Author's Note:

I will just casually post this chapter and pretend like it hasn't been months since the last one was posted...ha...ha...ha. Anyway, I've got momentum again, so let's get this damn story finished. We've got this chapter and seven more to go with some big things happening. Time to find out what's going on with this hunter battle. Enjoy!

Chapter 28: The Future is Now

Clemont's heart was pounding as he focused on the hunters gathered in front of him, Raphael's chilling message still ringing in his ears. The hunters certainly looked confident, their leader's message further emboldening them as they sneered at Clemont, Korrina and Bonnie. Clemont was worried about his sister, wishing that their dad hadn't needed to run off to Professor Sycamore's. It seemed Bonnie wasn't particularly scared, however, giving the hunters a confident stare right back, Dedenne's cheeks sparking from his position atop her head.

"You heard our boss," one hunter said, stepping forward and releasing a Toxicroak in front of him. "Make it easy on yourselves and surrender your Pokemon. We might go easy on you if you play nice." He glanced back at Prism Tower. "You're the Gym Leader here, right?" he added, glancing back at Clemont. He didn't answer, but the hunter continued regardless, obviously knowing it was the case. "If you give us all that fancy tech you got in there and tell us how to use it, we might even leave the place in one piece."

Clemont narrowed his eyes at that, a strange defensiveness for his inventions coming over him. "You would dare to use science to hurt people and Pokemon. To steal, torture and sell Pokemon? To harm this city?!"

The four hunters standing back all laughed, while the lead one just shook his head in disgust at Clemont, smirking to himself while his Toxicroak eyed Korrina and Bonnie creepily. "How do you think our crew stayed hidden so long, and got so powerful kid? We've had scientists on our team since day one. We got supercharged Pokemon, and gadgets you wouldn't believe." He nodded to a TV screen in the courtyard where Raphael's message was played. "How do you think our boss played that?"

Clemont frowned, eyeing the screen a moment, before his gaze drifted upward. There were shapes in the air, some above Prism Tower, but above other buildings as well. He could recognize a few of them as Noivern and Noibat, but there seemed to be others too. "You're interfering with the signals in the city."

The hunter smirked again. "Indeed. Got a group running interference with the power plant as well. Kept things nice and quiet for a lot of us to slip into the city with a couple of power surges. Barely noticed with your little tournament going on and you kids getting all excited. Then we jammed the police signals and got most of 'em out of the city so we could clog the roads. A little force here and there did the rest. Now we just need to clear out the interference so we can take our loot."

"How dare you!" Clemont snapped, stepping forward. He heard Korrina murmur a warning to him, but ignored it. "Science should be used to help people and Pokemon, and you used it for fear and confusion so you could hurt them!"

"We're using it to make some cash, kid," one of the others said. "Don't get so hung up about it. If you're smart, you'll be doing the same."

"At least, you'll use science to make us some cash," another laughed out, the rest joining him as he chuckled.

"You'll never use my gym or my inventions for your evil!" Clemont said, holding up a pokeball. "Bunnelby, let's go!"

"Lucario, you too!" Korrina added quickly, the Aura Pokemon emerging immediately alongside Bunnelby.

"If that's the way you want it, fine!" the lead hunter shouted, pointing ahead at them. "Poison Jab on Bunnelby!" As his Toxicroak charged forward, the other hunters ordered attacks as well, two more ordering a Brick Break on Bunnelby, while the others ordered the same on Lucario.

"Bone Rush, Lucario!" Korrina countered quickly, Lucario already moving forward to engage.

Clemont was just a second later, but just in time, ordering a Dig from Bunnelby, who easily dodged the attacking Pokemon as he burrowed underground. The Toxicroak and two Croagunk struck the empty spot, while Lucario engaged the others a few feet away, easily knocking them aside with a few swings from his Bone Rush.

As the Croagunk that Lucario had hit stumbled back, Clemont picked his spot, knowing just where Bunnelby would be. "Strike now!"

"Bun!" Bunnelby cried out a moment later, shooting up from the ground underneath Toxicroak and sending it flying into the air, before swinging his ears around in a circle and striking the two Croagunk in the chest and sending them into the others.

"Poison Sting!" the lead hunter yelled out, quickly shoving back one of his companions who appeared to be rushing towards his struck Pokemon. His Toxicroak managed to right itself in midair, training his eyes on Bunnelby, before opening his jaws wide and unleashing a barrage of purple needles. Korrina was ready to defend, though.

"Lucario, block with Metal Sound!" she ordered, stepping forward and pressing herself close to Clemont, further assuring him they were in this together.

"Ruru!" the Aura Pokemon was flawless in his execution, spinning out front of Bunnelby with a quick deflection of one of the Croagunk attempting to stand. He aimed his attack quickly and unleashed the powerful sound waves in Toxicroak's direction. The Poison Sting needles seemed to disperse, unable to handle the burst of energy in their direction, before Toxicroak himself clutched his head in discomfort. Clemont was pretty sure he even noticed some of the Pokemon in the sky looking disturbed.

