POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES
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Chapter 36 - Quest Island Panic
The air was simply brimming with excitement. The experiment was finally going to come to a conclusion, and hopefully, Team Rocket would soon be able to control that mysterious Pokemon and use it to eliminate those nosy kids once and for all! The coccoon in which the creature had been sheltering itself for so long was finally giving way, allowing Sebastian to get a few glimpses at the new Pokemon's body... and with one last jolt that startled even the scientist himself, the coccoon finally fell apart with a loud crack, and the Pokemon inside burst free with a strange, disquieting undulating call, showing itself in all of its alien glory!
In fact, alien was just about the right word to describe the newborn creature: the form was human-like, no doubt about it, and it had a head, two arms and two legs, but that's where the resemblance ended: its body was a bright red colour all over, with a blue-green featureless face, with just a pair of white, circular eyes placed inside a pair of deep-shrunken eye sockets, and a vertical purple line where the nose should have been. Its chest was hollow, with a crystalline orb placed where the heart would be on a human being. The creature's legs were thin and whip-like and ended up in a spike-like appendage, while the arms were nothing more than a pair of tentacles, twisting around each other. It was moving in a very awkward manner, floating in the air without the need for wings or any other flying organ... and judging from the way it was blundering around, it was clear that it had no idea where it was, or where it should have tried to escape to. His slumber getting interrupted certainly hadn't been beneficial to him...
"P... Professor... Sebastian?" the Rocket grunt that had reported to the scientist only a few minutes before stammered, scared at the sight of the alien being. "What... What kind of Pokemon is this supposed to be? Is... is it even a Pokemon?"
Sebastian, who had been watching the strange Pokemon's rebirth with clear joy and excitement, slowly nodded. "Of course this is a Pokemon, you ignorant oaf! Isn't it obvious? What you're seeing here... is a very powerful and very special Pokemon! A Deoxys, an alien virus that has arrived on our planet on a falling meteor, surviving the atmospheric entry and mutating into a Pokemon in order to adapt itself to the new environment and survive! It's a really powerful Pokemon... especially thanks to its shapechanging ability! And we, Team Rocket, are definitely not going to pass it up!"
Saying that, the evil scientist pressed a button on his console... and while the confused Deoxys kept looking around itself, two strange devices, similar to TV antennae, emerged from the walls besides of it, and struck it with a powerful discharge that caused the alien Pokemon to become stiff! Deoxys writhed, in pain from the electricity coursing through its strange body, and tried to somehow free itself, while Sebastian simply adjusted his glasses and watched the scene with grim satisfaction...
Finally, after a few minutes during which the alien being had struggled with all of its might against the electric burst, Deoxys ceased all resistance, and its tentacle-like arms flopped down, while his eyes became dull and unresponsive... a sign that the alien Pokemon had fallen completely under Team Rocket's control...
"Hehehee... that's perfect!" Sebastian exclaimed. "Looks like the control system I created just for this Pokemon works to perfection! Sure, I might have to do some tweaking here and there... but for now, what's important is that it's keeping this nice little puppy on a leash! Fine, Deoxys... I'll immediately put your powers to the test! We have a few busybody trainers to take out, and I'm sure you're perfect for the job!"
The viral Pokemon floated listlessly in the air for a moment, without showing any reaction... then, it moved its head up and down as if nodding!
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Lorelei and Homura stopped cold in surprise as they saw the sky above them, initially calm and clear, beginning to get tinted in an innatural purple aurora borealis, which descended upon the island covering it in weird, discordant colours. The sky itself seemed to ripple like the sea under the eyes of the bespectacled Elite Four and the Fire-type expert...
"What... what's going on here? What's the big deal?" the aspirant Gym Leader asked. "Is this another one of Team Rocket's tricks, or something?"
"I... don't think so. I find it hard to believe they have the technology to do something like this." Lorelei answered, keeping a cool head even in front of such a surreal situation. "Rather... I'm afraid there might be a lot more than we thought around here. Team Rocket must have awakened something that was slumbering beneath this island without anyone else knowing it..."
"That's one more reason to hurry it up!" Homura exclaimed, unfettered by excessive thinking. "Ash and our friends might be in danger, if there really is a Legendary Pokemon around here! Come out, Rapidash!"
The young biker threw one of his Pokeballs, and a magnificent white stallion with a fiery red mane, a matching tail, and a sharp horn jutting out of his forehead, right between his sky-blue eyes came out of it, his iron-hard hooves cracking the rocky ground under him as he landed! Rapidash neighed and stopped right in front of his trainer, motioning to him to climb on his back... which Homura certainly was not going to wait for!
"Hold... hold on a second!" Lorelei tried to call him back, knowing all too well how dangerous the situation was going to become. "I don't think it's all that prudent..."
But it was like speaking to the wind. Without even stopping to listen to what the Elite Four had to say, Homura gently prodded his Rapidash, and the equine Pokemon neighed again, rose on his two back legs, and began running to the closest entrance to the cavern! Much to Homura's surprise, several black Pokemon resembling a bunch of huge letters with a single unblinking eye in the middle of their bodies popped out of several passageway between the rocks, in order to attack him... but the young man was not going to be daunted so easily, and his Rapidash charged right through the group of Unowns, dispersing them while shrugging off the barrage of beams of green energy that the strange creatures were shooting from their eyes...
"Gangway, guys!" Homura exclaimed, as his Pokemon kicked away the few Unowns daring enough to attack him. "I have no time to waste on you! There are people down there who need my help!"
The Unown, after a moment of stunned confusion due to the quickness with which they had been left behind, tried to reorganize themselves and attack again... but they had not calculated Lorelei and her Jynx's Blizzard attack! The Ice / Psychic Pokemon, in fact, had just come out of his Pokeball on a rather exasperated Lorelei's order... and had not wasted time before unleashing her most powerful attack on the mysterious alphabetical Pokemon! Several Unown were left frozen solid, encased in a block of solid ice, and the remaining ones had been forced to run away, at least for the moment...
"Nicely done, Jynx!" Lorelei complimented her Pokemon. "But I'm afraid we won't be able to stay here much longer... more of those Unown are coming!"
It was true - while Deoxys' strange aurora borealis was expanding itself above Quest Island, more of the disquieting creatures were popping up seemingly from nowhere, like mushrooms, and they looked like they were about to rush Lorelei and her Jynx en masse! Lorelei was fairly confident about the fact that her Pokemon could take them... but she knew she had no time to waste if she wanted to help Ash and his friends!
