This chapter will be all about getting the characters into the positions they need to be in. It's quite a difficult spot everyone's in! The characters have been spread out all over, but with the exception of the Commander's group, they'll all start to converge around this location! And believe me, it's definitely going to be an exciting turn of events!

The Semi-Final Round of the Pokemon Academy Best Girl Contest 3 has begun! These are our semi-finalists! Make sure to get those votes in, and choose which of these girls you think should make it to the finals! So far, only three people have voted, we need more votes for the finals! You can only vote for 3, so make sure to pick your favorites!

Semi-Finalists: Ayame, Chloe, Cynthia, Elaina, Kate, Marion, Sango, Vic

KedharS: Nope, no fourth wall breaks here.

Hyphenman: Yep, Shima and Shinobu have returned! As for what they're after, well, all will become clear with time. The Children of the Oracles still have a role to play in the Orre Region, and I'm saving them for something special!

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 1018

Wes stared up at Mt. Battle and sighed. It seemed like he and Rui were always spending time apart from each other these days. And not only that, recently they'd had to deal with all these students and their issues as well.

He couldn't remember the last time it had been just the two of them. But he supposed it couldn't be helped. After all, Rui did need to take care of Shaymin… and the kids, now, too… he'd hoped that when Shaymin was miraculously cured, that would mean they'd have more time for each other. No such luck, unfortunately.

Just another month or so… then they'll be heading back. It was certainly selfish of Wes to want those kids out of his hair, but he couldn't help what he felt. And it certainly didn't help that he wasn't always the best at expressing his feelings properly. Unfortunately, that was something he'd passed onto his daughter as well.

He sighed again. He really needed to make it up to her somehow. Maybe when this whole mess was over, they could go to Phenac City for a nice dinner.

At least she gets to spend more time with Victoria… that's something to be happy about. It was nice getting to see her again. Maybe he could also…

"Excuse me, sir!"

Wes was brought out of his reminiscing by a the voice of a young man, who'd called out to him. He turned to see what was going on, and was surprised.

There were two boys. One was blonde and wore a relaxed smile, and the other, well… the other was dressed up like a ninja. He had a mask over the bottom half of his face so Wes couldn't make out much about him, but he seemed rather composed as well.

So why did the voice calling out to him sound so frantic?

"Hello," the blonde introduced himself. "My name is Rafe Crawford. This is my associate, Dokukage. And we're having a bit of a problem here."

"That's right," the black-haired boy, Dokukage, said. He'd been the one to call out. "This is an emergency. We need to contact the authorities."

Wes scowled. The authorities? That certainly wasn't good. Was this related to those people who had attacked Agate Village? A quick glance at the two of them told him a lot. Their shoes were covered with reddish-brown clay and soot, the sort of substance you would only acquire if you were walking around Mt. Battle, and not the forest side.

"What's your issue?" Wes asked. "My name is Wes. I happen to be an authority figure in Agate Village, which is just a couple of hours from here. If you'd like to come with me, I can see what I can do. Or we can call the police from the station."

He nodded down the road, to the bus station. He'd been waiting for the scheduled bus to come and take him back home, but it had been delayed.

"Thank you for your generosity," Rafe smiled. "The truth is, though, I don't believe that the police would be of much help."

Wes narrowed his eyes. "…Why do you say that?"

"It's a long story," Rafe laughed. Considering how big of a problem he and his associated were making things out to be, Wes was wondering how he could have such a cavalier attitude. He checked his watch. The bus was ten minutes late now. He sighed.

"Well, I have time. Why don't you tell me about it?"

While Rafe was informing Wes of what happened, Dokukage took a second to scan the area. Luckily, it didn't look like they were being followed. For the first time, he was grateful that his ninja training had taught him how to navigate the wilderness so well.

After their group had escaped from Samarra, Valon had insisted they take the bus down the mountain. Dokukage had agreed at first, but then…

Well, Samarra had followed the bus. Not her specifically, but Keahi and Gabrielle had pursued them, and tried to drive them off the road. It was only thanks to some quick thinking from Dokukage and the driver that they were able to shake them, but it meant sacrificing the bus.

So the five of them had continued on foot. Rafe said that the smart thing to do was to hide in the forest and head to Agate Village. He knew the way, so he'd be able to find them a shortcut that could keep Samarra and her "friends" off their tail. The driver had no idea what the fuck was going on, but he certainly made a go of it. It was commendable.

Then everything changed when Valon and Misato disappeared.

Dokukage didn't know what to make of it. One minute they were there at the rear, the next, they were completely gone. Then the bus driver vanished a few minutes later, too!

Had Samarra caught up with them? That shouldn't have been possible, he would have sensed it. He'd been following Rafe the entire time, and the other boy knew the area. They were headed right to Agate Village, so-

…

Dokukage stared up at the mountain.

This guy… what did he say his name was? Wes?

