*Chapter Four: Will of the Altaria*

Same day… August 1st

Pallet Town, Kanto

1:00 p.m.

After a simple lunch of ham and cheese sandwiches, courtesy of Diamond, Odette was beginning to feel nervous. If she lost to Green, would the Gym Leader allow a rematch? Or would he simply deem her unworthy and flat-out refuse? As long as she doesn't seem too inexperienced compared to Green, the he wouldn't be disappointed, right?

Odette snorted at her wishful thinking. It obviously takes a lot to impress him. Platinum did a very respectable job against Serperior, but Green still didn't think it was good enough. What does it take to earn the Viridian Gym Leader's approval…? Odette took thirty seconds to do a quick breathing exercise before deciding that she was ready.

Green was already standing on the opposite end of the battlefield, looking perfectly normal as his eyes followed the female trainer carefully. Choosing to reveal his Pokémon first, he sent out a Golduck.

A chill ran up Odette's spine when saw the Pokémon that was to be her opponent. For a moment, she wondered if Green knew about her unpleasant encounter with a Golduck years ago and was sending out this particular Pokémon on purpose. But that's not possible… Odette thought. Nurse Joy is the only person who knows how I got my scar.

Odette wasn't exactly afraid of Golduck, but she's not very fond of them either. She'd promised herself that she cares for all Pokémon, some more than others. The female trainer shook her head a little to clear out those thoughts. She dug Altaria's Pokeball out of her bag and prepared to send out the Dragon/Flying type. "Altaria! Now is the time, be strong!"

The Pokeball was tossed, and Altaria gave a cry of joy as it took off into the air. Being the first creature Odette had ever caught and her means of aerial transport, the Humming Pokémon was especially fond of its trainer. "Taaaaaaaaar!"

Green simply crossed his arms and stared across the battlefield, waiting. Odette took it as a signal for her to attack first. "Altaria, use Fire Blast!"

The Humming Pokémon quickly charged up the fire type move and took aim. Once the attack was ready, an explosion of flames left Altaria's beak heading for Golduck at very high speeds.

"Hydro Pump!" Green ordered immediately, not even blinking as the star-shaped wall of fire hurtled his way.

Golduck obeyed and shot a powerful column of water at the incoming Fire Blast.

There was a loud hiss when the two attacks met. They were very evenly matched as Hydro Pump evaporated from the heat and Fire Blast was extinguished by the moisture. A thin layer of steam now covered the battlefield. "Golduck, use Surf!"

"Altaria, ascend!"

Altaria shot through the steam and high into the air, narrowly avoiding Surf.

"Ice Beam on the battlefield!" Odette shouted, a bright idea forming in her head.

Before Golduck's Surf could clear out, Altaria used Ice Beam and froze the water, covering the battlefield in a thick sheet of ice. The steam from before was now replaced by cool mist. With the sun reflecting off of the shiny ice, the battlefield was almost blinding to look at.

But Odette knew that this time the weather was working against her, unlike the previous battle. That ice will melt very quickly. I have to make use of it as fast as possible while Golduck is at a disadvantage!

Green's Golduck was indeed struggling to gain footing on the slippery ice. It growled in frustration as it kept slipping while it tried to keep an eye on Altaria who was circling it high in the air.

"Altaria, Draco Meteor now!" Odette quickly ordered. She was getting a bit giddy. Green won't fall for the Surf and Ice Beam combination again. I have to attack now before Golduck gets its footing.

Altaria soared upward and used one of the most powerful dragon type attacks known. It shot a core of orange and purple energy toward the sky. The core blasted apart, sending giant meteors showering down on Green's Pokémon.

Golduck frantically tried to avoid all of the meteors that fell from the sky, but it was difficult attempting to dodge so many things while sliding on a sheet of ice.

Green raised an eyebrow as Golduck was finally slammed to the ground. "Clever, using Draco Meteor while Golduck can't avoid it." He noticed Odette looking rather relieved that her plan worked. "But it would take much more than that to take down Golduck."

