Previously on Poké Rangers: Knights of Order:

Still journeying to Courmarine City, the Knights and Etna ran into an emergency at Baa De Mer Ranch, where they met Electra's little sister, Marcy, who claimed to see Sharphound attacking the Skiddo that live there. Though the ranch's owner disbelieved her, the Knights decided to investigate. The ranch then came under attack by Paramoonguss, a monster that used her spore attacks to knock out half the Knights then trapped the Skiddo and Marcy in a root prison so she could drain their life force. Luckily, with help from Marcy's Skiddo friend, Scruffy, the other Knights were able to save the Skiddo, revive their friends, and destroy Paramoonguss using the Justice Blaster


Chapter 28: Eye of the Beholder

Rafi took in a breath of the forest breeze, feeling it ruffle his hair. "What a great day," he said to himself. "The perfect weather for finding Pokémon…"

Hearing a cry behind him, he turned around. Marcy was struggling through the bushes, her shirt caught on a few branches. Scruffy lowered his horns and gently cut through the branches. "Thanks," she muttered, patting his head. "What are we doing out here, Rafi?"

"I saw an unusual Pokémon the other day, and I wanted to find it," Rafi explained, walking back to her. "Besides, Electra wanted me to show you some tips to becoming a great Pokémon trainer. Don't you want to learn?"

"I don't know," Marcy replied reluctantly. "When Ellie told me to go with you, this wasn't what I had in mind. The forest is very different to the city; so wild and dangerous…"

"It's not that bad," Rafi argued. "Once you get past the worst trails, the forest has all sorts of Pokémon waiting to be discovered. And there's a long-eared female Nidoran out there somewhere…"

"A female Nidoran with long ears?" Marcy's eyes lit up in excitement. "That does sound cool!"

"Mincci! Mincci!"

"Chespin! Chespin!"

Rafi and Marcy turned to see Lucky and Spiky running out of the grass. "Hey guys, did you see the Nidoran?"

"Chespin!" Spiky replied, pointing back the way they'd come.

"Come on, let's get closer," Rafi hissed to Marcy. "But you'd better leave Scruffy back here. We don't want to scare her off."

"Good idea." Marcy patted the Skiddo's head. "Hope you're okay with waiting for us."

Scruffy nodded and settled down under a tree. Rafi and Marcy then crouched down and crawled through the grass as quietly as possible.

As they crept on, Rafi cast a quick glance back to where Scruffy lay. Just after the attack at Baa de Mer Ranch yesterday, Electra had offered to escort Marcy back to Courmarine City. The other Knights and Etna had agreed, and since they were only a few hours away from the city, they had spent the night at the edge of the forest. While the others were packing up their breakfast dishes, Rafi had insisted on exploring the forest one last time.

A rustling ahead of them interrupted Rafi's thoughts. "Over there," Marcy hissed, pointing.

Peeking up out of the grass, Rafi could see a pair of blue long ears sticking up. "That's the Nidoran alright," he said, slowly taking out a Poké Ball. "Now I'm gonna catch it. Spiky, Lucky, get ready to fight."

Spiky nodded and bounded out of the grass with a cry. "Not now!" Rafi snapped.

Hearing Spiky's call, the Nidoran darted away. "After it!" Marcy called.

Rafi jumped out of the grass and ran after the Nidoran. "Lucky, come here! Use your Disarm- WHOA!" He suddenly tripped over a root and pitched forward. As he hit the ground, his glasses flew off his face and tumbled into the bushes.

Lucky bounded up to her owner, concern on her face. "Mincci-cci!"

"Are you alright?" Marcy cried, kneeling next to him.

"I think so…" Rafi sat up and felt around the ground. "Wait, my glasses! Lucky, go find them!"

Lucky ran into the grass for a moment then came back and shook her head. "Minccino"

"She didn't find them!" Marcy gasped.

"No, no, no, I can't lose my glasses!" Rafi panicked. "They have to be around here somewhere!"

Marcy looked around too but to no avail. She didn't know what else to do. "I'd better get you back to camp. Maybe Ellie can help us out…"


Resharma examined the life force containment vat with mild irritation. "We've enough life force to restock the KrokoViles, but it's barely sufficient for any major mutants."

"It's all the Knights of Order's fault," Zekronos scowled, clenching his fists. "They interrupted before we could complete the process. We really need to eliminate them!"

"I'm glad you agree," Yvestros stated, entering the lab with Mothitelle and Sharphound. "The Knights of Order always come in just before our plans succeed. We should focus our efforts on disposing of them before they reach the next city."

