Previously, Jonathan had his first Gym Battle in the Aevium Region against Venam, to see if the former was strong enough to embark on the quest to help Melia. In the end, Jonathan reigned victorious and won the Poison Heart Badge.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon Rejuvenation, it is the property of its creator, SuperJanBro.

Chapter 6:

East Gearen Train station

Having healed up their Pokémon from the previous Gym Battle, Venam and Jonathan arrived at the train station, and saw Ren purchasing his ticket.

"Ah, so you're coming Venam." Ren commented, pocketing his ticket. "Glad to see that you're going to help us out."

"Yep, I'd do anything to protect Melia from those Team Xen freaks!" Venam declared, standing up straight. "I also convinced Jonathan to help us out."

"Well I was going to help you guys out from the get-go, but whatever you say." The young man replied, as he and Venam purchased their own tickets. Just then, an announcement spoke out through the speaker phone, stating that the train to Route 2 is going to be leaving in five minutes.

"Come on everyone, our rides about to leave." Venam called out to the two men, as the trio hopped into the train and took their seats. A few minutes later, the train began moving towards its destination. The three trainers began talking about what their plan was when they arrived at Route 2.

"Here's my idea, we all go together in a group, and make our way to Amethyst Cave, that way we're less likely to be ambushed by Team Xen grunts." Ren suggested.

"Nah, that's too slow. My idea is to have all three of us go our own separate ways, that way we can cover more ground." Jonathan proposed.

"I can't say I agree with your idea. While we will cover more ground, Melia's most likely going to be in the cave itself. Why bother splitting up at the route, when we can just split up in the cave?" Venam argued against the plan.

"For all we know, Melia could be hiding out in the forest, and we all assumed that she'll be inside the cave." Jonathan countered. "It seems like something she would do."

"You're not adding Team Xen into the equation. If Melia said that she'll be hiding in the cave, I doubt that Team Xen would believe her statement 100%. They'll most likely have some grunts comb the forest just to be on the safe side." Ren added. "Remember that Team Xen aren't just some ordinary organisation, they have some serious connections and powerful Pokémon."

"I know, I saw their Shadow Pokémon…" Jonathan replied.

"Shadow Pokémon?" Venam inquired.

"From what Melia told me, Shadow Pokémon are Pokémon who have had the doors to their heart closed off, effectively turning them into emotionless, killing machines." Jonathan explained.

"Exactly, which is why we can't split up." Ren stated.

"Are you forgetting the fact that Venam's a Gym Leader, and I'm a skilled trainer?" Jonathan inquired.

"N-Not at all. I was just stating that it's best if we stuck together." Ren replied.

"Look, Jonathan raises a fair point. We're all powerful trainers here." Venam supported Jonathan's argument. Just then the built-in speaker announced that the train had arrived at its destination.

"Well we're here. I'm going to hop out and stretch my legs." Ren said, hopping off his seat and exiting the train.

"Listen, I'll keep Ren company, since out of the three of us, he's the weakest link." Venam whispered, as she handed Jonathan a Technical Machine. "I almost forgot to give you the Rock Smash TM."

"Ah, thanks Venam." Jonathan replied, as the duo exited the train and followed Ren. Once the three trainers were reunited, Venam offered a proposal.

"Here's my idea, I'll go with Ren and Jonathan can go on his own. We'll all meet up at the entrance to Amethyst Cave, once we're done searching the forest." Venam suggested.

"I'm fine with that." Ren replied. "I guess this is where we part ways for the moment." Both Venam and Ren proceeded to head east of their location, while Jonathan looked around the place. Route 2 was full of cherry blossom trees that were in full bloom, as well as bright pink grass growing at the base of the tree. He spotted what looked like a small path that headed north of his current location.

"I guess that's the way I'm going" he mused to himself, as he proceeded down the pathway. A few minutes later, he was walking down the path, when he heard a woman's voice echoing from the treetops.

"Look out below!" she called out, as she jumped out of the tree. Jonathan didn't even have the time to scream, before he was pushed to the ground and subsequently crushed.

