Thanks to PKMNfanSakura for reviewing chapter 3. Thanks to mirrorkinomoto for reviewing the previous chapter.
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Chapter Twenty: Protectors of the Earth
Mahogany Town looked like the sort of place her grandparents would've loved to have lived in. The weather was pleasant; it was not hot, nor was it cold. It was a happy medium in between the two extremes. It was rather cloudy in this area, but that was most likely due to the location of Mount Mortar. Clouds were attracted to it like a moth to a light.
"Oh, hi there miss! Are you a trainer?" A young girl with a round face, and bright cheerful blue eyes approached her, a smile on her youthful face. She looked to be about ten or eleven years old.
Lyra nodded. "I'm here for my seventh badge."
"I'll go and find my grandfather then. I'll let him know a challenger has arrived." The girl skipped away. While the girl had gone off to find the gym leader, Lyra explored the town. It reminded her of her own hometown of New Bark. Both towns were small, severely underpopulated and lacked state-of-the-art facilities. The town was built to the south of a great lake, and surrounded by a large number of pine trees according to her town map.
Lyra even noticed there was no Poke Mart in the town. She regretted not stocking up items in the previous place, but how was she supposed to know there was no shop here? Fortunately, there was a Pokemon Centre nearby. At least she wouldn't have to run all the way back to Ecruteak City to heal up her fainted Pokemon.
"There she is! That's the trainer who wants to challenge you, grandfather!" The girl Lyra had spoken to earlier had now returned, eagerly pointing a finger at her. Lyra looked in the girl's direction and was surprised to see an elderly man. He looked to be at least somewhere in the early sixties.
"Let me get a look at you, girl," said the old man, walking over slowly with support from his walking stick. He stood about a metre away from her and looked down, his brows furrowed. "Hmm, yes… you look like a strong trainer…" he said, studying her like a predator watching its prey. "Lisa, get Lance. Tell him to come outside."
Lisa rushed into a nearby house and returned moments later with another male. Lyra's jaw dropped open. No way. Not that guy again. The dragon-boy with the bizarre cape fetish. "You!" she blurted out immediately. "I remember you! You're the one who tried to steal my Gible a couple of years ago!"
The guy called Lance simply stared at her. "We meet again, Lyra." His eyes studied her face for a few moments, then dropped then quickly moved back up again. "I see you decided to update your wardrobe."
"And you haven't updated yours," Lyra retorted. At least she knew what his name was this time. She didn't have to refer to him as the thief, the dragon-boy, or cape guy with the cute Dragonite any longer. Lance. She snorted. What an ordinary sounding name. She turned her eyes to the old man. "I'm here for my seventh gym badge." It felt kinda weird to be the one demanding a match – she had become so accustomed to people challenging her, it didn't feel natural to ask for a battle.
"Before you challenge me, you need to prove yourself worthy," he stated calmly.
Why is this not surprising? The gym leaders of Johto certainly made it difficult to obtain a badge. "What do I have to do?" She had faced Team Rocket in Azalea Town and rescued the Slowpoke from them. She had faced Archer in Mount Mortar and escaped unscathed. She had rescued the lighthouse Pokemon by chasing off the grunts guarding the door. And she had, of course, obtained six badges already. What else was there to do to prove her worth?
"You will accompany Lance to the Lake of Rage. Something is amiss up there. You need to solve the problem… I would do it myself, but as you can see from my age, I am in no condition to go on a trek through the wilderness," the old man said, eyes boring into Lyra's own. "Do not return until you have discovered a solution. This is your test."
Lance glanced in the old man's direction, eyebrows arched in what Lyra interpreted as surprise. Lyra frowned. "Why does he have to come?"
"I have to make sure you complete the task," Lance answered.
"Oh, I see." So, she was to travel to the Lake of Rage with Lance? That was going to be an awkward trip. "Well, we should probably get going then. I want my seventh badge." She started heading towards a random direction, then stopped. "Er, which way to the Lake of Rage?"
"Don't you have a map?" Lance answered. "We head north."
Of course. She knew that. "I was just testing you," Lyra said, trying to restore some dignity, aware her cheeks were burning hot. Not exactly the best way to leave a good impression on the next gym leader. "You passed. Congratulations." He gave her a roguish smirk, and she immediately headed towards the north, her head low.
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"She's changed a fair bit since I last saw her," Lance said, watching Lyra's retreating form. The last time he had seen her, she had been wearing mismatched overalls. She also had her hair tied up in pigtails. Now, she was wearing a dress, and her hair was styled in a bob. At least it was an improvement over her farming fashion style. But it wasn't just her appearance that had changed.
The girl had matured; he could see it in her eyes. She was no longer a rookie trainer finding her place in the world. Lyra had spent over a year away from home now – that alone was enough to force trainers to mature a faster rate than one who wasn't. The confusion, the helplessness and the nervousness was gone from her face, replaced with confidence, determination and pride. She had come a long way and experienced more than what most trainers did. Spending more time with her was certainly going to be an unpredictable adventure.
"You'll have to travel through the night to reach the Lake of Rage in time, Lance," Pryce said, eyes also fixed on Lyra. "My Pokemon become more unsettled with each passing day. You do not have much time. Focus your efforts on reaching the lake. Do not become distracted by anything else, do you understand?" Now he looked at Lance.
Lance nodded. "I'm not going to abandon Lyra in the forest to chase after Team Rocket on my own. I thought we had already been over this."
