This time, I have a good reason for the delay. I had to look up a video and then write what happened (You'll understand once you've read this chapter!). I'm focusing on this story now because I'm a bit stuck on "Twist in Time." But as I said before, I have a lot of fun writing this as it combines two of my obsessions!

In this chapter, while I'm not going to get into the novelization game itself for a few more chapters at least, I am going to get into another very important event that occurs before the game begins. Can you guess what it is? You'll have to read in order to find out!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or Megaman.

--

"I can't believe you guys are really leaving..." said X softly and sadly. He was outside Cain's house, with Cain, Minun, who was on X's shoulder, and Zigzagoon. Keisha and Daekar, along with Tealsy, was standing before them. It was early in the morning, the air crisp and cool, the city not far from where they were just starting to come to life with various noises.

"Well, with the mountain pass finally clear, we can finally get going to Vulgen City. I still have a League challenge to complete," said Daekar. He was also sad about leaving. The things that he and Keisha had witnessed these past few days had been incredible. And he just knew that this was just the beginning. He had a feeling, an instinct really, that there was more to come, that this story that had started with X's discovery was just beginning. But he was still a Pokemon trainer. His journey called for him. They needed to move on.

"I'm still going to miss you two though..."

"We know," said Keisha, sadness in her tone as well, "But we still need to leave." She was trying her best to keep her composure. This was the hardest goodbye she and Daekar had ever had to make...

"Can we at least expect you two to keep in touch?" Cain asked.

"Of course!" Daekar responded immediately.

"We'll also make sure to visit even!" Keisha added. How could they not, with what they had experienced here?

"Jolteon..." Tealsy said sadly. Keisha glanced down at the Electric-type Pokemon sadly. Even Tealsy didn't want to leave...

"But before we go..." Daekar took off his backpack and set it on the ground. He unzipped it and then began to rummage through it. When his hand came out of it, it was holding a Pokeball. He enlarged it, and then stood up.

"What Pokemon is in there?" X asked.

"It's empty at the moment," explained Daekar, "Me and Keisha talked it over last night and we want you to have it." He held it out.

Cain's eye widened slightly. Did these two know the magnitude of what they were about to do?

X stepped forward and took the Pokeball. Stepping back, he looked at it confused, "But what will I do with it?" As if to answer that question, Minun began to speak happily,

"Min! Minun!" It leapt down from X's shoulder and stood facing him, "Minun! Minun!"

Keisha chuckled, "I think you can figure that out."

"I hope you two realize just what's about to happen," said Cain.

"Of course we do," said Daekar, "We aren't making this decision lightly. But Minun doesn't like anyone else and it doesn't want to go back to the wild either."

Realization dawned on X's face. "Do you two mean...?" He asked, looking at them, a bit uncertain.

They both nodded in confirmation and assurance, "Go ahead," said Keisha gently.

"Alright then. Here we go!" X tossed the Pokeball at Minun.

"Minun!" Minun jumped towards the Pokeball as it opened up. Minun vanished into it in a red light.

X picked up the Pokeball as everyone else looked on. The red light on the ball blinked a few times as it shoke a bit. The red light then faded, indicating that Minun was now caught. The ball then opened up and Minun reappeared in a white light.

"I think I prefer it out of the Pokeball," X remarked as Minun happily scrambled up to his shoulder and began nuzzling his cheek affectionately.

"That's fine. I leave Tealsy out of her Pokeball all the time," Keisha remarked, watching the clearly ecstatic Minun.

"I hope you both knew what you were doing. This is bound to have repercussions," said Cain.

"We know," said Deakar, shouldering his backpack, "The question is whether those repercussions will be good or bad."

"And either way," Keisha continued, "I think we did the right thing."

"Minun!" Minun jumped down from X's shoulder, and slowly walked up to Deakar and Keisha. It looked uncertain for a moment, and then it finally lowered its head. Daekar seemed to understand. He got down on one knee and slowly reached for it. This time, it didn't send out sparks, but it did tense a little. It clearly flinched when he touched it, but then looked at him in confusion as he began to stroke its head gently.

