Disclaimer: Pokémon is still owned by The Pokémon Company, which in turn is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, and probably others I forgot. The following fanfiction is me playing around in their sandbox, using characters they envisioned and created, except for the odd character that wasn't. I own nothing of this.

Chapter 33: Power Of Teamwork

The tropius landed with a slightly tired thud, causing a flock of nearby spearow to fly up. Gary kept an eye on them until it became clear they'd only been startled and weren't going to attack. That was good: he'd already had to fight off a pack of mightyena that morning before his flight. It was good exercise for blastoise, but a second round in one day was stupid. And trivial, but that was besides the point.

It had been a fruitful trip. Get to Hoenn early Monday, locate the girl that had caught a ralts on Tuesday, locate the congregation on Thursday, and then spend most of Friday talking to refreshingly knowledgeable Pokémon, coming away with what he had sought after some pointed questioning. That had been pretty much as expected from everything he'd heard – girl included. He'd taken Saturday off because there was a tournament not five miles from where he'd put up camp the night before – a win, naturally – and now he was back in Littleroot, at the lab. The overnight boat would leave in two hours.

But first, he had research to follow up on.

Ten minutes later, he finished reading the write-up that Birch had made. "Certainly casts a new light on trapinch. And perhaps other Pokémon too, like dugtrio." He put the sheets of paper down, locking eyes with the waiting Professor, who was sitting on the sofa in his den. "Do you have an explanation for the discrepancy between common conceptions and your postulation about Earth Power?"

"Just guesswork. The easiest and, in my opinion, most plausible, explanation would be that they can use it, but are generally very limited in its reach," Birch replied. "I asked the researchers on site, and they think there's evidence for small patches being manipulated at a time. There's a pair of geologists coming next week, I think." The jovial Professor stood up, stretching. "And as you said, it could lead to understanding about dugtrio and how they do not cause earthquakes and sinkholes with regularity."

Gary rose as well. "That would certainly catch the eye of the Vermilion politicians," he said, and the two shared a disbelieving grin. The cave network underneath the city was extensive, and questions about its stability rose up every few years, as it had a few weeks ago. "I look forward to seeing the finished article in any case."

"There is… One more thing," Birch said, interrupting Gary's move towards the door. "I found something there." A box appeared in the Professor's hands by some sleight of hand. Probably it had been hidden inside the man's loose white coat. "I have kept this safe, but its place is not here in Hoenn." He held it out, and Gary took it. "Open it elsewhere."

"Alright."

Nothing more was said as Gary exited the building, using tropius one last time to traverse the distance between the laboratory and the harbour. The time until boarding was spent on calling Gramps – who dropped a press conference Gary was supposed to be a part of on him between asking how everything had worked out – and eating some food. Only when he'd safely made it to his private cabin on the boat did he take the box out of his pack again.

It was light, but with a certain heaviness to its centre that gave him an idea of what it could be, and opening it revealed that he'd been right on the assumption that it had been a Mega Stone.

And one that he recognised without too much of an issue. It was one of the more well-known ones after all, if you followed the international scene a bit. It was also one that was fairly certain to annoy at least some Hoenn politicians should anyone use it where they could see it.

And ironically, it was one he nearly could use himself. If it hadn't been for agreeing with the ralts, through an intermediary, that the Psychic-type was going to become a gallade eventually because of research.

He could think of four or five Trainers who'd get good use out of this without even dipping deep. A moment's thought added at least a dozen names to that, though some would refuse for a variety of reasons.

The first offer was going to have to be Sabrina, though, as the Psychic-type Gym Leader.

~~§~~§~~

The day dawned orange, bright and warm from before the first glimpses of daylight. Lance, Grand Champion, saw the sea reflect the morning light from the balcony of his hotel room, where he'd gone to after waking up early, and not by choice.

It was a day he had dreaded for a while, but one that he had known would come, inexorably. It was life's way, if nothing else. The manner, however, had left a sour taste that too many people experienced every year.

Drake had known for longer than he'd told anyone while still alive. Late December, it was written in one of the Captain's Logs that he'd arranged to be handed to various people. Individualised writing, from the looks of it too. And that writing had revealed that the Dragon Master had made a choice to not seek the maximum possible extension to his life.

Lance was conflicted over that. It was an attitude he did not understand. Life was worth living, as long as possible, in his opinion, and to let the cancer through relatively unfettered was not a choice he would make.

But Drake had anticipated this, writing that an extra six or nine months – the average case as told to him by the medical team – of life was not worth the pain and agony of going through treatment. There was no cure for this type of cancer. It was too widespread; too well entrenched. Was it any question then, the septuagenarian had written, that he chose the path of dignity?

