Sorry for the long delay - I'm improvising as I write this - I have no set plan. I know where it is going, but I don't know the specifics until I write them. It's just how I work. Therefore, this is my third attempt at this chapter, each time with a different story. I am finally happy with this one, though, so I hope you like it!

Please R&R

-Ship-

Chapter 6

A twisting jet of water erupted from Bagon's toothed mouth, surging across the rocky terrain. Kenny was shocked at the ferocity of the stunted dragon pokémon – no challenger yet had proven so strong, so early on in their journey. He gritted his teeth as Pupitar was slammed against the gym wall.

"Pupitar, return." He called, holding the ball out in the direction of the unconscious pokémon. Oscar had wiped out Graveler and Pupitar in a matter of seconds. That Hydro Pump was insanely powerful, and yet Bagon was so young. Oscar, too, showed incredible talent when it came to directing his pokémon, and, though Kenny was not using his strongest pokémon – they had dominated the league in their time – he had not expected such a challenge.

At least his final pokémon had a feasible chance to resist Hydro Pump's power. He clasped the pokéball in his fist, and threw it out onto the field.

"Go, Corsola!"

Oscar blinked surprisedly as a pale blue Corsola formed from the red light of the pokéball. He could have sworn Corsola were pink. He shook his head, disregarding the obscurity and considered his options.

"Bagon – Headbutt!"

Bagon leapt from his wide stance into a run, sprinting at his opponent. Corsola dodged, leaving room for Kenny to unleash a stream of commands. Corsola issued a stream of bubbles from it's mouth, driving Bagon futher off course, before hardening as it jumped at Bagon, resulting in a rock-hard tackle that left Bagon prone. Leaping to his feet, Bagon used his Hydro Pump once more, hitting the braced coral pokémon head on.

Both pokémon were now tiring, Bagon worse off due to his previous battles. Bagon crouched between two large stones, steadying his breathing in wait for a command from Oscar, the strategist of the battle, analysing the field for a perfect opportunity.

Kenny smiled. "Corsola? Icicle Spear."

Corsola leapt onto a high rock and sent waves of needle-thin ice shards at Bagon. For a moment, Bagon looked as if he would survive the attack, but as the ice struck him repeatedly, he toppled and lay exhausted on the floor.

Oscar grimaced and recalled Bagon. There was no way the undersized dragon could stand up to the powerful ice attack, even if he could pull himself back up. Now, Oscar regretted not catching more pokémon, having only one backup against Kenny's final stand.

"Swablu, let's finish this." He muttered into the pokeball, "I choose you!"

Swablu emerged, already flying through the air at Corsola. The flying pokémon entered a shallow dive at Oscar's command, and Steel Wing smashed home on Corsola's hard body, throwing it against a tall rock. A second dive was met with Corsola's Tackle, though a departing peck from Swablu left Kenny's pokémon hurt and shielding itself with the spiky protrusions on it's back. Coming around for a third attack, Swablu was hit by Icicle Spear, but, flying headlong into the barrage of ice, Swablu hit Corsola a final time with Steel Wing.

It was all over. Kenny looked shocked; he had ended up using the three most powerful pokémon of his six-strong team to lose spectacularly against a rookie with only his two, newly obtained partners.

"Shit." Dale muttered from the sideline, "Well aren't I fucking glad I don't have to fight him..."

Nurse Joy was surprised, to say the least, when she saw the three unconscious pokémon brought in by a pale-looking Kenny, followed by the young boy of ten years, bearing two pokémon: one who was smiling weakly in the arms of his trainer, having just come around, the other flying strongly, albeit with a few bruises and cuts.

"Return, Swablu, Bagon." The pokémon gladly withdrew into their balls, to be placed on the tray presented by Joy.

"What happened?" She asked, concerned by the magnitude of contrast in injury between the two teams.

"Oscar here wiped me out!" Chuckled Kenny, his magnanimous attitude shining through the insecurity following his defeat, "Which reminds me, Oscar? Here is your Stone Badge." Kenny flicked the badge up into the air. Oscar watched it's spin as it reached the apex of it's flight, and dropped down into his outstretched hand. "Nurse Joy? I'll be back to pick up my pokémon this evening, yes?"

"Of course. They should be healed by then. In the meantime, I assure you there is no lasting damage." Nurse Joy smiled politely.

Kenny nodded and left, clapping Oscar on the back as he did so. Oscar pinned the badge onto the inside of his cloak, proud of his victory in his first real battle.

Dale lay on his bed, his thoughts masked from Oscar and Dena as they talked about the battle. Oscar left the room, leaving Dena to cope with the ever-mysterious whims of dale's mind.

He sat up. "You know, even without Bagon's water attacks, Oscar would have won?"

Dena nodded silently. She, too, had seen the extent of Oscar's battling. He was unstoppable.

"He reminds me of Jack." Dale continued, ignoring the hidden resent that he knew lay beneath Dena's smile. "The way he battles, he knows his pokémon and he knows what they can do. He's a rookie, just like us, but somehow he's bonded with his pokémon in a way that we haven't, in a way that not many people can." Dale lay back down. "He'll go a long way, will Oscar. We have to be there to go with him."