"Oh, sorry about that!" the girl replied, as she hopped off of Jonathan and helped him up. The girl was quite cute, with her bright blue eyes, chocolate coloured skin, and very long black hair that reached the back of her knees. Her outfit consisted of a long-sleeved purple shirt that was a couple of sizes too big for her frame, and a matching coloured pair of pants.

"Ahh, why'd you do that?!" Jonathan exclaimed, a little pissed off.

"You have to watch where you going next time~" the girl replied, a playful smile on her face.

"Watch where I'M going?! You're the one who thought it would be a brilliant idea to jump out of a godforsaken tree!" the young man ranted.

"Ah gee, look at the time. I gotta get going. See you." She smiled, as she skipped down the path.

"What is with this region?! The asshole to good people ratio must be off the charts." Jonathan muttered to himself, as he checked is pockets to see if he still had everything. He soon checked his wallet and discovered that at least 5,000 Pokédollars was missing.

"That mother—"Jonathan growled to himself, as he ran down the path in the hopes of catching up to the thief. After a few minutes of running, the young man eventually caught up to the girl, who was busy staring at a rather large rock blocking the stairway.

"Hmmm…what to do in this situation…" she mused to herself, aware that the young man had caught up to her.

"You can start by giving me my money back." Jonathan suggested, as the young girl turned around and saw him standing a few feet in front of her. The young girl giggled, as she was enveloped in a purple aura, before disappearing from his sight. "Now where'd you go?!"

"Sorry dude, but you gonna need Rock Smash if you wanna catch me." She replied, rematerializing behind the rock and started running up the stairs and back onto the path.

Jonathan sighed to himself and called out his Drilgann, whom reared its forelegs and let out a small bellow. "Please smash that rock over there." He pointed to the rock. The Drilgann revved up its tusks and charged at the rock, shattering it into hundreds of tiny pieces. The young man thanked his Pokémon and recalled it, running up the stairs in hot pursuit.

It was around five minutes later, that Jonathan confronted the girl again, only this time she was standing at the bottom of another set of stairs, this one leading to a fairly sizable lake, with a bridge running over it.

"Ha! How do you like that?" Jonathan asked. "Now give me back my money!"

"Oh…you managed to make it past the rock." The girl replied. "Well you've got to admit that this little game of cat and mouse is pretty exciting. I reckon it's about time you were slowed down a bit more." She sent out a Solrock and ordered it to use Rock Slide, as the Sun Pokémon used it's telekinetic powers to lift a boulder into the air and crush it, showering the stairway with lots of little rocks. The girl then recalled her Pokémon and skipped away, giggling all the way.

"Oh come on! Must you make things this difficult?!" Jonathan complained, as he walked down the stairs extra carefully, making sure not to step on a rock and fall face first to the ground. The arduous task took ten minutes, giving the girl a generous head start. Once he had reached the bottom, the young man immediately ran down the path, making sure not to bump into anyone else who was minding their own business. He began to run on the bridge, when he spotted something in the distance. Walking a bit closer to it, he was surprised to see that the thing was a small tree, growing right in the middle of the pathway

"Ok, now what?" he asked himself, as he cautiously walked up to it, anticipating it to be some sort of trap. Just then he heard what sounded like a Pokémon cry, coming from the strange tree. Right after that, the tree began moving on it's own, going straight down for about 50 meters, before making a right turn and continued moving.

"Moving trees, just the thing this crazy region needed." Jonathan muttered, as he proceeded to follow it, in the belief that it would lead him to the thief. A few minutes later, the young man stumbled upon quite the curious scene. A large group of Kricketot were dancing and playing before a large rock, with a Flabébé standing before them and dancing alongside them. It was as if the former were attempting to mimic the latter, anyway they can. Past the Pokémon dance session, the young man spotted the all-too familiar tree and briskly walked up to it.