"I think this is its way of thanking us," Keisha remarked as she reached down and began to pet it as well.

Both Daekar and Keisha left after that, with Dr. Cain and X bidding them farewell…

Months passed. Many things occurred during that time. Among them was the creation of the reploids and, following that, the outbreak of the rouge reploids known as Mavericks. The Maverick Hunters were established in order to combat them. X, feeling partly responsible for what happened, joined them. And now…

n/n/n/n/

"X!"

"Huh?" X turned to regard the navigator that walked up to him. The Maverick Hunter HQ was busy as usual. Not just with the Hunters themselves, but also with the various Pokemon that accompanied them. His own Minun was on his shoulder.

"There's a call waiting for you!"

X blinked. Who outside the base would possibly want to contact him? He couldn't seem to recall anyone outside the Hunters that he knew very well. He didn't ask who was calling, instead making his way to the video phone room.

He got his answer soon enough anyway.

"Hey X! Long time, no see!"

"Oh Daekar! Didn't expect you to call again so soon." X was mildly embarrassed with himself for forgetting about his Trainer friend. Just as they had promised, Daekar and Keisha called frequently to check in and also keep X informed about how they were doing.

Minun jumped down from his shoulder, "Minun!"

"Hey Minun! Good to see you too!" said Daekar.

"Minun!" The electric Pokemon said in response.

X chuckled slightly at his Pokemon's energy. In the time he had had Minun, it had grown more confident. It had also grown more trusting of Keisha and Daekar as well, as evident by its reaction whenever they called. It had even grown to trust Cain and the resident nurse, Tiana. Unfortunately, it was still nervous around people, specifically humans, and hid whenever one it wasn't familiar with was around. It didn't seem to have a problem with reploids, though.

"Where's Keisha?" X asked.

"She's outside the emergency room, worried sick about Electrode."

"Electrode?"

"She recently caught it while we were exploring an abandoned power plant. How are things on your end?"

"Besides the Maverick attacks, it hasn't really been all that eventful. What's so funny?" He asked when he heard Daekar chuckle.

"It's just that, I still find it very ironic that you hate fighting so much, and yet you still insisted on joining the Hunters." Daekar and Keisha had both been shocked when they had learned that piece of news. They had both held the belief that the only kind of fighting that X enjoyed were Pokemon battles.

X just shook his head, "It's far from a laughing matter. The Maverick attacks have been increasing in frequency. And then there's the public's general opinion of us. The only humans besides Cain and Tiana who seem to treat us when any degree of respect are the occasional passing Trainer."

"That's because they know that no matter what they may think of you as people, they know that at least owe you respect as fellow Pokemon trainers." Daekar heard a familiar voice call for him. "Ah! That's Keisha! I gotta go!"

"Hope to talk to you soon!" X said. The video phone turned off. X stood up from his seat as Minun leapt back up on his shoulder.

n/n/n/n/

"There you go! Good as new!" Tiana smiled as she gently petted the Prinplup's head. It had been pretty badly hurt, but it wasn't anything should couldn't handle.

Tiana had short brown hair and wore a turquoise hairband. She had blue eyes that were filled with endless compassion. She wore a white outfit with a skirt.

Tiana was the Pokemon nurse for the Hunters simply because the "racist pricks" outside refused to station a Nurse Joy there. Tiana, recognizing the need, had stepped up to take the job.

And of course, it was beyond anything she had ever expected.

"Prin! Prinplup!" The Prinplup said.

"Prinplup is asking where its Trainer is." Chatot, her Pokemon, landed on her shoulder. Chatot was very chatty, and had a unique gift: He was smart enough to learn, understand, and speak a human language. Tiana didn't have a member of the Chansey line to help her out, but Chatot was fair enough help. On top of that, he was often used as a translator.

"Chill went out on a mission while you were recovering," Tiana explained to the anxious water Pokemon, "But he should be back soon enough."

As if on cue, the door to the nursing wing opened. Two reploids stepped through. One of them was the one Prinplup had asked for, A-class hunter Chill Penguin. The other one was his comrade, also an A-class Hunter, Storm Eagle. Perched on Storm's shoulder, was a Pidgeotto.

