Me: Hey, Lucas, since you're still recovering from that rejection last chapter, why don't you do the honors?

Lucas: Eh, sure, why not. But really, I'm over it by now! Honou doesn't own Pokemon. Targeted is a non-profit story that is worked on for fun!

Paul: And because he/she has no life…

Me: Shhhhhh, Paul, just, shhhhhhh! Anyways… it's time… Are you all ready for Galactic and Cyrus to come in?! :]

Cyrus: I'm not! Why am I always the bad guy?!

Me: -Ignores Cyrus- Annnnnyways, enjoy!

Chapter 10: A Galactic Assault

The chapter begins with Cyrus along with his three commanders, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, standing by, ready to commence their attack. A huge ship with a shiny, golden letter 'G' was embossed on the side of the huge galactic ship. Several of the Galactic Grunt squads were also on stand-by. Cyrus wanted to make sure that this time for sure, he would get his hand on the girl…

"We're ready for lift-off, sir!" A grunt says to the light-blue haired man. Cyrus simply smirks cruelly at this and nods his head, dismissing the grunt as he himself prepares himself, wearing a long, black, leather overcoat over his shoulders.

"Excellent…" Cyrus says with a cold smirk. "Has anyone alerted Hunter J? I don't usually call upon her skills, but this time, is a different case… I want to make absolutely sure that Paul's resistance is absolutely crushed underneath my heel and that I am guaranteed to secure the girl." A grunt nods his head and salutes.

"Yes, sir!" The grunt says. "As of this very moment, she is already pursuing our targets!" Cyrus smirks at this as he and his Galactic commanders board the ship.

"Perfect…" Cyrus says with an ominous smirk on his face. "You can run, little Paul… But you can't hide from me forever… I will hunt you down, and I will make absolutely sure that the girl falls into my hands…" As he says this, the ship takes slowly hovers and takes flight, before blasting off into the distance.

Back with Paul and the others, they were currently on the run, being pursued by a silver haired figure on-board a Salamence. Barry cringes as he ducks and avoids a powerful Hyper Beam. The forest was on fire and wild Pokemon were fleeing for their lives. Paul grits his teeth as the silver haired figure pursues them relentlessly. The events that had happened before the chase just flashed by so quickly, he barely had time to react.

Just as morning had rose, Paul had woken up, only to see Dawn still sleeping, bound by Ariados silk and slowly being dragged away. Paul's eyes widen as this happens.

"Troublesome, wake up! We're being attacked!" As Paul says this, Dawn's eyes flutter open. She then looks around, seeing herself tied up and looking both startled and confused.

"Wh-Wha? What happened, why am I all tied up?" Dawn wonders as the Ariados drags her along. Paul growls at this and lightly raps Lucas and Barry on the head to get them up.

"Wake up, you fools!" Paul snaps at the two of them comically. Lucas slowly gets up and notices Dawn being taken away. He then gets out of his bed and takes out Luxray's Pokeball.

"Luxray, you're up! Use Hyper Beam on that Ariados, but be careful you don't hit Dawn!" Lucas says to his Pokemon. The electric-type complies as it charges a golden beam in its mouth, before firing and scoring a direct hit on the Ariados, knocking it out. Paul then runs over to the blue haired girl and picks her up bridal style, before motioning to Lucas and Barry.

"We have to move, now!" Paul says urgently. "Forget about our things, we need to run for it before reinforcements come!" Lucas and Barry nod their heads in agreement as Lucas hops on Luxray's back and runs ahead. He then takes Barry's hand and helps him get on as well as the four of them bolt off, making a run for it as they hurry off as fast as they could.

"Who is that person?" Barry says with his eyes widened. "And why is she attacking us?" Paul grits his teeth as he continues to run as fast as he could, carrying Dawn bridal style as he ran and trying to undo the silk bindings that bound her. The blue haired girl is red in the cheeks as the purple haired teenager carries her, just noticing how closely she was pressed to his chest.

"I don't know who this person is… Cyrus has never introduced me to her…" The purple haired trainer replies as he runs. "This is bad! We can't keep running forever!" Lucas has his eyes narrowed at the silver haired woman, following close behind while on his Luxray. The electric-type Pokemon was doing its best to counter Salamence's attacks, firing its own Hyper Beams to counter Salamence's Hyper Beams. Though despite his best efforts, he couldn't block everything.

"That's Hunter J! She's an infamous bounty hunter! She went missing in action for a couple of years, which explains why no one knows of her, but it looks like she's back!" Lucas says with his eyes narrowed. The brown haired boy then pauses with his eyes shadowed, before hopping off Luxray and facing Hunter J with his Pokemon still running. Barry turns back with his eyes widened.