"Jynx!" the strange Ice / Psychic Pokemon exclaimed as she pointed the palm of her hand to the approaching Unowns and shot an Ice Beam that struck the ground right in front of them! A wall of ice immediately rose from the place that had been hit, and rose for several feet above the Unowns, who reacted by unleashingtheir Hidden Power attacks against the barrier, trying to shatter it as quickly as possible. Still, it was going to take time... more than enough for Lorelei and Jynx to lose them and reach Homura!
"Wait for us, guys, we won't be long now!" the Elite Four murmured to herself, hoping it was not too late...
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"What... on Earth is going on here? Darn..." Attila muttered as the tunnel he, along with several grunts, was in began shaking incontrollably. Both he and Hun, as soon as they were reasonably sure things were under control, had come to personally foresee the excavation, and now the blond bruiser was in a rather dangerous situation...
The grunts accompanying him were even less calm about it... and they were about to recall the Sandslash and the Dugtrio they had used to excavate, and beat a hasty retreat! "Aaaah! We... we have no idea! But we don't wanna stay here one second more!" one of them shouted, holding his hat as if that could save him from the falling rocks. "Attila, I'd suggest running away from here! Let's leave the Emerald and save our own skins!"
"Hah! Go on and run crying to mommy, chicken!" Attila grunted in annoyance as he produced a Pokeball. "Me, I'm not the kinda guy who leaves a job halfway done! Steelix, your turn! Smash those rocks with Iron Tail!"
"STEEEEL!" the enormous iron serpent appeared in front of his trainer with a powerful roar, that threatened to make the walls crumble... then, with a movement of his massive body, he sweeped the air in front of himself with his tail, striking the rocky wall that was still in Team Rocket's way! With a deafening sound of broken rock, several slabs fell down, turning into smithreens under the Steel / Ground Pokemon's irresistible power. The Team Rocket grunts were shocked at their superior's direct methods, as he seemed not to be daunted by the risk of being buried down there!
"So? Are you going to just stand there looking like idiots?" Attila roared. "Take your Pokemon and go! I'll take care of the rest!"
"But... but sir, this is too dangerous..." one of the black-clad grunts tried to point out...
"Of course it's dangerous, you dimwit! You weren't expecting to sleep on clouds and eat caviar for lunch when you signed up for Team Rocket, were you?" Attila shouted back, loud anough to be heard over Steelix smashing the stone wall with his tail. "But we're too close to the Emerald for backing down now! Keep at it, Steelix! Time's not on our side!"
The iron serpent redoubled his efforts, striking relentlessly in order to break through the rocky barrier and reach their target... while the impressed and frightened Rocket grunts recalled their Pokemon and ran away in the opposite direction, under Attila's disapproving stare. Finally, after a few more hits, Attila and his steelix began feeling a breath of air in their faces, which was a hint that they were about to emerge somewhere...
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"Pikachu, attack with Volt Tackle! Sceptile, use Leaf Blade!"
"Starmie, hit with Water Pulse! And you, Psyduck... er... try to use Confusion, if you're not too confused yourself!"
"Mamoswine, use Ice Shard!"
"We're not leaving Dee-Dee to hog all the glory! Gabite, use Crunch!"
"Nidoking, use Earthquake!"
"Seviper... Poison Tail!"
"Now, Carnivine! Bullet Seed!"
"Go, Night Sky! Shock them with a nice Thunder Fang!"
As Lance and his Dragonite dashed from one cell to the other and freed as many prisoners as they could, unhindered by the Team Rocket grunts who were too afraid of them to attempt anything... Ash and his friend were giving it all they had, and defeating all the enemies in rapid succession! Nothing seemed to be able to stop them... but Ash and his friends knew all too well that this was only a temporary diversion, and that tougher challenges were sure to come soon, with the Team Rocket executives taking center stage! Furthermore, as the battle was continuing, strange purple lights had begun to filter inside Team Rocket's underground lair, causing many of the trainers to worry. Pikachu himself stopped his seemingly-unstoppable rampage through the Team Rocket lines to look at the weird luminescence... and Miyu, who was standing close to her faithful Mightyena, seemed to freeze in place, her pale face distorted in fear, and her eyes wide. What little colour her face might have had had now drained away...
"What the... Pikachu, what's going on?" Ash asked, turning to the electric mouse in worry. Pikachu seemed to be hypnotized and out of it, and a massive and enraged Shiftry tried to take advantage of that and sneak attack him... only for Sceptile to intercept him with a well-timed and super-effective X-Scissors attack, that sent the Grass / Dark type tumbling to the ground!
"Pika... chu... pika... pi..." Pikachu murmured, bringing one of his small forepaws to his head as if he was suffering from an headache, while Ash bent towards him in order to understand what was going on.
"Huh? What's the matter with the lady there?" Ursula asked, turning to Miyu while her Gabite and Brock's Rhyhorn were holding their own against a Golbat and a Bronzor.
"I... have no idea..." the dark-skinned boy answered. All the trainers distracted themselves from their respective battles, and turned to Miyu in order to see what was going on with her. The aspirant Dark-type Gym Leader was swaying as if she had been drunk, muttering something that only Dawn, who was the closest to Miyu, managed to hear.
"He... is calling to us... ever since we arrived here... he... " she murmured.
Th blue-haired girl was visibly and understandably confused, and lightly shook Miyu in order to bring her back to reality. "What... what are you trying to say, Miyu? Who is calling to us?" she asked. "Do you hear something we can't..."
"He... he's getting closer!" Miyu exclaimed in a daze, jerking her head up as she visibly shook, to the point where her Mightyena got worried enough to nip at her skirt and pull in order to make Miyu snap out of it. The Dark-type trainer shook her head and shuddered, blnking twice while she tried to focus... but by then, all the other trainers had understood that something was not right, and as soon as Lance's Dragonite was done with freeing the hostages, he turned in the direction the small team of trainers had come from, feeling something strange coming... and alien an foreboding presence that sent an awful chill down the mighty dragon's spine!
"Something is really not right here... something very weird is going on on this island!" Gary stated, as Ash looked around himself in worry, and even the just-freed hostages were hesitating, to the point where Misty had to remind them of the situation they were in!
"Quick! Don't just stand there, you need to run away before more of those guys arrive!" Misty exclaimed before turning to Ash. "And you,Ash... what's the matter with you? Have you already seen this thing before?"
Ash couldn't help but nod. "Sure... it was during my journey in Hoenn!" he answered with visible alarm. "Brock, you remember this as well, right?"
"Sure! This is just like when we visited LaRousse City... Drew's hometown!" the young man with the perpetually shut eyes answered, as he recalled the strange event. "This is just like when Deoxys and Rayquaza faced against each other... but then, this must mean that..."
"Deoxys? What are you guys talking about?" Dawn asked in alarm, while both Jessie and James repressed a shudder...