"Now Aura Sphere!"

"And Mud Shot, Bunnelby!"

Clemont smirked as he noticed the hunters look up in stunned surprise, watching as Lucario leaped into the air, using the staggering Toxicroak to propel himself further up. When he was in position, the Aura Pokemon spun with the blue sphere already forming in his arms, ready to unleash it on his foes. He thrust his arms forward with full force, striking Toxicroak head on and sending him crashing into his pre-evolved counterparts, leaving the group of poison types vulnerable for Clemont's attack.

"Go Bunnelby!"

"BunneeellllllBY!" Bunnelby cried out, forming the attack and unleashing a barrage of mud balls on the group ahead. The Croagunk and Toxicroak cried out as they were hit, before being thrown back by the continuous barrage and flying into their trainers. None stood once the smoke cleared.

"Think we should head back to the Pokemon Centre?" Korrina asked, looking nervously towards the screen that had played Raphael's message.

Clemont shook his head, smiling at Bunnelby as he hopped over to them. "We need to get into the gym. We can help everyone if my plan works."

Korrina nodded, seeming to agree, even though she was clearly as worried as he was about their friends. "I guess you're right. You okay with that Bon-" She stared around, eyes widening. "Clemont, where's Bonnie?!"

Clemont felt as though all air had gone from his lungs as he looked around, realizing what Korrina had noticed at the same moment. He started to stumble before Korrina steadied him, and his eyes slowly drifted back over to where Raphael's message had played. He felt he had an idea of what Bonnie was up to.

"She's trying to help the others..."

"We have to look for her," Korrina said, a determined look in her eyes.

Clemont nodded, eyes going to Bunnelby, before calling out Chespin to stand beside him. "Bunnelby and Chespin, I need you guys to find Bonnie. I know you can do it." He felt guilty, but he knew there was no choice. He needed to get into that gym and enact his plan. He had faith in his Pokemon to help his sister. "Can you do it?"

"Bun!"

"Ches!"

The two Pokemon couldn't have looked more confident, looking each other in the eyes, before glancing once more towards Clemont. They nodded with determined gazes, bringing a smile to his face. They wouldn't let him down.

As they took off, Korrina looked at Clemont curiously. "Why'd you send them? Shouldn't we be looking for Bonnie, too."

"Bunnelby and Chespin will help her. But...we need an army," Clemont pointed out, eyes going back to the gym. "And we can get one."

Tierno winced, staggering back as Chimchar did, the Dark Pulse from the hunter's Mightyena hitting near his feet and interrupting his attack. The others were struggling as well, Trevor's Marshtomp already breathing heavily after an exchange with Drapion, and the other students' Pokemon looking tired from their earlier fighting. The uneasiness they all felt from hearing Raphael's message didn't seem to he helping either.

"We've gotta attack together," he called out to the others. "Overwhelm them all at once, okay?"

"Sounds good to me," Trevor called back, the other students nodding their agreement.

"None of your pathetic attacks will work!" the Mightyena hunter laughed back. "You kids have nothing!"

"We'll see!" Tierno locked eyes with Chimchar, the two nodding in determination, knowing now was the time to pull off a big attack. "Flamethrower!"

"Water Gun!" Trevor added in, his Marshtomp leaping to Chimchar's side. The other students' Pokemon joined in as well, each shrugging off their exhaustion and pushing through with their very best attacks.

"Together! Go!" Tierno shouted, leading the way with Chimchar, the small fire type unleashing a massive blast of flames, the sudden burst causing the two hunters' eyes to widen. A few fleeing students on the street behind them even paused, watching the display as Trevor and the others joined in, a Hydro Pump, Shadow Ball, Hyper Beam, Mud Shot and Bug Buzz joining the Flamethrower and Water Gun.

BOOM!

There was a massive explosion ahead as the attacks crashed into Mightyena and Drapion, the two Pokemon knocked out nearly immediately on impact. The shock wave of energy also sent the two hunters flying back, landing them in a circle of angry students, who now appeared much more willing to fight back. Tierno couldn't help but grin as the students who had just been about to flee called out their Pokemon and took off after the hunters as they instead attempted to run.

Suddenly, there was a big cheer, and Tierno and Trevor looked around in surprise, realizing that those hadn't been the only students who had witnessed the attack. More students were appearing around them, looking more prepared than ever to fight back, and a few were emerging from the building they had been guarding just now. An example had been given that the hunters could be beaten, and a standard had been set for what a Lumiose University student should be doing.

"Lumiose University," Tierno then called out loudly, "let's show these hunters how to move and groove!"

"YAAAHHH!"

