When his Smatch went off, Sam Fisher quickly made his way back down to the transports. He was one of the first ones there, but found Lucario already meditating at the front door. The Pokemon opened its eyes and stood up as Sam walked in.

Sam made sure he was focused so that when he felt a mental nudge from the creature, he made it wait a moment before he allowed the psychic message to be received. Sam didn't want to challenge the creature; he wanted it to know he would control his own thoughts. Lucario got the hint, but his mental communication remained friendly.

Good luck, its voice said in Sam's mind. Sam attempted to reply mentally.

Thank you, he directed his thought to Lucario, who picked it up.

Fairly good for a beginner, Lucario complimented. But, next time, try to keep other thoughts out of your head.

Sam smirked, but realized once again that this thing had amazing abilities. By that time, the others were arriving and everyone headed back out to the transports.


Second Match—Sam Fisher vs. Lucario—"NSA Training Grounds" Stage—1:00pm

Lucario felt the familiar sensation of teleportation as he appeared on stage. He opened his eyes; this stage was new. It appeared to be a large building with an obstacle course. Right now, Lucario stood on a wooden platform held up on ten-foot legs with thick cross sections. There was some camouflage pattern fabric hanging off the platform and what appeared to be a machine gun turret. This smaller part of the obstacle course was floating about twenty feet above the rest of the course with no visible connection.

From this vantage point, Lucario could see the whole field as well as his opponent on the other end. Unfortunately, Sam could also see him and some shots from his pistol came flying at Lucario. Though they were easily blocked, the Pokemon decided he'd better get out of sight.

Sam watched Lucario bat the bullets away with some kind of blue fog emanating from his hands. His respect for the creature grew every minute, it seemed. But he still had a job to do. Sneaking his way around a corner of the wall, Sam made his way towards the Pokemon.

Lucario could sense Sam's presence somewhere near, but he couldn't see him. That was bad. Suddenly, a body fell from above right over top of Lucario. Reacting quickly, the Pokemon used Double Team and flung the figure back. Spinning around, Lucario readied himself as Sam got up.

Well, that didn't work out like I'd hoped, Sam thought to himself.

The element of surprise was one of his greatest weapons. Fighting a creature that could sense him without seeing him was a problem Sam knew he would have difficulty overcoming.

That fall and resulting attack had knocked the wind out of Sam, and Lucario pressed his advantage. The jackal-like creature threw several aura spheres at Sam followed by a quick series of aura-backed punches and kicks.

Sam ducked down and rolled away from the energized blows. He took a quick look around and spotted his escape. He leapt up and grabbed onto a pipe, then shimmied his way through a small hole through the wall to the other side.

Lucario followed Sam through the hole and jumped down. He just caught a leg running around a corner and took off after it. He rounded the corner and found a dead end with Sam nowhere to be found. Lucario immediately looked up, but there was nothing there. Instead, he got a strong electric jolt as Sam shot a sticky shocker at him.

While Lucario was momentarily paralyzed, Sam ran forward shooting his pistol. No bullets were blocked and he landed in a few blows when he got closer before Lucario could get up and dodge again. Sam evaded a few aura spheres before spider crawling between the walls and disappearing over the other side.

Lucario put the full force of the aura into his jump and followed Sam over the side. He landed behind the man, but was immediately hit with a baseball bat. The item sent Lucario flying off the stage and sent his counter down to two.

"Handy little thing," Sam mused to himself before finding another ambush spot.


Lucario regenerated right about where he'd started. Now he'd have to start over, avoiding Sam the whole way. Just as the Pokemon was reprimanding himself for not being more cautious, he saw something that made him extremely happy: a Smash Ball!

Sam saw the object floating over the next corridor and remembered from the introduction yesterday that these were very powerful. He didn't know where Lucario was, but he had to get it. Spider-crawling up the walls again, he leapt from the top of the wall towards the Smash Ball…and was immediately hit with an aura sphere. Sam watched in disappointment as the jackal attacked the object viciously, was enveloped by a rainbow-colored light, jumped high above the stage, and sent a concentrated beam of that blue "aura" directly for him.

Lucario watched Sam fly off the field as he slowly floated back down to the stage. Just as he landed, Sam rematerialized in front of him. The two duked it out in a fairly open space; Lucario launching aura spheres and powerful blows, Sam dodging, parrying, and shooting interspersed bullets.

Both fighters were at critical percentages when another item appeared. But they were too busy fighting each other to notice as the Bomb-omb walked between them and exploded, sending both warriors flying off the stage.


The two regenerated on opposite ends of the field again, but this time they didn't spare a single second calculating or preparing. They were in the heat of battle, and by common, unspoken consent, wanted to end the fight.

Sam was almost blinded as a second Smash ball appeared right in front of him. Lucario being nowhere in sight, he broke it open and was surrounded by the same glow.

As Lucario raced towards Sam's end of the field, he saw the man standing out in the open. The Pokemon didn't even consider a trap. He began firing aura spheres and racing for Sam. The man just stood and took the blows, bracing himself against a wall and allowing the creature to get close.

Is he giving up? Lucario thought. Does he want to lose? No, his eyes don't hold failure, his aura feels…victorious. What is he…oh, no.

By the time Lucario realized his mistake, it was too late. Sam reached forward and grabbed the jackal mid-sprint and put him in a choker hold. The Pokemon tried to get away, but this was no ordinary grip. The man's hands were like a vice, cold, unrelenting, and unforgiving. Struggle as he may, Lucario couldn't escape.

"Alright, let's talk," Sam said in his most commanding voice. He had the creature right where he wanted him, and the thing couldn't escape. "What's your name?"

You know this, why do you—?

"What is your name?" Sam asked again, louder, and with an even tighter grip.

Lucario! He gasped mentally.

"What are you?"

A Pokemon.

"And what do you think I'm going to do now?"

Lucario looked down and saw the edge of the field. How had they gotten to the outside?

Without waiting for an answer, Sam flung Lucario over the edge and sighed. He looked up and waited for the transports to return. His whole body ached from those aura spheres, and his Smatch showed the damage: 210%.

Sam wondered what was taking so long for the transports and looked back down. He came face to face with the Pokemon he had just thrown down, hurling himself through the air at Sam. The experienced spy couldn't help but yell out in surprise as it knocked him back against a wall, grabbed him, and threw him back down. Sam got up and tried to return the creature's blows.

The human was doing just what Lucario wanted him to. As Sam threw a punch at Lucario, the Pokemon reused his Double Team attack to avoid the hit and return it, double. As he flashed through the air towards Sam, he sent a mental message to him.

Time seemed to slow down for Sam Fisher as his mind echoed the words; It's over!


AN: So, yeah, plot twist, unexpected outcome, happy Pokemon fans, disappointed Splinter Cell fans. Of course, not so much a surprise if you read the comments. Again, two people voted, but at least this time they were unanimous. I think I'll decide the winners from now on, but feel free to keep suggesting any characters for cameos.

P.S. I've been really busy lately, so the next chapter is pending. Expect a larger number of additions by next summer, but until then, it's sketchy. Sorry.