Pokemon Heroes: Uprising

by Soldier of the Future

Team Rocket has resurfaced, and Ash has finished the Sinnoh League yet something reminds him of an old friend in Alto Mare. With old and new friends coming together, an all-new adventure begins as they discover a new type of evil waiting over the horizon...and secrets that were never meant for mortal knowledge.

10. Situation Critical

As such, I don't own Pokémon or any of its characters. Enjoy this update.

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Chapter 9

Situation Critical

"A new world order is a new day upon us all."-Team Rocket and UAAF alliance creed

Mt. Coronet

Like all the other unfortunate Team Rocket agents that recklessly tried to challenge Zephyr's near perfect Pokémon, Butch's Machamp, despite possessing a massive type advantage over the dark-type Pokémon, could not keep up with Xander's speed even with its massive combinations of overwhelming attacks consisting of punches, kicks, and different types of close-quarter combat techniques. While the Superpower Pokémon had unleashed its inner darkness in mid-battle as an attempt to overpower its opponent in a last-ditch struggle, its extensive injuries had hindered its combat skills.

While the Zoroark would have normally held back his power against other good-hearted trainers in an act of honor upon Zephyr's commands, he did not here. His nails and claws occasionally pierced the tough skin of his opponent deeply, drawing out blood and leaving numerous scars on the attacker. Butch's Pokémon had little luck except landing a handful of punches on the Illusion Fox, which the latter had easily recovered from.

With unmatchable speed, Xander quickly retreated back to his trainer to recharge his energy, as the two Pokémon returned to a stare-off once more. It was clear that he had the victory now, but all he needed was a bit of time to deal the finishing move not to faint, but literally kill the corrupted Pokémon.

"How…how is this possible…?" Butch uttered, seeing his once prideful, nearly invincible Pokémon fall to its knees, gasping for breath as it bled profusely from its wounds. Cassidy finally recovered as she crawled out of the pile of debris after the brutal, yet accidental, attack their Blastoise gave them. While wounded, she caught sight of the Blastoise fall against the nimbleness yet speedy and powerful attacks of Terios. That was one of their Pokémon knocked out of commission for now.

"You lose." Terios hissed mockingly as he amassed a shadow ball from his mouth for the finisher move. Having weakened the Pokémon with countless faint attacks while dodging the inaccurate ones sent by the Shellfish Pokémon allowed him to gain the upper hand after a long-drawn out fight.

Butch's other Pokémon braced itself for the attack as the energy orb manifested from shadows was fired directly at it. In moments, the tank-like turtle was instantly decimated by the assault as the sphere collided into its body, giving it no opportunities to continue battling any further. The Pokémon crashed to the ground, its eyes swirling in defeat. Even in its corrupted state it stood almost no chance against the Umbreon.

"Well…I guess we win again. You people are getting pretty pathetic in my eyes." Zephyr insulted the duo. "Just because you send a Pokémon that has a tactical advantage and an injection of drugs against mines doesn't mean you'll triumph the day."

"Just who do you think you are! Do you think you can humiliate an elite like this get away with it, you fool?" Butch demanded.

"I don't need to answer to a retarded bastard like you." The trainer laughed. The Zoroark that accompanied him tried to contain his own snickers. "To be honest, your plan to mind control Pokémon was pretty smart…but didn't you realize you can't mind control a dark or ghost type because they're immune to psychics as a whole? It led to your biggest downfall in that one operation."

"…" "How does this kid know so much!" Butch pondered, trying not to recall the shaming defeat if it was not for that one Gastly that foiled the entire fiasco and sent them to prison for approximately 4 months until they were bailed out by Giovanni himself.

"You haven't won yet." Cassidy panted, clutching her wounded left arm. "My Machamp is still standing and I'll make sure you won't live to tell your little story!"

"Hmph." He turned to his Pokémon and with a single snap of his fingers, gave the dark-type a new command. "Xander, claw sharpen."

His Pokémon's eyes gave off a piercing glow of red before he crossed his arms together across his chest, the already razor-sharp claws on his paws extending slightly. Shining in the mid-afternoon sun, his once dull blade-like nails were sharper than ever and back in combat condition in a matter of moments. Having been given the order to inflict casualties on the Rockets, it was clear to Zephyr that his Pokémon was clearly prepared to kill the Machamp. He followed a philosophy that once corrupted it would no longer be a living being and thus deserved to die as a sinned creation. A moral of letting those who battled fairly live was a trait in the group, but this was an exception.

"What's this kid up to now!" Cassidy wondered. The technique she had just heard the trainer give to the Illusion Fox was something new, something never heard of before.

"Surprised? Xander means a whole lot more than simple "magic tricks" like you fools always complain."

Wanting a quick last-ditch attempt of victory, the female Team Rocket agent ordered her Pokémon, whilst in its enraged state, to quickly beat down the trainer's Pokémon with brute force. "Machamp, finish that Pokémon with cross chop!"

"Shadow claw. Finish this battle." Zephyr calmly spoke.

Her loyal Pokémon gave a frustrated battle cry before rushing forward with all of its hands extended, ready to deliver multiple bone-crushing karate chops on its target. In its aggressive state it was completely left defenseless in the event its opponent launched a counterattack, which was something Xander exactly wanted.

None of the humans could clearly depict what happened moments later when the Zoroark shot towards the charging Pokémon at extreme speeds before delivering multiple swift slashes with his claws. Both Pokémon stopped dead in their tracks a split second later, with the entire battlefield devoid of any sounds with the exception of the wind howling through the mountain range. The Illusion Fox landed on the ground silently, while the Machamp was in a complete state of stillness, as if frozen in time.

All was silent, and then both Butch and Cassidy gasped in horror second later as they witnessed the Machamp literally lose its limbs in a horrifying display of their Pokémon being butchered. All four of its arms dropped to the mountainous ground with a thud but surprisingly, not a single drop of blood was drawn. Zephyr gave a neutral expression at the result of the slaughter as everyone else quietly looked on at the silent carnage.

Both agents were shocked. This thing-this monster-this…demon seed-or so they called it-had just literally slaughtered their most powerful Pokémon on hand. Having seen demonstrations back at headquarters of the Pokémon corrupted by the sinister Corruption balls perform the same slaughter, could it be possible that this man-this trainer with a Pokémon they never witnessed before-could be a potential Team Rocket/UAAF agent, sent as a lethal testing instructor for their own agents? While it was clear he didn't adorn any of their uniforms, his first impression was definitely not a welcoming one.

The body of the Machamp crashed to the ground, its dismembered, yet somewhat clean body pulsing slightly before falling dead. It was over. The Blastoise was weakened and out of battle, and Butch quickly recalled it into his Poke ball for another battle some other day. His other arm proceeded to go for the energy handgun he holstered on his belt in an attempt for a last ditch chance for a victory.

"I wouldn't try that if I were you…" Zephyr, already having drawn out his nodachi blade when he caught sight of the Rocket agent attempting to draw his firearm, ready to throw it as if it was a gigantic dart.

"Hah!" Butch laughed. "You have a sword! I have a gun! Do you think you can slash me before I blow your pathetic face to pieces and towards the great beyond!"

"I can't, but Xander can."

Without warning, the Illusion Fox Pokémon was suddenly in front of the Rocket agent's face as it delivered a brutal kick right into Butch's chest. The agent was sent flying immediately, losing the grip on the handgun he grasped in his hands. The pistol promptly fell to the ground before Xander crushed the human weapon with his feet, turning it into scrap metal beneath his heels.

"Only a fool trusts his life to a weapon." He snickered, taking pride in his close-combat skills and powers he possessed.

Recovering quickly, both of the agents retrieved themselves to make an escape. "This isn't the end of us…savor the victory while you still can, you little punk. Our next encounter will not result with the same outcome!" Cassidy cackled despite her nasty injuries. "He'll show up again at the genetic labs…I'm sure of it."

With that, both agents leapt over the cliff and into the forest below, with Zephyr and his Pokémon giving close pursuit. They stopped at the edge of the canyon, witnessing the two disappear into the trees without hearing any voices. To their surprise, they didn't even scream from the fall.

"I'm going after them." Xander was just about to give chase by leaping into the canyon when his trainer stopped him.

"No. We've seen enough action for one day. I'm definitely not letting you battle again." He spoke sternly, looking at the wounds on his prized compatriot while sheathing his prized sword back into its scabbard which was strapped onto his back. "He needs some healing, but good thing he had nothing too major."