Sharphound was about to speak when they heard the sound of fighting down the passage, followed by Sabelteur's voice. "Yes, go on! Show them no mercy!"

"What's going on?" Yvestros demanded.

"I don't know, but we'd better find out," Mothitelle decided.

They soon entered the throne room and saw it was shrouded by an indoor snowstorm. Battling through the hail, they found Sabelteur standing in the middle and a KrokoVile looking around in confusion.

"Sabelteur, what is the meaning of this?" Yvestros bellowed.

"Oh, hello, my Lord," Sabelteur said, turning around. "Sorry about the mess; I was just testing out the battling strength of my newest Poke-Mutant."

"What?" Yvestros' eyes glowed fiercely as he stomped closer to Sabelteur. "In case you've forgotten, the Twin Generals are now responsible for creating our Mutants!" In the blink of an eye, he grabbed Sabelteur's throat and lifted him up. "Do you know what the penalty is for disobeying my orders?"

"Y-y-yes, my Lord," Sabelteur gasped. "But please hear me out. This monster may be the solution to wiping out the Knights of Order once and for all."

Yvestros glared at him silently then lowered him to the floor. "You have ten seconds to impress me, Sabelteur."

Taking a breath, Sabelteur moved away from his master. "Watch this, my Lord…" He turned towards the blizzard. "Go ahead, Bear-Chan!"

"Close Aqua Combat!" came a deep gravelly voice from the hail.

Seconds later, a white figure shrouded in water burst out of the snowstorm and tackled the KrokoVile, pounding it mercilessly. The KrokoVile then fell back against a block of ice in the corner.

As the snow faded, Yvestros got a proper look at the Poké-Mutant. It had the body of Hitmonchan, but the head and hind legs of Beartic. At the end of its boxing gloves, it had sharp black claws.

"This is Bear-Chan, my Lord," Sabelteur explained. "He specializes in elemental close combat."

"Elemental close combat?" Sharphound asked.

"Yep. You see, I've been studying the Knights of Order's fighting styles for weeks, trying to determine how best to fight back. And now I believe I've found the perfect fighter. Hitmonchan can use typed punches and fast punches, while Beartic becomes faster when it's hailing."

"Interesting," Mothitelle replied. "And how will it help us defeat the Knights?"

"Simple, my dear," Sabelteur replied. "Thanks to my genius mind, I've combined the elemental attacks with the Fighting attacks, each move tuned to a specific Knight. Then when they've been beaten down enough… Well, show them what happens next, Bear-Chan."

"Sheer Cold!" Bear-Chan's body glowed blue and a beam of icy light shot out from his hands to the KrokoVile. In seconds, it had frozen solid. The others then saw that the ice block behind it contained five other KrokoViles.

"That is most impressive indeed," Yvestros commented. "Very well, Sabelteur. We'll send him out to wipe out the Knights, along with some KrokoViles to distract them."

Sabelteur nodded eagerly. "You won't be disappointed, my Lord…"


"Heracross, use Horn Attack!" Tristan commanded.

"Gogoat, counter it with Tackle!" Camille called.

The two Pokémon charged across the battlefield and collided in the middle, Gogoat blocking Heracross' attack with his horns. Heracross flew back around and dived in again, and again Gogoat charged in to block the attack.

"Look at them go," Electra said, watching the battle. "Camille is really pushing Heracross hard."

"It's how she trains her Pokémon," Marianne said. "Whenever she catches a new Pokémon, she trains it with her current Pokémon until they learn one of the strong attacks. It helps when she's going to face a Gym Leader and she catches a type that's strong against it."

"Tristan could learn a thing or two from her," Quinn replied, wiping some dishes dry. "Heracross is his newest Pokémon and he needs to train it to use Bug attacks."

Camille walked up to Gogoat and patted his head. "Alright, buddy, let's take five."

"Phew, that's a workout," Tristan sighed as Heracross landed next to him. "How long will it take him to learn Megahorn?"

"It could be a while," Camille replied. "But Heracross does know some strong Fighting attacks and Aerial Ace too. That's very helpful."

"Will that be enough to beat Courmarine Gym?" Tristan asked as he recalled Heracross.

"Maybe, but a Bug attack would be useful too." Camille sat down on a rock and looked up at the trees. "You also have to understand that Heracross is new to your team, so he won't be as high-leveled as your other Pokémon. That's why I'm training you; it's one thing to have the right typed Pokémon, but having a strong one can make all the difference."

"Are you speaking from experience?" Electra asked, joining her friends.