It was a totally different feeling from the start of the battle, and while Raphael's message had made everyone uneasy, it wasn't reason enough to back down. In fact, it was more reason to fight back harder than ever. "Just like Ash and Serena say," Tierno said, looking to Trevor and grinning, "we're not giving up till this thing is over!"

"No way!" Trevor agreed, grinning as they watched the tide turning quickly as more students went from fleeing to fighting back. The hunters still had large numbers and powerful Pokemon, but the Lumiose spirit was on full display. They truly were like a team of Luxrays fighting back.

The thought of their team name took the grin off of Tierno's face, though, as he thought once more of Raphael's message. "You saw that video Raphael played, right?" he said, Trevor nodding in response. "We have to help the others. The Pokemon Centre looks totally surrounded. They could be trapped there."

"Yeah, but it's still a tough fight here," Trevor said, quickly ordering Marshtomp to help out a student and their Flaffy who were locked in combat with a hunter and his Golem.

Tierno nodded uncomfortably at that, seeing that while they'd motivated their classmates, it was still going to be hard to keep the university buildings safe. Fortunately, however, there were more than just students around. A grin immediately came to his face as he heard a familiar trio of voices down the road, followed by a group of hunters fleeing in fear.

"Infernape, Flare Blitz!"

"Gengar, Shadow Ball!"

"Drifblim, Ominous Wind!"

More cheers could be heard as three loud explosions rocked the air. Tierno and Trevor rushed down the road to see, joining the cheering students as they watched about a dozen hunters and their group of powerful looking Pokemon being completely overwhelmed by the arrival of the powerful Lumiose IPL coaches.

Flint's Infernape was first, unleashing a devastating Flare Blitz that a trio of Magneton, Dodrio and Lickitung had no chance of fighting back from, the three Pokemon sent flying into the side of a nearby building. After that, it was Agatha's Gengar, striking a group of five fellow ghost types, including three Haunter and two Gastly. Gengar's Shadow Ball exploded against his pre-evolved counterparts and they cried out in shock, flying back and crashing to the ground. Gengar's attack was quickly followed by Fantina's Drifblim, taking care of the remaining four Pokemon in the group, with a Golbat, Rhydon, Tyrunt and Ariados thrown into the air by an Ominous Wind, before crashing to the ground behind them as they advanced forward.

"Hey Tierno and Trevor!" Flint called out as he and his fellow coaches continued on. "Need some help around here?"

"We sure could!" Trevor said back, relief evident in his voice. "We need to get to the Pokemon Centre as soon as possible."

"Well you boys better get there!" Agatha said sharply. "Your friends need you."

"Leave ze fools here to us!" Fantaina followed up. "We have this area covered."

Tierno nodded, before looking to Trevor. "Let's go help our friends!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt! Rockruff, finish with Bite!"

Ash ducked as he and his companions avoided the debris from a nearby building as one of the opposing hunters' Pokemon, a Rhydon, was knocked into it by Anton's Marowak. Pikachu and Rockruff easily sidestepped it as well, the two of them quickly taking aim at their remaining foe, a Beartic. The hunter commanding it looked uneasy, despite his earlier confidence when he and his companions had surrounded Ash and the others on their way to Sycamore's Lab, just as Raphael's message had played through the city. As Pikachu's Thunderbolt brought the Beartic to its knees, Rockruff darted forward, latching on to the ice type's arm and pulling it to the ground, where it lay still. The hunter ran off, recalling his downed Pokemon as he did so. His companions remained, unconscious or disoriented from one of Anton's earlier attacks.

"We need to keep going," Ash said, looking to the others, seeing Gabby and Serena looking worriedly in the direction they had come from. "Professor Sycamore will need our help."

Anton nodded, giving one of the still conscious hunters a warning look, although Ash could see that they weren't going to do much, just wincing as they leaned against the side of a building. "We can't let Raphael get ahold of that Mega Evolution research. Who knows what he'll do with the Pokemon he has if he tries experimenting with that..."

It was a chilling thought, and Ash swallowed nervously as Pikachu and Rockruff returned to his side. Unfortunately, he had a feeling Raphael had likely already done some Mega Evolution tests of his own. That Steelix that he'd shown outside the city hadn't looked right, and he was sure it wasn't the only one that had been...changed like that. Of course, he was sure Anton was right and that if Raphael had Professor Sycamore's research, he would do much worse.

"Are you guys ready to..." Ash trailed off as he looked back at Serena and Gabby, seeing them exchanging a glance. "Serena?" Ash asked, narrowing his eyes in confusion as she looked to him, her own eyes conflicted.

"Ash...you saw Raphael's video..." She looked to be fighting the fear that was threatening to take hold of all of them as the sounds of fighting seemed to spread throughout the city. Ash winced as he heard another explosion in the direction of Sycamore's lab. "The Pokemon Centre, Ash...if the hunters have control of it..."