The argument was persuasive, but it warred with his own views. And despite the uncomfortable feelings that came from having those views challenged, Lance had been somewhat amused, in a nostalgic way.

It had taken him back to when he was sixteen, fresh off of winning his first League. Drake, as had been his habit over the course of his long career as a member of the Elite Four, had extended an offer to train with him. Lance, being eager to train under a Dragon Master beyond the skill of anyone in the Blackthorn Clan, had accepted, but it had soon become obvious that the two had personalities that were prone to rubbing against each other. Drake, then as later in life, was a firm proponent of making one's own fate. His own teenage self had been just a bit full of himself and the superiority of Dragons.

In true Drake fashion, the older man had taken the tauros by the horns, but after calmly setting out how their opinions differed, he had simply told Lance that they would go train now. After a question about why, he had replied with words that echoed in memory clear as the day they were spoken.

"Potential, Lance. You can stand amongst legends; a future member of any pantheon of Grand Champions they will make in ages to come. My responsibility is to provide you with as much training as possible to reach those heights, regardless of what you think or feel differently than I do."

And that measured response; of appealing to innate strength and potential, and to a chosen duty, had cut right through the late-adolescent opinion that he knew better, in a way that resonated to this very day.

As time had passed, the student surpassed the teacher, and some measure of drifting apart occurred, but whenever he was in Hoenn, Lance had sought to always spend time with the other Dragon Master. It was not always possible or, in some cases, plausible, but the thought of there being none more was not a welcome one.

It was an unavoidable one, however. And as his alarm went off behind him, Lance rose. "May giratina and darkrai grant you passage to your just reward," he muttered into the sound of waves washing ashore.

~~§~~§~~

"So, Anabel," Max asked after the two of them had sat down at the table, with some heavily-seasoned food waiting to be eaten. "How busy are you usually anyway? Not a lot of invites to the Frontier."

"That's a good question," the Frontier Brain replied, smiling. "I think I had about twenty-five battles in the last year, so that's two every month. Of course, some of them are repeats that are closer together, and some times of year are slower." She sounded okay with that.

"Doesn't that get a bit boring?" Danny asked from behind Max, standing up straight as he spoke by the sound of it. Vulpix, helioptile, and Anabel's natu were also in the room, and Danny had drawn the short straw on filling the food bowls. "What do you do with the rest of your time?"

"Training to stay in shape, reading, walking, practising my cooking… It's easier than you think," she replied easily. "And with alakazam, I can go anywhere I want. Even part of the Orange Islands, if I want to."

Max made the distance calculation in his head, finding that she probably could move all over Kanto and Johto with that kind of reach. Maybe not Cianwood, depending on a few things, but the rest was fair game. "My Pokémon aren't nearly as good at it."

"How good are they, then?" Anabel said as she signalled that lunch was started.

There was a delay in answering as everyone got some food for themselves. Max started with a spicy-smelling soup, and Danny went for some tempura and sushi. Anabel had grabbed some noodles. "Haven't tested recently, but I know xatu brought us here and back to Silver Town. He didn't seem sure he could take a third trip immediately, though."

"And gardevoir is a bit better at it," Danny added, pouring himself some water before digging in. He also gave Max some after the spicy soup had exploded in flavour and heat. "Or, he can go a bit further. It feels a bit rougher at long distances, though."

"Never noticed that," Max replied after taking a sip of water. He put the soup to the side for the moment, going for some curry rice instead. It was probably as flavourful, but less likely to burn his mouth. "What time you talking about?"

"Some time early May. Asked him to take me as far as he comfortably could and return me, ended up in Goldenrod from the forest north of Ecruteak."

No further explanation came as Danny went for his food, but the calculation was easy enough anyway. That return trip was close to 200 miles, and after the trip to Tohjo Falls and back, Max had sat down with a copy of the power charts. He'd come out with the assumption that xatu could Teleport him about180 or 190 miles. Danny was heavier, and gardevoir had gotten a bit better at it since May. "If you say so. I'll do some testing tomorrow. Don't think I'd be able to get to Olivine with just one Pokémon, though."

"And ignoring that you've never been there," Danny pointed out.

"Small detail," Max retorted, but he smiled as he scooped some of his not-quite-as-spicy rice out of the bowl.

There was some relative silence as the three of them ate, but before long, Anabel spoke up again. "One thing I was wondering about," she started, and Max instantly wondered if she was going to touch on Team Flare. "How different is Kalos from Johto? Everyone who's been there has been positive, but their perspective is not the same."

