Battle Bond

It may not be now.

It may take years for it to happen.

But it is inevitable.

Alpha and Renegade will fight once more.

Shit!

It had taken Bradley Pine much longer than he had anticipated reaching his destination. He had never been very competent when it came to location and travel. While he had expected the trip to take only thirty minutes, it was taking well over an hour. He was close, however.

He rode on the back of his Pokemon: a Salamence. He had named it Typhon after a draconic creature from Greek mythology. He hadn't raised it from hatching; he had been given the Pokemon while it was still a high-level Shelgon. He had developed a hobby of battling afterward and the Pokemon eventually evolved into what it was now. Once it had evolved, Bradley had immediately tried flying on its back. The experience was exhilarating, and he was sure he was one of the first to fly on a Pokemon. However, he usually refrained from it as though it was incredibly convenient, some people looked down on it. Bradley didn't know why. He figured they were jealous.

As the two of them neared the address that had been sent to Bradley, the professor pointed it out to his Pokemon. The blue Pokemon tucked its red wings close to its body and dove. Bradley held on tight to his Pokemon's neck as wind streaked past him, stretching his face out slightly. They plummeted from five stories high and Typhon leveled out when they were about six feet from the ground. The few people that they flew over yelped and ducked their heads before angrily shouting after them.

Salamence landed and jogged to a stop directly in front of the entrance to the building. With a quick thanks, Bradley hopped down from Typhon and returned it to its Poke ball. He then ran through the entrance of the building and looked around frantically. The structure was about two stories tall and mostly empty. It seemed to be completely abandoned; Bradley wondered if a criminal organization really operated here. At that thought, he began to worry. What if he had the wrong building? What if Kyle had sent the wrong address?

After searching the building and coming up with nothing, Bradley's fear increased. He realized his teeth were clenched and loosened them. By the time he was thinking about searching all nearby buildings, he found a small door that he had overlooked on the first floor. It was almost completely camouflaged with the red brick wall surrounding it. It must've been painted over for that very purpose.

Bradley tried the handle. It didn't budge. Locked. He took out his Poke ball and sent Typhon back out. The Dragon-type Pokemon was confused as to why it had been released so soon, but when Bradley pointed to the door, it understood. The top of its head glowed white as it used Headbutt on the metal door. It flew inward, blown off its hinges. It slammed into the wall on the opposite side and fell ten feet.

Bradley looked through the doorway and found a single flight of stairs leading down. He grinned, happy that he had found the stairs, but the smile didn't last as he realized what would've likely happened had he left without seeing the door. At that thought, he returned Typhon to its Poke ball once again - it was too wide to fit through the doorway - and literally jumped down each set of stairs. At the end of the flight, there was another door. This one was unlocked.

Bradley opened the door and found what seemed to be an entirely new building underneath the one he had just been in. It appeared to be made of hallways constructed from cement. He wasted no time and ran down each hallway. As he noticed doors on his sides, he searched each room for any signs of a person. He found none until a few minutes later. Six people in all black were clustered at the end of one hallway. A door was next to them. It appeared to be frozen shut. Next to each person was a Pokemon.

One of the Pokemon noticed Bradley running towards them and pointed him out to the others. Bradley stopped in his tracks as everyone turned to face him.

"Hey!" One said, pointing a finger. "Who are you? How did you find this place?"

Bradley didn't feel like wasting much time. "Team Dominion, I assume?" He asked, reaching into his pocket for Typhon's Poke ball.

"Eh?" Another said. "Well. I guess we've been found out." He grinned. "Take him down, fellas."

That was all the confirmation Bradley needed. He sent out Typhon and ordered it to attack.

The first member who had spoken laughed. "Don't you know?" He asked. "Dragon is weak against Ice." He pointed again. "Ice Beam!"

Bradley noticed all the other Pokemon were Ice-types as well. They were all using the same attack: Ice Beam. Sure, getting hit by six Ice Beams would definitely put Typhon out of commission. That is, if they managed to hit their target, which wasn't going to happen.

Typhon opened its maw and unleashed billowing flames. Flamethrower. The Ice Beams all fired around the same time, heading straight for the Salamence. However, they evaporated as soon as they touched Salamence's Flamethrower attack. The Ice Beams stopped, but Typhon's attack kept going as the flames wrapped themselves around the Ice Pokemon. The members adopted panicked looks.

"What?!" The first member exclaimed.

"Oh, didn't you know?" Bradley asked with a cold stare. "Ice is weak against Fire."

Typhon made short work of everyone else's Pokemon, as well as of the ice sealing the door. He couldn't do much to humans, so all he did was tell Typhon to Headbutt them to rattle their brains a little. They wouldn't be getting up anytime soon.

Bradley opened the door to find another stairwell and searched each floor he came across. He found another group of five people on one of them, wielding Fire-type Pokemon. He dealt with them, as well, and continued on. He began to worry again until he reached the second-to-last floor. He heard the sounds of movement from behind a corner. He released Typhon and told it to be ready for a fight. The two rounded a corner.