"Another one of those weird Pokemon that pop up everytime someone decides to make another Pokemon movie?" Jessie exclaimed. "I'm not exactly anxious to meet another one, you know!"
"Hehehee... I'm afraid you'll have to make your acquaintance with it very soon indeed!" a stridulous voice answered, as a well-known Team Rocket member, sporting a short purple goatee and a sneaky, untrustworthy air to his face, came forward, a vacant-looking Slowbro accompanying him! Just a little behind, Ariana was standing along with a menacing Tangrowth... and Proton, along with an odd-looking Weezing, and Archer, who had just let a massive Snorlax out of his Pokeball, were close behind as well! But the most shocking development was still to come - another creature was floating close to the Team Rocket group, and both Ash and Brock paled at the sight! There was no chance to mistake that alien-looking being, and its cold, unnatural eyes... It was obviously a Deoxys, an alien Pokemon that was born from a mysterious virus that had fallen on their planet along with a meteor, many years ago! Ash and Brock still remembered when they had met two of those Pokemon, who were trying to meet each other and had accidentally enraged Rayquaza, who had mistaken them for evil creatures!
"I... can't believe it..." Ursula stammered, finding herself unable to keep up her haughtiness in front of such a Pokemon. "What... what kind of Pokemon is that supposed to be? I... I didn't think such a thing could even exist!"
"And instead, as you can see... it does exist, and it will become one of Team Rocket's best weapons!" Prof, Sebastian said, emerging from the darkness, an hand raised and an index finger pushing his glasses on the bridg of his nose. "Let me introduce you to... the Pokemon who cost me so many years of study, and so many sleepless nights spent analyzing him! Deoxys, the DNA Pokemon, an extraterrestrial being that somehow ended up on Earth in the form of a virus enclosed in a meteor! But what I truly care about... is the fact that this is an incredibly powerful Pokemon, capable of adapting itself to many environments and taking different Formes according to the opponent it is facing! And soon... you will get a sample of its power! So, who wants to see Deoxys' powerful first-hand?"
"It was him..." Miyu stated as she looked at the mysterious alien Pokemon. "It was him who was calling out to me... I don't know how I did it... but I did hear him! There is no mistaking it!"
"Might..." her faithful Mightyena growled, baring her teeth to the mighty Deoxys even though she knew she was horribly outmatched, in spite of her Dark type having the advantage over Psychic...
"Oh, but it doesn't end here, no sir!" Ariana said sweetly as she motioned to her Tangrowth to get close to her, while she kept her glance on Misty. "Because, you see, we just happen to have a beef with you kids! What about it, carrot-top? Let's settle our score from that unfortunate incident in Chrono Island, shall we?"
Misty was not going to get intimidated, and both her Starmie and her Psyduck stepped forward to face the walking mass of vines! "Well, you just need to ask! And you, Psyduck... maybe you should sit this one out, okay? I'm not going to let you fight against a Pokemon you're weak against!" the redheaded Gym Leader stated, and the clumsy duck Pokemon quacked in confusion as he was recalled in his Pokeball, leaving only her Water / Psychic starfish Pokemon to face Tangrowth.
"Now that I think of it... we have a score to settle from Fortune Island as well, my friend!" Petrel stated, as his Weezing kept his vacant stare upon Brock's Rhyhorn. "We didn't fare that well last time, no doubt about it, but this time, I've come prapared!"
Brock seemed not to care about Petrel's boasting, and limited himself to giving his Rhyhorn order to stand ready... and the rhinoceros-like Pokemon grunted and affirmative as he raised his powerful, battle-scarred stone horn!
"Well, I don't think I've ever seen you, but if you want a fight, I'm game." Gary stated nonchalantly as he got ready to face Proton and his Slowbro. "My Nidoking just needed a worthy opponent to clean up the cobwebs!"
Proton shrugged as his Pokemon got ready to unleash his powerful Psychic-type attacks on Gary's Nidoking. "Well, I don't really care one way or another. Come and get us, if you think you can handle us!"
"Which means... I'm the last one to choose my opponent." Archer stated, glaring cunningly at the team... and then picking out the one who looked the weakest, which happened to be Dawn and her Mamoswine. "And I choose you, little girl! Let's see how you fare against my Snorlax."
"SNORRR-LAX!" the huge Pokemon grunted, raising a leg in the air like a sumo wrestler. For a moment, Dawn felt dwarfed by her opponent's sheer size... but she quickly got her act together and got ready to fight!
"Fine, then... Mamoswine, it's time to take the spotlight!" the blue-haired pre-teen answered. Sebastian glared at the scene in satisfaction... and then turned to Ash and Lance!
"Oh, well, well, well... the Champion of the Kanto and Johto Leagues, and the winner of the latest Sinnoh conference! What better guinea pigs to test my Deoxys' power on?" the evil scientist pompously boasted. "This is going to be fun indeed... once you fall to Deoxys, the rest of the world will see that Team Rocket is nothing to be trifled with!"
Ash grit his teeth as his Sceptile got ready... but this time, Ash decided it was time to let his powerful Grass-type rest. "Er... sorry, Sceptile, but I think you need to take a break for now!" the young aspiring Pokemon master said. The Grass-type Hoenn started frowned, looking like he was disappointed for a split second... but he accepted his trainer's call and let himself be reabsorbed in the containing sphere. After thinking about it for a second, Ash took another Pokeball out and looked at it for a while before throwing it. "Okay, I'll trust you to handle this, Infernape... you're one of my strongest Pokemon, I know you'll do your best! Ursula, Miyu, Team Rocket! Take the hostages to the exit, we'll cover you! Go, Infernape!"
"Ugh... okay, we'll settle for this, for once..." Jessie decided not to argue pointlessly. "But do remember that we have a beef with those scoundrels as well!"
"Try not to get killed, you guys! Especially you, Dee-Dee!" Ursula warned. "You still owe me a rematch!"
With a joyous war cry, the Fire / Fighting chimp appeared in front of Ash and took position in front of the towering Deoxys, hitting his own chest with his fists and spraying blazes from theflames that wreathed his fur. He looked just as ready and determined as when he was about to take down his hated former trainer, and even if it was under Sebastian's thrall, Deoxys seemed to be intimidated for a second... but this all went away soon, and the evil scientist began smirking again.
"Hmm... an Infernape, huh? Sure, I've seen what he could do at the Sinnoh conference, but do you really thin he'l amount to anything, in front of my magnificent Deoxys? Let me tell you, I have my doubts about it!"
"In fact, Ash won't be fighting this on his own!" Lance said, as he and his Dragonite joined the winner of the Sinnoh conference. "Ash, let's do this together! It might be a very powerful Pokemon, but if we double-team it, even it is going to have trouble keeping up!"
