Chapter 53: Dark Secret.

This fight was incredible; despite the occasional headache, I'd never been that engrossed in a battle. Gold was down to the wire, only one Pokémon capable of fighting Jasmine's ace, Steelix. But despite Duke's overwhelming strength in stopping a Steelix's Iron Tail, he still seemed like no matter how hard he hit the iron python he couldn't put a dent in its armor. Gold desperately needed to find a way to hurt the Steelix or else he'd be forced to bring out Merlin again, who lacked the raw power to combat the titan.

"Duke, wrap back around and try using Earth Power!" Gold commanded, trying yet another tactic to harm the Steelix.

Dashing away from the monolithic Pokémon, Duke tried to get around to the beast's blind side and cause the ground beneath it to erupt.

"Steelix, Dig underground, then strike from below and use Constrict!"

Heeding to his Trainer's command, the Steelix began to spin its body like an enormous drill and instantly began to dig. Duke did his best to stop the iron python from escaping, but the giant had already burrowed under the ground by the time his Earth Power reached him. As molten earth spewed up into the air from Duke's attack, the ground shuddered as the Steelix tunneled underneath the arena.

"Duke, be careful!" I called out, wary of where the metal snake would emerge.

"You heard her, Duke," Gold affirmed, "stay on the move and don't let him catch you!"

"Right!" Duke hollered, kicking off into his evasive maneuvers.

Then, just as Duke took his second step, the Steelix breached the surface out of no where like a serpent emerging from the sea. Rock and dirt flew everywhere; a metallic roar filled the room as the Steelix slammed into Duke headfirst. I gasped when I saw how devastating of a hit Duke took, but I was shocked when I saw the Nidoking still attempting to hurt the iron snake.

Digging his feet into the ground, Duke pounded away at the armored carapace. But it was all for naught, and soon Duke was ensnared. Coiling around the Nidoking with its gigantic body, the Steelix trapped Duke in place.

"Now crush him, Steelix!" Jasmine declared.

With a metallic roar, the iron python squeezed its steel coils together and smothered the Nidoking. As the air was crushed out of him, Duke couldn't even manage a cry of pain as the iron behemoth overpowered him.

"Face it—you're finished!" I heard the Steelix taunt. "You may have stood up to my previous attacks, but they were child's play compared to my true strength."

"Duke, get out of there!" Gold ordered, but it seemed like there was nothing Duke could do.

Jasmine was grinning triumphantly. "I'm sorry, Gold, but once my Steelix uses Constrict, there's nothing the victim can do."

"No, come on, Duke!" Gold cried out. "Get out of there!"

But no matter how hard Duke struggled, he couldn't force his way out of the Steelix's grip. I then noticed the stress starting to mount on Gold. He looked tense, and on the verge of panic.

Detecting this, Jasmine said, "Look, don't beat yourself up, Gold. You've done better than most that face me. Let's end this match and call it a day—you can't win."

After Jasmine said that, my headache acted up again—it was even more painful than before. As it was happening, I heard something that was quite surprising.

"To hell with that!" Gold exclaimed, which certainly caught both Jasmine and me off-guard. "If you think Duke is going to lose because his opponent is stronger, then you've got another thing coming. I've watched this guy fight someone ten times his size when he was a measly little Nidoran. And now he's right where I want him!" Gold's powerful voice exuded confidence, and even a hint of cockiness.

"Right where he wants him?" I muttered to myself before Gold declared, "Duke, while the Steelix can't move, use Earth Power on the ground beneath you and melt his armor!"

"Wait—what?!" I shrieked. Duke forced himself to grin slightly, still under the Steelix's Constrict.

Then Duke mustered everything he could into an Earth Power. The ground boiled and cracked beneath the two Pokémon.

"Steelix, move!" Jasmine tried to warn her Pokémon, but it was too late.