"Photosynthesis…Photosynthesis. I am just…an ordinary tree…taking part in…photosynthesis." The tree replied. At this stage, Jonathan knew that the tree was fake and began gently poking it, hoping to get a rise out of it.

"Do you like looking at trees all day? Do you get a kink out of it?" the tree questioned it.

"Why yes, I do get a kink out of looking at trees. But I like touching them even more…" he replied, playing along with the joke, as he began caressing the trees leaves.

"Dude! Stop touching me, you creepy guy!" the tree demanded. "Bah, screw it all." There was a sudden flash of light, temporarily blinding the young man. When he had regained his vision, he saw the girl standing directly where the tree was.

"I got you cornered now." Jonathan commented. "Now give me back my money, now!"

"You're persistent…I like that." The girl smiled. "But if you want your money back, you'll have to catch me." The girl then enveloped herself in a bright light, and teleported away from the spot.

"Fantastic…now I'll never get my money back…" Jonathan spat out. "Oh well, I got more important things to deal with. Time to head to Amethyst Cave." With that, the defeated man began making his way to his destination. While walking, he spotted a tall mountain poking out of the forest, with what looked like a small entrance to its inner sanctums. It was pretty obvious that this was the cave that he believed Melia was hiding inside, away from Team Xen's ever persistent gaze. Making his way up the stairs to the cave, he was all but surprised to see a familiar face resting by the entrance.

"Wow! You got here far quicker than I anticipated." The girl called out, as she sat down on a medium sized boulder.

"Look, I really don't care about the money anymore, I've got more important things to handle." Jonathan replied. "Don't spend it all in one place."

"What are you talking about? I never took your money to begin with." The girl told him.

"But my wallet had been emptied out. Right after you jumped down from that tree." The young main pointed out, raising his voice a bit. It was at this stage that the girl giggled and walked up to him, before reaching for his ear, and yanking out something from behind it.

"Man, you're quite easy to fool. All I did was put this behind your ear, and watch the resulting chaos." The girl showed him the money, before handing it over to him. "The name's Nim. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"I'm Jonathan, and I'll admit that you got me…" the young man introduced himself, his anger replaced with a sense of confusion.

"Truth be told, I lured you here because I was interested in how you battled." Nim admitted. "I saw your Gym Battle with Venam."

"Oh really? Why watch that battle in particular?" Jonathan inquired.

"Actually, I watch trainers battle Venam almost every day, but I've never seen someone fight the way that you do. Your battle style is not only strong, but full of skill and sheer willpower." Nim praised the young man. "The fact that you used Pokémon that are rarely seen in Aevium only piqued my interest even further."

"Let me guess, you want to challenge me to a battle." Jonathan deduced, with Nim nodding in response. "Then why—"

"Why didn't I ask you? There's no sense of adventure in just asking someone for a battle." Nim answered. "Now it's time to set the stage!" Nim surrounded herself and Jonathan in a purple aura, before she teleported the two to an entirely different place. The duo had wound up in what appeared to be some sort of Psychic dimension, with a purple haze wafting over the area.

"This is where I train my psychic powers whenever I get the chance. I call this place the Altered Dimension." Nim stated.

"So how long have you been able to use psychic powers?" Jonathan inquired, intrigued by what he's seeing so far.

"I've been able to teleport myself here ever since I was a young girl. I should warn you that this dimensions boosts the power of my Pokémon." Nim explained, as she removed two Pokéballs from her belt and threw them onto the field, calling out her Solrock and Lunatone.

"A Double Battle eh? Seems you like to make things interesting. But don't worry, I'll make sure to return the favour…" Jonathan called out, as he sent out his Dramsama and his Vilucard. Nim whistled in awe at the sight of Jonathan's powerful Pokémon.

"Oh wow! Now they look like some powerful Pokémon. This'll be a great fight!" Nim called out. "Now Solrock, use Reflect! Lunatone, use Light Screen!" The two meteorite Pokémon created protective walls using their psychic powers, in order to bolster their defences.

