OoO( 8 )OoO

Barnes stood over the trainer as he lay unconscious in the bed. With one arm across his own chest and one on his chin, the tall man waited until the nurse next to the bed responded to his question. "I'm not really sure...there are no marks on his body. There are no signs whatsoever of injury." she said.

The man put his hands down on his hips as he stared at the unconscious trainer. Growlithe was now sitting at his bedside, as well as the eevee he had loaned him. He smirked, seeing the fox pokemon stare at the boy longingly. Turning to the nurse, he shook his head. "All I know is I saw a bolt of lightning come out of the sky and blinded me. I was trying to keep Shepard here," he said nodding to the Growlithe. "from going after him. He chased that thief boy out into the rain, then all the sudden lightning hit. I ran out, saw him on the ground, then grabbed him and brought him in here."

The nurse looked up wide eyed. "You don't think he was hit by that lightning do you?" she asked shocked. When the man shrugged, she turned back to the trainer and sighed. "That might explain why his Pokegear was no longer functioning." she deduced, scratching her chin lightly. "But if he was, then he is very lucky to be alive." Taking the new pokegear on his wrist, she slid a tiny card inside it, causing the display to ring out with his heartbeat. Once the beeping started, the nurse stood up and walked to the door. "Let me know if anything changes. I have to get back to the center now." she said, getting a nod from the breeder.

Barnes looked down at Felix and smirked. "Torn up by crows, then you go and get hit by lightning. You're either a miracle or a natural disaster." he said, then left the room.

OoOoO

Felix felt himself sitting on solid ground, but as he looked around, he couldn't see it. All he saw anywhere he looked was blackness. Standing up, he held his head as a bolt of pain shot through it.

"Oww..." he said rubbing his cranium.

"You always were the hero." said a voice behind him. Turning, he saw a young man, years older than him and wearing all black with spiked brown hair standing there. A scarf wrapped around the older trainers neck, concealing his mouth as the tail end blew in the non existent wind. Felix stared at him in shock, unable to say anything. "I must say though, I always remembered you being louder." said the man again.

"D-Dias?" he asked. "What are you doing here?" said the trainer, finally finding his words.

"Me? I'm here because you were looking for me. The question is, why are you here?" said the older trainer.

Felix scratched his head, thinking about the question. "I...I'm not sure. I remember the rain...and eevee...but it all gets blurry from there." he said. Then, he looked back up at his older brother. "Where did you go? Everyone in Johto has been looking for you."

Dias shrugged. "I've been all over. As for where I am now, well, you'll figure it out eventually. You were always the smartest of the two of us, even at your age. For now, just worry about the path in front of you. It will eventually lead to me little brother." said the trainer as he walked forward and patted his brother's head. He then began to walk off. "Always remember what you told me before I left to become the champion, and you'll go far." said the spectre like trainer. Then he vanished.

Felix opened his eyes as the sound of beeping reached his ears. His vision was fuzzy, but he managed to sit up and found himself in a bed. His muscles were extremely sore, but that didn't stop him from flailing his arm around looking for an alarm clock. "What the..." he said as his search failed. Noticing the sound was coming from his own wrist, he looked at it and saw the screen of his pokegear flashing with a mountainous line, going up and down with the rate of his heartbeat. Jamming his finger on the button on the side, the noise stopped.

He stood as the ringing in his ears swelled with each movement. Looking down, both of his pokemon were staring up at him hopefully. "Don't worry guys, I'm alright." he said as he went to reach down and pet them, but the door opened, causing him to look up.

"Oh, you are awake! I was starting to get worried." said Mina as she walked into the room with a basket on her arm. Setting the basket down, both of the pokemon dove on it and began to devour the pokemon food inside it. "I'll go get the nurse." she said as she left the room again.

A few minutes later, Barnes, Mina, and the nurse entered the room. The nurse immediately descended on the boy, forcing him to sit on the bed as she examined his vitals.

"W...What are you doing?" asked Felix as she held open one of his eyes and shined a bright light into it.

"Can you feel your fingers and toes? Do you have any numbness? Are you dizzy? Do you know where you are?" she asked.