Golduck slowly rose from the ground, looking a little shabby, but still in good condition to battle.

Odette's eyes bulged in shock. "No way…" she watched in amazement and utter horror as Golduck shook some sense into itself and took its battle stance again, ready to take whatever attack she planned to through at it. The female trainer couldn't believe it, "Not even Lance's Dragonair survived my Altaria's Draco Meteor… how did this Golduck…?"

"Golduck! Ice Beam!"

Odette gasped as the super effective ice type move shot at her Altaria. "Dodge it!"

Altaria violently swerved out of the way and barely avoided being hit. It then shot into the air to get out of the shooting range of the powerful ice attack.

"Ice Beam again!" Green shouted. "I hope you know that dodging is a very low leveled method of avoiding damage, Odette. You have to counter my attacks, not run from them. Altaria will get lose focus sooner or late. What are you going to do?

Altaria again narrowly avoided another 4x effective ice attack.

My Pokémon will easily fall to a single Ice Beam... Odette thought, seeing that Altaria was beginning to look worried and tired. Green was correct in everything he had just said. Odette decided that if she was going to have any chance of winning, she would have to go the extreme with keeping Altaria motivated enough to continue with the dodging. She whistled a loud, shrill whistle to her struggling Pokémon.

Altaria's head jerked in its trainer's direction. Hearing the whistle, the Dragon/Flying Pokémon dived back down to the ground below, still dodging Ice Beams all the way down. "Taaaaar!"

As Altaria shot by, Odette immediately jumped onto its back much to the Pokedexholders' surprise. The Humming Pokémon, carrying its trainer on its back, retreated back into the clouds.

"What's she doing…?" Crystal muttered to Red as they craned their necks skyward, watching both Odette and Altaria circling around in mid-air. "Doesn't Odette know that it's dangerous to ride a Pokémon while it's battling?"

Red merely shrugged, smiling a little in amusement as he speculated the battle.

Green and Golduck both looked to the skies, anticipating Altaria's next appearance. Seconds later they saw the Humming Pokémon diving toward them with amazing speed. At the tip of its beak was a charged up Fire Blast, ready to be released.

"Golduck, Ice Beam!" Green shouted.

Odette clung to Altaria's neck as her Pokémon dived away from Golduck, dodging the Ice Beam. She risked a glance backwards and saw another Ice Beam escape from the opponent Pokémon. "Up," she said quietly to Altaria.

Altaria narrowed its eyes in determination. It smoothly glided toward the sky again in order to avoid the Ice Beam again. The Humming Pokémon dodged with more precision and willpower now.

From what Odette could tell, Golduck was getting rather agitated about its many missed attacks.

It didn't take long for Green to figure out what Odette had done by choosing to ride on Altaria's back as the Pokémon battled. The Gym Leader knew that it would be a very long time before his Golduck will manage to hit the Dragon/Flying type. To ensure that his next attack will be guaranteed to strike, Green told his Pokémon, "Use Mind Reader."

Understanding his trainer, Golduck channeled its psychic powers to carefully predict Altaria's movements and thoughts.

Meanwhile, Odette did not hear Green's order, but she saw that Golduck was doing something with its psychic abilities. The Duck Pokémon had closed its eyes to concentrate and was shrouded by a sinister blue aura.

Where have I seen that before…? Odette remembered that she had once encountered a move similar to this when she was in Sinnoh. The Elite Four Lucian had introduced it to her while she battled him. It had something to do with the mind…

Odette wasn't sure how long she hovered in the air on Altaria's back, trying to figure out what move Green had commanded his Pokémon to use. She had no way of knowing, at least not until a massive Ice Beam shot through the air, moving with unexplainable accuracy.

"Dodge!" Altaria flew away from the attack as Odette finally realized what had happened. Mind Reader! He used Mind Reader. His next move will not miss.

