sounds of someone running into the theatre, picking up something and running away again.
As the lights came back on, everyone looked in the direction of the front of the theatre to see what had happened.
The Pokémon egg had been stolen and the group of seven were missing.
Almost immediately, pandemonium began to break out as everyone assumed the worst.
However, as it continued to grow, Brawly noticed the doors to one of the emergency exits were opened slightly.
"They went this way!" He declared, leaping out of his seat and bolting for the door. "Follow me!"
The rest of the group also leaped out of their seats in pursuit of the thieves.
They trailed the group through studio lot after studio lot, relentlessly chasing after them.
However, as they did so, they couldn't help but notice pieces of the group's clothing lying on the ground, leaving a trail for them to follow.
Finally, they were out in the open again, with the group alarmingly close to the exit. However, to the misfortune of the seven, they found their pathway blocked by security guards.
As they turned round to run back the other way, the six trainers caught up with them, leaving the thieves surrounded.
The trainers could now fully see what they was wearing.
The group of seven had stripped out of their regular clothes and were each wearing a black and white striped shirt and light blue trousers, complete with black gloves and a matching blue bandana with a stylized "A" on it.
Brendan's face was like thunder. He recognized that attire all too well.
The girl with the red hair smirked.
"Well, well, well" She declared. "Brendan. May. Fancy meeting you two here. Small world, huh?"
"Cut the crap, Shelley" Brendan snapped. "Now, before this thing gets any more nasty, enlighten us as to what Team Aqua would want with a single Pokemon egg?"
"Oh, I'm afraid we can't answer that" The Aqua admin replied. "If you really want to know, you'll have to take it up with my superiors".
The Hoenn Champion scoffed.
"Please. If I can beat Archie once, then he can easily be beaten again".
"It's not just him you'll have to deal with" the admin replied.
As if on cue, the black shape that had appeared in the sky, appeared directly overhead.
As it began to descend, they noticed that it was shaped like a medieval sailboat.
The main differences in this case where the strange dark blue fins on the sides and, obviously, that the ship was hovering in the air.
However, they instantly recognised the stylized "P" on the main sail.
Now, it was Hugh's turn to have a face like thunder.
The Plasma Frigate had arrived.
Then, ladders dropped down from the ship and dozens of Team Plasma and Team Aqua grunts dropped down from them, encircling the group.
"Well...That's new" Commented May.
"Now, I strongly suggest you surrender already" The grunt with the egg told them.
"Hey, head's up. I'm about to unleash my rage". Hugh told the others.
"HEY!" Came a shout from behind them.
As they looked round, they saw all the other trainers had caught up with the group.
"Let's do this!" Yelled Brendan as he went for one of his pokeballs.
"GO! SCEPTILE!"
The others then went for their pokeballs.
"GO! BLAZIKEN!"
"GO! SERPERIOR!"
"GO! SAMUROTT!"
"GO! HARIYAMA!"
"GO! RIOLU!"
As the other trainers went for their pokeballs, so did the grunts.
Pokestar Studios soon descended into utter chaos, with an army of Pokémon trainers battling against the combined might of Team Plasma and Team Aqua.
Amidst the chaos, Ryan noticed the grunt with the egg run away from the action and dive down a dark alleyway.
Ryan then dashed after him, tailed by his two Pokémon.
Thankfully for them, the alleyway happened to lead to a dead end.
As the thief span round to face Ryan, he pulled out a pokeball and threw it in the air, releasing a Poochyena.
In response to this, Squirtle leaped off of Ryan's shoulder and released a jet of water from its mouth, showing that it now knew Water Gun.
As Squirtle battled with Poochyena, Riolu launched a powerful Feint attack on the Team Aqua Grunt, causing the egg to go flying.
Ryan's body reacted before his brain did as he leaped forwards and just about managed to catch the egg.
Then, suddenly, the egg began to glow brightly.
It was hatching.
As Ryan held the hatching egg tightly, Squirtle and Riolu continued to hold off the Team Aqua Grunt.
As the egg finished hatching, the shell completely disappeared.
Ryan stared down at the Pokémon that was now in its place.
