1/6/2020

In my opinion, this is a very "meh" episode. It's forcibly sandwiched between two really good episodes just to introduce (sorry Virgil) a nobody who's destined to win the Unova League. Well, at least it's not as infuriating as Tobias' win in Sinnoh. The next episode is the one I'm really looking forward to posting.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, I only own Alice.

Chapter 102
Team Eevee and the Pokémon Rescue Squad!

It's another gorgeous sunny day as the three of us walk down the path towards Vertress City. The path has bled into the side of a rocky cliff, and it almost looks like a mountain because of how big it is.

Cilan peers down at the little electronic map in his hands. "It appears Vertress City is just on the other side of this cliff."

Now, Iris isn't the only one with a skip in her step. "It won't be long now! I'm so excited!"

Iris is practically bouncing up and down at my side. "Me, too!"

"Iris, you're not entering—Alice is," Cilan reminds her gently, wearing a smile.

"Yeah, but I can't wait to check out all the different battles!" she replies eagerly.

I can't argue with that. I can't wait to check them out, either!

But when we turn the corner, we're forced to halt in our tracks. Blocking our way is a collection of boulders stretched out along the road. They stare at us almost tauntingly, like they're saying, "Ha ha, you'll never get to Vertress City now!"

Iris frowns at the problem that we're granted with. "How do we get past that?"

"With difficulty," Cilan sighs, pocketing the electronic map. "We'd better start looking for another way around."

But this doesn't dampen my spirits. Nothing will keep me from Vertress City and the Unova League! "It's no big deal, guys."

When they give me quizzical glances, I decide to demonstrate for them. With Pikachu clutching my right shoulder tightly, I step forward and begin to scale the rocks. They're not so large, once you get up on one. They're like bigger stepping stones, now that I think about it.

"All we have to do is climb up over, and we're there."

Iris is at my side in a flash; it doesn't take her long to pull herself up besides me on the top of the boulder. "You're right!"

But before we can take one more step, the huge rocks begin to crumble under our weight. The two of us barely have time to shriek before the rocks—and us—tip over the edge of the cliff.

"Alice! Iris!"

I try to grab onto Iris's wrist, but she's too far away. Pikachu holds onto my shoulder for dear life, his scream mingling with ours.

Then, from the corner of my eye, I spot a flash of red and brown. Suddenly, I become weightless—it feels like I've been caught in midair. And when I look over at Iris, she's frozen, as well.

We're floating in the air?!

But when I turn to the side, I can see a sleek purple creature clinging onto the side of the cliff, its red eyes glowing. An Espeon—and it must be using its psychic powers to hold us up.

When Iris and I have joined Cilan once again on the safety of the path, we're able to get a better look at our rescuer—or rescuers, I should say. It's not just the Espeon who's saved us; she's accompanied by a tiny Eevee, as well, who wags its tail happily.

Their Trainer, I'm assuming, is an older boy, who looks to be about twenty or twenty-one, with blonde hair and hazel eyes. He's dressed in a red vest with matching red pants, with a teal blue shirt underneath. He also wears heavy black boots. In short, he looks like some kind of rescue ranger.

He gives us a kind smile after he's checked for any more signs of danger along the path. "Now you should be able to get through with no problem. Is everyone still in one piece?"

Pikachu and I are still a little shaken up, but nothing major. "Yeah, we're fine. Thank you so much."

"Making trouble was not our intent," Cilan adds in with an apologetic look.

But the boy merely laughs and shakes his head. "Reminds me of when I was young. I was always getting into trouble. It drove my brother crazy."

"I know how that is." Although we're not siblings, Iris and I drive each other crazy all the time with the dangerous situations we throw ourselves into.

"Let me introduce myself. My name's Cilan, and I'm a Pokémon Connoisseur."

"My name's Alice. And this is Pikachu."

"Pika!"

"I'm Iris, and this is Axew."

"Yew!"

The boy nods to each of us, like he's making a note of our names. "My name's Virgil. I'm from the Pokémon Rescue Squad."

This statement, of course, drapes a blanket of confusion over me and my friends. I haven't heard of any organization called that before.

"Pokémon Rescue Squad?"