"Yep," Camille replied. "While Santos and I were traveling in Hoenn, we both challenged Roxanne at Rustboro. Both of us had a Treecko on our teams, but I had trained my Treecko after I caught it so that it learned Bullet Seed and Brick Break. As a result, I was able to win. Santos, on the other hand, forgot to teach his Treecko any Grass attacks."

"How did he get his Stone Badge?" Tristan asked.

"After losing the first time, he noticed that his Treecko's tail was strong, so he and his Pikachu trained it to learn Iron Tail. Since then, he's been careful about training any Pokémon he catches, mostly with my help."

"Guys, come here!" Etna called urgently.

Instinctively, Camille jumped to her feet and took off.

"We'd better see what's going on," Tristan said. "Come on, Electra."

But as he and Electra hurried after Camille, and Quinn and Marianne continued cleaning the dishes, in the bushes nearby, a cloud of black smoke was starting to form…


"We're here, Etna," Tristan called as he, Camille, and Electra arrived by the edge of the forest. "What's happened?"

He then saw that Etna was kneeling next to Marcy, who looked terribly stressed out. Scruffy lay next to her with Rafi on his back, and Lucky and Spiky were resting on their owner's shoulders. "Rafi, are you okay? Where are your glasses?"

"I lost them in the forest, and I couldn't find them," Rafi explained glumly. "Marcy brought me back so that you could help out."

"He dropped them when he chased after the long-eared female Nidoran," Marcy added.

"Um, Marcy?" Electra said gently. "Female Nidoran don't have long ears; the males do."

"But that Nidoran did!" Marcy insisted. "We both saw it!"

"Okay, okay," Electra cried. "Sorry!"

Rafi sighed and bowed his head. "I can't believe I lost my glasses again. And those were my only pair; Dad's gonna kill me!"

"Calm down, buddy," Tristan said, patting the Flying Knight's shoulder. "We'll help you look for them. And our Pokémon can help too."

"Right." Electra took Rafi's hand and led him back towards the trees. "Let's go."


"There, that's the last of it," Marianne said, placing the last clean dish on the table. "Now we can start packing up the camp."

Quinn nodded as he folded up the drying cloth. "Right. Let's get my friends out to assist us."

But just as he was reaching for his Poké Balls, a cloud of smoke burst out around them, forming into a horde of KrokoViles.

"What the…?" Marianne gasped. "We're under attack!"

"Watch out!" Quinn grabbed the cloth and used it to whip away a KrokoVile that was about to bite Marianne. "We need to morph if we're to fight them off!"

He and Marianne stood side by side and raised their Morphers. "Order's Light, Ignite!"

As their armor formed on their bodies, the KrokoViles snarled and charged at them.

"Weapons of Order, engage!" Marianne swung her Cannon like a club, knocking several KrokoViles back. The first one tried to bite her again, and she quickly jammed her weapon sideways into its jaws, breaking all its teeth.

Quinn blocked a KrokoVile's claws with his Dirks then kicked it back and cut it down. "Leaf Storm!" A volley of leaves formed around his body and he launched them out, wiping out the other KrokoViles.

As Marianne looked around for more KrokoViles, she began to shiver. "Brr, is it me or did it suddenly get colder?"

"No wonder." Quinn saw tiny pieces of ice falling from the sky. "It's starting to hail."

Just then, Gurkinn's voice blared out of their Morphers' communicator. "Knights, be careful. Lucario has picked up a new Poké-Mutant in your area."

"Any idea what it looks like?" Quinn asked.

Before Gurkinn could reply, a new voice called out from the forest. "Fire Comet Punch!"

Suddenly, a white blur launched out of the foliage towards Quinn. Next thing he knew, he was beaten relentlessly by multiple punches. When the attack ended, he landed at the base of a tree, his armor burnt and sparking.

"Quinn!" Marianne fired a stream of water at the blur but it disappeared as quickly as it had attacked. "Who are you?" she yelled out. "Show yourself!"

"Gladly," the voice replied, seemingly from everywhere. "Thunder Mach Punch!"

Marianne turned to face her attacker, just in time to receive a powerful blow right in her chest. She screamed in pain as an electric current coursed through her. As she fell next to Quinn, her body sparked wildly.

Flinching from the burn, Quinn struggled to sit up. He then saw a white Beartic-Hitmonchan monster emerging from the forest. "Who… are you?"

"My name is Bear-Chan," the monster replied. "Think of me as your final opponent."

"Gotta… warn the others," Quinn groaned, reaching for his communicator.

"I don't think so. Sheer Cold!" A blue light formed around Bear-Chan as he raised his hands, firing a beam of ice at Quinn and Marianne. Still weakened from his first attacks, they were instantly trapped in a block of ice.