"They tried to shoot you-I don't let anyone do that!" The Pokémon was enraged. His trainer was potentially going to be killed, and here he was-not allowing him to deliver the lethal blow to the killer. "I knew I should've slashed him to shreds to begin with, but…"

"You'll get another chance. Aside from that, I want to see their motives." The enigmatic trainer narrowed his eyebrows, brushing some of his hair out of his eyes. "For sure, I'm positive we haven't seen the last of them."

Terios, once again, tried to avoid puking whenever he took a glance at the Machamp corpse that was scattered behind them. It was the fact that there was no blood that disappointed him, as he was a Pokemon that loved a slaughter. "Did you really have to do that? The sight is rather displeasing to the eye. I know you love to kill, but don't you think about the aftermath effects!"

His companion laughed. "Give me a break. I always wanted to personally kill a Pokémon that's actually worthy for once." He looked back at the foolish Golbats who dared enough to attack him head on. "They deserved it. An opportunity to hone my killing instincts."

"A job well done regardless. Let's get out of here." The trainer complimented, all the while looking forward to giving his Pokémon a well-earned and deserved break.

Leading his two companions away from the battlefield, Zephyr and his merry band of Pokémon began the descent off Mt. Coronet and towards the forest below, hoping to get some whereabouts about the sudden escape of Butch and Cassidy. He was almost certain they definitely survived that fall.

"It's just a trait almost all villains have…" He thought to himself humorously at the back of his head.

---

United Aerospace Armed Forces HQ

Butch and Cassidy's failing attempt and their arrest was a demoralizing defeat for the Team Rocket/UAAF alliance, but nevertheless the joint operation they promised to complete kept them on track. The death and loss of the Machamp and defeat of the Blastoise, however, sent all the officials murmuring with unsure thoughts.

"Explain yourself." Donald questioned Giovanni. "Here they are, assumed to be the most powerful Pokémon your nerd-brains have promised me, and…they get slaughtered in less than an hour? Shouldn't it be the opposite?"

The boss of Team Rocket wasn't about to let this blame fall on his shoulders. "Namba!" He bellowed angrily. "What is the meaning of this!"

The middle-aged doctor rose out of his seat and gave a slight chuckle. "Sorry, boss, but I forgot to tell you, that was only a prototype. The true warriors you requested are not so ready for battle yet…some of them are, but not all of them are falling to the darkness like we expected. Regardless, that was a nice show, was it not? This new Pokémon makes our entire arsenal look like cavemen."

The President of the UAAF shot him an unsure look. He wanted fighters that would spread fear, not end up as lambs to the slaughter by antagonistic forces. "Look, you old coot. You promised me killers. You promised me soldiers. You promised me perfect units for battle. And you promised me guaranteed casualties for our enemies! I gave you all the damn funding, men, and materials needed for your experiments and how come all we are seeing are our best troops and agents being put to shame by this gothic kid!"

Dr. Namba chuckled in response. "Would you like to see a…successful subject of the true aftermath effects of the Corruption balls? I've managed to get one…and the results are quite interesting if I say so myself. Science isn't perfect, my good man."

"Hmph." "This better be good for once." Donald rolled his eyes in disappointment. "If this goes well…I think it's time to kick the experiments even further."

"Immediately." Giovanni demanded. "I want to see the results of my funding."

The battlefield display was promptly changed to a different channel, which displayed a laboratory-like prison and arena. A single Pokémon was displayed in the heart of the chamber, shackled up with energy whips and chains like a mentally unstable prisoner. Periodically, it was shown trying to break out of its confinement by struggling its limbs against the restraints in an erotic manner while unleashing hisses and roars whenever it failed to. Surrounding the prisoner was about five other Pokémon, all powerful creatures deemed valuable to the alliance due to the massive strength they possessed.

"That's…" Donald couldn't believe the trapped being before his eyes. "The Dragonite we recently acquired from a Ranger. Did you just…"

"Corrupt him upon your orders? Why, yes I did." Dr. Namba responded. "Just like you requested. It appears only the powerful and strong-minded can utilize the full powers of darkness without going completely insane and out of control. Nevertheless, this monstrosity is just beautiful and marvelous beyond my imagination. How about we give it a test? I'm looking forward to see how it really proves itself."

"Give it the go." Both the leaders of Team Rocket and the UAAF crossed their arms and sighed, hoping this wouldn't be another stunt turned bad. "My patience is plummeting here…" A troubled Donald grumbled angrily inside his mind.

"Release the restraints." The Team Rocket scientist ordered in a cold voice. An official at his side tapped some buttons on a remote control, and Leon's stolen Dragonite was freed. It crashed into the ground on both feet and sent out a miniature earthquake, snarling at the other Pokémon while violet streams of smoke emerged from its nostrils. "Now now, stand down. Not yet. You'll get your fun soon enough." The doctor spoke, whose orders were transferred into an intercom that broadcasted the message into the testing area.

To Donald's surprise, the corrupted Pokémon stood down obediently. It didn't go completely insane on a killing spree, at least not at the moment. "So…he listens to you? I'm amazed." He thought back about Cassidy's Machamp who went completely out of control when it was bogged down in a close-quarters match against Xander, and it wouldn't listen to any orders the agents barked at it while in the scuffle.

"Not only does it listen to us, but it's completely obedient to its new masters. Us. This also means, if for some reason…that Ranger boy sees it again…it will not remember a thing about its former companion. In fact, it'll probably attempt to rend its former trainer 10 times harder than usual." Team Rocket's top scientist explained while maintaining a stare at the Dragonite. "Few of our subjects actually managed to live this far. The weaker ones just succumbed to the darkness once it was too much for them."

"Bout damn time someone got it right!" Having deserters, human and Pokémon alike, run away and quit his organization just because they were forced to fight against their own former friends, family, companions, compatriots-you call it-was a real headache. Losing a skilled veteran or high-leveled Pokémon just because of that was unacceptable on all levels. What puzzled him about this Dragonite, was the fact it looked totally different even for the corrupted subjects he saw personally with his own two eyes a few months earlier.

Its eyes were no longer the cute, peaceful-looking types that one would usually notice if they ever got a chance to see this rare and exclusive Pokémon in the wild. Instead, it was twisted into a pair of sharp, blazing red pupils of complete hate, malice and instinct to kill. Its yellow-orange colored body was now jet black, while the scaled belly it possessed was now a steely-plate like surface. Its claws were also approximately 2 times larger, while tentacle-like entrails emerged from various sections of the Pokémon's body. One could take a wild guess and claim the Pokémon had been infected by a parasite of some sort if they were to see it firsthand.

"Good grief…" Donald tried to look away while holding his stomach down. "What did you do to the bastard? I just ate, you know! Did you infest this thing with a parasite!"

"That is what happens when a capable Pokémon-one who is compatible and has the power to utilize the gift the Corruption balls bring upon them-accepts the darkness. The graphical enhancements are one thing…but let's see it in combat."

Dr. Namba nodded to one of the officials, and they proceeded to click a button on the remote control. Turning to the intercom, he gave his orders to his twisted experimentations. "Let the killing spree begin. Alright, Dragonite, kill at your pleasure…and for everyone else, do your best! Don't pull any punches! Consider this a present for surviving my experiments so far!"

"God, this guy's insane. Why couldn't my top brains be this wisecracking?" The head of the UAAF thought to himself, even though it was clear he was completely mad himself but he definitely wouldn't admit it. It was essential that he kept his true identity sealed.

The corrupted Dragonite unleashed a thunderous roar which rivaled a jet plane's engine in terms of noise level, and it faced the five other Pokémon. None of the five made a first move, for they were far too terrorized by this monstrosity they were facing. The first impression of the corrupted life form to the entire audience witnessing the escalating conflict was a form of living hell itself. However, it was not long before a lone Pokémon, a Tyranitar, stepped forward with no hesitation to tear the gentle and weak-looking dragon to pieces, at least to the Armor Pokémon anyways.

Executing the stone edge technique, the Pokémon controlled numerous large boulders that were scattered across the room in an effort to smash the Dragonite to gory pieces. Roaring, it sent dozens of boulders the size of filing cabinets at the lone-standing corrupted dragon, each sharpened to the lethality comparable to a sword/blade.

"Now it gets interesting. Watch. You will not be disappointed." The doctor sneered. "I suppose you might all want to grab a puke bag or two. This could get ugly."

Without even flinching or making any attempts to dodge the incoming storm of stones and rocks, the Dark Dragonite unleashed a hyper beam from its mouth, flooding the incoming wave with a dark violet-colored laser, destroying all the incoming rocks in milliseconds and turning them to dust in moments. The massive beam was immediately directed at the Pokémon that attempted the first attack, and while everyone in the room except for Dr. Namba expected nothing more than a simple knock out, the end results were something completely different.

