Chapter 21

"Put her down, Maxie," I said in a forced calm. "It's not her you want."

"Oh, contraire," the Team Magma leader corrected. "I want the bird just as much as I wish I speak to with you." He handed Eve to a girl in a different style magma uniform. She popped some bubble gum before placing Eve in her hands by the arm instead. She held the pokemon far from her, as if it were contaminated with sickness. Her expression didn't change the entire while, even though Eve was nipping and clawing at her the whole while.

"What do you want?" I asked. Surely if I held him off long enough, some officers would come and arrest him, right?

"Archie fused you with the blue orb, did he not?"

"What of it?" Maxie leaned down towards me, hands behind his back.

"I will not accept attitude, young lady. You will respect your elders, regardless of the situation." He straightened. "Archie was stupid to mix the orbs together. It's like building a fireplace with a pure wooden frame. It just ends in disaster. So I'm going to ask you to give me the blue orb."

"What?" I asked. "You said that yourself. I can't take it out." He laughed.

"Oh, it can be taken out." He pulled a small knife from his back pocket. "All that it takes is a little digging and pulling." The image he put in my mind made me sick. I stepped away as he approached. "Don't be shy, now. You wouldn't want your little pokemon to get hurt now, would you?"

Something compelled Plum, I have no idea what, but it was enough to draw himself from his pokeball and ram Maxie right in the stomach. Sinbad followed, slicing the tip of his stem right down the Magma Admin holding Eve. Her face started dripping blood down the center. Screaming, she dropped Eve. The fire type dove forward and pecked Maxie's hand before he could bring his knife down on Plum. When he dropped it, I prepared myself to use a pokemon move on him, but I saw something flicker from the corner of my eye.

It was Brendan's eyes. He looked from me to Maxie, then shook his head. Only when I put my hands down did the red in his glare disappear. I would've helped him and Steven if I could've, but I decided to dive for the knife. Right when I grabbed it, a giant set of fangs took a big bite out of my hand. I pulled away, forcing myself to take the knife with me.

A mightyena was in front of me, baring ugly fangs at me as pink drool slipped down her cheeks. Maxie stood and pointed to me.

"Go! Use bite!" I put my hands up, ready for it to attack. As soon as the dog pokemon dove at me, I sidestepped and was missed by an inch of bloody fangs. My hand was throbbing and my vision was fading fast. If I didn't do something, I'd lose another life. Now Sinbad and Eve were relentlessly attacking Maxies pokemon with a neverending barrage of the most powerful moves they could perform. Plum lie in the corner, seemingly struck when I had not been looking.

"Oh, no!" I hissed, dragging myself over to him. I put my uninjured hand on his forehead. He was overheating and breathing heavy. It was like there was something wrong internally. there were no cuts, no signs of being attacked. Had he fallen of his own will?

"Dot! Dot!" Sinbad warned. I turned around and put my knife up to the mightyena as soon as she drew near. She stopped, spread her stance in defense, and began barking. The yelps were so high pitched that I felt my vision falter. I dropped to a knee but forced myself to stay away.

"You can take my life all you like, Maxie!" I shouted. "You can cut me to bits and rip me apart, you can infuse me with both orbs and ruin my life." My eyes started glowing brilliant purple. "But I won't ever let you touch my pokemon! Not now, not ever!"

"I'd like to see you try and stand after this! Mightyena, crunch!" I closed my eyes. What I had said was not a lie. I wouldn't let them touch Plum. If I died once, so be it. If I lost all my lives, so be it. My pokemon are my friends. I won't let them die. I'd rather die myself!

Just then a beam of light enveloped the whole room. The mightyena yelped in sudden dismay. A soothing wave of relief washed over my hand. I opened my eyes to watch the wounds heal themselves, the muscles and flesh mending together to heal flawlessly. I knew this pokemon move: heal pulse!

Plum landed in front of me, but this time, he was not the small ralts I had once known. He was a beautiful and elegant kirlia. He had healed me. Dancing on the tips of his toes, he looked back at me, eyes full of determination. I nodded and stood.

"Plum, use disarming voice!" The mightyena tried to run away, but by the time Plum had used his mighty roar of a fairy type move, the pokemon had been hurled from one end of the contest hall to the next. She landed in the crowd, where a bunch of magma grunts lost their control of the audience. It only took that small of a crowd to set the rest of the auditorium into chaos. As soon as they all got to their feet and scattered, the magma grunts were forced along with them, swept out of the hall and outside.

Maxie stood up, eyes red with rage. "This isn't the last you've seen of me, Mew! I'll take that blue orb out of you whether you're alive to wake from the procedure or not!" Then he grabbed his admin by the arm and dragged her outside. The whole while she was tossing and turning.

"My beautiful face!" she yelped. "My godlike, beautiful, perfect face!" The door slammed shut behind her, leaving the room empty except for my pokemon, Steven and Brendan. The Magma member that had kept them in place had fled with the others. They hopped onto the stage.

"You did pretty well for a newbie," Brendan complimented. I wasn't sure what he meant by that. Did that happen every time a contest started? I sure as hell hoped it didn't. Steven looked around the room. The banners, the stage lights, and the stage itself had sustained damage from Team Magma invading.

"I suppose we'll make the news again," he said in disappointment. "After Maxie found us here, I'm sure we'll just become wandering targets."

"No, sir." We both looked offstage. There, climbing up the broken steps, was Lissia. Despite being in the midst of chaos and turmoil, her outfit was still beautiful and her make up unsmudged. She stepped up to me. "I'm sorry, Mew. I had no idea you were a target for those guys."

"Oh, it's ok." I lifted my hands up. "Really, if you were traveling with us, you'd know this happens a lot." She put a finger on her cheek.

"Really? That much?" She looked towards the door. "I guess it's true. Team Magma and Aqua don't ever come around here. They know everyone hates them."

"I'm sorry about the hall, Lissia," Steven chimed in. "I'll be glad to pay for any damages that need to be covered."

"Oh, don't you worry." She winked. Man, this whole girls' life was a movie. "If you think about it, now that it's all been torn down and destroyed, we can redo it! Make it bigger, better!" She took a minute to think. "What should call the new contests here…. Oh, I know! Contests Spectacular! Cuz, you know, that's just what they are!" She looked to me. "And you, Mew of Saffron City, have received the first ever ribbon!"

She reached into the folds of her bow and pulled out an orange ribbon with a tiny gold plate in the center. She took my dress and pinned it on the front, nearest to where the Team Magma symbol on my chest shone.

"But, I didn't really-" She put a finger to my lips.

"That's the beauty about contests, Mew! You don't have to participate, you have to perform!" She leaned back. "And what you did today was beyond cool. It was just all-around spectacular!" She laughed.

"Um, thanks, Lissia." I looked down at the ribbon pinned to my dress. I had to say I did feel a little proud of myself. "Is there anything else you need us to do before we leave?"

"Sure! Do this city a favor and visit the museum. Having someone like you there will really boost the popularity." She hopped off the stage like a princess and started out the door. Without stopping, she waved. "Good luck on your travels, Mew! One day we'll have a real contest: a contest spectacular!"

When she left, the three of us just sorta stood there, taken aback. Then Brendan laughed.

"Congrats, Mew. You got your first ribbon." He made a girly twirl of his hands. "A spectacular ribbon," he added sarcastically. "Because that's a hell of a lot different."

Maxie Would Like To Battle!

Maxie Sent Out Mightyena!

What? Plum Is Evolving!

Congratulations, Plum Evolved Into A Kirlia!

Saving Game…

Game Saved!