Hey everyone. I think I've kept you in the dark long enough, so now it's time to reveal who the mystery child is. As promised, this is an extra long chapter just for you guys. As always, R&R, PM, and Enjoy!

Chapter 16

(Jason's POV)

After making our way through Route 32, we came to a cave. I asked Meema about it and she explained that it was called Union Cave. "It leads to Route 33 and Azalea Town, so it looks like we'll have to make it through this cave in order to get to the next gym."

"Then let's get going," I replied. We went into the cave and began making our way through. It wasn't very dark in the cave, electric lights hung from the ceiling to light the way. There were a few people in the cave as well, a few trainers and some explorers, and I figured it was an opportunity to get some training done. I mostly focused on training Ariana, switching her out with Blaster when things got bad, and Janice also took on a few battles to train Belle and Mark. Several trainers used the Rock-type Geodude, which were common in the cave as well, so we ended up having to switch them out often.

After what felt like a few hours, we finally made it out of Union Cave and onto Route 33. It was raining when we came out and we decided to run the rest of the way to Azalea Town. The rain soon let up and we finally reached the outskirts of Azalea Town. There was a small cliff that overlooked the town and Janice and I climbed it so we could get a Pidgey's-eye view of the town. We looked down in awe at the small town, and Janice said, "Well Jason, looks like we've reached your hometown."

I remembered what she meant and said, "Y-Yeah, I guess." Janice noticed my stutter and asked what was wrong. "I guess it's just returning to some familiar surroundings giving me Butterfree in my stomach." Janice laughed at the expression, and Meema soon joined us.

"Well, I guess this is it," she said. "I'll be heading down there now." Janice nodded and said goodbye as I continued to stare nervously at the town.

"Meema, what are we going to do?" I telepathically asked her. "You said everyone down there is aware of the Gilman name, so how are we going to pass through without attracting to much attention? How are you going to pass through without attracting any attention?"

"That's why I went ahead, Jason," she replied. "I'm going to head straight for Ilex Forest. I need to check on how it's been doing since we left. Just don't mention your name and you should be fine."

I looked to Janice and said, "Janice, can I ask a favor?" She looked at me and I continued, "I don't want you to mention my last name to anyone while we're in Azalea Town."

"Why not? Wouldn't people be glad to see you back home?"

"Actually, that's the thing. Before I left I," I paused thinking of something to say, "I just don't want any more attention than I need."

Janice nodded in understanding and said, "My lips are sealed." I thanked her and we made our way to the town. As we approached, we saw a man standing in front of some sort of pit. As we got closer, we saw that there was a well in the pit, and the man noticed us.

"Move along, there's nut'n for you 'ere," he said in a very distinct accent.

"Got something to hide?" Janice asked. The man looked at her hard and made a threatening move at her, making her jump back in surprise. The man laughed and told us to move along.

His shirt had a big red "R" on it, and I said, "Come on, let's go."

We began to leave and the man said, "Go on then, git!"

We continued on to Azalea Town and Janice and I looked around. The town was small but it had charm to it. Most of the buildings were log cabins, the only exceptions being the Pokemon Center and Mart. Another thing that we noticed were the Slowpoke: they were everywhere. Meema told me that Azalea Town thought Slowpoke were sacred for bringing rain during times of drought, and judging by all the Slowpoke I guess they did think they were sacred. "I wonder where the Gym is?" I asked to no one in particular.

I was looking around when all of a sudden an old man ran into us. He was storming out of town and he accidentally pushed us to the side. He noticed us and said, "Sorry, I need to take care of something."

I watched as he continued to storm away and thought, 'What's his problem?' We began to search for the Gym again when we heard the old man shout. We turned around and saw the old man running, probably away from something.

"Come on," Janice said, heading in the old man's direction. I ended up following her and we ran back to Route 33. We ended up back at the well, but the man from before was gone. "Do you think he went down there?" Janice asked, pointing at the well.

"Only one way to find out," was my reply as I walked over to the well. There was a ladder that went down to the bottom and I could hear someone groaning. I began to climb down, Janice following soon after, and when I reached the bottom I saw the old man sitting on the wet, rocky ground. He was clutching his lower leg, and I figured he must have broken it. "Sir, are you alright?" I asked, kneeling down in front of him.

"I was trying to chase that man away, but he ran down here so I followed. Unfortunately, I slipped and fell. I'm not sure if I can get back up."

"Where's he now?" The man pointed to an opening in the cave and I turned to Janice. "Janice, stay with him until I get back. I'm going to find this guy."

"Be careful." I nodded and went through the opening. It was large enough for me to walk through, but I had to twist my shoulders to easily pass through. I could hear talking and once I made it through I went over to a large boulder. I crouched behind it and looked around the corner to see that there were more people. They all wore the same clothes as the other guy, black clothing with a big red "R" on the front.