"Lucas, what are you-" The blonde haired trainer asks with his eyes widened in shock. The brown haired teenager faces Hunter J head on as he holds Floatzel's Pokeball and sends the water-type Pokemon out of its ball.

"Go! I'll buy as much time as I can, so run as fast as you can and don't look back!" Lucas yells. "Luxray, take care of them, alright?" The electric type Pokemon nods its head and carries on while carrying Barry on its back. Dawn's eyes widen in shock, turning her head around to look back at him as Lucas leaves himself behind.

"Lucas!" Dawn cries out to the brown haired teenager. Lucas just gives Dawn a small smile and a thumbs up, before another Hyper Beam from J's Salamence is fired. Floatzel counters it with a Hydro Pump and as the two powerful attacks collide with each other, a large explosion is caused, blocking Lucas out of view. Barry has his eyes shadowed as Luxray catches up with Paul, urging him to get on. The purple haired trainer nods his head, replacing Lucas' spot and hopping on, finally given some time to rest and set Dawn down.

"Lucas, you idiot…Showing off like that… You looked so cool and kick-ass out there!" Barry mutters under his breath. He then looks onward, more determined than before as Luxray continues forward. "Lucas will be fine… He's a strong trainer! We're going to have to count on him and keep going…" Dawn smiles at this and nods her head. Paul closes his eyes, having to acknowledge that what Lucas did back there was a brave thing to do.

"Hmph… I guess I have to admit… He isn't that pathetic after all…" Paul says with a gruff grunt while working on Dawn's bindings. He's finally able to cut through the silk ropes as the blue haired girl is let free from her bindings. Dawn stretches her arms as she's finally let free. She then notices how close she was to Paul with how limited space was on Luxray and grows a bit red in the cheeks. Things weren't chaotic now, and it looked like they were cleared for the time being…

… That didn't last for long, however, as a squad of Galactic Grunts surrounds the group. The group was led by one of the three Galactic commanders. In this case, it was Jupiter. The purple haired galactic commander smirks with her arms crosses as she faces the three of them.

"The three of you are not going any further~!" The galactic commander says with a cruel, arrogant smirk on her face. "Now surrender the girl to us, and maybe we won't completely thrash you~!" Barry narrows his eyes as he gets off Luxray. Lucas was brave and stood up for the three of them, and now it was his turn.

"Paul, Dawn, go on ahead, I'll buy you two as much time as possible…" The hyper, blonde haired trainer says with his eyes narrowed. Paul nods his head at this as Luxray leaps over the Galactic Grunts and continues running. Jupiter narrows her eyes as the two of them make their getaway.

"You aren't going anywhere!" Jupiter yells at Paul. "Skuntank, Flamethrower!" The skunk Pokemon emerges and charges a powerful fire-type attack in its mouth, however, it's intercepted by Barry's Torterra.

"Torterra, Energy Ball!" The blonde haired trainer says as his Penguin Pokemon emerges. The large tortoise Pokemon emerges from its ball and fires a green sphere of energy at the flamethrower, negating the attack. Jupiter smirks at this cruelly as she faces Barry.

"Oh, so you're the first one here to be thrashed by me…" Jupiter says gleefully. "I'll enjoy this…This should be fun~!" Barry gives Jupiter a wide grin as he faces the Galactic commander.

"Sorry, but I ain't losing to you that easily, granny~!" Barry says with a wide, confident grin on his face. "Torterra, Earthquake!" As he says this, the Continent Pokemon shatters the ground, stomping it with its powerful legs and causing the ground to shake.

As the ground shatters, Luxray continues to make a run for it. Dawn looks backwards, worried for her two best friends and wondering if they would be alright. Paul has his eyes shadowed and holds her protectively and reassuringly.

"Don't look back, troublesome… Let's focus on getting you to safety…" Paul says, having a newfound respect for both Lucas and Barry. "Your friends are strong trainers. They can fend for themselves!" Dawn smiles a bit at this, reassured that her friends would make it back to them as the both of them continue forward. However, this time they are confronted by two galactic commanders, Mars and Saturn. Both of the commanders had a squad of Galactic Grunts behind them, looking to capture the blue haired girl.

"Halt! You won't go any further! Surrender!" Saturn yells loudly as his Toxicroak appears by his side. "Toxicroak, use Sludge Bomb!" The poisonous frog Pokemon complies, shooting toxic bombs in front Luxray and stopping the Pokemon in its tracks. Paul grits his teeth as he takes out his own Pokeball and looks ready to fight. Mars smirks as she stands by Saturn's side, sending out her Purugly.

