Jason Creight awoke from a quick nap on his Charizard's back.

He shook his head rapidly, trying to clear the cobwebs from his mind.

He realized that sleep was essential, and he considered himself lucky to have managed even the nap. Navel Island was still a distance away, and with it, the second section of code Jason needed in order to find Daniel.

*And, hopefully, Kelly.*

Jason found that he didn't have all that much to think about. His single-mindedness about the endeavor was causing his mind to be clear, his thoughts focused, even through the haze of tire. He wouldn't lie to himself; it was becoming tiring already, and he wasn't even to the second gym yet.

Charizard was feeling it, too, Jason knew it. The rate at which its wings flapped to keep itself on the same plane was becoming higher, and its breathing was steadily becoming more ragged.

He had made a point of encouraging Charizard every so often; it gave Charizard a sense of pride in itself, and made it want to please its master more. It would fly faster for a period of time before falling back to its current rate.

Jason gazed over the dark surface of the water. It was nighttime, and there was little light being produced. Most of it was from the stars... however, there was apparently a flotilla of Lanturn in the waters below. Yellow light pulsed from beneath the surface in a concentrated area, proving the point.

Jason smiled slightly. *At least I can still appreciate the small things of life. Wish I could enjoy it more.*

*Maybe I will, at that.*

*But right now, Kelly is my only priority.*

Bizarrely, Jason found himself almost wishing that Creight were here. Even as much as he had disliked his future self, he still needed to know where lay the point of no return. He wanted to know where the line was between remaining himself, and becoming what he feared.

He didn't know who to fear more... Daniel, or Creight.

*It doesn't really matter. Either one really is Daniel... if he were to do what I fear, that's when I'd become Creight.*

He thought about the floppy disk he'd been given by a tearful Sissy on Mikan Island. He didn't much care about the badge, and even less about the prize money... the disk was his true reward.

After he'd taken off from Mikan Island, he'd inserted the disk into the dataport on his latest issue Pokedex to see if it could make sense of the first section alone. When he opened the contents with a writing program, it revealed that the code was indeed heavily encrypted, and of no use to him even if it weren't. The code had been literally cut into "pieces", and Jason was faced with slips of characters in the code.

That left him with no choice; he had to battle the Orange Crew and Drake himself to find out where Daniel and Kelly were.

And he had less than a week to do it.

He couldn't rest, couldn't let his Pokemon rest. He could rejuvenate them, but they would be quite active in the next few days without much hope of relaxing.

He wished he could rejuvenate himself so easily.

For the moment, he was content to lie against Charizard's back and try to sleep.

Even as grim as the situation was, Jason knew he would need it.

***

A Pidgeot bearing two black-clad figures landed on the outskirts of Viridian City in the dead of night.

Adam recalled his Pidgeot, grabbed his fiancée's hand, and moved quickly across the sidewalk into the quiet city.

Tonight, Viridian City was well-lit, but there wasn't much action taking place outside; there was little noise. The occasional car passed by, but other than that, it felt almost deserted.

*So much the better,* thought Adam. *No one around to watch us break into the gym.*

They ran across the grasses of a park, taking a shortcut toward the gym. Adam spied a couple sitting on a bench, apparently making out. He grinned; they didn't care about the rest of the world, only each other.

He wondered if that was how his eventual marriage might turn out to be.

Adam's mind drifted a little bit as they continued across the park. He'd thought about going to the Pokemon Center

They made it to the front door of the gym a few minutes later, being sure to avoid everyone they saw. The gym was dark, as usual.

Adam had expected this. The gym leader wasn't in. Which probably meant the gym was locked. A hard push against the metal door confirmed his suspicions; it didn't budge.

He turned to Amanda. "Your turn."

Amanda nodded and slipped a capture ball from her belt. "Come on out, Magneton."

Amanda's Magneton appeared in midair just a meter away, and it buzzed happily; it hadn't been released from its capture ball in a while.

"Magneton, I need you to get that door open," she said quietly. "Can you do it?"

"Magneton." It turned around and stared at the door for a long moment. Then it began to glow a bright blue, and the door began to creak.

