Now, where were we? Ah, yes! Dina, Todd, and Pauleen are currently competing for the ownership of a Miraculous Fossil Rock by trying to find the princess of Nomadistan.

Meanwhile, the BB Brigade is plotting for another attempt at the cancellation of the Caliosteo Cup… The suspense builds!

Also I just want to say that I'm scrapping "Pokemon Trainer's School: Legend of Kyurem" and writing a more inspired Pokemon fanfic. Thank you to all of the nice, incredibly kind people that helped me make this decision!

(Imagine the sarcasm dripping so thickly from my voice that it forms a small puddle beneath me to get the full picture.)

-.-.-.-.-.

Dina walked through the streets of Cranial City in a hurry, but at the same time making sure to take her time. As much as she wanted that Miraculous Fossil Rock, she knew that it didn't pay to rush. Todd and Pauleen, apparently, didn't share that knowledge, so Dina also knew that she probably had an edge in this little contest.

She casually walked up to a Fighter and asked if he had seen Joanie and her dog. "Ah, yes, the lass with the dog," he said. "Saw them board a helicopter, I did. I think it was heading to Ribular Island." Dina thanked the Fighter and headed for the helipad. Once there, she asked the helicopter attendant for a lift to Ribular Island.

As the helicopter landed, Dina jumped off while it was still a meter from the ground. Seeing a group of Fighters strolling towards what looked like the Fossil Lawn, she stopped them and asked if any of them had seen Joanie. "Yep," said one. "I saw her heading into the Jungle Labyrinth."

Dina thanked them as well, then scurried off towards the Jungle Labyrinth. Already, the memories were flowing through her head – meeting Pauleen, the false monster, and beating Rockin' Billy in Round Two.

Luckily, Dina didn't see Todd or Pauleen at all when she arrived at and began searching through the Jungle Labyrinth. That meant that neither of them had heard that Joanie and Madame Pooch were here, or at least, they hadn't heard it in time. Before she could congratulate herself on an almost guaranteed win, Aeros warned, Don't get overconfident. Anything can happen. She decided to take his word, and settled down a little.

About a half an hour later, as Dina approached the deepest, darkest portion of the Jungle Labyrinth, where she had previously encountered the false monster, Aeros suddenly appeared with a flash of light beside her.

I don't feel right, he growled. Something up ahead is disturbing me. I think that I should continue in my Vivosaur form for now. Dina looked up at her black-and-white Vivosaur and nodded at him, both grateful and a little worried. What on Earth could tempt Aeros into coming out of his Dino Medal? she wondered nervously, then sucked in a breath and advanced into the dark jungle.

Suddenly, as they proceeded, Dina could hear snatches of what sounded like a conversation. She started at the familiar sound of Joanie's voice – it sounded like she was in some kind of trouble! She increased her pace, trying to keep herself hidden in the foliage. Aeros attempted this as well, but had significantly less success.

Soon, Dina peeked through the ferns to see Joanie standing on the sidelines in a clearing as a strange man fawned over Madame Pooch. Her eyes narrowed as she saw Madame Pooch's obviously troublesome situation. She struggled and squirmed, but the man persistently held on.

"No, no, widdle doggy!" he said in a ridiculously childish voice. "Don't squirm now! You have to be a nice widdle doggy!" Joanie stepped in as Madame Pooch's barking increased in urgency. "Stop zis!" she said in a voice that was half-command, half-plea. "Madame Pooch, she does not like you!"

The man smirked. "Wrong again, sister. The name's Pat Bull, and all animals like me. I've got this natural way with 'em, see?" He continued his petting and hugging of Madame Pooch, much to her distress.

Dina had seen enough. She burst out of the ferns and loudly said, "Then let's see if you have a 'natural way' with my Vivosaurs!" Aeros crashed through the trees after her and stomped each of his feet once, roaring frighteningly.

"Ah!" exclaimed Joanie in relief. "It is my friend, Dina! You are here at just ze right time, no? Please, you must make ze Fossil Battle with zis terrible man and save Madame Pooch!" Dina nodded as Pat Bull turned and saw the newcomers.

"I ought to smack you with a rolled-up newspaper, kid," he groaned. Dina retorted snappishly, "Then I ought to spray you with my water bottle."

Pat Bull laughed at this. "You've got a good sense of humor, kid. But if it's a Fossil Battle you want, bring it on!" Assuming a ready stance, Dina allowed Aeros to step in front of her with a thud that shook the ground. Reaching into her pocket for two of her other Dino Medals, she said, "Ready when you are."

She tossed the two medallions, and they flashed with blinding light, turning into Radox and Krypto. Pat Bull's eyes lit up in anticipation. "Time to show you who the real alpha dog is around here!" he shouted, throwing out his own Vivosaurs.