"Purugly, Giga Impact!" The Galactic Commander says, pointing at the Luxray. The large plump cat complies as it looks ready to charge at Luxray at full force. Paul narrows his eyes and grits his teeth, reaching for his own Pokeball and looking ready to fight. However, before the large feline Pokemon could unleash its attack, a Powerful Hydro Cannon blasts the Pokemon and knocks it back. The Pokemon takes a huge deal of damage from the attack and is dazed, but is still standing. Saturn's eyes widen at this as he looks around.

"What?! Who's there~?! Show yourself!" The galactic commander demands. As he says this, Gary emerges from the trees with his arms crossed coolly and his Blastoise standing next to him. He had more of a serious, angry look on his face rather than his usual cocky, arrogant smirk. Dawn pauses a bit and realizes that this was her first real encounter with the spiky Brown haired teenager, as she was knocked out by Umbreon when he had attacked her before. Saturn's eyes widen at this as he reels back a bit, recognizing the brown haired Pokemon Trainer.

"You! Cyrus got rid of you! Why are you defending the target?" Saturn asks while narrowing his eyes at him. Gary simply closes his eyes and clenches his fists as the Galactic commander asks him this question.

"It should be pretty obvious why I'm here, Saturn~!" Gary says in a snide remark. "Cyrus made a complete fool out of me, and I'm gonna pay him back big time! I could care less about Paul, his little girlfriend, or whether he gets away or not…" The brown haired teenager sneers. But really, this was his way of saying he was going to help the two of them make their getaway as a way to get back at Cyrus. Saturn scowls at this and looks ready to have his Toxicroak attack, however, just as he's about to issue an attack, A Pikachu comes charging at the Toxicroak with a powerful Volt Tackle and slams itself hard on the toxic frog Pokemon, sending it reeling from the sheer force of the impact.

"Heh, don't forget about me!" A voice says as another figure comes out of the trees. It was Ash! He then turns to Dawn and Paul and smiles at the two of them. "We'll take care of things from here. Take the girl to a place as far as you can to someplace safe! Once Cyrus is dealt with, you guys should be in the clear!" Paul nods his head at this and he urges Luxray to keep going.

As the electric feline Pokemon heads off, Dawn turns around and pouts at Ash adorably, remembering how he had toyed with her feelings back in Jubilive City. She then gives him a small, thankful smile, and nods her head thankfully at him before the two of them make their run for it. Ash grins as he stands by Gary's side, Pikachu having sparks fly from its eyes while Blastoise points its hydro cannons towards the two Galactic commanders, ready to fire at its master's command.

"Like old times, right, buddy?" Ash says with a wide grin on his face. Gary smirks at this and nods his head as he gives his childhood friend and rival a friendly bro-fist, before the two of them confront the two Galactic Commanders together and get ready for battle.

Back with Dawn and Paul, the two of them were making their way out of the forest, and the two of them could see light peeking out at the of the trees. However, Paul knew that they weren't in the clear yet until they reached the town and found someplace safe to hide.

"We're almost there, troublesome!" The purple haired trainer says with his eyes narrowed. "Just… a little… more…" However, just as the two of them could reach the end of the forest, Luxray is hit hard with a powerful Iron Tail, knocking it off of its feet and at the same time, sending both Paul and Dawn off of its back as well.

The electric Pokemon staggers a bit, damaged greatly by the powerful attack, but then collapses. Its injuries were too great and it was far too exhausted after running the entire time that the four of them were on the run. Paul grunts as he slowly gets up on his feet. He then looks at Dawn, her head handing. She had been slammed hard against a tree from the impact and was left a bit dazed. Paul narrows his eyes as he stands protectively in front of Dawn, facing what would be his toughest opponent yet. Standing right in front of him, was Cyrus and his Gyarados.

"Cyrus…" Paul mutters silently under his breath with his eyes narrowed. He holds one of his Pokeballs in his hand, looking ready to fight and protect the blue haired girl. Cyrus has this cold, calculated smirk on his face with his Gyarados standing by his side.

"So, you made it this far, Paul…" Cyrus says with a cruel smirk on his face. "Congratulations, but this is as far as you go… I will make the girl mine. And as for you… You will fall here and now!" Paul grits his teeth as he clutches his Pokemon in his hand and lets it out.

"Never! I won't surrender to you!" Paul snaps defiantly. "Electivire, stand by for battle!" Cyrus simply gives the purple haired trainer a cold, heartless gaze as he sends his electric Pokemon out of its ball.

