Drew walked through the streets of Rustboro City in interest. The low concrete buildings were so old-fashioned compared to the high tech structures of LaRousse City. So far every city he had visited was a Rattata compared to the glory of LaRousse.

Drew thought angrily, What an idiot he was for leaving LaRousse. It was way better than all these other sad towns.

As Drew ventured deeper into the city, he noticed a large mass of people gathered at the town square. Drew saw a police woman standing on a large stadium and addressing the people of Rustboro city with a large bullhorn. However, by the time Drew reached the large crowd, the woman had finished speaking and everyone was starting to leave.

Drew said, "I wonder what happened."

"Excuse me young man, did you not hear what I just said?"

Drew turned around to see the same woman who was speaking to the people talking to him.

He shook his head, "No, sorry. I just arrived, I don't live here."

The police officer placed her hands on her hips, "The royal family is going to be staying at Rustboro for a few days on their way to Slateport City. However, due to the recent incident with the King being attacked, extra security measures have been taken to ensure His Highness' safety. One of them is that all citizens of the city that King Norman or any other royal family members are passing through must return to their homes by nightfall. So I advise that you head over to the Pokemon Center or the Rustboro Inn and quickly book a room or go camp in the Petalburg Woods."

Drew grumbled angrily to himself as he walked away, "I swear… the royal family is going to drive me crazy one day… stupid security issues…"

Drew didn't bother checking the Pokemon Center since he thought that the center would be packed with people. After asking some people where the Rustboro Inn was, Drew finally found the small building in an isolated part of the city. Drew asked the old man running the place whether he could rent a room. Unfortunately though, the inn was out of rooms and Drew walked out of the building in anger.

Drew watched the sun descend behind the tall trees of the Petalburg Woods.

Looks like I'm camping out tonight, he thought.

Drew searched his bag and took out a Pokeball, "Let's go Flygon!"

The Mystic Pokemon sang as it flew overhead Drew. It landed besides its trainer before swinging its tail against the ground in delight. Drew chuckled and patted Flygon's neck, "I need some help Flygon. Fly me overhead the woods so we can find a suitable place to camp."

Flygon nodded and Drew climbed on its back. The green dragon-type Pokemon jumped into the air and flapped its great green wings. The excited Pokemon quickly flew above the clouds and Drew shivered as the icy night chills tingled on his skin. The giant pale moon shone brightly in the star-filled night. Flygon flew through a gigantic fluffy cloud and Drew chuckled as the water droplets tickled him. He gently patted Flygon's neck, "Let's focus Flygon."

Flygon opened its mouth and roared in joy before tucking in its wings and skydiving back to the ground. Drew felt his stomach drop and he smiled at the thrill he felt when flying on top of his dragon. Flygon glided over the heads of the trees while Drew tried to search for a nice camping site.

Suddenly, Flygon jerked to a stop and Drew nearly fell off from the momentum. Drew hissed, "What's going on Flygon? You see something?"

The red "goggles" over Flygon's eyes not only helped it see through sandstorms, but also in the dark. Drew knew something was wrong when Flygon tensed and swiveled its head to look in all directions.

Flygon slowly drifted sideways with its green antennae twitching; luckily it was also able to detect sounds and different patterns of sound waves. Flygon swooped down into a small clearing that was large enough for Flygon to land. Once Flygon's paws touched the ground, Drew jumped off and whispered, "Where is it?"

Flygon nudged its head in front of it and Drew nodded, "Stay here. We might need a quick getaway. Send your Flamethrower in the air if you run into any trouble, got it?"

Flygon nodded and Drew took out another Pokeball and threw it in the air, "Let's go Absol."

The disaster Pokemon leapt forward and began to sniff the ground like a dog. Drew said, "Use Flash. But not so strong."

Absol produced a dim light and led the way for Drew to follow. Drew tried to listen for any strange noises or unusual commotions. But he heard none. After minutes of walking in the woods, Drew was about to give up and return to Flygon when he heard a series of voices. Drew hissed, "Stop Absol."