Ending his attack, Bear-Chan smiled and walked back into the forest. "Two Knights down; four to go…"


Unaware of the danger their friends were in, Tristan, Camille, Electra, and Etna followed Marcy and Rafi back to where they'd found the Nidoran. Tristan had helped Rafi release Orville to search the forest while Lucky and Spiky stuck by their trainer's feet.

"…And just as we were about to get her, the Nidoran heard us coming and ran for it," Marcy was explaining as they searched. "And when we chased after her, that's when Rafi lost his glasses."

"So the Nidoran heard you without you speaking?" Etna asked.

"You know, male Nidoran have sensitive ears," Electra said. "They can detect even the faintest sound with them. Are you sure it wasn't a male?"

"I'm telling you, it was blue like a female," Rafi insisted, still holding Etna's hand.

"Listen, Rafi, it's not that we doubt you," Tristan said. "But you might be jumping to the wrong conclusion."

Rafi frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Let me explain." Camille walked over and sat next to Rafi. "Remember the story I told you yesterday about Marianne trying to spot a Wailord?"

"Yeah," Rafi replied. "And when she thought she did, it turned out to be a school of Jellicent."

"Exactly! Sometimes, when we want to find something so much, we can be tricked into spotting it when it's not really there. Our eyes can be easily deceived by our own mind. That's why our other senses are necessary; to determine what's real and what isn't."

"But if it wasn't a long-eared female Nidoran I saw, then what was it?" Rafi asked.

"I don't know," Camille admitted. "But the best way to know is to find it again."

"Okay," Rafi replied. "But first, we really need to find my glasses."

Just then, Tristan's Morpher began to beep loudly. "What's that noise?" Marcy asked.

Quickly, Tristan answered it. "Tristan here."

"Tristan, thank goodness," Gurkinn responded. "There's a situation close by. Lucario has picked up the aura of a new Poké-Mutant, just as I lost contact with Quinn and Marianne."

"What?" Tristan gasped. "What happened to them?"

"I don't know. Just get back there as quick as you can. Gurkinn out."

As Tristan ended the call, Orville flew back, cawing loudly.

"Orville, did you find Rafi's glasses?" Electra called.

Orville nodded then pointed his wing to the north.

"Marcy, Camille, go with Rafi and follow Orville into the forest," Tristan ordered. "Electra, Etna, and I will head back to camp and, uh, see if Quinn needs help packing up."

Camille understood Tristan's hidden meaning and nodded. "Let's go, guys." She helped Rafi onto Scruffy's back and set off with Marcy into the bushes.

After they left, Electra turned to Tristan. "What's going on?"


A few minutes later, they arrived back at their campsite. Their tents were still standing and there was a huge block of ice around a tree next to the table.

"Quinn, Marianne?" Tristan called, looking in the tents. "It's not like them to stop packing up."

"Do you think they went to get some water or something?" Electra wondered.

Just then, Etna let out a cry of alarm. Tristan and Electra found her standing next to the ice block. "What's wrong?" Tristan asked.

Etna just pointed to the ice. Tristan and Electra looked and were horrified by what they saw. The ice contained the frozen bodies of Quinn and Marianne, still in their Knight armor. Quinn was propped up against the tree, his hand close to the Morpher, while Marianne was trapped on her hands and knees.

"Oh no!" Electra breathed. "Did that new Poké-Mutant do this?"

"It had to, but I know how to get them out. Order's Light, Ignite!" In seconds, Tristan had morphed into his armor, his sword raised. "One quick swipe of fire should melt through that ice."

But just as he lifted his sword, a gruff voice cried out, "Close Aqua Combat!"

Tristan spun around just a white blur surrounded by water burst out of the bushes. "Look out!" Etna cried, pushing him aside.

Seconds later, the blur struck Etna and started pounding her endlessly.

"Etna!" Tristan summoned his Pistol and fired three shots at the blur. The fire bolts evaporated when they hit the water, but it was enough to make the figure stop. The water disappeared to reveal the half Hitmonchan, half Beartic monster glaring at him.

"How did you avoid my attack?" the monster growled. "No-one escapes the power of Bear-Chan and gets away with it."

"Did you do this to our friends?" Tristan demanded, pointing to the frozen Quinn and Marianne.

"I'd be lying if I said no," Bear-Chan chuckled. "But don't fret, you'll soon be joining them!"

"Not on your life!" Electra snapped, pressing her Morpher button. "Order's Light, Ignite!"