Magneton was turning itself into a magnet, its powers amplifying its polarity a thousandfold; meanwhile, the door'd polarity, the same as Magneton's, were trying to repel the Pokemon.

But Magneton wouldn't be dissuaded by a simple door. It floated straight at the door, the forces between them repelling each opther more strongly.

The door began to creak open, screeching against the floor of the interior. Amanda clamped her hands over her ears, and Adam ground his teeth; the screeching was causing vibrations, an unpleasant experience for anyone but most especially for them, as they were standing right next to it.

When the door was open enough to accomodate entry by a human, Amanda recalled Magneton. Adam edged through the opening first, and allowed his eyes to get used to the complete darkness of the gym.

Amanda followed quickly afterward, reaching out for Adam's hand as she entered the darkness with him.

Together, they prowled for an alternate exit.

***

Jason's Charizard roared, and Jason woke up with a start. "Huh? What? Oh."

They were about to land at Navel Island. Jason could see the mountain that dominated the island, and he knew of the challenge that the gym leader here issued trainers that wanted to earn the Sea Ruby Badge.

And again, his paralysis was a major impediment.

*But we'll take care of that problem when we come to it.*

That would be soon; Charizard lost altitude and landed softly on a paved area just beyond the sands of the beach. It was almost panting with its exertions now.

Jason patted it sympathetically on the back. "Sorry, buddy, I wish I could let you rest, but I may need you for this one. Think you can manage it?"

Charizard grunted and bobbed its head.

Jason grinned. "Thanks. I can't tell you how much this means to me. I'd trade you in for Fearow, but there's no Pokemon Center down there. I just need to to get me to the next island after this challenge, then I'll trade you in."

Charizard simply grunted in response. Jason climbed off its back and into his wheelchair, recalling his Pokemon a moment later.

He sighed and made his way to the small cable car pad, housed within a gazebo-like shack. There was only one car, and it was meant for those who traveled with the challenger, not the challenger himelf.

The challenger was the lucky one who got to climb the mountain.

Without the assistance of his Pokemon.

Jason sighed. *Maybe I won't have to go through with it. Maybe he'll just let me use the cable car and we'll start at the top. Besides, I'm a Pokemon master... it's not as if I haven't faced worse competition. Though I've never had to climb a mountain with two dead Arboks attached to my hips...*

The point was moot, anyway. The one cabin on this entire island was just a small distance away, and no light emanated from it. Jason knew the gym leader lived on this island full time, and that he wouldn't be up at this time of night.

Then again, if Jason had a choice, he wouldn't, either.

But for the moment, he couldn't challenge the man.

So he settled himself in his chair, set his PokeGear alarm for 6:00 A.M., and tried to sleep some more.

***

"Adam," Amanda whispered. "I can't see."

"Neither can I," Adam responded.

"Could you use Flareon's Flamethrower to show us around?"

Adam shook his head. "The old adage, 'Where there's smoke, there's fire,' works both ways... I'd bet there are smoke detectors in here. They'd catch smoke from a Flamethrower attack."

Amanda frowned. "There are battles with fire all the time."

"Yes, but no one is supposed to be in here. I'd rather not risk it." He reached into one of his left pockets and pulled out a flashlight. He activated it and shone it around the gym.

Unfortunately, the light was not very powerful, and it didn't show him much. It couldn't even show him the far wall.

"Adam, there's a tower platform here, somewhere along the wall. It has a corridor just behind the gym leader's box. Let's find it."

"Right." They moved forward slowly, trying to be sure they hit no unexpected obstacles. Adam kept his right hand extended out in front of him, and he kept the flashlight's beam pointing directly ahead.

His hand touched the wall.

"Which way is it?" he asked.

"I think it's to the right... but I'm not sure."

"Fine. I'll go right, you go left."

They did so, Adam's light creeping steadily toward the right while, in the darkness, Amanda's breathing and footsteps moved left. Adam could hear Amanda's hands sliding along the wall, trying to find something, anything, on it. He was in much the same position.

Then, the tips of his fingers found something and stubbed against it, creating an uncomfortable sensation. He stopped and reached out to touch what he'd found; it felt like another wall.