"Excuse me, sir?" Dokukage interrupted Rafe's explanation. Wes turned towards him.

"Yes, what is it?" He sighed. He was exhausted listening to the other boy's story, he could really use a break.

"You said you're from Agate Village, right?"

"Yes," Wes nodded. "I'm here to charter a bus to take me back up to the village, but it's late for some reason."

"…Right, understood," Dokukage nodded. He turned to Rafe. "Didn't you say that we were taking the quickest route to Agate Village?"

Rafe blinked.

"…Did I say that?" He laughed, tilting his head to the side.

Dokukage wanted to scream.

So those three didn't disappear! We just got lost?! DAMN IT! THAT STUPID AIRHEAD!

He couldn't believe he was so stupid. He'd actually trusted Rafe Crawford of all people with directions?! The man was famous for wandering off with his head in the clouds, and he'd managed to walk them all the way down the mountain!

Dokukage really should have known that something was up when the so-called shortcut had taken a couple of days.

Rafe had no inkling of the ninja's inner turmoil, and continued his explanation. By the time he was done, Wes needed to sit down.

First the terrorist attack… then that artificial pokemon Mewthree, that somehow Ein was involved in… and now there's a girl out there brainwashing people? I moved to Agate Village so I could live a quiet, peaceful life away from shit like this, so why has the last two weeks been spent on nothing but problem after problem?! Wes screamed at himself. It was honestly shocking how much shit he'd been through ever since he got back to the Orre Region. He knew that his home wasn't exactly the best place to live, but this was getting ridiculous.

Before he could process any of that, he got a call. It was from a number he didn't recognize.

"Excuse me for a minute, I have to take this. Yes? What is it?" He asked, wondering who could be calling him. He was surprised when he heard who it was.

"Wes? Is that you? This is the number you gave, right?" Hiromi asked.

"Yeah, this is me. What's up? Is everything okay?" Wes asked. He'd only been away from the village for a few hours during his role as escort, why was Hiromi calling him.

"No, everything's not okay," she said. "There's been an… incident."

A shadow crossed his face. More problems. Apparently, there was just problem after problem. He was starting to get a headache.

"What kind of incident?" He growled.

While Wes was busy dealing with those issues, Valon and Misato were dealing with a problem of their own. Contrary to Dokukage's assumptions, the reason that the two of them had disappeared wasn't because Rafe had gotten lost (although the fact that he had was undeniable) but rather because they had split up intentionally.

Valon wasn't in the best of condition. His arm was still busted. But he was more than capable of going forward even with that. He and Misato had taken shelter in a clearing, and were preparing to make some moves. That was the whole reason he'd left the group. Because right now, the moves he needed to make were the sort that he couldn't be making if he had those two looking over his shoulder.

But the first thing he needed to do was make a call. He'd been trying to get through to Sylvia ever since Samarra had broken free, but she'd been ignoring him. And he had a pretty good idea why.

When she finally picked up the phone, he let her have it.

"Hello? Sylvia Driscoll here!"

"Sylvia!" He growled. "What's the meaning of this?!"

"Oh? What do you mean by that, boss?" Sylvia nonchalantly asked. He could hear the munch of crackers on the other end of the line.

Valon took a deep breath and gathered himself. He knew that Sylvia was just messing with him. It was what she did, after all, playing with people was like breathing to her. So he didn't let himself get angry over it.

"I went to Mt. Battle," he said dryly.

"Oh? It's quite an interesting place, wouldn't you agree?" She asked. He could hear the smirk in her voice.

"That's one way to put it," he dryly replied. "Why didn't you tell me about Samarra?"

"Oh? What about her?" Sylvia asked. Was she playing dumb, or did she actually not know anything? Knowing her, it was probably the former.

"Did you know that she has the power to brainwash anybody that she touches? She turned Keahi, Lana, Willa, Ange, damn near everybody in our group into her servants. Just by touching them. That would have been nice to know beforehand," he replied.

"Oh, really? No way!" Sylvia cackled. "Wow, for real? That's awesome! Damn, it sucks that I couldn't be there, I'd have loved to have seen that!"

"You don't sound surprised," Valon scowled.

"No, I am, really, I had no idea she was capable of something like that," Sylvia said, shaking her head. She leaned back on her bed and put another chip in her mouth. "I'm serious. I only ever spoke to her through the glass. And yeah, she definitely had a weird air about her, but I never would have thought brainwashing."

"So you just sent me in there as what? A test dummy?" Valon demanded.

"Hey, what did you expect? She wanted me to let her out, but I thought it would be way more interesting to see what would happen if you went there," Sylvia shrugged. "But hey, like I promised, she's going to be a real thorn in Kanone's side, you know."

"I know that. I also know that she's hunting me right now. When this mess is sorted out, you and I are going to have a long talk, I promise," Valon growled.

