"Well, take a look at that," Liz gazed into the distance.
"It's beautiful!" Kristine was in awe.
"So that's Lake Serenity…" Jason added.
The three had a perfect vantage point from a tree-covered hilltop under a sunny afternoon of a massive, pristine lake light blue in color. The waters seemed clean and pure, and it was a sight to behold.
"I think the pokemon lodge is nearby," Kristine mentioned. "The handbook said there's a nice big one here."
"Then lead the way!" Liz replied.
Kristine stepped forward and led Jason and Liz down the hill. Soon, they found a dirt trail leading to the lodge.
"Geez, that's a huge pokemon lodge!" Kristine took note, eyeing the four-story pokemon lodge as she, Jason, and Liz approached it.
The three walked inside the lodge. They all gazed around the open lobby, where the floors and walls had a nice wooden finish. The lobby was massive, with many lounging areas between the entrance and the aid station at the center. There were trainers and pokemon alike relaxing throughout the lobby.
"Hey, look!" shouted a familiar voice of a boy. "It's the twins!"
Julian walked over to Jason, Kristine, and Liz.
"Well, well," added a female voice. Amanda emerged from a nearby couch and approached the twins as well.
"Good, you're here," Liz noted. "Now I caught up."
"I was wondering where you were," Amanda smirked. "Have you seen Bran?"
Liz shrugged.
"I last saw him in Route 103," Kristine spoke up.
"Hmm," Amanda pondered. "He might be behind us. Probably working on the Mystic Badge like Julian and I are."
Liz suddenly grinned. "Wait wait wait."
"What?" Amanda wondered what Liz was getting at. Then it clicked. "Oh no. Don't tell me."
Liz pulled out a case from the satchel on her back. She opened it to reveal the Mystic Badge on the upper left corner, with eleven open slots reserved for the other badges.
"You got the Mystic Badge…" Amanda sighed.
"Yes! I'm well ahead after all!" Liz cheered.
"Wait, you don't have it yet?" Jason asked.
"You mean you got it too?" Amanda seemed to be in despair.
"Me too," Kristine nodded.
"Oh geez…" Amanda looked down in shame.
"I don't think it's something to worry about," Kristine tried to cheer her up. "But if I may ask, what brings you this far up Route 104?"
"Lake Serenity is a great place to train, according to the handbook," Julian replied. "Both Amanda and I lost our battles to Aria, so we teamed up and came here while training our pokemon along the way."
Amanda nodded. "Starly and Pidgey evolved into Staravia and Pidgeotto along the way too."
"We figured once we get in tip-top shape, we'll double back to Fort Lexing together, beat Aria, and go our separate ways," Julian added. "We called it a mutual trainer's pact."
Julian turned to Jason. "Have you seen Alex lately?"
"Yeah, a few days ago," Jason replied. "He talked smack to my sister and me and headed off. He's probably in Saint Brandon by now."
"That's not cool," Amanda added.
"Alex is a jerk," Julian explained. "Always has been. Always will be. He thinks he's better than anyone else."
"No kidding," Kristine chimed in.
The five of them found a nice, cozy place to settle right next to a fireplace. Liz and Amanda sat across from each other in rocking chairs while Julian, Jason, and Kristine sat at the couch that faced them and the fireplace.
"So, how did you guys beat Aria?" Amanda asked. "Let's start with you, Liz."
"Come on now, do I have to tell secrets?" Liz chuckled.
"How did you get past Wobbuffet, at least?" Julian asked.
"Okay, okay," Liz leaned forward. "The trick to it, and I think twin boy and twin girl over here will agree with me, is this: Aria is smart enough to call for Destiny Bond ahead of time. One of your boys or girls is gonna have to take one for the team. Don't lose a pokemon until then."
"Twinboy?" Jason snickered.
"Twingirl?" Kristine joined in.
"What, you don't like 'em?" Liz asked.
"Eh," Kristine shrugged. "No one ever called us that."
"I can think of new nicknames, I suppose," Liz mentioned. "Anyways, the trick to beating Aria is you have to be creative. If you go standard on her, she will beat you. She tests your creativity and your ability to think on your feet."