'What are all these people doing down here?' I thought to myself. I looked around some more and saw one of them kneel down. I squinted to try and see better, and I soon heard a snip. The man stood, holding something in his hand. I realized it was a Slowpoke's tail, and I clenched my hands into fists. 'Whatever they're doing, I won't let it go on any further.'

I cupped my hands around my mouth and took a deep breath. I released a loud growl, and the sound reverberated throughout the cave, making it sound more menacing than before.

"What the heck was that?" One of the men said.

"Sir, you don't think there could be Gyarados in this well, do you?" A woman asked.

"Impossible, it's called 'Slowpoke' Well, not 'Gyarados' Well." I released another growl, and the others were spooked.

"Well whatever it is I don't want to stick around to find out." I could hear footsteps approaching and I stuck out my foot. It was the man that was guarding the well, and he screamed as he landed face first onto hard stone.

"Jacobs, what happened?" I got ready as he looked over at me and I attempted to use a Hypnosis attack. Before he could say anything, his eyes drooped and he fell back down, asleep. I was glad at my success, but now the other grunts were heading this way. They arrived quickly and I stood.

"Hey, what's a kid doing down here?" I kept calm, trying to figure out a plan. "Answer me, what happened?"

I figured there was only one way out, and I pulled out Typhon's Poke Ball. "Oh, a Trainer huh?" The man said, pulling out his own Poke Ball. The others followed suit, pulling out multiple Poke Balls at once, and the man said, "You're going to regret this. Come out, Zubat!"

Everyone else tossed out their Poke Balls and I was faced with a horde of Zubat, Rattata, and Hoothoot. I didn't bother pulling out my Pokedex, and I let out Typhon.

"Typhon, prepare for battle."

Once Typhon was out and he saw the Pokemon, he said, "I don't think I can do this alone, Daddy."

"Then let's bring out the rest of the group." I grabbed everyone else's Poke Balls and let them out, too. They all looked at the large group of Pokemon and prepared themselves. "On my command," I said.

"Attack!" The massive horde began to attack and I quickly shouted out attacks.

It was intense; flames, water, wind, needles, vines, and poison all clashed against the opposing Pokemon, knocking out a good number in one hit. The group of people were surprised and returned their fainted Pokemon, some of them even running away. What remained of the Pokemon were weakened by the attacks, and I said, "I highly suggest you all leave."

They stood their ground however, until someone began clapping. It was a very slow clap, and they were very intimidated by the sound alone. They stepped aside to reveal, and I was surprised by this, a kid. He was no older than me, maybe the same age, and he was walking towards me, clapping slowly. The kid had messy black hair with white streaks, wore a gray long sleeve shirt and pants, and wore a magenta scarf around his neck. He had startling blue eyes as well, just like mine.

"I must say, I'm impressed," he said, stopping a few feet away from me and my Pokemon. "Taking down this many Rockets at once, not many can do that."

"What are you talking about? What's going on here? And who are you?"

The kid chuckled, "You ask a lot of questions. Very well. How about a three on six? I'll use three Pokemon and you use your six. With each Pokemon you defeat, I'll answer one of your questions. Does that sound fair?"

I nodded and he pulled out his first Poke Ball. I returned everyone but Sting, and telepathically said, "You up for this Sting?"

"Of course I am. I've been waiting for a battle."

The boy tossed out his Poke Ball and a Hoothoot was let out. There was silence for a moment before we called our attacks.

"Twineedle!"

"Peck."

Sting sped forward and attacked the Hoothoot from behind, but it quickly twisted around and pecked Sting, dealing some damage. "Continue attacking!" Sting sped around it again and was able to land a few attacks before the Hoothoot turned and used Peck again. Sting was stunned for a moment and the kid ordered another Peck attack.

This time, the Hoothoot rammed itself into Sting, making it crash into the rocky wall. "Sting!" He fell to the ground, fainted, and I returned him. I pulled out Blaster's Poke Ball next and looked to the kid. 'Who is this kid? I guess I'll find out once I beat him.'

I let Blaster out and the boy hardly seemed fazed by it. 'That Hoothoot is fast, but I know how to slow him down.'

"Use Bubble!" Blaster began to cover the field in bubbles, but the kid didn't seem too worried. "Now use Water Gun!"

"Tackle."

Blaster shot out a stream of water, and the Hoothoot jumped into the air effectively dodging it. "Again, in the air!" The Hoothoot began to fall and headed straight for Blaster as he shot another stream of water, hitting Hoothoot dead on. The Hoothoot was still falling, though, and it crashed into Blaster and kicked up some dust. Once it cleared, both Pokemon were revealed to be knocked out.