Max tried to convey with his eyes that Danny should take the lead on this. And after two and a half years of travelling together, they had the non-verbal communication down decently. "Compared to Johto… Kalos is busier. More vibrant in the cities, and a different kind of quiet in the towns." He paused to take a bite. "Johto's… Simpler? Down to earth? C'mon Max, help me out."

"Rustic?" was apparently the right guess. Or right enough. "And yeah. Even in the smaller towns and villages, there was always something to do or watch. And it's not just that we were going for the Showcases."

"Hmhm," Danny agreed. "Some towns here… It's like time stood still for years and years. And even the cities aren't as busy."

"That sounds like the Johto I know," Anabel commented fondly. "Quiet and traditional. Maybe too much so, even." She turned to Max. "You miss it a bit, don't you? It's written all over you."

Thank jirachi she hadn't said that while he had something in his mouth. "It's… I don't know. I just liked it more than Hoenn. Made good friends. Saw and experienced amazing stuff. And yeah, some of it was terrifying," he said, choosing to mention the subject himself. "I had some of the best and worst of times there."

There was a raised eyebrow, but Anabel didn't ask about the reason she was surprised. Instead, she smiled at him. "And your experiences have made you grow. Both of you, probably. It's actually a bit confusing at some level."

"Why's that?"

"I remember you at… Must be eleven, right?" she asked, and Max nodded, unsure where this was going. "And you're very different, but you still look a lot the same. This and this don't agree with each other," she added, pointing at her eyes and forehead in turn. "Maybe it's stranger because I talked to my nephew this morning, and he..."

"Looked different as night and day," Danny finished for her. He would be a bit more familiar with that. "Growing up is strange."

"Kind of makes you wish humans evolved too at times, huh. Alakazam had trouble connecting me to old pictures, about when I was your age," Anabel said fondly. "Maybe that was because it was so soon after she had turned into a kadabra herself, and I did look very different."

There was more there, Max felt, but it was rude to ask that and it wasn't important anyway. It did mean that the conversation stopped, replaced with finishing up lunch, which took about ten more minutes of delicious flavours. It would've been more, but eating too much was not a good idea for anyone ahead of a battle; Pokémon or Trainer, so he stuck with reasonable portions, as did Danny.

"Before we have our battle, I should tell you that it's not going to be what you expected, Max," the Frontier Brain teased as she got up, catching the attention of both boys. "I normally still do the three on three, but seeing the two of you yesterday gave me an idea. A Double Battle, four on four total, using any four Pokémon from both your teams." She gave them a moment to absorb that. "I'll see you in ten minutes in the arena." With that, she left through the other door in the room, natu on her shoulder.

Max immediately turned to Danny. "Wasn't expecting that. You got any ideas?" he asked, knowing full-well that his friend was far better in Double Battles. Better at splitting attention was the best guess they had, last time they had actually thought about it.

"I think," the older teenager said after a short silence, "that we shouldn't go for the most powerful Pokémon, but for the ones that work together well. Her communicating with Pokémon means she's got a leg up, so we have to work together."

"Synergistic Pokémon, got it," Max said, ignoring the look he got. "And because she uses Psychic-types, we need to make sure our Pokémon can't really hurt each other with energy, or they'll just redirect it." Vulpix padded up to them, and he absently knelt to give her a scratch. "Which of our Pokémon work like that?"

"You've got one right there. And houndour," Danny replied. "And Flash Fire is pretty indiscriminate in how it's activated, so one of them can get up close while the other fires away. Literally. And it's not like houndour cares about being hit by Hex or something either."

"That's the start, then?" Max asked as he returned vulpix, and he got a nod as he heard helioptile vanish as well. "You don't have a lot of other Pokémon that are good against Fire apart from swampert. Who is..."

"Not even here," Danny finished. "But Anabel said any four Pokémon from both our teams."

He'd heard it before, but now was when it fully hit Max. "I could send out one of my Pokémon even if houndour is the first to fall." Jirachi, that was clever. And really tricky as a format. And…. "I guess she's assuming we know each other's Pokémon pretty well."

"Not that hard to do," was the dry retort.

"True," he conceded, thinking for a moment. "I think xatu works best as third for us."

"Can redirect fire himself," Danny caught on quickly. "And Synchronoise. And I guess we'll see for fourth. That'll depend on what Anabel's throwing at us." He cracked his fingers, one hand at a time. "You ready to fight together?"

"Always."