"I've never heard of it."

But Virgil doesn't seem offended. Instead, he smiles softly and begins to explain: "When there's an emergency, my Pokémon and I do everything we can to help out. As soon as we heard this road was blocked off, we came out as fast as we could. Actually, the Pokémon Rescue Squad has a number of teams. Our team is called Team Eevee."

At this bit of information, the little Eevee at his side chirps happily. And Espeon swishes her tail, purring like a Meowth.

"I like the name. Eevee are so adorable!" But I know Eevee and Espeon are unfamiliar Pokémon to my friends, so I decide to quickly scan each of them with my Pokédex.

Eevee, the Evolution Pokémon. Depending on circumstances, Eevee can evolve into many forms.

Espeon, the Sun Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. It predicts its opponent's moves and detects air currents with its body hairs.

Eevee are such amazing Pokémon, but I've never had the chance to raise one of my own. Maybe someday, I'll have an opportunity to. However, I have no idea what it would evolve into.

Maybe a Jolteon, to go with Pikachu? Or an Umbreon, to go with my Dark-types? Or possibly an Espeon, since I don't have many Psychic-types? I just don't know.

"In addition to Eevee and Espeon, what other Pokémon members does Team Eevee have?" Cilan asks, his tone laced with curiosity.

At this, the hint of a blush can be seen on Virgil's face. "I'm very proud to report Team Eevee has seven evolved forms of Eevee as members."

"Seven?!" My jaw drops at the number. "I'd love to see them!"

"Me, too," Cilan agrees.

"And don't forget about me!" Iris pipes up with a grin.

It's not every day you get to see seven evolved forms of Eevee at once! I have to see them for real!

Virgil laughs out loud this time. "Alright, follow me. We're very close to my house, so it's not a far walk."

The Pokémon ranger leads us off the cliff and onto a massive ranch. With a large red house and a brown barn perched on the hill at the edge, there are countless fences up, and herds of Blitzle, Zebstrika, Mareep, Flaaffy, Bouffalant, Ponyta, Rapidash, and many other Pokémon prance around the fields. While some relax in the shade of the apple trees, others chase each other in the wide open space. Others continue to graze on the bright green grass, munching away happily.

Iris and I can't seem to take out eyes off the sight before us. This place is huge! And look at all the Pokémon! It's gorgeous here!

"A Bouffalant herd!"

"And Zebstrika!"

When we get to the house, Virgil leans on the brown fence surrounding it. "They're all part of the ranch my family runs."

"What about the Pokémon Rescue Squad?" Iris questions.

"My father and older brother started the squad as volunteers to help people in need," Virgil explains with a smile. The pride in his voice is evident. "These days, they're working with Officer Jenny. They travel all over the place. Just as soon as I finished my journey and got back home, I joined them."

My eyes scan the fields below us, but I can't spot any more Pokémon other than the Rapidash and Mareep and Zebstrika. No other Eevee or evolutions of Eevee.

Where could they be?

"Virgil, where are all the evolved forms of Eevee?"

He laughs at my bluntness, and my face heats up. "Alright, I'll show you." He cups his hands around his mouth and suddenly calls out, "Team Eevee, all units deploy!"

All of a sudden, there's a rustle from behind us. From the barn next to the house, a sleek Umbreon prances out, with a Flareon right behind him. Then, a blue shape bursts from the little Pokémon-sized flap in the door of the house; a Vaporeon bounds over to us, his tail swishing.

In the fields, the other Pokémon begin to appear. A Leafeon leaps away from his patch of sunlight, and a Jolteon squeezes his way through the herd of Mareep. A Glaceon looks up from her spot near the river, and after a quick drink, she races over to us.

Soon, all of the evolutions of Eevee are sitting in front of us in a neat line. Espeon and Eevee join them at the very end, wagging their tails.

"It's amazing! All seven forms are here!" I can't miss this opportunity, so I whip out my Pokédex and begin to scan each and every one of them.

Flareon, the Flame Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. Flareon's internal flame ignites its breath, which is exhaled as fire.

Vaporeon, the Bubble Jet Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. Vaporeon is made up of molecules similar to water, which allows it to melt and vanish.