Two of them Dina recognized – they were both Machai, one with red stripes and one with green. But the third was something completely new to her. It looked like a mutant rhinoceros, with a massive, bladelike horn extending from its head and scale-like projections covering its back and shoulders.

No wonder I smelled something dangerous! exclaimed Aeros. That's a Heracles, the Super-Evolved form of Tricera! Dina clenched her jaw and piled on, "So it's bound to be much tougher than anything we've faced. We'll just have to be relentless with our attacks."

Dina's Fighter Watch revealed that Pat Bull's Machai gave him the edge in speed. He commanded both of them to use Machai Fang, which each hit Aeros. The twin blows made him take a step back, but he recovered, shrugging off the pain like it was nothing.

"Aeros, retaliate with a Wind Blast!" The Wind Blast came shrieking out of Aeros' mouth with a roar. Instantly, the red-striped Machai was knocked off its feet and into its Dino Medal. Dina blinked as Aeros roared triumphantly. I know that silver fossil powered Aeros up, she thought numbly, but that's simply ridiculous!

Full of new confidence, she told Radox to use Radox Headbutt on Heracles. Radox sped straight ahead, then suddenly jumped to the side and smashed into the side of Heracles' face, in order to avoid that great blade. Although the blow was powerful, Heracles barely noticed it, with only a jerk of its head to acknowledge the pain.

"Machai, use Machai Twist on Radox!" The green-striped Machai chomped Radox with its fangs, then dealt a quick uppercut with them, flinging Radox into the air and letting him hit the ground with a dull crash. But Radox's exoskeleton was tough from all the Fossil Battling he had done with Dina, and he effortlessly flipped himself right-side up.

Heracles had yet to move, and Dina was growing increasingly wary. "Radox, give Heracles another Headbutt," she called, "and Aeros, use Aeros Alert on him for good measure!" Radox once again collided with Heracles' head, and the huge dinosaur had no time to recover before Aeros' tail, then his teeth, connected with him in rapid succession. A massive chunk had been torn out of his LP, but he still had more than half left.

Only then did he attack, with a move that Pat Bull called Heracles Blade. His huge horn glowed with a whitish-blue light, then he charged forward with the speed and force of a car. The horn speared Krypto in the flank, causing him to recoil severely and roar with pain.

Dina winced – her Fighter Watch gave her Krypto's current LP count, and it wasn't pretty. "Krypto, use Krypto Virus on Machai to take him out of the fight!" The black predator reared back and exhaled a cloud of gas that enveloped Machai, disappearing as the tiger-like Vivosaur involuntarily inhaled it.

Out of FP, Dina winced as Heracles came in with another Heracles Blade attack. Luckily, Krypto managed to avoid the worst of the damage, but that glowing horn still hurt him badly.

Opening her mouth to give a command, Dina suddenly thought of something. She snickered under her breath and chose to end her turn without attacking. Confusion swam in Pat Bull's eyes, visible even under his sunglasses, but that soon dissipated. He yelled, "Machai, use Machai Twist on Aeros!"

The Machai bit Aeros on the arm, to which he flinched, and then did a backflip upwards, kicking Aeros under the chin. Aeros was hurt and annoyed, but otherwise perfectly fine.

Dina watched her FP climb some more. There was a lot there, over 200, but she still didn't have enough for what she wanted to do. Oh, well, there's enough to spend on a weaker attack, she decided. "Radox, use Radox Blade!" The trilobite's left horn began glowing as he ran forward, ready to rake Heracles across the flank with it. But Heracles saw it coming, and used his own Blade attack. The two horns clanged together like swords, and a huge flash and explosion of energy occurred.

When it was over, Radox came flying out of the resultant cloud of smoke and landed on the back of his shell. His legs feebly waved in the air before he became a Dino Medal again. Dina tenderly picked it up and put it back in her pocket.

On the other side, Pat Bull laughed at his somewhat easy victory, when Machai suddenly gave a howl of despair and keeled over on his side. As he retreated into his own medal and Pat Bull's expression changed to one of mixed fury and shock, Dina smirked to herself. Krypto's virus had done the trick, and now it was only Heracles left for the assault she was planning.

"OK, team, time to avenge our fallen partner!" she cried out to Aeros and Krypto. "Krypto, use your Krypto Combo on Heracles!"

Charging straight at Heracles, who stood there unconcerned, Krypto suddenly stopped and slammed his hip right into Heracles' own. Right after that, he clamped his jaws around Heracles' front right leg and physically threw him to the ground. The combined impacts actually made the normally stoic Super Evolver to wince.

