Author's Note:

Ah, the Bonnie story. I do enjoy this one. Felt a bit weird writing this one after all the writing for LU recently, though. Hopefully it's not too rusty. Read through the entire thing to get back in the mood. Anyway, last time Bonnie got a Wingull. She's travelling with Roxanne as well, and they, along with Clyde, have been sailing with Briney on the way to Dewford Town. They'll be taking a little break on the way, however...and meeting someone. Also...the Generation Z – Gotta Catch 'em All oneshot series becomes somewhat important for this chapter. You may want to read the first entry in that, titled A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words. It takes place between chapter 16 and this one. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Chapter 18: The Missing Titan

Bonnie could've watched Wingull and Peeko fly for hours. In fact, at this point she probably had. Whenever they were sailing through a calm ocean breeze, with the sun shining and the clouds clear, it was the perfect time for the two Seagull Pokemon to take flight and enjoy the ocean air. Beautifly had joined them on occasion, but, as Bonnie supposed was natural, Wingull and Peeko seemed to enjoy the ocean even more.

"Ah...there's nothing like seeing a Wingull gliding on the sea breeze!" Briney called out gleefully from where he was steering the SS Wingull. "It's a true measure of the mood of the sea, and it looks like the sea is in good spirits today."

"That's a relief," Roxanne said, chuckling uneasily. It appeared she didn't trust the sea, as it had appeared fine before Wingull and Peeko had been carried off by the waves. "Hopefully it stays that way."

Briney shrugged, grinning up at the pair of the Wingull. "We'll be fine as long as we don't go swimming in the rough waters," he said, glancing towards his passengers. "What say we have a break for a little while? I think we're fairly close to Island Cave."

"Isn't Island Cave closed up?" Roxanne asked, looking surprised by the suggestion. "The police were investigating the vandalism that occurred there?"

"Yeah...and I think they were thinking Team Archaic was involved," Clyde murmured nervously. "It might be better we leave them alone to find out what they can."

"The investigation is over now," Briney told them excitedly. "They were finishing up around when we left I believe. As far as I know people can go back and explore if they wish. I figured Bonnie might want to see if she could catch another Pokemon there!"

Bonnie's eyes lit up at that. She was concerned about the potential of interfering with an investigation into Team Archaic, but if it was finished up, she would be happy to see some of the other Hoenn Pokemon that might be around. There were probably some really cool water type Pokemon that stayed at this Island Cave. "If we can visit, I'd love to see it!"

"Zzt! I would very much like to see it as well!" Rotom joined in. "There will be many new Pokemon there that I can analyze and add to my data."

"Nenene!" Dedenne added as well, obviously saying he wanted to see the cave, too.

"Well, if it's fine to go, I'm up for it," Roxanne said, leaning back where she was sitting and watching Wingull and Peeko fly. "Hopefully the Pokemon haven't been scared away."

Clyde voice his agreement to go as well, although Bonnie noticed he seemed nervous. She didn't comment on it, though, as Briney steered the boat towards their next stop. "Ahoy! Then to Island Cave it is!"

As they continued to sail, Bonnie went to join Roxanne and Clyde where they were sitting. She smiled as she sat back to watch Wingull and Peeko a bit more, before turning to Roxanne curiously. "What is it that happened at Island Cave? Did Team Archaic really get involved in that?"

Roxanne nodded, sitting up to explain. "It was confirmed recently. At first they thought it was just vandalism, but signs of excavation were found. I suppose they were looking for fossils based on what happened in Oldale Town."

"Has anyone ever found fossils there?" Bonnie asked, wondering why they wouldn't be guarded a little more if they had been. Oldale Town's weren't exactly guarded, but they were right next to the town for people to watch over, and Professor Alden had been by them all the time.

"Not that I'm aware of," Roxanne said, looking unsure. "They must've found something to suggest there were. Or...something else."

"There's a rumour that Regice has been spotted in the cave," Clyde then mentioned, looking uneasily at Bonnie, as though feeling guilty about not mentioning this sooner. She remembered him saying something about Island Cave when they'd first met, but she didn't think he needed to be guilty about not telling her about a rumour that may or may not have something to do with what Team Archaic was looking for.

Briney, however, seemed to have heard the rumour once before. "Aye! There have been a couple of sailors who have reported a sighting of Regice during expeditions out towards Island Cave. It would've been next to impossible for those Team Archaic buffoons to have captured it, though. If they were lucky enough to find it, it would've sent them back out to sea within moments."

Bonnie's eyes widened at that, and she quickly looked to Rotom in interest. "What's a Regice?" she asked him, thinking it sounded really powerful, and wondering if maybe she could catch it if they found it.