Dena knew Dale's moods, and she could tell that he meant it. She knew, as well as he did, that Oscar would take Hoenn by storm, if only from the previous battle alone, but she knew Oscar, too, and it was too easy to see him collapsing without somebody to be with him.

Dale closed his eyes as he lay there on the bed, Dena sitting on the edge of the mattress and the warmth of the room comforting the both of them. "This is going to be harder for you than for me, Dena. You've chosen to walk the same road as Oscar; you're a trainer. I can enter the contests, and not be outshone by him, but you will have to follow in his shadow, and let him excel. He'll pull you up with him, but he has an affinity for pokémon that neither you, nor I, will ever have. Just remember that it's our job to protect him."

Dena swallowed her anger at Dale's words and remained silent. It was true, and her twin could see it better than any. She would have to train hard to keep up with Oscar, and he would outclass her at every turn. She would just have to live with it. Her brother, it seemed, had said all he had to say, so she stood and walked to the bathroom.

The day before, she had lost to Kenny, and she needed to beat him in her rematch in two days time. It was time to train.

Oscar stood in the atrium of the Pokémon Center, looking out at the pouring rain. A man walked to his side, and he stiffened. The man was dressed in a suit, an unfamiliar logo adorning one lapel.

"I saw your battle." The man spoke coldly, a slight accent gave the voice a deep tone.

"What of it?" Oscar replied, just as coldly.

"You are an exceptional trainer." The face remained emotionless.

"Thankyou." Oscar observed the formality, but gave no other signs of gratitude towards the empty compliment.

"Oscar, is it? Well, Oscar, I know a group of people who could do with a trainer of your... calibre. If you happen to pass Dewford Island on your travels, be sure to find a man named Plautius. He stays in the Palm Hotel. You could do great things, Oscar. And we could help you."

"Perhaps you could, sir, but actually, I'm alright as I am."

The man scowled and turned away. "Meet Plautius. He will talk with you." He walked briskly from the Center, and Oscar watched him through the window as he strode in the direction of the port.

"What did he want?" Nurse Joy startled Oscar, putting him off balance as he stepped down from the ledge by the window.

"I don't really know. He just told me to meet a man in Dewford." Oscar replied, knowing very well that the adult would immediately advise him to do the opposite.

She lived up to his expectations. "I wouldn't get involved with strange men, Oscar."

Oscar sighed discreetly; the age-old warnings were beginning to wear thin. "I wasn't going to. He didn't seem a very nice man, actually."

"Good." Joy said, matter-of-factly. "Now, I meant to say, Swablu has had some rest, and she's in perfect health. Bagon's exhausted, though. His injuries are only minor, but try to keep him out of battles for a few days – Kenny's Corsola packs a strong punch."

"Thanks, Nurse Joy." Oscar replied, taking the pokeballs proffered by the nurse. Her condescending smile, strangely enough, was scaring him slightly. "We wont be battling anyway for a few days – We're staying in Rustboro for Dena to earn her badge."

"Ok, then." She responded, still smiling brightly, "But when you do, bear in mind that the Rusturf Tunnel is closed. They're widening it to build a train line from Rustboro to Lilycove. I think there'll be a Slateport line aswell. It's about time they spent some money on decent transport – Ferries are too slow, and they can't even get to places like Littleroot, Lavaridge, Fallarbor – you have to take a car down dirt tracks. It's ridiculous."

"Mm." Oscar replied. He wasn't particularly worried about trains. He enjoyed walking anyway. "We can go around the tunnel. Dale wants to get to Verdanturf for his first contest, so I doubt we can go any other way and still be there in time to register."

"Well, as long as you know." Joy finally seemed to figure out that Oscar didn't really want to talk to her. "I've got to go now, Oscar. I'll see you later." she finalised the awkward exchange and walked back to her desk, where she proceeded to sort various documents into piles.

Hunger chewed at Oscar's stomach. He frowned and walked out of the Center, the superstore on the other side of the pedestrianised street attracting his attention. The cashier gave him a strange look as he placed a pack of ginger biscuits on the counter, level with his head, and he gave her a strange look back. She quickly averted her eyes. Adults were fun to embarrass.

Biscuits in hand, he left the shop, wrestling one of the disks from the plastic wrap as he watched people on their phones, sorting through handbags and checking wallets. One particular man, though, caught his eye. The man who had spoken to him in the Center, speaking into a headset. He was walking north, away from the main commercial area. Oscar checked that nobody was watching him, and followed behind the man, staying on the opposite side of the street, and behind, but still in sight.

The man took a right down an alley several blocks down. Oscar crossed the street and leant against a pillar on a shop front. He heard the man knock on a door, and curse as there was no response.

Oscar was slightly disappointed, but his heart lifted again as he heard the unmistakable click of a latch. "Ignis. Did you get what you wanted?"

"The boy didn't react well. He didn't seem best pleased with my offer."

"Fuck. Ustrina won't be happy."

"The hell with Ustrina. Now let me in."

The door closed again, and Oscar glanced around the edge of the alleyway. Nobody was there. He hurried to the door, and read a placard nailed to the dark wood. Engraved in the brass were faded words, in block capitals: "MAGMA RENATVS". Beneath that, a symbol was scratched by hand – a triangle framing a stylized M.

Oscar was slightly perturbed by the mysterious man, and his friend behind the door. He left hurriedly, checking behind him to see if he was followed.