"So, this is your answer, Paul… I'm quite… disappointed…" The cold hearted Galactic leader says. "So you decided to bare your fangs on me, the one who took you in. The one who trained you… The one who raised you into perfection! At this rate, it looks like you'll follow the same path as your late brother. He died because he was weak, and the weakness you're showing me now will be your downfall as well." Paul narrows his eyes at this as he and his Electivire look ready to battle.

"What do you know? What you call weakness isn't weakness at all, its strength!" Paul says defiantly with his eyes narrowed. He then looks back at Dawn and pauses a bit, before facing Cyrus once again. "I finally found something to fight for, something to protect! And I will fight until my last breath to keep her safe!" Cyrus narrows his eyes at the purple haired trainer coldly and in an uninterested, emotionless manner.

"Something to protect…?" Cyrus muses coldly. "How very foolish… I, too, had someone I loved and wished to protect, but were my affections ever returned…? No… They never were… Enough talk let us battle! Gyarados, Earthquake!" As he says this, the powerful serpent-like Pokemon snarls loudly as it shatters the ground with its powerful tail, creating a huge tremor that shook the very ground beneath it. Paul narrows his eyes at this and responds to the powerful attack.

"Electivire, jump, and use Thunder!" Paul says. The electric Pokemon complies, jumping high into the sky and avoiding the Earthquake. It then fires a huge, powerful bolt of electricity, which scores a direct hit on the powerful Water-type Pokemon. The large water serpent lets out a loud hiss before collapsing to the floor, haven taken a huge amount of damage from the powerful electric attack. As the electric attack makes contact with Gyarados, Dawn's eyes slowly open as she looks around, still a bit dazed from the impact earlier.

"P-Paul…? What happened…?" Dawn mumbles while still a bit woozy and dazed from Cyrus' initial attack. She then looks up and her eyes widen as she sees Cyrus. "Th-That's Team Galactic's leader, Cyrus, and your boss. He's after me, isn't he?" Paul nods his head and has his eyes narrowed.

"Stay behind me, troublesome. I'll protect you!" Paul says protectively to the blue haired girl. Dawn simply pouts at this while holding her own Pokeball in her hand.

"I can fend for myself just fine!" The blue haired girl says matter-of-factly. Paul just grunts at this and shrugs, letting the blue haired girl do as she pleased. Cyrus narrows his eyes at the blue haired girl, and suddenly, a devious idea formed in the cold-hearted man's head as he gets a wide, ominous smirk on his face.

"I see, so this girl, the desire to protect her… It truly is your greatest strength…" Cyrus says with a cruel, cold smirk on his face. "But at the same time, she's your greatest weakness! Weavile!" As Cyrus lets out the Dark-type Pokemon, it swiftly appears behind Dawn and Paul before the two of them could react. The agile dark-type Pokemon smirks and licks its lips as it points its claws to Dawn's neck, threatening to strike should Paul make the wrong move. Dawn's eyes widen at this as the dark Pokemon's claws could easily pierce her neck and kill her should she make a wrong move.

"Troublesome!" Paul exclaims, taken off guard as the Weavile has its claw pointed at Dawn's neck. He then narrows his eyes and glowers at Cyrus angrily and defiantly. "Cyrus, you bastard!" He growls at the cold hearted man's underhanded tactic. The cold-hearted man simply smirks cruelly at the purple haired teenager as his Gyarados slowly gets up. Although it was damaged by Electivire's Thunder, it still had some strength left in it.

"Hmph, I knew it… Your greatest strength has become your greatest weakness… Now I suggest you return that Electivire of yours or your precious blue haired girl will lose her head~!" Cyrus says cruelly and sadistically. Dawn shakes her head at this, urging Paul not to do it, that she would be fine. However, Paul narrows his eyes and grits his teeth at this, but then he closes his eyes and returns Electivire back to its Pokeball. He just couldn't risk Dawn's life like that. Cyrus laughs cruelly at this and has a wide, sadistic grin on his face.

"Ha! I knew it! Your pitiful feelings for this girl have become your greatest downfall~!" Cyrus laughs cruelly and sadistically. Dawn's eyes widen as Cyrus says this. Feelings… for her…? Paul had his eyes closed at this and his hands to his side in an acceptance. It was over… Dawn knew everything… but it was too late… Cyrus had won… The cold hearted Galactic leader smirks cruelly as he looks to his Gyarados. "Gyarados, Iron Tail… get this fool out of my sights~!" The large, serpent Pokemon complies, striking Paul with its powerful tail and slamming him hard into a tree. The purple haired teenager gasps and has his eyes widened as he's slammed into the tree coughing an obscene amount of blood and feeling his bones crack from the sheer force of the impact. He then slumps down to the floor, unable to move with his eyes shadowed.