He sighed impatiently. He'd simply found the boundary wall. In frustration, he began following it.

It abruptly cut off after about two or three meters. He nearly fell over; he'd been half-leaning against it. He frowned, pulled back, and reached out further into the space. "I think I've found something."

"What is it?"

"Feels like a gap in the right wall." Adam stepped forward and felt around for purchase. He found it attached to the wall that had abruptly stopped; there was yet another wall that was leading in Adam's original direction.

He frowned and put his flashlight close to it. The wall was metal, as with the rest of the walls, which made for a rather warm gym. But unlike the other walls, which were gray, the walls making the corner he'd just stepped past were painted red.

He moved his flashlight beam upward...

He groaned. "It's not a gap, it's the gym leader platform."

Indeed, it was, and Adam began criticizing himself for not realizing it. *Man, that was stupid! I should've been paying a lot closer attention!*

He sighed. *Memo to self: never write mysteries if you model the main character after yourself...*

"Where are you? I can't see your flashlight."

Adam shone it in the opposite direction he'd been moving. "See it now?"

"Yeah. Just a minute."

Amanda's footsteps against the floor were quiet but audible as she made her way to Adam's side. Her fingers found his hand intertwined with his own fingers.

Adam smiled. *Things are never as bad when you've got someone to help you get through them.*

He pocketed his flashlight and grabbed a capture ball. "Espeon."

The brief flash of neon light illuminated the entire gym, and for a moment, Adam could see the true boundaries of the gym. They were only halfway to the right wall; the gym leader platform sat in the center of the far wall.

The red jewel-like object set in the center of Espeon's forehead glowed brightly, projecting just enough light for Adam to see its inquisitive eyes.

"We need you to lift us to the top of this platform. Pidgeot would freak out trying to fly in the dark."

Espeon bobbed its head once, then began to concentrate. The outline of its body glowed a faint flue, casting an eerie glow on the immediate area.

Adam and Amanda were gently lifted off their feet, floating up to the top of the platform. They touched down without a sound.

Adam leaned over the railing and found Espeon by the light of its head-light. He pointed its capture ball at it. "Return."

The orange-red vacuum beam lanced out and caught Espeon in its grip. Espeon returned to its form of energy without resistance, and re-entered its ball.

Adam took his flashlight back out and shone it behind them. Sure enough, there was a door there. It was closed and locked.

"My turn," said Amanda. She brought Magneton back out.

Adam smiled again. *She's proven rather useful so far.*

***

Jason's PokeGear alarm went off promptly at 6:00 A.M. He woke up, mumbled to himself, then turned the alarm off and pushed himself into a more ready position in his chair. He cracked a couple of bones in his neck, and he groaned in pleasure.

He looked up at the cabin in the distance and sighed. The sun was just beginning to show over the horizon, and the sunrise was quite beautiful. But he didn't have time to dwell on it; he needed to get this challenge overwith, and quickly.

He wheeled away from the cable car pad and began moving in the cabin's direction. Time was wasting.

At that moment, the lone occupant of the cabin exited. He stood in front of the open door for a moment, his eyes closed, breathing the air deeply, a smile spreading across his handsome face.

Jason, pleased that he wouldn't need to rouse the man from sleep after all, continued toward the cabin. As he moved, he recalled the gym leader's name. *Danny. Not to be confused with Daniel. Fortunately for me, and the rest of the world in general, people with the same name are different in many other respects.*

As Jason moved, he heard a voice echoing in his mind, a voice not belonging to him nor any part of his consciousness. *Glad to see you're being prompt. Hope you had a good sleep. Remember, Jason, you're being watched. No dealing for the disk; you have to complete the challenges. I've got my eyes on you full time.*

*Get out of my head!* Jason responded. He had no time for Johnson or his pranks. All that mattered was completing the challenge.

Danny opened his eyes and looked around. He spotted Jason after a moment, and he smiled politely. "Hello, there."

Jason nodded respectfully. "Hello. Sorry to interrupt you so early in your day, but I'm in a bit of a hurry. I've come to challenge you for rights to a certain computer disk you've recently been given."