The Tyranitar unleashed an unearthly scream as the hyper beam literally corroded, devoured and pierced through its thick hide. Its armored skin, comparable to the level of steel found protecting main battle tanks of the modern day and was resistant to most forms of attacks, was incinerated almost immediately by the wicked blast. The beam smashed through the helpless Pokémon as a massive explosion ensued, blowing multiple body pieces of the victim in all directions. The Dragonite stopped its assault when it realized the target was destroyed, seemingly amused at the massacre as an evil-looking grin descended across its twisted face.

"Maybe Namba's going a bit too far, but this is necessary." Giovanni wondered. "We might have to use lethal force to fight these days."

In mere seconds, it was all over. One of the most powerful Pokémon for ground operations assigned to UAAF agents was nothing more than a couple of annihilated body parts.

The other Pokémon witnessed the massacre of its comrade, but they knew they couldn't match the level of this new monstrosity. Dr. Namba's featured weapon of the day rushed forward towards them to finish them off, but everyone viewing the performance looked away from the massacre as the butchering began, some gawking in disgust and horror.

"Oh god, turn it off!"

"This is nasty! I need to use the restroom!"

"DEUUEAUGH!"

"Ok, that's enough for one day." Donald quickly deactivated the screen, hoping his followers wouldn't be quitting their jobs just because they couldn't handle the amount of gore. He proceeded to grab a cigar, lit it with his customized lighter and started smoking on it in complete disbelief. "I did not know my poisons would be THIS effective. Amazing."

"Did I not say I would not disappoint?" Team Rocket's top scientist asked with a diabolical grin.

"Hah. You sure didn't." An official who managed to stand the horror show replied.

"Any questions?"

No one answered. They were far too impressed by the presentation that was just shown. Even with all these successes (and relative failures) one thought continued to trouble Giovanni's mind. "Just a quick request, Donald."

"Speak away." The UAAF President puffed some smoke from the moderately sized cigar clamped in his mouth.

"It concerns the security here. Will we be safe from attack?"

Donald clicked a button on his table, and a projection of the world map appeared on the tactical display in the middle of the room. "With our force composition mainly in Hoenn, the uprisings were easily suppressed. That's a double bang for us, as we are safe, yet the locals in this region don't realize our plans yet as we saved them from the rebelling Pokémon." Pointing to the various geographical features on the map with a laser pointer, he continued his explanation. "We have defensive outposts in these regions: here, here, here, and here. All armed with non-lethal yet effective armaments, so controversy is no longer our greatest enemy. Not to mention without a hostile effect on Hoenn's people, we do not need to worry about trainers and Rangers going against us, as the current status in all three other regions situate. If things get ugly, our headquarters can transform into a massive floating fortress, but I suppose that's our trump card." He switched the view of the tactical command interface to two facilities holding his newest weapons. "I've got a nice little surprise there I'll show the world soon enough. Now isn't this a great day for us all?"

Everyone in the meeting chamber, including Giovanni and his officials, clapped in response to his motivating line. Back in the UAAF President's mind, though, he had other plans.

"All I need now are the legendaries, and Giovanni will be pointless to my objective. Alpha Prime is just a part of this chaos, for these people are lack luster in terms of knowledge on how to govern and rule." He was just relieved his temporary right hand man didn't realize what the creation's true intention was for. "Getting the main piece required for the puzzle was anything but an easy task…"

But first, he needed to get some housework done, such as sending a team to Hearthome City to clean up the mess for the Sinnoh Branch's botched operation…again. "Damn it, I hope they didn't realize the true nature of the operation. But considering how easy civilians can be manipulated…that isn't much of an issue. I'll just say it's a bunch of renegade Rockets that decided to fight against our cause by wreaking havoc. Heh."

It was far too early to deploy his new war machines, nevertheless.

---

After the Meeting…

"Heh, well if it isn't Annie and Oakley, the failures that required a bailout after that incident…" Attila sneered as his partner met the two sisters on their way out. "I'm amazed, for two Pokémon that didn't know any attacks, you failed. Miserably!"

Annie was not amused, for it was truly an embarrassing defeat but quickly found a quick comeback against the rivals. "Hey, shut it. It's not like you did any better! A couple of kids placed an end to your plans to nab Raikou!"

"One kid managed to shut you down, however…you didn't have the guts to knock him out when he was confronting you." Hun shot back, adding more injury to the insult.

"Is that a challenge I hear!" Oakley grabbed a Poke ball from her belt. Rivalries in Team Rocket's elite ranks were quite common, and it wasn't a rare sight to see elites beating each other over their common enemies to determine their superiorities.

The snide agent grasped a dark-colored Poke ball in her hands, ready to prove that Attila and she were by far the better agents in the field. "If you say-"

Donald promptly emerged from the doors of the meeting room and interrupted the quarreling agents, causing them to shut up and pay attention to the UAAF President. "Please, my good friends! Why we are all in this together, what's with the racket? You know, we should be setting aside our petty differences and striving towards a bright future. Why waste energy to fight each other?" He slapped the backs of the agents harshly but in a friendly manner.

"That big oaf thinks he's better than us!" Annie pointed a finger at her rival that bore an uncanny resemblance to a veteran soldier. Attila simply bore a sick grin while reflecting the light off his shades.

"Like I said, differences have to be placed aside now. You two seem you want something to do, correct? Like…getting some revenge on a particular individual that foiled your plans not so long ago?"

Making a disgusted face, Annie crossed her arms. "And who could that be?"

"Get your fat ass over here!" Calling to one of his aides, Donald pulled out a report from the stack of files that his assistant had. "Just a few hours ago, reconnaissance has picked up the movement of a very familiar trainer that showed up everywhere in our data banks. After a minute or so, we could identify him as Ash Ketchum, a longtime thorn to Team Rocket and all kinds of criminal organizations everywhere. It was him who foiled your plans, was it not? Don't you remember him? My, for such an irritating kid, I'd remember his face until the day I rest. After all, he's the one who put Hunter J out of business, my main supplier for rare Pokémon. She bargains for cheap, at least."

Hearing the name of the one man that humiliated the two sisters made their blood boil in rage and envy, for they would have succeeded in the Alto Mare mission if he didn't interfere. "Are you saying we are authorized to blow him out of the sky with a weapon?" Oakley thought, hoping for a quick, but brutal act of revenge against the boy.

Shaking his head, Donald continued through the report. "No no no, not just that. Sources indicate he's en route to Charicific Valley, a protected reserve home to plenty of wild Charizards. However, Giovanni has requested my troops and two elite agents to participate in this operation to test out our newest equipment for battle. But because of your excessive hatred of that man, I thought it'd be a task that you two ladies would take. Lead a force into the Charicific Valley, capture as many as you can, and dispose of all resistance that doesn't want to cooperate. Then get your rear ends back here in one piece."

Clenching her fists, a devilish grin drifted across her face. "Let's go. I want to get that kid back for dumping me into the water back in Alto Mare!"

"Just don't overdo it…" Oakley rolled her eyes. "Psh, after all, it's your fault you decided to wear that 300 dollar outfit for that operation and spent 2 hours drying it all up."

"Hey, what about us two!" Attila interrupted, hoping that Giovanni also had a task for them too.

"Nope, I'm sorry. But you two have been ordered to stay on reserve until further orders. Agents Butch and Cassidy were already sent to Sinnoh for classified reasons and got their asses kicked already, so you two are free to do whatever you wish until then." In response to the comment, Annie stuck a tongue out in a teasing manner at their two rivals, and both snorted in disgust.

"Come on, I'm sure the boss needs us to help him with something. So let's stop putting on a bad image of Team Rocket for the President and let's haul." Hun turned into the opposite direction and departed, with Attila shooting a nasty look at the two sisters through his shades. Grunting in a frustrated manner, he followed his partner and disappeared through the doors.

"Let's go, Oakley." Annie reminded her. "We need to be in the hangar by 30 minutes prior to departure."

"Wait, before you go…" Donald handed the duo two Poke balls with the UAAF emblem displayed on the surface. "Giovanni has instructed me to hand you two these Pokémon. From within contains the power of two Pokémon you may be interested in."

Oakley examined the devices with curiosity. "What would they happen to be, then?"

"An Aggron and Tyranitar with powers…you may find very special. You'll find out once you hit Charific Valley and turn them loose against any resistance you may come across. They're only prototypes, so there might be some kinks in the program. Well my lovely ladies, happy hunting!" The charismatic leader chuckled heartily and left the two agents looking at each other in confusion.

"What did he mean by "special powers"?" Annie asked.