Rotom excitedly floated over to her at that and immediately showed a Pokemon on his screen that appeared like an iceberg with blocks of ice for arms and legs, along with strange yellow dots at its front. "Regice, the Iceberg Pokemon," Rotom then began explaining. "It is one of the three legendary titans of the Hoenn region. It is said that Regice cloaks itself with frigid air of minus three hundred twenty-eight degrees Fahrenheit. Things will freeze just by being near Regice. It will not melt even if submerged in magma."

"A legendary Pokemon..." Bonnie's eyes lit up at the thought of seeing it. "Do you think there's a chance it'll be there?" she asked, looking to Roxanne, and then Briney.

"Maybe," Briney answered first. "If it's there, it will be hard to find. I believe in the tales, though, so it must be around."

Roxanne nodded at that, although she appeared a little worried. "It might be there," she said, staring ahead in the distance, where there was a shape of what Bonnie thought might be their destination. "I just hope that if we don't find it, that doesn't mean someone else did before us."

Butch yawned as he and Cassidy lowered their Raticate hot air balloon to remain out of sight of the brat and her friends as they sailed towards the island in the distance. They'd been careful to stay just far enough away to appear like nothing more than a speck in the sky, but close enough that they could use binoculars to keep on eye on their targets. It had been quite boring, especially with apparently having missed the old sailor's Wingull disappearing with a detour they'd needed to make to meet up with Viktor after the Devon Corp. screw up.

Fortunately, Butch and Cassidy seemed to be out of the woods with the fallout from that mission, as they'd still collected enough for Team Archaic to see some value in them. Not to mention that they'd managed to acquire Giovanni some useful information as well, with the use of Cassidy's new Smeargle. Unfortunately, if they were asked to do another important mission, Smeargle wasn't there to give them the same help as last time, since he was currently doing something for Giovanni.

"Are they heading towards Island Cave?" Cassidy asked, lowering the binoculars she'd been holding up and glancing curiously at a map she'd stuck in Raticate's paws. "I thought it was being investigated after Darwin did his excavation there."

"Must be over by now," Butch murmured, taking the binoculars and looking ahead as well after peering at the map. "Seems that is where they're heading."

"Hmph...not like they'll find anything there," Cassidy sniffed, looking irritated to be following the brat and her friends to a nothing location. "Darwin cleared all the evidence out from what some of the admins have said. We don't even know everything he did there."

Butch nodded, sensing Cassidy's frustration with that fact. With their lower status in Team Archaic, it wasn't like they were trusted with some of the knowledge that came with the bigger missions like the one that had been run in Island Cave. "Whatever it was, it obviously got enough attention to get looked into. Must be some rare fossils or something there."

"Maybe." Cassidy sighed, rolling up the map and stuffing it away as she took the binoculars back from Butch. "I guess we can see if the brat finds anything the police didn't. Might be good to let the boss know what Darwin got ahold of."

Butch was just about to voice his agreement to that when suddenly their transmitter began ringing, and Cassidy rushed to answer. "Who is it?" he asked nervously, knowing that likely, there were only two options. Unfortunately, it was the less desirable one. He watched, swallowing nervously, as Cassidy clicked to answer, and Viktor's image appeared above the transmitter.

"Agents," the greasy-haired man greeted simply, looking out at them. "I see you must be busy tracking the girl and her friends."

Cassidy nodded, giving a small salute along with Butch. "Indeed, sir. We've tracked her since departing from our last meeting. She's recently caught a Wingull and has been travelling with an old sailor named Briney. We believe they're about to stop by Island Cave."

"Island Cave?" Viktor said in surprise, although oddly not looking disappointed. "Well that's actually quite convenient for us. We've recently been given reason to believe the investigation into our recent activities there has yet to be concluded."

"Sir?" Cassidy asked, looking curiously to Butch before continuing. "We thought the police must've finished and found nothing."

"They did finish, and they did not find anything that we know of," Viktor told her, appearing to be checking over some piece of paper. "However, an unofficial expedition appears to have been set by a member of the Elite Four."

"The Elite Four?!" Butch exclaimed, eyes widening. "That's not good."

Viktor's eyes seemed to twitch with irritation at Butch's obvious statement. "No, it is not. Our excavation was covered up fairly well, but if the Elite Four is involved...that's attention we don't need just yet." He sighed, looking disappointed as he stared at Butch and Cassidy. "Since you're the closest agents, we'll need you to run some sort of interference."

Cassidy gaped at him. "You want us to battle an Elite Four member?"

Viktor looked unimpressed. "You'll need to do something. We can't attract too much attention, as it will be known that we're hiding something if we do. Direct your attack towards the upper levels of the cave. Keep the girl and this Elite Four member away from the deeper levels."

Cassidy nodded, saluting him quickly. "We'll do our best, sir." Butch nodded and saluted as well.

