Outside, Manny phoned his friends to share the good news. They agreed to meet at Oreburgh City to discuss their next plans.
"What about those space-time rifts atop Mount Coronet?" Hanny suggested. "Do you think they're still open? Maybe you two will be able to capture Dialga and Palkia."
"Awesome. Dibs on Palkia!" Mint said, unfolding his bike to race northward to Mount Coronet. Manny shook his head. He had no idea where Mint found such energy.
"You coming?" Manny asked.
"I'd rather not," she said. "I don't like how ugly those particular legendary Pokémon are."
Manny agreed to meet her in Sunyshore City when they were done, so he followed Mint up the mountain.
When they arrived, the boys scoured Spear Pillar with their eyes and their Pokémon, but neither Dialga nor Palkia nor the space-time rifts were there. Disappointed, they flew to Pastoria so that they could head, as ever, eastward.
The moment they rode onto Route 222, Mint scurried off to capture an Electabuzz. Manny fought several Trainers until Mint made his triumphant return.
"Manny, isn't that Fabulance over there?"
Manny whipped his head around. "WHERE?"
"Yoink!"
"HEY! That's my Alakazam!"
"And awayyyyy!" Mint yelled, tearing off on foot with the Pokéball. Manny attempted to give chase on his Rapidash. Mint, however, summoned Togekiss in midstride and flew off with him.
"Wait there, Manny! I'll be back in half an hour!"
Sulking, Manny vanquished the remaining Trainers along the route, found some nifty loot on the ground and waited at the city gates. Right on time, Togekiss descended upon Manny, depositing Mint on Manny's lap.
"I left them in Solaceon Town's Breeding Centre!"
"You're planning to make an Elekid!"
"Yup. Electivire is the best Electric-type ever. The moment he or she's born, I'm gonna train my Elekid until he evolves, then I'm gonna trade him with you and this car battery I found."
Mint showed him the item in question.
"That's an 'Electirizer', not a car battery."
"Huh, you're right! We don't have cars in Sinnoh."
Upon their arrival in Sunyshore City, Manny and Mint met Carrot Top. His pale skin was in stark contrast to his bright red afro and shocking yellow shirt. His thumbs were habitually hooked into his black pants.
"Yo! Fellow Trainers! Your Pokémon are secure inside their Pokéballs, but there's no masking that aura of serious toughness!"
"Um… thank you?" Manny said.
"Oops, sorry, I should introduce myself. The name's Flint! I'm on the Pokémon League's Elite Four!"
"Holy waffles," Manny exclaimed, taking a picture with his cell phone.
"DUDE!" Mint yelled, taking a picture also. Carrot Top posed for them both.
"I just had this idea," Flint née Carrot Top continued. "Maybe you guys can pull it off. It's about this town's Gym Leader. He's really lost his enthusiasm lately because there've been so few good challengers worth his time. He's been so bored; he spends all his time renovating the Gym."
"Doesn't he have Internet access?" Mint asked, stupefied. "Something Awful dot com gave me hours of entertainment! There's also YouTube, Memebase..."
"Then the blackout happened… That sure didn't help lift his mood. You know where I'm going with this, don't you? I need you guys to give him a battle so hot, it will reignite his passion for battling. I'm counting on you, hotshots!
Flint walked away, thumbs stuck in his pockets. The boys rode along the solar panel roads, breathing in the salty air. A thrill echoed within them: It was just a tiny dot in the distance, but to the north was the ultimate destination of every would-be Pokémon Master: the Pokémon League. They were close, so very, very close! They phoned to confirm Hanny's location and met her at the Lighthouse, where she was chatting with Volkner, the Gym Leader.
The eighth Gym Leader sported a mullet resembling a Jolteon's mane. He wore black jeans and a royal blue jacket whose sleeves were studded with gold discs.
He fixed his dark eyes on Manny. "Hannah told me about your recent adventure in the Distortion World. I didn't believe a thing she said, but then she showed me the video she took of you battling and capturing Giratina. A video can be faked, though."