"Yes, no, a little, and...in some science laboratory?" he asked jokingly.

She looked at him oddly, then chuckled. "Don't worry, the dissecting comes later." she said, making both of the boy's eyes widen. Scanning them both, she put the light away with an amused smile. "Just joking."

He smiled weakly. "Oh...right." he said.

"Well, from the looks of things, you are perfectly fit. Which brings up the question, what happened to you?" she asked curiously.

He glared at the floor. "I don't exactly remember. All I recall is that kid...he turned and we were battling, then eevee got hurt..." he said as he noticed the fox pokemon come up and nuzzle his leg affectionately. He nearly flinched as she approached, expecting to be cannibalized by the small fox. But he stood there in shock when she curled up on top of his foot. Holding his head, he tried to remember the rest, but all he got was a blank. "I can't remember. Last thing I remember doing was crawling to her. Everything else is a blur." he said as he reached down and scratched her head.

"From what I saw, it looked like you were hit by lightning." said Barnes as he walked over and patted the trainer on the back harshly. Felix cringed as the wind was pounded out of his lungs. "Take a tough boy to live through something like that." he said.

Recovering from the friendly assault, Felix chuckled. "Yeah...I guess." he said. "I see she's doing alright as well." he said looking down at the small fox on his foot.

"Yeah, she was injured, but only a little. Not to mention, whatever you did out there made her turn her ways." said Barnes as he reached down to pet the eevee. He quickly jerked back as the fox latched onto his hand with her sharp teeth. Thinking quickly, he flicked her across the nose again, making her sneeze and let go of his hand. He stood, rubbing the bite wound and looking at her oddly. "Well, she did for you at least." he said amused as Felix pet the fox.

"You are quite the troublemaker." said the nurse smiling at him. "I've had to bring you back from unconsciousness everyday after we met."

He chuckled. "Sorry...trouble kinda...finds me." he said scratching the back of his head.

She nodded. "Oh, I know how it goes. I had a trainer like you visit here quite often when he began his journey. I had just started working here and he came into the clinic three times that very day." she said chuckling. "I didn't mind though. He was very charming like yourself." she said.

Felix looked at her and got a strange feeling in his gut. "Did you get his name by any chance?" he asked.

She nodded. "Of course. I could never forget Dias." she said, making him gasp. Looking at him oddly, she tilted her head. "Is something wrong? Are you hurting anywhere?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Would you happen to know where he went?" he asked solemnly, already knowing the answer.

She shook her head. "I'm afraid not. I watched him face the Elite Four and become champion, but after that he just vanished." she said, confused by his line of questioning. "Why do you ask?"

"He's...my brother. I'm searching for him." he said stretching his arms over his head. She covered her mouth with her hand.

"Oh my...I'm sorry." she said sadly.

"It's alright. I'll find him eventually." he said smiling. "So, am I ready to go?" he asked.

She smiled at his eagerness. "Yes, as long as you feel up to it. Oh...and I had to replace your pokegear I'm afraid. It was completely totalled when we found you." she said. The trainer looked down at his wrist contraption and sighed.

"Great...so now I have to go back and tell him the news face to face."

OoOoO

Professor Elm stood over his notes once more, looking over the many mysterious numbers and letters. Scratching his chin, he spun in his lab chair and turned to his computer. The screen showed a Magikarp on the screen with a Gyrados next to it.

"I don't understand...it's inconceivable how such a useless pokemon such as Magikarp can evolve into one of the strongest most violent of them all!" he said, then stood up and grabbed his head. "RESEARCH!" he shouted as a battle cry.

"Ummm...professor?" said a voice behind him. Elm jumped in fright at the sound of the intruder, causing him to fling himself back into his lab chair, wheeling across to the floor to the other side. He stood once more, composing himself and straightening his glasses before looking at the newcomer.

"Ah! Felix! It's you!" he said excitedly. "So, how was your trip?" asked the man.

Felix walked over and scratched his head. "Well, I got the PokeDex to Mr. Pokemon, but the thing is, the battery was fine."