"Alright, Lance! Pikachu, Infernape, are you two ready?" Ash asked, to which the firey ape nodded an affirmative. Pikachu pointed to Deoxys and squeaked, as if he wanted to call for Ash's attention on the alien Pokemon.
"Pika pi! Pika pika.. chuuuu!"
"What are you saying, Pikachu? You think we might have a chance at freeing Deoxys from that guy's control?" Ash asked... and when the Electric-type mouse confirmed that, the raven-haired boy adjusted his hat and got ready for the battle! "Well... on one side, this makes things alittle more complicated, but on the other, it simplifies them! We'll get Deoxys free from its mind control, and then we'll see who's laughing!"
"Heheheee... you look very confident, brat!" Sebastian affirmed. "But this won't avail you against a Pokemon such as Deoxys! Have a taste of its prodigious power!"
The alien Pokemon let out a loud, cacophonic battle cry and launched itself at Infernape, performing a devastating Zen Headbutt attack, its head lowered and glowing in an iridescent aura of psychic energy! Undaunted, Infernape reared his left fist back, and a scarlet flame lit up around it...
After doing a quick calculation, Ash waited for Deoxys to be close enough before giving the order! "Now, Infernape! Stop it in its tracks with Fire Punch!"
Infernape roared and swung his burning fist forward, striking Deoxys when it as just a few inches away for hitting! A deafening blast resonated all around when the two attacks clashed against each other, sending blinding flashes in all directions, and for several seconds, the two Pokemon remained in a stalemate as they pushed against each other... but in the end, it was all resolved in a draw when Infernape and Deoxys were forced backwards. However, Infernape appeared to have felt the blow a little more, since he remained there, nursing his punching arm... and Deoxys made good use of these few seconds to change Forme, becoming wider, more clumsy-looking and more robust.
"Heheheee... as I said, Deoxys can transform to adapt to any opponent it is faced with!" Sebastian gloated as the battle raged on all around him. "This is its Defense Forme, which sacrifices attacking power for better defensive abilities! Let's see how you fare against it!"
"Every Pokemon has a weakness, we just need to find Deoxys and use it." Lance calmly retorted. "Dragonite, use Dragon Rage!"
The orange dragon spread his wings, raised his antennae above his head, and breathed out a barrage of blue flames that Deoxys tried to parry with its oversized arms... but much to Sebastian's displeasure, Deoxys' defense was useless against Dragon Rage, an attack that ignores the target's resistance. Infernape breathed out a Flamethrower attack, pushing back the viral Pokemon somewhat, and Pikachu unleashed a Thunderbolt upon it, but Deoxys managed to get away and minimize damage...
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"Starmie, use Rapid Spin! Don't let Tangrowth get a hold on you!" Misty exclaimed, trying to keep her prize Pokemon away from the Grass-type Pokemon and his crushing vines. Starmie quickly spun on itself, and managed to wriggle free of the grasping tentacles, but Ariana didn't allow it a chance to reorganize itself.
"Don't let that bother you, Tangrowth!" the female executive ordered with a nasty grin. "Use Power Whip, now!"
Tangrowth leapt up and began spinning on himself as well... then, he swept down and struck Starmie with both of his vinelike arms, slamming it upon the ground with such strength that Misty grit her teeth and shuddered in fear! Luckily, the Water Psychic type was quick to climb up again, and was ready to fight back a second later.
"Hehehee... what's the matter, red? Your Starmie looks a little out of it to me!" Ariana gloated, as her Tangrowth whipped the ground twice in order to emphasize his eagerness to fight on...
After checking that Starmie was still capable of fighting, Misty smirked back at the Team Rocket executive. "Oh, don't worry about it, were just getting started! And soon, we will show you what we are really made of! Starmie, Recover!"
The shining gem in Starmie's core glowed, and the strange starfish Pokemon looked invigoraed, despite the super effective blow it had just taken. Then, moving its many appendages, it started floating towards Tangrowth once again...
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"Rhyhorn, keep up the defence! Don't let his attacks land!" Brock called to his Rhyhorn, who was trying to get away from Slowbro's attacks. Grunting in annoyance, as he was much more used to attacking than defending himself, Rhyhorn squatted low on the ground, trying to find a way to dodge or block Slowbro's attacs.
"Hehehee... trying to defend yourself? This is kinda hard for a Rhyhorn to do, isn't it?" Petrel taunted Brock. "But you're willing to try, I will not be the one to stop you from doing that! Tell you what, it might actually be fun! Okay, Slowbro... give him a taste of your Psychic attack!"
"Slowbro..." the dull-witted Psychic type murmured as he was bathed in a strange blue aura and unleashed a discharge of mental energy towards the rocky rhinoceros, pushing him back for several metres and shattering his Protect. Then, before the Ground / Rock type could get his act together and attack again, Slowbro used another attack, this time a powerful Water Gun that struck Rhyhorn in the face and caused him to roar in pain and distress. However, Brock was not the kind of person to give up that easily... he knew his Rhyhon still had quite a few moves to use, and he was going to make use of them!
"Fine, let's take another approach, then..." the dark-skinned young man answered. "Rhyhorn, stop him in his tracks with a Rock Slide!"
The scarred rhinoceros-like Pokemon grunted an affirmative, and his slit-like eyes lit up as he stamped his wide feet on the floor! A barrage of fist-sized rocks fell down from the ceiling and rained down upon Slowbro, who desperately tried to defend himself using the shellfish that had attached itself to his tail... but even so, he was unable to completely avoid damage, and he was slammed several times and brought to his knees! "Excellent, Rhyhorn! Now... keep attacking with Strength!"
Rhyhorn was more than happy to oblige, and after taking a little bit of wind-up, he launched himself at Slowbr with all of his strength, hitting him with his horn and causing his opponent to wobble dangerously! However, Slowbro managed to stay on his feet, and Petrel grit his teeth in irritation.
"Hmph... I have to admit that, kiddo, you're not halfway bad. But this is just a sample of what my Slowbro can do... and now, the kiddie gloves are off! Get ready, Slowbro! We're giving it all we've got now!"
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The battle between Gary's Nidoking and Proton's Weezing was getting nowhere fast - both Pokemon were resistant to each other's attcks and seemed to be evenly matched in strength, and neither seemed to be able to inflict a decisive blow upon the other. Even Nidoking's powerful Earthquake attack wasn't going to be any good against Weezing and his Levitate ability, and the gas-filled Pokemon could not envenom the final form of a male Nidoran with his noxious fumes. However, of the two trainers, Gary seemed to be able to better keep his cool, even as Weezing resorted to direct attacks to break through Nidoking's defences.