Absol nodded and extinguished its light. Drew placed a hand on Absol's head and trusted that his Pokemon would guide him towards the voices.

"No, you're doing it wrong!"

"What are you talking about? I think it looks pretty good."

"Well you're wrong. I don't even know why I let you be in charge of altering her appearance. By the time you're done with her, she's going to look like a total nut job!"

Drew squinted in the dark, What's going on?

Finally, Drew and Absol saw an orange glow in front of them. The two made their way towards the light but stopped short when they saw two men sitting around a campfire. It was an ideal camping (or hiding) spot, Drew thought. The tall trees provided a canopy of leaves that blocked any light from entering or escaping. It looked like a little dome of leaves and branches. The green-haired boy and Pokemon hid behind a large bush at the edge of the campsite and watched the scene before them. A large duck like Pokemon carrying a spring onion was swiping the vegetable back and forth. Drew saw locks of brown hair fall onto the ground.

… What..?

"Awesome!" one of the men yelled suddenly, giving Drew a nasty scare. "This is good enough so that no one will recognize her. So if she escapes, no one will believe her!"

The other guy shrugged, "We should do something about her eyes though. They're too famous… We need to blind her."

Drew's eyes widened in shock, "Absol, Razor Wind!"

Absol leapt out from behind the bush. The blade on its head glowed bright white as it prepared to launch the attack. The two men whirled around and gasped in surprise as a crescent-shaped blade of energy flew towards at them.

"Aack!"

The two men were thrown on their backs and Farfetch'd was thrown into the surrounding tall grass.

One of the men sat up and rubbed his head, "Eavesdropper! Farfetch'd, use Air Slash!"

Farfetch'd jumped up, and twirled its leek in the air. A blue sphere of air was formed and Farfetch'd cried out as it threw the ball towards Absol.

Drew rushed out of his hiding spot to join the fight, "Use Iron Tail and hit it back!"

Absol leapt into the air and knocked the blue sphere back to Farfetch'd with its glowing tail. The surprised Wild Duck Pokemon flailed in its spot before getting hit by its own attack.

Farfetch'ds trainer growled, "C'mon, use Slash!"

Farfetch'ds leek glowed white as it charged towards Absol. Drew smirked, "Now use Flash!"

Absol cried out its name before sending out waves of a brilliant yellow light. Blinded, Farfetch'd stopped in its track and lifted its wings to shield its eyes. The two men groaned in pain and one of them took out another Pokeball.

He threw it in the air, "Gengar, use Night Shade!"

The ghost Pokemon grinned evilly and its eyes glowed red. Darkness overpowered the light and the night was reclaimed.

Drew smirked, "Use Water Pulse Absol!"

Absol roared and its body was surrounded in a hue of blue. A large wave of water suddenly appeared and the men cried out as the wave crashed into them.

Drew called out, "Flygon!"

A dull thumping noise ran across the campsite until there was a roar. A column flames suddenly shot down in front of the shocked men, nearly burning them. The green Pokemon flew through the burning hole it made in the leaves above. Drew was almost grateful that the Pokemon had ignored him and followed him to the clearing. Flygon landed besides Drew and the wind it created blew out the fire leaving the campsite in total darkness.

One of them men sputtered, "Hey! Who turned off the lights?"

There was a loud smack and a whimper of pain. Drew chuckled, "Help them out Flygon. Hit them with Flamethrower!"

The two men screamed as a large column of flames streaked towards them. The two men, Farfetch'd, and Gengar ran (or flew) away from the clearing and into the woods. Drew rolled his eyes.

Wimps.

He waited till the frightened wails died away before asking Absol to use Flash again. Once the clearing was bathed in light, Drew looked at the empty pit fire. Close to it was a girl lying on her side. She had soft brown hair and was wearing red and blue clothes. Drew walked up to her and dropped to his knees. He gently flipped the girl onto her back and smirked.