"And I'm not done yet!" cried Dina. "Aeros, give him a taste of your newest skill! Use Aeros Special!" Pat Bull's eyes widened, as did Heracles. A slow, predatory smile crept across Aeros' face.

As Heracles got up from Krypto's earlier attack, the monochrome Vivosaur rushed up to it and slapped his powerful tail across its face, throwing it once again to the ground. Aeros didn't stop there, as he brought his fangs together with a thunderous crash on Heracles' flank.

Painfully, Heracles struggled to get up, weakening under the pressure of Dina's relentless attacks, but Aeros had yet to finish. He opened his jaws wide, as if preparing for another massive bite, and a huge curtain of green fire gushed out from his mouth, enveloping Heracles and completely obscuring him under the inferno.

Heracles gave his own version of a piteous scream (it was more of a gurgling growl), then dissolved into white light, leaving only his charred Dino Medal behind. The emerald fires slowly burned themselves out, revealing the small wasteland they had created out of what was originally a bed of grass and ferns.

"Agh!" exclaimed Pat Bull. "How could I have lost when I had my powerful Super Evolver to fight for me?" He bent down to pick up Heracles' Dino Medal, only to find that it was still scorching hot.

With a strangled yell, he raced off into the forest, frantically juggling the burning medallion between his hands like a hot potato. Aeros threw his head back and gave a laugh, to which Krypto and Dina joined in.

"Madame Pooch!" said Joanie gratefully, and her dog ran up to her and enthusiastically began licking her face. "You have suffered ze terrible ordeal, no?" Dina chose that moment to pipe up, "I wouldn't say 'terrible'. But that man really needs to keep it together."

Joanie stood up to her full height and walked a few steps toward Dina. "I cannot zank you enough, Dina!" she beamed. "If you had not been coming by just now…"

All of a sudden, Dina remembered why she was here (the heat of battle tended to drain her memory a bit). "Actually, I was…" she began, and explained to Joanie that Minister Pomposa had been looking for her.

When she was done, Joanie looked shocked. "A la carte!" she almost shrieked. "Minister Pomposa, he is here?!" But as Dina was about to explain further, she heard Todd's bellow from beyond the trees Aeros had previously smashed through.

"I found her!" he yelled, speeding up to Joanie faster than a Struthiomimus. Pauleen was on his tail, breathlessly protesting, "I saw her first!"

Joanie herself looked exasperated as the two of them argued over who would take her back to WildwestTower. They both ran off, dragging Joanie behind them, still arguing. The princess was so surprised that she could barely muster a word of protest.

Madame Pooch stood beside Dina, worriedly scratching behind her ear with a paw. She whined pathetically, to which Dina responded, "Don't worry, Madame Pooch. We'll go after them."

Dina gingerly picked up the dog and headed back through the Jungle Labyrinth, intent on getting to Cranial City.

-.-.-.-.-.

Wildwest Tower

Dina arrived at Joe's suite in time to hear Minister Pomposa boom, "SILENCE!" He went on in a quieter tone, "Now, where is the princess?" Todd and Pauleen, who had been arguing again, looked completely and utterly perplexed.

They weren't the only ones. Joe Wildwest as well as Dina were also confused. Joanie isn't the princess? she thought. But the only other one in that photograph was… She looked down at the dog in her arms as a realization dawned on her.

At that same moment, Minister Pomposa had seen Dina and Madame Pooch and positively leapt with joy. "She has returned!" he boomed again, this time with happiness and not anger. "It is Princess Pooch!"

Now Todd and Pauleen looked appalled as the minister knelt down on one knee to address Madame Pooch. "Somebody had better explain what is going on here," squeaked Pauleen, tearing at her hair in frustration, "and fast!"

Joanie looked at her and said with all honesty, "Ze princess you have been searching for is Madame Pooch. I am… how you say? Her attendant?"

The room was full of shocked faces. Minister Pomposa drew himself up to his full (and somewhat imposing) height and adjusted his shirt collar. "Harrumph, perhaps Minister Pomposa can explain…

"For many years, the Kingdom of Nomadistan was constantly at war. The people grew tired of the endless conflict and eventually blamed it on the frailties of human leaders." He seemed to put emphasis on the word human. "So one day, they decided to make a dog the new king."

There was a stunned silence, which was broken by Pauleen. "That seems desperate," she commented dryly, with a hint of a sneer in her voice. The minister turned to her and said matter-of-factly, "Perhaps. But in the end, the wars stopped, and the people reunited in peace. Ever since that glorious day, the Kingdom of Nomadistan has been ruled by a dog."

There was an even greater stunned silence.

