"The closest Gym from here is in Azalea," Liz informed me. "It specializes in bug-types and the Gym Leader is fairly new, so it should be relatively easy."

I nodded. "Gotcha." However I noticed Liz's silence. "Hey, what about you? Aren't you after the badges, too?"

"I can put a hold on that. I have a contact in Goldenrod City I would like to visit."

"For what?"

All she had to do was dart her eyes towards a particular egg placed on the table. I immediately understood, but still the fact that I never would've thought of that crossed my mind. However Liz continued, breaking my thoughts.

"Listen to me, Khalifa." She stared sternly at me now, her obsidian eyes like daggers digging into me. "You're still inexperienced. You won that Gym battle only because of luck."

She paused, letting the words sink in. But it wasn't necessary. I was well aware of that.

"I know someone in Azalea who may be able to train you," she revealed. "He's not the cheeriest folk on the block, and he'll probably require you to do some work, but it'll be worth it in the long run." She began to turn away, eyes closed in her cool demeanor. "When you're done, head to Goldenrod City. There's a person I want you to meet."

Who is he?" I asked. "The person in Azalea, I mean."

"His name is Kurt."

My last conversation with Liz continued to echo in my mind as I sprinted down the central road that made Route 32. Finally my old agility was returning, awakened by my recent travels. And maybe this "Kurt" person could awaken them even more. I moved on even faster, eager to reach my destination. I wasn't really concerned that I still had over a day of travel to go.

The only thing that delayed my schedule was the Route 32 was much longer than the trek from Cherrygrove to Violet. It was at least a three day travel—and that's only when you hurry. However I had moved at a good—but comfortable—pace on the first day. When impatience set in, I progressed quicker. That was the pace I moved in now on my second day of travel, eager to reach my destination.

The weather was still beautiful: the sun shining brilliantly in the blue sky and the air just the right temperature. It made me wonder if I should slow down to enjoy it, and maybe even search for Pokémon. If I had already gotten two Pokémon in just the first stretch of my journey, how many could I find here? But before I could explore the idea any further, my trek had another interruption.

Suddenly the air was filled with a gigantic clap of thunder; so loud I swear the ground beneath my shoes trembled. Startled, I stumbled, but quickly regained myself. Frozen, I looked at my surroundings with curiosity. At first I thought it could be coming of bad weather, but I quickly noticed there wasn't a single storm cloud in the sky. Instead, I focused on a different cloud. This one was just above the tree line. It was pitch-black; its broad shape quickly forming into a rising column. My stomach twisted as I realized it was smoke.

My Ranger instincts kicking in, I took off into the woods to search for the source. I didn't bet on that it would be another Pokémon I could catch, but I still didn't expect what greeted me. After a less-than-a-minute sprint, I skidded to a halt. My jaw dropped.

The trees opened up to a small dirt-covered clearing, however instead of a wall of trees on the opposite side, was empty air above a drop-off. The blanket of the forest continued in distance, but was noticeably at a lower altitude. But that wasn't what caught my attention.

Standing in the center of the clearing was a humongous creature. Standing on its hind legs, it was taller than the average man and its broad form made it that much more intimidating. The long claws on its paws and sharp teeth just made it terrifying. Its thick fur was an earthen brown save for the yellow ring on its belly. I immediately recognized it as an Ursaring, and I immediately noticed its furious expression. Its glaring eyes were narrowed and its lips were curled in a vicious snarl. The beast's gaze never left the silver stone in front of it, which was almost reduced to rubble and still smoldering with black steam.

I stared with my mouth wide open, wondering if I should be awed or horrified. But before I could digest any more of the situation, a familiar voice chuckled, "I wouldn't get any closer to that Ursaring, if I was you."

Immediately I recognized the voice. Automatically I spun around, adrenaline already pumping, only to see him. Standing there with a wicked grin and an arrogant gaze, was Silver.

The teenager stared at me, and was obviously amused that I was so easily intimidated by his beast of a Pokémon. I was surprised that it took me a moment to make my mouth move, and even then all I could say was, "You…"

Silver's grin widened. "Yes, me. I'm surprised you made it all the way out here. I figured you would go back home crying." He began to move by me. "At least, that's what you looked like when I left."

My eyes narrowed in anger. "Well, I didn't."

Silver only snorted as he confidently neared the Ursaring, completely unafraid. He plucked a Pokéball out of his pocket and sucked in the Hibernator Pokémon. I raised my eyebrows.

"He's yours?" I gasped.

"Of course he is," Silver snapped. He turned to me, his eyes in a dangerous glare. I flinched, but he still went on even though I didn't say anything. "I only let powerful Pokémon on my team. I don't waste my time with weaklings. Only the strong survive and the weak get creamed. They don't even deserve to be called Pokémon."