"See that you do better than that," Viktor muttered, before the call was cut out.

"Agh! I hate that man!" Cassidy growled, glaring at the transmitter, before sighing and holding it up again. "I suppose we'd better update headquarters on what's going on." Butch agreed with a nod, and a moment later, Cassidy was putting the call through.

"Agents Butch and Cassidy," Lyanna greeted them with a nod, adjusting her glasses as she leaned back in her seat. "I assume you have an update on your mission?"

Butch was too busy grinning about Lyanna remembering his name properly, so Cassidy answered as she elbowed him in the ribs. "We've been tracking the girl after a brief meeting with Viktor of Team Archaic after the Devon Corp. mission. She's travelling with a sailor named Briney and has recently captured a Wingull. They're currently-"

"Captured a Wingull?" Lyanna interrupted, looking curious. "I suppose you'll need to be careful of that one, considering you've struggled against her Beautifly."

Butch noticed Cassiyd tensing angrily at that, so quickly agreed before she could snap. "Yes ma'am," he said quickly. "We'll be cautious."

Lyanna raised an eyebrow at that, but turned her gaze back to Cassidy a moment later, nodding to her. "Please continue."

Cassidy coughed, quickly regaining her composure. "Yes. Anyway, the girl and her friends are heading towards Island Cave, where Team Archaic was excavating a few weeks ago. We were contacted moments ago by Viktor, who mentioned that an Elite Four member will be performing some kind of follow up investigation there after the police didn't find anything. We've been asked to attempt to distract them from the lower levels of the cave."

"That's certainly quite the ask," Lyanna noted, sighing as she appeared to consider the situation. "Well, I suppose there's not much that can be done. This was likely an unexpected occurrence, otherwise higher level members would be seeing to the situation. You'll have to do what you can."

"Should we try to steal this Elite Four member's Pokemon?" Butch asked, knowing it was a long shot, but thinking they could get a huge reward if they somehow succeeded.

Lyanna seemed amused by the question, though, smirking in response. "The boss wouldn't say no, I suppose, but don't forget the power of these trainers." She glanced at something outside Butch and Cassidy's view, and then looked back up a moment later. "Fortunately, some aid will be returning to you. Your Smeargle's work at headquarters is finished. Delibird should be delivering its pokeball back to you shortly."

"I hope it was of use to the boss," Cassidy said, bowing her head quickly. Butch was pretty sure she was relieved she'd be getting her Pokemon back, and was attempting to hide it.

"I believe it was. He's pleased, but he no longer needs Smeargle here. You may find it...has learned something new." Lyanna ignored the confused glances Butch and Cassidy exchanged with one another. "Now, one last thing that you should be aware of. Another of our agents within Team Archaic reported that what they were searching for in Island Cave was the legendary Pokemon Regice."

"Regice?!" Cassidy said in surprise. "One of the legendary titans?"

"Correct," Lyanna answered. "It's unsure what Darwin intends to do exactly, but the assumption is that it will be used as some kind of power source. That's of no concern as of now, however. The point is that this is likely what this Elite Four member will be investigating. It would not be the worst thing for Team Rocket if Team Archaic was unable to hide that they had acquired this Pokemon."

Butch felt uneasy hearing that. "So...we need to...fail?"

"As I mentioned before, this was likely an unexpected occurrence. You won't be expected to do much." Lyanna paused, apparently thinking of what they could do. "The girl may be your best hope."

"How?" Cassidy asked, looking almost like she thought Lyanna was crazy.

"She'll be eager to explore, I'm sure," Lyanna pointed out. "She'll be eager to discover the truth." With that, she appeared to be done, nodding to both Butch and Cassidy once more, before wishing them luck on their mission. "Do your best. Delibird will arrive shortly, remember. For the glory of Team Rocket."

"For the glory of Team Rocket!"

Butch was about to ask what Cassidy thought of their conflicting orders, when he looked up, realizing that something seemed to be rushing towards their balloon. He noticed it was a red shape, and ducked as Delibird suddenly shot into the carrier of their balloon, crashing into Raticate. It seemed relatively unbothered as it stood back up, though, quickly handing a package to a surprised Cassidy. It didn't even wait for her to open it, quickly kicking off and flying away.

"Must be Smeargle's pokeball," Cassidy murmured, opening the box and revealing the capture device. "I wonder what Lyanna meant by it learning something new."

"Let's find out," Butch suggested, standing back up with Raticate and looking to the pokeball. "Maybe it's a powerful new move!"

Cassidy smirked, obviously liking that idea. "Maybe." She then held up the pokeball, clicking it open as she said, "Smeargle, come on out!"