Bradley stopped, mouth hanging open slightly. He wasn't sure how to feel about what he was seeing.

There were Pokemon everywhere. Walking here and there along the hallway, some communicating with each other, others resting. Some appeared to be greatly injured and were being treated by… other Pokemon. They had potions in their hands and were applying them to others. In all, there were at least thirty of them. Bradley had never seen anything like it before.

There were a total of fourteen humans in the hallway. Eleven of them appeared to be unconscious and tied up. One of them was going around helping the injured Pokemon with whatever they needed, as there didn't seem to be enough potions to go around for everyone. One of them was kneeling next to the last one. And the last one…

My goodness.

The last human was in bad shape. He looked to be a boy no older than fifteen. His shirt had been removed, revealing a plethora of injuries. Cuts that must have been cleaned covered his face, arms, and torso. Where there were no cuts on his body, there were instead purple bruises the size of baseballs. He was laying down next to a wall while a woman in black treated his injuries, a first-aid kit at her side. Though the boy looked terrible, Bradley saw something else that made his heart warm. An Infernape sat with the boy's head in its lap. It stroked the boy's hair while he was being treated. It looked as if it had been crying, but it was spilling tears no longer. The flame on the top of its head was smaller than that of a normal Infernape; it burned calmly.

One of the Pokemon noticed Bradley and cried out. All the other Pokemon turned towards him, and Bradley could see fear and hate in their faces. The professor took an uneasy step backward.

The human roaming the area followed the noise and laid her eyes on Bradley. At first, her eyes narrowed, then they widened in delight.

"Wait!" She exclaimed. "Are you Professor Pine, by chance?"

Bradley nodded, and the girl smiled in apparent relief. The woman treating the boy glanced over, grunted, then returned to her work.

"Finally! I was beginning to worry." The girl calmed the Pokemon down and they returned to treating injuries or sleeping. They still eyed Bradley warily, however.

The girl approached Bradley and Typhon. A Dragonair slithered up beside her as she did so. She looked to be the same age as the other boy, with a pretty face and long, blonde hair. She seemed to have had a rough time, but not nearly as rough as the other one. Bruises and burns covered her exposed arms. One of her pant legs had been cut off at the knee. Around her shin was a thick bandage. A tiny amount of blood stained one side of it red. Despite all of this, she was smiling brightly.

"Tough day?" Bradley asked lightly to ease the mood.

The girl sighed. "You have no idea. We need to get Jordan to a hospital. Extrasensory thinks he has broken ribs, a broken arm, dislocated jaw maybe, broken leg..." She trailed off. "Anyway, are others on the way?"

Bradley nodded. "I'm sure they'll get here soon." There were a few other things he wanted to address. He gestured to the Pokemon in the area. "How did you do all of this?"

The girl looked around, confused. "All of what?" She asked, turning back to him.

Bradley repeated his earlier gesture, this time with more flare. "Are all of these Pokemon registered to one of your trainer IDs?"

The girl looked around again. By her new expression, Bradley could tell she understood where he was coming from, now.

"Oh," she said. "Jordan deregistered all of them from their Poke balls. So I guess they're all wild."

Bradley's jaw hung open. All of these Pokemon were collaborating together, and they were wild? It was impossible. They should have been trying to fight or escape, as wild Pokemon tend to do. They shouldn't even be responding to orders made by humans they weren't registered to.

"How?" He asked. "How can you get them to act like this when they're wild? Do you know how hard it was for the upper guys in the CPP to get them under control? This is insane! Nobody's been able to achieve something like this!"

The girl raised her eyebrows. "Really?" Then she shrugged. "It wasn't really me, anyway. You'll have to talk to Jordan when he wakes up."

Bradley's eyes fell on the unconscious boy. How could someone so young place all of these wild Pokemon under his control?

There was something else Bradley wanted to ask. He pointed at the woman treating the boy's wounds. "Who's that?" He asked.

The girl followed his finger to the woman with the first-aid kit. "Oh," she said. "She hasn't told me her real name, but she's called Extrasensory."

"She's wearing all black."

"She's not a member of Team Dominion if that's what you're wondering." She paused. "Well, she was. But not anymore. So that's that."

"There will still be charges-"

"Actually, I misspoke. As far as we're concerned, she's just a passerby who heard noise and came down to help with her Noctowl. She just happened to be wearing the same colors at the time."

Bradley opened his mouth to refute before seeing the girls determined face. He sighed, closed his mouth, and smiled.

"Very well," he said. The girl smiled back warmly. Bradley looked up and around. "Anyway," he asked, changing the subject. "Where's Kyle?"

Eve landed gracefully on its feet as Silvally fell. The Eevee was battered and bruised, but it had come out on top. Kyle hesitantly severed the connection between his and his Pokemon's consciousness as he observed the now-quiet battlefield.

Leader was furious. He looked like he wanted to scream at Silvally for losing. Somehow, he managed to restrain himself. He looked down at the ground, fists clenched.