"That's how I won, too," Kristine added. "Liz has a point. Dragonair is probably the easiest pokemon to face of the three because she's newish to the battle scene. But that doesn't mean she's a pushover. The first battle in my match against Aria was Fletchling against Dragonair, and Dragonair won because Aria could call the right shots at the right time.
"I realized that and sent Pikachu out there. He defeated Dragonair and faced Wobbuffet. When I realized his tail is his weakness, Pikachu defeated him too, but not before Aria called Destiny Bond. So it was Espeon versus Vaporeon. I had to adapt to what Aria threw at me, and I came out as the winner."
"That's more or less how I won," Liz said. "Probably more or less how Jason won."
"Actually, no," Jason spoke up. "I followed that plan, but everything went south very quickly for me. Wobbuffet one-hit KOed Taillow with a Counter."
"That's what happened to Pidgey," Julian added.
"So I sent out Ralts and played aggressively," Jason continued. "But Aria called Destiny Bond in advance. Ralts went down with Wobbuffet. So it was Jolteon versus Dragonair and Vaporeon."
"Did you lose and have a rematch with Aria?" Amanda asked.
"No," Jason simply replied. "I won."
"Wait, what?" Liz seemed intrigued.
"You won?" Julian was taken back.
"How?" Amanda seemed very surprised.
"You should have seen him," Kristine added. "He and Jolteon fought together like losing was never an option."
"I kept saying to myself that we cannot lose, we will not lose," Jason spoke. "And…we won," he lightly shrugged.
"That was your strategy?" Liz asked.
"To not lose? Yeah," Jason shrugged again. "I know you and Kristine think strategically. You have plans and know how to follow through with them. I guess I can do that too, but I had my back against the wall. There was no time to think, no time to come up with a strategy. It was simply a matter of doing. So Jolteon came out blazing, and we took out Dragonair inside two minutes. Then we had a heated battle with Vaporeon. And…we simply won."
"Fighting one versus two and winning, that's incredible," Amanda replied. "Good job, Jason!"
Julian exchanged high fives with Jason at that moment.
Liz looked right at Jason. I thought Kristine would be the better trainer, she wondered in her mind. He has a winning attitude. I should watch out for him.
"Anyways," Liz got up. "We spent a whole day on the road. I'm gonna book myself a room and crash. Night, all."
"Goodnight," Kristine replied.
"Night," Jason added.
"See ya," Julian said.
"Will you be here tomorrow?" Amanda asked.
"Of course," Liz confirmed. "It's Lake Serenity, and I'm ahead of the pack! I'm taking the day off."
Liz then departed from the gang and walked towards the center of the lobby to book a room.
"I should be winding down for the night," Julian said.
"Same," Amanda added.
"Hey, would you like to hang out with us tomorrow?" Kristine asked.
"For sure!" Amanda replied. "I say we just relax and train."
"I'm always down to battle, too," Julian added. "I want my guys to be in top form against Aria. I have an excellent feeling about our rematch."
"Have a good night, all!" Amanda got up and left.
"Yeah, see you guys tomorrow!" Julian did the same.
"Well, I guess we should book a room and chill out," Jason suggested.
Kristine nodded and got up. "Let's take the morning off from training," she added. "Let's hop in the Lake and play with our pokemon instead."
"Okay, but only if I'm allowed to catch a magikarp."
"Uh, deal, though I wasn't going to prohibit you from doing that. I know you," Kristine snickered.
"Cool," Jason got up.
The two walked over to Nurse Joy at the center and received a key card for a room on the fourth floor. They were able to overlook the entire lobby from the walkway next to their room.
Inside, they were surprised to see how big the room was for a simple two twin bed studio. The window overlooked Lake Serenity, while the first thing Kristine did was examine the bathroom. When she saw the whirlpool inside, she immediately locked and shut the door for her own privacy. She intended to undress and jump in immediately.
"Okay then," Jason smirked and walked over to the couch in the middle of the room. He sat down and extended his legs to the other side while he turned on the television.