Before the Steelix could uncoil and get away, the ground exploded upward and showered molten earth across the field. Recoiling from the super effective attack, the Steelix tried to retreat, and I caught glimpses of red-hot metal across its armor. Duke was free now, and he immediately gasped for air.

"Well, what do you know—you still have some fight in you," Jasmine announced, smiling amusedly. "Steelix, use Dig and try to catch him off-guard."

"Oh, no, you don't!" Gold straightened his posture assertively, his eyes revealing no trace of fear or worry. "Duke, after him—use Dig as well and use Earth Power again!"

Then, just like that, the two fighters burrowed deep into the earth. The ground began to shake again, and I could hear the tunneling of two powerful Pokémon zigzagging beneath. Before long, I nearly screamed when another explosion of molten earth erupted from the ground. The Pokémon had created yet another gigantic hole to clutter the battlefield. Emerging from the hole were the two Pokémon, only this time I could see the Steelix's armor had become even more heated. Large portions of his body were glowing bright white, and I could see the heat rising off of the iron python.

"Duke, this is it—its armor is weak!" Gold declared, eyes flashing. "It's time to use that move we've been practicing! Duke, let's finish this with Drill Run!"

Roaring with all his might, Duke slammed his feet into the ground as his horn glowed brightly. A brilliant energy began to spiral around Duke's mighty horn like a drill.

"Go, Duke—you can do it!" Teeka and I cheered as we watched Duke kick off into one of the fastest sprints I'd seen him pull off.

"You're mine now!" Duke declared as he bolted headfirst toward the ironmonger.

"Hit me with your best shot!" Steelix roared in retaliation.

Hearing her Pokémon's battle cry, Jasmine asserted, "Steelix, match his Drill Run with a spinning Iron Head!"

"A spinning what?!" I gasped, cocking my head to see the Steelix's head begin to glow bright white.

The iron python then began spinning his body around like a gigantic molten hot drill! Spinning faster and faster, the Pokémon became a blur of motion in a manner of seconds before he let himself loose and tore across the field toward the charging Nidoking.

Frankly, I was scared out of my wits by the awesome display of power I was witnessing. The Steelix looked like a red-hot blur of unstoppable carnage, kicking up dirt and dust as it sped toward Duke.

There's no way he can stop that thing! My mind screamed as I watched Duke continue to charge toward his target.

"I'm not scared of you!" Duke roared as the spiraling energy around his horn grew more intense. "I've always been the underdog, the runt of the litter, pushed around by those who were stronger—but that never stopped me!" At that, he fiercely collided with the Steelix's spinning Iron Head.

Afraid that Duke couldn't stop the Steelix, I looked away for a moment, but when I looked back I was baffled. Grinding away at each other's attacks like two giant drill bits, the two Pokémon were at a standoff at the center of the arena. Sparks of rock, metal, and dirt flew everywhere as the two titans tried to break through the other's attack.

"Go, Duke—you can do it!" Gold cheered for his Nidoking.

Making one last push, Duke roared at the top of his lungs and put every last ounce of strength into his Drill Run, and then—bang! Suddenly, the Steelix's spinning Iron Head was broken and Duke had thrown the giant out of its gyrations. The Steelix looked astonished that Duke had broken through, and could only watch as the Nidoking went and dug his Drill Run into the weakened molten armor of his body.

I could only gape in awe as Duke inflicted massive amounts of damage, fueling more and more of his determination into his attack, making the energy around his horn spin faster and faster, until the Steelix finally gave in.

When the Steelix fell, I cheered louder than I ever had before. Gold cheered for his brave Poison-type as well, and we watched as Duke let out a victory cry before he too fell to the ground in an exhausted heap.

Certainly surprised by what Gold's Pokémon achieved, Jasmine returned her fainted Pokémon before slowly starting to clap for Gold's victory. "Absolutely fantastic! I can't believe it, but you've done it, Gold."

She then dashed across the war-torn battlefield and met Gold halfway. "Congratulations, Gold! You've defeated the Olivine Gym, and for that I want you to have this Mineral Badge to cement your victory."