Minister Pomposa turned once more to Princess Pooch, who looked upset. "Your people have been so worried for you, Your Highness!" he said with real sadness. "The dear Queen Mother has refused to play with her favorite ball out of worry! And His Majesty the King cannot gather the strength for his daily territorial markings."

Dina visibly winced and thought, Didn't need to know that…

Princess Pooch whined, and Joanie leapt to her defense. "Enough, Minister!" she exclaimed. "It was I who allowed her out of ze palace. She requested my help, and I could not refuse."

Minister Pomposa was quiet for what seemed like hours. "…Is your desire to engage in Fossil Battles that strong, Princess?" he finally asked Princess Pooch, to which she responded with an affirmative bark and the vigorous nodding of her head.

"Very well," the minister sighed. "I see no harm in staying here until your next match."

To say that Princess Pooch was overjoyed would be an understatement. She howled with delight, chasing her tail and running all over the suite (occasionally knocking things over, to which Joe Wildwest would always respond with a wince or similar gesture).

As Joanie ran to calm the dog down, Minister Pomposa turned to Dina, and she instantly drew her attention to the frolicking Princess Pooch and to him. "Now then!" he said with satisfaction. "It seems that you were the one to find our missing princess. As Minister Pomposa is a man of his word, you shall now receive your reward."

He drew from an expensive-looking suitcase (complete with a plush interior) the Miraculous Fossil Rock. Even from the outside, Dina could see that this was no ordinary rock. It seemed to pulse with energy, and from the few cracks in it radiated a mystical, golden energy. Bathed in its glow, Dina carefully took the rock from his hands and stared at it in awe.

"Harrumph," he suddenly said, making everyone jump. "Perhaps Minister Pomposa will go and see what charms this park has to offer…" He left for the elevator, followed closely by Princess Pooch and Joanie.

"Princess Pooch wishes to zank you for your assistance of earlier, no?" said Joanie to Dina. The princess jumped up into Dina's arms and licked her face joyously, then joined the minister and Joanie on the elevator.

"Um," Todd said uncertainly, turning to me and Pauleen. "Joanie's the one doing the actual battling, right? D'you think that Princess Pooch would be OK with that?"

Pauleen shook her head. "You know, I get the feeling that the battles have been waged by Princess Pooch herself. I guess Joanie was only pretending to do the battling."

Todd looked thunderstruck. "You mean a dog advanced in the Cup, but I got beat?" he whined. "Aw, man…" Dina couldn't help it – she started giggling. Pauleen joined in, and Todd chuckled nervously after a moment.

Joe Wildwest stepped up and cleared his throat. "Heck, Dina," he said, speaking for the first time. "Looks like you done went and saved the day again. But thanks to you too, Todd and Pauleen. Y'all gave it yer best shot."

Suddenly, a high-pitched beeping occurred from somewhere in the room. Joe hastily dug in his pocket and produced a worn Paleopager. He listened to the message for a second or two, then put it away.

"Looks like they finally got the durned hot spring at Hot Spring Heights open!" Joe crowed. "Y'all should check it out. It's a good place for soakin' yer old bones and clearin' the dust from the trail."

Todd, who had been looking dejected up until now, piped up excitedly, "Hey, yeah! A hot spring would be just the thing to heal my old wounds."

Dina couldn't help but snicker at him. "What wounds?" she asked between laughs. That earned her a rare glare from Todd. But he said anyway, "You should come check it out with me, Dina." He walked off and down the elevator.

Pauleen drew herself up haughtily. "You two have fun splashing in the pool," she said. "I'm going to get ready for Round 5!" She left right after that.

Dina glanced back at Joe, who smiled and said, "Good luck in the Cup, Dina," he wished her. "Yer gonna win. I can feel it, y'know?"

She simply smiled modestly and went down the elevator after her friends.

-.-.-.-.-.

Hot Spring Heights

When Dina entered the cave in which the hot spring was located, she went from freezing to unpleasantly warm. The humidity in the small resort was appalling, and she had to take her coat off to prevent herself from overheating.

"Hey, there you are, Dina!" called Todd, poking his head out from the changing rooms. "This is the biggest hot spring I've ever seen! I can't wait to get in and start soaking!"

It turns out that he didn't have to, as he ran out in his swimming trunks and leapt into the spring. He initially winced at the sudden change in temperature (from warm to scalding), then sighed contentedly.

"Oh yeah…" he said, mostly to himself. "That's the stuff… I can feel my blues just washing away… I may never leave…"

Dina walked over to the water's edge, planning on doing her soaking when she got a little more accustomed to the heat, when she caught a strange, fruity scent in the air. Weird, she thought suspiciously. Why would a hot spring smell like fruit?

