*Hello all. :3 How's it going? XD I'm still on Spring Break (which ends tomorrow. TT-TT) so it means I'm drawing like crazy. :3 Check me out on dA! I'm iluvshadowclaw. ;) Now onto the chapter!*

Chapter 10

"Rei..." murmured Blue, settling down at her computer at a library table, far away from all the other patrons, Silver taking out his laptop as well. As the two were the best at finding information and hacking and such, Green had told them to stop their search and start hunting online for information on their enemy. "Have you ever heard of the name before? I don't remember hearing it before… It sounds like it has some hidden meaning though, doesn't it?"

"Sort of," replied Silver, shrugging, tapping his fingers restlessly across the wood of the table as he impatiently waited for the computer to load. It usually didn't feel so slow, but with such a threat to the Pokedex holders, his self-proclaimed family, a threat that had already snatched up one of its beloved (but slightly annoying- before the memory loss) members. "I'll start searching through archives of different champions. I mean, if he's strong enough to beat Emerald and Sapphire at the same time, there's a chance he's challenged the League and won before."

"If he's as powerful as Emerald says, and what I can infer from what he's done to Lilycove, there has to be some record of him. A trainer with that much strength can't stay hidden his entire life." Blue's fingers flew across the keyboard, the small tapping noises like the drum of rain on the forest floor, her eyes scanning information like lightning, almost as efficiently as a computer itself. "We need to look for pictures, because chances are he's not using his real name."

"Not finding anything on a person named Rei?" asked Silver, a hint of a taunt in his voice, sounding a bit arrogant, though he was obviously teasing. "Here's a little something interesting. There's an article on the fifteen-year old who won the league about six years ago and a picture. It says the Pokemon he used were Salamence, Gengar, and Gallade. Aren't those the Pokemon Sapphire saw him use?" Silver turned his computer to face Blue, and she frowned at the screen.

"While that is a good clue, different people can own the same Pokemon, and Sapphire hasn't given us a physical description yet. And how are you sure it's this guy? 'Rei' isn't on the paper once," noted Blue, returning to her own research. "More concrete evidence would be what we need, Silver, though this is pretty good too. Make sure you keep that page up, or at least bookmark it." She took another look at her list of champions. "I don't see the name Rei on this anywhere."

"Wait, six years ago?" Silver took another good look at the article he had found. Originally, he'd only bothered to find a clue, and he hadn't scanned the seemingly irrelevant parts of the story, such as the tournament information. "Isn't that the year-"

"That there was an accident and the competition was called off?" Blue finished for him, eyes darkening. "I remember now, it was all over the news, but they kept the names off of the story, because the accident was caused by a minor. In the finals, one of the competitors managed to set the entire arena on fire. Several people were severely injured and some were killed, and his opponent and her Pokemon died in the blaze because they couldn't get out on time. He survived because he had his Pokemon fly above the arena."

The ghastly scene from the TV a few years back replayed in her head- the flames that had jumped so high, so viciously, so much like the incident a few days ago at Lilycove. The way you could still hear screams, carried on the wind, the faint shadow of a Pokemon flying above the arena… She quickly searched up the video, cringing as the footage played, and pausing at the moment where she saw the blue and red dragon far in the background, a hundred feet above the arena, and someone clutching desperately to its neck.

Now if only this video had higher resolution… she thought, annoyed at how when she tried to zoom in, the entire thing transformed into a blob of multi-colored pixels, and were impossible to decipher an image from. At least we have the picture. I'm going to print it out and send it back with Pidgeot…

"Send that photo back to Sapphire?" asked Silver, looking at the photograph of the blond teen. The boy in the picture was smiling slyly and confidently, and his eyes twinkled, saying "Bring it on", looking ready for any challenge. "Good idea. Is Green's Pidgeot still outside though? I thought it left."

"No, I had it stay," assured Blue, getting out of her chair. "It's in the nearby forest, so it looked like it left to go back to Yellow and Emerald. I'll be back in a minute, Silver."