She handed Gold an octagonal Gym Badge that was gray and trimmed with silver.

"Thank you, Jasmine," Gold replied as he took his prize, and then looked over to Duke. "And it's all thanks to you, buddy."

"Don't . . . mention it," Duke muttered with his last breath before he passed out.

Jasmine giggled as Gold returned his Pokémon. "Looks like someone needs a nice nap."

"Gold, you did it!" I cheered as I ran from the sidelines into his arms.

Gold caught me and I gave him a hug; I leaned up on my toes to give him a congratulatory kiss.

"You did it—you've got six Badges now, Gold!" I acclaimed as I let go of him and looked at his new Gym Badge.

"Only two more to go," Gold added, making a spot on the inside of his sweatshirt for his new Badge.

"Well, I'm glad to see that you're becoming a strong Trainer, Gold," Jasmine praised. "I have high hopes to see you in this year's League Tournament."

Gold grinned. "Don't worry—I'll be there."

Pleased with Gold's response, Jasmine nodded and asked, "So where are you off to now?"

"We're going to compete in a Double Contest!" I said with glee.

"A what?" Gold asked, and I realized that I had forgotten to tell him the news.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" I smacked my forehead lightly. "I forgot to tell you. Gold, I've signed us up for a Double Contest in Olivine's Contest Hall this week. We'll be able to perform together this time!"

Gold shot me a smile. "Hey, that actually sounds kinda fun."

"Sweet!" I hugged him again. "I knew you'd like it."

"Well, sounds like you two have a lot of planning to do, then," Jasmine commented. "I hear that Contest is in three days."

"You're right!" I said, and then I grabbed Gold's hand and went to make off with him. "Come on, Gold, we've got a lot to plan!"

"All right, calm down—not so fast!" Gold managed as he tried not to fall.

Before we left the Gym, I stopped abruptly in the atrium. "Oh, wait. Gold, can we go to a pharmacy?"

"Huh?" Gold looked concerned. "What for?"

"It's nothing, really. I've just been having a headache today, and I wanted something to take the edge off."

Gold gently put his arm around my shoulders. "Sure, I think I saw one a few blocks away."

I stood on my toes to gingerly kiss his cheek. "Thanks."

With that in mind, we made for the exit; but just before we left I took one last look at the arena, admiring my memories of the fight I saw unfold there. It was then that I noticed something I hadn't seen before. Up in the rafters of the Gym, there was a little Murkrow hanging out. When it noticed that I was looking at it, the crow Pokémon quickly took off and flew out one of the windows. I didn't think much of this and figured the bird must've been watching the fight, having noticed it when it was flying by. I wouldn't blame the little bird for wanting to sneak a peek, the fight was incredible and even I would eavesdrop.

Turning around toward the exit, I then exclaimed, "Come on, Gold—let's go! We've got a lot to do!"

"Right behind you."


I quite enjoy the times when I can relax and reflect on how much simpler my obligations are in contrast to my brother's. In terms of the duties our visionary father bestowed upon us, it was my brother who certainly drew the shorter straw. While he's stuck with the duty of espionage and covering my dad's organization's tracks, I got the job of monitoring the child prodigy.

Such thoughts brought a smile to my face as I sat back in a five star restaurant's VIP balcony, sipping some of my exotic coffee brew. The restaurant had a very abstract, modern feel, and my balcony had glass railings and a crescent-shaped glass table. The view I was given was quite splendid, for the restaurant was located on the precipice of Olivine's famous beaches. That's another thing I get to enjoy that my brother never gets: the luxurious thirty thousand dollar allowance my Dad gives me. My brother, on the other hand, is stuck with the miniscule budget the Rangers give him.

As I sat there with a smirk on my face, I looked out toward the horizon after taking another sip of my coffee. I wasn't staring to admire the mediocre shoreline; no, I was waiting for someone, a certain someone who was quite late.