Her suspicions grew even more when the hot spring water suddenly turned a bright purple, and its consistency became more like Jell-O.

"Eww!" gagged Todd. "The water's become all goopy and gross! I'm out of here!" But he didn't move. It was only then that Dina realized that he couldn't move at all. "Ahhh! I can't get out!"

Suddenly, his face lit up as he took a sniff of the water. "It's not water," he said slowly. "It's grape jelly!" He bent his head down and managed to grab a couple of bites from the surface. "Mmm, this is delicious," he murmured. "But I don't care! You have to get me out of here, Dina!"

Dina considered for a moment before grabbing his neck. She pulled with all of her strength, but got nowhere. She stopped when Todd choked out, "Let… go… of… my… neck!"

Dina huffed and puffed after letting go, sitting down next to the pool of jelly. Suddenly, she remembered what Joe had said when they had joined the Patrol Team:

"… I reckon they'll strike again before long. So I need y'all to keep yer eyes peeled for anything that looks like trouble. If ya smell anything fishy, just let either a staff leader or myself know, ya hear? That's the job of the Caliosteo Patrol Team."

She stood up and prepared to leave. "I have to go and find Kent," she told Todd. "I'm sure that he'll be able to help us." Todd attempted a nod, but his chin hit the jelly halfway through.

About ten minutes later, Dina was back at the hot spring with Kent in tow. The Staff Leader took a crack at freeing Todd by himself, but to no avail.

"It's no good, dude," he wheezed. "He's trapped in there like a dude trapped in a pool of jelly." Dina shot him a look. Ya think? she asked him inwardly.

Kent was speaking again. "I bet the BareBones Brigade is behind this, dudes," he said matter-of-factly. "It seems their kind of style." Dina agreed with him, saying, "Yes, that's what I was just thinking. What do we do?"

The Staff Leader thought for a bit, then hesitantly answered her question. "They probably messed around with the hot spring's water supply or something, yeah? This water comes through an undersea pipeline straight from Mt. Krakanak on Cranial Isle."

Dina nodded. "I'll have to check the volcano then," she said determinedly. Todd piped up from his edible prison, "I hear that they've installed a gondola to take Fighters into the volcano's crater. I think that's where the water supply is."

Kent continued for Todd at this point. "Sounds like a killer ride, yeah? Anyway, you'd have to go down there, 'cause it's too hot there for a snow guy like me. I'll stick around here and make sure no one drowns in jelly." Dina rolled her eyes at the usual lack of help on this rescue mission, but she complied. In a flash, she was off for Cranial Isle.

-.-.-.-.-.

Mt. Krakanak

Dina had just arrived on the rocky badlands surrounding the mountain when she heard a voice behind her. "Wait," it said sullenly, and she turned in surprise. It was Rupert.

"Oh, hi, Rupert," she said awkwardly. He gave her a smile in reply, then said, "Kent told me that you're off to check the hot spring's water supply. …Um, I… I want to go with you."

Although definitely pleased, Dina had to ask why. When she did, he shrugged indifferently. "I feel pity for Todd. No one deserves to be trapped in dessert." As Dina grinned, he said, "Lead the way, Dina."

She indeed led him up the slopes of the volcano, until they finally reached the spot where they had first battled the BB Brigade together. But there was something different this time around – there was a gondola, similar to the one in Rainbow Canyon, perched on the edge of the steaming crater.

Rupert got in first, and politely helped her in. They travelled down in silence, saying nothing as they felt the heat increase until it became almost unbearable. Dina could see the faint glow of lava from below.

Almost as soon as they climbed up out of the gondola and into the infernally hot crater, Rupert gasped and pointed to a distant part of the magma-filled chamber. "Look there, Dina!" he exclaimed, and she squinted in the direction in which he was indicating. Indeed, there were a bunch of BB Brigade lackeys bustling around, apparently commanded by a considerably larger goon.

"I knew I detected the stench of the BareBones Brigade on this plan," Rupert sniffed, face contorted with disgust. "They must be interfering with the hot spring's water supply. Let's make haste." Dina couldn't resist another smile. "Just like old times, huh?" she asked him, to which he shrugged and said nothing more.

They reached the opposite side of the cavern quickly, despite the rivers and channels of lava that they had to either move around or – God forbid – cross. Dina herself had to stop Rupert from slipping off a stepping-stone and falling in. He seemed relieved and grateful that she had saved his life, and she observed his face with glee.

The goons' chattering became audible as they neared the scene of the (still present) crime. "Faster, my roadies!" bellowed the larger one, obviously the ringleader of this plot. "Keep dumping that jelly powder in the hot spring well! Har har har!"

