D-LUZ

They were the only spots of black in a sea of white. The two guards stood silent and still, their jet black armor in stark comparison to the highly polished white floors and the white light from the humming florescent bulbs above them. They were guarding a small inconspicuous door with the letters DLZ written above. In all truthfulness the guards were not needed. The door was blastproof, bulletproof, and protected by an intricate code lock. And even if a person somehow made it past all of this they would soon wish they had not.

Neither moved as the sound of moving feet came close. The feet, in question, belonged to a man that could neatly blend in to the floor. His pale skin made him look like a ghost; his eyes were a steely grey, hidden partially behind thin rimmed glasses. His light blond hair was neatly trimmed. He wore a white lab coat and matching pants. A small insignia on his right lapel of a Z with a lightening blot through it and his black shoes was all that kept the man from fading into the walls. He was completely dwarfed by the two guards.

"Evening gentlemen," his voice cool and soft. Neither guard replied.

The pale man drew a card from his lab coat and slid it through the code lock before rapidly typing in a long and complex code. The door opened for only a moment and he was gone.

The pale man entered a large room mostly taken up by a circular table. The tension in the room was tangible. It was obvious that a heated argument had just taken place.

"Ah Cello, nice of you to join us."

Cello merely nodded as he took his place next to a tall slender woman to his right and a large gruff looking man to his left.

"As I was saying earlier, it is Cello's data that proves that we must act soon."

The slender woman spoke up. "Now is not the time. The machine that Cello made is incredible by all means, but we have yet to see physical results."

Another voice spoke. "Physical results? This boy is exactly what we have been looking for! We must tell the master! Cello's machine and his battles have proven…"

He was cut off by the slender woman. "We must have more time! If the master is correct…"

It was clear that she had made a mistake. Her face turned a deep red and she covered her mouth with her hand.

"There are no "ifs" with the master," said the first voice in a deadly hissing tone.

She sat back in her chair, looking like she had been shot.

It was clear to Cello that he needed to intervene. He waited for his chance as the room's occupants settled.

"Cello. What exactly does your data tell us?"

Cello smiled inwardly. He sat forward in his seat, letting his elbows rest on the table.

"The data from the machine has told us that this young man has powers that we cannot fully understand. But only so much can be done from the lab," he watched the others nod in agreement.

"This boy has fought a petty thief and a Gym leader. It is time that we give him something more… challenging."

The man to his left leaned in.

"What are you suggesting?"

"I am suggesting," he paused. "That someone from Zealot directly battles him."

There was an uproar of whispers and mummers. Cello patently waited.

"We have been watching him. I know that today he will pass through the sea caves to Gemlight town. If someone was to trail and battle him in the caves…"

The man to his right nodded slowly. "If it turns out he isn't what we're looking for we can dispose of him easily and if not…" a smile spread across his face. "Excellent."

"It will work perfectly. I will suggest that I take this mission."

More whispers. The first voice spoke. "Is it agreed? Good. Cello you test the boy's powers."

Cello bowed slightly and stood up. As he left he shot a fleeting glimpse at the slender woman. She was still in her chair, trembling. He closed the door behind him as he heard the first voice speak one last time.

"As for you…"

"Come on Isaac!"

Isaac was straggling behind Zack and Sara… as usual. The ocean side beaches of Seaclasp were full of shells and pokemon that Isaac couldn't help but examine. With his pokedex he snapped pictures of scuttling Krabby, circling Wingulls, and a small, tan, bird like pokemon that Lionel called Sanlets. Isaac tried to pick up a particularly large shell, only for a tongue to stick out and the shell dive back into the sand. He was inspecting a tide pool full of blue and green colored Staryu when his pokedex buzzed. He pushed a large pulsing red button on the screen and a picture popped up. There was Johnny and Val triumphantly holding up Seaclasp's badge. He could see Ezra in the very back holding up a victory sign. A small typed message at the bottom read: CAUGHT UP WITH YOU THREE. Isaac chuckled.

Isaac came closer to Zack and Sara to show them the picture only to stop dead in his tracks. In front of the trio were massive cave entrances, nearly forty feet high, carved out of the cliff side.