Danny's face became solemn, and he nodded. "Ah, yes. The one that Daniel Creight gave to me. I'm still not sure why, though."

"It's a game he's playing with me," Jason replied. "The information on that disk gives me a clue how to find a secret surprise he's put in place."

Danny frowned. "Why not just travel with you and give you the information as you go?"

"He's making sure the surprise doesn't go wrong. But I only have a limited time to find that surprise, and so I have to move quickly."

Danny's brow rose and he sighed. "Very well. But I believe there will be a... slight problem with getting to where the challenge will take place."

Jason nodded. "I know. I'd have to climb the mountain."

"Exactly. And that wheelchair is the problem."

"Actually, the problem is my legs, but the net result is the same." Jason moved closer to Danny and pulled his Pokemon license out of his vest for the Orange Crewman to see. "Would this make any difference?"

Danny's eyes widened. "A Pokemon master. That's impressive, considering your impediment." He handed the license back. "I think special dispensation can be made. We'll ride the cable car." He held up a warning finger. "But beware, that's where your dispensation ends. If you came to challenge me, we'll play this out on my terms."

"I'd want nothing less," Jason responded. "Lead the way, sir."

***

Minutes later, Danny and Jason were atop the high mountain, and a panoramic view of the sea greeted them there, making a magnificent sight for them to compete in the middle of.

"There will be three challenges," Danny informed Jason. "The first involves the geysers."

As if on cue, several geysers simultaneously sprayed ten meters into the air.

"Choose one, and bring out a Pokemon that uses Ice Beam."

Jason already knew about the challenge... he'd had enough people tell him about the challenges in his younger days. He was prepared for it. He pulled out a capture ball and tossed it lazily. "Come on out, Politoed!"

At the same time, Danny pulled out a capture ball of his own. "Let's go, Nidoqueen!"

Jason and Danny directed their Pokemon to the two nearest geyser pits and patiently waited for the next blast. It came moments later, and the Ice Beams flew.

Nidoqueen and Politoed seemed about the same when it came to skill and speed where Ice Beam was involved. However, Politoed was just a bit slower on the last leg of the freezing process, and Nidoqueen won the challenge.

"You'll have to win the next two if you want to win the badge and the disk," Danny warned. "Next, you'll have to create a sled out of that tower of ice you just froze using three Pokemon."

Jason knew which ones he wanted to use. "Let's do it."

"All right, then. Nidoqueen, return! Scyther, Machoke, and Geodude, come on out!"

"Politoed, return! Charizard, Bayleef, and Octillery, let's go!"

Jaosn and Danny both charged their Pokemon to begin carving a sled out of the ice. For Charizard, melting it down to a basic shape and size was no problem; a carefully applied Flamethrower was all that was required. Octillery used its powerful limbs to smooth down the outside while Charizard melted a cockpit out and Bayleef used its vine whips to make the inside as comfortable as possible. Jason won the challenge with minutes to spare.

"I'd expect no less from a Pokemon master," said Danny. "Now, let's see you follow through. Choose three Pokemon to ride in the sled with you; we'll be racing down the mountain to the beach below." Danny turned to his own Pokemon. "Machoke, return! Take its place, Electrode!"

Meanwhile, Jason was choosing his team. "Charizard and Bayleef, return! Politoed and Qwilfish, we'll need you for ballast!"

He turned to Octillery. "I'll need you to direct the sled down the mountain. I figure you can manage it better than Bayleef."

Octillery burbled in response.

A few moments later, Jason, Danny, and their respective Pokemon were ready and waiting in their ice sleds. Politoed and Qwilfish toted Jason's collapsible wheelchair, holding it carefully and firmly in place.

Jason, feeling easily amused at the moment, felt he might have an advantage over Danny; his butt was not feeling cold at all.

*Wait a minute. It... it almost is...*

Before Jason could identify what he was or wasn't feeling, Danny called out, "Let's do this! Begin!"

Obediently, the Pokemon pushed the two sleds off and down the mountain. Danny's Scyther and its blade arms directed his sled's movement, while Jason's Octillery moved the sled around obstacles with sureness, listening to Jason's directives and striving to make the shortest and fastest course.