Pryce studied him carefully then nodded. "I'll keep you updated on Team Rocket's happenings here in Mahogany Town. I wish you all the best, Lance." Pryce bowed his head respectfully and returned to the gym. Lisa chased after him, after waving goodbye to Lance. Now he was alone with Lyra again, but this time there meeting had a purpose. He strode over to join her side.
"What happened at the lake?" she asked, looking up at him with curious deep brown eyes. Straight to business then.
"Team Rocket happened." There was no point in hiding the truth; the girl was going to find it out eventually.
Her eyes darkened. "Team Rocket again…" she muttered. "Everywhere I go, they keep showing up. I wish they would just leave me alone."
So, she had encountered the grunts on more than one occasion. "We have to brace ourselves for the worst. Team Rocket have established a base right here in Mahogany Town to force the Pokemon of the lake to evolve. We won't be able to stop it from happening, but we can find a way to lessen the damage."
"Where's the Champion? Isn't this supposed to be his job?" She muttered. "I keep finding myself in situations where I have to be the one to confront Team Rocket."
"You can't fight destiny, Lyra."
Lyra sighed. "That's probably why Suicine took such in interest in me earlier."
Lance almost froze. Lyra had encountered Suicine as well? What else had the girl done? He decided not to question that thought further. Pryce had told him not to get distracted, after all. His goal was simple – assist Lyra in defeating Team Rocket. "We should be careful. The Lake of Rage is home to a school of Magikarp. When Team Rocket's plan turns into action, we could find ourselves facing quite a few temperamental Gyarados'. We'll have no choice but to take them all out. On a lighter note, we could just face one."
Lyra's gaze softened. "The poor Magikarp… why would anyone want to force their Pokemon to evolve? Who could be so… selfish to put their Pokemon through that pain?"
He snorted. That was an easy question to ask. "There are many reasons. Some choose to forcibly get their Pokemon to evolve so they can become stronger quicker, and others force their Pokemon to evolve out of desperation. Not every person is a born a trainer – some have to work exceptionally hard to get to the top, while others just seem to cruise by." He looked to Mount Mortar's peak, feeling a bubble of shame rise up inside. Every time he looked at the mountain, it reminded him of the days he had forced his three Dragonairs to evolve into their final evolution.
There was an awkward moment of silence between them as they continued to travel further up north, following the only path north. The further away from the town they walked, the more dangerous the journey became. The grass was longer here which meant they were more likely to face an ambush of wild Pokemon. Some wild trainers also lurked around the forest, hiding in the shadows until a trainer crossed their path. Most of these battles usually ended in a loss for the unsuspecting trainer.
He noticed she was looking at him, studying him closely. "If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?"
"I was about to ask you the same thing."
"I turned sixteen awhile ago. I'll be turning seventeen in a couple of months. What about you?"
Sweet sixteen. The bratty age, as he liked to called it. "How old do you think I am?" Some people thought he was in late twenties. Others thought he was in his mid-twenties. Apparently, he looked older than he actually was. Anyone who took the path of becoming a dragon master had to mature faster than other trainers. Dragons were much harder to train and tougher to get along with and that created a lot of stress.
"Twenty-something?"
"I'm actually twenty but I will be twenty one in a few weeks, does that surprise you?" It certainly surprised other people when he told them that. He was the youngest trainer ever to make it into the Elite Four.
She nodded. "Yes, it does. You look like you should be older than twenty." Another moment of silence fell between them. He hoped their age gap didn't make her unwilling to work alongside with him. It wasn't that great of a gap anyway. "So that's why the old guy sent you to accompany me. To baby-sit," she muttered darkly.
"I'm not here to baby-sit. You've proven simply by reaching Mahogany Town you don't need anyone to watch over you," Lance answered, then brought her attention to their surroundings. "But as you can see, we're in a dangerous place right now. A lot of trainers go missing here. It's not a place you should visit alone. Wild trainers make their homes here."
"Why do you call them wild trainers?"
"Because they're wild?" He paused. "We call them wild trainers because they are unpredictable. They prefer to make their homes in places where their chances of escape are highly likely. These people cannot be reasoned with, nor do they fight fairly. They don't play by the league rules, choosing to live by their own ones instead. They teach their Pokemon to attack the trainer first, to weaken them so they are unable to continue the fight," he explained.
A visible shudder raced down her spine. Lance regretted his choice in words. Had he scared her with the comment about the missing trainers? She instinctively moved closer to him. That simple move took him off guard. He wasn't accustomed to people standing in his personal space, but strangely enough, he wasn't bothered by it. "Have you been up this road before?"
"A few times. I got attacked once, but Dragonite sorted them out pretty quick. Speaking of Dragonite…" He came to an abrupt halt, grabbed a pokeball and threw it down onto the ground. Dragonite appeared. "You're less likely to get attacked if you have a Pokemon at your side." Lyra summoned her Gabite. The dragon was almost the same height as Dragonite. Lance studied her Gabite. "Impressive."
"My Gabite has longer fangs than your dragon," Lyra pointed out, grinning.
Childish, but he couldn't help but grin in response. "That may be so… but my dragon can fly."
"Mine can dig holes," Lyra replied, like digging holes were the greatest things ever.
"And my Dragonite can spin around in circles…" Lance lazily replied, smirking.
Lyra rolled her eyes. "All right, I get the point. Your Dragonite is better… but just you wait until Gabite evolves again." Lance thought of a comeback, but before he could speak it out loud, he heard a twig snap. Lyra heard it too. She turned her head in the direction of the sound, eyes wide. "What was that?"
"A wild trainer… a wild Pokemon… or worse, Team Rocket. We are being watched." He held out an arm to stop Lyra from moving forward. "Don't make any sudden movements. The more frightened you act, the more likely they'll come after you."