"We bring you a live feed from the Johto Regionals!" said the voice of the sportscaster. "We are underway in the very first round, and we have a battle between two first-timers, Hiro Hatsura and Himari Matamoto!"
Jason witnessed the three-on-three battle unfold. The boy, Hiro, used Rhypherior as his first pokemon, while the girl, Himari, used Scizor. The two pokemon battled hand to hand, with neither side giving in. About ten minutes later, Rhypherior pummeled Scizzor to the ground with his horn.
"Scizzor is unable to battle!" the referee declared. "Rhypherior wins!"
"Wow, this is intense," Jason muttered to himself. "Almost all of our battles, save for Jolteon's battle against Vaporeon, lasted no longer than three or four minutes."
The girl then brought out a kingdra, a water and dragon pokemon.
"And then we have Kingdra, the dragon pokemon!" the announcer added.
The intensity and developments of the battle hooked Jason further in. A few minutes later, Kingdra was able to take down Rhypherior by landing Hydro Pump directly, blasting him across the field.
"That was a sweet move," Jason added.
The boy then brought out a feraligatr, a fearsome crocodile-like pokemon who could stand on two feet. It was another several minutes before Feraligatr took down Kingdra using Ice Punch.
"How much time has passed?" Jason pondered. "Twenty-five, maybe?"
The girl brought out her last pokemon, Dustox, a pokemon that looked like a giant moth. It took several more minutes, but Feraligatr managed to get the upper hand and defeated Dustox with another Ice Punch. That meant the boy went to the second round, and the girl's run at the Johto Regionals came to an abrupt end.
"Imagine getting those badges and qualifying for the tournament," Jason muttered to himself. "Only to truly matter for thirty minutes before you lose."
"Huh?" Jason heard Kristine's voice behind him.
Jason, startled, turned around to face his sister. She had wet, draped hair and wore a towel that covered her entire chest and torso, coming down to her knees.
"They had live footage of a battle going on in Johto," Jason replied. "It was only the first round."
"Oh wow," Kristine looked at the screen. "Oh my, the girl looks devastated. Imagine going through all that hard work just to lose in the first round."
"That was just what I was thinking," Jason replied.
"When we get there, let's totally not lose in the first round," Kristine faced her brother, referring to the first round of the Inventum Cup.
"Right with you," Jason assured her.
The two headed off to bed and managed to get in a good night's rest.
The next morning, they got up, but instead of putting on their usual trainer's gear, they put on their bathing suits. Kristine had a two-piece green bikini and wore white capris, while Jason wore a black bathing suit with a white t-shirt. They still put on their pokeball belts before heading out the door.
At the lobby, they met Julian, Amanda, and Liz, who all waited for them.
"What took you so long?" Liz asked. "It's time to head out and do nothing!"
"I got work to do first!" Jason said before he bolted out the door.
"What's he up to?" Julian asked Kristine.
"He wants a magikarp," Kristine replied.
"On that thought, I got some work to do too," Amanda added before bolting out the door with Jason.
"What's she up to?" Julian asked.
"I've been to that girl's house here and there before we became trainers," Liz added. "She's got a giant milotic plush and several art pieces of milotic in her room. I think she's getting a feebas or the Regal Milotic that lives deep in the water. Means she'll have two water types on her team, but eh, if she can make it work, then more power to her."
"Is it true that the Regal Milotic lives in here?" Julian asked. "There's no actual proof."
"I suppose it's as real as the Crimson Gyarados living in Lake Sol," Liz added.
"Jason's a firm believer of the Crimson Gyarados living in Lake Sol," Kristine replied.
"Well, should we head out?" Liz suggested.
"Might as well," Kristine replied.
Kristine, Liz, and Julian headed out the back of the pokemon lodge and proceeded towards the lake. They all smelt the crisp, clean air as they looked around the many trainers and pokemon relaxing about.
"Well, I think we should release our pokemon," Kristine said. "Come join the fun, Espeon, Pikachu, and Fletchling!"
"Turtwig, Pidgeotto, Pancham! Come on out!" Julian joined in.
"You too, Charmander, Mankey, and Purrloin!" Liz did the same.