"We had a deal, Leader," Kyle reminded him, hoping he would honor his word.

"You have lost," Arceus said for both of the humans to hear. "You have no more reason to be here. Leave."

After a moment, Leader's hands relaxed and his expression softened. He looked up at Kyle. His face was calm, but his eyes shot daggers that could pierce the hardest diamonds. Kyle clenched his teeth.

Leader then began to chuckle. "I did lose, didn't I?" he asked." He laughed some more, then sighed. "And we had a deal. You know, I never expected you would have any chance at winning."

Kyle didn't know what to say, so he remained silent.

"I mean, you had help," Leader said, waving a hand towards Arceus's body.

"I did not do much," Arceus countered. "The outcome of the battle was a result of the boy's pure ability and bond with his Pokemon. All I did was construct a harness."

"Uh-huh," Leader said. He didn't sound convinced, but it didn't seem to matter. He took out a Dominance ball and returned Silvally. "Well, there's not much I can do, now. My Gardevoir's not really a fighter."

"So, you will be leaving?" Arceus asked.

Leader hesitated, and for a moment Kyle thought he was going to go against his honor and try to fight again. But his worries did not become reality. Leader nodded.

"Very well."

Light began to swirl from the ground, wrapping itself around Leader's legs, then his torso and arms. The boss of Team Dominion was slightly startled, at first, but he slowly calmed down as he came to the conclusion that the light wasn't dangerous. As his neck and head were being enveloped, he caught Kyle's attention.

"Judgment."

Kyle raised his eyebrows.

"You're a pretty strong fighter. You and that Eevee of yours. You've been gifted the power of the most powerful being man has come across so far. Don't waste it."

Coming from Leader, Kyle thought he meant something like asserting dominance over the world. He decided to take it as becoming a strong opponent. He nodded in acknowledgment. Leader grinned back as his head was covered. Then he was gone. The light faded and left empty space where Leader had once been. The discarded Dominance balls on the ground disappeared as well.

"What'd you do?" Kyle asked.

"I sent him back to your world," Arceus responded.

Kyle huffed. "You couldn't do that before?"

"It takes a significant amount of power to transport someone away when they do not wish to leave," Arceus explained. "It takes next to no effort when their will is not fighting against mine."

"Ah," Kyle said. "So if I really wanted to stay, you wouldn't be able to make me leave?"

"I could," Arceus said as his body began to walk towards Kyle, "but I would prefer not to waste so much energy."

As Arceus approached Kyle and stopped next to him, it looked down. Kyle followed its gaze and saw the Earth again as if they were on the moon. Eve walked towards the two of them and looked down as well. As it did so, the harness of white light dissipated into the surrounding air. The two evolution stones dropped to the ground. Kyle bent over to pick them up.

"Can you see everyone?" Kyle asked as he straightened back up, placing the stones in his pocket.

"Yes. Help has arrived for your friends. Leader is sitting on his couch, waiting for someone to come arrest him."

"Are they okay?"

"They will be. One of your friends, in particular, the one you call Jordan, has suffered quite a bit. But he will recover."

Kyle nodded. "That's good."

Arceus glanced towards Kyle. "In time," it said, "You will be able to view the world as I do, as well."

"Yeah, about that," Kyle began, "Why did you choose me to receive all this power?"

"I did not. I chose your Eevee at random and your Eevee chose you."

"So then why do I have this power?"

"There is an ancient phenomenon that comes with the existence of any Pokemon. None of the humans of your world have noticed it yet, therefore it does not have an official name for you, but those who came before you called it the Battle Bond."

"Battle Bond," Kyle echoed.

Arceus nodded. "It is the connection a trainer forms with their Pokemon through experience. As the bond grows, the trainer can sense its Pokemon's consciousness, as the Pokemon can sense the trainer's. Moreover, the two identities can begin to merge. Personality traits and emotions will be shared."

"I don't feel any different…"

"Yet you are. Tell me, would you have gone this far to take down a criminal organization such as Team Dominion a few months ago?"

Kyle paused. As he thought about his unconcerned attitude during other world events besides the ones that directly affected his life, he realized that he had changed. Carol had noticed it before, too, while they were in the park.

"I felt like I had to invoke judgment," He said. "I'd never felt that way before."

"When I created an anomaly out of your Eevee, I gave it my traits. Since it is still incredibly young, there wasn't much there in the first place. So you could say your Eevee is a near-perfect reflection of me. Therefore, your newly adopted traits are my own."

It was a lot for Kyle to process. He had been given new personality traits that he now shared with a higher being? He didn't know if he should feel robbed, morphed, or content.

"This happens to everyone who owns a Pokemon?" He asked.

"It depends on the strength of the bond. The deeper the bond, the more effectively and rapidly the merge takes place. But yes, this will happen to almost all trainers eventually. It may take some longer than others, however.

"So that's all it really does? It just merges personality traits?"