Jolteon, the Lightning Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. Jolteon becomes enveloped in lightning when angered.

Umbreon, the Moonlight Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. The rings in its fur glow when the moon shines on them.

Glaceon, the Fresh Snow Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. Glaceon freezes the surrounding air by controlling its body temperature.

Leafeon, the Verdant Pokémon, and an evolved form of Eevee. Because Leafeon's cells are like a plant, it performs photosynthesis.

"I raised them from Eevee and helped them all evolve," Virgil explains, as though it's no big deal.

My eyes widen at this. He works with Eevee, arguably one of the most fascinating Pokémon ever! And he acts so normal about it!

"You must really love Eevee, huh?" Iris asks, reaching down to pet Vaporeon's back. He purrs at the attention.

"You bet!" Virgil's smile suddenly becomes a bit distant, as if he's remembering something. When I give him a look, he shakes his head and explains: "It all started when I was younger. I was probably about Alice's age, and I was traveling through the forest with my very first Eevee. But I had way too much confidence for my own good, and we went a little too far. We got lost, and then the sun went down. But just when things seemed hopeless, Eevee evolved into Umbreon. Thanks to Umbreon, we were able to find our way out of there."

The Dark-type yips at the mention of his name, and he coos when I brush a hand against the top of his head. He's just like Gary's Umbreon, just not as fierce.

"And ever since that day, Eevee and I have had a special bond." At Virgil's words, Eevee chirps and paws at the air. "Say hello to the eighth Eevee I'm training," Virgil laughs as Eevee practically launches herself into his arms.

Aw, they must really love each other!

But Cilan frowns in confusion at this. "Virgil, you said before that your team was made up of the evolved forms of Eevee, but what about that Eevee?"

"You're right. Shouldn't she be evolving soon?" She definitely looks strong enough.

Eevee cuddles closer to Virgil's chest, and when she does, he laughs nervously. "This Eevee is a bit spoiled. She's still in training. Isn't that right?" he asks her, setting her back down on the ground.

However, Eevee shakes her head. She motions her little paw up and down, and she frantically yips at Virgil.

At this, his eyes widen. "You think you're ready, girl?"

Their bond must be very strong if he can understand what she's saying. It almost reminds me of my own bond with Pikachu.

Iris's eyes go wide. "Wait, it's a girl?"

"Yup, this Eevee's a girl," Virgil proudly informs us. "In fact, Eevee, Espeon, and Glaceon are the only girls in Team Eevee. The rest of them are boys." It doesn't surprise me, since male Eevee are more common than female Eevee. "You think you're ready to graduate?" Eevee nods her little head eagerly. "Alright. But first, we have decisions to make: the type of rescues and what you want to evolve into."

But Eevee suddenly frowns, and she turns around to the other evolved forms. Her eyes sweep over each of them, but she can't seem to settle on one. Distraught, she turns back to Virgil.

"That's a lot to think about," he laughs, petting her head lightly. "We've got time, don't worry. For now, just think about what type would suit you the best." She seems a little more relaxed at this answer, and she nods her head agian.

I find myself smiling at the sight. "You're really gentle with Eevee. I can tell she cares about you a lot."

He returns my smile, but just as he opens his mouth to reply, a loud bang cuts him off. Immediately, the four of us jump; my hands fly up to my ears and press against them. I hate loud noises, especially if they pop out of nowhere!

Virgil's jaw drops. "The emergency signal!"

But before I can ask him what that means, the roof of the shed next to the house opens up. A black helicopter lifts up and out of it, with a boy who looks similar to Virgil sitting in the front seat. In the seat behind him rests a gruff-looking Stoutland.

"Who's that?"

"It's my older brother Davy and his Pokémon Stoutland," Virgil says quickly. "Davy, what's wrong?"

Davy jumps and turns towards us. Now I can see his hair is a full shade darker than Virgil's, and he sports a few freckles across his nose. "We're headed up to the San. You'll have to ask Dad about the details."

At this information, Virgil's eyes flash. "I'm coming, too!"

But Davy only rolls his eyes and shakes his head. "If I bring you, you'll just get into trouble."

"I promise, I won't!"