Immediately I bristled. That's not what my father and I believed at all. Every Pokémon was unique in its own way and had its own type of inner strength. And even if somehow it wasn't strong, it was still a living creature. It should be respected just as much.

"Pokémon are Pokémon, whether they may be weak or strong," I defended. "They're living creatures."

Silver raised his chin. "Worthless living creatures."

I snarled. "Tell me you did not just say that."

"What if I did?"

"You are such a douchebag!"

Once again I growled in my deadly tone, but to my surprise, Silver only laughed at my insult.

"That's all you got?" he mocked. "Jeez, you're stupid."

I stepped forward, holding a Pokéball in front of me. "I'll prove it to you," I vowed. "Let's have a battle. One-on-one."

Silver's eyes hardened. "Bring it on."

Like my other trainer battles, I stood away from my opponent, leaving several meters between us for our Pokémon to battle it out. We used the clearing as our battlefield; even though it was noticeably scarred from whatever training Silver pushed his Pokémon through. And it was smaller than the other spacious fields I used, but it could house our Pokémon. As long as he didn't bring out that behemoth Ursaring.

The redhead was staring at me now, hand on his hip in a confident posture and an even more arrogant expression on his face.

"You sure you want do to this?" he sneered. "Like I said, I don't waste my time with weaklings."

"Just shut up and make your move, jerkface," I retorted.

Silver let out a half-laugh, half-snort sound before fully extending his arm by his side, a Pokéball in his hand. He leaned a little before twisting and tossing the ball above the clearing. I followed his example by also throwing my Pokéball onto the field. Surprise was the very least what I was feeling when I saw our match-up. I had tossed out Fennekin; he had chosen Totodile. The very same Totodile I had already chosen—before he took it away. Already I felt a pang in my heart. I noticed Silver was sneering at my Fennekin, face twisted in wicked amusement.

"Based on how you were whining so much before, I assumed only water-types worked for you," he commented. "I guess not, if you got a fire-type, which is weak to water."

The amount of mockery in his voice made me want to skip the battle altogether and slap him in the face. But swallowing all the will-power I had, I ignored his rude comments and began the battle.

"Fennekin, Scratch!" I barked.

In a blink of an eye, the tiny fox dashed towards the Big Jaw Pokémon with glowing claws. But Silver only closed his eyes and tilted his head.

"So stupid," he sighed. "Water Gun!"

Totodile's eyes didn't even narrow as it opened its huge jaws wide, letting out a jet of water. There was nothing I could do as the gusher slammed into Fennekin, completely engulfing her and sending her flying back. Her muffled scream could barely be heard. The Fox Pokémon skidded onto the ground, completely soaked in a puddle of water. I drew a breath, but before I could call another order, Silver beat me to it.

"Bite it while its down," he ordered, but his tone was frighteningly dull.

My eyes widened, and my disbelief grew as Totodile charged with no hesitation. It jumped to my fallen Fennekin's side and clamped its enlarged and glowing jaws on her back. Immediately the fox let out a high-pitched scream and began to squirm, trying desperately to escape but only to fail. I felt panic setting in, but I knew I couldn't leave Fennekin like this.

"Flame Charge!" I yelled.

Even though Fennekin couldn't move, she willed the fire to surround her. I couldn't tell if this one was strong or not, but it didn't matter. The fire burned the inside of Totodile's mouth and eyes, immediately sending the small crocodile reeling. For some reason my heart twisted even more watching it flail and its growls sounding too much like crying. How easy could it be that this could have been my Pokémon. I paused and stared solemnly at it, not even noticing Silver's outburst.

"What?" he barked. After another moment of Totodile sobbing, the trainer threw his arm and bellowed, "Get over it, Totodile! Keep going and finish it!"

At his master's harsh order, Totodile shuddered and reluctantly lifted its claws from its closed eyes. It forced its crimson eyes to open, sending a determined glare to Fennekin, who was climbing to her feet. Once again Silver didn't hesitate to attack.

"Swagger!" he hollered.

Immediately Totodile started flailing its limbs again, but instead of pain, it seemed to be dancing. The tiny Pokémon was bouncing from one foot to the other and waving its stubby arms. It was barking and growling continuously towards Fennekin, almost like it was taunting her. During this, Fennekin began to change. Her narrowed eyes widened and her focused gaze became dazed (excuse the rhyme). Her tiny jaw kept opening and closing, like she wanted to speak but couldn't. Then she started wobbling on her feet and swaying her body, like she was drunk even though she was a Pokémon.

