"Grrrraaaahh!" I slam my fist down the console, nearly destroying the touchscreen with the force of the impact. My anger and frustration are very apparent, my face twisted into a mask of rage. The source of my emotion is also apparent: Lucario. How is it that Wiizal can't even hit that little bitch? How? That damn creature has somehow managed to dodge, or live through every attack my Floatzel can throw at it. Everything! Not even using surf worked, and now Wiizal can't even use that. I thought about pulling out Cataclysm again. A ground pokemon would be far more effective against this target... Then again, my foe would probably continue to escape it all. Still, I need decide what I'm going to do, and fast. Wiizal is tiring out quickly, and it won't be long before it can't attack anymore. Figures it would be now that I realize the usefulness of ethers and the like. I can hear Lucas' voice in my head, and it's mocking me for my arrogance as he's often done. I raise my fist again to for another hit to the console, but I think better of it. I must remain calm, or at least try to. As I remember thinking earlier, rage could cost me the battle, be it my pokemon, or my own.

I hear a thud through my headset, and turn to see that Wiizal has fallen to the ground exhausted. The poor creature is nearly at the end of it's rope, no longer able to battle effectively, or at all for that matter. And yet that dumb little bitch of a Lucario is jumping on it, raking the spikes on the back of it's paws across Wiizal's flesh and drawing blood.

I send my hands flying across the console, dragging two icons into their appropriate boxes, and press the withdraw/resend button. Wiizal dematerializes from beneath the wench, causing it to fall, and a new pokeball rolls into the arena. The capsule bursts open in a blaze of glory, a custom ball capsule, releasing a female Charizard. Across the arena in the other booth, Lucas swallows noticably. Now, we shall see if his pokemon can stand up against me.

"Charling, annihilate it." My command is calm, unbetraying of my true feelings: The desire for bloodshed.

"..."

"Problem." Lucas said out loud to no one in particular.

Eve answered him anyway. "I see it."

"Growth level ninety-two. Fourteen levels higher than Lucario."

"Do you ever name your pokemon?" Eve asks out of curiosity rather than relevancy.

"Only in rare cases." He began whispering into the headset again. "Lucario, how do you feel about dodging more attacks?"

"Not very!" She sounded frightened. "Get me out of here!"

"I'm sorry, but I can't."

"Huh? Why?"

Lucas bit his lip nervously. "Basically put, you're our best bet for defeating the Charizard."

"How?" She sounded even more scared. "How am I the best choice?"

"Who are you talking to?" Eve asked. Lucas fell silent, blushing bright red. He couldn't admit to talking with his pokemon. Clint hadn't believed him, and niether would she.

"Myself." He lied. "I have Multiple-Personality-Syndrome."

"Hey, that's pretty cool!" Eve blurted without thinking. Lucas turned around in the chair to face her. She had just called a major psychological problem "cool". A problem wherein one's concious self goes into the background while the other personality surfaces, preventing the other's participation in life.

"Eh, er..." Now she was blushing. "Isn't it?"

Lucas bit his lip, stopped thinking about her faux pas, and started thinking about his lie. He had just made a big mistake. If she ever mentioned what he had just said around Clint, he would be caught in lie. One that would be incredibly hard to either prove, or to tell the truth. If he tried to prove it, he would most likely fail. That failure would cost him his friendship with Clint, and any kind of relationship with Eve. but if he told the truth, people would think he was crazy. Both paths were connected by a signle person: Eve. I guess, she won't be my girlfriend after all.

"I-I-I'm sorry." Eve stammered. "I-I shouldn't have said that." She hung her head, and began fidgeting wwith her hands.

Lucas waved a hand at her. "It's ok."

"I didn't think before speaking again, and I really shouldn't have said anything."

"Really, it's ok." Especially since I just did the same thing. "Let's just worry about the battle at hand right now."

Eve, remaining silent, nodded. Lucas turned back to the battle, and closed his heart once more.

"..."