As it attempted to avoid the ice type attack once more, Altaria flew straight into another Ice Beam that had shot out of nowhere. With a painful cry, the Humming Pokémon instantly fainted from the extremely effective attack. Altaria plummeted toward the earth, and Odette fell with it.

The wind rushed past Odette's ears as she sliced through the air in a freefall. She was slightly aware of the danger she was in, but the main thing on her mind was that she had lost the battle. She had underestimated Golduck's move set and was not expecting an attack like Mind Reader. She had been terribly foolish to think that a Gym Leader didn't have some sort of trump card to deal with any situation; in this case, Altaria's skillful ability to dodge Ice Beam.

Odette knew that it was going to hurt when she lands back on solid ground. This is the first time she's ever fallen off of Altaria. She was dropping a rather long ways down, and surely the impact would do some damage to whichever bone she lands on. Odette closed her eyes and braced herself as the ground rushed toward her.

Suddenly, the female trainer felt soft, warm feathers wrap around her thin, limber body. Snapping her eyes back open, she was amazed to see that Altaria was protecting her with its cotton-like wings. Miraculously, the Humming Pokémon had forced itself to wake up and shield its trainer from the impact.

Altaria's fluffy wings may have saved Odette's life or protected her from agonizing pain when the two finally tumbled to the earth. The female trainer still felt some impact, but most of it was absorbed by Altaria's thick feathers.

Odette stumbled to her feet as the Dexholders rushed to aid her and her Pokémon. But Odette carelessly ignored them. Instead, she knelt down beside Altaria's head and affectionately stroke the Humming Pokémon's cheeks. "Oh, Altaria… poor thing… Here, have a berry," Odette fished an Oran Berry from a little pouch she carried on her belt and offered it to her partner. "You've done so well."

Altaria weakly lifted its head and nibbled at the berry. "Taaaaar…"

There was a serene moment of peacefulness until Blue interrupted it with an angry shout, "What have you done!?"

Odette and Altaria both jumped with a start. At first, the female trainer thought that Blue was addressing them for performing such a dangerous stunt, but Odette soon realized that the Kanto girl was actually talking to Green.

The Viridian Gym Leader stood by calmly, arching an eyebrow at Blue's angry outburst. His Golduck had been returned back into a Pokeball.

"Green, you almost sent Odette plummeting to her death!" Blue demanded, pointing toward said girl. "If Altaria hadn't woken up in time to save her, Professor Oak would have come back to find his invitee seriously injured. Or worse…"

Odette returned Altaria back into its Pokeball and bowed her head, feeling embarrassment about her loss and shame from making Blue worry so, "Let's not talk about that, please. I'm fine, now. I must admit that that danger was partly my fault. I had chosen to ride my Pokémon through the battle, and there is nothing my opponent could do about it." She turned to Green and nodded to him with a mixture of respect and interest. "Thank you for the battle, Green. You needn't worry about what happened before. I'm happy that you used your full power against me." After a moment's thought, she quickly added, "Your Golduck, may I see it? I think that I should thank it properly, too."

Green appeared a bit surprised at this request, but he still allowed the Pokémon to escape from its capsule. The Golduck, unsure of why it was summoned again, let out a squawk of astonishment as Odette gently patted its bill.

Odette noticed the look of utter amazement on the Pokémon's face as she gave it a playful rub on top of its head. "You know, Golduck," the female trainer said in a hushed voice, tuning out what was happening around them. "You look like you don't get shown affection much, do you? Is Green not the type to openly express his warm, fuzzy feelings?"

Golduck hesitantly shook its head at her question.

Chuckling quietly, Odette continued, "Yeah, well, I didn't think so, either. But somewhere deep down in his heart, I'm sure he loves you very much. You keep doing your very best for him, alright?"

The Duck Pokémon stared at her with calculating eyes for a few seconds before nodding enthusiastically, "Goldaack!"