"I was waiting on you guys before I showed him my trump card," Hanny explained, pulling an Ultra Ball from her belt. After ensuring that the four of them were alone in the room, she pressed the white button, causing the black and yellow ball to expand to its full size.
"Daichi, make Volkner a believer!"
Uxie materialised. Volkner's habitually rigid jaw hung slack. He made little noises while inspecting Uxie from every angle. The Lake Pokémon's cheeks turned bright pink. The bright, joyous look that came over Volkner's face was that of an innocent child on Christmas morning, one who still believed in Santa Claus, magic, and dreams coming true.
"The legendary Pokémon are real," he sobbed, wiping a tear away. The three children had no idea how to respond to his shameless display, so they grinned at each other.
"We did alright," Manny said.
"'Alright?!' Manny, you and your friend have captured Pokémon I've never even seen before!"
"I captured Mesprit! I don't have her on me right now, but I did!" Mint insisted.
"After Giratina, I caught Azelf. Look at our Pokédexes."
Volkner ogled their Pokédexes like a hungry Houndoom eyeing a sirloin steak. "Pokédexes can be hacked, and Photoshopped pictures uploaded, but after seeing Uxie right here, I'm inclined to believe. That's why I've decided! I'm going to battle each one of you. If you truly are the ones who captured legendary Pokémon, you will spark the joy of battling within me once more!"
Bristling with excitement, the Gym Leader left the Lighthouse. Hannah clapped her hands once. "Wow, I can't stop grinning. Boys, we have our work cut out for us. Don't use the legendary Pokémon! They have no experience in a real battle."
Mint pouted. "Awww, but I want to use Mesprit!"
"I was hoping to train my two as quickly as possible," Manny said.
"I don't care. No legendaries and that's final. We got this far without them, so we'll make it to the end without them."
Manny looked at her with a wry grin. "That's not the real reason, is it?"
Hanny frowned, looking away from him as she proceeded to the elevator. "Of course it is."
"You're afraid of the media attention."
She paused at the automatic doors. She sighed, still not turning to face them. "You guys, Jubilife TV's reporters may seem harmless, but when they smell a scoop, they become a pack of rabid Mightyena. Remember that cameraman you met outside Lake Valor, who recorded Lance capturing the red Gyarados? After making his scoop, he stalked Lance for three weeks afterward, hoping to catch more award-winning footage." She finally turned to look them in the eyes. Her mouth was a hard line. "I heard that from my Dad. The reporter didn't stop until Lance destroyed all of his cameras. Manny, Mint... among us we've captured four legendary Pokémon. We have accomplished in two days what human beings have been trying to do for millennia! The media will never leave us alone. Mint, would you want the paparazzi following you twenty-four hours a day?"
"Is the paparazzi like a pizza delivery service?"
"No, Mint, they're reporters who follow you around day and night, harassing you with questions, taking pictures constantly, taking away all of your privacy."
"Oh wow. Even when I'm in the bathroom?"
"They would if they could."
"That's not nice of them."
"Manny," she said, "our lives would be ruined. We're only ten years old!"
"Hanny, if you're so worried, you should release Uxie."
Thunderclouds gathered in her eyes. "Are you insane? I spent thirty-three Ultra-Balls, and Orric almost got killed. I'm not letting him go because other people are stupid!"
Mint grinned. "Hanny reminds me of Captain America," he said, and began mimicking the superhero's voice: "When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world, 'No, you move'."
The other two were silent for a long while. Hanny broke the silence, smiling a little as she said, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but you're right, Mint! If any paparazzi follow me around, I'll have Orric destroy all of their cameras, just like Lance. No-one will judge me, and if they do, I'll sic Orric on them, too!"
Manny slapped Mint on the shoulder, saying, "That sounds more like the Hanny I know."
The trio entered the elevator, discussing various violent tactics for keeping the media at bay.