"He should've been here five minutes ago," I sneered to myself, whilst twiddling my stirring rod in my coffee.

I hate waiting; I'll never understand how people put up with it. The way I see it, if I don't get it right away, something is wrong. And that usually means having one of my dad's numerous butlers fired for incompetence.

Just as my impatience was beginning to become irritation, I noticed a shape flying out in the distance.

"He's late," I repeated out loud, considering for a moment if I was going to punish him for it or not.

A few moments later, my personal intelligence gatherer flew up to my balcony and landed on the glass railing, his claws making a tapping sound as he tightened his grip. It was a Honchkrow by the name of Corleone.

"You're late," I scolded as I calmly placed my coffee on the table next to my dish of assorted fruits and berries.

"I am terribly sorry, Miss Katherine," the Don bird apologized in his Italian accent. "I was . . . how you say, taking care of business."

I was not interested in the slightest with what he was taking care of; I only cared about what I asked him to acquire, and that was information. Corleone was my greatest asset when comes to digging up dirt, seeing as how Murkrow infest almost every corner of this region, Honchkrow make for excellent intelligence gatherers. All it took was ordering my purebred Corleone to kill that filthy half-blood Honchkrow in this city and all the Murkrow were under my command. But, unlike most, who use their Honchkrow to dig up dirt on political figures and running criminal organizations, I only cared about one person.

"So, how was his fight?" I asked sternly, straight to the point.

"My . . . associates have told me that he did indeed win his Gym battle against Jasmine."

"Excellent," I responded, pleased that everything had happened as expected. "So, did it happen again? Did he change?"

"Quite yes, just like you said. Brief moments of stress, followed by miraculous feats of intelligence and strategy. The little pest that saw it even said he saw his eyes change color."

Surprised by this, I inquired, "His eyes changed color?"

"Yes, the pathetic underling said his eyes looked black for the briefest of moments, but it changed back as quickly as it happened."

"Interesting," I muttered to myself as I pondered over this new information. "Perhaps this is a sign that it's finally taking effect."

Corleone ruffled his feathers. "It should. This is the fifth time my underlings have given him the dose."

Nodding in agreement, I gestured for Corleone to leave. "Continue to monitor him and come back to me if the Murkrow see anything."

"Actually madam, there's something else."

I raised an eyebrow sharply. "What is it?"

"The Murkrow also said he noticed the girl he travels with having headaches."

"So what?" I retorted with disinterest.

Ruffling his feathers again, clearly out of nervousness, Corleone muttered, "Well, you've instructed me to have the underlings report any details they notice."

"Well, tell them not to take it so literally and not report stupid things like that!" I barked back at him.

Scared by my response, Corleone held out his wings, gesturing for me to calm down, as he said, "Okay, okay, I'll tell them that. Will that be everything, Miss Katherine?"

"No, that will be all. Now get out of here," I sneered, before the bird took his cue to leave.

Once he was out of sight, I slumped back in my chair and groaned. After taking a bite of my fruit salad, I shifted my thoughts back to him: Ethan Goldberg.

He said his eyes turned black, I thought to myself as I used my fork to toy with my food. This means my little experiment is working, and all this stupid waiting is finally worth something.

While deep in thought about my next move, I was interrupted when one of the hostesses came up to my balcony.

"Um, excuse me, miss, there's someone to see you."

Snapping my head around to see the brunette waitress, I snarled, "I thought I told you this balcony was private!"

The stupid waitress jumped a little and said, "Um . . . I'm very sorry, miss, but he's very insistent. He says he's your brother."

"My wha—?" I muttered before groaning. "Oh, him. Fine, just show him in." I turned around and returned to my fruit salad.

Nervously, the hostess nodded. "Right away, miss."

What the hell is Jordan doing here? I thought he was too busy creating scapegoats for that stupid mess he got into back at the Rangers HQ.