"What do we do then?" she whispered.
"We stick to the shadows and continue moving forward. Come, this way," he said, jerking his head to the left. They moved to a row of thick trees and stood under the shadows, doing their best to blend in with their surroundings. With his black attire, he managed to fit in quite well with the shadows and dark coloured trees, but Lyra stood out like a Shiny Dratini in a sea of normal Dratini. "Quick, on the ground," he ordered, immediately dropping to the ground.
"Wha-what?"
He grabbed her arm and pulled her down beside him. "Look in between the blades of grass. Do you see what I see? Two Team Rocket grunts. They're heading towards the lake." He recognized one of the grunts immediately. Executive Ariana. The other one just looked like the typical average Rocket grunt. They were speaking and their volume was loud enough for Lance to pick up one a few words.
"…Archer's plan has failed… only one of the Magikarp evolved…"
"…It seems the Electrodes have not provided us with the power we need… we need another power source…" Ariana replied.
"…What are we going to tell Archer?"
"…We tell him the truth. The plan failed, but we will still succeed. This is just a setback. Now keep quiet, and keep moving forward. That Red Gyarados is going to be ours." The Team Rocket members continued to move forward until they could no longer be seen. Once they were out of sight, Lance motioned for them to continue moving.
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Unless she had no other choice, Lyra didn't travel through the night. When the sun went down, the creatures of the night appeared. Fighting battles in the dark wasn't a lot of fun either especially since she lacked a torch and a Pokemon that knew Flash. So when she had the chance to avoid travelling at night time, she took it. But tonight, there was no chance of sleeping in a warm bed at a Pokemon Centre. They had to reach the Lake of Rage before the Rocket grunts did something dangerous. Lyra wished the conditions were better – it was freezing. She tried jumping up and down to keep warm, but Lance told her not to draw attention to herself.
"The lake is just up ahead. We'll be there soon," Lance said.
"Good. I'm dying for some action. A battle will warm me up," she replied, more harshly than she intended. He lifted a brow, and she lowered her eyes, ashamed of herself. "Sorry. I'm not used to travelling at this time of the night."
Lance stopped. Lyra came to a halt as well. "Here, wear this," he said, removing his cape. "It might not provide the same warmth as a bed, but it will do." He handed his cape over to Lyra.
She looked at it reluctantly. "What about you though?"
"I'll be fine, now take it."
She did. "Thank you," she said, throwing it around her shoulders. Lance was right; the cape wasn't as warm as a bed, but at least she wasn't shaking anymore. But Lance was, although he was trying hard not to.
"You know, you don't have to hold it," Lance pointed out.
Lyra looked down, realizing her hands were gripping his cape around the base of her neck. "Oh… right." She fumbled around with it, trying to attach it to the back of her dress but couldn't quite do it.
He chuckled, watching her struggle when he finally came to assist. "Here, let me do it." Lyra felt his hands touch her upper back, as he attached the cape to her dress. One of his fingers brushed against the bare skin on her neck, sending a shiver down her spine. "There we go. You won't have to hold it now." He took a step back. "Hmm… the cape actually looks quite good on you."
She put on a polite smile, unsure of what to make of that comment. Had that been a sincere compliment or was that a joke at her expense? She wasn't foreign to receiving compliments of course – her mother and Ethan gave her heaps of praise, but to receive a possible compliment coming from a guy she didn't know much about? It was quite flattering hearing it come from someone cute. Wait. Did I just call Lance cute? Lyra thought, mentally slapping herself. This was not the time to daydream.
"I hope I didn't offend you," Lance said, pulling her out of her thoughts. "It's just… I didn't think you'd be able to pull the look off… but you have… and…" he paused, rubbing the back of his neck, looking a little awkward. "I'm not making matters worse, am I?"
At that point, Lyra realized she must've been frowning because he looked concerned. "No, not at all. I'm just not used to people saying I actually look good in something," she said lightly, then spoke some more. "Why do you wear capes anyway? I'm sure there's more to it than just having something to keep you warm."
"It's customary for a dragon tamer to wear a cape if they want to become a dragon master in my hometown," Lance replied. "It lets other trainers know you are serious about becoming one."
"So if I wanted to become a Pokemon master, would I get to wear a cape as well?"
He shook his head. "No. It's just something we do back in Blackthorn."
"Oh, so you're from Blackthorn then? What's it like there?"
Lance raised a brow. "I didn't realize we were playing twenty one questions."
"Just curious," Lyra replied, a little defensively. "If we're going to be working together I'd like to get to know you better."
He shrugged. "Fair enough, but you've asked me a few so I think it's my turn now." He grinned down at her. "The last time I met you, you were coming from the direction of New Bark Town. I've never been there myself, so I am curious… did you live on a farm?" His grin widened.
Lyra scowled. "I am not a farmer."
"Did you aspire to be one at the time?"
She glared. "Fashion wasn't important in New Bark. You could wear fluoro yellow shorts and no one would care."
"Were you one of those people?"
He was enjoying this. Lyra could see the amusement in his eyes. She decided to humour him. "I had a choice – fluoro yellow clothes or overalls. I chose the latter." He chuckled, and she found herself laughing as well. "You know, I think I was wrong about you. I thought you were a jerk when I last met you… but you're not actually half-bad."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"Okay, it's my turn to ask a question. Do you know the members of the Pokemon League Elite Four?"
"Why do you ask?"