Zack whistled. "So this is where we're supposed to meet up with Gemlight's gym leader?"

Sara pulled out her pokedex and typed in a few commands. "It is. The yawning sea caves."

"What was he gonna look like?" asked Zack. "Bushy beard, miner's clothes, glasses…"

He was cut off by Sara."What's that light?"

Out of the seemingly impenetrable darkness of the caves, a light was shinning. Small at first, before growing into a steady beam. The beam was coming from a headlight on a mining helmet. The wearer soon stepped out of the cave and into the light. He had one of the largest and bushiest beards Isaac had ever seen. It was black, for the most part, with a few streaks of white and gray running here and there. The helmet barely fit over his messy hair. He was dark skinned and, behind his large glasses, were, small but sparkling, almond colored eyes. Next to him walked a small and slim creature, coming up to the miner's waist. It had three razor sharp claws on its pink hands, long arms, and short red legs. It was smiling, showing off its sharp and white teeth. Its blue eyes sparkled like its trainer's. Isaac saw a miner's helmet perched on its head.

The miner came towards the trio.

"Are you Zack, Sara, and Isaac?" Isaac was surprised by his rather high and soft voice.

"Yes sir," answered Sara.

"Good," he shook each of their hands warmly. "My name's Kyp and this is my Clawsu," the small creature raised its hand in salute.

Isaac pulled out his pokedex and took a picture of Clawsu. Kyp chuckled. "Lionel told me that you three were dedicated to your work. You'll see plenty of pokemon in the caves here… oh have these… you'll need them." He pulled out three helmets out of his backpack and handed one to each of the trio. "It gets quite dark in the caves."

He turned off the light on his helmet and set his pack down. "Now I need to go over a few safety rules before we leave. Always keep hydrated; I have water in my pack if you need it. Try not to touch or disturb anything. The ecosystem in the caves is fragile. You're pictures will be all that you need. Finally don't get separated from the group. These caves twist and turn in every way and are full of dead ends," he smiled. "Enough rules. Let's set out!"

The five helmet lights combined cut through the dark well, reveling stalactites, stalagmites, Cubits, Geodudes, dozens of unidentifiable pokemon, and odd pools.

Kyp noticed Isaac's interest in the pools. "They're called thought pools. They allegedly help in meditative purposes."

"Do you think they help?" asked Isaac.

"I'll admit that they are quite calming…" A faint smiled played on his lips. "If not creepy."

Isaac had to agree. He saw odd translucent creatures swimming through the pools. Their unearthly glow gave out enough light for Isaac to turn off his headlamp.

Kyp was a great guide, showing them amazing cave structures made over millions of years by water erosion.

"Being a gym leader is just a hobby," Kyp said. "My passion is for geology. I own an item and rock shop in Gemlight and I teach at the local college. These caves are full of rare stones and Gemlight… well you'll see how it got its name."

They continued, Isaac still strolling behind the group taking pictures of the new pokemon and admiring immense structures of limestone. He was taking a picture of a Woobat when he realized that he could no longer see the rest of the group. Something moved. Out of the corner of his eye he saw something large, pale, and glowing disappear behind a stalagmite. He cautiously stepped near, pokedex in hand. He crept closer… only to see that nothing was behind the stalagmite. He sat down next to it (sighing), now seeing that he was on the edge of a massive thought pool. It stretched into the dark, far beyond the reach of Isaac's light. Out in the midst of the pool he saw a light unlike the odd glow given off by the blind creatures of the cave or the mining lights. It was a dull golden and silver light that spread out in all directions.

"Beautiful… isn't it?"

Isaac, under normal circumstances, would have spun around in shock. But he felt no fear or even apprehension. He slowly and calmly turned his head and saw the owner of the voice. She had long and flowing blue hair and was very pale. She wore clothes that were in fashion decades ago. She was around Isaac's age, maybe a bit younger… but there was something about her that made Isaac think that she was much older. It was her eyes. They were a deep blue and, in the darkness, Isaac could see no pupils. There was something off about her but Isaac couldn't put his finger on it…

"What's that out in the water?" her voice was soothing to Isaac.