"Absol and Braixen." Ash felt conflicted himself, hearing the shouts. He had to help Professor Sycamore, and stop Raphael from taking such important information and from hurting all those Pokemon at the lab. But Serena...he couldn't leave her and her Pokemon.

Before Ash or Serena could say anything else, each looking uneasy, Gabby interrupted, locking eyes with her brother before speaking. "I have to help Altaria and Ninetales, too," she said, stepping up next to Serena. "We'll go to the Pokemon Centre." She nodded to Ash and Anton. "You guys help Professor Sycamore at the lab. After that..."

"We have to find Raphael as soon as possible," Ash said, thinking of the image of Raphael in the video. "If we can find him and defeat him..."

"We don't know where he is," Serena pointed out, looking uneasily at one of the big screens up in the street where the video had played. "It didn't look like he was in the city, so he could be anywhere."

Anton seemed to have an answer for that, looking up into night sky. Ash followed his gaze, seeing a bunch of Noivern, Noibat and some other flying bat-like Pokemon circling around the city. "He's got those Pokemon messing up the signals in the city," Anton said, looking back to the group as he spoke. "Whatever message he's sending, he can't be too far away. Their base was between the Wetlands and Laverre City, so they would've needed to hide somewhere between the Wetlands and here for this attack. They couldn't have spread out much, or they would've been interfered with before attacking. He must be in that direction."

"So if we head that way, we might have a chance of finding him," Ash said, feeling a bit better about having somewhat of a plan.

"But they'll have people guarding the exits," Serena pointed out. "And if you're coming from the lab, you'll be father away."

"We'll be fine," Ash assured her, taking a step forward. He smiled confidently. "Just make sure you stay careful. Get Absol and Braixen out safely."

Gabby answered first. "We'll get everyone who's in there out safely. Those hunters won't know what hit 'em."

"Neither will the ones at the lab," Anton promised, sounding almost like he was trying to help in easing the tension. "We'll see each other at Raphael's hiding place in no time."

Serena still looked uneasy, and Ash felt the same despite his confidence in their group. He didn't want to split up. Before the attack had started, he'd really been enjoying the time he'd been spending with Serena. He wanted just a few more moments with her, and he could see she felt the same. "Don't give up, okay?" she finally whispered, stepping forward so they were only about a foot apart. "I'll see you soon."

"You bet!" Ash said, nodding. "And you make sure to save Absol and Braixen."

Serena paused, glancing awkwardly at Anton and Gabby for a moment, the two Laverre siblings looking away for some reason. When Serena's eyes met Ash's again, her cheeks were red. "Remember...I wanted to tell you something before we heard the fighting?"

"Yeah, but you can tell me la-"

Ash's eyes bulged as Serena moved forward, suddenly wrapping her arms around him, hugging him tightly. But that wasn't all. His heartbeat seemed to triple in speed, his breath completely stopped and his mind went as fuzzy as a Swirlix. He felt Serena's lips reach his own, and it was as though he'd been transported to another world. It was completely unexpected, but to Ash, it felt like the excitement of a new journey, seeing a new Pokemon, training and battling all in one moment. It felt...right.

When Serena finally stepped back, blushing furiously, it was almost disappointing. There was more she wanted to say, and it was the same for Ash. Unfortunately, they didn't have the time, and Gabby, despite an amused look on her face, was already encouraging Serena to follow her as she began to leave. With one last longing look towards Ash, Serena followed.

Ash stared after them for a moment, before hearing Anton clearing his throat behind him. When Ash turned, Pikachu and Rockruff were looking a little embarrassed, but also eager to leave as well, knowing what lay ahead. "Right," Ash said, shaking his head. "Let's go!"

As Ash followed after Anton, he did his best to focus on what they needed to do, but a grin kept coming to his face. His mind couldn't really get through what had just happened, but he knew it felt...right. His head had been having a difficult time getting things straight with his feelings about Serena for awhile now. The pieces seemed to be coming together somewhat, though. He just hoped she would be all right and that she would get Absol and Braixen back safely. He knew she could handle it, though.

It took a few minutes for Ash and Anton to close in on Sycamore's Lab. They had seen a couple of small groups of hunters and had skirted around them, deciding that engaging them would only lead to more trouble if they couldn't help Sycamore now. They could still hear the sounds of fighting, so they knew that regardless of Sycamore and his companions' success in fighting off whoever they were up against, they would soon be vulnerable with their Pokemon battling so long.

When they were close, Ash quickly realized the situation was as hectic as he'd feared. Pikachu and Rockruff seemed to as well, along with Anton's Marowak, the three Pokemon tensing up as they rounded the final corner. As Ash and Anton looked upon the lab, they skidded to a halt, quickly ordering attacks as three hunters out of about a dozen turned to face them.