The pokeball flashed brightly as it opened up, the light shining brightly in the hot air balloon carrier. Butch briefly shielded his eyes before looking at the Painter Pokemon, just as the light dimmed. It appeared no different from when Cassidy had caught it in Rustboro City, the same paintbrush-like tail held in its paw, and its beret-shaped head tilting curiously as it stared at both Butch and Cassidy.

Butch peered closer at the Smeargle a moment later, however, suddenly thinking there was one thing that seemed different. "He's looking at me kind of funny."

Cassidy looked curiously at the Painter Pokemon as well. "Well, Smeargle...if you learned a new move at headquarters...demonstrate it."

At that, Smeargle looked Cassidy in the eyes, tilting his head once more. For a moment, Butch thought he might simply start using the move Splash again, as he'd done back in Rustboro City. However, he did something very different. It definitely wasn't a new, powerful attack, though.

"I didn't learn any moves, but I seem to have found out how to speak!"

The first thing Bonnie noticed as they reached Island Cave wasn't the cave itself, but what was in front of it. The entrance to the cave had been hard to see anyway, with the various icy rocks that Briney had to sail through, but as they neared it, something larger loomed in the water just outside. It immediately made all thoughts of Team Archaic's involvement with Island Cave leave Bonnie's head completely.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed, as Briney sailed the boat further ahead, the cave entrance now in sight. "Is that a pirate ship?!"

Roxanne came up to stand next to Bonnie near the front of the boat, looking wide-eyed at the large ship that floated out on the water, the sailors on board in the process of lowering a dinghy to sail in through the rocks and shallow water. "No way..." Roxanne murmured as she stared up at the boat. "That looks like..." She turned to Briney, who was grinning ear to ear as he looked up at the large ship, its sails being rolled up as well. It appeared they'd just arrived as well. "Briney, do you think that's..."

"Oh, I think I know exactly who that is," Briney said with a chuckle. He looked to Bonnie with a glint in his eyes. "You're in for a surprise, Bonnie. This trip just got much more interesting!"

Bonnie was excited to hear that, but she was desperate to know what was going on. She looked to Clyde, wondering if he knew, but he simply shrugged in response, staring curiously at the ship as well. "Who's on the ship?" Bonnie then asked, looking at both Roxanne and Briney, who were now both distracted, the latter steering the SS Wingull closer to the larger ship.

"Ahoy!" Briney called out as they slowed to a stop next to where the dinghy was being prepared. "Is that you, Fitzwilliam?!" he said, saluting one of the men pulling on the ropes.

Bonnie peered up towards where Briney was looking, seeing one of the men in what appeared to be some kind of more official looking attire than the other sailors' on board the ship. The man, Fitzwilliam, glanced down towards the SS Wingull at Briney's call, grinning as he noticed the old sailor. "Ah, well if it isn't our old friend Captain Briney!" he said happily. "Captain Drake should be pleased to see you!"

"Should be pleased to see who?"

Bonnie blinked curiously at the sound of the gruff voice, and she squinted as she noticed another man coming to stand next to Fitzwilliam. He was quite a bit older, more so Briney's age, with a big white mustache. He wore a sailor's hat and a large black jacket with yellow outlines that he kept open. As he stepped forward with his big black boots, Bonnie could immediately sense his authority on the ship.

"Ahoy! Captain Drake!" Briney then greeted, saluting the older man, the friendly greeting not seeming to fit in Bonnie's mind.

However, a moment later, the man, Drake, grinned back. "Briney. Heh!" He looked to Fitzwilliam and then another man. "Lower the dinghy! I've got an old friend to greet!" And with that, he and Fitzwilliam got into the smaller boat, waiting as the crew lowered it towards the water.

Bonnie exchanged an awed look with Dedenne as Drake and Fitzwilliam descended, wondering just who these people were. Based on Roxanne's reaction, and what Briney had said, they must've been pretty important. Part of her was pretty sure that she was underestimating even that, however.

Once Drake and Fitzwilliam were lowered down, they paddled the dinghy towards the SS Wingull, Drake standing up as he looked to Briney, and then the passengers he had. "Well Briney, it's been awhile, hasn't it?" he said, bringing his gaze back to Briney, after a curious glance at Bonnie and Dedenne. "Strange place to come to deliver mail."

Briney laughed at that, looking to his shoulder as Peeko landed on it. "Oh it has been awhile indeed, Drake. But I'm not here to deliver anything. Some packages to Dewford soon, but my friends here just wanted to check out Island Cave now that the investigation is complete." He paused at that, looking curiously at the ship, and then Drake and Fitzwilliam. "Er...the police investigation anyway."

Drake smirked at that, looking over to the cave, before returning his gaze to Briney. "Well, the search to find out what this Team Archaic is up to doesn't end with a short investigation into one of their excavations I'm afraid." He seemed to growl as he spoke, clearly disgusted by Team Archaic. "I suppose I can't keep your friends from seeing the cave, however. So long as I can do my own investigation without trouble."