With their pokemon out, Julian took off his shirt, while Kristine took off her capris, and Liz took off her shirt, revealing a red bikini.
"Well, I'm going for a swim!" Julian said as he ran towards the water with his pokemon right behind him.
"I'm gonna chill," Liz said as she began to place a towel beneath her.
"I think I'm going to do the same," Kristine added.
The two were on their backs as they soaked in the sun. Their pokemon played as they ran all around Kristine and Liz.
Meanwhile, Jason and Amanda took off their shirts, revealing Amanda's blue two-piece bikini, before running into the water with empty pokeballs at the ready.
"The water is so clear here!" Amanda said. "We have to find magikarp and feebas nearby!"
Just then, a magikarp swam by the two.
"A magikarp!" Jason went after it. "Good luck, Amanda!"
"Yeah, you too!" Amanda replied. She then saw a school of feebas swimming nearby. "Feebas!" she swam towards them.
Jason approached and followed Magikarp.
"Hey Magikarp!" he yelled. "Why don't you come join me and become the Gyarados you always wanted to be!"
Magikarp turned around. This caught his attention.
"Wow, that actually worked?" Jason muttered.
Suddenly, Magikarp swam in Jason's direction at full speed. It intended to use Tackle. He jumped out of the air at Jason. "Karp Karp Karp Karp Karp!"
Jason ducked as Magikarp flew over him. Magikarp then submerged and attempted to communicate to him.
"Karp karp karp karp magikarp!" Magikarp demanded.
"Do you want me to fight you?" Jason asked.
Just then, one of his pokeballs opened up. Jolteon forced himself out, ready to go at Magikarp.
"Jolt!" Jolteon barked.
"Jolteon?" Jason wondered how Jolteon could get out like that.
Magikarp gave a nod of approval before charging at Jolteon.
"Careful, Jolteon; he can move fast in the water. You can't!" Jason cautioned.
Jolteon acknowledged Jason's warning and faced Magikarp. "JOLT-EON!" he projected Thunder Shock.
The Thunder Shock zapped Magikarp, but it didn't stop there. The currents rippled through the water.
"Jolteon!" Jolteon barked before Magikarp, who was unable to battle.
"Uh, okay," Jason shrugged. He threw an empty pokeball at Magikarp, who became bound to it without resistance.
"Alright, we got ourselves Magikarp!" Jason cheered. He then recalled Jolteon. "Come on back, Jolteon!" he then swam towards the shore.
As he set foot on land, Amanda swam towards him. After setting foot, she walked up to him.
"So an electric current stopped the school of feebas," Amanda said with a huge grin on her face. "And I caught a feebas! A feebas! I'm so excited!"
"Well, congratulations!" Jason smiled. "I just got myself Magikarp. I think we're going to have some powerful Pokemon here."
"Feebas will be great for my team!" Amanda added. "Once I train her to become Milotic, of course."
"They say Gyarados is a testament to a trainer's abilities," Jason mentioned. "I'm up to the challenge."
"I'm going to find the others," Amanda spoke. "I'm gonna get some sun!"
"Sounds good," Jason said as Amanda departed.
Jason looked at Magikarp's pokeball.
"Welcome to the team," he said. "You may not be able to do much now, but I'm going to spend time with you as I do with the other pokemon. And in time, you'll become Gyarados, one of the most fearsome pokemon around. If that is what you truly want to become, I promise to help you along the way."
He then walked back towards the others. When he got back, he saw that Kristine, Amanda, and Liz were all on their backs getting tans. He had to avoid Pikachu and Purrloin, who chased each other around and ducked from the swooping Fletchling and Staravia.
"Looks like you're all on vacation," Jason chuckled.
"Welcome to paradise," Liz replied.
"Sweet, sweet paradise," Amanda added.
"So, did you catch Magikarp?" Kristine asked.
"Yep," Jason proudly replied.
"Awesome," Kristine rolled on her stomach. "I'm just gonna lay here and relax for a bit."
Jason snickered. "Sounds good, sis. I think I'm going into the water."
"Hey, Jason!" Julian yelled from a distance. He was in the water with his pokemon. "Send your guys out, and let's have some fun!"