888
Inside Sunyshore Gym, the Caretaker said nothing. He offered a simple, knowing smile, then gestured inside. After solving the walkway/gear puzzle in Volkner's Gym while defeating Gym Trainers, the trio arrived at Volkner's battlefield. The spiky blonde was sitting on the ground, frowning and gloomy, his back turned to them. His initial animus seemed to have petered out.
"All right, challengers. It's not often, but some Trainers manage to come and challenge me. But they've all been boring battles. I didn't break a sweat beating them." He sighed, feeling like a Slowpoke without a tail. "I'm Volkner, the Gym Leader. They say I'm the top Gym Leader in Sinnoh, but… Anyway, I guess we'd better get this done. I hope you're the Trainers who'll make me remember how fun it is to battle!"
He used Jolteon, Raichu, Luxray and Electivire. Manny took the lead, overwhelming the first two with his lightning-immune Torterra until Volkner's Luxray's Ice Fang ended the winning streak.
"Should have seen that coming. Let me guess, you bred Fire Fang into your Luxray as well?
"I used two Heart Scales to teach those moves to his father, an Arbok, who bred with Luxray's mother seventy-nine times."
Manny almost fainted from shock. "SEVENTY-NINE CHILDREN!?"
Volkner held up his hands. "Both parents and all of their offspring were perfectly healthy when I released them all into the wild. I just kept my Luxray."
Manny rubbed both hands over his face, shaking his head. "I still can't believe you bred so many."
"You and Hanny have one each."
"But that's… Wait. How did you know we both have Luxray?"
"The better question is: how do I know both of them once belonged to me?"
Hanny smirked. "You're not going to tell us, are you?"
Volkner smiled. "Hey, a Gym Leader's gotta have some secrets. So, are you going to set your Rapidash against my genetically-perfect Luxray?"
Manny arched both eyebrows. Volkner laughed. Manny did, indeed, use Rapidash, who took down Luxray with a couple of Flame Wheels to the face. Genetics only got you so far in the world of Pokémon battles. Next, the Gym Leader called Electivire.
"Eeeee!" Mint squealed. "I'm making an Elekid as we speak!"
Volkner snickered. "That was a very poor choice of words, but good job, Mint. Electivire is the best Electric type there is, even better than Rotom."
"Nobody's ever caught a Rotom!" Hanny protested. "How would you know?"
Volkner winked. "I caught one. Electivire, Giga Impact!"
That was it for Rapidash, who cratered the opposite wall some hundred feet away. However, while Electivire was recharging, Manny's Vaporeon ended the battle with two Surf attacks in a fit of irony. The boy then went to retrieve his comatose Rapidash, whose bones had nearly been reduced to powder.
Volkner started to laugh again. "Wow! That was much more fun than I imagined. Who's next? I'm making a quick trip to the Pokémon Centre."
Two resounding defeats later, a silly grin had spread from ear to ear on the Gym Leader's face. "That was the most fun I've had in battling since… I don't know when! It's also made me excited to know you and your teams will keep battling to greater heights! These are your eighth Gym Badges. You've earned these!"
He handed out the eighth and final Gym Badge (the Beacon Badge) to each of them along with one TM57 (Charge Beam) each.
"So, kids, why didn't you use your legendaries?"
Hanny listed the reasons: "First of all, our legendaries are untrained, and wouldn't stand a chance against an Ace Trainer, far less a Gym Leader. Secondly, we don't want to draw attention to ourselves because Manny and I have zero tolerance for fools."
"Mint is the sole exception," Manny said.
Mint waved his arms. "Yay, I'm exceptional!"
"Thirdly, the safest place to train a legendary is the Battle Frontier, where I'm sure everyone and their mother has seen or trained one themselves and won't make a fuss over ours."
"Fair enough. Your next step is the Pokémon League challenge. It's time for you to cross the sea and win your way through the gauntlet that is Victory Road. Demonstrate to the Pokémon League your mastery of your team. Against you, even the Elite Four will be pushed to fend off your challenge!"