"Impressive," the kid said as we returned our Pokemon. "I guess that means I owe you one answer? Very well: To answer your first question, the Rockets I mentioned were these pathetic grunts." He gestured to the uniformed men and women, "We are known as Team Rocket. Currently, our goal is simple. World domination. Pokemon are living beings, yes, but they can be used like tools." I growled in anger, how could he say things like that?

"Of course, that's the goal of these pathetic losers." I looked at him in surprise as he said, "My goals are much more than that. But I've already said enough." He pulled out a second Poke Ball and tossed it. This time a Houndour was released.

'Now I wish I still had Blaster.' I decided to pull out Monarch's Poke Ball and brought him out.

"Uh, Jason, you do realize he has a Dark and Fire-type Pokemon, right?"]

"Don't worry, if you can hit him with PoisonPowder and keep dodging his attacks, you'll be fine."

"Use Ember."

"PoisonPowder!"

As Monarch flapped its wings, the Houndour used its Embers to burn the poisonous scales. "Do you seriously think that will work? Again, Ember."

"Use Gust!" Monarch began flapping its wings as the Houndour began to fire Embers. Monarch's Gust attack was too strong for it and it sent the embers back at the Houndour. "Yeah, we got him!"

"Not quite." I was confused at first, but his Houndour was hardly affected by the Embers. Once the attack stopped, the embers swirled around it and disappeared. "Houndour has the ability Flash Fire, which means that it will absorb any Fire-type attack and use it to power up its own Fire-type moves." He laughed at me, and said, "But allow me to show you instead of telling you. Houndour, use your Ember attack." Houndour fired its Ember attack, which was larger than before, and it hit Monarch.

He fell and I ran to catch him, grabbing him before he hit the ground. "Monarch, are you okay?" I looked at him to see that he had fainted, and I returned him.

"Pity, another Pokemon has fallen." I stood up and clenched my hands, anger swelling up inside of me like a boiler. I grabbed Typhon's Poke Ball and called him out.

"Typhon, get ready. This guy's a lot tougher than Will and the Gym leaders." Typhon looked at him and he shuddered.

"Daddy, I don't like him. I can feel something in him, something evil."

"Just focus on the battle. Don't focus on him." But no matter how much I reassured Typhon, there was no denying that he was right. There was something evil about him, a dark aura. Ever since this battle began I've been feeling a little light-headed. What was with this kid?

"Houndour, use Bite."

"Typhon, Quick Attack!"

Typhon began to move across the field in leaps and bounds as the Houndour tried to attack, but Typhon hit the Houndour in the side. Houndour was knocked away and I ordered Typhon to attack again. Typhon hit the Houndour in its side again and it was enough to knock it out.

It was returned and the kid said, "That's the second Pokemon you've defeated, so it looks like I must answer your second question. To be honest, this operation was the brilliant idea of these buffoons." He stressed the word "brilliant" sarcastically, and he continued. "They wanted to make a profit by selling illegally obtained Slowpoke Tails. It's actually a tasty delicacy, so they thought that they could sell them to gain more money."

"And if I defeat your last Pokemon, you'll tell me who you are?"

He smiled, "Of course." His smile faded away, "Too bad you won't win."

He pulled out another Poke Ball, but it was designed oddly. The entire ball was black with solid green circles, and an orange band in place of the standard black. "Come forth, Darkrai!"

As soon as he threw the Poke Ball my mind began to race. It opened and after a flash of light the legendary Pokemon itself appeared. It was black with what looked like white hair. Its hair covered one eye while the other was revealed to be an electric blue. Around its head were red spikes that almost looked like teeth. The moment it appeared I felt a harsh pain in my head and I cried out, falling to my knees and gripping my head.

"Daddy! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I said, unable to speak telepathically. "Just focus on the battle."

I tried standing up and I heard the kid laughing his head off. "What's the matter? Can't handle being in the presence of a legendary Pokemon?" I stood up completely and shouted back, "No, I was just surprised that someone like you had a Pokemon like that." He scoffed in response.

"Typhon, use Flamethrower!"

"You know what to do." As Typhon shot out a stream of flames, Darkrai levitated out of the way and brought its hands together. An orb of darkness began to form between its hands and it shouted, "Dark Pulse!"

It threw it hands out towards Typhon, unleashing a helix of dark energy. "Typhon, watch out!" Typhon jumped out of the way just in time as the dark energy crashed into the rocky floor. Debris began to fly everywhere and I covered my face to prevent any debris from flying into my face. "Typhon, use Flamethrower again!" Typhon shot out another stream of fire at the legendary, but it kept moving out of the way.

"Again, Dark Pulse!" It unleashed another dark helix but Typhon wasn't fast enough. The dark energy crashed into Typhon, who cried out in pain as he was sent flying.