She was sleeping. A little drool dripped from the corner of her mouth and Drew snickered.

He told his Pokemon, "Let's just camp here. I don't think those two morons will come back anytime soon."

Drew took out another Pokeball. He called out, "C'mon out Roselia."

Roselia purred as Drew said, "Flygon, Absol, Roselia, you guys know what to do."

Flygon snorted a column of flames as Absol disappeared into the woods. Moments later, it returned with a bunch of twigs and sticks in its mouth. Absol dropped the wood on the charred fire pit and Flygon lit the wood with another burst of flames.

Meanwhile, Roselia had used Petal Dance and the camp ground was covered with pink petals. Flygon, Absol, and Roselia flopped on top of the soft bedding and were soon snoozing. Drew gently carried the girl bridal style and set her on top of the petals. After grabbing his bag, Drew sat besides the fire and took out a folded piece of paper from his bag. It was the letter that his father left him; his last words to Drew.

Drew read over the words like he did every night. He felt his emotions swell; it reminded him every night of the journey he was on and the goal he was to complete.

May slowly blinked her eyes open. She saw the cloudless sky above her and the woods around her buzzing about.

May thought, Wait, woods?

May's felt a soft substance through her gloves and picked it up. It was a flower petal. Sitting up, May shrieked in alarm; she woke up Roselia, Absol, Flygon, and Drew who had been sleeping against a tree trunk.

Drew mumbled, "Keep it down will you? It's barely dawn; you'll wake up the whole woods."

May jumped to her feet and backed away from Drew and his Pokemon, "Who are you? What am I doing here?"

May swung her head and it felt as if her head had a lightened load.

"And what did you do to my hair?" she wailed.

Drew put his hands over his ears, and waited for the girl to calm down. She was touching her shortened hair in shock. They were fashioned into two pigtails that barely reached her shoulders.

Drew cautiously put down his hands and said, "You were captured by these two dimwits. They cut your hair so no one would 'recognize' you? What did they mean by that?"

May raised her eyebrows, "Are they gone?"

Drew nodded, "Lost somewhere in the woods. Who are you?"

The girl scratched her head nervously, "Uhh.. May, my name's May."

Drew got up and dusted off his clothes. He picked up two Pokeballs from his bag and walked towards his Pokemon. He then returned Roselia and Absol to their Pokeballs. He climbed on top of Flygon, "Okay, well bye."

May gave Drew an incredulous look, "You're leaving me here? Don't I at least get to know your name?"

Drew flicked his hair, "It's Drew. And I'm on a tight schedule, I'm heading to Kanto."

Flygon flapped its wings, ready to take off when May shouted, "Have you seen my Ponyta?"

Drew sighed and patted Flygon's neck. The Mystic Pokemon stopped beating its wings and Drew said, "No, why would I?"

May hung her head, "Aww, poor Ponyta. Those creeps stole her; I only have two Pokeballs with me now…"

Drew smirked and slid off of Flygon, "You're a Pokemon trainer? Not very strong I bet if those guys were able to capture you so easily."

May frowned, "I could beat you in a Pokemon battle if I wanted to!"

Drew rubbed Flygon's snout and it purred in content, "Is that a challenge?"

May faltered, she had never battled before. Her father had forbidden her to do so since he claimed that it wasn't proper for Princesses to fight. Drew noticed her hesitance and smirked. He faced her, "Scared?"

May's eyes sparked in determination and she pulled out a Pokeball.

"You wish."

"Excuse me, sir?"

Wally's father looked behind him and smiled, "What can I do for you doctor?"

Wally's doctor smiled, "I just need a couple of moments with Wally. See how he's progressing."

Wally's father shut the book and got up from the chair, "Of course. Take your time."

"What he really means is hurry so we can get back to the story," Wally muttered unhappily, "I wanna know who wins."

Wally's father replied, "Well that just adds to the suspense doesn't it?"