Once she'd morphed, Electra raised her Pistol and opened fire.

"Detect!" Bear-Chan's body flashed for a moment and he ducked aside to avoid the shots then he disappeared into the bushes.

Tristan and Electra ran over to Etna and helped her up. "Are you alright?" Electra asked.

"Only just," Etna grunted. "That Mutant can really pack a punch. Several punches, in fact."

"We have to find him before he strikes again," Tristan said, looking around the forest.

"How?" Electra cried then she started to shiver. "Yikes, why is it so cold all of a sudden?"

Tristan held out a hand and felt tiny cold drops landing on his gloves. "It's raining. No, wait, that's hail."

"Hail?" Etna's eyes widened. "Oh no!"

"Superpowered Brine!" came Bear-Chan's cry.

A stream of water burst out from the forest and struck Tristan with the force of a fire hose. The Fire Knight was thrown off his feet, crashing against the ice block.

"Tristan!" Electra turned towards where the Brine had come out. "That tears it! Thunder Hammer, engage! Electro Ball!"

Her Hammer appeared in her hands, sparks forming into a ball at the end. Once it was big enough, Electra swung her weapon around and launched the ball into the forest. Bolts of lightning shot out as it impacted, but there was no cry of pain.

"It doesn't sound like you hit him," Etna said.

"That's impossible!" Electra shouted. "Where did he go?"

"Beartic has the Snow Cloak ability," Etna explained. "When it's hailing, they become faster and more nimble. Bear-Chan must have dodged the attack."

"Then where will he attack next?" Electra asked.

Right on cue, the ground erupted beneath Electra's feet, throwing her into the air. "High Jump Bulldoze Kick!" Bear-Chan emerged from the hole in the ground and kicked Electra back, covering her in dirt. She landed next to Tristan, her armor sparking wildly.

Bear-Chan landed next to Etna and turned to face the fallen Knights. "I'll admit, you two put up quite a fight. But it's clear who won this round."

Tristan sat up and glared at Bear-Chan. "You haven't… caught… all of us…"

"Not yet, but it's just a matter of time." While Bear-Chan was talking, Etna slowly began to back away from him. "And now it's time you joined your friends. Sheer Cold!"

Once again, his body began to glow blue and he raised his hands, firing a beam at Tristan and Electra. Etna watched in horror as the beam hit her friends, freezing them solid in seconds. "No!"

Hearing her scream, Bear-Chan turned to her. "Where do you think you're going?"

Etna gasped and turned to run away. "Ice Beam!"

Bear-Chan opened his mouth and shot a smaller beam of light at her feet. She didn't get far before she came to a stop, trapped from the waist down in ice.

"I wouldn't want you to leave before the final act," Bear-Chan laughed. "And don't bother using any of your Fire Pokémon. They're stuck in the ice too."

"Why don't you just freeze me too?" Etna snapped.

"Oh, I will, once I've dealt with the last two Knights." Bear-Chan turned and walked back into the bushes. "See you then…"


Yvestros smiled wickedly, watching Bear-Chan's actions over the Spydove. "Excellent. Bear-Chan has exceeded expectations, Sabelteur."

"I thought you'd be happy, my Lord," Sabelteur grinned. "And before long, all the Knights will be put on ice… permanently!"


In the Tower of Mastery, Gurkinn frowned as he watched Tristan and Electra's auras fading. "This isn't good, Lucario. Our friends are getting wiped out one by one."

"Lucar, lucario?" asked the Aura Pokémon. (What are you going to do?)

"What else can I do?" Gurkinn stood up and went up to the Transportation Door. "I need to warn Rafi and Camille about the danger."

"Lucario? Lucar, lucario, lucar!" (And if you get frozen too? Then Kalos would be defenseless against Yvestros!)

"I understand the risks, old friend," Gurkinn sighed. "But I have faith that we can find a weakness."

By then, the Door had powered up and Gurkinn walked up to it. "I'll be back soon…"


Back in the forest, Rafi, Marcy, Scruffy, and Camille had gone further in, following Orville. After a while, Orville paused above a clearing, looking around the bush.

"He's stopped," Marcy told Rafi. "He looks confused."

"Where are my glasses, Orville?" Rafi called.

Orville turned and tilted his head. "Pidgeo?"

"They disappeared?" Camille translated. "He said that they were lying there earlier."

"Well, where are they now?" Marcy asked.

Camille knelt down and examined the ground. "Hmm, there's some footprints over here. They look like Nidoran footprints."

"Female Nidoran footprints?" Rafi asked hopefully.