Arceus shook its head. "That is not even the half of it. In addition to the merging of personality traits, Battle Bond increases the overall power of a Pokemon. I believe you would say that their statistics increase. Sometimes, the Battle Bond can spark, feeding the Pokemon ludicrous amounts of power. Occasionally, if intense enough, this power can even allow a Pokemon to evolve prematurely."

"That should be impossible, shouldn't it?" Kyle asked.

"Not for one who is in deep understanding with their partner."

Kyle pondered Arceus's words. A Pokemon that could evolve before the rest of its species did? He wondered if there was anyone who had experienced something like that so far.

"The Pokemon also can become more perceptive of the trainer's tendencies in combat and can act on its own at times."

Kyle remembered how Eve had been responding to his thoughts without him having to voice them. He nodded as Arceus went on:

"Those who have the Battle Bond can experience the sensations their partner feels. This includes mostly emotion, but it is not limited to just that. Pain is a large one, though you will not feel that until you have established a greater bond. Status Conditions, as you call them, are one of the first things a trainer will experience when their Battle Bond grows powerful enough."

So, I'll eventually feel the pain of each hit Eve takes? Kyle thought. As he looked at the Eevee, who was still gazing at their world through the ground of Arceus's domain, he expected to feel a twinge of fear at the thought. A few months ago, he would've dreaded having to feel pain with each hit his own Pokemon took. But now, he didn't feel any worry at the thought. In fact, he felt glad that his Pokemon would be able to share its pain with him. It was only right, after all.

"So the strength of Battle Bond matters in a battle just as much as experience?" Kyle asked.

"Even more so," Arceus said. "If the strength of Battle Bond is powerful enough compared to your component, experience will not matter at all."

"But wait," Kyle said, suddenly remembering something. "A Pokemon and a trainer work better together if they have a stronger bond, right? As in they'll easily be able to understand one another throughout a battle?"

"Correct."

Kyle thought back to the first day of school since Pokemon were introduced to the world. Adrien had been in his gym class before he had received his Pichu. He had borrowed a Pokemon from the school's stash of Starlys and other common and low-level Pokemon. He had used it so efficiently, beating even those who had higher level Pokemon than he. The only one he couldn't beat was Jordan and Fireball, who were likely the strongest pair there. But he hadn't had much time at all…

"Doesn't it take time for Battle Bond to develop?" Kyle asked.

Arceus made a sound that sounded like chuckling. "Not necessarily. This amuses me, coming from you. After all, do you remember how quickly the anomaly attached itself to you?"

Kyle nodded, remembering Eve's desire to be his Pokemon. It was a rather fond memory of his.

"There are some humans who are drastically superior in developing a Battle Bond. I do not know what causes this, as I have found no correlations. It is not due to Pokemon, either, as they all have the same capacity for bonding.

"These humans can spend only a little time with their Pokemon and already be able to understand it. Some of them cannot even but help to bond to a wild or unregister Pokemon as soon as they meet on the same side of the battlefield. These people were called by others as Champions."

"So then, I'm a Champion?"

Arceus nodded. "Indeed. You and your other friends are what I believe to be a few of the strongest Champions I've ever come across. Especially that other boy you call Adrien. I do not believe there is another Champion with ability such as his, though you come close."

Kyle remembered how Carol told him a Dratini approached her from the waters of the beach. Normal wild Pokemon wouldn't just take a bite of food and assert themselves as a Pokemon belonging to a trainer. She was definitely a Champion. But what about Jordan? There wasn't anything Kyle could think of that marked him as a Champion. Maybe there was something he didn't know. He'd have to ask later.

And Adrien. The strongest Arceus had ever known? Kyle suddenly didn't feel as discouraged about losing to him time after time. It definitely explained how he had been so competent on that day in using a Pokemon he'd never known before.

"One more question about Battle Bond," Kyle said. Arceus turned towards him as Kyle finished. "You called what I did a Half-Bond?"

Arceus nodded in understanding. "Yes. That type of bonding is one of the final stages in Battle Bond. When you can feel the consciousness of your Pokemon, it is called being in the state of Understanding. A trainer can push past this and develop a Half-Bond, in which you become slightly more aware of your Pokemon. The next step, which you have not reached, is called a Full-Bond. In this state, the senses on your own body become numb and all you can feel are the sensations your Pokemon is experiencing."

"So how long will it be before I can perform a Full-Bond?" Kyle asked.

"I do not know. It took many years for even the trainers with the greatest talent in Battle Bond to manage it. It will not be anytime soon."

"Oh," Kyle said, slightly disappointed. A few years? That was a long time to wait for something new. "Is that it? For Battle Bond, I mean. Is there anything else about it I should know?"

"Well, there is one technique that I am sure exists, but no one has managed it in their lifetime. If we talk again, which I am sure we will someday, I may tell you about it. However, I believe it is time for you to go home. Your companions are waiting." Arceus began to take a few steps away from Kyle.

Kyle nodded, then paused. "Why do you keep talking like that?"

Arceus turned and stared. "What do you mean?"