"My friends are very reliable!" Briney promised, Bonnie and the others nodding in agreement as he spoke.

"Very well!" Drake said, looking to the cave. "Fitzwilliam and I will see you there then."

With that, both boats set off towards the cave entrance, Drake apparently leaving his ship with the rest of his crew. As they navigated through the rocks towards the entrance, Bonnie looked to Roxanne once more. "Who is he?" she asked curiously, eyes shifting towards the dinghy that the gruff sailor was in.

Roxanne smiled as she looked back at Bonnie. "You'll find out soon enough." When Bonnie sighed and pouted, the Rustboro Gym Leader chuckled in response. "Let's just say you're in for a great learning experience, Bonnie."

"Zzt! I am very much interested in learning as well!" Rotom said in response to that, floating a little ahead of the boat as he took a picture of Drake, and then Island Cave itself.

Despite her frustration, Bonnie waited patiently, and eventually both boats reached the edge of the cave. Drake and Fitzwilliam were quicker to depart their smaller dinghy, tying it to a rock before heading over to help those on the SS Wingull. As Bonnie made her way off, she noticed Drake holding his hand out to steady her, and she took it gratefully before hopping off the boat and onto the icy surface just outside the entrance to the cave.

"Thanks," she said, looking up as she noticed Drake looking curiously at her again. "Um..."

At that, Briney made his way over from where he was finishing helping Fitzwilliam tie down the SS Wingull. "Bonnie," the old captain said cheerily. "Allow me to introduce you to my good friend Drake. The most powerful dragon type trainer in the Hoenn region, and a member of the Elite Four!"

Bonnie's eyes widened at that, staring up at Drake in complete surprise. "Elite...Four?" She quickly shook her head, trying to recover herself quickly. "Uh...I'm Bonnie!" she then said, bowing her head, before looking up to Dedenne on her shoulder. "And this is Dedenne. We're from the Kalos region!"

"Kalos, eh?" Drake looked intrigued by that. "I'd wondered if you might be, considering your Dedenne there." He saluted the pair of them. "It's nice to meet you, Bonnie and Dedenne."

"Zzt! Hello Elite Four Trainer Drake, sir!" Rotom then cried out, floating in front of Bonnie. "I am Rotom! I am very honoured to meet you! I am Pokemon Trainer Bonnie's PokeDex, and I am responsible for helping her on her journey to become a Pokemon Master!"

Drake lowered his head, peering at Rotom curiously. "An odd contraption..." He looked curiously towards Bonnie. "This thing must talk an awful lot."

Bonnie laughed at that, although she noticed Rotom appearing flustered and tried to speak in his defence. "Yeah, but he's pretty helpful."

"Zzt! I give Pokemon Trainer Bonnie information on all the Pokemon she meets!" Rotom said proudly, puffing out his screen.

Drake nodded, smirking at the PokeDex, amusement in his eyes. "Well, keep up the good work then!"

Before Rotom could get too pleased with himself, Briney then introduced Drake to Roxanne and Clyde, and then repeated the process with Fitzwilliam. Drake and Roxanne were already aware of who each other was, although it seemed they hadn't met yet. Clyde seemed to be in awe of Drake, apparently having been wondering what had been familiar about the man before hearing he was in the Elite Four.

"Did Champion Steven ask you to investigate what Team Archaic is up to?" Clyde asked once the introductions had finished, and the group slowly began to head inside.

Drake shook his head. "Steven doesn't often ask us to do things he doesn't get involved in first," he said with a laugh. "Considering what went on with Kyogre, Groudon and Rayquaza a couple years back, and then those events in Kalos..."

Bonnie perked up at that, noticing Drake casting a glance in her direction. "Steven was a huge help against Team Flare!" she said excitedly. "He fought right alongside Diantha, and Ash, and everyone. We might not have beaten Team Flare without his help."

"We?" Drake asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise. He wasn't the only one, the others in the group looking curious as well.

Bonnie laughed nervously. "I was there...I wanted to save Squishy."

Drake exchanged a glance with Fitzwilliam, before looking to Briney. "Quite the friend you've brought, Briney." He turned ahead at that, walking a little longer as they headed further into the cave, reaching an open area a couple of minutes later, with icy pools on either side and a few dark passageways surrounding them. "So you know Ash?" Drake asked Bonnie as the group looked around, a few signs of Team Archaic's damage to the area now noticeable. There were chips and cracks in the ice all over the place.

"I travelled with him when he challenged the Kalos League," Bonnie answered, nodding. "With my brother Clemont and my friend Serena as well."