"Typhon!" I ran towards him as he began to fall and he landed in my arms. "Typhon, speak to me. Are you alright?"

Typhon coughed a little, and replied weakly, "I'm really tired, Daddy." I hugged Typhon, glad that he was still okay. It was just like the battle against Will and his Croconaw.

"Well isn't this precious." I looked back up at the kid, who was smirking. His Darkrai floated back down in front of him, and he continued, "Unfortunately, this is still a battle. Darkrai, let's end this now."

"Very well." I looked at Darkrai as it began to form another orb in its hands. Typhon was too weak to fight, there's no way he could survive another hit like that.

"Dark..." He held the orb out and I reacted. "...Void!"

I twisted around, shielding Typhon from the attack. It struck me and I cried out in pain. "Daddy!"

I slowly opened my eyes which soon widened as I witnessed Typhon disappearing, fading away. "Typhon!"

"Daddy!" he cried out, his voice fading as he disappeared completely.

All of a sudden, the entire cave began to crumble around me and I became surrounded by huge boulders. I looked up as another boulder landed on top, encasing me in darkness. I suddenly felt like I was falling, and then I abruptly stopped, as if I were caught by something. My body began to move on its own, stringing my arms up like a puppet. My body was then wracked with pain and I cried out, hoping someone would hear me.

Instead, I heard laughter; evil, maniacal laughter. A figure appeared in front of me, and it looked like the kid I just battled. His body was made out of smoke, his features almost completely blurred out. He had me gripped tight in one hand as he continued to laugh, then he held me up close to his face.

"I know who you are, Jason Gilman." I gasped in surprise, "I know what you are. Did you think that a child of Celebi could match my power?" I was frightened, almost terrified of what he knew. "I will let you live, but know this. No matter how much you train, no matter how strong you get, I will always be one step ahead of you."

His eye suddenly began to glow blue, and he let go of me. I was falling again, and I looked down to see a white circle. I was approaching it fast, and I screamed as I fell through and continued to scream as I shot up from where I was laying down.

I wasn't in the cave anymore, but instead I was inside what I thought was the Pokemon Center. The walls were made of logs that had a glossy, sort of glazed look to them. I was in some sort of bed that had the mattress propped up so I was in a laid-back sitting position. There were others in the room with me: Nurse Joy, a Chansey, and Janice, all who looked surprised and were trying to get me to calm down.

"Jason, Jason!" Janice shouted. She smacked me and I snapped back into reality.

I looked to her, then to Nurse Joy and asked, "What happened?"

"You were unconscious," Nurse Joy replied. "Actually, judging by how you were acting, you were having nightmares."

"Nightmares?" I remembered the battle in the well, that kid, and the Darkrai. "There were others in Slowpoke Well, Team Rocket they called themselves."

Nurse Joy seemed worried for some reason, and Janice said, "Jason, I heard you scream so I went to check on you. There was no one else in there, just you lying on the ground with Typhon in your arms." I gasped in surprise, Typhon!

"Where's Typhon?"

"He's resting," Nurse Joy replied. She pointed to the opposite end of the room and I saw Typhon lying on his stomach. I tried to get up and go over to him, but Nurse Joy forced me back down. I felt something in my arm and I looked to see I had some sort of needle near my elbow. Before I could touch it, Nurse Joy told me not to remove it.

I was silent for a moment and then asked, "Janice, you said there was no one else in the cave?"

Janice shook her head, "No one else."

"But there were," I said. "I was battling Rocket grunts, and that kid!" I remembered him, and then that nightmare. "He had a Darkrai!"

"A Darkrai?" Both Nurse Joy and Janice said simultaneously.

"But that's impossible," Nurse Joy said. "Darkrai is a legendary Pokemon from the Sinnoh region. Although, that would explain why you were having nightmares. Even so, it's highly unlikely that someone could have captured something so powerful."

I thought about that too, and he looked about the same age I was. That's when a thought occurred to me. 'What if he didn't capture it? What if he's just like me? Could that Darkrai be his Meema?'

Nurse Joy left, leaving me, Janice, and Typhon alone. I knew I had to talk to Meema about this. "Janice, do you know where my mom is?"

Janice shook her head, "I haven't seen her since she left." I figured as much. What could she be doing? "Hey Jason," Janice said, "are you feeling okay?"

I looked away from her, thinking about that kid and his Darkrai. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Alright, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. The mystery child is revealed (but Jason doesn't know that, so don't tell him). Now I am currently debating on whether I should make a side chapter in this story or if I should make a separate story entirely. What I do know is that his story won't come in until later, and you can be sure that Jason will encounter him again. As always, R&R, PM, and-

*Darkrai suddenly appears* Dark Void!

*attack hits author, who falls asleep and has nightmares of flamers.*