"Thunderbolt and Rock Throw, now!" Ash yelled, pointing Rockruff in the direction of a hunter who had been engaged in a battle with Professor Kukui and his Incineroar. A second hunter was keeping the Alolan professor busy, but Ash could see Rockruff wanted to help his old friend as soon as possible. Pikachu meanwhile joined Marowak as Anton ordered a Bonemerang on one of the other two hunters' Pokemon.

"Chuuu!"

"Marowaaak!"

As Marowak's bone struck the hunter's Arbok, Pikachu's electricity followed up, causing the poison type to hiss angrily and fall back, the hunter commanding it stepping back nervously. Meanwhile, Rockruff was right on top of the Seviper that had been attacking Kukui's Incineroar, the Alolan Professor calling out some quick encouragement as he and his fire type fended off a Hitmonchan. The Puppy Pokemon sent a barrage of stones into the Seviper, sending it crashing into the Arbok Pikachu and Marowak had knocked down. Ash had him follow up immediately with a vicious Bite attack.

"RRRUFF!" Rockruff barked out, snarling viciously as he barreled down on his opponent, latching onto Seviper's tail and sending it flying into its trainer. Anton was quick to order another attack as well while the other hunter was distracted, Marowak clubbing the Arbok in the chin and sending it crashing into its trainer as well.

Seemingly inspired by Rockruff's ferocity, Ash could see Kukui and Incineroar stepping it up on their opponent, who seemed to be much more capable than the two Ash and Anton had just taken out. The Alolan researcher increased the speed of his orders, his Incineroar blocking a a barrage of punches from Hitmonchan, before fighting back with an attempted Throat Chop that the fighting type managed to duck under. Kukui and Incineroar were not going to be outdone, though, their attacks coming fast and furious as one Throat Chop became two, before being followed up by a Flamethrower at their opponent's feet, knocking Hitmonchan off balance.

"Finish with Darkest Lariat!" the dark and fire type's arms began swinging outward at the stumbling Hitmonchan, and Ash and Rockruff jumped in celebration as the Punching Pokemon was knocked away with full force, slamming into his trainer, the two knocked unconscious and landing with their fellow hunters.

Ash and Anton quickly headed over to join Kukui, taking in the scene around them. It appeared as though Hala and Sycamore were leading the hardest part of the fight now, with Crabominable and Garchomp guarding the entrance to the lab, while Lillie and Lusamine were attempting to gather the injured Pokemon from the lab that had attempted to help. Sycamore's assistants were taking them at the entrance and bringing them inside. Ash and Anton's arrival had helped, but it was still a difficult fight, and a few more hunters seemed to be arriving.

"Thanks for the help, cousin," Kukui said to Ash, grinning as Rockruff greeted him with a happy bark. "Looks like things are a little...hot around here," he noted, glancing at Incineroar as the Heel Pokemon flexed his muscles, glaring at some of the incoming hunters. "Ready to knock some heads together and keep this lab safe?"

"You bet!" Ash said, grinning confidently as he and his Pokemon turned to face their incoming enemies, Anton doing so as well.

"Let's see how they like some Z-Move action!" Kukui called out, Incineroar grinning viciously next to him. "Attack!"

Bonnie felt bad about running from the fighting as Clemont and Korrina took on the hunters, but she was able to see pretty quickly that they were easily going to win that battle. After seeing the message that Raphael had played, she couldn't just sit still and let them do all the fighting, though. Her mind was already filled with the images of the scared and injured Pokemon at the Pokemon Centre, along with some of the trainers that were likely trapped there that might be able to help fight off some of the hunters. If she was going to be a trainer herself one day, she was going to have to get involved and help just like she would do when she had a full team of Pokemon at her side. Besides, she already had Dedenne with her. With him, she was as safe as ever.

"Hey look, some little girl with a Dedenne!"

"Probably pretty weak, but we might as well nab us an easy Pokemon!"

Bonnie's eyes widened, stepping back as she noticed the two hunters emerging from the shadows ahead of her. She had tried to avoid the most direct path to the Pokemon Centre, hoping to avoid the hunters that were probably all over the streets, but it seemed they'd sent a few into the side streets. She was glad it wasn't a big group, but she could feel Dedenne shaking nervously from her shoulder. Why did I leave Clemont? she thought nervously, wishing silently for someone to come and help her. Her dad had gone to Sycamore's lab, but maybe Clemont would have noticed she was gone.

"What's wrong, kid?" one of the hunters said, smirking as he continued to move forward, holding up a pokeball. He clicked it open as he chuckled, releasing a Raticate. "You can run if you want. Just leave us your little friend."

Somehow, that seemed to take away some of Bonnie's fear, and she narrowed her eyes. "You're not touching Dedenne, so back off!"

"Tough little brat, are ya?" the hunter said, laughing along with his companion. "Okay, fine then. Raticate, show this kid what we do to little brats that don't know their place."