"Good boy," Odette smiled and backed away from the Pokémon, allowing it to return to the comforts of the Pokeball. "You have a really friendly Pokémon, Green," she said to the Gym Leader. "And you beat me, so I suppose that I won't be getting that Earth Badge any time soon…"

At that moment, Espeon broke out of its Pokeball, looking very pissed off. The psychic type then began ranting to its trainer in rapid Pokémon language. Odette didn't understand any of it, but she suspected that the Sun Pokémon was lecturing her about how it could have easily beaten Golduck to a pulp if only the trainer had decided to use it.

Odette rolled her eyes at Espeon's arrogance and swiftly scooped the cat-like Pokémon into her arms, despite the latter's futile attempts to free itself from the trainer's grip. "Well?" Odette ignored the struggling Espeon and addressed the Dexholders who surrounded her. "What is your opinion? I didn't look too useless compared to Green, I hope."

A few of the Dexholders exchanged thoughtful looks and private murmurs. "I really didn't understand," Crystal spoke up. "What was the point of having Altaria carry you? It only placed more of a burden on Altaria and put you in constant danger."

"Uh… well," Odette racked her brain for a simple way of explaining her twisted logic. "Altaria and I, we are very close, and Altaria is also the protective type. I figured that if I put myself in the same position as my Pokémon, they will feel more determination. As long as I rode of Altaria's back, I'm in the same danger it's in. And my Pokémon knows that if it gets hit by an attack or faints, I'll be hurt, too. I just had to hope that that gave Altaria the motivation to keep dodging Ice Beams and stay conscious. At least that was my plan until… you know." Odette nervously glanced at Green. "I found out that your Golduck knew Mind Reader…"

Blue glared at the Gym Leader, "He can be a real jerk, sometimes."

Green didn't seem bothered at all by this. It's like he was used to being harassed by Blue and constantly told that he's mean. "I was testing the Altaria's willpower, Blue," he calmly replied in defense. "Not every Pokémon can force itself back into consciousness just to save its trainer."

Odette's eyes lit up at this. She had always been proud of Altaria, but hearing it from a Gym Leader made her feel even more accomplished. The female trainer was just about to agree with Green when she noticed something in the distant skies. "Hey… What is that?" Odette pointed at the two objects flying in their direction.

The others narrowed their eyes at the sky to see what she was talking about.

Sapphire, with an almost divine sense of sight, immediately identified what she was seeing. "It's Professor Oak! And…" she frowned in confusion. "Professor Rowan, too?"

The three Sinnoh Dexholders perked up at the sound of their professor's name. "Professor Rowan is coming?" Platinum asked. "But why? Did he tell any of us about this?"

The heiress's fellow Sinnoh trainers both shook their heads. "Hey, Dia, Miss Lady…" Pearl started, hesitantly. "You don't think this has anything to do with that phone call he received yesterday, do you? That could have been Professor Rowan on the Pokegear."

Most of the Dexholders had completely forgotten about the call. It had seemed like such a minor detail of the previous day.

Oak and Rowan were now much closer, dangling from their Flying Pokémon. Odette saw that Rowan looked like he had just gone through a minor house fire. Both Professors wore grim expressions as their Pokémon carried them to the Oak Laboratory.

"Something must have happened in Sinnoh…" Odette thought out loud. The Sinnoh Dexholders looked at her in horror, and the female trainer immediately realized that she shouldn't have announced her tragic theories like that. She shook her head, "Uh… Nevermind, I'm sure Professor Rowan is probably just here on a business trip or something… There's nothing to worry about."

But little did Odette know that 'nothing' always meant something.


A/N: Sigh… I apologize if this chapter is a bit rusty. It's been a long time since I've typed something for this particular project. Bear with me, readers, I'll get back into the swing of things in a few weeks, okay? But still, if you liked it, please leave a review. Reviews make writers happy and faster; a proven fact.