The good professor's demeanor took a more serious tone. "Yes! I got an email from him after you left that told me everything. He said you activated the Dex and used it before you arrived there." he said with a sly smirk on his face.

"Yeah, it was too tempting not to try." said Felix with a smile.

Elm nodded at this statement. "Well, then you passed our test. Normally, this is where I'd tell you that you can keep the pokemon I loaned you, but you already had your own." he said with a chuckle. Then, a question popped into his head. "Speaking of loaned pokemon, did you ever find that boy that stole Totodile from the lab?" he asked.

Felix choked. "Oh...yeah, about that. I did run into him."

The professor leaned forward examining the boys nervous features. "Aaaaaand?"

"Well, I battled him once I found him and ended up getting hit by lightning...so he kinda got away." said the trainer with a nervous smile.

"You...ummm...got hit by lightning?" asked the professor. Felix nodded and the professor put his hands on the boy's shoulders.

"P-Professor?" asked Felix nervously.

Professor Elm yanked the boy onto the table and began attaching wires to the boy's body. "SCIENCE! We must study the effects!" shouted the man as he attached the suction cups.

The door opened behind them and Elm's gorgeous assistant walked into the room with a curious look. Felix shot a pleading glance at her, making her chuckle. "Professor, don't you think his mother would want to see him before he takes his journey?" she asked, amused at the desperation in the young trainers eyes.

Elm looked at her, then sighed. "I suppose." he said, disappointed that he couldn't proceed to study the boy. Looking at the boy's wrist, he noticed something. "This isn't the pokegear I gave you is it?" he asked curiously. Felix shook his head. "Ah...lightning." he said, then took the boy's wrist and swiped a card through the slide on the top of the wrist machine. Immediately, the professor's information was stored on the device. "There you are. All set." he said as he pulled the cords off the boy's body.

"Sorry professor. Maybe next time." said Felix, the relief obvious in his voice. Getting off the table, he pulled his shirt down and headed for the door. "I'll talk to you soon professor." he said as he headed out.

Elm looked at the floor. His assistant walked over and patted him. "Don't worry professor, there will be other subjects for you to study." she said as she led him back to his computer.

"But...but science..." he said downtrodden.

OoOoO

Felix sat at the kitchen table with his two pokemon on either side of him and his mom staring at him across the table. Her own pokemon, Lopunny, was munching an overlarge carrot in its own bean bag like chair.

"So, the day has finally come?" she asked. He nodded. "Well, I knew it was coming eventually." she said with a smile.

He looked up at her, knowing what he had to say. "Mom..." he said, making her look at him. "I know what happened with Dias hurt. It hurt us both a lot that he disappeared. I just want you to know that I won't do that."

Her expression softened as she leaned forward and stroked his cheek. "I know honey. I'm not worried about that." she said.

He looked up at her beautiful features. "Then what...?" he asked questioningly.

"I haven't lived in this house my whole life. I was a pokemon trainer too at one time. And I know how dangerous it is out there. I just want you to be safe." she said. "And...don't make any decisions you will regret." she said looking down.

He had the feeling she was giving the advice from personal experience, however he wasn't going to push her. He just nodded smiling. "Don't worry Mom. I'll make you proud." he said as he stood up.

She smiled. "I know honey." she said standing up with him. "And I have a gift for you, to start your journey with." she said as she walked to her room.

"Really?" he asked excitedly. She walked back out with her arms behind her back, then pulled out a pair of new shoes, red in color with flames lining the soles, and black stripes like those on the Growlithe next to him. His eyes were wide with awe.

"I know you've been wanting them. So I got them, and I was just waiting for the right time to give them to you." she said as he took them from her. Lacing them up and admired them.

He nodded. "Thanks mom." he said hugging her. "I'll call you when I get to Violet City." he said, and she nodded.

"Go on then." she said waving him off cheerfully. He went to the door with his two companions and opened it, then stepped outside into the sun.

Smirking at his two pokemon, he said, "Ready guys?" Then he took off with both pokemon speeding behind him, eager to see what the next day held.