"Paul!" Dawn exclaims with her eyes widened. She then glares at Cyrus and clenches her fists. She wasn't going to go down without a fight. "Piplup, Whirlpool!" The blue haired girl says. Weavile is taken off-guard as Piplup emerges, its guard lowered now that Paul was taken care off and that proved to be its downfall. The Penguin Pokemon fires a Whirlpool at it and traps it in the watery vortex, getting it away from Dawn. The Pokemon then throws it towards the ground, slamming the dark-type to the floor and knocking it out with the powerful attack. Cyrus simply smirks at this and walks towards the blue haired girl slowly, and menacingly.

Dawn has her pupils dilated and her eyes widened as Cyrus advances to her slowly, slowly backing away from the cold hearted man. "St-Stay back…" Dawn mutters in a small, terrified voice. "P-Piplup, Bubblebeam!" The small penguin Pokemon fires a stream of bubbles towards Cyrus, but Gyarados' tail simply swats the bubbles away and the serpent Pokemon retaliates with a powerful Hyper Beam, knocking the poor Pokemon out. Dawn desperately reaches for another Pokemon, but then, Cyrus comes up to her and grabs the girl by the throat, lifting her into the air.

"You've caused me a lot of trouble, girl~!" Cyrus says with a cold, cruel smirk as the blue haired girl dangles in the air, gasping desperately for air as the Galactic leader chokes her. "But now, it ends~! I have won~! And finally, my revenge will be realized!" Dawn has her eyes screwed shut tightly and her teeth clenched as the Galactic leader grabs her by the throat, struggling desperately to be released. She then looks towards Paul and reaches out for him desperately.

"P-Paul…" She gasps in a weak, choked voice. Paul slowly lifts his head, barely conscious and barely able to move. The purple haired teenager slowly lifts his hand, reaching for Dawn's hand, but the two are never able to touch, as Cyrus takes the blue haired girl away on his Honchkrow and flies back to his ship with Dawn on tow.

"T-Troublesome…" Paul mutters weakly as he reaches out for her. He could only able to watch helplessly as the poor, blue haired girl is taken away, before his eyes close shut tightly as he loses consciousness and everything goes black.

Meanwhile, Lucas had just finished defeating Hunter J. Although the battle was intense, and his Pokemon were wounded by her Salamence and Drapion, he managed to win decisively in the end. He then looks up in the sky, seeing Cyrus fly back to a large ship. His eyes widen as he notices someone familiar. It was Dawn.

"No…" Lucas mutters under his breath. He then looks around desperately, hoping to find something, anything to get on to that ship. He then looks in the unconscious Hunter J's jacket and finds an ID card and snatches it. He then grits his teeth as he lets out his Staraptor and hops on the Pokemon's back. "Staraptor, we need to get on that ship! Full speed!" The brown haired teenager says boldly and confidently. The flying-type Pokemon nods its head and flaps its wings, taking flight and flying towards the galactic ship.

The battle was over, and Team Galactic was retreating… but it could hardly be considered a victory. Barry is seen with his eyes shadowed and leaning against a tree. Unfortunately, despite all his efforts, the blonde haired trainer had been defeated by Jupiter and her grunts. The purple haired galactic commander simply smirks at Barry one last time before making her leave back to her ship. Ash and Gary's battle was still on-going at the time. But the Galactic commanders were retreating with grim smirks on their faces as they left. Ash and Gary deduced that this wasn't good news at all and face each other while paled in the face… Finally, the final scene takes us to Dawn, whose eyes flutter open after losing consciousness. She had lost consciousness moments before boarding the ship. The blue haired girl was in a large office room, her wrists were tied behind her back and her Pokemon were confiscated. Cyrus smirks coldly as he sits in his office and looks down at the poor blue haired girl cruelly.

"Welcome aboard my ship, girl…" The cruel, light blue haired man says coldly and cruelly. "Now, sit down and get comfortable… We have much to talk about…" He adds with a low, menacing chuckle as the doors to his room close behind them, leaving just the two of them in his office.

To be continued…

… The end is near… Dawn has finally been captured… What will happen next? Will Dawn make it out alright in one piece? Will Lucas possibly come to her rescue? What does Cyrus want with Dawn…? All this and more will be revealed in the chapter finale, of Targeted… Only a few more chapters left…

~Honou

Cyrus: Wait… that's it…? THAT'S IT~?! No silly author notes? No wanting to glomp le Dawn? No: OH SHIT, IT'S A CLIFFHANGER! No, Review, constructive criticism, no flaming? None of that stuff?! But why?!

Me: -3-;; It's called trying to build suspense, Cyrus… You should try it out sometime… Anyways… until next time…

~Honou (For reals this time)