Answering a question with a question. Perhaps this was a game of twenty one questions after all. Not that Lyra minded – it was a sure fire way of getting to know the other person pretty quickly, and it was quite enjoyable. "You knew the gym leader of Mahogany, so I'm assuming you must be of some importance."
He paused, looking thoughtful. "Yes, I do."
"That must mean you know the Champion as well then if you know the Elite Four."
He nodded. "I've heard much about them," he said softly.
Lyra felt a wave of excitement wash over her. Lance knew the Champion! There was once a time she didn't want to know a single thing about the Champion, but the closer she came to the end, the more curious she was to learn more. "So, enlighten me. Tell me about the Champion."
"Well, I've heard the Champion is incredibly skilled," Lance replied, expression serious. He then leaned closer to her and whispered, "I also hear here he has an excellent taste in fashion." He drew back, giving Lyra a lopsided grin. "Anyway, no more talk about the Champion. We've arrived." He tapped Lyra on the back and pointed towards her.
They were at the lake already? It seemed like they had just departed for the place. And hadn't it just been night? She could see a glimpse of the sun peeking up from behind the horizon. "It's so beautiful…" Lyra murmured. The sun was steadily rising and now its rays were being reflected in the water. She had seen the sun rise before, but never quite like this.
"Welcome to the Lake of Rage."
The name, Lake of Rage, didn't seem fitting for such a marvellous sight. But it was said the most dangerous things are often the most beautiful. The trek through the pine forest during the night had well been worth it after all. "Oh, I wish I had a camera so I could take a photo," Lyra almost squealed. "I want to show Ethan, my mum, Professor Elm… oh, they would be so proud of me right now!"
Before Lance could stop her, Lyra summoned the rest of her Pokemon then took off her shoes, placing her toes in the water. Refreshing. Her team of six gathered around her, staring at the water. Feraligatr dived in the pool, while the others stayed on the land. Growlithe, in particular, seemed scared to touch the water.
It also seemed like Lance was afraid of the water as well. He stood a few feet away from the water's edge, eyeing it warily. Lyra chuckled. It was a rather funny sight. At the sound of her laughter, Lance jerked his head in her direction, frowning. "What's so funny?"
"Are you scared of water?"
"No," he replied rather quickly. Lyra lifted a brow. "I just don't like getting wet, that's all." Yup. He was scared of water. Well, no matter, he wasn't going to spoil her fun. She knelt down and dipped her hands into the liquid, relishing the cool feel of it against her skin. Temporarily forgetting about her reasons for being here, Lyra lifted her dress up and stepped further into the water.
Feraligatr swam around, using his tail to propel him forward. He swam around in circles, splashing Lyra and Lance with a stream of water. Lyra squealed, laughing, her hair and clothes now dripping wet. Lance was less than amused though, he looked… nervous? Or maybe he was angry she was going to get his precious cape wet. She decided to move it and gently placed it on the grass then continued to splash her Feraligatr with water.
Espeon moved closer and dipped a dainty paw into the water. She jerked it back quickly, but put it back in again. Gabite and Shelgon looked at each other, as if daring the other to dive in first. Staravia sat on a nearby tree, on the highest branch available, watching the other Pokemon. And Growlithe? Growlithe stayed on the grass. Espeon built up the courage to jump into the lake, paddling towards Feraligatr.
Then, there was silence.
"Lyra! Get out of the lake!" Lance suddenly yelled.
Feraligatr and Espeon stopped splashing around, turning to look towards the centre of the lake. Lyra followed their eyes. There, in the centre was a large red serpentine creature. The Pokemon was just as large as Jasmine's Steelix, only it lived in the water and not on land. The Pokemon's jaw was so big Lyra could've sworn her house could fit inside its mouth. She stepped back onto the shore, reaching for her Pokedex to obtain some information.
Gyarados. The final evolution of Magikarp. They say that during past wars, Gyarados would appear and leave blazing ruins in its wake.
A Magikarp turned into this? Before Lyra could make sense of it, the Gyarados fixed menacing eyes on Lyra's two swimming Pokemon, letting out an eardrum-shattering roar before charging.
Lyra didn't waste another second. She ran towards the water and jumped in, ignoring Lance's protests. She swam towards her Pokemon as fast as she could, but her dress was making the process so much more difficult. Still, she persisted, intent on saving her Pokemon from the wrath of the scary red Pokemon. Espeon and Feraligatr swam back towards Lyra, but the Red Gyarados got to them first.
"Leave them alone!" Lyra screamed. "Staravia, keep the Gyarados distracted!" Staravia jumped off her branch and flew towards the Gyarados, swooping at the creature's eyes. Gyarados turned away from Espeon and Feraligatr, and attempted to attack Staravia instead. The bird flew around in circles, just managing to avoid the Gyarados's fangs. "What the…" Lyra spluttered. She felt a powerful force behind her, pulling in her in towards the mighty creature.
She looked behind her and immediately wished she hadn't. A large funnel of water stood between her and the Gyarados. The twister was spinning at such an incredible rate and generating such strong winds, all objects, living and non-living, were affected. Trees bent over, shaking violently, while the water itself moved as if it were alive. Lyra fought hard to keep her head above water. A beam of purple hit the water a few inches away from her. She yelped, and went under water as another wave came over her.
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Lance could only watch as the girl was attacked by the rogue Gyarados. She was thrashing wildly, trying to keep her head above the water. Her Pokemon were faring no better than she was – the Gyarados had created a storm so vicious not even a fully-evolved Pokemon could overcome it. Your job is to watch over Lyra, Lance scolded himself. Not watch her drown. But try as he might, he could not jump into the pool of water.