Prinplup ran over to its trainer, clearly happy to see him again. Pidgeotto lifted off from Storm's shoulder, and perched nearby. Chatot soon followed suit, landing next to the fellow flying-type Pokemon. The two were soon chatting eagerly.

"So I take it all went well?" Chill asked, a bit anxious.

"Don't worry. Prinplup's fine." Tiana reassured. It was then that she noticed that Storm was holding something. After another moment, she realized that it was a Pokemon. And a badly injured one at that. "Where did you find that!?" She exclaimed.

"Out in the Garden," Storm explained as he set the Pokemon down on the table.

Chatot took immediate interest, "A Plusle! I was expecting one to show up considering how we already have a Minun around base."

Tiana half-ignored him, "It must be wild since no one I know of around here has a Plusle." Wild Pokemon were a common sight in the Garden, a special part of MHHQ. It had been constructed as a place for the Hunters' Pokemon to relax and enjoy themselves. It was a large outdoor area with trees, grass, flowers, and even a pair of good-sized ponds and a rocky area for ground and rock type Pokemon. Naturally, many wild Pokemon had taken notice of it and were quick to start settling it. There was now a great variety residing there. It was a good thing since it provided a fairly steady supply of Pokemon for rookie Hunters that didn't yet have one.

The Plusle looked to be in pretty bad shape. Tiana was mildly surprised when it attempted to stand up. It managed a small glance around before collapsing again. She laughed slightly. This one was a fighter. It had likely gotten hurt in a scrap with another wild Pokemon.

"Chatot, would you go make sure the others are doing all right?" Tiana asked. Tiana could have several Pokemon under her care in the nursing wing at any given time.

Chatot lifted his wing to his head in a salute, "Yes Ma'am!" Chatot flew off to another part of the wing while Tiana took a closer look at Plusle. If it still had some energy left, then it probably wasn't as bad as it looked. This could still take a while, though.

"Anything we can do to help?" Storm asked. The Hunters seemed to like assisting her in their spare time. Maybe it was because they were afraid that she would be overwhelmed otherwise.

Tiana looked thoughtful for a moment, "Yes, would you two be as kind as to check to see if those Sitrus plants have come up yet? I really need to restock soon."

n/n/n/n/

As X left the video phone room, he heard some Hunters talking,

"Did you hear? Garma's unit was destroyed!"

X stopped. Garma was an experienced Hunter who had had a few close calls. If he remembered correctly, his Pokemon had been an Ursaring.

"It was!? How!?" Another Hunter asked, surprised.

"They were out on a mission when they were attacked by some crazy Maverick! Completely obliterated them!"

"What happened to their Pokemon?"

"I recently saw them in the nursing wing. Guess the Maverick didn't find them worth its time."

"They never do."

That was true. For some strange reason, the Mavericks, reploid Mavericks not Mechaniloids, never harmed a single Pokemon. In fact, many of them more often than not possessed Pokemon themselves. As a result, the Hunters usually brought their own Pokemon with them, as Mavericks had a tendency to sic their own on them. Another reason the Hunters used their Pokemon on missions was that they could come in handy against Maverick Mechaniloids. X continued to listen.

"So what do they plan to do about the Maverick?"

"I heard the commander went in to deal with it personally."

X mind immediately whirled. The commander!?

n/n/n/n/

Two scouts were hiding out behind a rock, watching the building that was in front of them. The area they were in was very rocky and dusty. Both of them were nervous.

They heard footsteps behind them and then a strong voice, "What's the current situation?"

Both scouts turned around, "Commander!" One of them said.

Sigma was bigger than most reploids, which made him a bit intimidating. A black fox-like Pokemon with yellow markings stood by him loyally.

"Where's that red Maverick that wiped out Garma's unit?" Sigma asked, his voice dead serious.

One of the scouts gulped, "In…Inside! He's inside that door!"

"Umbreon!" The Dark-type Pokemon took a stance, as if reading itself for battle.