"I battled him once," Drake then said, smiling as he studied the icy walls around them. He seemed to be looking towards two different passageways. One appeared to lead higher up, while another appeared to head deeper down. "It wasn't long after he'd earned his seventh badge here in the Hoenn region. He was quite...confident in himself."

Bonnie laughed at that, although from the look on Drake's face, she wondered if she was missing his point. "Ash is the most confident person I've ever met!"

"He was overconfident at that time," Drake told her, gesturing towards the passage that led deeper down into the cave, the rest of the group following as he and Bonnie led the way. "I suggested he needed to clear his mind of idle thoughts. He was quite willing to learn and took it to heart."

"Ramos told him something similar," Bonnie said, remembering Ash's battle against the Coumarine Gym Leader. "In Coumarine City. He didn't want Ash to rush, and he said he shouldn't focus just on what was right in front of him so that he wouldn't lose sight of what was important."

"Sounds like a wise gym leader," Drake acknowledged with a nod as the group descended deeper into the cave. He was silent as they walked, a small stream of water to their left apparently disturbing him. "I take it you have a similar goal to Ash?" Drake then asked, as Bonnie followed his gaze to the stream.

"I want to be a Pokemon Master, too," Bonnie said proudly. "I want to be as strong as him, and my brother and my friend Serena!"

"Nenene!" Dedenne added proudly, patting his chest.

"And Dedenne wants to be as strong as Ash's Pikachu!" Bonnie said, Dedenne nodding to show she'd understood what he'd said.

Drake chuckled at that as they entered another opening. There were another set of passageways here, and one seemed to involve heading down a river with a thin walkway next to it. He glanced to a statue of what appeared to be the Pokemon that Rotom had shown Bonnie earlier. The legendary titan, Regice.

"Is that..Regice?" Roxanne asked from behind them, staring at the statue with wide eyes. It was one of the few things that didn't seem damaged. "Does this mean that the rumours are true? It's here...or was?"

"Not necessarily," Drake said, although he was looking intently at the statue. "The rumour itself could be why the statue is here. However, I'm not sure what else could compel this Team Archaic to search so thoroughly here if not for a Pokemon of that power. Even if there are fossils or a few strong Pokemon around here, there's nothing here that other places don't have that would be worth drawing the kind of attention they brought."

"So you wanted to investigate here because you're worried about Regice?" Clyde asked, voice shaking. Bonnie wasn't sure if he was scared, or if it was the cold. She was feeling chilly herself now that she thought of it.

"Indeed," Drake acknowledged. "Officer Jenny and the police who investigated here were aware of the possibility, but they're stretched thin with the other Team Archaic plots elsewhere, among other things. And they needed to investigate other angles here as well. Of course, even if we knew for sure they were looking for Regice, we may never know if they found it, or where it might have been."

"If anyone can find it, it's Captain Drake, though!" Fitzwilliam said proudly.

Bonnie frowned, trying to think of anything she could do to help. She had found Latias in the Petalburg Woods, but she'd been specifically calling out to Bonnie. If Regice didn't do that, she probably couldn't find it the same way. Or worse, if it wasn't there, there would be nobody to call out to her in the first place. She supposed the least she could do was call out Wingull and Beautifly to have them search as well.

She was about to do so, but just in that moment, a crash was heard from one of the passageways up ahead. It was one that appeared to head back up the cave, potentially towards a higher level. Bonnie could see chunks of ice coming from the passageway, and for a moment, wondered if there had simply been a collapse of the walls of the passageway. However, a moment later, smoke could be seen as well, and then four figures emerged.

"Butch and Cassidy!" Bonnie muttered, Drake looking to her in surprise, before turning his gaze to the people ahead. Bonnie could see Raticate and their new Smeargle out with them. "They're from Team Archaic," she quickly informed Drake.

"Hmm..." He stared ahead at the two villains and their Pokemon, appearing to study them. Bonnie could see his hand shifting to his pocket, and she did the same, her hand sliding to Wingull's pokeball as Dedenne scurried down to stand in front of her.

"Well well well..." Cassidy said, cackling. "If it isn't the brat girl and her friends."

"Looks like she brought an old man sailor along, too," Butch added, laughing as well. "Shouldn't be hard to clear these guys out of here!"

"You should show some respect!" Fitzwilliam yelled in response. "This is Captain Dr-"

"Easy, Fitzwilliam," Drake said calmly, his first mate stopping immediately. "What is your business here?!" he called out to Butch and Cassidy. "What have you and your Team Archaic friends been up to in Island Cave?"

Cassidy shrugged, not looking like she cared to answer, which Bonnie supposed was obvious. "We're just here to keep you away from the good stuff." She stepped towards a passageway that headed upwards, however, her eyes looked to the passageway that led down further and along the river. "Don't try anything, or we'll have to steal your Pokemon as well."