~~§~~§~~

The Battle Frontier might have been different from the Gyms, but the arena itself was just the same. It reminded Danny a bit of the Lumiose Gym, in fact: it had same kind of lighting and layout. Maybe a hint of the Battle Chateau too in the walls, but that was stretching it. An alakazam was waiting on the sidelines, making him wonder if it was the same one as the Salon Maiden – which sounded really pompous, Danny thought – had spoken of earlier. It – she, if it was the same one – was probably there to protect the Trainers.

Anabel was waiting on the other end, as was a man with dark green hair, standing opposite the alakazam. That was the referee, and after a brief summary of the rules, which had one huge difference from normal in that there was no break for switching out, four Pokémon took to the field. Black, red-brown, lilac, and light green. Danny quickly checked the Pokédex for the last one: he'd fought what had to be its pre-evolved form before, but he'd never encountered this one.

Reuniclus, the Multiplying Pokémon. These Pokémon use their Psychic powers to control their liquid arms. They can crush boulders with their psionic strength.

Run-of-the-mill Psychic-type then.

"Espeon knows Zap Cannon, reuniclus is new. I think they're pretty immobile generally.'

Danny nodded, focusing on the battle. The moment it started, three attacks went out: two Flamethrowers and a Psyshock from the Unovan Pokémon. It cancelled out houndour's jet of flame, while vulpix's didn't have any effect: espeon had moved, looking to close the distance on vulpix. "Houndour, reuniclus."

A flash of Confuse Ray forced the espeon back, giving vulpix some time to send out a flurry of Embers, while houndour did the same while loping in the general direction of the stationary floating Pokémon on the other side. A solid wall of light blocked that attack, and from the corner of his eyes, he saw that espeon had dodged vulpix's attack before retaliating with a Psybeam that did nothing but smash into the floor. The Flamethrower that Max's Pokémon sent out in return went skywards too.

But it was reuniclus who did that, as espeon shot a Zap Cannon across the room as a warning shot. Houndour saw it coming and jinked left, making it crash into the shield without any of the opponents being able to adjust it. That did force the Dark-type away from reuniclus, and Danny saw it take aim at vulpix as she was pressured by a pair of Psybeams. "Foul Play."

The Psychic – he thought – connected for a second or so before the canine bit down on the goop-like substance that surrounded reuniclus's body, and the green Pokémon went up and over houndour, eating Flamethrower as it landed.

Vulpix had been freed by the interruption, but she was having problems with espeon barraging her with a variety of Psybeams and, as he watched, a Zap Cannon. At a barked order, houndour shot Embers across the room, which hit as the Psychic-type chose to try and get a Psybeam to connect, but a Hex blocked it just in time. "Stick together now." He half-turned to Max, and the shorter teenager caught it. "Vulpix on offence, houndour as canine shield. Did she hit espeon?"

"Snucktwo Hexes through, got hit twice with Psybeam," Max replied as the two Pokémon unleashed a storm of Embers, aiming for espeon. The lilac Pokémon avoided most of them, and a quick Iron Tail swatted a couple that would've hurt her tail away with overwhelming force. "Set the room on fire!"

Smoking them out or forcing them to expend a lot of energy. Sounded good to Danny, and to the two Fire-types, who turned up the heat hard with twin Flamethrowers, converging on espeon, who was pretty far to the side and didn't have a lot of room to dodge it.

So it didn't. The Psychic-types went for redirection, with espeon having to do the pyroar's share of the task, and while it was concentrating, vulpix sneaked a Hex in. It didn't cause the defence to falter, thanks to reuniclus stepping it up, but it was a good cheap shot.

One that got vulpix pelted with Zap Cannon and Psyshock moments later, but the former missed, and only one of the five crystals actually connected with Max's Pokémon. The other four were snapped out of the air by an uncaring houndour.

Espeon hurried in close, going for a Quick Attack and slipping between Danny's and Max's Pokémon while reuniclus went for a long-range Psychic, and vulpix was forced to blast out a Confuse Ray. It missed espeon, and houndour shook it off, but in that time, an Iron Tail had connected, sending the fox skidding backwards. A Quick Attack of her own disjointed the second attempt at an attack, as well as the Psychic.

Houndour unleashed hell on espeon from close range, and the flames licked the Psychic-type for a good half-second before a furious pulse of energy blew all of them away. Then vulpix punched through with a nasty Hex, while houndour intercepted the Psyshock from long-range.

Espeon slunk off, and their Pokémon fired Flamethrowers after both opponents – houndour going for reuniclus, which Danny approved.

Apart from the Foul Play, it hadn't really been hit so far, and this'd keep it on its toes.

The surprise came when both of Anabel's Pokémon instantly turned around – dodging the Flamethrower in espeon's case and not caring in reuniclus's – and unleashing a joint Psychic that went straight for vulpix.

