Crystal staggered closer to Saffron City. She was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to just sit down and relax. A large shadow passed by her and she glanced up. So, Alexandra was here after all, Crystal growled angrily and considered attacking the Aerodactyl with Blastoise. However, the thought was just not that appealing. "I just need rest. Then I'll wage a full out war against Alexandra and the NDSJ. First, though, I need to go after Mario and kill him. After that, Alexandra should be a piece of cake to handle. Destroy her moral. Perfect plan." She grinned to herself, and then realized that doing that hurt her jaw. I just need rest... She huffed.

Finally, after suffering through waterfalls and caves, Crystal made it to Saffron. She silently celebrated and moved into the city walls. It didn't take her long to find the building where she was supposed to go. "Ah-hah! There it is!" She ran to the door and knocked multiple times.

An older man appeared in the doorway. "So you must be Crystal. Welcome!" The man seemed nice, but looks could be deceiving. She eyed him carefully and entered the building. "John! Crystal finally showed up."

Another older man stood up and smiled, "Crystal, we summoned you here because we are not too sure what your goals are in Johto."

Crystal folded her arms across her chest and blinked, "Haven't you heard about it? Seems odd that you would summon me here just to gain information—information that you probably already have."

"She's smart," the man, who had allowed her to enter, muttered.

Crystal shrugged modestly, "I do my best. My mission with the NIA is to destroy the NDSJ and all of their allies. I want to see Alexandra dead."

"Good girl. You do know who to speak our language."

A younger man spoke up. "But why do you want to kill Alexandra? What caused the war?"

"In my hometown, I heard of a dragon using clan who wanted to spread the use of dragons all over the world. Blackthorn is deathly close to my home, so I knew that we would be the first to convert from our beloved ice Pokèmon. And I couldn't allow that to happen." Crystal explained. She smiled, Perfect! My charm is working!

The man identified as John approached Crystal. "We want to see Alexandra dead too. I think that it would be a wise move if we joined forces."

The younger man yelped, "WHAT?! John!"

"Sam. Be quiet. I know what I'm doing. And if anyone can destroy the NDSJ, it would be an ice trainer." John growled and turned back to Crystal. "Forgive him. He's just a youngster."

Crystal nodded and smiled, "No worries. I think that we can utterly annihilate Alexandra. And her ally, Mario. He must be destroyed too."

"Agreed!" Both men nodded. Sam just sighed.

Meanwhile, Alexandra and Aerodactyl were on the move. They were flying back to the base at Mount Silver. Both had a sense of doom and knew that something bad was going to happen very soon. Sooner than both would like. "Aerodactyl, do you have the same bad feeling that I have?" She asked.

"Aero!" Aerodactyl answered. He was nervous. However, his nerves were soon soothed when he was the large rock base towering into the air. "Dactyl!"

Alexandra saw Mario standing on the room of the building. He had seen them. "MARIO!" Alexandra shouted and waved. She was genuinely happy to see him. Without waiting for Aerodactyl to land, she leaped off and landed hard on the roof.

Mario looked surprised and blinked his brown eyes. "Jeez, Alexandra, could you be anymore reckless?" He asked.

She laughed, "You just watch. One day this recklessness might save my life!"

"Ooookay. So how did the meeting go?"

"Poorly."

"Tell me about it."

Alexandra sighed, "Well, the Kanto forces were just two old men. They kept asking questions in which they already knew the answers to. And they seemed not to trust me."

"Wonderful. Were you polite?"

She shrugged, "Probably could have done a little bit better at that department…"

Mario slapped his forehead and groaned, "Can't you be a little more tactful? Seriously, Alexandra, I have no idea how many more chances you're going to get in winning this war. I'm afraid that one day we'll wake up and find ourselves surrounded my death and destruction. Or worst, never wake up at all."

"Relax, you big baby. I don't think death and destruction is in store for us. Those old men didn't seem like the type who would wage an unstoppable war."

"I hope you're right about that," Mario answered in an uncertain voice.

Alexandra paused and glanced at the troops. There was a massive crater in the ground from Aerodactyl's Giga Impact. "I am right. Don't worry, Mario. Everything will be fine. Trust me on that."

"I trust you," Mario said. His voice had a hit of mistrust in it. It was clear that he was not sure if his ally was correct. And he was not looking forward to seeing if she was or not. His eyes narrowed, "Please, don't antagonize them. We don't need any more complications. And most of our men are still weak from the earlier attack."

"Bunch of wimps…" Alexandra muttered to herself.

Mario glared at her sharply. "Well, Alexandra, not everyone can be as tough as you. Some of us need rest."

She shrugged, "What? Do you want an apology? We can't be sitting around all day waiting for an attack. And if I know Crystal, she'll most likely sweet talk her way into the hearts of those old men. Which means that we have even more trouble coming our way."

Mario gasped, "Are you telling me that Crystal will most likely join forces with Kanto?"

"I hate to admit it, but probably. I didn't exact make a wonderful first impression."

"Crap! Our one chance of gaining more allies and you blow it."

Alexandra hesitated. She knew that it was true. "Mario, we don't need those creeps. We can defeat all the forces in Kanto and Johto combined! Then we can move on to Hoenn! I know we can do this. All we have to do is believe."

Mario sighed, "Alexandra, I wish I had your confidence. Or your stupidity. Which ever makes you so bold."

"Let's try confidence," she muttered.