Rupert put on a burst of speed that took him right to the BB Brigade. "Halt, fiend!" he cried, and the four bad guys simultaneously turned to face him and Dina.

"Well looky here!" guffawed the leader. "You've got guts, showing your ugly mugs in a place like this!" Rupert smirked. "Ugly? You should talk," he sneered, to which Dina involuntarily giggled. It certainly was odd seeing Rupert insult someone in this fashion.

"I'm Lester, and I'm gonna rock your world!" the leader proudly proclaimed, ignoring Rupert's remark. "I'm one of the three… no, four… BareBones Brigade commanders!"

He bellowed with laugher, and his three lackeys joined in with their characteristic crow-like cackles. Dina rolled her eyes in exasperation at this exaggerated show. Rupert just shook his head.

"My plan's tighter than a snare drum!" Lester bragged. "I just fill the hot spring with jelly so that the Fighters can't move! If they want out, they'll have to EAT their way out, and by the time they're free, they'll be too fat to compete in the Cup!"

Dina, going off the deep end with this Lester creep, snapped, "These islands don't need any more fat people on them. You're quite enough, thank you."

Lester looked enraged. "Hey, no fat jokes!" he roared. "I get enough of those from the other commanders! Now get out of here while you still can, or I'll stomp your puny heads into jam!"

Rupert idly looked over at Dina. "Do you think you can handle this character while I deal with his minions?" Dina didn't even need to mull it over. She gave a single "Yes," of determination.

"Har har har!" laughed Lester. "My Boneysaurs are gonna play you the B-flat chord of pain!"

Dina ignored him and shouted, "Hopter, Radox, Tricera! Let's roll!" Her Vivosaurs appeared as one in differently colored flashes of light. Hopter, Radox, and Tricera gave out their own battle cries.

Lester brought out his own Dino Medals. "Now let's get ready to RAWWWK!"

His Boneysaurs appeared on his side of the makeshift battlefield, just as intimidating as usual. There was B-Rex, which Dina recognized from her battle with Cole. Then there was B-Brachio, a Boneysaur who was all neck and tail bones. Finally, there was B-Tricera, a ruby-red Boneysaur who angrily pawed the ground as if waiting to attack at any minute.

Dina took a quick glance at her Fighter's Watch – the number on the screen indicated that she had the first move. "Tricera, attack B-Rex with Running Smash!"

The blue herbivore rushed B-Rex, horns thrust out – but shockingly, B-Rex repelled him with a snap of its own teeth. The two combatants battled it out right there, B-Rex gnashing his fangs and Tricera jabbing with his horns, neither one able to gain the upper hand.

While they dueled, Lester commanded a Boney Rush from his B-Tricera. The red Boneysaur charged forward without hesitation, careening into Hopter with a huge crash. Angrily, Hopter got to his feet and shrieked his rage.

"That's it, Hopter! Use Beak Stab!" The angry pterosaur viciously stabbed at B-Brachio with its beak, causing the larger Boneysaur to flinch and back away.

Meanwhile, Tricera finally managed to score a direct hit on B-Rex's underbelly with his horns. Dark energy gushed from the impact site like a combination of blood and smoke, spreading out like a cloud beneath the injured Boneysaur.

Lester was working himself up into a frenzy. "B-Rex, use Boney Roar!" he called. B-Rex raised its head, forgetting its pain, and let loose with a clattering, scratching roar that caused all three of Dina's Vivosaurs to roar and moan as their ears were assaulted.

"Radox, use Radox Headbutt!" yelled Dina. The trilobite rushed B-Tricera, uppercutting him in the jaw with his helmeted head. The damage was negligible, but every bit counted, Dina supposed. Radox wasn't satisfied, though, and hissed angrily.

"Let's show 'em a real headbutt!" shouted Lester. "Give Radox a Boney Rush!" B-Tricera happily obliged, getting its revenge by smashing its head into Radox's. With a screech of pain, Radox scuttled in panicked circles before calming down again.

"We're not done yet! Crush that puny bug with Boney Stomp, B-Brachio!" Radox screeched again, this time in fear, as B-Brachio's massive feet plummeted toward him.

Tricera rushed to the scene, lashing out with his horns and stabbing B-Brachio in one of his feet. It roared as it felt the sharp point pierce its foot. "Impossible!" raged Lester. "Not so," Dina replied. "Hopter, give B-Tricera a Rock Wing attack!"

Hopter flew up into the air with difficulty, then vigorously flapped his wings, creating a sandstorm of dust and boulders that relentlessly pummeled B-Tricera. In the end, it was badly damaged, but it still managed to hold on with a third of its LP remaining.