"You keep implying that there were other people who once had Pokemon, though this should be the first time they've been introduced in this world," Kyle said. "There's no record of any Pokemon in the past." He paused, unsure if he or Arceus wanted him to continue. "Do other worlds exist?"

Arceus was silent for a moment. He then walked back towards Kyle and looked him in the eye. Kyle wanted to back away from the gaze of its green eyes that shone like emeralds. However, he stood his ground and did not waver.

"Yes, you are not the first of your kind," Arceus explained. "There were others I gave my children to, once. They gave them the same name you did, as a matter of fact. Pokemon."

Kyle felt his head become lighter at the thought of the existence of another world. So, the humans of Earth were not alone in the universe, after all. He felt a sudden desire to know more about them.

"Where are they now?" Kyle asked eagerly. "Could we see them through…" he gestured to the floor in questioning, where his own world could be seen.

Arceus was silent for a moment. It was no longer looking at Kyle. It seemed to be staring off into space. Kyle could feel its possible emotions from his environment. There was an abundance of sorrow and guilt, along with anger. But there seemed to be a fair amount of emptiness, as well.

"It is no longer here," Arceus said slowly. "It is gone."

Kyle wanted to ask more questions, but he didn't want to make the higher being delve deeper into the negative emotions.

But what could've happened? Kyle wondered. It said that that world was gone. Was it destroyed? Abandoned? He then remembered something else. It said it wanted to conserve energy. Why? What does it need it for?

Arceus regained itself and straightened. "That's enough. Time to leave." Its voice wasn't stern, but it was assertive. Kyle decided it would be best to agree, though he still had many questions.

Eve sensed the approaching time for departure and looked up from the ground. It then leaped towards Kyle's chest. The trainer caught it in his arms and smiled. His Pokemon smiled back warmly. It was then that Kyle noticed something had changed about his Pokemon his smile faded into a straight line.

"Hey," he said. "Its eyes are green."

Arceus glanced over. Indeed, Eve's eyes had once been dark brown like wet mud, but now they were bright green. Like emeralds. Like Arceus's own eyes.

"A product of the transfer of power, I assume," it said. "Your own eyes will change to that color, depending on your level of bond you are in at the time."

Kyle placed a hand over his left eye. He had felt it grow warm during the final part of his battle with Leader. Had it changed color then?

Kyle's thoughts were interrupted as light began to swirl from the floor around his ankles. He and Eve were being transported back to Earth. He stood still and watched Arceus as the whiteness ascended his body. When it had reached the middle of his torso, Arceus spoke one last time.

"One last thing: keep a watchful eye on your friend Adrien," it advised.

"Adrien?" Kyle asked curiously. "What for?"

But the Alpha didn't answer.

Leader sat on his creased, brown leather couch. He sighed as he realized he would exceptionally miss sitting there. It was one of the most comfortable pieces of furniture he had ever owned. Not to mention, it made him feel high and mighty whenever he sat on it while his grunts were in the room.

He rolled Silvally's Dominance ball in his right hand. He knew that the CPP was likely going to confiscate the synthetic Pokemon, meaning it would be the last time they were close to each other. Though Leader was still upset that it had lost the battle against Judgment and his Eevee, he was still sad at the thought of watching it go. Not to mention it was almost certain that it would be experimented on again.

At that moment, Leader almost jumped up from the couch to sprint to the back of the room with computers and exercise equipment. There was a door leading to a back room, where his sleeping area was located. In that room, there was another door that led to the surface. He could escape.

But Leader only sighed again and remained where he was, slumping over his knees. He would keep his honor, even if it meant he would suffer tremendously unfavorable consequences.

A beam of white light suddenly pierced through the top of the underground room. It was just about as thick as a column Leader had seen pictures of in ancient Greek architecture. As the light reached the ground, it remained for only a second more before retreating back through the ceiling, leaving no mark of its existence.

Where the light had touched the ground, it had left behind a boy and his Pokemon. They were both facing Leader with serious expressions. They were tense.

"What?" Leader asked impatiently. "I'm not going to try and fight you again."

"I'm just surprised you didn't run," Judgment clarified.

There was the sound of metal striking metal as the door to the room they were in began to open. Judgment turned. Leader raised his eyebrows. Was Luke here, now? Was he done with whoever he'd been fighting? Leader felt a spark of hope. Maybe his brother could get Silvally to a safe place! Leader couldn't help but smile as the door swung wide.

But it wasn't Dream Eater. Another child pushed the metal door open, revealing his black jacket and jeans. Leader's eyes widened as he saw that nearly his entire right side was red, including his face. It appeared to be dry, but there was no mistaking where the change in color had come from. Blood.

Leader shot upward. He pointed at the newcomer. "Who's blood is that?" He demanded to know.

Shadow Force tilted his head and squinted his eyes in confusion. Then realization came to life in his expression. "Oh. This?" He held out his right arm and looked it over. "I got a few cuts from your friend and I was hit in the head by a falling rock."