At one point, Danny and Jason split courses... Danny veered sharply to the right while Jason stayed on the left. Nor was it hard to see why after a few moments; they were suddenly rushing through a patch of bush and branches. Twigs snapped under the sled and branches slapped at Jason's face, causing him to quint his eyes and shout quick directions to Octillery. He glanced quickly to the right, but Danny was out of sight.

However, miraculously, Jason could see the finish line looming ahead on the beach. His sled was taking massive damage, but...

The ice that could no longer be called a sled ground across the sidewalk, and hit the beach hard. Jason and his team wiped out.

But they had won the challenge.

The wind might have been knocked out of Jason, but he was filled with gratification.

Danny approached him a few moments later and smiled down at Jason. "It appears you've won."

"I guess so."

"In that case..." Danny picked Jason's wheelchair up off the sand and set it upright on the nearby pavement. He extended a hand to Jason, which the paraplegic took with gratitude. Danny heaved Jason onto his back and carried him over to the chair, which he then carefully slid his victorious opponent into.

"Well, it seems I owe you a badge, and a computer disk," the Orange Crewman declared. "Come with me."

They returned to Danny's cabin. "Wait here. I'll go get your winnings."

He came back out a few moments later, a money bag, an Orange League badge, and a computer disk in hand. "Your rewards, sir. My respect is in that bag somewhere..."

Jason chuckled. "I'll make sure to look for it. For the moment, I have to be going." He held up the disk. "This means a lot to me. Thanks."

Danny nodded. "Hope you find what you're looking for... whatever it is."

"Believe me, so do I."

Jason called out Charizard and climbed onto its back, while Charizard collapsed his wheelchair and used the special straps mounted on the handlebars to secure the chair around its neck.

"Off to Trovita Island," Jason said.

They took off.

***

Adam and Amanda had made it down three corridors without incident. All three of them were dark, but not nearly as dark as the gym had been. Soft lights mounted every couple of meters helped them along. They remained uptight, however, because there were doors on each side of the corridors, just as frequent as the lights. They stayed crouched and in the shadows... there was no telling when they might get into trouble.

*Yeah,* Adam mentally snorted. *As if we aren't in enough already.*

"We need to find an elevator," Amanda whispered.

"Don't I know it," Adam muttered. "Let's keep going this way..."

Their path led them to the end of the corridor and into an adjacent one stretching both ways.

"Think we should split up?" Amanda asked.

Adam sighed. "At this point, it's our fastest option for finding something that goes down. Either that or we find out what's behind doors one, two, and three. Thousand."

"If there are people in those rooms, I'd say it's a good bet there aren't all that many behind each one. Probably three at the absolute most."

Adam scoffed. "What makes you say that?"

"The frequency of doors. Those are small rooms. I'd bet they were quarters for whoever lives here. In that case, *some*one would have to be in one of these rooms. Whoever that someone is, I'll bet they could tell us where to go."

"It's a lot of people to be living in a Pokemon gym. What if someone else were to hear us? Barging through a door is not exactly a quiet process."

"We can't keep arguing this, Adam. Split up, or pick doors?"

Adam made a face. "I hate ultimatums."

"Deal with it. Which will it be?"

Adam was in the process of deciding when the choice was made for him.

"Hey! You!"

Adam and Amanda looked up the hall and saw that a man in a Rocket uniform was staring right at them.

***

*I wonder how Adam is doing.*

The thought came rather suddenly and randomly. Jason realized that he'd been spending all this time obsessing over Daniel and Kelly that he'd given almost no thought to Adam or his equally desperate mission... to retrieve Professor Oak from Giovanni.

*Giovanni. There's a man who not only has interesting stories to tell, but has interesting stories to be told.* Of course, even in his mind, Jason was severely understating the case.

But he didn't want to think too hard about it. It was bad enough that he was obsessing over a trap he was jumping into, hook, line, and sinker. It wouldn't do to obsess over another problem he had no control over.

But the thoughts didn't go away.

So, as his Charizard took him across the sea to his third destination...

Jason Creight wondered on.



To Be Continued