I first I was baffled at what was going on, then my brain caught on to what Silver had said. Swagger. A move that confuses the Pokémon's opponent. The glaze over Fennekin's eyes proved she had little-to-none recollection to what was going on. I grinded my teeth and decided to have faith in my Pokémon.

"Fight it, Fennekin!" I encouraged. "Flame Charge!"

Fennekin didn't hesitate to leap toward Totodile, but she didn't even pause to charge up the attack. And it was so weak it didn't even look like a Flame Charge. I half-expected Silver to make another mocking comment, but instead he simply went on with another order.

"Rage!"

It looked like Totodile lifted its lips slightly in the beginning of a snarl, but I could only catch a glimpse before a confused Fennekin slapped into it. I gapped at Totodile's hardiness as the Big Jaw Pokémon barely budged and took the attack head on—literally—with Fennekin's head buried on the top of its jaws.

I watched as suddenly Totodile looked up, eyes narrowed in a glare and crimson slits burning. Looking into those eyes caused another lesson to flash through my brain. Swagger also forced the confused Pokémon's attack to rise, while Rage grew stronger the more damage the user took. I gawked at the ingenious combination. I brushed off that Silver was only giving harsh and brutal commands, but in fact he was using a well-thought strategy the entire time!

I blinked out of my trance to see Totodile stepping back and swinging a tiny fist back only to deliver a savage punch to Fennekin's chin. The Fox Pokémon let out a whining cry before being thrown back, almost sending her literally flying through the air.

I didn't have time to react.

"Water Gun!" Silver yelled.

A jet of water shot towards an airborne Fennekin, slamming into her belly. The pressure forced her back, and my gaze quickly followed her path.

"NO!" I screamed.

My body lunged forward on its own, blocking Fennekin's flight. The soaked Pokémon crashed into my chest, hurting my ribs. But all I could do was wrap my arms around her as my shoulder slammed onto the ground. But Fennekin's impact pushed me a little, and I felt the drop of the cliff an inch from my back.

The Water Gun was cut off, but my surroundings were drenched in water, including myself. I lay perfectly still with my Pokémon in my arms trembling, soaked to the bone and scared out of her wits. I sensed Silver's awed gaze staring at me, but I ignored him as I forced myself into a crouch with a sigh. I held Fennekin in one arm and the other buried a fist in the soil. Now panting, I stared at Silver in a narrowed gaze.

"You almost killed her," I accused. I couldn't even recognize my own voice.

"It was a Pokémon battle," Silver defended. "It's not my fault she was weak."

"Will you just shut up."

I didn't see his reaction as I returned Fennekin, who was now unconscious. Without a word, I climbed to my feet. Silver and I just stared at each other, completely unmoving. There was no sound at all. Then I reached my breaking point.

I let out an outraged yell, almost sounding like a screaming banshee. I lunged forward, but I forgot just how close to the edge of the cliff I was. The loose soil crumpled underneath my foot, losing my balance before I even realized what was happening. My body submitted to the force of gravity, following my misplaced limb. Silver's figure quickly panned away, replaced by the sky as I lost all feeling. I couldn't even work up a good scream before it happened.

Suddenly I felt an iron grip on my wrist, abruptly halting my movement. I was over the cliff, but my feet were buried into the rock and my wrist…

I looked up to see Silver's dark eyes, boring into me. His black glove was wrapped around my arm, not showing any signs of letting go. His body was completely rigid, more so than mine. I tried to read his face, but his expression was completely unreadable. Without a word, he pulled his arm, hoisting me up in amazing strength. I actually had to fumble to regain my balance with a hiccup.

I felt the adrenaline was already coursing through my veins, but I was surprisingly still. I was still trying to process what just happened. I didn't look at Silver, but I could feel my rival's stare never leaving me. And I could tell pulling me up was no strain for him. Finally I spared a glance at him, but he was already turning away.

"Be more careful," he warned. There was no mockery.

And just like that, the crimson-haired teenager walked away.

Blegh, anyone else having problems with the copy-and-paste function for documents? It puts all my work in one giant paragraph and I have to fix it. So I apologize if there's any weird mistakes. I may have to change to just submitting a file, which I honestly don't like, but you gotta do what you gotta do.

Sorry for the late update, been busy with a lot of stuff. Moving, writer's block, school, etc. But I see this story finally got a little more attention, which helps motivates me, so thank you, guys. Not that I wouldn't write this story, anyway.

I actually like this confrontation much better than the first, now I got a better hold of their personalities. My Silver is sort of a combination of the one from the game and the one from the manga: cruel and arrogant, but a smart and athletic trainer. And Khalifa I think I'm basing off myself, right down to the battling style. XD

As always, tell what me what you think!