"Now Nidoking... attack him with Double Kick!" the young trainer-turned-reseacher stated. Nidoking waited for the gas-filled Pokemon to close the distance somewhat... then, he dodged the Body Slam Weezing was about to hit him with, and struck back with a vicious pair of kicks, one of which lifted Weezing in the air some, with the following one sending the Poison-type flying towards a wall! Weezing grunted in surprise and pain, but managed todo a spectacular maneuver in midair in order to face his opponent once more!
"Heh... my Weezing won't go down that easily! And now... Weezing, counter with Flamethrower!" Proton ordered wih a malicious grin, which the Poison Gas Pokemon repeated in an eerie manner. Then, Weezing lowered himself a little, took a deep breath, and blasted Nidoking with a torrent of crimson flames that erupted from his open mouth, causing the Poison / Ground type to flinch and fall to the ground with a pained grunt!
"Take care, Nidoking!" the young man exclaimed, while his Pokemon got up, nursing a slight burn on his left forearm. Weezing regarding his opponent with mocking grin on his usually dour faces, as he gained a little more altitude and got ready to attack again. "Heh... you Team Rocket guys sure don't hold back! I didn't think they had such skilled trainers in their ranks." Gary stated, getting his sarcastic tone back.
"And this is just the beginning of what my Weezing can do!" Proton smirked as he adjusted his black hat on his head. "Your turn again, Weezing! Hit him with Double-Edge, now that he's weakened!"
"Weak or not... my Nidoking is still more than a match for you!" Gary replied. "Don't get intimidated, Nidoking, I know you're stronger than that!"
Despite the pain in his scalded arm, Nidoking trusted his trainer and successfuly defended himself, batting away Weezing before the gas-filed Pokemon could reach him... and the battle was on again...
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"Mamoswine, use Ice Shard!"
"Snorlax... Body Slam!"
Both massive Pokemon launched themselves at each other and clashed violently, with Dawn's Mamoswine sporting a thin veil of ice covering his tusks, and Snorlax using his enormous belly as a battering ram! The clash was tremendous, to the point where both trainers could feel the earth shaking under their shoes as Mamoswine and Snorlax ran into each other...
But as powerful as Dawn's Mamoswine was, the senior Team Rocket executive's Snorlax was definitely better trained, and had managed to put a lot more oomph in his Body Slam attack. The enormous boar flinched as he bellowed in pain, and dropped down on is hind legs, with the blue-haired pre-teen running to her Pokemon in order to see if he was alright...
"Mamoswine, how are you?" Dawn asked. "Man, what a powerful blow... but how is it that he managed to resist our Ice Shard attack?"
"SWIIIINE!" the massive boar grunted, getting ready to attack again... but with a gesture of her arm, Dawn motioned for him not to rush headlong.
As Snorlax stood on guard again and patted his massive belly, the Rocket executive combed his hair back and answered Dawn's question. "It's all very simple, actually, little girl... Snorlax's special ability, Thick Fat, allows him to withstand high or low temperatures... which means, he takes less damage from Fire or Ice type moves! And unless I'm wrong, your Mamoswine's Ice Shard is an Ice-type move! Hehehee... and now, let's see if your Pokemon can withstand this! Come on, Snorlax! Trample her with a Rollout attack!"
With a grunt, Snorlax took a few steps forward before curling into a ball and launching himself at Mamoswine, transformed into a rolling ball of muscles and fat! Alarmed, the gigantic boar tried to move aside, but he was too slow in doing so, and he was struck on the side by Snorlax's immense weight, causing him to lose his balance! The fat sleepyhead Pokemon rolled backwards for a while, trying to attack his enemy with even greater power... but this time, both Dawn and her Pokemon were ready for him!
"Alright, if his is how you want it..." the blue-haired girl told herself. "Mamoswine, use Endure! I know you can do it!"
Trusting his trainer's judgement, Mamoswine planted his massive legs on the ground and lowered his huge tusks, putting himself in a defensive position in order to withstand the dreadful impact. With a frightening slam, Snorlax hit his opponent head-on, with even greater power than the earlier Rollout... but this time, Mamoswine managed not to be dragged off, and remained anchored to the ground, while his opponent rolled away to try another time...
"Now, Mamoswine! Use Earthquake!" Dawn exclaimed. The mammoth-boar stood on his rear legs, than landed, shaking the ground with his terific weight and sending a powerful shockwave straight at the still-rolling Snorlax, who could do nothing to withstand the hit! Much to Archer's disappointment, the Normal-type was hit and propelled upwards by the sheer power of Mamoswine's Earthquake attack, and while he flailed in midair, trying to regain his fighting position, a nasty glint appeared the mammoth-boar's eyes as Dawn gave a new order!
"And now... Avalanche!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed crisply. Mamoswine quickly moved his head from one side to the other, and a powerful hail of jagged pieces of ice fell down upon Snorlax, mercilessly striking him in mid-air! In the face of such a relntless attack, even Snorlax's Thick Fat ability couldn't do all that much... and in fact, only a few moments later, Snorlax was violently slammed on the ground and repeatedly struck by the falling blocks of ice, becoming stunned for a few seconds as Archer grit his teeth in annoyance.
"Nicely done!" Dawn cheered. "Then, I was right... Avalanche becomes more powerful if the Pokemon using it has just taken damage... and that Earthquake was just what I needed to launch Snorlax up in the air, where I was sure he could not defend himself! Great job, Mamoswine!"
"MAMOOOOO!" the giant boar trumpeted in approval. Archer furrowed his brow, as his Snorlax uneasily stood back on his feet...
oooooooooo
"Hehehee... what's the matter? Not feeling so confident now? You have no defence in front of Deoxys' metamorphic powers, huh?" Sebastian asked mockingly, seeing that Ash's Pikachu and Infernape, and Lance's Dragonite weren't doing all that much against the alien Pokemon. In fact, every time they managed to score a decent hit, Deoxys' spontaneous regeneration managed to undo all damage, and as a result, their enemy remained strong, while they began tiring out... And as if that wasn't enough, the enemy changed his shape according to the strategies Ash and Lance used, adapting himself in a few moments!
"Pika pika... CHUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he unleashed a powerful electrical discharge that struck Deoxys' chest, causing it to falter. Infernape and Dragonite followed up with a Flamethrower and a Dragonbreath respectively, and Deoxys was slammed upon the wall of the underground base... but it quickly stood up again, and Ash and Lance saw, much to their chagrin, that the damage was already beginning to heal up. "Pika..." Pikachu commented as he shook his head, hs ears perked up as if he was epecting to hear something from the alien being...