Everyone was afraid of something, the Elder had once said. Lance liked to pretend he wasn't scared of anything, but the truth was, he was terrified of being in a large pool of water. Swimming wasn't exactly one of his strong points. Dragonite looked expectantly at him. Lance sighed. "You're right. I have to go in there." He took in a deep breath and took a running leap into the water.
He struggled to stay afloat in the wild waters. Dragonite flew towards the Gyarados, and attacked it with his own dragon attack, but that only enraged the Red Gyarados further. It started to thrash, swinging its tail back and forth, creating mammoth waves. He closed his eyes as a wave came rushing towards him. It was like a punch in the face. Lance wasn't sure how water-type specialists trained in these sort of conditions. Wallace, the current Champion of Hoenn, was known to spend countless hours every day training in rough seas.
He heard Lyra scream. He could see her now, clinging onto her Feraligatr as if her life depended on it. She shouted a few words he couldn't quite make out over the sound of the raging twister, but it looked like an order to attack. He grunted with surprise as a massive tidal wave suddenly appeared. "Now Feraligatr! Surf!" At first, Lance thought she was ordering her Pokemon to attack the Gyarados. Didn't she realize water moves did little damage against other water types? The wave struck the Gyarados but it did little to calm the Pokemon. However, the sheer power of the wave managed to drive Lyra and her two Pokemon back towards the shoreline. The girl was exhausted now.
Lance lifted himself out of the water, and hurried over to help Lyra back onto the shore. He was soaking wet now, but so was she. She collapsed on the ground, panting heavily. He looked down at shuddering form, amazed. Lyra had put her own life on the line to rescue her Pokemon. "So…cold…" she chattered.
He didn't have anything either than his own cape to keep the girl warm, but it would have to do. He picked it up from the grass, and draped it over her as if it were a blanket. Her hands clasped the edges of his cape, wrapping it tightly around her. He felt strangely vulnerable without his cape on. But he couldn't worry about that. The Gyarados was still causing trouble.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" A voice called out from behind him.
He knew that voice well enough. Ariana. Lance turned around and sure enough, the executive was standing there, mouth morphing into a wicked sneer. "What did you do?"
"We forced the Magikarp to evolve, of course!" She held her head back, cackling. "But only one worked – it seems we didn't have enough power to force them all to evolve… those that didn't evolve, died."
A hot flood of anger poured through him. "What you are doing is madness! Forcing a Pokemon to evolve… it isn't right."
Ariana shrugged. "You can save your morals for someone who cares, Lance." She turned back to the Gyarados, admiringly. "Look at what we have done. We have evolved a Magikarp into the magnificent and powerful Gyarados. Can you imagine what the results will be when we manage to force the Shiny Dratini to evolve?" She grinned.
A muscle jerked in his jaw. "You stole the Shiny Dratini."
"We have big plans for her."
"Where is she?" he demanded.
Her grin widened. "Now why would I want to tell you that?" He growled. She laughed. "You know, you look kinda cute when you're mad. But fine. I'll tell you. The Shiny Dratini is now with Archer." Her eyes fell on Lyra's half-conscious form. "All we need now is the girl and our plan is complete."
"Lyra?"
Ariana nodded. "It took us awhile to realize it, but after Archer confronted the girl himself in Mount Mortar… he realized she was the final key in our plans to dominate the world. She's special. Very special. She's thwarted our plans more than once already. She's the key to finding Red, the one responsible for chasing Giovanni away."
Lance's anger evaporated, replaced by confusion. "So… is this what this is all about? Locating Red?"
"It's much deeper than just 'locating Red', Lance. Red ruined everything for us. It's because of Red that Giovanni lost interest in Team Rocket. We want to find him, so we can make him pay for what he's done to us," she snarled, spitting at the ground. She took in a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
Lance frowned. "And you think by stealing Pokemon and forcing Pokemon to evolve is going to bring you one step closer to your goal?" He snorted. "That's ridiculous, even by Team Rocket standards."
Ariana moved towards him, so close he could almost feel her hot breath on his skin. "I'd love to tell you more… but we're here to make that Gyarados ours." She stepped back. "So, if you don't mind, please step back." She strolled over to the water's edge and faced the Gyarados. "Red will pay for what he has done." Reaching down to her belt, she pulled out a pokeball and hurled it at the Gyarados.
Light burst from the ball. The Gyarados was pulled in by the magical force. The light faded, and the ball rocked back and forth. "You don't have the strength to contain the Gyarados in the ball," Lance pointed out. "It will not obey you. Gyarados will only obey the strongest of trainers, not the weak," he spat. "Dragonite!" His trusty Dragonite landed beside him, wings outstretched.
Ariana grimaced. Her pokeball had begun to shake violently now. For a few moments it shook until the ball reopened freeing the Red Gyarados. The Gyarados towered over the trainers, eyes burning like black fire. "I'll see you two down at the base." She turned around and ran back towards Mahogany Town, narrowly avoiding a beam of draconic rage.
"Sorry Gyarados… but I have to put you down," Lance said, gazing up at the creature. "Dragonite, use Hyper Be-Lyra?" The girl was standing now, tired but determined eyes fixed on the Gyarados. She moved to stand directly in front of it, trembling from the cold. "Lyra…" he said, concerned. "There's nothing we can do. The Gyarados needs to be put down."
"No," she said softly, shaking her head. "It's not Gyarados' fault. I'm going to capture it." She threw a pokeball at the Gyarados. Once again, the Gyarados was pulled into a ball by magical light. The ball rocked back and forth, shaking violently like it had with Ariana. Lance was beginning to have his doubts now – Lyra might have proven herself to be strong enough to obtain six badges, but did she have what it took to tame a Red Gyarados?