Eyes glinting dangerously with rage, Lester told B-Rex to use Bare Tactics on Hopter. As Hopter landed on the ground, B-Rex's tail struck it in the underbelly, flinging him up into the air. Then, its jaws clamped down on one of his wings and tossed him to the ground. Hopter struggled to his feet, eyes flashing red repeatedly as he tried to keep his Berserker ability in check.

"I'll give Hopter a rest for now," muttered Dina to herself, then called to Radox. "Radox, give Lester's team a Stampede attack!"

Radox rose up, balancing himself on his blade-like tail, and shrieked shrilly at the sky. Out of nowhere came a stampeding swarm of trilobites that completely covered Lester's Boneysaurs, slashing and biting at them.

The attack lasted exactly four seconds, and then the little Vivosaurs disappeared into thin air. Freed from their coat of frenzied Radoxes, the three Boneysaurs looked badly hurt. Black energy steamed from multiple little cuts in their sides, backs, and bellies.

Lester's ears were steaming as he bellowed for B-Brachio to use Boney Tsunami on Radox. The boney tail whipped toward him with incredible force, hitting him like a bulldozer. Radox was flung high into the air, then as he fell, his body shone and dissolved into a Dino Medal.

"Har har!" laughed Lester. "One down, two to go!" Dina gritted her teeth and yelled, "That's what you think! Hopter, attack B-Brachio with Rock Wing!"

The occurring sandstorm took a massive chunk from B-Brachio's LP and left it with several broken bones along its skeleton. "Now Tricera, you use Tricera Combo on B-Rex!" The ceratopsian's horns stabbed deeply into B-Rex's empty chest cavity, then stabbed again into its stomach and smashed into its spinal chord. B-Rex shattered with a final, clattering roar, its eerie eyes winking out as its scattered bones vanished.

Ha ha, yeah! Tricera cheered. Back to the graveyard for you, you colossal fossil! Dina chuckled at her Vivosaur's enthusiasm at coming back from his previous losing streak. Don't get overconfident, advised Hopter to his teammate. Arrogance can topple giants.

"Hopter's right, we can't get too confident," Dina said to Tricera. Just then, Lester's B-Tricera scored a direct hit on his skin-and-flesh covered cousin. Tricera winced from the impact, but bravely staggered back into battle.

Dina commanded Tricera to use Running Smash, and Hopter to cover him with Beak Stab. Both attacks were successful – B-Tricera was so preoccupied in dealing with Hopter, that it didn't have time to counter Tricera's attack. It fell onto its side, skeleton falling apart pathetically and eyes fading.

Now all Lester had was B-Brachio. It whipped Hopter with a powerful Boney Tsunami, but Hopter leapt high above it. Dina called for him to use Beak Stab in retaliation, and his beak tore through one of B-Brachio's rib bones. The behemoth bellowed and glared daggers at Hopter.

Incensed at his failure, Lester screamed for B-Brachio to use another Boney Tsunami. The Boneysaur obediently whipped out his tail again, only to have Hopter jump over it again, this time landing on its tail and clutching it with all four of his talons.

B-Brachio roared for Hopter to get off, lashing his tail forcefully. Not a chance, buddy! Hopter replied defiantly, and blasted B-Brachio with his newest attack – Rock Breath. The high-pressure beam of sand and earth hit with such power that B-Brachio's head was torn from its neck and sent spinning off into the nearby lava.

The skeletal sauropod vanished, leaving its Dino Medal sparkling on the volcanic rock. Hopter landed clumsily on his feet and rushed to join Tricera and Dina. Both nuzzled their mistress in celebration, then retreated into their own medals.

"WHAAAAT?!" Lester nearly screeched in anger and shock. "My Boneysaurs got beat like the bass player at an easy-listening concert!" Suddenly, he composed himself and looked closely at Dina. "Wait, hold the phone. You're the girl who beat Cole, aren't you?"

Dina saw Rupert stand to join her, and heard Lester's three lackeys moan, "We were pasted! These old bones are no match for the young blood!"

Suddenly, Rupert gave a shrill whistle. "Di66-R!" he called. "Destroy that machine!" Dina looked behind her in confusion, and sure enough, Rupert's robot was hovering down the path towards them. "Of course, sir or madam. It would be my pleasure to assist you," it intoned.

Lester's eyes widened as Di66-R wandered over to the jelly-pumping machine and began to strike at it with its claws. "CONTROL ALT DELETE!" it said with unusual satisfaction.

Aeros suddenly was released from his Dino Medal. I'm going to help, Dina, he said, to which she nodded. Lester looked even more shocked as Aeros stomped over and began tearing at the metal with his teeth. In seconds, the machine had been completely demolished.