"We're getting nowhere..." Ash stated, clearly worried about the whole thing. The battle was reaching a stalemate, and was getting terribly long... "We need to find another way, or we will never be able to defeat Deoxys..."
As if the viral Pokemon had heard him, Deoxys once again changed Forme, taking on a new one that looked even more lethal and formidable, wih several spikes jutting out of several places in its body... which Ash correctly guessed to be the attack-oriented Forme. However, there was no time to think about it: another Zen Headbutt from Deoxys struck both Pikachu and Infernape, launching them away without them being able to do anything to fight back! Both Pokemon landed painfully on the floor of the wrecked room that had up until a few minutes ago been Team Rocket's prison block... and Sebastian laughed again when Dragonite tried to strike back with a Wing Attack, only to have Deoxys switch to his Defence Forme again and swat him away with a simple movement of its arm.
"Pikachu! Infernape!" Ash exclaimed as two of his strongest Pokemon slowly picked themselves up from the floor. A familiar red aura had flared up around the Fire / Fighting type monkey, a sign that his Blaze ability had activated... but considering what they were up against, even the ever-confident Ash wasn't so sure that it wold be enough to turn the tide of the battle. They needed to find another way to defeat Sebastian and the alien Pokemon..
"If only we could talk to Deoxys... or at least contrast that madman's mind control n it..." Lance murmured to himself. The dragon tamer stopped himself for a moment, as something dawned upon him. "Hold on a second... mind control, I said? Hmm... maybe there is a chance to save both Deoxys and ourselves, after all... but before that, we need to hold him back long enough to make an attempt!"
Now, Deoxys was taking on a sleeker, more dynamic Forme, obviously designed for speed, and SEbastian, oblivious to what was going on in Lance's head, gave a new order to his thrall. "Hehehee... now, let's see if you can keep up with it! Deoxys... leave them breathless!"
Almost faster than the eye could see, Deoxys dashed towards its opponents... but unfortunately for him, this wasn't the first time Ash and Lance had faced a similar attack!
"If you think you can impress us with your speed, you've got another thing coming!" Ash exclaimed. "Pikachu, use Swift!"
"Dragonite, use Aerial Ace!"
The two Pokemon struck together, Pikachu by launching a barrage of star-shaped projectiles, and Dragonite by swooping down upon Deoxys and whipping it with his overtaking wings! The DNA Pokemon's breath-taking speed availed it nothing in this case, and both moves struck him at the same time! Deoxys wasn't damaged all that severely, but it was stunned long enough for its opponents to reorganize themselves and come up with a new attack strategy! Irritated, Sebastian decided that it was time to pull out all the stops and take out all the annoyances right then and there...
"Tch... alright then, if this is how you want it... so be it!" he stated. "Deoxys, take on your Attack Forme and strike them own with Zen Headbutt!"
"That's just the way I wanted it!" Lance murmured to himself, before yelling out an order, this time towards Ash! "Now, Ash! Deoxys has dropped its guard!"
"Sure!" Ash exclaimed readily. "Infernape, attack now! Use Flare Blitz, full strength!"
As the enemy's Zen Headbutt got closer and closer, the brave monkey Pokemon roared fiercely and launched himself at the alien Pokemon, turning himself into a flaming bullet! Several ed and orange bolts of light darted in all directions when the two mighty attacks clashes on each other... and, much to Sebastian's surprise, Infernape's Flare Blitz managed to overpower Deoxys' Zen Headbutt, smashing through the barrier of psychic energy that the alien Pokemon had raised around itself and striking it head-on! The virus' eyes bugged out in an expression of pain and surprise, as Infernape dragged him along and slammed him on the wall behind it, literally putting him through the bedrock! Deoxys writhed, trying to escape the terrifying blow... but Infernape countered by putting even more effort into his attack, plunging his opponent deeper and deeper into the wall! Finally, Infernape broke the constrast and somersaulted backwards, landing close to Ash, who gave him a thumbs-up in approval!
"Nicely done, Infernape! Now that was a good blow!" the young boy exclaimed.
"Hmph... what do you think you have done?" an annoyed Sebastian asked. "If this was another Pokemon, I would have reason to be worried... but this is Deoxys we're talking about! He can recover from any damage in a matter of seconds! You are just delaying an inevitable defeat, so you'd better just give it up!"
"I don't think so!" Lance answered bravely. "Now, Ash... it's Pikachu's turn!"
"What?" Ash asked in surprise. "And... what could Pikachu do, right now? I mean, his attacks would be almost ineffective against Deoxys..."
"Trust me... a direct attack won't be necessary!" Lance answered. "But you have to hurry up... Deoxys cannot move as long as it is regenerating, but it won't be that way for long!"
"Well... alright then!" Ash answered. "Now, Pikachu! Get close to Deoxys and hit it with Thunder Wave!"
The electric mouse, still a little unconvinced, quickly climbed up the rocky wall and reached Deoxys, with Sebastian wondering to himself what that insignificant Pokemon was trying to do... and he got his answer, in the worst possible way, when Pikachu climbed on the still-stunned Deoxys' head and released a powerful Thunder Wave in its face, holding tight for several seconds! Sebastian grit his teeth once again, wondering what the point of that move was... and Pikachu jumped away, landing on his feet after a couple of acrobatic maneuvers.
"Well? What was the point of this?" the Team Rocket scientist asked point-blank. "It doesn't matter how much you manage to damage Deoxys, it just needs some time to repair the damage, and attack again! Don't you see that he can take as many of your attacks as he wants?"
"Sure... this is assuming we were aiming to overpower it, which we weren't." Lance explained. "Why don't you pay a little more attention to what your Pokemon is doing right now?"
Now harboring a bad feeling, professor Sebastian looked in Deoxys' direction, just in time to see it get free from the rocks it had been embedded in by Infernape's Flare Blitz. It was clear that the barrage of attacks had done its damage, as the alien Pokemon was not moving in that robotic manner anymore, and was instead looking around in puzzlement, not understanding what was going on and why it was there... "Deoxys?" Sebastian uncertainly called to it. "Deoxys, can you hear me? Are you alright? Now, resume attack! Take your Attack Forme and smash them to paste, now!"
But the DNA Pokemon did not react as the evil scientist wanted it to. Deoxys lowered its gaze, as if asking itself how that pitiful human dared order it around... and in a moment of pure terror, Sebastian saw that Deoxys' eyes had lost that robotic gleam, and that he had lost control of the mighty creature! "W-what? This... this cannot be! You... you broke my mental control over Deoxys? How... how did you manage to do that?"