Despite his pleas, Davy ignores him. "You need to stay here in case there's another emergency. Understand?"

"...Yes," Virgil finally replies.

With one last nod to his younger brother, Davy turns back to the controls of the chopper. In a matter of seconds, the vehicle lifts off and flies away into the distance.

But going by the look on Virgil's face, I don't think he's going to give up any time soon.

"Dad! What's going on?"

Virgil has led us into an office on the second floor of his massive house. Now, seated behind a mahogany desk, an older man with darker hair like Davy's smiles at his son.

"Oh, hello, Virgil." He suddenly stops and raises an eyebrow at me, Iris, and Cilan. "Who're your friends?"

"I met them earlier at the cliff," he explains hurriedly.

"Nice to meet you, sir." There's no use in not being polite.

Thankfully, he returns the smile and nods to us. "Same to you. The name is Jeff."

But Virgil gets right down to business, and he leans forward and asks, "What happened at the dam?"

Jeff's face falls at the reminder. "There's a report that a wild Cryogonal froze the water up there."

"A Cryogonal?!"

"We must stop it before things get worse. That's what the Pokémon Rescue Squad is for." He leans over the desk and presses a button on a gray pad. Then, next to the tiny microphone, he begins to speak: "Control center, do you read me?"

But when he releases the button, the only answer he's greeted with is a collection of static. He frowns before tying again.

"Hello?" Still nothing. At this, his eyes darken. "Our connection's been lost."

A lost connection? That means they won't be able to get in touch with the control room!

Suddenly, a new voice bursts out from another device. And by the way Jeff glances at the band around his wrist, I'm guessing it's coming from there.

"Dad, I'm at the dam." It's Davy's voice. "It's completely frozen!"

"Davy, we just lost contact with the control room."

The device picks up Davy's gasp, as well as a few bits of static. "What?!"

"We don't know what's going on. Please, be careful." His voice ends off on a plea, and that's when I realize it's because he's a worried parent. He doesn't want his son to be anywhere near the danger, but there's no choice.

"Roger." Then there's a click, and I know Davy's signed off.

A few minutes pass, and the silence is almost agonizing. Virgil begins pacing around the room, and Jeff taps his fingers against the surface of the desk. It's almost a chore to stand still at this point.

Is Davy okay? Is he safe? What about Stoutland? I don't know him that well, but that's not stopping me from wishing the best for him.

Then, Davy's voice explodes into the room once again: "Dad!"

At this, Jeff pushes a few buttons, and a video pops up on the screen on the wall across the desk. Davy can be seen, and it looks like he's in some sort of dark room.

"What is it?" Jeff asks, the concern evident in his voice.

"I evacuated the workers from the control room, but now we're the ones trapped inside. Unfortunately, this place is filled with sensitive equipment. My Pokémon can't just break us out."

Upon hearing this news, Jeff nods and sighs heavily. "You stay right where you are. I'm on my way."

But just when he stands up, Virgil steps forward. "Dad, you need to stay here at headquarters. Let me go."

He's about to protest when Davy speaks up again. "Virgil, wait! We've still got a big problem here: the power is off, and one of the workers is trapped in the elevator. The way I see it, unless we can get the emergency power generator up and running soon, he's stuck in there."

Virgil clenches a fist at the news. "And I'll bet you it's somewhere deep inside the dam."

Davy shakes his head and lets out a breath. "That Cryogonal's acting awfully aggressive by freezing up the dam. This is a seriously dangerous situation."

With wide eyes, Jeff turns to his youngest child. "Son, are you sure you can handle this?"

But Virgil nods eagerly, his eyes alight with determination. "It's what I've been training for. This is a job for Team Eevee. After all, that's the reason you started the Pokémon Rescue Squad. We'll save them, no matter what kind of danger we face!"

Finally, Davy nods in agreement from the screen. "I think Virgil's ready. Let's give Team Eevee a chance."

"Davy..." Virgil's eyes glisten as he stares at his brother.

"Very well," Jeff says, nodding. "Good luck, Virgil."

But before he can take off once again, I step forward and make myself known. "Virgil, I'd like to help out, too."

It's comforting to know Iris and Cilan step up besides me, as well. "Please, let us go!"