"Beats me, but Giovanni's brains must've cooked something good for us." Tucking the Corruption ball onto her belt, Oakley checked to ensure she had the necessary gear for the operation. "EMP nets, energy handguns, anti-stealth visors, smoke grenades, yep, I'll be ready for this one."

Just looking at her gear made her feel how close she was to capturing Latios for good. But this time, with revenge on her mind, she had a whole new plan formulated this time around. "Hey sis, remember those two? Do you think they'll come after us?" While she was confident in her abilities, the angry face of Latios was scarred into her mind, fearing some form of possible retribution.

"Latios was confirmed to be KIA by intelligence. No need to worry." Annie assured. "Now let's go. It's not like we have any more time to waste on our hands. The worst that can happen is that little Latias coming back, which we'll kick her rear end back to the dark ages."

The two immediately departed for the hangar, where they discovered an entire regiment of UAAF soldiers and Team Rocket grunts were being assembled in futuristic-looking gunship transports. While they were not armed with formal military weapons, they were used for riot dispersing purposes. With smoke grenades and other types of non-lethal weaponry, these vehicles could easily take out a small team while not harming them in the process. Of course, then the agents onboard would move in for the capture.

Assembled inside the lead gunship, the pilot gave an order to the personnel to buckle up. "This is your pilot speaking. According to the forecast, the weather is clear with some chances of potential rain and thunder as we approach Johto. Please sit back, and enjoy your ride and thank you for choosing the United Aerospace Armed Forces Airlines!"

All the riders obeyed his order and buckled up. The vehicle was relatively small and cramped, but it had to sacrifice such space in order to retain its small structure for evasiveness and avoiding detection in the event it entered hostile conflict. First class methods of traveling and luxury were definitely out of the UAAF's budget.

With the jet engines whirring, the three gunships rose out of the hangar as the retractable roofs housing the aircrafts opened up. Making minimal noise, the vehicles suddenly boosted to amazing speed and shot off into the night across the ocean. It would at least take 2 days to reach their destination, and in the meantime, the agents onboard tried to ease the boredom of their ride via various means.

---

Back at headquarters, Donald wanted to know who was going to field the first successful dark Pokémon. It was clear the ones given to Annie and Oakley were the prototype models, and while they couldn't go insane from their own powers, they still had flaws. The Dragonite seen in the demonstration, on the other hand, was arguably flawless. It was the perfect killing machine with no weaknesses. He managed to run into the doctor in the hallways, and quickly asked his question.

"Why, I've already got the perfect individual in mind." He replied.

"Who? A UAAF Commando?"

Dr. Namba rolled his eyes at his comment. "No…a certain dragon master by the name of Lance. There is no way any of your soldiers, or even our organization's greatest agents, can possibly control that type of power. I'm sure you know him…he's the former Johto Champion. I want him to field this Pokémon. He's in an agreement with you in terms of mercenary services, correct?"

"Well, time will tell." Donald simply replied, unsure what to say. "And yes, you are correct. I'll give him the call that you want to field that toy of yours." "I'm still not sure about using that killing machine, but if those two dipshits fail, I'll have to give it a chance."

"There's another successful subject already well converted and ready for the battlefield in Sinnoh. He'll be the one I'll use against that trainer's fox!"

Planning to utilize the Garchomp-the very one who happened to be the husband of the one Mach Pokémon who traveled alongside Gallade and his other compatriots-he would savor the day when he witnesses Zoroark being decapitated and dismembered left and right by his most fearsome creations. "No way will Team Rocket be humiliated once more."

All that remained was to wait until the ruffians would come knocking at the doors of that particular facility. He was ready for anything and everything that would dare come his way.

---

Approximately 2 Days Later, En Route to the Charicific Valley

"Time runs short. I must hurry."

Having kept himself hidden away in the depths of Mt. Coronet for almost half a decade rejuvenating his powers and training in complete isolation, Latios felt it was finally time to make a surprise return. Predicting that Ash and potentially Latias would make an appearance in the reserve, he decided to give them one last visit before he truly passed. "It'll probably be a tear-filled reunion, but at least I can rest if I pass away regardless knowing they still well alive and carrying on their dreams."

While his sacrifice back in Alto Mare had nearly killed him, he wasn't truly deceased. With the majority of his power drained trying to stop the tidal wave, his physical body could no longer exist. Fortunately, fate itself had given him a second chance. Granted five extra years of life, he was allowed to live, but with one exception. He had to find a suitable human being to bond his friendship with or else his life force would be forever extinguished after that time period.

He wasn't sure of why this happened and the original one gave him the privilege of coming back to life, but…this was not something that mattered on his mind at the moment. There were other important loose ends to tie up first.

Unluckily for him, this wasn't an easy task. Befriending humanity was close to, if not completely, impossible. He could've picked Ash, but this meant it would place the young trainer's life at risk for a reason which was about to reveal itself.

"I'll find someone else. I cannot endanger the one who happens to be my sister's love interest. She'll be heartbroken if she realizes her own brother gambled the life of the one human she wants to be with for eternity."

There was time, at least about a few months left. But he had to hurry regardless. With substantial skills gained during the last few years away from civilization or away from any forms of contact (with the exception of fighting other Pokémon to train himself) it was time to go all-out and find the one individual that would bring his very essence back to life.

"Not to mention this world needs someone to enforce its peace once more. I won't fail you, mother." Latios pondered with a clouded mind.

Envisioning the nightmares of an alliance dominating the rest of humanity and Pokémon alike, along with the eventual cataclysmic chain of events that would soon blanket the entire globe in darkness and oppression gave the Eon dragon many sleepless nights. Casting all the doubts aside, he rocketed towards Johto at the speed of a supersonic aircraft, and it wouldn't be long before he reached there.

It was time for him to step up the task of being not just the Guardian of Alto Mare, but possibly the entire world. Using telepathy, he sent a message to Latias, hoping she would pick it up somehow…

---

Olivine City Pokémon Center

As they were new to the Johto region as a whole, Bianca's group had spent about a day or so traveling around the outskirts of Olivine City, with Typhlosion continuing his guidance and training, assisting both his trainer and Latias gain more skills in Pokémon battling in general. His efforts had paid off, as he had allowed the Eon Pokémon to learn two new moves as a whole after extensive trial battles against him: ice beam and dragon breath. However, she still promised herself to keep out of battles unless the need was really necessary, since Krakatoa hadn't suffered a major defeat yet and he didn't want anyone else doing his fighting for him. Being an ex-trainer with plenty of expertise greatly helped Krakatoa when it came to training the hyperactive dragon/psychic-type.

"How does a Pokémon learn new moves?" His trainer asked, curious to know how her childhood Pokémon friend was capable of learning a completely different elemental attack.

The Pokémon chuckled a bit in response to her question. "It's all about practicing and focusing your inner self. We all have this natural talent that allows us to learn new techniques, kind of like how humans can memorize information. Since Latias is capable of multiple elemental attacks, I doubt it's too much of a hassle for her. We can train more, maybe sometime another day. Not sure."

"Well, I'm definitely interested in learning more moves!" The Eon dragoness added cheerfully.

"I'll keep that in mind."

After another tiring day, the group returned to the Pokémon Center to stay one more night before setting out for their next destination, Ecruteak City, on the next morning. As dusk was already falling in the region, they knew it would be relatively unsafe to travel in the dark since the memory of the two mysterious men continued to give them a state of unease.

"Are you guys and girls hungry?" Bianca asked as she returned to the room after her shower. All three of her Pokémon were conversing about their great victory a couple of days ago against Jasmine, and it was something to be proud of too.

"Not really." Krakatoa spoke up. "I just need a break or two after today's events."

"Not me." Latias added. The Pidgeotto shook its head too.

"Oh, alright. Just tell me when you're hungry! I thought you'd all be after the battle today." She exclaimed a bit, trying to keep her cool. While it was a close match, her team did suffer some nasty injuries but many of them had recovered quite quickly.

As she sat down onto her bed to dry her messy hair, Typhlosion suddenly got to his feet and looked out the window with a gaze. He knew something was happening in the far off distance of the night.

Latias noticed his blank look and couldn't help but ask what was up. Something wrong?

"Yeah. Something's not right." He spoke out loud, catching Bianca's attention to his sudden words.

"Pardon?" His trainer asked for clarification.

"Uh, nothing…really…" Trying to get his mind off the prospect of such a ridiculous idea, he decided to call it a night. "I'm just thinking a bit too much, but whatever." "I thought I smelled UAAF soldiers, my senses don't lie, but this is getting ridiculous. Might as well forget about it and focus on more important matters."

The group quickly all fell asleep, hoping to get enough rest for their adventures the next day.