Sigma nodded in understanding, "You may all leave now….I'll take care of this personally! And no, you aren't coming along." He added to the shocked Umbreon. Umbreon looked at its trainer for a few moments with a mixture of shock and concern. Then it promptly stood erect like a soldier,

"Umbre!" it said a sharp, understanding tone, like a soldier addressing its commander. Sigma's militant attitude had rubbed off on the Umbreon, but they were still close as Trainer and Pokemon. The proof of that lay in Umbreon's form.

"You're…going in by yourself commander?" One of the scouts asked.

"I don't want any more of my people being sacrificed!" said Sigma sharply as he walked toward the building.

n/n/n/n/

The first thing Sigma noticed once he was inside was the red Maverick itself. It had a spiked helmet and long blond hair. Its back was facing him. When he stopped, it heard him and looked over its shoulder with a murderous glint in its eye, right at Sigma. Sigma barely had time to think as the Maverick charged him with a punch ready. He dodged the punch with ease and dodged again when the Maverick delivered a kick, causing it to strike a nearby gas tank instead.

Sigma smiled as the tank exploded. That had been too easy. His smile quickly turned into a look a surprise as he saw the red Maverick emerged from the smoke, almost completely unharmed. He smiled again. Maybe this Maverick would provide a challenge for him for once.

They both charged at each other. Sigma quickly and easily dodged a flurry of punches from the Maverick before delivering a round house kick. The Maverick attempted to block it, only to be blown back, crashing into some nearby barrels. No sooner had Sigma began to approach it that the Maverick charged him again, delivering another flurry of punches, all of which he dodged. Sigma finally grabbed it, threw it over and then tossed it towards the ceiling, where its head crashed through and became stuck.

Sigma smiled, confident that the battle had been won. Then he gasped. The Maverick unstruck itself, an insane smile on its lips. It grabbed a pipe and jumped down. Sigma jumped up to meet it. He knocked away the pipe as the Maverick attempted to swing it at him then swung a punch at the same time as the Maverick. They connected in mid air, and hung their for a moment, each trying to overcome the other without faltering. They finally broke apart and the Maverick charged again. Sigma doged another flurry of punches and then leapt to the rafters. The Maverick quickly followed suit, landing across from him.

Sigma activated his saber. The Maverick grabbed a pipe from nearby. They both launched at each other, their weapons meeting in midair, sparks flying. They quickly broke apart and then charged each other again, parrying each others blows, at some point falling back down to the floor below.

There was a loud noise as Sigma finally managed to cut through the pipe the Maverick had been weilding. He then charged at the Maverick again ready to deal the final blow. The Maverick saw an opening and then...

Sigma's arm went flying, and with it, his saber. It clattered on the floor nearby. Sigma cluctched at where his arm once was, the place sparking from the numerous disconnected wires. The Maverick smiled, as insane as ever. Sigma, for the first time in his life, felt terror go through him as the Maverick approached.

A few moments later, Sigma was tossed to the ground by the Maverick, badly damaged, his situation looking more and more hopeless. He heard the Maverick approach from behind. It grabbed his head. putting him in a headlock. The Maverick looked down at him, clearly savoring every moment of Sigma's suffering. And then it reared back its head and laughed.

It was suddenly cut off. A W flashed on the crystal on its helmet. Sigma manged to lift himself up and look back in time to the Maverick scream in pain, clutching at its helmet. He took full advantage of the moment. He charged at the Maverick and punched the crystal, shattering it. The Maverick was blown back, unconsious, on the ground.

n/n/n/n/

As Sigma emerged out of the building, the scouts and a very worried Umbreon noticed him.

"Look! It's Commander Sigma!" One of the soldiers shouted.

"Incredible! Now I'm certain there's no one that's a match for the Commander…What!" They all suddenly saw just how badly hurt Sigma was. And one of them was quick to react.

"Umbre!" Umbreon ran over to Sigma, its eyes full of concern. For a good reason too. It had never, EVER, seen its Trainer injured like this! It hoped he would be okay.

Sigma gave an acknowledging and reassuring nod at the worried Dark-type Pokemon. He then turned to the scouts as he walked past them, "Take that Maverick to the repair center and call Dr. Cain…I wish to have that Maverick studied!"