The ball stopped moving much to Lance's surprise. "You actually did it…"
She picked it up, placing it in her bag. "I have no room for you now Gyarados… but I will use you when the time is right." She removed Lance's cape off her shoulders and returned it. "Thanks, but I think it looks better on you than it does on me."
He took it back and put it back on, secretly pleased to have it in his possession once again. He didn't feel so vulnerable now. "We'll have to head down into Team Rocket's base now. Are you alright with that?" He couldn't read her facial expressions; he couldn't tell if she was sad, angry, or just plain confused.
"I will do whatever it takes to stop their evil from spreading."
Her stare was hard, her voice cold. Something had changed. "You're not alone. I'll be there with you."
She turned her head sideways, giving him a faint smile. He caught a glimpse of the trainer he had met way back in Azalea Town. "Lead the way."
.
Lyra followed Lance inside a building, sticking close to his side. He seemed to know where he was going and what he was doing, so she was happy to follow. Lance stormed over to the guy at the counter. To anyone else, the guy just seemed like some ordinary shop assistant, but underneath that disguise, was a cold-hearted Rocket Grunt. "Erm, can I help you?" the male squeaked.
"Open the door!" Lance ordered.
"Wha-what door?"
Lance grabbed the man's shirt and jerked him towards him. "The door to your base. I know it's here."
The man tried to pry Lance's fingers off his shirt, but failed to do so. "I... I don't know… what you are talking about."
"Allow me to assist," Lyra said, stepping forwards. "Espeon, use Confusion!" Espeon jumped up into the table and stared into the man's eyes. The fear in his eyes faded, replaced by a misty doe-eyed look. "Where is the door?"
Lance released his grip and pushed him forward roughly. The Team Rocket grunt wondered over to the far right hand corner of the room then knelt down, feeling the floor with both his hands. They moved around a bit until they suddenly stopped. The grunt dug his fingers under a loose floorboard and lifted it up. Following that, he lifted up the surrounding floorboards until a ladder was revealed.
Lance looked at Lyra. "Are you ready?"
She nodded. "Of course."
"I'll head down first and make sure there are no grunts waiting to attack." Lyra nodded again. Lance looked at her for a few moments then pulled away. She sat down on the ground and looked down, watching him climb down the ladder. Over a year ago she had encountered Lance in the forest near Azalea Town, and now they had met again, albeit under different circumstances. It was almost like this alliance was meant to happen.
"Lance?" Lyra called down.
She did not receive a response. Instead, she heard something which sounded like a fight taking place. She decided not to wait for his signal, and immediately started climbing down. What if he was in trouble? She climbed down the rungs and soon reached the floor. She hopped off and looked around. There! Just a few feet away from the ladder was Lance… and one unconscious grunt. She didn't ask any questions – she didn't have to. Judging by the way he had dealt with the previous grunt, Lyra could only assume this one had been roughed up as well.
Lance caught her gaze and shrugged. "There are two passwords required to gain entry into the power source room. The common grunts don't know what they are, but this one here told me Ariana and Petrel know them."
"Ariana? Petrel?"
"Team Rocket executives. You met Ariana previously at the lake." He looked around, readjusting his cape. "I think it would be wise if we remained together. This is dangerous territory after all." Lyra nodded. She didn't see a reason why not to team up. They were both after the same goal after all. She remained at his side as they both ventured further into the warehouse. Fortunately, the place was well lit so it was easier to get around.
Strangely, there were no grunts present. It was unsettling. Were there cameras around the place watching their every move? It just seemed odd that the main headquarters of Team Rocket would be so empty. Perhaps they had fled the moment they heard they were coming.
"Strange. Where is Team Rocket?" Lance said, breaking the silence.
"I was just thinking the same thing."
"Perhaps Ariana warned them we were coming…" He paused, looking ahead at the junction before them. One path led to the right and the other to the left. "I hate to say this, but I think we need to split here. If you come to a dead end, backtrack and join me on the right. I'll do the same. Stay safe, Lyra." He took the right path and Lyra moved to the left.
Now that she was alone again, she realized that Lance's temporary absence had a greater impact on her that she thought was possible. She hadn't been with him for a long time, but she had gotten to know him reasonably well. It was almost hard to believe this was the same guy she accused of stealing her Gible. He was rather likable. Good-natured, easy to talk to, keen to defeat Team Rocket… all the makings of a good friend.
Enough of that, she scolded herself. Focus on finding Team Rocket. Pushing aside thoughts of Lance, she focused on the path ahead. She continued moving forwards until she spotted a double grey door. There was a buzzing noise coming from behind and Lyra knew this just had to be the source room. She glanced over her shoulder, hoping to catch a glimpse of Lance. No sign of him. She moved forwards.
"Stop right there," said a male voice.
Lyra froze.
"You're not going anywhere," said another. This was a voice she recognized – Ariana, the Team Rocket grunt from the Lake of Rage. "You'll come with us."
Lyra turned around, hands moving to her belt. "What do you want?"
Ariana, the red-headed lady, pointed a finger at her. "Your journey ends here, girl."
.
Lance soon realized he had taken the wrong path. There was absolutely nothing of interest here at all, not even a single crate. It was just a path of emptiness. "I'm glad to have finally met you in person," a voice said behind him, prompting Lance to turn around. A tall man with purple hair leaned against the wall. "Mind if I get your autograph? I am such a fan."