"I… I don't know," He peered out into the water. The light seemed to be getting closer.

The light was almost blinding now. Isaac covered his eyes and heard a pinging sound. He slowly uncovered his eyes. At the edge of the thought pool was the radiator of the light: a small ring. He reached into the thought pool and grabbed the ring watching the ripple his hand created travel across the water.

The ring was amazing. It was made of many separate loops that crossed and touched each other. Small metal columns bridged the gaps between some of the circles. The circles were silver and small golden print was written on the side of every one. At the center was a gorgeous golden ball that glowed in the darkness.

"Light eternal…"

Isaac turned to ask her what she meant only to find her gone. He could now hear the rest of the group calling out for him. He placed the ring in his pocket and called out to them, still staring at where the girl had been.

Kyp had a worried look on his face as he walked towards Isaac. "What did I tell you about wondering off?"

Isaac was about to explain himself when a bizarre gray mist began creeping down the cave.

"What the hell?" muttered Zack as the smog engulfed his legs.

As the mist grew a shadowy figure rose. It walked slowly into the light of the helmets. He was a small, thin, and pale man. He wore a black jacket and small glasses. Isaac could see a form floating next to the man. Its color was a dark gray and its eyes were black. Its shape was nebulous, changing every moment. Above the gray of the body was a bit of black that was shaped like a crown. The smog seemed to be coming from the crown. The smog began to rise and Isaac felt himself choking.

"Clawsu! Whirlwind," said Kyp before he began to cough violently.

Clawsu drew itself up and spun in a rapid circle. A sharp whistling came from Clawsu and a whirlwind formed driving the smoke away. As the smog vanished Clawsu and Kyp readied themselves to battle the man.

Isaac could see the man smile as Clawsu drew near. "Oh but Mr. Kyp. I already know how powerful you are," he snapped his fingers and a low rumbling noise started to rise in volume from the formless pokemon. A black and purple beam shot out and struck Kyp and Clawsu hurling them into a large limestone rock. Clawsu tried to stand up only to fall back down. Kyp didn't move at all. The man nodded to his pokemon. Zack and Sara were lifted into the air and flung near where Kyp had landed. A purple barrier formed around the man and Isaac.

"It is you that I want to test."

Isaac tossed out Peakfang who, as soon as it was released, started growling at the man.

"Let's begin. Marlcruses use Shadow punch!"

A hole formed in the floor and the formless pokemon stretched into the portal, disappearing for a few moments. Peakfang was slammed to the ground seconds later by the gray mass.

"Shadow fang!"

Peakfang bit hard onto Marlcruses causing it to howl in pain. It tried to shake off Peakfang but to no avail.

"Frost breath."

Peakfang exhaled and ice began creeping up Marlcruses.

"Confusion!"

Marlcruses eyes turned blue and Peakfang was tossed into the barrier. The left side of Marlcruses was now encased in ice. It tried desperately to shake off the ice as Peakfang neared.

"Foresight!"

Peakfang focused on Marlcruses, its eyes growing wide. It backed up to the edge of the barrier.

"Now tackle!"

Peakfang rushed at full speed at the desperate Marlcruses, smashing into its left side. The ice broke instantly and Marlcruses flew into the barrier. The man looked stunned for a moment and then began to laugh. At first it was just a chuckle but he was soon on the limestone floor gripped with laughter.

"Perfect… PERFECT!"

Isaac didn't notice Marlcruses floating towards the man until it was too late. The gray mass enveloped the man and then was gone. Isaac rushed towards his friends. Zack, Sara, and Clawsu were all fine but Kyp was having trouble getting up. In the end, Zack and Isaac helped him to his feet and gave him balance.

"Who… Who was that?"

"I don't know… but he looks like he left something," Sara picked up a small metal emblem near where the man had disappeared. The emblem was a silver Z with a yellow and blue lightning bolt through the middle.

As they slowly made their way out of the cave Isaac realized what had been bothering him. The girl… she had lacked an aura.