As scared as Bonnie was, she was ready to fight back. Just like Clemont would do. Just like Clemont was doing right now. "Dedenne, Thunder Shock!"

As Dedenne ran forward, it quickly became apparent he was outmatched, however, with the hunter's Raticate easily ducking underneath the electric attack. It darted forward with surprising speed and before Bonnie could react, the massive rat was rising up in front of Dedenne, its creepy teeth bared. The hunters both laughed as Dedenne and Bonnie backed up a few steps.

"Chespin!"

"Bun!"

Suddenly, from just behind Bonnie, a barrage of green and brown orbs fired out in front of her and Dedenne, striking Raticate in the head and chest and sending it staggering back, wincing. Bonnie whipped around, smiling as she expected to see her brother, but surprised to just see Chespin and Bunnelby instead. He must've sent them to look for me, she realized, still relieved nonetheless. Now she had a chance.

Clemont's two fighters didn't slow their assault, despite the hunters' and Bonnie's surprise. Bunnelby was underground using Dig within seconds, while Chespin used his vines to vault over Dedenne and engage with Raticate once more. Unfortunately for Raticate, Chespin wasn't his usual goofy self at the moment, and his eyes were full of fire as he slammed the rat again and again, before sending him flying towards the hunters.

Bunnelby was just as effective, timing his strike at the perfect moment as the other hunter was about to throw out his pokeball. The ball fell, unopened, to the ground, Bunnelby's head driving into the hunter's chest and making his eyes bulge. Then, a moment later, the Digging Pokemon's ears were slapping the hunter to the ground, just as Chespin's vines struck the other one and his Raticate one more time.

As the two Pokemon leaped back, still tensed up in anticipation of an attack, the hunters groaned, their Raticate wheezing on top of them. Bonnie was pleased with the rescue, but she was still uneasy, seeing the pokeball nearby the one hunter. If they weren't knocked out, they could still fight back. And she still wanted to get to Pokemon Centre to help everyone who might be stuck there.

That problem was solved a moment later, Dedenne darting forward and rubbing his cheeks as he approached the hunters and Raticate. Bonnie was about to call him back, worried about him getting too close, but she quickly realized what he was doing. She grinned as he used his Nuzzle attack, sparks shooting up all around their enemies, paralyzing them and ensuring they wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon.

"Great job, Dedenne!" she said excitedly, running up to her Pokemon and hugging him while Bunnelby and Chespin nodded approval. "And thank you Bunnelby and Chespin! You two were awesome as well!"

"Chespin ches!" Chespin responded, patting his chest and looking quite pleased with himself.

"Bun bun..." Bunnelby murmured in exasperation, shaking his head as he glanced at Chespin. He then looked to Bonnie and began moving towards the street he and Chespin had emerged from, pointing to it with his ears. "Bunnel?"

Bonnie took a deep breath, knowing Bunnelby wanted to head back to Clemont and the gym. She couldn't back down from what she'd set out to do, though. "We have to help everyone at the Pokemon Centre," she said confidently. "I know we can do it. If Clemont can do whatever it is he's planning at the gym, we'll be able to help him by helping our friends. Will you guys come with me?"

Bunnelby looked a little uneasy about it, but Chespin quickly agreed, apparently having quite enjoyed his impressive feat moments before. After a little bit of encouragement from Dedenne and Chespin, Bunnelby eventually agreed as well. Bonnie was relieved when he did. With those two, it was much more likely that she could succeed.

They were just about to set off again, when Chespin jumped out in front, looking ready to fight again, and Bunnelby and Dedenne tensed up as well, looking around nervously. Bonnie was unsure of what they'd all sensed, but then, a moment later, she saw something coming from up ahead. She narrowed her eyes as it approached and clenched her fists. "You'd better watch out, hunters! We're tougher than you-"

"Viiivilloooon!"

Bonnie's eyes widened as the Elegant Vivillon emerged from the street ahead, looking exhausted, but extremely relieved to see Bonnie. For a moment, Bonnie was still unsure, but then she noticed Bunnelby and Chespin looking more at ease and her eyes widened in recognition. "Vivillon! You got out of the Pokemon Centre! Is everyone okay?"

Vivillon shook its head, gesturing in the direction it had come from. "Vivillon! Viiiivilloooon!"

"Our friends are trapped?" Bonnie asked, Vivillon nodding in response. "Okay, well it's good you found us. We're gonna save them, Vivillon, and we could use your help!"

It was time for Bonnie to be a Pokemon trainer and save her friends.

"Finish 'em off with Aura Sphere, Lucario!"

"Ruru!"

Clemont shielded his eyes as the blue sphere crashed into the Rhyperior in front of them, knocking it out and sending it back into its trainer, who barely got out of the way in time. As Lucario landed easily on his feet, ready to continue if necessary, the hunter was quick to recall his Pokemon. He glared at Clemont and Korrina for a moment, before running off and claiming he was going to bring more of his allies.