A flood of fire erupted from Charling's mouth, scorching everything on the arena floor... Except that damn Lucario, which is currently clinging to the top of the arena wall. Damn it! Climbing the walls shouldn't even be allowed. Eh? What's that little bitch doing now? Oh, it's running between Charling's legs. Yeah, that's real original, bitch. Everybody runs between Charling's legs. Hell, even I've done it a few times in years past. Man, if I don't do something soon, Charling's going to end up like Wiizal. The only problem being that I really don't have any other pokemon that's better suited to taking the Lucario down. I have a Staraptor with the knowledge of Aerial Ace, but that's not very effective against steel types. Of course, fighting types aren't very good against flying, either. That would make the playing field more level than it is now, but that's a problem. I like the odds to be in my favor all the time, if possible. And if they aren't, I get nervous. Kind of like right now. None of my pokemon can hit Lucas', thus shifting the odds out of my favor. But I had to let Charling try. If I started seeing signs that it was ending up like Wiizal, I'd pull it out and let Cataclysm have a shot.

Charling currently had the Lucario backed up against the wall, and was preparing for a mighty belch of flame. The flaming beast reared it's head back, and spewed flame from it's mouth, scorching the wall and the creature against it. I grip the edge of my seat and lean foreward, hoping to see my enemy fainted on the ground. Yet, somehow, the thing is still standing. Badly burned and on fire, but still standing.

"Finish it!" I scream into the headset excitedly. "Now! Before it's too late!"

Charling was about to let loose another volley, when the three-foot high monstrosity leapt at the throat of my pokemon. The look on it's face was of pure rage, clearly pissed at having been scorched. That must've been what was keeping it going.

Charling grabbed the angered beast, and held it before it's mouth. I look on with a crazed smile spreading across my face, waiting impatiently to see the Lucario's annihilation. But the annihilation didn't come. Instead, both Charling, and the Lucario started looking around as if searching for something. This won't do.

"Finish it, Charling!" I yell into the microphone again. I instantly pull off the headset as Charling starts roaring uncontrollably. It's cries almost sounded like it was worried. Bizzarely enough, Lucario is doing the same thing. It's still struggling against my pokemon's strength, only it's yelling it's head off while doing so. Although, I suppose that is a reason to be screaming. Charling, however, is a little different. I raise one eyebrow at it's actions, and just stare. Across the arena in the other booth, it looks like Lucas can't quite figure it out either.

"..."

"What do you mean "it's" happening?" Lucas asked Lucario. "What's happening?"

"I need to get out of here! Let go of me!" That's all she said other than grunting from the struggle, and her gurgling roar of communication with Charling.

"What's going on out there?" Asked Eve, refering to their odd behavior.

Lucas shook his head, and threw up his hands. "I couldn't tell you. It's like they're going crazy out there. Something is scaring both of them, but I can't get a straight answ-... uh, I can't figure it out." He had almost said get a straight answer from my Lucario, but she won't tell me a thing, but had managed to correct himself in time. His MPD excuse would take care of the rest. But he still needed to know what was scaring them.

Charling finally let go of the howling Lucario, and both of them began running around in a strange pattern. First they would run one way, then in the opposite direction, switch positions, and repeat. The crowd was transfixed on them. They shouted and cheered at what they must've thought was a choreographed dance. But something was most definitely wrong. Lucas couldn't stop thinking about what his Lucario had said. It's happening... I can feel the earth changing... I need to get out of here... What did it all mean? What was happening? How was the earth changing? Why did she need to get out? Was an earthquake on the way perhaps? That was impossible. Sinnoh had never suffered from a single earthquake in it's long history. Why would that change? A new lava channel maybe? But, geologists would have known of such things by now if any such thing were forming, and would have notified the public to any danger. So what was wrong?

Lucas reached for his glass of water, when he noticed something. There were ripples running across the water's surface. But the desk with the inset console wasn't shaking, or at least it didn't appear to be. And the ripples didn't get smaller, or stop, either. They gradually grew until a noticable vibration began shaking the cup towards the table's edge. Lucario's sceams became more frantic as she began trying to climb the wall with Charling joining her. And that's when everything went to chaos.