"Sounds good to me!" Jason ran over and summoned Jolteon, Taillow, and Ralts.
After entering the water, he let out Magikarp.
"Magikarp!" Magikarp greeted.
"Magikarp, I want to introduce you to Ralts, Taillow, and Jolteon," Jason said. "Everyone, this is Magikarp, the newest member of the team."
All four pokemon exchanged greetings.
Magikarp then swam up to Jason and offered him to grab his fin. Jason grabbed hold of it as Magikarp gently swam around.
"Well, look at that," Julian seemed intrigued. "I almost want to get myself a magikarp so we can have a magikarp race."
Just then, Taillow and Pidgeotto were flying through the winds side by side as if they were competing against each other.
"I guess those two are already racing," Julian chuckled.
Meanwhile, the three girls continued to sunbathe under a clear sky.
"Hey, Kristine?" Amanda spoke.
"Yeah?" Kristine tilted her head towards Amanda's direction.
"Do you want to have a pokemon battle?" Amanda casually asked.
All pokemon stopped themselves at that moment.
"Sure," Kristine casually replied before slowly getting up.
Amanda was also slow to get up. "Okay. Does three on three sound good?"
Kristine nodded.
"I guess I'll ref," Liz stretched her arms and legs before getting up.
Kristine and Amanda took ten paces in opposite directions to simulate a field. Kristine's pokemon ran beside her, as Amanda's pokemon did the same.
"Hey, look," Julian pointed out. "Your sister's battling Amanda."
Jason had Magikarp steer him over towards Julian. "They were sunbathing just a minute ago," he said. "Now they're battling?"
"Eh," Julian shrugged. "Women."
"So, who wants to go first?" Liz asked.
"I will," Kristine replied. She then looked at Pikachu. "You ready to go?"
"Pika!" Pikachu nodded. He then hopped forward.
"Then Amanda makes the first move," Liz continued.
Amanda looked at Ledyba. "Do you want to battle Pikachu?"
"Ledy!" Ledyba nodded and hovered forward.
Amanda then looked at Kristine. "All of my pokemon are at a disadvantage to Pikachu. But I'm gonna put up a fight, at least."
She turned back to Ledyba. "Supersonic, let's go!"
"Double Team, Pikachu!" Kristine responded.
"Pika!" Pikachu projected multiple copies of himself. Ledyba's Supersonic fizzled three of the copies.
"Use Comet Punch on Double Team!" Amanda commanded.
"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!" Kristine followed up.
As Ledyba punched copy after copy, Pikachu blindsided her with Quick Attack, knocking her down.
"Now use Thunder Shock!" Kristine commanded.
"Light Screen!" Amanda reacted.
Ledyba projected a barrier in front of her, taking minimal impact from Pikachu's Thunder Shock. Light Screen riddled in a rainbow pattern as it took the brunt of the attack.
"Charge in with Mach Punch. Let's go!" Amanda issued.
"Ledyba!" Ledyba charged in with fists at the ready.
"Dodge, Pikachu!" Kristine yelled.
Pikachu attempted to dive out of the way, but Ledyba was moving too fast. She flew right at Pikachu and struck him directly with Mach Punch. The force behind it was so powerful that it flew Pikachu back a considerable distance.
"Mach Punch once more, let's do it!" Amanda followed up.
"Ledyba!" Ledyba took off towards Pikachu once again.
Pikachu managed to get up, only to see Ledyba come right at him.
"Okay, then," Kristine responded. "Pikachu, Electro Ball!"
"Pika-chu!" Pikachu hurled Electro Ball from his tail.
With Ledyba charging Pikachu head-on, she was struck by Electro Ball. She hit the ground and tumbled backward before struggling to get up.
"Pikachu, Thunder Shock!" Kristine continued the offensive.
"Dodge it, quickly!" Amanda responded.
Ledyba narrowly spiraled away from Thunder Shock.
"Use Quick Attack!" Kristine followed up.
"Use Mach Punch one more time!" Amanda yelled.
Pikachu and Ledyba charged at each other one more time.