"Woah," Judgment said, taking a step forward. "Are you okay?"

Shadow Force nodded and waved a hand unconcernedly. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

"So then where is the one you fought?" Leader asked.

"Oh, you mean the one who called himself Dream Eater?" Adrien asked. "He ran. I beat his Gengar in a battle, and he took off faster than the devil. I lost him pretty quickly."

So he escaped, Leader thought. That's good, at least. But how could he have lost to another mere boy? Who are these kids? How could I not see how strong they were before?

As Shadow Force walked farther into the room, another figure came in after it on four feet. It hopped behind the boy and stopped, raising itself to two feet. Its tail swung from side to side behind it. It was a Raichu. But it looked...odd. Leader had never seen a Raichu with black features instead of yellow ones. It was orange like a normal one, at least. But its eyes were a deep, discomforting red.

The Eevee in Judgment's arms suddenly jumped down to the ground and took a single step towards the Raichu trainer. The two Pokemon stared each other down while their trainers watched.

"Chu evolved," Judgment observed. "And its eyes are red. That's not normal, is it?"

Shadow Force gestured to Judgment's Eevee. "Eve's eyes are green now. I don't think that's normal, either."

The two trainers stared at each other for a moment. Leader could only see the back of Judgment's head, but Shadow Force wore a cold and calm expression. The air in the room seemed to grow incredibly dense. A spark of hostility seemed to emit from the two trainers in an instant, meeting in the center of the space which separated them. Leader braced himself, suddenly afraid. He did not know what he was expecting.

Then Shadow Force suddenly smiled. Leader still couldn't see Judgment's expression, but he heard the boy begin to chuckle.

"So you took a few hits, eh?" Judgment asked playfully. "That guy gave you a bit of a challenge, hmmm?"

Shadow Force laughed in response. "Oh, come on. Give me a break." He apparently had finally noticed Judgment's lack of injury. He gestured towards him with both hands. "Okay, I don't believe that you managed to avoid every attack he threw at you. What, did the two of you wimp out or something?"

Judgment scowled lightly. "It was a battle of honor, I tell you."

The two laughed and bantered some more. Leader realized he was still holding his breath and exhaled. The atmosphere returned to normal. The sense of hostility was gone. Yet Leader was still afraid.

Who are they?

"I have a lot of stuff you can probably use," Kyle said.

"Oh, really?" Professor Pine said. "I'd love to hear it."

The two stood in the same room Kyle had reunited with Adrien. Kyle hadn't remained there the entire time. After the two had found each other and talked for a while, Pine had come down with Carol, looking for them. Carol had beamed in delight when she saw the two of them. She rushed over to hug Kyle, then was going to do the same for Adrien before she noticed the dried blood on his right side. Adrien chuckled and kept his distance, claiming it would be best if she didn't touch him. They had all later insisted that Adrien go upstairs to talk to someone named Extrasensory about his injuries. Carol led him up, leaving Kyle, Pine, and Leader alone in the room.

After introducing themselves in person for the first time, they talked about their experiences. Kyle told him the story of how he had found his way to the hideout and how he confronted Leader, leaving out the part with Arceus. However, Kyle had planned on telling him what he had learned later.

Kyle was surprised to find that Pine was much more of an informal person in the flesh than he was online. The professor claimed he was required to act that way with everyone he sent emails to, and he rather despised it. Leader remained silent this whole time, unmoving.

As the two were still talking, police and more professors from the CPP with Pokemon arrived. Five of them came into the room. Two of them walked over to Leader and placed him in handcuffs. The other three began to search the room. As Leader was walking out, Kyle caught his eye.

"Just give me a moment," Kyle said to Pine. "I'll tell you then."

He thought about everything Leader had done up until this point. He had stolen, hurt, and likely killed to get to this point. Kyle hated him for that. But Kyle thought about Silvally. That evolution had not been one out of experience. Leader had forged a Battle Bond with Silvally. Kyle was sure of it.

The Eevee trainer smiled at his enemy. Leader frowned in response. Kyle assumed that he likely thought he was smiling in victory. That's what he wanted the people holding him by his arms to think. He waited, still smiling. When he was sure that Leader was the only one looking at his face, he winked. Leader's frown deepened slightly, but this time it was in confusion. Then Leader's eyes widened slightly in fear. Kyle knew why. He remained smiling and - still making sure no one was watching - put a subtle finger to his lips and nodded slightly.

Leader's reaction was almost immediate. Frowning expression faded and turned into a look of dumbfoundedness. His eyes then shone with gratitude as he was pulled out of Kyle's view. He watched as the door shut behind the former leader of Team Dominion.

Pine turned back to Kyle. The boy quickly put his hand down from his mouth and assumed a blank expression. Pine raised his eyebrows. Kyle thought at first that it was because the professor had seen his motion, but he realized soon after that thought that Pine was still expecting him to speak up.