At the Gym entrance, the Caretaker was beside himself with excitement. "Ooooh, I'm beginning to hyperventilate! Even so, I'm still not convinced that one of you will be Champion, because you haven't pushed your teams to the limit. By my estimation, your teams are only one quarter as powerful as they can be! I know they can become even better!"
"One quarter? We have subdued the gods!" Manny argued.
Hannah held up her hand. "Hush, Manny. Why do you insult us, Caretaker?"
"Does your team have the highest Effort Values, or EV's?"
"Nope, that takes way too much effort," Manny admitted.
"Is your team level one hundred?"
"According to my Pokédex, my team is only level forty-six."
"Do you have Choice Bands to maximise your attack power, or Choice Scarves to heighten your speed?"
"I don't even know what those are!"
"Well, then! You're lacking seventy-five percent. You can fight the Elite Four now and win, but you really should have a level fifty team. It will improve the odds."
Hanny blinkd. "That's the only useful advice you've ever given us," she said.
The Caretaker bowed. "You're welcome."
888
Outside, the sun was at its zenith. Before they embarked on their journey northward, they explored Sunyshore. In the most northeasterly house, there was a bored, lonely wife whose husband had gone sailing. She gave each of the kids a heart-shaped ribbon for telling her a story, and encouraged them to return tomorrow.
"More free ribbons?" Mint hoped.
"I love hearing stories. My husband tells me stories of his adventures when he returns home. He won't be home for a long time, so here I am, sewing ribbons together and staring out to sea."
In another house they made the acquaintance of an elderly couple. They discussed the solar panel roads and the recent blackout.
"There was a boy named Cyrus who lived here," the old woman mentioned. "He made no friends. Always tinkering with his machines, that boy! I wonder what became of him."
Thus the three children regaled the senior citizens with their tale.
"Heavens above, he's trying to destroy our world!" the old woman lamented.
The old man shook his head. "I knew that boy would come to no good. All the signs were there, clear as moonlight."
"Are you his parents?"
"No, young lady. We are… were, his guardians. Cyrus was a very good student," she said.
The trio sat down, all ears.
"His parents always said he was never good enough! Whoever heard of a bright child with no friends?" the old man said in a huff.
"You were always carrying on about how he had no friends," the old woman replied. "You were too hard on him."
"A guardian is not supposed to be his ward's best friend! A guardian has to guide his ward on the right path; not encourage him to marry machinery!"
"Well, it didn't work," she said with slumped shoulders. "Not even his grandfather took Cyrus in when the boy needed love the most!"
"That was a long time ago," the old man said, then walked into another room of the house to escape unpleasant memories.
The three children left Cyrus's old home just as quickly. They headed for the northern shore, too busy absorbing the new information on Cyrus's past.
"What happened to his parents?" Manny wondered.
"Mauled by an Ursaring?" Hanny suggested. Manny snorted, but Mint was silent, pensive.
When they stepped onto the sand, Mint made a speech: "Before, I was dreaming. I wanted to be just like my Dad. Now, things are different. I thought about what being a Trainer involves. I thought about what Pokémon are. We're going to get tougher one step at a time! I hate to admit it, but I know you and Hanny are tougher than me, but not a whole lot tougher; just a little. Our difference is about a yard? Nah, not even an inch. What I'm trying to say is that I'll catch up to you both in no time."
"Is that so?" Hanny asked with arms akimbo. "Here's my advice: keep dreaming."
On the beach, a young lady named Jasmine caught their attention, saying in a soft voice, "Seeing how you three get along made me happy somehow."
Manny threw his hands up. "Good Lord, why are all the elite Trainers of Sunyshore so depressed? Is it because Cyrus grew up here?" he wondered.
Jasmine belied her name; she was a shrinking violet with her demure voice and presence. "It must be wonderful having friends like that. People you can share anything and everything with. People you can compete with without fighting. Um, it made me feel sort of warm seeing you three."