A Pachirisu was lying asleep in his arms.
However, as Ryan looked down at the Pokemon in his arms, he noticed something off about it. For a start, he knew what a Pachirisu looked like: white-ish fur, yellow cheeks and a blue stripe running down from its head to its tail. This Pachirisu, on the other hand, had cheeks that were a bright shade of red. In addition, the stripe wasn't a shade of blue, but a shade of black instead.
"Chi Pa?" It murmured as it began to stir.
Just then, Squirtle launched one final Water Gun at the Poochyena, knocking it out cold.
The Team Aqua Grunt then received another Feint attack to the guts from Riolu, causing him to pass out as well.
Just then, Brawly arrived in the alleyway.
"I just saw a bright light coming from here" he told Ryan. "Is everything alright?"
"It's more than alright" Ryan replied, as he got up and turned round to show the Pachirisu in his arms, now fully awake.
"Chi Pa!" The Pachirisu said happily.
Suddenly, the Pachirisu leaped out of Ryan's arms and dashed off towards the main battle.
Obviously worried for the Pokémon's safety, Ryan and Brawly tailed after it.
They arrived at the scene of the battle just in time to see the Pachirisu launch a powerful Quick Attack into the face of a Scraggy, knocking it out instantly.
Ryan and Brawly were amazed. A newly hatched Pachirisu had just knocked out a Scraggy as if it was a seasoned battler.
As the fight wore on, things gradually began to swing in the favour of the trainers, with the grunts starting to become heavily outnumbered.
However, whilst this was indeed the case, he grunts certainly weren't stupid, as they knew when they were in over their heads.
They therefore opted to change tactics.
"RETREAT!" Bellowed several voices from within the crowd of grunts.
Not wanting to hang around and wait for the police to show up, the grunts began falling back to the base of the ladders before climbing them up to the deck of the frigate.
"Oh no you don't!" Yelled out May, noticing the grunts escaping. "BLAZIKEN! FLAMETHROWER!"
The Blaze Pokemon then launched a long stream of fire at the ladders, burning through the ropes and breaking them off, causing any grunts currently climbing up to fall into a big pile on the ground.
However, before any of the trainers could fly up onto the deck of the frigate, it fired up its engines and took on, rapidly disappearing into the distance.
"NO!" Yelled out Hugh as he watched it fade away.
Seething angrily, he turned around and walked over to the pile of Aqua and Plasma grunts, looking to get some answers. Recognizing Shelly in the pile, he reached down, grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and dragged her to her feet.
"You'd better give me some freaking answers!" He demanded. "Why are you working with Team Plasma?"
However, instead of giving Hugh the answers he was looking for, Shelly simply laughed.
"Do you really think that we'd give up our secrets to a trainer like you? Get real. The only way for you to find out what we're planning is to wait and see. Only when our grand scheme is enacted will you realize and even then, you won't be able to do anything about it".
"You really think that this time you're going to succeed with your plan?" Brendan asked as he walked over to the two.
"Oh, I don't think that we're going to succeed. I know we're going to succeed."
Brendan smirked.
"I'd like to see you try".
By the time the police showed up, most of the carnage following the battle had been cleared up, with the remaining grunts being held by the trainers.
As the grunts were swiftly taken into custody, the contest representatives came around and thanked each and every one of the trainers for their effort in stopping the criminals from making off with the contest prizes.
Finally, the last representative, a man in what could be assumed to be his early fifties, arrived at Ryan and his friends.
"I suppose it's you six we have to thank the most" He said to the team. "You six reacted first and without you, we might have lost the egg. Thank you".
"That's alright man" Ryan said to him. "Although, I do have a couple of questions to ask".
He pointed to the Pachirisu on his shoulder.
"First of all, why does this Pachirisu have oddly-colored fur? Secondly, what would both Team Aqua and Team Plasma want with it?"
The representative sighed.
"I guess you deserve an answer" he replied. "Despite the amount of time that humanity and Pokemon have co-existed with one another, there are still many things that we fail to understand about them. For example, why are some Pokemon incapable of breeding with other Pokemon? A few years ago, a science team came together in the Kanto Region in order to solve questions just like this."