"Operation Fill Hot Spring with Jelly is ruined!" Lester actually did screech this time. "Ruuuuuuined!" He whirled and fixed Dina and Rupert in his glare. "Don't think I'll forget this, punks! You and I will have a reunion special someday!" Him and his lackeys booked it out of the volcano's crater.

Rupert turned to Dina. "The hot spring should be OK now," he told her. "We should head back to IliumIsland and check on Todd." Dina nodded and said, "Thanks for the help. You took on all three of those lackeys by yourself!"

Rupert shrugged and gave her a smile, one slightly bigger than usual. "Not really. I battled one, and the other two became nervous when they saw how badly I defeated their comrade." Dina laughed, and Rupert actually chuckled along with her. Then, the two of them headed back to the gondola.

Thus, there was no one around to glimpse the movement in the shadows near the demolished machine. "Stupid Lester…" a voice hissed. "I knew that this ridiculous plan wouldn't work. But… at least he agreed to let me help, and that's what I'm going to do."

-.-.-.-.-.

Hot Spring Heights

Rupert and Dina, after stepping off the helicopter to IliumIsland, hastily put their coats on and ran to HotSpringHeights to check on the hot spring. Sure enough, the jelly was already disappearing.

"Hey, I think I can move a little again!" exclaimed Todd as he wiggled around, trying to break free of the jelly, already loosening its hold on him.

"I knew those BareBones hosers were behind this mess!" fumed Kent when Dina and Rupert had told him their story. "The rest of the jelly should totally be melting away now. Any second now, dudes."

Indeed, Todd had succeeded in getting one arm out. Another good wrench brought his other arm out of the weakening jelly. "Ugh, I smell like grape candy!" he said with a disgusted noise. Dina, Rupert, and Kent all laughed. "I hope my Stego doesn't mistake me for dessert," he continued, laughing as well.

Suddenly, Dina felt a change in the air, as if the heat was slowly getting sucked out of the cave. "Hey, the hot spring doesn't feel that hot any more," mused Todd. "That's weird."

The sensation didn't stop there. It kept getting colder until Todd started shivering. "OK, I sh-should r-really b-be able t-to g-get out n-now!" he chattered his teeth while talking. He tried to free himself one last time, but the jelly still held him back.

"Todd!" screamed Dina as she saw what was happening. Ice was beginning to form on the water's surface. Todd panicked and thrashed around in the jelly, stretching out his arms for help. Dina and Rupert each took an arm and pulled as hard as they could. But the spreading ice was faster than they expected, and soon, Todd was trapped once more, this time in cold, hard ice.

"Whoa!" Kent said, eyes bugging. "That's totally gnarly, dudes! Where did this ice come from?" Dina smashed her foot down on the surface, but only made a small crack in the surprisingly thick ice.

"This doesn't seem to be regular ice," said Rupert softly, bending down to examine the frozen hot spring. His eyes lit up suddenly, and only Dina noticed the subtle change.

"What happened?" she asked, concerned. Rupert stood up again and looked at her grimly. "The hot spring's water supply must have been tampered with again. Judging from the thickness, speed, and consistency of this ice, I'm guessing that someone must have dumped in liquid nitrogen."

Dina gasped in horror. Todd had a substantially more dramatic reaction. "Liquid nitrogen?! I'll be trapped in here forever! I'll freeze to death! Help!"

Reaching into her pocket, Dina called on Radox for help. "Radox, break this ice with Radox Headbutt!" The trilobite appeared, jumped into the air, and smashed his head down on the ice. The blow was powerful enough to shatter the ice, leaving the pieces to bob up and down on the water's surface.

Kent pulled Todd out of the water. "He's freezing cold, dudes. We gotta take him back to IliumVillage and get him warm again." The three of them rushed out from the cave, Kent carrying Todd in his arms.

Dina's mind raced. But the BareBones Brigade fled! So who could have poured liquid nitrogen in the hot spring? Her mind, somehow, rested on the mysterious creature that had almost killed her and Todd in RainbowCanyon. Obviously, it was allied with the BB Brigade.

She shook off her thoughts. All she cared about was getting Todd to safety before his temperature fell too low.

-.-.-.-.-.

So there we have it! Todd's got a little hypothermia, but nothing that'll kill him. …Oh, yeah. Never mind.

Also, Pokemon X and Y have been revealed to be coming in October. I might have the new starters and Legendaries make appearances in my Pokemon fanfic…

Chapter 10 will (hopefully) be coming soon, where we can see if Todd survives his ordeal!

TRIVIA: I don't know about you guys, but when Todd said "I may never leave" in the game, I immediately thought of the BareBones Brigade. Turns out I was right, but in an unexpected way.