Hanny retched. "Ugh.We're not candy-stripers!"
"It may seem odd, but I'd like you to have this as my thanks. This isn't much, but…"
"Presents!" Mint yelled, grabbing the HM07 from her hands. It would teach their Pokémon the 'Waterfall' move, allowing them to scale any watery elevation.
"Um, I don't know how I should say this, but good luck."
Hanny scratched her head. "Uh, thanks, lady."
The trio moved aside to teach their Pokémon the move. Afterward, Manny asked why she was so sad.
"I moved to Sinnoh from far away so that I could get stronger."
"What was wrong with your home region?"
Jasmine looked about ready to burst into tears.
"It's okay!" Manny covered quickly. He snapped his fingers. "Hey, I know someone you should meet! There's a little girl named Mira who lives in Oreburgh. She uses a Kadabra, but doesn't trust a soul, not even the Gym Leader Roark, because all the adults in town fear for her safety, and want her to stop training Kadabra. She wants to be stronger, too! You should trade with her."
"How would evolving her Pokémon make me stronger?"
"Jasmine, judging by the way you behave, I am sure you don't have a single friend in Sinnoh. You'll form a friendship with Mira. From there, you'll gain the confidence to not only strengthen your Pokémon, but yourself. No-one deserves to be alone."
Jasmine burst into happy tears. She held Manny's hands. "Oreburgh?"
Manny bobbed up and down. "Yes!"
"Her name is… Mira?"
"Ask anyone. You'll have to go looking for her, though! It'll be a challenge to earn her trust!"
"I… I want to be stronger! That girl… if she wants to be stronger, too, then we'll definitely be friends!"
Releasing Manny, Jasmine stood back to summon a tiny Magnemite.
"To Oreburgh!"
"BZZZZT," Magnemite acknowledged. The air around the steel Pokémon distorted. Jasmine lifted off the ground ever so gently. Sand particles swirled around her, no longer bound to the earth. Jasmine and her Magnemite sailed into the sky, darting high southwest.
"Those are two very strange birds," Manny said.
Hanny marveled at the wingless flight, saying, "She taught her Magnemite how to reverse the special move 'Gravity'!"
Mint waved his arms. "Aw man! Now I want a Magnemite! No wait, I want a Magnezone! They're shinier!"
"Come on, Mint, I want to reach Victory Road before I get any hungrier," Manny insisted.
Hanny stopped them. "Wait a second, Manny. You knew that was the leader of the Olivine Gym in the Johto region, right?"
"Yup. I have an exhaustive command of thoroughly useless information."
"Then why did you lecture her about having no friends, and getting stronger? She has her own fanclub back home!"
"Hanny, you saw what happened to Volkner. When the most powerful Trainers lose their spirit, they lose everything. The best way to renew spirit is friendship."
Hannah took a moment to absorb this. "Manny, when did you acquire common sense?"
"It's like Nurse Joy said: I was born old, Hanny, just like you were."
"Do you think Cyrus will ever renew his spirit?" Mint asked.
"Yes, if he learns how to be a friend. I don't care for his tired rhetoric, but his Pokémon give me hope. Even though we defeated his team many times, he cared enough to keep his Pokémon and train them stronger. Perhaps the first meaningful friendship he'll have is with his Pokémon."
"That might take years and years of suffering through hardships together."
"He spent his entire life building a shell of hatred. However, he sorely underestimates the love he is exposed to."
Hanny interjected. "What love? He hates everyone he meets, even his Pokémon!"
Manny shook his head. "I fought Cyrus. I felt the strong spirit of his Pokémon - ironic, to be sure - and their powerful bond with him. If Cyrus lives long enough, their love will change his heart."
"Love is unstoppable," Mint agreed. "That's what my Dad told me. He said that's the reason he married Mom and had me."
Manny coughed and philosophised no further.