Kyle held up another finger, this time telling Pine to wait only a second longer. He walked over to Leader's couch as Pine's brow furrowed in confusion. Kyle stepped up to the piece of leather furniture, turned a hundred and eighty degrees, and sat.

"Hey!" Someone said.

Kyle turned his head to the side towards the voice. It was coming from one of the officers who was busy searching one side of the room: where Leader kept his computers. He was pointing his index finger at Kyle angrily.

"Stand up!" He said. "We don't want anything touched around here. I can't have you sitting down."

Kyle put on his best innocent smile as he stood. "Sorry," he said, putting his hands up. "He just sat in it so much, I had to know how comfy it was, you know?"

The officer shooed him away from the couch. Kyle complied, walking back to where Pine stood.

"What'd you do that for?" The professor asked.

"This." Kyle held out his hand. In his palm was a locked Dominance ball. There was no doubt in Kyle's mind that Silvally was being contained inside of it. Kyle had kept a close eye on Leader and had seen him drop it between the cushions. Perhaps it had been a last, desperate attempt to save his Pokemon. It might have been foolish, but it would end up working in his favor. Kyle's wink had been an indication to Leader that he had seen him store the capsule. However, it had also been a reassurance.

Pine blinked at the sight of the device. After a moment, he looked towards one of the officers and opened his mouth.

"Wait!" Kyle hissed. "Don't!"

Pine's eyes flicked towards Kyle's own. His mouth hung open, frozen in place for the moment.

"I need you to keep it safe," Kyle whispered, looking around to see if any of the officers had noticed what he had taken from the couch.

"Safe?" Pine whispered back. "Then give it to the authorities!"

"I can't trust them," Kyle said. Pine raised an eyebrow at that, making Kyle sigh. "Leader said some things about the CPP while we were fighting. They might not be true, but I can't be sure. This Pokemon's had it rough. I'd like to give it to someone I know won't treat it badly."

Pine was silent for a moment as he stared at the Dominance ball in Kyle's had while the boy tried to conceal it from everyone else in the room. Kyle tried one more tactic.

"If you do me this favor, I'll tell you what I know."

Pine scoffed at that. Kyle would never have been sure about asking this favor of Pine before he had met the professor in person. He had seemed like one who respected the law and custom. However, now that he knew his real personality, Kyle had a strong feeling Pine was one who could be trusted with this task.

Finally, Pine spoke: "Your friend told me something similar on the way down here," he said. "Something about the CPP not being as great as it's made out to be. I've thought about it a little and decided that if she's right, it might be time for a change." He took the Dominance ball from Kyle's hand and tucked it into one of his coat pockets.

Kyle smiled and withdrew his hand. "Thanks."

Pine nodded. "I'll do what I can. If I find evidence that these claims you two have presented to me are true, you can bet I'll be the first to do something about it. Now, I believe you said something about learning new ideas?"

Kyle laughed. "I'll give you a full report later when I have time to gather my ideas."

Pine sighed. "Figures. I should've asked for my prize before accepting the favor." He smiled and looked around. "Anyway, you're going to be pretty famous, huh? The press will love you."

Kyle grimaced. "Yeah, about that…"

Kyle and his friends spent the next several days in the city while everything calmed down. He and Carol had both been questioned and scolded extensively by the police and the CPP about the events that had occurred in Team Dominion's hideout and their actions. Adrien had been questioned and scolded later when the doctors had decided that he was fine after a long while of trying to find where the blood had come from. They had strangely found no cuts or wounds where the blood might've come from. Jordan hadn't been questioned, as he had been sent to a hospital to receive treatment.

Professor Pine had assumed responsibility for managing the Pokemon that had been freed by Jordan as well as the Pokemon that had been owned by the Team Dominion members. He had strongly insisted, and the other professors of the CPP at the scene had obliged since Pine had been the first to respond to Carol's distress email. Pine kept to his word and didn't include Silvally in the official list of the confiscated Pokemon.

Every member of Team Dominion inside of the underground building was arrested. The only one missing was Luke Johnson, also known as Dream Eater among those of the criminal organization. There wasn't a trace of him anywhere. The officers never found him.

The exact cause of the apparent death of one of the Team Dominion grunts wasn't found. Every grunt who owned an Electric-type Pokemon was interrogated, though they claimed to know nothing about the death. Adrien was questioned as well, as he owned a Raichu and also happened to be the last person to see Dream Eater. After a while, thankfully, he was deemed not a prime suspect and was left alone.

Lisa Cottonwood, or Extrasensory, had also been questioned along with the children. Unfortunately, there was no escaping the punishment of being a part of Team Dominion. She would be tried in a few weeks. Luckily, Pine had suggested that she could serve as his assistant rather than serve time in jail after hearing about her technological and chemical achievements. It would allow the two of them to gain more authority in the CPP and maybe start to make a difference. The woman seemed to grow much more respect for Pine after she heard the idea.