Silver nodded, and scanned his article again, managing to find what he was looking for in a clip of the beginning of his League challenge. So this guy's name is Jade… Let's see what that finds me…

After a few clicks and websites, he found the name on a 'Missing' list, showing that the teen had mysteriously disappeared around five years ago from his hometown in Fallabor, only a few months after the tragic incident in his League challenge. Jade is an orphan who was raised along with a few others in the local orphanage. He was top of his class in elementary school, and especially excelled in Pokemon battling, Silver read, wondering if there would actually be any big hints, though he doubted it. They'd probably have to go to Fallabor and ask around if they wanted more info. And that's what we're going to do! There has to be more information if we go there!

There were a few footsteps behind him, and Silver turned around to see the brown-haired girl heading back towards him. She smiled, and he returned it with the smallest hint of a grin. "Silver, found anything?" asked Blue, laying her hand on his shoulder, her touch like an electric shock.

I wonder if she thinks of me as anything more than a brother… he thought, his eyes only slightly betraying his inner emotions. I wonder if she feels for me like I do for her…

"Let's try going to Fallabor Town," he said, closing his laptop lid and stuffing the computer in his bag, shaking away his previous thoughts. He couldn't be distracted by that now, not when he had something so important to do. "I think we'll get a good lead there."

When the boy woke up, he saw bright lights from above and from the side, and noticed that he was lying on a soft bed, covered by a thin blanket, which was just enough to keep him warm. Taking a deep yawn, and unconsciously stretching, he sat up and took a look around the room with curious crimson eyes- it was just about empty, except for the bed and a mirror on the other side of the room. A window and a light hanging from the ceiling proved to be the sources of the bright light rays that stung his sleepy eyes, and he had to blink several times before he could really open them.

The room felt almost like a cave, barring the window and the fact that there seemed to be no exit or entrance, stone and dirt walls surrounding him. It wasn't dark or cold or damp or common traits associated with caves, but it kind of felt like it nonetheless. An artificial cave, carved into giant stone formation, he guessed, noticing the light above looked like it was powered by electricity.

Where is this? he thought, stepping off the bed onto the hard, cold stone floor, shivering as the chill made its way up his body, but somewhat happy that the cold made him feel more awake, more focused. Why am I here?

As he walked around, not wanting to stay still, he passed the mirror, looking into the reflective glass with interest- flashing back at him were black hair, sharp red eyes, though they were strangely vacant, as if something had disappeared from them, and two long, ugly scars across his forehead, and he self-consciously reached up to touch the marred skin, as if to confirm that they were really there and not some illusion formed by his sleepy mind.

There was something that felt like it was on the tip of his tongue, the edge of his mind, that something crucially vital to his being was missing, but he couldn't place a name to it. It was like being suspended in emptiness, with no place to go, no desire, no panic. Just… empty space. And that was what he felt like.

Suddenly, a pair of red eyes appeared in front of him, and he tried to scream in surprise and fear, but his long silence reduced his fear to only a quiet squeal, and he felt slightly embarrassed, afraid, and yet mesmerized by the strange sight in front of him. A purple body slowly materialized around it, all sharp angles and malice, and the Pokemon's translucent, ghostly fingers grabbed his hand, and he felt a deathly chill go through his body, like a freezing jolt of electricity.

"Let me go!" he cried hoarsely, trying to loosen its surprisingly tight grip. Despite the fact it couldn't even wrap its hand around his wrist, he couldn't break free, despite being much bigger and most likely physically stronger, being a teenage male. So out of desperateness, he kicked it, seeing his foot go through the ghost Pokemon with another shiver.

There was a flash of bright white light then he was out on a beach, his feet sinking into warm, welcoming ivory sand, the steady rumbling and crashing of waves in gentle chorus with the Wingulls and Pelippers circling the sky, cawing as they lazily flapped their blue-striped wings. For a second, he almost forgot about the purple Pokemon until he realized the cold had left his hand, and saw the ghost walking towards a black-clothed man.

"I'm glad to see you're awake," said the man, offering a wide grin, his silver eyes shining. His deceit was impossible to detect. "Did you have a good rest?"

"Good enough," the boy mumbled, looking away, towards the sky, not really sure how to reply to this man's welcome cheerfulness. How could he, when the person was a stranger? "Who are you?"