---

An hour passed or so, with the group still snoring away into the night. Krakatoa continued to turn and twist in his sleep, mumbling words as if he was having a nightmare. In reality, he actually was.

"…have to stop them…can't let them…"

Latias also had a bad dream while she slept, but this time, she envisioned her brother returning for some reason. As a matter of fact, she realized Latios was literally talking to her while she was sleep, and it wasn't long before she snapped out of her snoozing time and was wide awake but yet the Eon Pokémon's voices continued to echo inside her mind. She turned around, just in time to see Typhlosion break out in a cold sweat as he sprang wide awake.

"…what a horrible dream…damn, who would've thought Team Rocket would attack Charicific Valley like that…" He spoke to himself.

"Everything all right?" Latias asked him.

"Oh, just a bad nightmare…"

"You had one too? I had the same thing. I thought my long-dead brother was talking to me about some criminal organization attacking some reserve for a specific type of Pokémon. It's a valley of some sort, but it fits your exact same description." She began to feel a bit suspicious about what was about to happen-why would both of them have the same exact dreams at the same time?

"…you think it's a message or something? You know, he's telling us something?"

"Probably. But my dreams never lie. Whenever I have a nightmare, it's bound to happen. The last time I had a dream about a cloned…I think it was called a Groudon…it was in the newspapers all over the world on the next day." Latias shivered a bit from the reports that stated a former Team Rocket scientist had attempted to replicate a legendary Pokémon that caused massive damage until it was stopped by means not explained.

"Then something's bound to happen at the Charicific Valley." Krakatoa headed over to Bianca who was still sleeping away. "Hey, wake up. We need to talk." He nudged her face gently with his paw.

The trainer soon came to her senses as she sat up in her bed and yawned a bit. Turning on the lights, she saw both of her Pokémon staring at her with worried faces. "What's wrong? It's like 11PM late at night…I think you should all go back to sleep."

Unsure of how to start their explanation, Latias decided to get straight to the point. "I had a dream where my brother talked to me about a possible Team Rocket attack. I thought I was imagining things, but I really saw it. He really came to talk to me. Then your friend had the exact same dream. I think something terrible is about to happen in the next few hours. Call me crazy, but that's what I believe."

Bianca was dead serious about the situation. Whenever her companion had a dream, it didn't mean she had a day that was far too exciting for her to handle. It usually meant a bad omen for an event. "What's about to happen? Can you elaborate a bit please?"

"Team Rocket is going to attack Charicific Valley, but I for one plan to intercept them with your permission." Krakatoa spoke, feeling guilty for lying but it was necessary to convince his trainer. "It's…a sixth sense that I have. I don't know. But it seems like I can predict them coming in some manner."

Although he had no clue why, he hypothesized it was the result of the experiments that the creators had forced upon him during his times in captivity.

While any normal trainer would find it outrageous that their Pokémon comrades believed in their abilities to foretell the future via a couple of wild dreams, it was evident the Eon dragoness had visions of the future to Bianca. Nodding her head and giving them the confirmation, she rapidly got dressed while her Pokémon prepared for the departure.

"How will we get there, though?" She explained as she rapidly gathered her belongings.

"Pidgeotto is a powerful flying Pokémon that can easily carry any trainer on its back." Typhlosion explained to her trainer. "And Latias is no exception, so…I suppose you can hitch a ride on your new Pokémon." Thinking about it for a while, he realized he may have to cramp himself into an accursed Poke ball. "As for me…just keep me in a Poke ball, but only this time." He figured Latias would have a hard time carrying his weight on her back, which was approximately 150 pounds.

Bianca nodded. "All right." Taking Latias's Poke ball, she pointed it at the fire-type Pokémon and a beam of red light surrounded him. It was only moments later that her talking companion disappeared. She proceeded to call out her newly evolved Bird Pokémon, and it gladly took her on its back as the team prepared to fly to the natural reserve for Charizards.

Minutes later, the entire team checked out of the Pokémon Center and went airborne, with Latias flying alongside Bianca, who was hitching a ride on the back of her Pidgeotto. It was fortunate the bird was just large enough (almost the size of a Pidgeot, its final evolution for inexplicable reasons to Typhlosion anyways) to accommodate her weight, but then, Bianca wasn't exactly too heavy to begin with.

"You know where this location is?"

"Yes. Just follow my lead." Latias's eyes glowed blue before she locked onto the exact location of the valley.

It was going to be their first attempt to stop the joint UAAF and Team Rocket alliance, and they hoped it wouldn't be their last, considering they were going to do so alone.

---

Goldenrod City Gym

While Raine had expected to challenge the gym leader a few days earlier, her arrival was short-timed and at the wrong point, as there was already two trainers fighting the leader which took two whole days to complete. By the end of the battle, it was already late at night and the gym leader was just about to close up, not to mention rest her exhausted Pokémon at the local Pokémon Center. While Blade and Leon both snoozed off periodically even with the shouting, screaming and cheers of the battle, the thrill wasn't enough to keep them awake. However, Raine was far too eager to challenge the gym leader, so she skipped out on sleep and rest. When it was her turn, the stubborn red-headed trainer wasn't about to give up just like that by allowing the gym leader to leave without challenging her.

"Come on! I want to fight! I came all the way from Azalea Town this morning and now you're refusing a challenge! What kind of leader are you?" Raine pleaded, hoping to win her next badge.

The gym leader, Whitney, yawned and stretched a bit. "I'm sorry, it's far too late at night, and I'm too tired! And I've been already beaten and been beaten enough by Pokémon trainers today, come back tomorrow so you can lose to me!" She hoped to discourage the young girl in some way. Yawning, she tried to keep awake from her drowsiness. "Yeah, try fighting for two days straight when the trainers themselves couldn't wait a day or so for the challenge."

Both Blade and Leon sweatdropped behind her, confused at her childishness. "Don't worry, she's always like this. Especially when it comes to challenges, she never gives up until she gets it."

"What a surprise." Leon rolled his eyes in amusement, trying to get his mind off Dragonite, for there was a mission to accomplish. "Strange…I thought more agents would show up after that to find the legendary Pokémon again."

As the two continued to watch Raine pout like a child, Leon's styler rang its incoming call tone, signifying an incoming message, call, or request. He pulled the device from his belt, took a quick look at the call prompt and recognized it was from Ranger HQ.

"Excuse me for a sec." He interrupted and answered the call. "Corporal Ranger Leon here."

His commander's voice came through, seemingly in an alerted and shocked tone. "Leon, we've got a situation on our hands. It requires your immediate attention because you're our only Ranger available in Johto, the others are too busy with other operations."

"Give me the situation."

"Listen carefully. Approximately 30 minutes ago, we picked up unusual activity originating from Hoenn. A quick recon image shot from our satellites indicate that the source were UAAF aircraft movement headed straight towards Johto. After some extensive analyzing, we can confirm their destination is Charicific Valley, a protected reserve for the Charizard species. It is also confirmed the vehicles are loaded to the brim with soldiers and grunts both from the UAAF and Team Rocket alliance, but I'm pretty sure you'll meet two familiar faces when you arrive there." The Commander, Flynn Dacote, cleared his throat slightly from the lengthy explanation. "Are you catching all of this down? I need you over there in the next hour. Whatever they're up to, I suggest it won't turn out well."

Leon nodded slightly, with Blade carefully listening to the conversation after he noticed a face of concern on the Ranger. "Yes I am, and I'll be there. Can't I get some support?" He hoped he wouldn't be the only one having to burden the entire task on his shoulders.

"Be careful. The agents are all armed and detection of odd energy signatures are coming from within, although we cannot conclude what it is. There's also confirmation of more objects heading towards the valley but we could only conclude them as regular trainers." He looked at the report before continuing his message. "Support is not available. All of our Rangers are caught up in other campaigns. You're our only available agent that can intercept the convoy within the next hour."

"I'll be on my way." Shaking his head a bit, he lamented at the fact he wasn't going to get some helping hands in future operations very soon. "These days…corruption is so rampant everywhere. They're telling a single Ranger to fight off an entire battalion?" Starting to question about the credibility of the Ranger Corps themselves, he was unsure. Did they not openly declare a state of conflict because they had their own allegiances or they just believed war was far too costly?

After all, the peacekeeping force had UAAF-purchased hardware in its arsenal, like the RCS Almia, RCS Oblivia and RCS Fiore, three aircraft carriers commissioned shortly after Latios's death to enforce peace, especially with the rise of factionalized groups of all kinds in the sub-regions of the continent. Why were they not being used?

"Best of luck, soldier." The line promptly disconnected.

"So, looks like you've got a mission on your hands, I see." Blade spoke into his mind. "Sorry if I was being a little bit too impolite, but I just couldn't resist it."