There was something different about Sigma. The scouts could both sense it. "Commander! Are you OK?" One of then asked as Sigma walked by.

"Silence!" Sigma commanded as he limped past them with a worried Umbreon close behind.

n/n/n/n/

Chatot was flying around the base. He was looking for something at Tiana's request. "Where are you? C'mon, I know you aren't fully recovered so come on out!"

"Who you looking for?" One hunter who noticed asked, curious.

Chatot perched nearby and sighed, "The Plusle Tiana was treating somehow escaped. She asked me to track it down."

n/n/n/n/

He awoke, feeling confused and disoriented. He couldn't remember anything. What had happened? Where was he? He could only remember his name...

Zero...

He opened his eyes. Only to find himself face to face with a Pokemon.

"What the heck!?" He jumped, startled. Then blinked. The Pokemon was a Plusle from what he could tell. It was next to the repair bed he was apparently on. It was regarding him curiously, cocking its head and blinking.

He sat up and looked at it. What did it want from him, exactly? It jumped on its lap, continuing to look at him with those curious eyes. "What do you want?" He asked. The electric-Pokemon actually shrugged,

"Plusle."

"There you are! I've been looking all over for you!" Tiana had just entered the repair center. She stopped short when she noticed Zero was awake. She gulped. This was the red Maverick that had wiped out Garma's unit.

The Plusle looked up at her, "Plusle?"

"Oh you found it! Great!" Chatot came flying in and landed on Tiana's shoulder. He then looked at Zero, "Well, look who's finally awake! You certainly did a good job on Sigma! His Umbreon is worried sick about him."

"Chatot! There's no need to be rude!" Tiana scolded.

"Um, where am I exactly?" Zero asked.

"You're in the Maverick Hunter base repair center. Though I honestly don't know what Sigma was thinking when he wanted you to be brought here."

"Who is this Sigma character you keep mentioning anyhow?"

Tiana blinked, "You mean you don't know?"

"I don't remember anything. All I can remember is my name. So who is this Sigma?"

"Sigma is the Commander of the Maverick Hunters." Tiana explained.

"And who exactly are the Maverick Hunters?"

"Um..." He really couldn't remember anything! Tiana decided he wasn't dangerous, so a little common courtesy was in order. "Why don't I introduce myself? My name is Tiana, I'm the Pokemon nurse here. And this guy here is my Pokemon, Chatot."

"Nice to meet you," said Chatot.

"My name is Zero. I'm not sure what's going on but-" He was inturrupted by a chirp,

"Plusle! Plusle!" The Plusle looked up at Zero eagerly. Although it didn't grasp just who Sigma was, it did know that Sigma was strong. And if this reploid was powerful enough to defeat someone strong, then maybe he could help it become stronger. Losing to that Mightyena in the Garden had been embarissing for it and it didn't want something like that to happen again.

"Plusle is introducing itself," Chatot explained.

"And I think it likes you," Tiana guessed.

"Plusle!" Plusle said in agreement. It then looked at Zero straight in the eye.

Perhaps together, a powerful reploid and one of the strongest Pokemon in the Garden (At least in its opinion), they could both become stronger.

--

Guess how Sigma got an Umbreon?

This chapter is important in not only introducing Zero but also at last shifting the focus of the story from Keisha and Daekar to X and the rest of the Hunters. But I assure you, none of you have seen the last of my two Trainer OCs yet!

At this point, I would like to explain something, namely, why I decided to have X have a Minun and Zero have a Plusle. At first, I wanted X to have a water Pokemon (A Squirtle/Wartortle more specifically) and Zero to have a Pokemon that would later evolve into something powerful (say, Charmander). But then, while I was looking through one of those Pokedex books, it hit me. Minun and Plusle were blue and red respectively, just like X and Zero. Wierd realization but as I thought about it, I realized that if I had those two be the main character's Pokemon, there could be so much symbology behind it. I won't get into that symbology right now, but those reading this more familiar with the pair of Pokemon might understand some of it.

A sincere thanks to all my reviewers!

R&R!