The fox yelped in pain for a long moment before houndour could tackle it out of the attack with more than a bit of difficulty. That didn't help vulpix any, and another double attack soon converged on her position.

And the Dark-type stood her ground, forcing out a Flamethrower that, while aimed at espeon, served to delay both of them.

Flames curved in on themselves, but houndour did not yield. She pushed more and more, further and further, and the rebounded attack seemed to even trigger her own Flash Fire to some degree, as the fire grew visibly hotter and hotter and…

Darker.

Vulpix had gotten to her feet, adding flames of her own, but Danny only registered that partially. The rest of his attention was on houndour, who'd started to glow a painfully bright white, growing in size, tail elongating, horns forming…

And with a howl – somehow while still breathing fire – the houndoom pushed her flames through to the espeon, obliterating the Psychic as if it wasn't even there. The cat-like Pokémon nearly got away, but her rear half was scorched by the Flamethrower. Vulpix, hiding behind the now larger Pokémon, quickly added in a Hex, and that knocked the espeon out of the fight.

Then houndoom revealed what she had mixed in by blasting a Dark Pulse down the field, forcing reuniclus to move on its own for the first time this battle.

On closer look, it seemed like it had been burnt by the earlier Flamethrower, but that didn't seem to hinder it. "Can they have Magic Guard?" Danny asked Max as he took stock of vulpix as well while houndoom was keeping the blob busy. The fox didn't look great, and the Water Pulse that shot in her direction the instant Anabel's slowking appeared on the other side didn't help matters either. Still, it was a fairly slow-moving attack, allowing for an easy dodge, and a Hex in return.

"Think so,' Max replied as he saw the same things Danny did – that houndoom was figuratively running circles around a reuniclus that couldn't do too much except try to avoid attacks by shoving itself out of the way, which worked maybe half the time. "Why is slowking focusing on vulpix?"

He was right. There was something fishy going on here. "Meet up," Danny told both Pokémon, and with one last attack each – houndoom to incinerate, vulpix to alleviate – they moved to be able to cover for each other again.

And then both of them went down to the ground, as reuniclus glowed red. Energy spilled out, heading straight for houndoom, and with a flash of insight, Danny recognised the attack. Pain Split. Which would probably do a lot in rejuvenating the battered Psychic-type.

Grass Knots kept houndoom on the ground. She tore at them incessantly, but slowking was replacing them just as fast as the energy shot towards the Dark-type.

And met a fox.

It still visibly seemed like it had healed the reuniclus – which surprised Danny – and vulpix landed hard to boot. Houndoom got up from his binds, but she couldn't stop the slowking from connecting with a Power Gem to knock vulpix out of the match. Instead, she headed for the other side of the arena, using her mobility to buy Max some time to send xatu out.

"Ideas?" Max asked as the Mystic Pokémon took to the field, not taking to the sky just yet, instead waiting to see what was coming for them. Which was apparently an Imprison. "Always."

"Reuniclus looks pretty tired. She'll want to protect it. Grass Knot makes it hard for houndoom to approach," Danny offered as an Air Slash disrupted a Water Pulse. A Shadow Ball also joined in from the Multiplying Pokémon, but at that range, it was even easier to avoid. At least slowking was a quarter of the way up the field. "Tire it out a bit more, then swoobat it?"

"Gotcha," Max replied before ordering his xatu to defend houndoom, which the Flying-type took to with gusto, using Hidden Power to destabilise an incoming Ice Beam from the slowking, causing an explosion and a gust of probably cold air halfway between the combatants.

Danny's Pokémon had moved as far away as possible from slowking, who was probably about as immobile as reuniclus. The distance allowed her to once again put some focus in to create the same Dark Pulse and Flamethrower combination that she had used earlier to punch through to espeon. A Water Pulse, sped on by a friendly bit of Psychic, blew the attack up, but that left slowking open to an Air Slash, under the cover of the steam, a Dark Pulse went in and probably hit true.

Ember and Air Slash were thrown in as well, the former coming at the cost of taking a Power Gem to the flank, which sent her sprawling, but the pure Psychic-type was on the ground, attempting, but not succeeding to get up as the red hue around the arena's shields flickered.

A Water Pulse nearly connected with houndoom, who shot a Dark Pulse back at the slowking, but it met a Power Gem that nullified it and the incoming Air Slash all at once as the Imprison fell amidst the second of Anabel's Pokémon being knocked out.

And the fourth one landed with a thud that would've caused tremors had there not been shielding. Thankfully, Danny couldn't see a Mega Stone on it, like that one time in Dewford, but he had seen first-hand how good one of these could be.