"It's all right." Leon shrugged a bit, not minding small acts of curiosity. "Looks like I'll have to depart, but-"

We'll come with you. The Pokémon immediately replied without letting him finish his sentence.

"What?"

"Let us assist you. At least the best we can do to help a Ranger who lost his lifelong companion is to provide a lending hand. Raine has a powerful team that should not be underestimated. If you allow it, she can fly you to the Charicific Valley on her Dragonite."

While Leon didn't want to drag his two new friends into the conflict, he couldn't deny the order from headquarters nor could he leave his new compatriots after they came to rescue him as a result of his terrible loss. "Alright. Let's convince Raine to leave first, and then we'll fly there."

As Raine and Whitney continued their argument regarding the match, Leon walked over to the two and tapped his friend on the shoulder with a grim-looking face. "Listen, we have to leave now. I need your-"

"Now! But I'm not leaving without my match and nothing's going to change that!" Raine complained.

"Listen, I have an order from HQ, and I need your Pokémon's help. It regards to the interception of United Aerospace Armed Forces activity." Leon turned to the gym leader. "Sorry about the match, but…I guess you never really wanted one to begin with, seeing how you want us kicked out." He laughed nervously.

Whitney took a quick glance at the clock that hung from the side of the gym's wall. "Well, it's past closing hour anyways. Now come on, shoo! My Pokémon need a break too! You can come back tomorrow, but not now!"

Raine's disappointment only grew bigger as her challenge was refused. "Aww, but come on! I came all the way to fight! I wasted 2 sleepless days for this!"

"I'll promise you back with something after this. But for now, I really need your assistance. Please!" Leon begged a bit. Blade approached the group with a sharp stare.

"The man needs our help. The next Pokémon Conference isn't in two months so you'll have plenty of time to gather all your badges by then. But for now, we have another important task at hand." He thought tensely about the opposition they were about to go up against, having a strong sense of danger. "Remember, we promised him our deal. He tagged along for your gym battle, but even though you never actually got one, I'm sure he'll make it up for you."

"Oh…all right!" Raine finally snapped out of her addiction of wanting to brawl. "But promise me you buy me an ice cream after this!"

"Um…okay…whatever you say…" Leon was surprised at the request, but nonetheless agreed on such a small one.

The three departed from the gym and assembled outside the front door, where Raine heard the Ranger's brief yet somewhat lengthy explanation. It was mostly fast, short, sweet and directly went straight to the point at hand. "You need my Dragonite to fly you there? Why, I'd be happy to! Why didn't you simply ask me earlier?"

"You didn't give me a chance." His eyes narrowed into a non-amused look. "But listen up. This may be a dangerous mission, but I don't have any other choice. If I still had my own Dragonite, I wouldn't have asked you. I don't want to drag a civilian into matters that only Rangers are supposed to handle."

Raine nodded. "Yes, we're well aware of that. So we're more than glad to help you fight them and their Team Rocket allies!"

The young red-headed girl called out her Dragonite from its Poke ball, and to the surprise of the Ranger, this one was actually larger by at least a feet. Not having been able to recognize it earlier due to his injuries, he gasped a bit at its impressive height. Standing at least 9 feet tall, the warmhearted creature smiled at the two humans as it hugged its trainer out of affection.

"Dragonite loves to cuddle with Raine. It's a real powerhouse and her primary fighter, but I can probably beat it."

"Arrogance leads to defeat." Leon reprimanded him. It was what caused his own Dragonite to fall in battle and let it be stolen by the hands of corrupt corporate agents, as he hadn't anticipated facing three attackers at once who all had major advantages against it.

"Sorry about that." Blade apologized. "I can fly myself with absolutely no difficulties, so don't worry too much about it."

Petting her Dragonite in a loving manner, Raine gestured the two to come over. "All you need to do is guide us where to go. Then my Pokémon will take you there as quick as possible!"

Climbing onto the Pokémon's back, Dragonite took off into the post-midnight sky with its trainer and a Ranger on its back, while the Scizor, with his ninja-like speed and agility, took one mighty leap into the air and followed them with his steel-hard insect wings buzzing rapidly. Hovering alongside the bulky dragon Pokémon, his wings buzzed at a certain frequency as he kept himself in the air, awaiting the orders of the Ranger.

Checking his styler, Leon marked the location on the built-in map. "Charicific Valley is in between Violet and Blackthorn City, which is approximately 22 degrees northeast from our position. Head in that direction, please."

"Uh, can you be a little more precise?" Raine asked, confused. "In layman's terms, simple vocabulary please?"

"Just fly northeast towards Blackthorn City, and we'll be there. You can't miss it."

"Ok Dragonite, head towards the mountains in the distance!" In response to her command, Dragonite flapped its two powerful wings and made its way towards the Pokémon Reserve with Blade following them at their side.

Back on the ground, Jessie, James and Meowth, having observed the conversation the whole way, was once again tempted to follow them in search for potential chances of theft, treasures, or just plain mischief.

"Did he just say Team Rocket is on the move?" Jessie asked curiously, spying on the small team greedily. "Why didn't HQ give us a call then?"

"Meh, you know, Giovanni isn't exactly fond of us ever since he managed to recall all the agents, especially the elites, back into his ranks!" Meowth spoke up, trying not to fume at the thought of the boss's Persian who was his favorite pet. The two often had intense rivalries, with Giovanni himself obviously preferring his own stylish Pokémon.

"Then we should follow them! If we succeed in bringing him a Pokémon, he'll be delighted to give us a promotion thus he'll put us on the board of directors and we'll be at the high ranks!" James delightfully interrupted. The thought of a large paycheck cashing into his wallet gave him a sense of determination to work harder for the riches.

"Then what are we waiting for! Let's go!"

All three members of the trio hopped onto their homemade bicycle-pedaled helicopter, which miraculously did not get wrecked yet, at the very least. Cycling like they were fleeing for their lives, the three managed to send their contraption airborne.

"If there's someone who's going to be rich tomorrow, who will it be?" Jessie chanted.

"We will!" James and Meowth cheered in unison and celebration.

Taking off, the three pursued Raine's Dragonite as they made their way to Charicific Valley with their flimsy flying machine, the continuous creaking of the vehicle's frames just a telltale sign that it wasn't going to hold very well. Team Rocket, of course, couldn't care less as long as it got them where they needed to get to.

---

Charicific Valley, Entrance

Ash's Staraptor continued its flight across the Kanto region and eventually passed by the border that led into Johto. With its amazing flight skills and speed, getting to their destination was not a difficult task, as they arrived in approximately 2 days or so. In the distance, the young trainer could notice a formation of rocks that were arranged into various pillars, not to mention a massive rock carving that resembled the iconic fire dragons that inhabited the mountainous reserve.

What surprised him were the various pillars of smoke that were coming out of the valley, but he simply dismissed it as a fact that it was caused by the various Flame Pokémon's activities. They were well known to start uncontrollable forest fires if they were pushed to their limits, and their explosive power were often used to display their pride and strength.

"Staraptor, make a turn and land at the front entrance!" Ash ordered. His Pokémon gave a sharp screech in response, and dived towards the mountain path.

Landing carefully, the trainer hopped off his Pokémon's back and recalled it into his Poke ball. Whispering a thank you to his Predator Pokémon, his Pikachu eagerly bounced up to the front gate, only to find it smashed open as if someone had blown the door open with an explosive weapon.

"Pika pika!" The electric mouse noticed three objects in the sky, shaped like futuristic space vessels of some sort. Ash caught up with him shortly.

"What's wrong?"

He looked at the objects in the sky, and realized they resembled Pokémon Hunter J's private stealth vessels. J, being a notorious Pokémon Hunter, occasionally crossed paths with Ash and his friends during his adventures in Sinnoh but in the end was defeated after her ship was taken out in a brutal battle. What remains of her fate is an unknown fact as of today.

"Pika pika pika!" His Pokémon's frantic voice meant that something was terribly wrong, and it was already happening.

In the distance, he could hear explosions and roars in the canyon. Without wasting any more time, he sprinted through the broken gates, with his Pikachu leading all the way. He just hoped his own Charizard, or any of other free-roaming dragons, had not been caught up in the trouble.

"Hang in there!" Ash grunted as he sprinted as far as his feet could take him.

---

Charific Valley, Main Reserve

"Well well well, that's another one down." Annie cackled as one of the larger Charizards in the reserve crashed towards the ground after falling to her Dark Tyranitar's deadly assault. The corrupted Armor Pokémon laughed in a vile manner as one of the agents sent out a device and captured the fallen dragon in a Corruption ball, adding another loyal soldier to their ranks.