Ash was asking himself the same question, in fact, even though he had correctly guessed that it was thanks to Pikachu's Thunder Wave attack... and luckily enough, Lance provided an explanation. "It's all quite simple, in fact... all mental control devices you of Team Rocket use to gain control over Pokemon are, in fact, based upon electricity. Long story short, they alter a Pokemon's nerve pulses and force them to obey your orders. thought that trasmitting another electrical shock directly to Deoxys' nervous system might have been enough to cancel the mind control, possibly using a moderate-voltage attack such as Thunder Wave. I'm glad to see I was right on the money." The dragon tamer affirmed with a slight smile.
Ash, Pikachu and Infernape nodded, impressed by the Kanto Champion's quick thinking... but the explanation was hardly what Sebastian and his minions had to worry about at that particular moment, as Deoxys was now free from their control and seemed not to have taken kindly to the liberties Team Rocket had taken with it! The four executives, without caring whether they were winning or losing their fights, interrupted everything they were doing and turned to Sebastian.
"This is bad... we cannot control Deoxys any more!" Archer exclaimed, recalling his Snorlax just as the sleepy Pokemon had received a barrage of blows from Dawn's Mamoswine. "Professor, we're done for at this point! We have to think of salvaging what we can!"
"Wait... wait a second!" the Team Rocket scientist tried to protest, with Ariana and Petrel already dragging him along. "We... we cannot give up such a Pokemon! Do... do you understand what we'd be missing out on? We need to recover control of Deoxys, right now!"
"And how? By hypnotizing him with a pendulum?" Petrel snarked. "To heck with it... for now, we have both the Ruby and the Emerald! It's an acceptable result, we'll recover the rest later on!"
"Right, for now, we have to make ourselves scarce!" Proton stated. "Weezing, cover our retreat with Smokescreen!"
The gas-filled Pokemon breathed in, and unleashed a deep cloud of noxious fumes that clouded everybody's vision, forcing them to fall back, powerless to do anything as Team Rocket got away amidst much protesting from the outraged Sebastian. In all the chaos, the sound of the evacuation warning was heard... and when the stinking cloud dissolved a few seconds later, Ash and his friends could only glare as they were left, along with Deoxys, in the desolate room in which Team Rocket used to keep their prisoners. The young boy snapped his fingers in frustration, disappointed for letting the executives escape once again.
"Darn!" he exclaimed. "Just a little more and we would have caught them!"
"Pika chu!" was Pikachu's annoyed commented, as the yellow mouse kept his fists on his hips and glared at the place Sebastian was standing upon. Even Misty, Brock, Gary and Dawn weren't very happy about letting the Team Rocket commanders get away like that...
Still, Lance didn't seem to mind that as much, and after recalling his Dragonite and complimenting him for his behaviour during that fight, he looked in Deoxys' direction: the viral Pokemon, now uninterested in taking its revenge on Team Rocket, was now giving Ash and his friends all of its attention, and was regarding them as if trying to decide what to make of them. Sure, it didn't look quite as angry, and in fact, it even appeared friendly...
"Erm... Deoxys, right?" Misty nervously stated as she and her Starmie approached the alien Pokemon. "We... are sorry for what happened! You had been captured by Team Rocket, and they were forcing you to do what you didn't want to do... but you're free now!"
The alien Pokemon regarded Misty with a curious expression on its nondescript face, before looking at Brock and his Rhyhorn, Dawn and her Mamoswine, Gary and his panting Nidoking... and finally, at Ash, Pikachu and Infernape, who were all standing in front of it with a slight smile. There was something peculiar about all of them, something that the space Pokemon, even with its supernatural senses, could not easily define. Something really unique, especially in that boy and his Pikachu. Sure, Deoxys hadn't seen many human beings in his life, but those ones had really left an impression on him...
But there was no time to say anything else. A strange buzzing sound filled the air, alarming all members of the team... and much to everyone's surprise, a bunch of Unown exploded out of their hideouts among the rocks and began swarming threateningly around them, their large emotionless eyes glaring at them in the darkness of the place! Dawn apprehensively clung to her Mamoswine, who pointed his sharp tusks at the alphabetical Pokemon... and even Deoxys seemed not to know what to make of the strange creatures!
"What... what on Earth are they doing?" Lance asked himself. "It looks like a dance or something..."
oooooooooo
Finally, just as the evacuation signal was getting louder, a final Iron Tail attack smashed down the wall that separated Attila from the treasure... and the Team Rocket affiliate, dusting himself off, stepped inside a small room with levigated walls of blueish-green marble, that seemed to have wonderfully resisted the injuries of time, decorated with strange representations of Legendary Pokemon... and there was something in the middle of the room that was far more interesting to the brawny Team Rocket agent: a large green gem, the size of a man's fist, laying upon a small altar on the other size of the room.
"Oh, here it is! And that makes two of them for us!" Attila said with a nasty laugh as he quickly walked over to the Emerald and grabbed it in his enormous hand. He was about to turn back and leave... when a large group of Unowns, seemingly coming out of nowhere, began swarming around his flabbergasted Steelix, who immediately tried to get rid of them by slamming them with his tail as they targetted him with relentless, but ultimately useless, Hidden Power attacks. The green beams were bouncing off of Steelix's metallic hide... but Attila was not about to just stand there and see whether Steelix could actually hold out that long, and wisely decided it was time to split!
"Darn, what do these things want?" he muttered to himself, gritting his teeth as an Hidden Power attack burned a chunk off the sleeve of his uniform. "Well, so much the worse for them! I ain't here for their entertainment! Steelix, use another Iron Tail! We have to keep these things away!"
The iron serpent was not about to let his trainer repeat that, and brought his tail forward in a lethal arc in front of himself, trampling the alphabetical Pokemon and scattering them around! Before others could come, Attila motioned for Steelix to followhim, and ran in the direction that the other Rocket grunts had taken just a moment earlier, hoping hewould soon find a way out...
oooooooooo
Lorelei and Homura were at the moment busy fighting a huge army of Unowns tha were advancing menacingly towards them... and even if the Elite Four's Cloyster and the young biker's Camerupt were doing a good job taking out the eldritch Pokemon, more of them appeared from everywhere...
oooooooooo
Miyu, Ursula and Team Rocket were in a similar situation... even as they had almost emerged from that maze of caverns and passages, a small army of Unowns was assaulting them from all directions, blocking their way and keeping the rescued trainers from reaching the surfce. Both the girls and the clumsy criminal trio were fighting valliantly... but the overwhelming number of enemies and the Hidden Power attacks coming from all directions had them worried...
A powerful Bug Buzz from Jessie's Yanmega managed to breach through the ranks of the Unown, forcing the disquiting Psychic-types to scatter and allowing the team and the freed hostages to run to safety... even though the strange aurora borealis created by Deoxys still hadn't faded away! Ursula and Miyu hanged back for a moment, just enough time to strike at the swarming Unowns with a Dark Pulse and a Stone Edge attack, respectively from Mightyena and Gabite... then, the two girls nodded to each other and, along with their Pokemon, followed Team Rocket and the hostages outside...