"Did they eventually discover the answers they were looking for?"
"One of them, yes. Just a few months ago, the scientists discovered an unidentified portion of the genome of a species of Pokemon."
"Did the genome belong to a Pachirisu, by any chance?"
"Highest marks. Upon further investigation, the team discovered that this is what prevented the Pachirisu from breeding with Pokemon outside of its egg groups. They also went and discovered a matching set of DNA in several other species of Pokemon".
"Let me guess..." Brendan interjected. "After finding a way to alter this portion of the genome, the team of scientists began to cross-breed Pokemon from different egg groups."
"Correct. Although the process was indeed very costly, they were able to find a way to alter the portion of genome and thus, allow Pokemon to cross-breed. As the Pachirisu family were the first group we discovered this gene with, they were the first to feature in the cross-breeding program. Despite quite a few early reservations, the program was a success, with several living subjects being produced, carrying significant differences to the parent Pokemon they bore the most resemblance to. For example, your Pachirisu came about as a result of cross-breeding between a Pachirisu and a member of the Electivire family."
"So, asides from the appearance, what's different about it?"
"Well, if previous research is to be believed, the base stat total of a regular Pachirisu is roughly 405. When this egg was first created, the team predicted a base stat total of something between 440 and 500. In addition, this could potentially allow the Pokemon the ability to learn more moves, some of them it may not be able to learn naturally.
The six were in silence. They simply had no idea how to respond to this.
"I guess the reason why Team Aqua and Team Plasma wanted to get their hands on it, asides from the obvious power boost, is that this is the first of its kind to be allowed outside of its lab, thus making it easier to get a hold of".
"But if that's the case, then why didn't they just go and find the lab?"
"Because it is in a top secret location. One that I can't say without risking a massive lawsuit for breaking my Non-Disclosure Agreement. Anyway, since the winning group has been taken into custody, I guess that makes you guys winners by Disqualification".
This caught their attention.
"Wait, what? Really? Alright then, sweet! Thanks".
A few moments later, several other tournament representatives came out, carrying the other prizes with them.
The group of six took a moment to share the prizes among themselves, evenly splitting the money into $10,000 bundles. Then, after distributing the other prizes, they each took one of the six evolutionary stones. Hugh claimed a Water Stone, Rosa claimed a Moon Stone, Brendan and May both claimed the Leaf and Thunder Stones and Brawly claimed the Dawn Stone, leaving Ryan with the Fire Stone.
All that was left was to figure out just what to do with Pachirisu.
"You know, I think it would be best if you took care of that Pachirisu, Ryan" Brendan told him. "A young trainer like you could use another strong Pokémon. Besides, it looks like Pachirisu has already taken a liking to you".
"Chi Pa!" Pachirisu said in agreement, hugging the side of Ryan's head.
"Well, Rosa and I had best be going" Hugh told the others. "We're on the way back to Aspertia City".
"I'd better be heading back to Dewford Town" Brawly Added.
The six trainers said their goodbyes to each other before Hugh, Rosa and Brawly headed off in their separate directions. Hugh and Rosa to Aspertia City and Brawly to catch his ferry back to Dewford Town.
"Well then Pachirisu, welcome to the team" Ryan told his new Pokemon, stroking the top of it's head.
Ryan then pulled his pokedex out of his jacket pocket and scanned Pachirisu.
Pachirisu
The Elesquirrel pokemon
A pair may be seen rubbing their cheek pouches together in an effort to share stored electricity.
Level 7
Known Moves:
Growl
Bide
Quick Attack
Special Ability: Motor Drive
Ryan put the pokedex away, pulled a pokeball out of his bag and activated it.
In went Pachirisu.
Vwoop
Vwoop
Vwoop
Click!
"Well then, I think we know where to go now" Ryan told Brendan and May, pocketing the pokeball.
"Roxie?" They asked
"Roxie". He replied.
As Squirtle clambered back onto Ryan's shoulder, he withdrew Riolu into its ball and the three trainers headed out of Pokestar Studios, looking for Ryan's next big challenge: The Virbank City Gym.