Before long, my brother made his way up to my private balcony. When I turned my head to see him, I was surprised that he was wearing a blue polo shirt and some khaki pants. I'm so used to seeing him in that glorified Ranger's trench coat I forgot he could wear other clothing.

"What are you doing here?" I asked distastefully.

"I was about to ask you the same thing." Jordan went to take a seat at my table.

He was wearing his serious face again, and it makes me laugh to think that he believes that stupid look works on me like every other person.

"I don't know, doing my job?" I suggested condescendingly. "How about you? Still having trouble cleaning up the mess a little girl left behind when you weren't looking?"

Forming a scowl, my brother replied, "That has already been dealt with. Also, I don't consider eating luxury food and obsessing over that boy as doing your job."

"Obsess over him? Please, I simply find him intriguing," I lied, seeing as how I desperately wanted him. "So, what brings you to my part of town? Did you get tired of eating those ready-to-go meals?"

Jordan rolled his eyes. "They're called MRE's, and no, I don't care about gorging myself on fancy food. I came to talk about the shipment Cipher gave us about a month ago."

Why is he asking about that?! I panicked slightly inside my head, forcing myself to keep my cool exterior.

"Oh, you mean the one I oversaw." I took a tentative bite of fruit. "What about it?"

"Well, the paperwork for what was given to us was just looked over by Ariana, and she noticed that some of the items were unaccounted for."

"So what? People steal office supplies all the time," I joked.

"Hilarious," Jordan remarked with distaste. "No. I wouldn't bother you over something replaceable."

Nervous, I asked, "So what is it?" knowing full well what he wanted.

"We were supposed to receive ten vials of Cipher's Shadow Serum, the chemical used to make Shadow Pokémon, and we only have seven. Three of those vials are gone, and I need your help to find them."

"Look, Jordan, I can't help you, all right?" I said exasperatedly. "All I did was oversee that shipment a month ago, and once Ariana and Petrel got it, I was done with it. So go back to your glorified seat on top of those pitiful Rangers and leave me alone."

"Fine. Can you at least send me the file of your report on that shipment? I want to go over the men who accompanied you and see if they were the ones who stole them."

"Whatever." Groaning, I pulled out my Pokégear and sent the file over to Jordan's.

"Thank you," Jordan said as he pulled up the file on his Pokégear.

As Jordan sat there, I waited patiently for him to leave. But my rash impatience was halted when I recalled Jordan's report of what happened at Cianwood, and a curious thought popped into my head, one that pertained to my little experiment.

"Jordan?"

He glanced back at me.

"When you were sent to Cianwood, you were given Alcatraz to capture your Tyranitar, right?"

Confused by my random question, Jordan replied, "Why the hell are you asking me that?"

"I'm just curious."

He sighed. "Yes, I was authorized by father to use two members of the Vanguard project, Alcatraz and Stalingrad, on that mission."

"And wasn't there something else that happened, particularly with that girl, Lyra?"

Jordan knit his eyebrows. "You mean her reaction?"

"Yes." I tried not to look too eager at my discovery. "I remember you said something odd happened when she was confronted with Alcatraz."

"I'm not sure what exactly happened," Jordan said slowly, "but when the girl saw Alcatraz, she had one nasty reaction. She behaved like a terrified child, screaming that she could see a shadow surrounding him. And from what I could gather, she also suffered from headaches in his presence."

"Headaches?" I repeated, before whispering to myself, "Then it is working."

"Excuse me?" Jordan asked, catching my mutterings.

"Oh, nothing. I was just making a mental note, you know, know thy enemy and such."

Growing suspicious, Jordan said, "Well, look, if you're thinking of going after that girl again, you should remember Dad ordered us to keep our distance. As long we have those tracking devices on them, they pose no threat, and your only job is to monitor them."

"Oh, please, like I care about that stupid midget," I lied once again, hiding my hate of her from Jordan.