"We all want to help out."

But Virgil shakes his head at us. "Sorry, but you're better off staying here."

I can't let them leave without us! "But teaming up with Pokémon to help people—isn't that what the Pokémon Rescue Squad is all about? I'm sure you'll need a few extra hands along the way. Please, let us come with you."

Virgil bites his lip, like he's debating with himself. Sure, we'd be in danger, but so will he. He needs all the help he can get right now. And he knows it.

At my words, Jeff smiles softly. "They remind me of you when you were young," he says to Virgil.

Even though he blushes, he still looks torn. "The thing is, we don't know what's going to happen there. ...Should I?" he finally asks, looking at his father.

He nods solemnly. "Go ahead. Make sure to keep an eye on them."

"I will," he vows. Then, he nods to the three of us. "Okay. Let's go!"

"Safety first!" Jeff yells after us. "Now, go make the Pokémon Rescue Squad proud!"

"Roger!"

Now, once we've all piled up into the other helicopter, with Virgil and Eevee in the front, Iris and Cilan in the back, and me and Pikachu stuck in the middle, we begin our trek to the dam. Virgil pilots the helicopter, and soon, he takes us over the dam.

It's a shocking sight.

All around, as far as I can see, ice cloaks the dam. Large chunks of snow and ice have been encrusted on the sides, the bottom, and even the little building at the top of it.

Iris shivers violently in the back, hugging Axew close to her. "I can't stand the cold!"

Even after all this time, she's still not one hundred percent comfortable with the cold weather. Despite her improvements with Ice-types, like Cubchoo and Vanilluxe, I guess there will always be that part of her who's scared of the cold in general.

Virgil finds a safe place to land, and when we do, we hop out of the chopper. Immediately, he flicks on the watch around his wrist.

"Davy, we're at the dam."

"I'm doing fine," comes Davy's reply. "Do whatever it takes to get the emergency power back up right away."

"Roger." When Virgil hangs up, he motions to the little building up ahead. "The entrance to the dam is this way!"

The four of us run over to it, with Pikachu and Eevee at our heels. But when we get to the set of double metal doors, we realize they're almost glued together by a thick line of ice.

"The door's frozen shut!" Damn it!

But Virgil merely smiles. "Not to worry. Flareon, deploy!" He tosses a Poké Ball, and his little Flareon bursts out in a flash of blue light. "Melt the ice with Flamethrower!"

Flareon inhales sharply before blowing out a stream of fire. The ice melts instantly, dripping off the metal. Virgil nods approvingly at his Pokémon.

But when he goes to open the door, it won't budge. "Wait, what? It needs a key! Glaceon, Umbreon, deploy!" He throws two more Poké Balls, and Glaceon and Umbreon appear besides Flareon. "Use Icy Wind and Psychic to make a key to unlock that door!"

They're very resourceful, I'll give them that.

Iris makes sure she's far away from Glaceon as the Ice-type blows out a chilly gust of wind and snow towards the keyhole. Meanwhile, Umbreon's eyes glow with a dark violet color, and he manages to keep the snow and ice contained into one spot. Then, the ice key slips out, and Virgil snatches it up.

"Perfect!" He shoves it in and twists it, but when he pushes the door again, it still won't move. "It's rusted shut. Vaporeon, deploy!" This time, Vaporeon appears in a flash of blue. "Use Bubble Beam on all the rusty areas!"

Vaporeon nods before spitting out a collection of tiny bubbles. When the water hits the rust on the metal, though, it loosens up the doors. When it's all gone, Virgil and I push on them again, and we're relieved when they swing open.

But we're met with absolute darkness. "It's pitch black." I can't see a thing!

"Because the power's out." Virgil holds up three Poké Balls. "Everyone except Umbreon, return!" Flareon, Vaporeon, and Glaceon all retreat to their Poké Balls in similar jets of red light. "Umbreon, use Flash!"

Umbreon raises his head, and the ring on his forehead glows with a golden light. He points it downward, giving us a clear sight of the path ahead.

Thanks, Umbreon. I was worried for a minute there.

The four of us run down the flight of stairs and into the hallway. It leads us into a huge room, which I'm guessing is the main generator room, going by all the wires and switches.