The device promptly returned to the agent's hands, and she tossed the capsule up and down in her right hand. "Anyone else up next before we do this the violent way? Giovanni was right…these Corruption balls are beyond the power of imaginable! It steals them with little effort!" Her sister clapped with glee at the successes they were already beginning to achieve.

"This isn't boding well." Liza worried with extreme concern. "If I don't do something, all these Pokémon here will suffer. But against the power of these marauders, there's little I can do!"

The only human that inhabited the reserve, Liza, stepped back slightly while surrounded by a handful of the remaining Pokémon that didn't fall to the invaders yet. All of them viewed the scenes with horror and disbelief. They had never seen such power before from these outsiders. Accompanying her were about a dozen multiple creatures of the same species, including Ash's very own Charizard and her own Pokémon, dubbed Charla. Each and every one of them had a look of anger and vengeance on their faces, determined to stop these bandits from destroying the reserve and taking them all forcefully.

Behind Annie and Oakley stood over a dozen UAAF and Team Rocket agents, all armed with freeze or rift devices, while some carried lethal weapons. Overhead, the three UAAF gunships hovered in an attacking position, prepared to take pot shots at the pinned Pokémon with their riot-dispersing arsenal in the event they needed to retaliate.

"You are not welcome here! Leave immediately before we resolve this the violent way!" She threatened, determined to protect the reserve at all costs.

"The violent way? None of your pitiful Pokémon could even inflict a single scratch on us." Oakley laughed. "We've taken six of your strongest Charizards, and all that remains is the rest of your pitiful colony." She turned to her Aggron, who let loose a deafening roar of challenge. The dark powers that surged through its veins only seemed to make it even more aggressive beyond its already raging self. "I'll give you one last chance…" Gesturing to the agent, she gave a signal to use the rift gun against the human. "I don't want to do this. It's not like I want to be on more wanted posters slapped across towns for my acts."

From the crowd, a younger but energetic Charizard immediately took off into the air in a courageous act to protect its comrades and family members, hovering above the agents and eagerly unleashed a jet of fire at them. Liza knew it was suicide and attempted to call it back immediately.

"No! Stand down!" She ordered.

"Aggron, stone edge! Rip that foolish Pokémon out of the sky!" Oakley commanded, seemingly amazed at the courage the resistance was putting up.

The Iron Armor Pokémon focused its power, and multiple pieces of stone began to levitate around it. As the flames from its opponent closed in, it unleashed a roar before sending the barrage of rocks it controlled right at the airborne dragon.

Overconfident in its own skills of defeating the steel-type Pokémon, the Charizard continued its assault by bathing its target in a storm of flames, unwary of the incoming stones flying at it. A torrential barrage of rocks tore straight through the incoming jet of fire like knives through flesh, rendering the move useless before they finally closed in on the Flame Pokémon. Bellowing in pain from impact after impact from the stones, it lost all of its fighting power and crashed straight into the ground.

The agent whom Oakley commanded earlier fired his rift gun at it, ensnaring it a black sphere before everyone's eyes. The weakened Pokémon inside tried to hack its way out with its claws and continuous flamethrower moves only to do so in a futile manner.

"What…what have you done!" Liza was shocked and angered at the sick acts these outsider humans were doing.

Annie leapt down from her position on a pillar and landed next to her Dark Tyranitar. "Why, it's simple. That was just a demonstration of the pure power of how the joint Team Rocket/United Aerospace Armed Forces operates! You fight us with force, we'll fight you with superior force."

"We believe your Pokémon are a global threat, so we are sent here to take them back on behalf of the military corporation." Another agent announced in a neutral tone. "Do so peacefully and surrender and we will leave you in peace!"

"Yeah, right." Liza thought angrily, but yet desperately.

Oakley took a step forward while tossing a Corruption ball up and down in her left hand. In it contained a fallen Charizard that was the first one to attack and went down almost immediately. "What you're seeing in front of your eyes…will be your own fate unless you willingly hand over your other Pokémon. It's simple. You hand them over, and we'll leave you in one piece. It's first grader philosophy. As long as our demands are met, we don't need to do this the harsh way now, do we? Get them, Squad Gamma!"

Four agents immediately charged forward, their non-lethal freeze guns all aimed and beginning to fire at Liza and the Charizards surrounding her. While none of them took a move out of fear as they would endanger the whole group, one specific Pokémon immediately rushed forward to protect his fellow compatriots.

Ash's Charizard.

Leaping at the agents with amazing speed, it unleashed a torrential flamethrower attack on the foolish agents, melting the incoming beams with high-temperature heat and setting their jumpsuits ablaze in the process. Screaming for their lives , the burning victims ran around wildly trying to get the fire off only to accidentally stumble off a cliff and fall towards the canyon, ending their miserable lives. In response, Ash's prideful Pokémon landed in front of his group, roaring and cracking his knuckles. While it was apparent the odds were against them, he was determined to defend his allies to the end.

"Ooooh, a show of force, eh?" Oakley mockingly laughed. "Too bad for those grunts, but we never needed them in the first place. Get him, Aggron! Pound this fool into the earth!"

The dark Pokémon rushed headlong at Charizard. Not moving an inch, the dragon gave one intimidating eye at the incoming quarry, and delivered a blast of pure fighting energy right at the incoming Iron Armor Pokémon. As Aggron was a steel and rock type, fighting moves were deemed to be deadly against it most of the time. Thank you for teaching me focus blast. He thought in remembrance to one of the Flame Pokémon that was older, wiser, but yet had fallen in the battle earlier.

Flying back from the sudden blow, the Iron Armor Pokémon crashed to the ground grunting in pain. The dark visible aura that surrounded it suddenly seemed to fade as it finally faded to nothing.

"Well, that's a disappointment." Oakley recalled her corrupted minion back into containment. "Must be one of those prototypes that old fool Namba gave us to begin with." "Perhaps there was a kink in there that needed work out, or otherwise this one Charizard is just outright powerful." To her, this was the first time a corrupted Pokémon fell to a conventional attack.

It didn't take long until Ash and his Pikachu arrived on the scene, and the horrifying display had caught them in shock and fear. He had recognized the agents at first glimpse after their meeting and brief conflict in Alto Mare.

"I know you…" Annie glared at Ash, hate flaring in her mind, heart, and every single cell in her body. "You're the kid that ruined our mission back in Alto Mare, and how fortunate. Now today, you can fall too with all these Pokémon that dared to stand against us!" The fact she could have easily gotten Latios and sold him to Giovanni for endless amounts of cash and having it all ruined by the trainer gave her all the more reasons to kill him personally.

Oakley felt the same way too, but mostly because she was the more brutal type. Remorse and mercy definitely weren't words in her dictionary. "Did you come here to die?"

Liza turned to Ash, seemingly relieved to see a friendly face. "Ash, oh am I glad to see you! We need your help! These intruders suddenly attacked and forcefully took some of our Pokémon from the reserve!"

Ash nodded. "Don't worry, get your Pokémon back. I'll handle this." Turning to the agents, he demanded an explanation immediately. "Just what are you doing to the Pokémon here!"

The agents all pointed their weapons at him, but Annie and Oakley ordered them to lower their arms. The two sisters wanted to toy with their hated enemy before finally finishing him off. "Well, if it isn't Ash Ketchum to the rescue…you saved us the trouble of drowning you back in Alto Mare, but now you're here to stop us too?" Annie's Dark Tyranitar laughed along with its trainer a bit. "You'd best make your leave, because there are things you aren't supposed to see."

Ash's Charizard sided up with his trainer, hissing angrily. He turned to the young man and cracked its clawed fists.

"Team Rocket…" He noticed the big "R" stamped on the uniforms of a few grunts. It was at this time he noticed the ensnared Charizard trapped in the rift sphere, suspended from escaping. It was heavily wounded from within its prison and its life was slipping with each passing second, and the expression on its face explained this fact. "What…" Stammering, he witnessed the agony the young Pokémon was suffering as the dark aura sapped its life force away with each passing second.

"Heheheh, you noticed, didn't you?" Oakley clapped her hands mockingly. "Don't you realize what you are going up against now?"

"What did you do to it!" The trainer screamed in anger, feeling an uncontrollable amount of hate flying through his nerves and mind. "HOW COULD YOU!"

"Just forwarding the plans for a new world order…" Annie whistled innocently as she checked her nails. "That is the result of whoever has the guts but lack of common sense to face us down!"

"I won't let that happen!" Ash turned to his Pikachu and Charizard. "Pikachu, use thunderbolt! Charizard, flamethrower! Attack the agents!"