As we continued to talk, my desire for him to leave grew. He can't know what I'm up to, not now. I'm still not sure if it works the same for humans as it does for Pokémon. If he knew I had stolen the vials of the Shadow Serum, Jordan would ruin everything I've been working toward.

Eventually, I offered to leave, but as soon as I stood up Jordan said, "You know, Kate, I really wish you would've just told me the truth."

Scared by his tone, I muttered, "What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about."

My eyes widened slightly, fearful of what Jordan was implying.

"Kate, you can drop the act." His steely eyes bore into mine. "I know you were the one who stole those vials. I was hoping you would just admit it, but now I'm not sure what to think. So you're going to tell me exactly what you've been doing with those vials."

My initial reaction was fear, and my fight-or-flight response choose fight. Driven by instinct, I reached for my Roserade's capsule, but I stopped myself. Overriding my instinct with logic, I relaxed my arm and let go of the capsule. Instead, I thought quickly and chose my words wisely.

"Fine then, you got me," I said slyly. "I'm your culprit."

"Then tell me: Why did you deem it necessary to steal the Serum? Which, might I add, cost our father a fortune."

Taking control of the situation, I replied, "How about I answer your question with a request of my own? Tell me what you know about Gold."

Raising his brow, Jordan showed his distaste in my little game and said, "Kate, quit dodging the question and answer me!"

"Cool your jets, hotshot. I'll tell you everything once you tell me what you know about him." I smirked coyly.

Knowing that he couldn't beat me when I'm up to no good, Jordan gave in. "Fine . . . I know that Ethan Goldberg is one of Rocket's most wanted. Along with being the one who exposed Proton's drug ring, our father has shown a particular interest in him and requested that I recruit him. However, as you already know, I encountered resistance when doing this, seeing as the boy suffers from dissociative personality disorder, where his other persona acts violently and possesses hyper-observation like the child who fought Rocket three years ago." Once he finished, he looked to me, expecting my explanation.

"Very interesting," I remarked, "but that last part was only partly true, though."

Surprised, Jordan asked, "What are you playing at?"

"Well, what if I told you that Gold never suffered from dissociative personality? But rather, someone gave it to him?"

"Gave it to him? What are you . . . ?" Jordan replied before he started to piece together what I was implying. "The stolen vials . . . the serum . . . you gave it to him?"

"Little by little, but yes. I wanted to know what would happen if a human were to take the serum, and what can I say? The results are impressive. Increased strength, dexterity, and cognitive ability."

Jordan took a second to take in what I'd told him, and then simply said, "How?"

"For the past month I've been having my Honchkrow, Corleone, and his underlings slip him small doses while he and that bitch Lyra slept in their hotels."

"So this means his dramatic rise in skill, and the ability to use hyper-observation—those were all you?"

I shrugged. "Guilty as charged."

"Why? What purpose do you have for doing this?" Jordan demanded.

"Because I want him," I answered sternly.

Angered, Jordan exclaimed, "Is that what this is about? Your stupid obsession with that boy? How is drugging him with Shadow Serum going to make him yours?!"

"Because Dad wanted us to recruit him, and I found a way. Shadow Pokémon are obedient to the ones who created them, remember? And in this case, I'm the one who created him!"

Jordan paused for moment, and then a sinister grin decorated his face. "Obedient, you say?" He chuckled to himself. "I take it back. Perhaps I was wrong about you. Once Father comes back from his mission to Kanto and hears of this, he will certainly be proud of you, Kate."

I smirked back at him, reveling in my victory, but said, "Don't tell Father just yet; I'm not sure if it will work. Gold has only been given half the necessary dosage needed to convert a Shadow Pokémon. And I fear giving him the rest too quickly will kill him."

"Is that so?" Jordan crossed his arms, intrigued.

"Yes. I need more time. But rest assured—by the end of this, Father will have his prize."


And the plot thickens! I hope you all enjoyed that bomb shell and stay tuned for the last chapter of this week on Thursday! Trust me I think you'll like it.