"Are these guys ever going to quit?" Korrina said, sighing as she looked around to see if any more hunters were in the area. They were finally at the entrance to the gym, but hunters had been coming at them nonstop since they'd beaten the first few and Bonnie had taken off.

"Probably not," Clemont admitted, "but we should take advantage of the time we've got. Let's get inside. We've gotta get to the top floor so we can interrupt those sound waves they're using up there." He pointed up to the Noivern, Crobat and other fliers in the sky that had clearly been used to interrupt signals in the city.

Korrina nodded, taking a deep breath as she seemed to communicate silently with Lucario. "Lucario and I will head up there. You need to get to your invention."

Clemont wasn't too comfortable with that idea, but he couldn't help but think it was necessary. He sighed, reluctantly agreeing. "Be careful up there. They'll probably fight back."

Korrina smirked, shrugging it off like it wasn't an issue. "Lucario and I can handle it."

"Bring some backup at least," Clemont said, pulling out a pokeball and clicking it open to release Elekid. "Elekid can probably boost my signal up by giving the tower a jolt, and he can fight off those fliers with Lucario. Right, Elekid?"

"Bee bee!" Elekid said proudly, holding a fist to his chest.

"Sounds good!" Korrina said, taking a step towards the doors, before looking nervously back at Clemont. "We're going to do this Clemont. Go be Lumiose City's Gym Leader and help save this city!"

With that, she gave him a wink, and ran off through the doors and towards the elevator. Clemont waited a moment, checking the surroundings quickly, before heading in as well, calling out Luxray as he did so. His heart was racing faster than ever now, knowing how important this one mission was. If he could enact his plan, it wouldn't save the city, but it would go a long way towards it. He needed this to work, and he needed his friends and all of Lumiose City to stay strong until he could do it.

Down the hall towards the battlefield for the gym, Clemont quickly looked over some of his Pokemon models he'd been working on, similar to the ones he'd built for the arena and theatre being used for the IPL. They appeared to be in good condition, so he knew that hunters hadn't made it into the tower just yet. If he could pull this off, they wouldn't be getting in at all.

At the end of the hall, Clemont turned, glancing briefly at the door that led into the battlefield. He noticed Luxray doing so as well and smiled at him. "We'll be able to have a normal gym battle soon, Luxray." The Gleam Eyes Pokemon nodded, eyes going to the other door that Clemont was in front of. The one that would lead to his underground workshop. He had a smaller one at the top of the tower, but this one was for larger projects, much like what they were about to do. "Let's go."

As they headed down and into the workshop, Clemont noticed a problem right away. It was quite dark, and normally, a few lights would be for on the various machines that would be in use. He had assumed this would be the case, but he had hoped that the hunters wouldn't have messed up his power supply. He looked up as he noticed something coming towards him and Luxray. The Gleam Eyes Pokemon moved forward in a protective stance, but fortunately, it wasn't an enemy.

"Sir!" Clembot cried out excitedly. "I am very glad to see you are safe. When I saw that the hunters had begun attacking, I brought the Pokemon that were with me down here and did my best to encrypt your secret files. The power has been going on and off, however, so I'm not sure how secure everything is."

Clemont nodded, glancing at some of the computers and Pokemon models in the room. They would definitely need a power boost. Fortunately, he had a generator he could use before he could get things up and running. And, hopefully Elekid would be helping Korrina clear the signal interference before he could help power the tower for Clemont's own. "It's all right, Clembot, we can make this work. I need you to get the monitors up and running as soon as possible. Once we have enough power, I need to make sure we can broadcast a signal in here, before we can send it out to the city. Got it?"

"Yes sir!" Clembot said, saluting awkwardly with his metallic arm. He then aimed his arm out, firing out three pokeballs, releasing Heliolisk, Magneton and Magnemite. "Perhaps these three can help Luxray with the power."

"Good idea," Clemont said, smiling and adjusting his glasses as he moved towards his main computer, while Clembot rushed towards a row of monitors. "Okay, Luxray, I need you to use Electric Terrain. Try to channel it into the generators first, and then send it out through the wires. We'll power up this room first."

"Luxray!" Luxray answered, standing straighter as he began to glow in a yellow light, electricity beginning to spark along his body.

It wasn't as fast as Clemont would have liked, but he and the others worked efficiently, and step by step, he could see things falling into place. When Luxray began powering things up, the lights came on fairly quickly, making it much easier to see and operate the equipment. After that, Clembot managed to get the monitors up and running, making Clemont's work much easier as he began to boot up his computers and connect them to the server in the lab. Once that was running, he connected one of the monitors to a camera at the top of the tower, allowing him to see Korrina's progress.

"Lucario, hit 'em with Metal Sound!" she was shouting as the screen showed her atop the tower, pointing out a group of Noivern who were eyeing her, Lucario and Elekid. "Elekid, Thunderbolt!"