"Pikachu, Double Team!" Kristine changed her call.
Pikachu projected multiple copies of himself. Ledyba soared through one of them.
"Now, Thunder Shock!" Kristine commanded.
Pikachu emitted a bolt of electricity at Ledyba, effectively striking her. She fell to the ground, unable to get up.
"Ledyba is unable to battle!" Liz declared. "Pikachu is the winner!"
"Pika Pika!" Pikachu cheered.
Ledyba managed to get up a moment later as she hovered to Amanda.
"You did well, Ledyba!" Amanda commended.
"Ledyba!" Ledyba nodded.
Amanda looked at Staravia with a smirk, then nodded.
"Staravia!" Staravia flew forward.
"Staravia, huh?" Kristine smirked. "Okay, Pikachu, get ready!"
"Quick Attack, Staravia!" Amanda commanded.
"Staravia!" Staravia charged at Pikachu.
"Double Team!" Kristine responded.
Pikachu once again projected multiple copies of himself. Staravia flew right through one of them.
"Now use Thunder Shock!" Kristine called.
"Double Team, Staravia!" Amanda smirked.
Staravia also projected multiple copies of herself. Thunder Shock fizzled three of the copies.
"Now dive down with Wing Attack!" Amanda followed up.
"Staravia!" Staravia's wings glowed as she dove down. She struck Pikachu head-on, sending him flying back.
Pikachu struggled to stand on both feet.
"Now, Tackle!" Amanda issued.
Staravia swooped upon Pikachu once more, hitting him with sheer force. Pikachu tumbled over and over, and when he stopped, he couldn't get up.
"Pikachu is unable to battle!" Liz declared. "Staravia is the winner!"
"Pika…." Pikachu struggled to get up two moments later.
"Pikachu!" Kristine said, walking over to him. "You did great. Have a seat."
Kristine walked back alongside Pikachu.
"Okay, Fletchling, you're up!" Kristine looked at Fletchling.
"Fletch!" Fletchling hopped forward.
"Staravia!" Staravia greeted. She then took to the skies.
Fletchling accepted the challenge and did the same.
"A sky battle," Amanda said.
"Fletchling, use Agility!" Kristine commanded.
Fletchling began to fly around Staravia at amazing speeds.
"Well, there's a heated battle going on," Julian noted as he and Jason observed the battle from the lake. "There's nothing like a couple of babes in bikinis battling it out, right?"
"You do realize one of them is my sister, right?" Jason rolled his eyes.
"Come on, man!" Julian laughed. "It's a compliment. Would you get mad if I called your sister ugly?"
"Well, yeah…"
"Well, she's not. She's pretty."
"Um…okay."
"Now use Wing Attack!" Kristine called.
"Double Team, Staravia!" Amanda responded.
Staravia projected multiple copies of itself once more. Fletchling took out copy after copy left and right.
"Now, let's use Quick Attack!" Amanda commanded.
"Fletchling, use Flail!" Kristine responded.
As Staravia charged at Fletchling, Fletchling began flapping its wings. When Staravia closed in, Fletchling's beak glowed as he flailed forwards, striking Staravia head-on. Staravia spiraled down but was able to gather herself.
"Fletchling!" Fletchling chirped. Suddenly, he became consumed by a white glow.
Jason saw it unfold from his vantage point. He saw that white glow that turned his Eevee into Jolteon. He saw that same white glow that evolved Kristine's Eevee into Espeon.
Kristine knew what that was, and so did Julian and Amanda.
"Your Fletchling is evolving!" Amanda gasped.
"Fletchling…" Kristine gazed upon the shining glow.
The glow fizzled away, but a larger avian bird emerged. It had orange and black plumage with a sharp black beak and a small, pointed crest on top of his head. Its face and back is dark orange, while the underside is predominantly white in a flame pattern. With its long tail feathers with two white v-shaped streaks, this Pokemon appeared to be more intimidating than its predecessor.
"Fletchinder!" the pokemon screeched.
"Fletchinder…" Kristine muttered. She pulled out her pokedex.
"Fletchinder, the Ember Pokemon," the pokedex explained. "The hotter the flame sac on its belly, the faster it can fly, but it takes some time to get the fire going."