We follow Virgil down to the generator. He flips up the switches, but nothing happens. He sighs heavily at this.

"Emergency power's down, alright. The batteries must be low."

"Then what are we gonna do?"

He smiles at my question, not looking worried in the slightest. "We've got to recharge them. Jolteon, deploy!" He tosses another Poké Ball, and this time, Jolteon appears before us. "Use Thunderbolt and aim at the battery!"

Just as Jolteon crackles with electricity, Pikachu jumps forward. "We can help, too! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

Both Pokémon expel powerful bolts of lightning directly up at the huge battery. And it doesn't take long before Virgil stops and nods at us.

"That's enough. Great job!" Both Jolteon and Pikachu look pleased with his praise.

This time, when he flips the switches, the lights blare on in the room. Now, I'm able to see my friends and the generator for real.

"The elevator should be running again," Virgil says. "Now, lets go rescue my brother."

Once Jolteon is safely back in his Poké Ball, the four of us run back up the stairs and out of the building. But when we get outside, a familiar white and blue shape hovers over us.

"A Cryogonal!" Since it's been a while, I scan it with my Pokédex.

Cryogonal, the Crystallizing Pokémon. Created in snow clouds, Cryogonal make ice crystal chains and use them to capture prey.

The Ice-type leers down at us and growls threateningly. Suddenly, he shoots a beam of ice at us, and we barely manage to jump to the side to dodge it.

"We'll stop Cryogonal," I tell Virgil. It obviously wants to fight us, and it won't stop until we do. The best thing we can do is distract it while Virgil gets to Davy.

"Virgil, you rescue Davy!" Iris adds.

His jaw drops. "But, what if you—"

"Don't worry about us," I cut him off with a reassuring smile.

"Remember what your father said: safety first, always," Cilan reminds him with a wink.

"If things start to get too dangerous, we'll get out," Iris promises him.

It takes him a few seconds, but it seems we've convinced him. He nods to us and gives us a confident smile.

"I'm counting on you!" And with that, he runs off towards the control room, with Eevee at his side.

As Cryogonal lowers himself to the ground, I wrap my fingers around a familiar Poké Ball. "Stop it, Cryogonal! You're gonna have to get through us first! Pignite, let's go!"

I throw the Poké Ball, and my Fire and Fighting-type appears in front of me. He snorts out a stream of fire, looking ready for a fight.

When Cryogonal shoots out a beam of ice, I shout, "Intercept with Flamethrower!" Pignite inhales deeply and blows out a line of fire, which breaks through the ice immediately and hits Cryogonal straight-on.

But when the steam clears up, it's not one, but three Cryogonal staring down at us altogether. Iris yelps at this. "Now we've gotta deal with three of them!"

As one goes for Pignite, another charges right for us. My friends and I scream as we try to evade the icy grasp of the Pokémon.

"Virgil!"

I'm relieved to see him running back to us, with Flareon and Eevee at his side. However, I'm not relieved to see the other two Cryogonal chasing him. When they get closer, the other two Cryogonal join up with the first three.

Virgil's jaw drops at this. "Now there are five! Quick, Team Eevee, all units deploy!" He throws out his Poké Balls, and in identical blue flashes, the forms of Glaceon, Jolteon, Vaporeon, and Umbreon all appear before him. "Get those Cryogonal out of here!"

As Flareon spits out a stream of flames, Jolteon expels a bolt of lightning, and Vaporeon spits out a line of bubbles. But just when they reach the Cryogonal, a colorful walls erupts between them, protecting the five Ice-type Pokémon.

"That's Light Screen!"

But that doesn't stop Glaceon and Umbreon. Glaceon spits out a beam of ice, and Umbreon shoots out a swirling violet ball of shadowy power. But these attacks, just like the ones before them, hit the wall.

"We'll scatter the Cryogonal with a combined attack," Virgil tells us. "Then, all of you can escape through the opening."

I frown at this plan. "But—"

"It's okay, just do it!" The way he turns away from me makes me assume there's no room for arguing. "Now, Team Eevee, give it all you've got!"

"Virgil, wait!"