"Drop the act. I know who, and what you are. You're Petrel, an Executive of Team Rocket. Give me the passwords into the power room."
Petrel moved away from the wall. "Sure… but before I do that, let's talk." He moved towards Lance, palms pressed together.
"You're stalling."
He shrugged. "I have the information you seek… You don't have to stay; you can run after that girl if yours if you'd like… but then you'll miss out on my information. What's it going to be, Champion?" he drawled, eyes boring into Lance's own dark eyes.
Lance hoped Lyra was safe. She was strong enough to hold her own against one Rocket member, but an executive as dangerous as Ariana? He sighed. "Fine. I'll stay. Why do you think Lyra is the key to finding Red?"
Petrel's smirk widened. "Straight to business."
"Just get to the point."
"Lyra stopped Proton at the Slowpoke Well. At first, we thought she might have just gotten lucky, but when it happened again… we knew she was the one. She managed to drive off two of our strongest grunts in Olivine's lighthouse a few months ago. She defeated a grunt in Ecruteak City. She's more than just your average trainer, and Archer noticed that when he met her himself in Mount Mortar," Petrel said, moving closer.
"And the point is?"
"Come on, Champion. From all the things I've heard about you, I thought you might be smarter than this." Lance remained silent. Petrel sighed. "Every year, a handful of trainers are born, right? Some will go on to be great trainers and others will fail. Only a small percentage of them go on to achieve greatness, yes?" He pointed at Lance, circling him. "Then there are trainers like Red. Masters of Pokemon. A prodigy, some would say. They come from nothing yet they go on to forge a legend that will last forever."
"You are calling Lyra a prodigy?" It would make sense. Her skills were improving at a dramatic rate.
"Archer sees it now. She's following in Red's footsteps. She'll lead us to him, and we'll be able to get our revenge."
Lance narrowed his eyes. "What makes you think Lyra will want to seek out Red?"
"People are drawn to greatness. Why do you think you have so many fans?"
"No one knows where Red is. If someone knew, don't you think the media would've reported it? He remains hidden because he doesn't want to be found."
Petrel shook his head. "Perhaps he wants to be found but remains hidden, waiting for another true champion to reveal themselves. The legendary beasts were released for a reason – to find the next true champion."
"Lyra's strong and smart enough not to bend to your will. She'll never help you."
Petrel threw his head back and laughed. "She already has. She's revealed to us through her actions, that she is the one. Archer let her leave unscathed because he knew she was special. He knew she would return. Everything happens for a reason, Lance. Why do you think you and I are here in this room having this discussion?"
Had his grandfather always known Lyra was a special trainer? He frowned, troubled. "So why is Archer forcing Pokemon to evolve? Does he think that will bring Lyra to him?"
"Originally, the plan was to find a way to contact Giovanni again so we could show him that Team Rocket is determined to carry out his wishes. Cutting off Slowpoke tails, forcing Pokemon to evolve… it was all our way of attracting global attention so Giovanni would notice us. But Giovanni has yet to reveal himself, so we've had to… alter our plans slightly. Now it's about finding Red. Once we find and defeat him, Giovanni will return."
"That will never happen."
"And people thought Team Rocket was believed to be defunct after Giovanni left." He lifted his hands. "But, as you can clearly see, we are well and truly alive. All we need now is for Lyra to lead us to Red."
Lance glared. "You will not have her."
Petrel pointed a finger at his face, his lips curved in a mocking smile. "You can't protect her forever, Champion. One of these days she'll simply… just disappear like Red did all those long years ago." He chuckled. "It was Red's destiny to protect the region… and now it will become hers. Oh, by the way? I don't know the passwords. Ariana does. Now if you will excuse me, I have someplace else to be." He tried to walk past Lance, but the dragon master blocked his path.
"I'm not letting you leave."
Petrel hissed, eyes narrowing into slits. He charged, but Lance managed to evade the attack. Usually, he let his Pokemon do the fighting, but sometimes some matters could only be resolved with an old fashioned fist fight. Fortunately, Lance had picked up a few techniques whilst he had been studying under Chuck – knowing a few basic moves were necessary when it came to grappling with dragons.
Petrel attacked again, this time trying to land a punch at an eye. Once again, Lance evaded the attack, but in doing so, accidentally tripped and landed on his back. Petrel pounced. "You will not destroy our plans, Champion," he spat, saliva dribbling down the side of his mouth. Gross. Lance acted immediately, and struck him in the nose, hard enough to cause Petrel to yelp. He rolled off Lance, clutching his nose, which had begun to bleed.
Lance scrambled away, then stood up, panting. Blood was seeping through Petrel's fingers now and onto the floor. Tiny puddles of blood formed around his feet, but the man was still eager to carry on fighting. The fight wasn't over yet, and knowing Team Rocket, Lance knew Petrel was going to fight dirty. They circled each other. "You should be letting your Pokemon fight."
"I know I'm not strong enough to defeat you in a Pokemon battle," Petrel spat, forcing more blood onto the ground. He wiped his nose. "You should know we don't fight by your rules. We'll do whatever it takes to win." He edged forward, wiping blood away from his nose again.
"Team Rocket failed before. You will fail again."
Petrel sneered. "That's where you're wrong."
The Rocket executive moved forward, and before Lance could defend himself, he heard the sounds of a woman issuing threats from another part of the warehouse. Ariana. Lyra was in trouble. Temporarily distracted, Lance left himself open to an attack. Petrel tackled him into the nearby wall, smacking his head against it. Lance groaned, and attempted to swing a punch, but Petrel pinned his arms against the wall, prohibiting him from doing anything with them. Lance tried to free himself, but Petrel held him firmly, his hold unrelenting.