"So it's a fire and flying type," Kristine observed.
"Well, congratulations, Kristine," Amanda commended. "Now, Staravia, Quick Attack!"
Fletchinder responded by spitting out a ball of flame at Staravia, knocking her out of the sky.
"Fletchinder knows Ember!" Kristine noted excitedly. "Okay, Fletchinder, use Wing Attack!"
Fletchinder swooped down upon Staravia and struck her with his glowing wings. Staravia crashed and tumbled to the ground.
"Now, let's go for Quick Attack!" Kristine followed up.
Fletchinder dove towards Staravia and struck her one more time with Quick Attack. Staravia was thrown backward and was unable to get up.
"Staravia is unable to battle!" Liz declared. "Fletchinder wins!"
"Fletchinder!" Fletchinder cheered.
Staravia got up a moment later.
"Good job, Staravia!" Amanda encouraged her.
Staravia flew by Amanda's side.
"Okay, Squirtle!" Amanda looked at her starter pokemon. "You got this!"
"Squirtle!" Squirtle stepped forward.
"So, Fletchling evolved into Fletchinder," Jason observed.
"Congrats to your sister," Julian replied.
Suddenly, a rain cloud formed over the two, and it began to rain.
"Woah now," Jason looked around, startled.
"Hey," Julian laughed. "Well, isn't this awesome? I love swimming during rain."
"Yeah," Jason agreed. "But who's using Rain Dance and where?"
"You got a point," Julian pondered.
"Hey," Liz glanced over in Jason and Julian's direction. "Did one of their pokemon use Rain Dance or something?"
"Jason doesn't have anyone who can use Rain Dance," Kristine recalled.
"I haven't seen Julian use it at all," Amanda added.
"Well, that's strange," Liz said. "But it is cool to see a little rain cloud over there when it's all warm and sunny over here."
Meanwhile, Magikarp became playful under the rain, zigzagging Jason around.
"Hey there, Magikarp!" Jason laughed. "It's just a little bit of rain."
"Your Magikarp must know Swift Swim!" Julian said. "His speed goes way up under the rain. I think it wants to show off its fast speed."
"Okay," Jason smirked. "Magikarp, let's see how fast you can go!"
"Karp!" Magikarp complied. He then bolted at lightning-fast velocity with Jason holding onto him.
"Geez," Kristine looked on. "Look at Magikarp go."
"Karp karp karp karp karp!" Magikarp kept going deeper into the lake.
"Okay, Magikarp!" Jason yelled, trying to get Magikarp's attention. "You're very fast! You can stop now!"
"Karp karp karp karp karp!" Magikarp didn't hear him. Instead, he dove down, taking Jason with him.
Jason knew he was about to be in trouble. Magikarp kept diving downwards, yet Jason didn't want to let go. He tried to remain calm, but he knew he might not make it back up on his own without Magikarp's assistance.
But Magikarp kept diving down, so Jason had to make a decision. He let go of Magikarp and attempted to swim back up.
"Oh my gosh…." Kristine gasped and walked towards the lake. "Jason!"
"Did Magikarp just dive with him? Liz asked.
"It appears so," Amanda replied.
"Oh man," Julian looked on. He turned to his and Jason's pokemon. "Be on the lookout for him!"
Jason tried to swim upwards, where the rain splashed against the lake. It was a beautiful sight to behold, he thought.
Suddenly, he heard an elegant sound wave from a distance. It was as if an underwater creature was singing. The sound was soothing to him, but he knew he had to get back up. His body began to demand oxygen, and he tried to swim back up as fast as possible.
Then, he heard the elegant music again. A massive sea creature appeared in front of Jason from a distance, and it approached him. It appeared to project an air bubble towards him, and he swam for it.
As soon as Jason entered the bubble, he could breathe again. That was when he saw the regal sea creature swim around him, singing ever so beautifully.
"Milotic…" Jason muttered. He witnessed in awe as the creature made two passes around him. This one had a cream-colored body with light blue antennae-like extensions from its eyelashes and had light blue hair-like fins extending down its head. It had a golden tail, and its black eyes gleamed with beauty.