"No, the claws are too small on the front and back foot. But there's a marking next to them…" Camille sighed and stood up. "I think a male Nidoran must have taken your glasses."

"What?!" Rafi slid off Scruffy's back and fell on his knees. "Now we'll never find them…"

"Giving up so soon? Now that's not like you at all, Rafi."

Camille looked up and saw a familiar figure emerging from the bushes behind them. "Gurkinn? What are you doing out here?"

"Who is this guy?" Marcy asked.

"This is Gurkinn; he's the keeper of the Tower of Mastery in Shalour City," Rafi explained. "So, what's up, Gurkinn?"

"Your friends are in terrible danger," Gurkinn explained. "Some new Poké-Mutant has attacked them and I've lost contact with them. We need to get back to camp to help them!"

"Poké-Mutant?" Marcy asked. "You mean like those monsters that attacked the Ranch? Ellie could be in terrible trouble!"

"Ellie?" Gurkinn asked.

"She means Electra, her sister," Camille replied. "Anyway, we can't go yet. Rafi lost his glasses while looking for a Nidoran. He can't fight without them."

"Stuff and nonsense," Gurkinn scoffed. "You don't need your eyes to fight. If you can't see your opponent, you have to use your other senses to locate them." He sat down next to Rafi. "Just calm yourself, close your eyes, and focus on the sounds around you."

Taking in a breath, Rafi closed his eyes. After a few seconds, he could hear faint noises; the wind through the trees, the song of a nearby Fletchling, a sniffling sound in the bushes…

"Wait, I hear something," Rafi gasped. "There's something there!"

"Scruffy, quick, grab it with Vine Whip!" Marcy hissed.

"Maa!" A pair of vines emerged from Scruffy's neck and flew into the bushes. Seconds later, they heard a loud "Nidooo!"

"It's a Nidoran!" Camille gasped.

Gurkinn jumped to his feet and ran into the bushes. Moments later, he emerged, carrying Rafi's glasses. Carefully, he placed them over his eyes. "Open your eyes, Rafi."

Rafi did so and gasped. "My glasses! But how?"

"See for yourself," Gurkinn replied. "Marcy, get Scruffy to pull his vines back."

Marcy whispered in Scruffy's ear and the vines were retracted out into the open. Marcy and Rafi saw two blue ears sticking out of the vines. "It's the long-eared female Nidoran!" Rafi cheered. "We caught her!"

Camille however could see something different. "Wait a minute…" Carefully, she pulled the vines apart and lifted the Nidoran out. "Guys, I think you may have made a little error with this Nidoran."

"Huh?" Marcy and Rafi asked.

In response, Camille turned around. Now Rafi and Marcy could see that the blue Nidoran had the shape of the male, long ears and all. "It's a male? But why is it blue?"

"What you have here is a rare shiny Male Nidoran," Gurkinn explained. "That's why it looked like a female to you."

"Of course," Rafi realized. "When I first saw her- I mean, him, he ran past so quickly that I didn't see him clearly. All I saw was the long ears and blue color, so I thought it was a female."

"It's like I said before," Camille said. "Your mind was tricked by what your eyes saw. But why did he steal your glasses?"

"Nido, nido, nidoran," the Nidoran replied. "Nido, nidoran, nido."

"He says that all his life, he'd been mistreated by the other Nidoran because of his color," Gurkinn translated. "He'd been looking for a friend for so long. Then he saw these glasses in the middle of the forest and he took them to find out more about them. He'd been sniffing them over when Skiddo's Vine Whip caught him."

"Poor Nidoran." Rafi walked up to the Pokémon. "He just wanted a friend after all."

"Right, now can we help the others?" Gurkinn asked.

Camille nodded and put down the Nidoran. "Okay, little guy, we gotta go."

But as they left the clearing, the shiny Nidoran turned and watched them with a puzzled expression…


Etna struggled as hard as she could, trying to free herself from the ice. She had lost all feeling in her legs and her hands were raw from trying to beat the ice. To make matters worse, the hail had not stopped falling since Bear-Chan's last attack. If I don't get out of here soon, I'll freeze to death.

Then she heard a rustling in the bushes and she looked around in shock. "Who's there?"

"Etna, it's us!" Camille's voice called out. "Are you alright?"

"Not really! Just come in here, but be careful."

Moments later, Rafi, Camille, Marcy, their Pokémon, and Gurkinn entered the campsite. "Etna!" Camille gasped, running up to her. "What happened to you?"

"The better question is…" Gurkinn walked towards the two ice blocks near the tents. "What happened to them?"