Davy's voice takes us all by surprise, and when we turn around, we spot Virgil's older brother standing there with his Stoutland and a Darmanitan. Hovering above his shoulder is a sixth Cryogonal.

Virgil's mouth falls open. "Davy! How did you get out?!"

"Eevee dug a tunnel to get where we were and rescued us." Indeed, Eevee stands next to Davy, wagging her tail proudly.

The other five Cryogonal prepare to advance and attack us, but Davy holds out his arms.

"Wait! Look, Cryogonal. Your friends are here."

The sixth Cryogonal floats up to the group and chatters to them. Then, the other five begin to relax at his voice, and they hum happily together.

"What happened?"

"When we got down to the basement," Davy starts off, "we discovered that Cryogonal was trapped behind some pipes somehow and couldn't get out. The other five Cryogonal must've thought it was being held hostage."

It makes sense. Pokémon don't attack randomly without a good reason. I mean, Dragonite did the same to help out a Pidove flock from a Hydreigon.

"They were only attacking because they were trying to save their friend," Iris sighs, smiling up at them.

"Sorry about that, Cryogonal!"

"Next time you're in any trouble, you can count on us to help our!"

The group of Ice-types turns to us and nod eagerly. Then, the six of them fly up and away from the dam.

When they've left, Davy nods approvingly at his little brother. "Excellent job, Virgil. You're a real squad member now."

It seems like Virgil's taken by surprise by this information, but he soon masks it up with a smile. "I thought I already was one. Better late than never, I guess. Thanks for having faith in me."

I give him a huge smile. "That's great, Virgil!"

He laughs and nods to me. "Thanks. And thank you for all your help. You were great."

Already, I can feel a blush settling in. "Aw, it was nothing..."

Suddenly, Eevee runs up to us and chirps happily. Virgil kneels down to her level and smiles at her.

"That's right! I need to thank you, too. You used Helping Hand, Protect, and Dig! Thank you. You actually saved us all. And that means you're fine just the way you are." Her eyes light up as he picks her up and cradles her to his chest. "Now, Team Eevee's all ready to go—and you're a member of the squad! Congratulations, Eevee!"

The little Normal-type squeaks in happiness and wriggles around in excitement at his announcement. And I can't help but smile at the sight.

"All that's left is to return the lake to normal," Davy says, "and once we do, we're done."

So, for the next few hours, our little group spreads out with our Fire-type Pokémon. Virgil uses Flareon, with Eevee granting him extra power with the use of Helping Hand, Davy uses Darmanitan, and I use Pignite. Eventually, all the ice has been melted, and the dam has returned to its normal state.

The sun is crawling behind the trees once my friends and I decide to head back on the road. And when we tell Virgil where we're headed, he gasps.

"Really, Alice? You're gonna compete in the Unova League?"

"Yup," I reply proudly. "That's why we're on our way to Vertress City."

"Wonderful! Then I'm certain we'll cross paths again."

Iris frowns at this, though, and so do I. "What're you talking about?"

So Davy explains to us, "Virgil's competing, as wel."

He nods, meeting my open-mouthed stare with a smile. "I just completed my journey, going around challenging Gyms to help me prepare for my rescue work. And entering the Unova League is the last step."

Iris suddenly gasps. "I can see it now: a super rivalry between you and Virgil!"

At this, my face heats up. Another rivalry? Well, I don't know about that...

Cilan seems to agree, as well. "Yes, indeed. A battle between the two of you would be just about as zesty as it gets! Of course, what fun would battling be without a generous dash of spice?"

I guess they're right. It's bound to happen eventually if we keep winning. "If we battle," I begin, turning back to Virgil, "I promise, I won't be holding back one bit!"

"I won't, either," he responds with a cool smile.

I meet it with my own. Then I guess I've got something else to look forward to. "Then I'll see you there."

"Right. See you!"

And with that, the three of us say our final goodbyes to Virgil and Eevee before setting down the path to Vertress City again. But I know it won't be long before we see each other again.

Unova League, here I come!

Stay tuned for the next chapter! I promise you, it's worth the wait! (Well, you'll be the ones to judge!) Thank you all for reading and reviewing and supporting me. Love you all! :)