"Karp karp karp karp karp!" Magikarp came back to Jason.
"Let's get back, Magikarp," Jason said to him. "My sister probably thinks I'm dead right now."
"Karp karp karp karp karp!
Jason didn't want to leave that moment. It was absolutely breathtaking to be able to breathe deep in the middle of Lake Serenity, with the rain pouring down from above, and to see such an elegant creature so rare that he thought it might as well be a legendary pokemon. But he had to leave. He knew for sure that his sister and friends above would believe something terrible happened to him. So he grabbed Magikarp as the red fish swam upwards to the surface.
"He's been under there for too long!" Kristine yelled. She ran into the water and looked towards Julian. "Do something!" she yelled at him.
"I'm trying!" Julian yelled back. "Our pokemon are searching everywhere!"
Suddenly, Jason and Magikarp emerged from the distance as they approached the shoreline.
"Just a heads up, Magikarp," Jason warned his pokemon. "We're going to get a stern talking-to from Kristine."
"I see him!" Julian yelled. He waved over at Jason. "He's fine!"
"Oh, thank goodness!" Kristine was relieved. She feared the absolute worst for a moment.
Magikarp guided Jason to the shore, bypassing Julian. Julian and his and Jason's pokemon all followed him to the shore.
"Karp Karp Karp Karp Karp!" Magikarp dropped Jason off at the shore.
Jason slowly walked onto the shore, only to be met with the absolute fury that is his twin sister.
"YOU KNUCKLEHEAD!" She yelled as she stormed up to him and gave him a shove. "I THOUGHT YOU DIED OUT THERE!"
"AND YOU!" she sternly pointed at Magikarp. That in itself intimidated him. "HUMANS DON'T HAVE GILLS. THEY CAN'T BREATHE UNDERWATER. DON'T EVER DO THAT TO MY BROTHER AGAIN!"
"Karp," Magikarp appeared to be ashamed of himself.
"Hey, sis?" Jason tried to get her attention.
"WHAT?" Kristine roared and faced his direction.
"I'm sorry I put you through that," Jason calmly replied. "But I saw the Regal Milotic down there."
"You…what?" Kristine calmed down.
"I saw her," Jason continued. "She exists. And she is the most beautiful pokemon I've ever seen."
"You saw the Regal Milotic?" Liz seemed intrigued.
"That would explain Rain Dance," Julian added.
"That must've been something," Amanda was taken back.
"Just…" Kristine put her hands on Jason's shoulders. "We lost Dad two years ago. I can't lose my twin. Please, please, please be careful next time, okay?"
Jason hugged his sister. "I promise," he said. "You won't lose me."
Kristine hugged her brother back before stepping backward with a smile of reassurance. "Good."
"Well, I say we call a rain check on our battle," Amanda said, moved by the twins' conversation.
"Sounds good to me," Liz agreed.
Julian walked towards the gang. "Jason, are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Jason replied.
"You're not seriously hurt," Kristine examined him.
"Milotic gave me an air bubble," Jason explained. "That's why I was underwater for so long."
"Doesn't she know that there were people worried sick up here?" Kristine took a step towards the lake.
"Hey now," Jason tried to calm her down. "It's not her fault. You don't need to scare her, do you?"
"Fine, she's spared from my wrath," Kristine turned around, crossing her arms.
"Hey!" Amanda spoke up. "Let's continue to have some fun! I think we can all enjoy a nice big dinner!"
"Well, whenever there's food involved, I can help in making it," Kristine added.
"All that swimming made me hungry," Julian said.
"Me too," Jason chimed in.
"I can go for some grub," Liz said.
The gang prepared a big dinner on the shoreline of Lake Serenity under the sunset. Afterward, they recalled their pokemon and relaxed in the Lodge at night. Jason and Kristine had plans to continue onto Route 105, putting them just a few days away from Saint Brandon. Liz, Amanda, and Julian were undecided about their immediate plans, but a lot can happen overnight regarding decision-making. The twins would just have to find out who they would be traveling with tomorrow morning.