Rafi, Marcy, and Camille went up to him and gasped in shock when they saw the blocks, and who they contained.

"Oh no, it's the Knights of Order!" Marcy cried. "But why were they here? And where's Ellie?"

As Rafi and Camille swapped nervous looks, Gurkinn sighed. "I was afraid something like this would happen." He knelt next to the young girl. "Marcy, I'm sorry, but…" He pointed to the block where Electra was trapped. "That is your sister right there."

Marcy's eyes widened. "Ellie is one of the Knights of Order?"

"Not only that, but so are Tristan, Quinn, and Marianne."

"And us too," Rafi said, waving at Gurkinn and Camille.

"Good," came a new voice from underground. "Now I can finish you all off!"

"Get away from there, quick!" Etna shouted.

Rafi and Camille jumped back in alarm. Gurkinn grabbed Marcy and pulled her to safety, and seconds later, something white burst out of the ground. Scruffy tried to grab it with his vines, but the figure dodged it easily and disappeared into the forest.

"What the heck was that?" Rafi cried.

"It was Bear-Chan," Etna explained. "He's the one who trapped the others in ice."

"Marcy, stay with Etna," Gurkinn ordered. "And you two, it's morphing time!"

Rafi and Camille nodded and lifted their Morphers with Gurkinn. "Order's Light, Ignite!"

Marcy watched in amazement as three elemental energies shot out and covered their bodies, forming into armor. "Whoa, cool!"

"Stay close," Gurkinn ordered, summoning his Claw Blades. "Bear-Chan could attack from anywhere."

"Orville, see if you can spot him," Rafi called.

The Pidgeotto flew around, looking for any sign of movement. Scruffy trotted closer to Marcy, ready to protect her. Rafi, Camille, and Gurkinn stood back to back, weapons at the ready, listening for any sign of Bear-Chan.

"He's taking his time," Rafi muttered.

"Maybe he's waiting for us to make the next move," Gurkinn replied.

"I'm going to help Orville," Camille decided. "Fly!"

Her chestplate flashed and transformed into wings, and she jumped into the air.

"Icicle Uppercut!" Suddenly, Bear-Chan shot out of the trees, his arm covered in ice, and slammed into Camille, knocking her out of the air. Rafi fired a Feather Arrow at Bear-Chan, but he jumped aside. Camille landed on the ground, partially covered in ice.

Gurkinn broke off and ran towards Camille. "Hang on, I'm coming!"

"Big mistake, Fighting Knight!" Bear-Chan called. "Aerial Vacuum Wave!"

He whirled his fists in front of him to create a tornado that sucked up Gurkinn. Rafi gasped as the Knight Leader was flung over to the ice blocks. "Gurkinn!"

Bear-Chan landed in front of Rafi and smiled. "This was almost too easy. I'm a little disappointed."

Rafi raised his Bow, but Bear-Chan swiped his clawed hands out. Rafi was knocked off his feet, landing in front of Gurkinn.

Bear-Chan then picked up the paralyzed Camille and placed her next to the ice block. "And now to finish you off once and for all. Sheer Cold!"

Etna and Marcy could only watch helplessly as Bear-Chan began to glow again and raised his paws…

Then suddenly, a tiny blue blur shot out of the bushes and kicked Bear-Chan in the head. A second kick drove Bear-Chan away from the Knights. "Ow! Who did that?"

Rafi stared in amazement as the blue blur landed in front of him. "Shiny Nidoran! You saved us!"

"Nido, nidoran!" said the little Poison Pin Pokémon.

Gurkinn lifted his head to look at him. "He must have followed us. Good thing he did; that Double Kick is strong against Ice Pokémon."

"You may have stopped me, but you'll never destroy me!" Bear-Chan cried, diving back into the bushes.

Rafi stood up and looked at Gurkinn. "Can you get up? We need to stop Bear-Chan."

"I'm sorry, Rafi," Gurkinn sighed. "But as you can see, neither of us is in any condition to get up. You'll have to face him on your own."

"Me? But how am I supposed to find him?"

"Remember what I told you: focus on the sounds."

"The sounds…" Rafi looked down at the shiny Nidoran. "Wait a minute… Nidoran, you've got sensitive ears. Can you help me find him?"

"Nido, ni." The Nidoran nodded then jumped onto Rafi's shoulder.

Rafi then took a few steps forward and glanced around slowly. Nidoran's ears twitched this way and that, trying to pick up any sound.

Suddenly, he turned to the left. "Nido!"

"Thunder Mach Punch!" Bear-Chan charged out, his hand covered in electricity. Rafi quickly ducked down as the Mutant flew over his head.