"You haven't exactly been able to do much against us before," Clyde pointed out, voice still shaking as he stepped up to Bonnie's side, Treecko hopping out in front of him. "Why should we be scared of you?"

"We've got some new tricks up our sleeves," Cassidy said, eyes shifting to her Smeargle, who stepped forward. "Isn't that right, Smeargle?"

"Well, I wouldn't call it a trick!"

Bonnie and her companions gaped at the Painter Pokemon as it stared back at them, looking totally untroubled by what it had just done. Obviously she'd seen Meowth speak before for Team Rocket, but she'd figured that was one unusual case, and from what she knew, there was a complicated story behind it. It hadn't seemed like Smeargle could speak when Cassidy had used it before, though, and it didn't make sense why it could now.

"It's like Team Rocket's Meowth," Roxanne pointed out, obviously thinking similarly to Bonnie. "But...how did it learn to talk so fast."

"Smeargle's been on a special mission recently," Cassidy answered, smirking as Smeargle grinned as well. "You'll want to be careful how you deal with us now."

Bonnie narrowed her eyes, finally pulling out Wingull's pokeball. "I don't care if Smeargle can talk," she said, keeping an eye on the Painter Pokemon. "It wasn't strong enough to beat us last time, and it won't be this time! Wingull, let's rumble!"

"Gull!" Wingull cried out in answer as he emerged from his pokeball, gliding through the air briefly, before turning around and landing next to Dedenne. Bonnie could see Briney's Peeko moving forward as well, putting herself on Wingull's other side and next to Treecko.

"So you've dealt with these buffoons before then?" Drake asked Bonnie, moving his hand away from his pocket, which surprised her a little. Bonnie nodded, seeing the Elite Four member staring ahead, a small smile coming to his face. "Let's see what you've got."

Bonnie grinned at that, before looking to Clyde, who nodded back. As she turned her gaze back to Butch and Cassidy, she noticed them calling out their Mightyena and Sableye, ready to fight back. She was ready to show Drake they could win, though.

"Wingull, use Air Cutter!" she then ordered, the Seagull Pokemon darting into the air at her call and flapping his wings quickly as Smeargle looked up in panic, Sableye and Mightyena moving to his sides.

"Guuullll!" Wingull cried out as he sent the blades of air rushing down to his opponents, Sableye leaping up and using Shadow Claw to deflect the first few, but ultimately being thrown back by the barrage.

"Sableye!" the ghost type cried out in surprise and pain.

"Now Dedenne, get in there and use Nuzzle on Mightyena!" Bonnie followed up, seeing Cassidy looking furious at Sableye being overpowered.

"Treecko, keep the pressure on Sableye with Bullet Seed!" Clyde added, punching the air excitedly with the order, looking happy to be helping more this time.

"Nene!"

"Treecko!"

"Fight back with Dark Pulse!" Butch ordered, his Mightyena tensing up as Dedenne darted forward.

Unfortunately for Butch and Cassidy, Bonnie and Clyde were too quick for them, and Dedenne's training and recent gym battle had him more than prepared to easily duck under Mightyena's attack. The Antenna Pokemon slid along the icy ground perfectly to avoid the swirling purple and black energy, before leaping into the air and striking Mightyena with sparking cheeks. Meanwhile, as Sableye was stumbling from Wingull's attack, Treecko's Bullet Seed gave it no time to recover, battering it and causing it to stumble further back.

"Well, it looks like it's time for me to do something!" Smeargle then called out nervously, locking his eyes onto Dedenne as he hopped back from Mightyena. The Painter Pokemon grinned, before running forward and grabbing Dedenne in his arms, holding the Antenna Pokemon tight in his arms. "Gotcha!"

"No! Dedenne!" Bonnie called out worriedly, taking a nervous step forward.

"Don't worry, we'll help him!" Briney said from behind her. "Peeko, use Quick Attack!"

"Briney-" Drake's warning was cut off, however, as Peeko cried out in response to her trainer's order, kicking off and flying straight towards Smeargle, who looked a little worried, but grinned quickly as Butch made an order.

"Mightyena, use Iron Tail!"

Mightyena, still sparking from Dedenne's Nuzzle, managed to rise to his feet at the order, growling menacingly as he locked his eyes on Peeko. As she closed the distance, his tail began to glow, and Bonnie gasped, realizing she was about to be hit by a nasty attack. Not if we can help it!

"Wingull!" she shouted, not caring what he needed to do, but knowing he would respond to her call. In fact, he already seemed to be on the move.

"Gull!"

Bonnie was surprised to see Drake watch the scene with interest, as Wingull dove down to take the full hit from Mightyena's Iron Tail. However, he managed to tough it out, a rain cloud suddenly appearing above him as he was pushed backwards. As Peeko took advantage of Mightyena slowing down from paralysis and struck Smeargle, Bonnie could see Wingull's body glowing briefly as the rain hit his wings.