Kyle's mother and sister both quit work to drive to his location, along with the parents of his other friends. Adrien's mother cried and hugged her son while his father kept a solemn expression, but joined in the hug as well. It seemed to make Adrien uncomfortable. Carol's parents had similar reactions, though her brother seemed to be in awe of her feats while eagerly asking about the experience. Jordan's parents had gone straight to the hospital; Kyle didn't see them.

Kyle's own family hugged him and Chelsey began to scold him as the police did for his actions. His mother simply smiled and embraced the Eevee trainer. It didn't seem like she was angry like Kyle had thought to expect. In fact, she seemed rather proud as she spoke in her usual soothing voice.

The press was all over the event, especially since not one, but two more Arceus had appeared in the exact spot where Team Dominion's hideout was located. Each person who had been in the hideout at the time was asked about it, but everyone, including Kyle and Leader, said they had no idea it had even occurred in the first place.

By Kyle's request that had been relayed through Pine, Kyle and his friends were not mentioned in the story told by reporters. However, there was the mention of four heroes wielding their Pokemon who had almost single-handedly taken down Team Dominion on behalf of the CPP. Kyle had not requested the latter part. When he had questioned Pine about it, the professor simply shrugged while grinning foolishly.

The four heroes had been called the "Justice Champions." Kyle decided it could have been worse.

They all came home a few days later, though Jordan still was required to stay in the hospital for a little while longer.

Adrien walked into his room and tossed his backpack onto his bedspread. Chu entered the room a moment later, the Raichu running around and jumping on top of the same bed, next to the backpack. The trainer sat down with a sigh, making the bed shake slightly. Chu nestled up next to its trainer, making him smile. But the expression didn't last long. Adrien reached into his backpack and pulled out the thunder stone he had bought. He had meant to use it on Chu, but it seemed like the Pokemon would no longer be needing it. He had decided to give it to Kyle later, saying he had found it somewhere else to avoid questions. The Eevee trainer had told Adrien about Eve's newly discovered "switching" ability. The two of them might find the evolution stone of use to them.

Adrien put the thunder stone away and took out the plastic bag with the white marble inside of it. He had never fed it to Chu, yet its power had seemed to increase anyway. Adrien wasn't sure how he knew, but it seemed that the excess power had faded and it was back to the way had been before. It seemed to be no coincidence the voice of the Renegade had gone silent at the same time. He put the marble back in the bag. He would put it in a safe place for some other time. It would be unwise to simply throw it away.

Adrien realized his hand was shaking. He grabbed it with his other hand in order to make it stop, though the attempt was in vain. He shifted in his jacket to try to make himself feel more at ease, but this didn't do anything, either.

Dream Eater hadn't escaped. He hadn't even left the hallway in which they had finished their battle. He had been vaporized. Reduced to nothing. Gone. Chu's massive black Thunderbolt had ensured that. Midnight had also not survived.

Adrien also assumed that Chu had been the one who had killed the other Team Dominion member near the machine that had produced Dominance balls. He had suspected it as soon as he had seen the body, but now he was positive. He had so many questions. How was it possible? How could a Pokemon kill a human without any assistance from technology? The Renegade, disappointingly, was no longer there to provide him with answers.

And what was this feeling? Adrien knew he should feel horrible, and he did. However, there was no missing the fact that his sympathy seemed to be decaying by the minute. A few days ago, he had been devastated to the point where he could barely hide his emotions. Now, he was doing it with much greater ease. His guilt was fading rapidly. Could this be what the Renegade meant when it said his personality would change? Was he turning into a heartless bastard?

"Come on," Adrien said frustratingly. "Give me something."

There was no response.

Kyle finally went back to school as Jordan was released from the hospital. The Infernape trainer had been given a wheelchair, an arm cast, and a neck brace. Kyle looked for him in the halls but wouldn't see him or any of his other friends until lunch.

Everyone was talking about the Justice Champions. Kyle strained not to smile whenever he heard mention of the name or anything involving Team Dominion. It was similar to when everyone had been talking about his and Jordan's battle, except everyone was talking about it and none of them knew it was actually him. It was perfect.

By the time lunch came, Kyle's self-confidence was at an all-time high. He sat in the normal room with Carol opposite of him, eating her tuna fish sandwich. Adrien joined them later and sat with them in silence. Nobody spoke a word.

After a few more minutes, Jordan came wheeling in. Kyle had seen how terrible he had looked when he had been placed in the back of an ambulance and he was pleased to see that his friend was doing much better. Jordan rolled over to where his friends were eating lunch.

"Hey," the injured boy said. Everyone else gave their own greetings before continuing to eat. Kyle realized that this was the first time all four of them were eating lunch together. Jordan usually neglected to join them.

Kyle and Jordan suddenly made eye contact. Kyle could see the pain in his friend's eyes. It seemed to flood his brain, giving him an overload of negative sensations. But behind the pain was also a whelming feeling of excitement that filled his irises.

Jordan began to chuckle. Kyle followed along as he laughed as well. Soon enough, the two of them were howling in their seats. Carol began to chuckle along with them. Adrien seemed to allow himself a small smile.

End of Part Two