"Going on the defensive, eh? Alright then, I'll play your game. Dramsama, use Embargo! Vilucard, use Foul Play!" Jonathan called out. The Dramsama chuckled ominously, summoning a series of spectral that wrapped themselves around Nim and her two Pokémon, preventing them from using items. Vilucard's wing glowed a sinister black as it ran up to Lunatone and smacked it with it's wing. However the attack didn't do as much damage as anticipated, even with the defensives walls factored into the plan.

"H-How?" Jonathan asked.

"The psychic powers in this field are so powerful, that they weaken Dark-type attacks." Nim answered. "Quite useful if I say so myself. Now Solrock, use Rock Slide! Lunatone, use Cosmic Power!" The Lunatone channelled a spatial power and glowed harshly, boosting its defences, while the Solrock summoned a large rock with its psychic powers, and shattered it over the enemy Pokémon, dealing a fair bit of damage to the both of them.

"Argh! Not bad, but it won't be enough! Dramsama, use Shadow Ball! Vilucard, use Drain Life!" Jonathan called out quickly. Dramsama created a ball of ominous energy and launched it at the Solrock, dealing a lot of damage. Meanwhile, Vilucard snuck up to the Lunatone and sunk it's fangs into the Meteorite Pokémon's rocky surface, draining it of its essence. Like before, the attack didn't do much damage, however it did its job of restoring Vilucard's vitality.

"Time to make things interesting. Lunatone, use Future Sight! Solrock, use Rock Polish!" Nim declared. The Lunatone temporarily closed it's eyes as it faced its opponents and predicted an attack in the future, while Solrock's body began to glow and sparkle, making it a lot more nimble than before.

"Now's our chance! Dramsama, use Shadow Ball! Vilucard, use Foul Play!" Jonathan called out. Dramsama created another ball of ominous energy and fired it at the Lunatone, dealing a lot of damage, Vilucard's wing glowed black again as it charged at the Solrock and managed to get a lucky critical hit, sending the Solrock hurtling to the ground and knocking it out.

"Ahh…talk about sheer power." Nim sighed, recalling her Solrock. "Luckily I have the perfect solution for the problem. Go Malamar!" she called out, as she send out her powerful Pokémon.

"Hmmm…a Malamar. This'll be interesting." Jonathan mused to himself.

"Indeed, things will get interesting once Malamar takes the stage." Nim began. "Lunatone, use Trick Room!" The Lunatone's eyes glowed a bright white, as the room was basked in an ethereal glow that twisted the dimensions of the space they were occupying. Both Dramsama and Vilucard cried out in shock as their movement was hampered by the twisted dimensions, while Malamar and Lunatone became a lot more nimble.

"Ah geez, this isn't going to be pretty…" Jonathan sighed, not looking forward to what was going to happen next.

"Yeah, things aren't exactly looking up for you. And they're just about to get worse." Nim teased, a small smile on her face. "Malamar, use Superpower!" The Malamar let out a mighty battle cry as it glowed in a harsh orange aura, and proceeded to tackle Vilucard, sending the Pokémon flying across the arena before crashing into the floor and knocking it out. The young man was dismayed when he saw that Malamar got even stronger after using Superpower, as opposed to getting weaker, and as if things couldn't get any worse, his Dramsama was struck by Lunatone's Future Sight attack, as the Masquerade Pokémon was assaulted by a powerful blast of psychic energy, before it to, was knocked out.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Nim grinned, ecstatic over knocking out two of her opponent's Pokémon in a single turn. Jonathan recalled his Pokémon and was thinking carefully about who to end out next. Glavinug was out of the question, due to Malamar and it's Contrary-boosted Superpower, as well as Lunatone whom he assumed would use Power Gem. Then there's the fact that the twisted dimensions of the Trick Room would only serve to hamper his speedier Pokémon. It then struck the young man; why not send out some of his slower Pokémon to gain the Trick Room's benefits?