Clemont smiled as he looked at one of the other monitors that was showing a fuzzy screen that was projecting the signal that Raphael had sent out. It seemed to ripple somewhat, and for a moment it looked to be showing whatever regular programming would have been on for that specific channel. It wouldn't be long before Korrina had the signal cleared up so Clemont could send out his own.

He didn't focus too much on Korrina, ensuring his end was secure. He couldn't help but glance at the monitor every now and then, though, wanting to make sure she was okay. Of course, few people could handle themselves the way Korrina could, and the Noivern, Crobat and other fliers were quickly darting away, nursing their injuries or looking too exhausted to continue. When Elekid was firing his Thunderbolt into the tower, Clemont was nearly done with his own work as well, typing away on his computer to load up the program for his Pokemon models, before adjusting a camera so it centred on him.

It was a bit intimidating, readying himself for broadcasting a message to the city, but he knew he had no choice. People were scared, and they needed to have hope to fight back. Clemont was ready to give them some. And perhaps an extra reason to fight, too. He clicked on final button, and a moment later, a monitor in the lab flashed, showing an image of his face, with Luxray and the other electric types in the background, no longer needing to power up the generators, with Clemont having cleared up part of the interference that was targeting the connection to the power plant. The image would hopefully be getting broadcast throughout the city, and from what Clemont could see of Korrina, she had Elekid and Lucario boosting the signal with the tower pretty well with Thunderbolt and Metal Sound.

"People of Lumiose City," Clemont started, voice shaking a little bit. He saw Korrina look up, apparently able to hear his voice. He supposed it was coming through from the TV he had in his workshop at the top of the tower. He cleared his throat, making sure to sound more confident. "My name is Clemont. I am a student of Lumiose University, a member of their IPL Battle Team and the leader of the Lumiose City Gym."

He paused, glancing to another monitor, seeing an image of the area out front of the battle stadium, where Diantha looked to be leading a fight against a large group of hunters, with Wallace and Aria nearby. All had paused to look up at various monitors around them, though. He was glad to see that. His message was being successfully broadcast. Now for the hard part.

"I have just fought for Prism Tower with Korrina of the Shalour City Gym. We defeated a group of hunters attempting to get in and steal what was inside, along with a few others who were trying to stop us from getting in ourselves." Clemont was hoping that his and Korrina's success in fighting would help inspire other people, but he could see nervousness in the eyes of the people in the streets.

Luxray padded forward to stand closer to him, and Clemont glanced back, smiling as Luxray nodded encoruagingly to him. "Lux!" he grunted out confidently.

Clemont turned back to the camera, narrowing his eyes. "We can beat these hunters!" he almost yelled, surprised at how clear his voice was now. "And as the Gym Leader of this city, I vow that I will be right there with you as we beat them out of our city. Korrina and I already have some of them running scared, and I know some of our friends out there will have done the same already. Who are they to come here and demand we hand over our Pokemon? Who are they to attack our friends? Who are they to take our city hostage?!"

Clemont realized he was standing now, but that appeared to have centred the camera better on him, and with Luxray at his side, he couldn't help but think he looked the image of a powerful Gym Leader. His cheeks heated up a bit, though, noticing on the monitor with Korrina that she was looking quite impressed with what she was hearing. He could also just see Diantha on the monitor showing the area outside the arena, and the Kalos Champion was nodding approval as well.

Another deep breath, and Clemont continued. "The Lumiose Luxrays don't back down. We've been knocked down a few times this year, and just like my friends Ash and Serena always say, we never give up!" He leaned forward, clicking a button, a loading screen coming up on one of his monitors. "We don't give up, because we know we can win. It might look like we're outnumbered, but we've got more than enough firepower to beat these hunters!"

Clemont grinned, seeing the people in the streets looking more confident. Some were even giving small cheers. He could feel Luxray tensing up next to him and glanced at the Gleam Eyes Pokemon, seeing sparks dancing along his body. He looked quite menacing, and Clemont supposed people were glad to know a Pokemon like him was on their side.

He looked back at the camera, catching a glimpse of the monitor with the loading screen as he did so. It was just finishing up, flashing green. He just needed to click one more button. "I know I'm going to fight these hunters as long as I have to," he told the people of Lumiose City. "And I hope you do as well. And if you're still worried about how strong they look, you're about to have some help!" He chuckled, pushing his glasses up a little bit, the light reflecting off of them as he did so. "The future is now, thanks to science!"

He clicked the final button, and around the city, an army of robot Pokemon awakened.

Author's Note:

Lots happened here, huh? I know most talk will be about Ash and Serena because...well...you know, but let's give Clemont props too. What a leader he is! Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed and hopefully you don't hate me too much for how long it's been. We're going to finish this thing soon. I promise!