The opening salvo being a Hyper Beam that went straight for houndoom was a sign alright. She had to get out of the way, barely being able to avoid it, but the Ice Beam connected with her a moment later. For a moment, Danny wondered why it had been that attack, but when metagross levitated itself off the ground to rush forward with a single arm outstretched – Meteor Mash – it became clear. Houndoom half-tripped on the slippery ground, which did cause her to avoid some of the hit, but it still sent her flying as an Ominous Wind tore through the area she'd just left.

Xatu Teleported out of the incoming Power Gem, landing next to houndoom, providing cover with another Ominous Wind to delay the Steel-type, who was only temporarily stopped before going back in with another Meteor Mash.

Houndoom was able to get out, as was xatu, naturally, and the two blasted the space in between with Flamethrower and Air Slash, but a vibrant and hard shield blocked both attacks even as the Pokémon turned in the direction of houndoom, intent on getting the Dark-type out of the battle. "Xatu, go after slowking!" Danny ordered. "Houndoom, help him best you can."

"She's going to get knocked out," Max said as Danny passed behind him, wanting to get a better look at the Royal Pokémon. "Hope you've got a plan."

He had one alright, but with metagross so close by, he didn't want to utter it, so instead, he went for a simple nod as xatu took to the air, Teleporting on high and blasting down an Air Slash on the stationary slowking. Houndoom used a powerful Flamethrower on the metagross to buy herself a moment; the flames making the steel glow with heat, but the momentary pause in movement cost her dearly, as she ate another Meteor Mash, followed by a near-hit from Water Pulse. It would've been a full hit, but a psionic spike downwards shattered the globe mid-flight.

He palmed one pokéball already, but houndoom wasn't out just yet, blasting out a Dark Pulse to cut straight through the Psychic that slowking had sent upwards in an attempt to bring the xatu down to a more manageable level, and jumping high to avoid getting smashed for the third time in under a minute.

This did leave her open to a Hyper Beam that intercepted her near landing, but that was, Danny felt, exactly houndoom's plan. Quick as a flash, he returned the Dark-type and sent out froslass. "Stay high."

"Oh, I see," Max said, cottoning on instantly, as expected. "Still want to swoobat something?"

"Whatever works," Danny said as froslass fired off an Ice Beam at the metagross. It didn't slow it down in the slightest at first as it powered straight through, but then ice started building up on its arms, which forced it to adjust its path in chase of froslass. The Ice-type used her agility to avoid the heavy hulk of a Pokémon, firing off a pair of Shadow Balls into its flank as she did so before zooming off to the other end of the arena.

Where xatu had been annoying slowking from above as well. At range, but Ominous Wind was a hard move to block, though slowking had been able to with some intricate Psychic shields to create a bubble around itself. It tried to do that again, but a Thunderbolt also assaulted the shield. It broke, and that was the sign xatu needed as he Teleported down and unleashed a Synchronoise.

Slowking managed to fight through it, shooting a Power Gem into xatu's left wing, but then a Shadow Ball hit it in the head, causing it to waver and Max's Pokémon to renew his assault as metagross tried to Meteor Mash froslass down to earth.

That didn't work, and slowking fell as metagross vastly overshot.

But the battle was far from over. Metagross sent out a psionic grab, tagging xatu with it and immediately shoving him into the shields nearby, keeping him locked in place as he stormed in with one arm glowing bright white-blue – Ice Punch.

"Blizzard," Max ordered, and froslass immediately turned the Icy Wind she was building into something far more intensive, temperatures dropping immediately. "And… Now!"

It had never held xatu. Not enough. The Mystic Pokémon managed to get out, causing the rare and powerful Pokémon to crash arm-first into the shield, before the area turned into a winter wonderland.

To no surprise, the frost on its arms was no problem, but there was a waver in the flight that hadn't been there before. "That's a start. Tag team it?"

"For now," Danny agreed as their Pokémon took up position at opposite ends of the arena – right for froslass, left for xatu. This left the Ice-type closer, but the metagross went for its fellow Psychic-type instead, sending out a blunt psionic wave to keep froslass occupied. She rode it without any problems as xatu hit an Air Slash. "Why's it going for him first?"

"Beats me," Max said, but he had put his thinking face on. The battle in the air had broken loose, with Flash Cannons and Psychics being simultaneously shot at xatu, whose attempt to Teleport out was only just in time. "Eliminating the weaker one is my guess."

"That works," was Danny's reply as he looked over at froslass, who was building up a Shadow Ball larger than any she'd ever done in battle before.