"Alright then. Drilgann, Brainoar. I choose you!" Jonathan called out, as he sent out his next Pokémon. Both his Pokémon materialised out of their Pokéballs and let out determined battle cries. Nim gazed at the new Pokémon; she recognised the Drilgann easily, but the Brainoar was another thing altogether. The Brainoar was a large white catfish like creature with a pink fin that spanned the creatures back, from the base of its neck, to the tip of its tail, as well as a pink mouth and whiskers. The Brainoar also had a pair of stubby arms, which had pink fins on them as well. But the most striking feature was that the creature's brain was visible from what looked like a protective glass dome on the catfish's head.

"I take it from your expression that you haven't seen my Brainoar before?" Jonathan asked. "Brainoar are a highly intelligent creature that have the ability to use psychic powers. They're often called 'The Sage of the Sea', because of this."

"So you sent out your own psychic type Pokémon to benefit from the field bonus? Clever move…" Nim praised the young man.

"Not just that, but both Drilgann and Brainoar are known to be fairly slow. Nothing wrong with that, especially if they can benefit from Trick Room. And I recall a certain someone using Trick Room…" he continued, a smirk on his face. "Now Drilgann, use Crunch on Lunatone! Brainoar, use Water Pulse on Malamar!"

The Drilgann barrelled towards the Meteorite Pokémon, it's speed heightened by the twisted dimension. It sunk it's sharp fangs into the Lunatone, causing it to groan in pain, before the Drilgann proceeded to fling it towards the ground, knocking it out. Meanwhile, the Brainoar summoned a ball of water from its mouth and launched it at the Malamar. The ball of water then turned into a spiral and struck the Malamar, causing it to spin around very quickly and became confused as a result.

"Oh man, talk about a comeback…" Nim commented, recalling her Lunatone. "Guess it's time for Meowstic to shine." She sent out her Meowstic, whose luscious white fur indicated that it was a female. "Now Meowstic, use Miracle Eye on Drilgann!" The Meowstic gazed at the Drilgann, her eyes sparkling in the colours of the rainbow, before a sudden realisation sparked in the Constraint Pokémon's mind.

"You may be able to hit my Drilgann now, but I won't give you such an opportunity. Drilgann, use Crunch on Meowstic!" the large mole barrelled towards Meowstic, baring it's fangs. However the Meowstic gracefully dodged the attack and retaliated with a Psybeam, dealing a moderate amount of damage.

"Argh, Brainoar use Calm Mind!" Jonathan said quickly. The Brainoar shut out all the noise from the battle, and began focusing on increasing its mental strength. A few seconds later, its mind was at complete peace.

"Malamar, snap out of confusion and use Superpower on Drilgann!" Nim ordered. The Malamar shook it's head to get rid of the confusion and proceeded to cloak its body in the same orange aura as before, and charged at the Drill Pokémon. However Drilgann dug underground in order to dodge the attack, and proceeded to stalk its opponents from underground. Both Nim and her Pokémon eyed the ground cautiously, waiting for Drilgann to strike at Malamar. However they were surprised when Drilgann arose from the ground and struck Meowstic.

"Now Brainoar, use Water Pulse on Malamar while they're distracted!" Jonathan called out. The Brainoar nodded and proceeded to create another orb of water, before firing it at the Malamar and dealing a critical hit to it. When the dust had settled, it showed that both Meowstic and Malamar were knocked out.

"Your power is such an inspiration to me…" Nim commented, as both trainers congratulated and recalled their Pokémon. "You may have defeated me this time, but I'll be victorious the next time we meet."

"Heh, now that's something I'll look forward to." Jonathan smiled.

"I'll warp you back to the entrance for Amethyst Cave, if that's alright with you." Nim said.

"I'd like that, thank you very much. I have some business there I need to attend to." Jonathan replied. Nim then surrounded the young man in a bright purple aura, as she teleported the young man to where she had promised him.

When the young man rematerialized, he was right where he and Nim had been chatting, before they battled each other. He shrugged his shoulders and proceeded to enter the cave.

This chapter may not have been that eventful, but the next chapter will be more intense.