"I'm looking forward to it!" Sylvia giggled. "But if I were you, I'd focus on getting away. Don't want that precious brain of yours being turned into a zombie, right?"

The Phantom just growled in response and hung up. It figured that Sylvia would be causing problems even from all the way in Cerulean City. But right now, he needed to address this issue before it spread out of his control.

Normally I'd just ignore it, since it has nothing to do with me. But if that Samarra woman continues like this, she'll control the entire Orre Region… and I doubt she'll stop there. Considering who she has under her control, the Pokemon Academy is in danger too… It's going to be exceptionally difficult to accomplish my own goals if I leave her alone, so like it or not, I'm going to have to stop her… damn it, I shouldn't have to deal with people like this! He cursed to himself. He'd let Samarra out because he thought she'd be a problem for Kanone, but this damn harmonia of hers…

Valon couldn't help but envy it. He was proud of his skills as a manipulator, being able to control people and get them to act the way he wanted to by putting pressure on them. But if he was a master of finesse, then this Samarra was like a blunt instrument; she just swung and hit someone, and they were hers.

It seemed like cheating.

I doubt I can reason with her… I hate to admit it, but she's probably even smarter than I am… but there has to be a way to get her to do what I want… what's she after? He had to think about it for some time. But he finally realized that there was something that Samarra wanted.

Or more appropriately, someone.

The gears in his head began to turn and a wicked plan slowly spun forth. An evil smile spread across his face.

"Misato," he said, turning to the Mechadoll. "I need you to access the network and find me a certain cell phone number.

Across the planet, Kanone Harker was in training. Even though he was one of the strongest trainers in the world, that wasn't good enough. He needed to become even stronger in order to help Gwen. There was still a chance he could bring her home.

While he was training his Samurott in the fighting area outside his family's estate, his mother watched from the balcony, still numb to the world. He couldn't be sure if she was still in there or not; he could sense her harmonia with his own, and knew that his mother was still his mother, but the fact that she never even spoke…

No, I can't let myself think that, he reminded himself, shaking his head. He picked up a towel and wiped the sweat from his brow. I'm the only one who can keep this family together.

Then his phone began to ring.

That was odd. This was a private number, there shouldn't be many people who knew it, and he didn't recognize the number calling him. But he was curious, so he answered the phone.

"Hello? Who is this?" He asked.

The caller didn't give his name. But he said something else instead. A single word that made Kanone's blood run cold.

"Who is this?! Where did you hear that name?!" He demanded. "Why are you calling me?!"

The other party hung up. Kanone flung his phone away and screamed in frustration. But he quickly calmed down and assessed the situation.

No way. It's just a coincidence… no, a prank from that girl. That blonde, what was her name again? Sylvia? That's right, she knew… so this is a prank from her… or maybe… He came up with a bunch of excuses to hide from the worst-case scenario. But the truth was, he knew.

He could feel it. The other day, he'd had an ill omen, and now he knew what it was.

"It can't be…" He whispered, turning and looking up at the balcony. His mother was still there, in her wheelchair. She was staring out towards the ocean, towards the east. She'd been doing that a lot recently, her vacant eyes turning in that direction.

Kanone swallowed his denials and lowered his head. He turned to his pokemon with a resigned look, knowing what needed to be done.

"Sammy!" He shouted, and his Samurott dutifully stood. Because of their connection, she knew as well as he did what they were facing.

"We need to go to the Orre Region," he said. "We're going to go see her."

He really hoped that he was wrong, that his little sister was still in her cage. If she'd managed to break free somehow…

That was something he didn't want to have to deal with.

Kanone wasn't the only member of the Harker family dealing with issues related to Samarra.

Gwen was curled up in a ball on the floor of the cave they were staying in. She'd been shaking and mumbling to herself for days, much to Valerie's consternation. As much as she enjoyed the suffering of others, it wasn't as much fun when she wasn't the one causing it, and it certainly wasn't fun when it was someone she was responsible for.

The reason for Gwen's condition was obvious though. It was because Ryoko had restored those horrid memories. Memories of a time even worse than she'd already lived.

Memories of Samarra.

She'd repressed them for so long. Everything her sister had done to her, all the suffering that she'd caused, and the feeling of her probing into Gwen's soul. She wanted to scream and cry and beg for Blake, but Blake was nowhere.

Her emotions were trapped inside, and she couldn't get them out properly. She hated herself right now, she needed Lancelot. But Lancelot was still recovering from his battle, and she couldn't rely on him yet. She needed… she needed…

"Big brother…" She whispered, squeezing her eyes tightly shut and thinking about Blake. "Please come find me… I'm scared…"

He always found her when she was scared. But it wasn't Blake's footsteps approaching the cave entrance, but those of someone else entirely.

All the players are assembling. The Orre arc is getting really heated now, and we're going to be heading for the climax! That being said, the climax is pretty long in and of itself, so that's going to be quite something regardless.