"Dragonite, use Hy-" Petrel clamped a bloody hand over Lance's mouth preventing him getting the rest of the words out. Dragonite stood a couple of feet away, waiting for his command. He would not attack unless he knew it was safe to do so or he had been commanded.
Petrel shook his head. "I wouldn't do that if I were you… one powerful beam like that and you'll cause this place to explode," he whispered, withdrawing his hand. "Good. You're going to let me leave." He removed his hands. For a split second, Lance thought Petrel was going to walk away like he said, but then he spoke again. "But I can't take any chances so I have to put you down at least temporarily, so my friends can finish your pet off." That's when Petrel slammed a knee just beneath the centre of Lance's pokebelt. He dropped to the ground like a sack of bricks while Petrel walked away, his cold laughter ringing in the air.
Fiery pain consumed him. He lay there on the ground, all curled up, desperately fighting hard to keep tears at bay. Lyra was in trouble. He had to get to her. But try as he might, his body refused to move. Dragonite waddled over, peering down at his master. He crouched down so Lance could climb on aboard. He clung onto Dragonite's scales, and somehow found the strength to lift himself up onto his back, then collapsed in a heap. "Find Lyra," he said in between gasps.
Dragonite nodded, launched himself into the air, and flew through the corridors, keeping close to the ground.
.
There was no escape. The two grunts had backed her into a corner. She had to fight her way through this one. Think of this battle like any other battle, she told herself. She summoned her first Pokemon. Espeon. She reached down for another pokeball when someone else called out. "Hold it right there!" Lance… on a Dragonite? He climbed off and limped towards her, looking as though he had been in a fight. "Ganging up one trainer? That's so unfair! Allow me to join in!"
Lyra didn't ask questions. Now wasn't the time. It was time for battle and she knew she was strong enough to take on Ariana and the other grunt, but perhaps this battle would give her a chance to learn more about Lance's battling technique. "Espeon, use Psybeam on Grimer!" she ordered. Psychic-type attacks did great damage against poison-types. Grimer fainted.
"Use Dragon Tail!" Dragonite roared, and swung his tail, smacking the Arbok in the face. The cobra fainted immediately.
"Gloom!"
"Drowzee!"
"Use Dragon Tail, Dragonite!"
"Psybeam on Gloom, Espeon!"
Two more Pokemon fainted. For a Team Rocket trainer, Ariana wasn't very strong. Lyra couldn't shake off the feeling this was intentional though. Were they stalling? Wasting time on purpose? Or testing her to work out her strengths and weaknesses? It was too late to back off now though. The nameless grunt dropped to the floor. Ariana hissed. "You think you've won this battle? It's not over until we say it's over. Murkrow!"
A tiny cutesy avian appeared. The tufts of feathers sitting on its head looked like a hat. "Dragon Tail!" And just like that, the Murkrow fainted.
Lyra turned to Lance, frowning. "Hey, that was mine."
He gave her a sheepish grin. "Sorry." He turned his gaze on Ariana. "Step aside, Ariana. You're finished. The experiment on the Lake of Rage has failed. Give us the passwords."
"Slowpoke Tail and Raticate Tail. Shut down the power source here. It's no longer of any use to us. This was just a trial, an experimentation." She turned to look at Lyra, gaze hardening. "I'll see you again, I'm sure of it. You can't just keep your nose out of trouble, can you?" She then turned to Lance. "And you. Go back to your job. This isn't about you." She hurried away.
Lyra entered in the passwords and the door opened. "Oh my…" There were six Electrodes, three on either side, attached by many wires to a large device in a glass box. The power source. The object responsible for forcing a poor Magikarp to evolve. She could feel the rage of her Pokemon from their pokeballs.
Lance looked at the Electrodes sadly. "We have to make them faint. It's the only way we can safely free them from their wires," he said, as Lyra gave him a surprise look. "I don't like, but we don't have another option. It won't take much to cause them to faint though, they're already severely weakened. I'll take the three on the right; you deal with the ones on the left." He slowly made his way to the opposite side of the room while Lyra headed to the left.
She summoned Gabite and Shelgon to assist Espeon in causing the Electrodes to faint. The Electrodes were defeated easily enough as Lance had predicted. Lance stood in front of the control panel and pushed a few buttons and the power turned off. With it no longer running, Lyra and Lance set to work in freeing the Electrodes from their wires. "Should we take them to the Pokemon Centre?"
"I'll sort things out there. You head to the gym. Pryce is expecting you."
Lyra frowned. "So I guess this is goodbye?"
"For now, yes," he answered, nodding. He almost looked sad.
"But you're hurt."
"Nothing I can't handle. We will meet again, I promise." Lyra wasn't convinced. He jerked his head towards the door. "Once you defeat Pryce, you'll want to head to Blackthorn. Oh, take this before you go. You'll need it. This is the potion containing the move, Whirlpool." He gave her a clear blue potion. "Take care, Lyra. It's been a pleasure fighting alongside you."
She walked over to him and gave the trainer a hug, which caught Lance by surprise. He had come to her aid twice now, once at the lake and here inside the warehouse as well. She didn't have anything to offer him, other than a hug. She then pulled back. "Don't say anything. You look like you needed one. Thank you for everything, Lance." He was still too shocked to form a coherent sentence, so he just nodded. Lyra headed towards the entrance, feeling a great sense of loss. Lance had said he would meet her again and she hoped it would be soon.