Both of his Pokémon eagerly leapt into battle and unleashed their respective attacks. The electric mouse charged itself up until it was bright with electricity crackling all over its body, and when the time was right, it threw a massive bolt of pure undulated and supercharged thunder at the two sisters. Meanwhile, Charizard did the same and with a feeling of revenge on his mind, opened its gaping mouth and breathed out a shockwave of hot-blue fire.

"Childish fools." Annie simply snickered. "Tyranitar, dark barrier!"

Her corrupted Armor Pokémon held its arms out and projected a dark violet sphere of energy, causing Pikachu and Charizard's attacks to dissipate harmlessly on the force field. Instead of simply neutralizing the attack with no secondary effects, though, the respective moves were sent right back at the original Pokémon, knocking them back as flames and lightning struck both of Ash's Pokémon, damaging them and forcing them down onto their knees.

"Pikachu! Charizard!" Ash called out.

Both Pokémon gave a grunt of anger as a sign of not willing to throw in the towel just yet, but the reflected countermeasure were just far too much for them. Meanwhile, the other Charizards wanted to jump in and help but Liza had reminded them to all stand down.

Using this as a distraction, the purely evil Tyranitar immediately sent a wave of tiny stones right at the trainer, leaving bloody marks as the debris tore through the skin on his face and exposed arms. Yelling in stinging pain, he grasped the wounds, attempting to hold onto his own life while taking a stand.

"You see, kid, you don't know what you're facing…we've crushed and silenced many like you. Their Pokémon were promptly turned into our slaves, like this!" Oakley tossed the Corruption ball, and with a bright flash of pure dark energy, out emerged a stolen Charizard that fell earlier in the battle prior to Ash's arrival.

Its appearance was dramatically altered, to the horrors of its opponents. No longer did it retain its orange color scheme, but rather it had a jet-black body and crimson-red eyes and irises. The flame on the tip of its tail burned and gave off a violet-greenish color, while an evil force of black-purple colored aura surrounded its body. Upon witnessing its opposition it laughed in a low, chortling tone as a sign of mocking the power of its pure-hearted counterparts. Arguably comparable to the one that Riley's group had encountered previously, this one was much larger, by at least 3 feet compared to the average Pokémon of the same kind.

"Dark Charizard…truly a worthy warrior and slave to our organization." Annie cackled.

Ash, seemingly unafraid of such force, stood his ground in a fierce determination to protect all of the Pokémon from further harm. "Pokémon, no matter how weak or powerful, do not deserve such cruel acts of slavery and corruption!" His Pikachu stood defensively at his feet, with electric sparking from its cheeks. "Pika Pika!" The Charizard infamous for disobeying him stomped the ground, enraged at what happened to his fallen comrades.

"Such wise words, yet you're all hot air. No wonder you keep on losing battles." Oakley teased in a mocking manner. "Enough talk. I'm getting bored here. Dark Charizard, kill him. Dispose of his body in the canyons and make sure it never sees the day of light or the eyes of anyone lucky enough to stumble across it." Meanwhile, Annie smiled a bit, finally relieved to see they were getting down to business instead of simply giving so many warnings to their victims and letting them fight back like the foolish children they were.

Her commands suddenly sparked a fear within the young man's heart. "You don't have the will to do so!" He called out, clenching his gloved fists.

"Oh, I will. I WILL! And I'll enjoy every moment of it!" Oakley pointed her right hand forward, right at Ash. "You heard me, my loyal Pokémon!"

The Dark Charizard charged forward without questioning its trainer's motives, its claws at the ready and the fire on its tail burning with complete hate and rage. Ash braced himself for the attack, and with one last dim light of hope in his heart, throws in one last attempt to take it out.

"Pikachu and Charizard, use volt tackle and overheat!"

Both Pokémon, despite running desperately low on energy, had the courage and will to muster enough power for one last attack. Pikachu's body began to encase itself in a ball of hot-blue electricity, and charging itself up to levels that dazzled even the agents, it charged forward and attempted to slam itself into the Dark Charizard. Behind him, Ash's Charizard roared in an ear-deafening tone as flames engulfed its draconic body. Essentially he was going to body slam the dark incarnation of his former ally with pure rage, power and might.

The younger Team Rocket agent could only shake her head in amusement from the light show. "Such a performance…Dark Charizard, use shadow blast!"

The corrupted dragon reared back, opened its mouth, and in seconds a massive burst of dark energy akin to a hyper beam emerged and slammed into both of Ash's Pokémon, stopping their charges, rendering them powerless almost immediately and finally dropping them to the ground with little effort. Both struggled to protect their trainer but the impact had drained almost all of their energy. Gripping their claws, both Pokémon struggled back onto their feet but promptly went down once again.

"NO!" Ash screamed.

"I think I'm going to enjoy this!" Oakley laughed. "Tear him to shreds!"

Her dark Pokémon dived towards Ash, and with the human helpless to do much, he was promptly head-butted and knocked to the rocky ground. His arm aching in pain from the impact, He opened his eyes only to see the incoming creature intent on clawing him to pieces with its razor sharp nails. Eyes widened in fear, he wondered if this was really the end of him.

"Charla, protect him!" Liza ordered. The female Charizard nodded her head and immediately leapt into combat, determined to protect her love interest's trainer.

Both Team Rocket elites noticed the heroic act, but simply dismissed it as a foolish last stand. "Take her out with a bazooka." Oakley calmly spoke.

An agent switched out his freeze gun and holstered a bazooka-like weapon over his shoulder. Taking aim at Charla as she rushed over to protect the trainer, he fired an explosive warhead at the Pokémon, the missile locked onto the Flame Pokémon ensuring a direct hit.

She didn't see it coming, and the warhead slammed into the back of the dragon, knocking her to the ground and sending her crashing at the feet one of the corrupted slaves. While the blast didn't kill her, it did rather knock her out temporarily with pure explosive force.

"Charla! No!" Liza called out. Her companion struggled up, but collapsed again.

The Dark Charizard followed up the assault by whipping her with its massive tail, sending her flying into a rock and crashing to the ground, gasping in pain. With no more resistance daring to stand against it, the maniacal and bloodlust-driven Pokémon proceeded to turn towards Ash and stomped over slowly, laughing in a sinister cackle one could only define as evil incarnate.

Just by seeing Charla get harmed like that evoked a new kind of rage within Ash's Charizard. Clambering back onto its feet, fire sparked in his pupils as he ignored the numerous wounds on his body that were rapidly spilling out blood. Roaring at the two female agents as if it was cursing or swearing at them, he caught their attention for a second or two before promptly unleashing a massive fire blast attack at them.

"Get out of the way!" Oakley screamed, taking evasive action immediately. Both sisters leapt out of the path to dodge the stream, but one of the pilots in the air panicked as the jet missed its intended target and shot towards them.

"Pull back! Pull back!" The pilot screamed.

Attempting to pull the gunship off course to evade the blast, the flames scorched the ship, destroying every instrument and melting every millimeter of steel in the cockpit. Both the pilot and his copilot were toasted in the blast in seconds as the gunship spiraled out of the sky, smashed into a rock, and promptly exploded, sending a shower of scrap metal and flash of light into the dark sky. The result had Ash's Charizard laughing in a weak manner. While it had missed its target, it was more than relieved to have scored some payback for their brutal treatment of Charla. He whirled his head towards Ash, only to learn that the Dark Charizard was about to finish him.

"Smart move. Now kill him." Oakley demanded.

Ash screamed to the top of his lungs in fear and fright as the Dark Charizard prepared to rake its claws at the trainer. Closing his eyes, he expected the worst to come-his frail body being severed to multiple pieces and being burned to ashes by ruthless claws and sinister flames of hell.

The other companions of the trainer could only look on in horror as the corrupted dragon closed in with an instinct to rend the helpless human into pieces.

"This is the end…forgive me everyone…" His mind drifted into an ocean of nothingness, preparing to say hello to the Grim Reaper.

While he prepared himself to be ripped to pieces and the remains burned to ashes and cinders, the brutal moments never came. A bright flash of light engulfed his body before the dark Pokémon made contact with its claws, and a voice called out to him in his mind.

"Never, my love. Death does not come to those who truly do not deserve it."

---

The next chapter kicks the entire story in motion. If there are those who actually read the character bios on my profile, that's your clue. There's also a large comment I have to make about what's coming next, but I'll save it. I don't want to spoil the suspense and such. Heh. =D

Anyone have advice on how to write out battles? While mines is effective, to an extent, I'm not particularly happy with it for some reason. If you could spare some, I'd be grateful.

Until next time! Don't forget to rate and review.

-Soldier of the Future