Then again, she rarely had the time to do so.

It could've fit a toddler inside, and it was fairly slow-moving as a result. Predictably, metagross avoided it with some ease – though the Ice-type had timed her attack well to coincide with it having to wheel around after a failed Meteor Mash rush.

And then the second Shadow Ball blew the entire thing up, creating tremendous downwards pressure as the explosion above rushed outwards. It was enough to buffet froslass from half the arena away; to nearly hurtle xatu into the shields from slightly closer to that, and for twelve hundred pounds of pure steel – give or take fifty – just underneath to crash into the ground with a thud that resembled a cannon blast up close.

Xatu immediately Teleported in for a Synchronoise, which lasted for two seconds before he was flung off psionically and uncontrollably. Teleportation stopped him from hitting the shields, but it took another thirty feet before he could control his flight, during which the metagross had gotten up again, and had sent a Flash Cannon straight into his path.

Ice Beam caught the attention then, and froslass went in hard and fast, tossing out two Shadow Balls and a Confuse Ray in as many seconds. The first attack was slapped aside, while the second and third hit – without any visible effect. "They've got four brains. Confuse Ray's… Not great."

"Just a second is enough," Danny countered. "Xatu, other side."

In a flash, Max's Pokémon reappeared near Anabel, and as before, her Pokémon went after him with almost reckless abandon, sending forth another Flash Cannon, but without the pinning Psychic behind it, it was easily avoided by adjusting height, which he did upwards at first, then downwards twice in response to the next attacks, at which point metagross was too close.

And then xatu just went away, moving across the field and hiding in the literal corner as froslass unleashed a ferocious Blizzard across the field that blanketed everything in white, causing them to lose sight of the other half of the arena.

A Hyper Beam tore through, connecting with xatu from out of nothing, and he fell to the ground, spent, prompting a curse on Max's part. "That's… Two Blizzards, a couple of Shadow Balls, a Synchronoise, an Ice Beam, some other random attacks from xatu, a Flamethrower, and that explosion?" he asked as froslass summoned hail to partially hide herself. "Don't recall it being this resilient."

"That's what three years of training do," Danny replied as Anabel's Pokémon revealed herself, looking a lot worse for the wear. That also didn't stop it from firing off three Flash Cannons in quick succession, none of them bothering froslass too much as she wove through the sky. That lightened his heart. "But I think we've done enough."

"Think so, yeah," Max agreed. "Ice Beam first," he added for froslass, who'd been going for a Shadow Ball volley. She still shot it off, but only with the two that metagross outright ignored as it hovered in place, shooting a Flash Cannon at the nimble Pokémon.

It was a good idea. Ice Beam forced a block – with Psychic, as it happened – and then the Shadow Balls sneaked in under the radar. There was a flash of steel - Flash Cannon defensively – but it had been just too slow, and the explosion buffeted it, making it shake in mid-air and buying froslass precious time to summon her third Blizzard as she drew in all the hail from the nearby area.

That, finally, was enough. With another crash, pretty much into the crater that had formed from the oversized Shadow Ball explosion earlier, metagross hit the ground, and this time, it did not get up. Not for lack of trying, as Danny saw one arm move, but then Anabel returned it.

It had been one hell of a tough battle, but as froslass came on down after a pair of high fives were exchanged, he noticed that she was looking moderately fresh still.

Houndoom's evolution had been such a big help.

"Well," Anabel said as they met up on the sidelines, opposite the crater and right next to a patch of thick ice. "You two were great. Or I should say you six," she added, nodding in Max's direction, where froslass was also hanging out. "I saw good teamwork with both of you and all of your Pokémon pulling their weight. And good planning with some measure of foreknowledge."

"We'd planned on xatu as our third. Can't leave Zap Cannon on the field then, can we?" Max replied cheerily. "Come to think of it, baltoy could've worked too. Not after slowking, of course, but against Zap Cannon.'

"You would get a taste of your own medicine. Espeon knows Synchronoise as well," the Frontier Brain revealed. "Though not nearly as expertly as your xatu." She stuck a hand into a pocket. "For the tricks and knowledge," she said as she handed the Ability Symbol to Max, before turning to Danny. "Congratulations with your new houndoom. That Dark Pulse Flamethrower combination single-handedly changed my third Pokémon."

His eyebrow went up. "Oh? Not the Water-type against two Fire-types?"

"Vulpix wouldn't last long. A mr. mime was my plan."

He'd been around Max long enough to figure out a rudimentary plan of approach in a few seconds. "Barriers for the Embers, redirecting on the Flamethrower?"