"Zzt! Wingull knows the move Rain Dance, and his ability is Rain Dish!" Rotom informed Bonnie quickly. "He will recover strength whenever he is in the rain!"

"Cool!" Bonnie said proudly, pumping her fist as she noticed Smeargle falling back, with Dedenne jumping away from him. This would be a useful move in that case, and if Wingull was freshened up, he'd be ready for another strong attack. "Wingull, use Air Cutter. And Dedenne, use Thunder Shock!"

"Treecko, Bullet Seed!"

The three attacks rushed forward quickly, the Air Cutter and Thunder Shock striking Mightyena and Smeargle head on, while a struggling Sableye was sent flying back by Treecko's Bullet Seed. Bonnie grinned as she saw Butch and Cassidy looking flustered as their Pokemon struggled to move in front of them. It definitely seemed like Smeargle hadn't learned anything beyond an ability to talk.

"I think I'll take it from here," Bonnie heard Drake say suddenly, the old sailor stepping forward with a pokeball. "You thieves have done enough damage here!" he called out to the Team Archaic members, causing them to stare wide-eyed at him. "Now you will leave this place!" With that, he threw out his pokeball, the light flashing brightly, before a massive blue dragon with red wings appeared in front, roaring loudly and seemingly shaking the cave.

"A Salamence!" Bonnie said excitedly, remembering Sawyer's from the Kalos League. She glanced back to Briney, who nodded back, obviously knowing they were getting to witness something special in seeing Drake use the mighty dragon type.

"Salamence! Hit them with Flamethrower!" Drake then yelled, his Salamence roaring loudly in response.

BOOM!

Bonnie and Clyde high fived as they saw the flames blast into their opponents, Smeargle and his fellow Team Archaic Pokemon being struck first, before being carried into Butch and Cassidy. Before too long they could be heard crashing through the passageway way, which hopefully carried them out of the cave. Bonnie was sure they wouldn't be seeing them in Island Cave anytime soon.

"Fools," Drake muttered as he stared ahead at the smoking passageway. "Not much of a threat with them, but I fear their bosses are a different story."

"Do you think more Team Archaic members are around here?" Bonnie asked nervously, unable to stop herself from looking around.

"I think we would've run into them already," Drake said, scanning the rest of the area they were in, along with the remaining passageways. "I expect those fools were sent as a last resort to stop me from seeing what the organization was up to here."

Bonnie remembered Cassidy's look towards the passageway way that led deeper down and by the river. "I think they did something down there," she said, pointing ahead to the passageway.

Clyde looked surprised by that. "Cassidy was moving towards another passageway, though."

"She did..." Drake acknowledged, looking to the two young trainers, before smiling at Bonnie. "Her eyes told a different story, however. Well spotted, Bonnie."

"So they did do something deeper in the cave?" Roxanne asked, glancing at the Regice statue once more. "Should we head there and find out?"

Drake paused, looking to the gym leader, before turning his gaze to Bonnie and Clyde. "I think that will need to be left to my crew and I," he said after a moment. "It may take some time to better understand what happened here, and we can't be sure what they've left down there."

"We can help you, though," Bonnie said, feeling a little disappointed. She liked Drake, and wanted to keep exploring with him. "Didn't we do a good job against Butch and Cassidy?"

"An excellent job," Drake said with a chuckle. "This may take a different set of skills, however." He paused, glancing to Dedenne and Wingull as they returned to Bonnie's side. "I can see you're very close to your Pokemon, Bonnie. That will serve you well on your journey."

"She only just caught that Wingull," Briney said, chuckling at Drake's surprised stare. "Looks like they'll make a fine team already!"

"Indeed..." Drake murmured quietly, looking back to Bonnie, raising an eyebrow. "You may surprise a few trainers at the Hoenn League, young lady."

"That's the plan!" Bonnie said proudly, before grinning to Dedenne and Wingull. "And we'll win the whole thing, too!"

Author's Note:

Again, hopefully not too rusty with this one. Sort of felt off on a few things, but still, Bonnie is the best, so there's that. Quite excited about her relationship with Drake, who will return eventually. I feel he could become a pretty good papa bear mentor for her. We'll see, though. As for the rest, obviously Butch and Cassidy have a talking Smeargle now! So...a new Meowth. Hopefully that'll be fun the further we go. And now the group has a pretty good idea of what Team Archaic was up to way back in the prologue. Now they just need to figure out what Team Archaic can do with what they have...

Anyway, that's that for now. Bonnie will be back again before too long, but next up is finishing LU. A decent stretch still to go there, but the end is in sight. When it's done, we'll be big on the Bonnie story though. But that's that for now. Hope you enjoyed, and see you next time.