Only to discover, in the most unpleasant way, that the aurora was not the only thing darkening the skies at that moment... there was a gigantic, incredibly complex-looking skyship hanging overhead at a few dozen metres above the ground level, with several weapons mounted on the outside, shining plates of armor covering almost all of its outer hull... and a very well-known mirrored-R symbol painted on its side!
And there was no need for great imagination to understand what was going on...
"Oh, man, I can't believe it..." James whined in fear. "That... that woman is still around?"
oooooooooo
Even though Team Rocket had run away, things were still pretty confused, and even Deoxys seemed not to knowwhat to do about it. Ash and his friends kept their Pokemon close, so they could defend themselves had something dangerous happened... and yet, the Unowns continued moving around without any apparent reason to it, surrounding Deoxys like many worshippers bowing to an idol...
In the end, Deoxys decided it had had enough of that nonsense. With a shrill, cacophonic call, the evolved virus created a psychic barrier around itself, and while Ash and his friends got away in order not to get involved, it flew upwards and used a powerful Zen Headbutt, this time blowing a hole right through the ceiling and drilling through the rock, finally emerging in the feverishly colored sky! Deoxys flew upwards and, after casting a last, almost thoughtful, glance at the place where Ash and his friends were, it started rising towards the upper atmsphere, eager to return to its rightful home in space...
But the alien Pokemon could only rise so far before a beam of light, shining from above and behind it, struck it in its back and surrounded it in a yellowish aura, causing it to writhe in pain for a moment! Looking behind itself in a moment of pure terror, Deoxys saw the gigantic flying machine that had shot it, and that it was dragging the space Pokemon towards itself, as if it was an immense vaccuum cleaner! The alien Pokemon tried to get free... but despite its regenerative powers, the fight it had just come out of had drained it, and it could not oppose the pull for long. It managed to float awy some... but then, almost with a resignated sigh, Deoxys completely lost his strength, and the flying machine sucked it inside what appeared to be a containment room, with perfectly smooth and enormously resistant metal walls, under the merciless glare of several cameras that transmitted all images to the main bridge, where J and her men were watching in satisfaction!
"The subject has been secured, Miss J!" an operator said from a console. "Deoxys has been contained and will soon be placed under hibernation! It will not cause us any more problems!"
"Excellent!" The evil huntress stated. "This more than makes up for the poor showing at Knot Island! Our leader will be glad when he hears the news!"
Another operator, who was seated at another console in front of a black-and-white screen with several red lock-on sign flashing upon it, raised his head. "What do we do now with the interlopers, miss J? Do we have to unleash our new bombs on the island?"
The grey-haired woman smiled cruelly. "Of course. And since there are some... unwelcome competitors down there, we might as well make things easier on ourselves, don't you agree?"
The operator nodded wordlessly... and pressed a button, causing two large explosive charges to detach for the huge aircraft's underside and fall towards Quest Island...
...
...
*BOOOOOOOOOOM!*
A deafening blast came as soon as the bombs struck the ground, erupting in a pair of monstrous fireballs that brought down a part of the rocky mountain and sent seismic waves throughout the whole island, turning the night into day for several horrific moments... and inside Team Rocket's abandoned hideout, Ash and his friends were shaken around dangerously, huge pieces of stone falling from the ceiling all around them!
"Aaaaargh! What... what's going on now?" Misty exclaimed, her ears ringing from the tremendous explosion!
"I... I have no idea!" Brock answered, as he recalled Rhyhorn into his Pokeball. "But this place can't take much more of this! We have to get out before.."
With a rumbling noise, a part of the ceiling detached itselffrom above their heads and fell down... and in a moment where their actions were only dictated by their survival instinct, the trainers had to scatter in different directions, separating themselves just in time to avoid getting crushed by a huge falling rock! Ash was forced to slip in a narrow opening between two rocks when another barrage of rocks rained down dangerously close to him, separating him, Pikachu and Infernape from the rest of the team!
"Oh no... the cave is collapsing!" Brock exclaimed.
"Ash!" Misty exclaimed, trying to extend a hand to her friend... but the falling rocks made it too difficult to try and aid him, and the distance between the two was growing. Ashhad now been forced to get away and try to find another way out, running in the opposite direction with respect to his friends... and just as he tried to hold on to a wall in order to keep his balance, he got a nasty surprise as a rather large rock fell down and struck his left forearm, accompanied by the chilling sound of something cracking!
"AAAAARGH!" Ash couldn't hold back a pained scream as he knelt on the ground, rapidly clutching his now-broken arm with his free hand, as Pikachuand Infernape immediately ran to help him!
"Pika pi!" Pikachu squeaked, holding on to his trainer, who was on the ground in pain. Infernape looked up, seeing more rocks falling down... and his blazing aura flared around himself as he prepared to smash through the falling debris...
oooooooooo
"Ugh... Ash, Misty! Brock! Gary, Lance! Where are you, guys?" Dawn called out as she frantically ran through the collapsing tunnels, dodging the falling rocks. In the confusion, she had taken a different way than the rest of her friends, and now she was lost inside that maze, with little chance to find the rest of the team as she and Mamoswine tried to get to safety! Understanding that, because of his weight, he would only be a burden in such a situation, Mamoswine asked his trainer to recall him, which the blue-haired girl rapidly did... but soon after, she was forced to stop again as she found herself on the border of a tall cliff that seemed to have opened up in front of her out of the blue! Dawn looked down in fear, understanding that the chasm must have opened up only a few moments before... it was a drop of about thirty feet...
"Ah! Oh no... now what?" Dawn asked herself as she looked around searching for another way out... which was precluded from her as another huge rock began falling towards her! There was no way for Dawn to get away, unless...
Fighting back her fear, Dawn took a deep breath and jumped down the cliff in front of herself, keeping her body as straight as possible, just a split second before the huge rock fell on the place where she was standing! The blue-haired girl heard the deafening crash of stone upon stone, and felt her stomach rise to her throat... but solid ground came earlier than she expected, and Dawn managed to land on her feet... and promptly stumbled forward because of the speed she had taken in the fall! With a yelp, Dawn fell down face-first upon the rocky ground...
For a moment, she felt like the world was spinning around hr, before everything went black...
oooooooooo
TO BE CONTINUED...
Author's Note: Wow, an almost literal cliffhanger! Hope you liked the battle and... well, if you wanna know how things will go, don't miss the next chapter of Heart Soul Adventures!