"And Dazzling Gleam if you tried to get close," Anabel said, nodding with what looked like definite approval. "But I kept an eye on you during battle as well. You made the plans, didn't you? You've got a knack for these."

"I've always been good at Double Battles," Danny said unselfconsciously. It was true, after all. "And we've okay at teamwork.'

"More than just that. For the planning and the adaptability, this one is yours." The Ability Symbol was placed into his hand. "I hope you'll get the rest."

"That makes at least thirty of us," Danny quipped as froslass hovered closer, reigning in her cold aura to take a look. "Or three, if you want to stick to humans only."

"Probably more than just three. I know Ash is hoping for that as well." The Salon Maiden chuckled a bit for some reason. "I forgot to ask this earlier, and I just remembered… I tend to give my friends gifts on their birthday, but I'm just not coming up with a good one for Ash. Have you got any ideas?"

It was mainly directed at Max, but Danny had an idea or two. "Something for his Pokémon if you want a serious gift. A compass if you want a gag gift."

"Why that?"

"Because he's always getting lost," Max said, shrugging. "Yeah, I had the Pokénav, I know you were going to say it. Y'think they always listened to me?"

"That answer is pretty clear, I guess," Anabel said, and there was a wide smile on her face. As well as a bit of red that hadn't been there before? "I'll look in that direction then. Thank you."

"You can always ask his Mum, too. She'll help."

"Tha—thanks," Anabel said, and there was something about that, that caused Danny to want to react in surprise. Thankfully, he kept it hidden. "One more thing. Do you want to try and see if you can learn the same thing as I have, Max?"

That caused a mouth to fall open, and Danny to catch his own before it could do so. "You're serious?" Max asked, still looking like he couldn't believe what he'd heard. "I think Danny was only joking yesterday."

"I don't know if it will work," the Frontier Brain replied, ignoring the second comment. "Communicating directly with Pokémon is something only a few Trainers can do." She looked Max directly in the eyes. "But there's something that's nudging me to at least let you have a shot. So, let's do that."

Silence fell, and Danny didn't feel it was his right to talk, so he waited for Max to do that. "How many can do it?"

"Like I do?" Anabel asked in return. "I know three others personally, and I know of two more beyond that. And it is different for every single one of us. You know what I can do, of course. Two others can do it on touch only. One can only do it on Ghost-type Pokémon." She gave them a slightly amused look. "It's not every day that you can say human telepathy is the more common skill."

"It sounds sort of difficult if you put it like that," Max pointed out. "Or is that because it's some kind of innate thing?"

"It's innate, and it requires extensive practice." She fixed him with a look. "Don't expect to be good at it next week, or even next year."

"How is some training with you going to help then?" Danny asked, speaking up for the first time in the discussion. It came out harsher than he'd intended. "Eh..."

The Frontier Brain smiled, telling him there was no harm done. "It's like a hidden path. Once you know it's there, you can go down it. And theoretically, gardevoir is one of the best Pokémon for this."

"Did you use espeon for it?" Max asked suddenly.

"I did. And discovering it got me through a really rough patch in my life when I was your age."

Danny wasn't sure if he was supposed to ask what was on his mind, but his mouth had other ideas. "How old are you then?"

"It's rude to ask a lady her age," came the reply he had expected the moment he'd said his words, and it only worsened the blush, but it was diminished by a kind smile. "I'm only twenty-two. And yes, that means what you think it does, Max." She took a look at a nearby wall – or probably the clock on it. "But that story's going to have to wait for tomorrow. Let's say nine, if you can get out of bed that early?"

"Sure."

"Great. I will see you then."

~~§~~§~~§~~§~~

In one of the first studies into the human side of Mega Evolution eligibility, Professor Oak of Kanto today shared some preliminary findings that he, Professor Rowan of Sinnoh, and Professor Sycamore of Kalos, had come to believe to be true. In a short press conference, flanked by his grandson, the Kanto Professor revealed that the Mega Evolution process demanded something mental of the Trainer as well, beyond the known bond with one's Pokémon. Details were deliberately light, as both Oaks explained that this was very much theoretical and in much need of specialised testing, but they did share that maturity factored into it.

Questions about the four youngest users of Mega Evolution on public record were rebuffed on multiple occasions, with the younger Oak remarking that this information was integral to conceiving the specialised testing that will be needed to ascertain the details. The elder Oak added that revealing this information now could completely nullify the tests and endanger Trainers in the process.

Author's Note: The Battle Frontier is underway. Next up: Noland and the Factory, with detours for two Gyms in the process.

It's going to be fun, that's for sure.