Reid's eyes stretched wide in mock disbelief, and his smile turned into a frown. "You don't know who I am?" asked Rei, sounding incredulous. "Ruby, how could you forget? I'm your partner, Rei."

"Partner?" Ruby repeated, taking his time with the word, infusing it with confusion and hesitation. "Partner for what?"

"Saving the world of course," said Rei, suddenly taking on a very serious tone. "The world is corrupt and broken, and needs a firm hand to keep it in order. I can be the king and make this world a utopia, and you're helping me as my equal. You must have lost your memory when you hit your head. That's unfortunate."

Ruby thought the idea of a king sounded kind of farfetched. Why would a whole world need to be ruled by one person? Looking around, the world seemed right enough- but of course, there was no one else around, so he couldn't really judge.

"And what's wrong with the world?" asked Ruby, curious for the answer, his previously vapid red eyes now beginning to brighten with a past light. "And why am I helping you?"

"You've always been one for questions," chuckled Rei, and for a second, Ruby detected a dark, malicious twinkle in his swirling gray eyes, but it was gone so quickly that he brushed it off as imagination. "Nothing is ever in balance. There is always fighting, perhaps not wars, but people trying to disrupt nature and the flow of the world. People have tried to harness the power of the sea and the earth, and even of time and space."

"My goal, our goal I mean," Rei corrected quickly, excitement building as he freely voiced his dreams. "Is to procure all the Pokemon that such people desire to possess and control, to have them as our subjects, protected by us and be used only for the greater good. Together, we have already obtained all such Pokemon in Hoenn."

In all truth... What Rei was saying actually sounded... great. To obtain the Pokemon used to wreak disaster and place them in the care of one responsible person, a person who could protect them and use them only when necessary. Rei's aura seemed good enough, and Ruby felt like he would be able to trust him.

"What do I need to do? What did I do?" he inquired, correcting himself. He didn't want to sound so… willing without having any prior knowledge.

As if reading Ruby's mind, Rei said, "Don't be so quick to trust anybody, especially since your memory seems to have disappeared. Since you're my partner, our enemies will target you, especially if they know your weakness. You can trust me- but keep in mind, trust cannot be a gift given easily- if at all."His silver eyes flared, like bursts of gray-tinted light. "Because trust builds bonds, bonds that are not easily severed. Bonds that are hurt will break."

Is he still talking to me? wondered Ruby, suddenly seeing grief on his 'partner's' face, realizing the man was thinking of something entirely different. I wonder what happened to him… It probably wouldn't do very good to ask though.

"First things first. If you want to be a help to me, you'll have to train your Pokemon up on this island. I took them in for the night to examine them- they're quite decent, seeing that you don't like battling." Rei fished out several Pokeballs, and tossed them one by one to Ruby, who caught them easily, without dropping or missing a single one. "There are plenty of wild Pokemon gathered in the center of the island- powerful Pokemon that I've chosen from around the world to make this location a prime training spot. You will battle me when you think you're ready. Mind you- the chances of you winning against me in your lifetime are very, very, very low."

"Well that's encouraging," said Ruby sarcastically, putting all of the Pokeballs but one into his pocket. "Then what is the point in battling you if there is no way I'll win?"

"To give me a challenge. If you can do even that, you are far above any of the opponents we shall face. Together, we will be unstoppable. So get out of here and go train before I force you out." Rei pushed Ruby fiercely, and Ruby stumbled a few feet before regaining his balance, letting out a small yelp of surprise. "We don't have very long. At least- I'd like to make this as quick as possible. Come back tonight. There's a certain… ceremony that requires your presence."

"What cere-" But Rei and the Gengar were already gone, leaving nothing but faint footprints in the soft white sand.

*What ceremony? :3 Anyone wanna take a guess? Okay, review replie- I mean, review reply. *cough*

FighterGirl14: I like Rei too. I laughed so hard when I read your review- because that's exactly how I think. I love it when you have a hot, intriguing, smart villain, and I love it when the main character is tortured. ^^' XD Thanks for the review.

Let's raise the review count so I can actually have review replies! (instead of the singular 'reply') See you all next week! Thanks for reading! :D*