Bear-Chan landed on the ground and spun around angrily. "How the…? Let's try this again!"

As he pounced again, Nidoran's ears twitched. "Nido!"

Rafi jumped aside and avoided the attack again. Quickly, Nidoran opened his mouth and fired purple barbs that scattered across the campsite. As Bear-Chan landed, he stepped on one of the barbs and jumped back, his body flashing purple. "Yow!"

"That was Toxic Spikes!" Etna cried. "Bear-Chan's now poisoned!"

"Why, you little…" Bear-Chan turned and glared at Nidoran. "I'll tear you both apart! Fury Ice Swipes!"

His claws glowed blue and he dived at Rafi and Nidoran…

"Pidgeottoooo!" Suddenly, Orville swooped out of the sky and pushed Bear-Chan away from them. He then flapped back and glared at Bear-Chan.

"So you want a piece of me too?" Bear-Chan growled. "Fine! You'll all get frozen! Ice Beam!" He opened his mouth and shot a beam of blue light at them.

And in response, Orville opened his beak and fired a blast of hot air. The attack canceled out the Ice Beam and hit Bear-Chan. "OOWWWW!" he yelped, his body now flashing red.

"What?!" Rafi gasped as the air warmed up again.

"Orville's learned Heat Wave!" Etna cheered. "And it looks like it's ended the Hail. Now's your chance to fight back, Rafi!"

"Alright then. Aerial Ace!" Rafi drew out two Feather Arrows and charged at Bear-Chan, slashing him on his side. "Double Kick, Nidoran!"

Nidoran jumped off Rafi's shoulder and kicked Bear-Chan twice in the face. As Bear-Chan tried to grab him, Orville hit him with another Heat Wave.

Just then, Rafi's Bow began to glow. "What's going on?"

"Your Weapon's gained a new attack," Gurkinn cried. "Use it to finish him off!"

"Okay!" Rafi raised his Bow and aimed at Bear-Chan. "Heat Arrow, Final Attack!"

His arrow caught fire and he shot it out, followed by three others that pierced into Bear-Chan. "Noooooo!" he screamed in pain before he collapsed and exploded.

"You did it, Rafi!" Marcy cheered. "You stopped the monster!"

Rafi smiled and patted Orville and Nidoran's heads. "And I couldn't have done it without you two."


"Well, that was a miserable failure," Resharma chuckled, watching the action on the screen.

Sabelteur just stared in shock. "But… He was going to finish them off…"

"Permission to go down and revive him, my Lord?" Mothitelle asked.

"No," Yvestros snapped. "This is a suitable punishment to Sabelteur for disobeying my orders and failing to destroy the Knights." He then glared down at Sabelteur. "This is your last warning. I won't be so merciful next time. Got it?"

Sabelteur gulped nervously. "I'll just see myself to the KrokoVile pit. They're not gonna clean themselves out…"


Thanks to Orville, Rafi quickly got Etna's legs free. She then called out her Pyroar and Delphox to melt the ice blocks that held the other Knights. Marcy and Gurkinn were on hand with blankets and towels.

Once everyone was warmed up, Electra took Marcy aside. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you that I was a Knight of Order."

"It's okay, Ellie," Marcy replied. "I understand why you lied. You wanted to protect me. And besides, you're saving the world. I think it's cool that my sister's a superhero."

Electra smiled and hugged Ellie. "Thanks for being fine with it. Just promise you won't tell Mom and Dad about it. The last thing I want is for Yvestros to target them."

Marcy held up her little finger. "Pinky promise."

They then went back to the others and found Rafi and Orville sitting next to Nidoran. After Bear-Chan's defeat, the shiny Pokémon had decided to stay with Rafi.

"I'm gonna call you Blue," Rafi said. "I'm sorry that the other Nidoran shunned you, but you shouldn't be ashamed of your color. It makes you special. Plus, you took on a Poké-Mutant. That's pretty impressive."

"Nido!" Blue smiled and rubbed his cheek on Rafi's hand.

"You're welcome," Rafi said.

"Alright," Tristan said, getting up. "Now we can get going to Courmarine City. With my Heracross and Rafi's Nidoran, that next badge is as good as ours!"


Holy crap, has it been five months since the last chapter? Massive apologies on that front! So much was going on in my life and I hadn't been finding the time to write this. But it's finally up.

So next chapter, we're finally getting to Courmarine City. And from there, we're soon going to end the first stage of Knights of Order.

Many, many thanks to D.J. Scales for his undying support, and to Blaze Productions who will be giving me ideas for the Super Stage.