AAML: Diamond and Pearl version

by EchidnaPower

Follow me as I remake the DP episodes in order and in sequence, all so I can add the biggest star besides Ash himself. Misty! Watch her and Ash's love grow as they go on their journey. A Pokeshipping series. Also includes Penguinshipping, Handymanshipping, slight mentions of Contestshipping, and a Brock shipping to be named later. Oh yeah, there's PikachuXBuneary here too.

34. A Tale of Two Orbs

I know that some of you guys got a message saying I'd update on Wednesday, but the excitement was too much for me to handle! For some reason, I just can't wait to shoot these chapters out to you guys anymore! So, here I am updating right now! BTW, it's thanks to your reviews that I manage to get so pumped up about this! So just remember, the more reviews I get, the more excited I get and the better the chapters become! I own nothing but the story.
_

Chapter 34

Misty's POV

Operation: Penguinshipping is underway! I thought of that name after I realized that both Dawn and Kenny had members of the Piplup evolution set. Dawn had Piplup, and Kenny had Prinplup. Thanks to yesterday's conversation with Kenny, I managed to squeeze a little bit of information out of the boy.

What I picked up so far was that Kenny did have feelings for Dawn, but he was extremely shy about them. That was confirmed when I mentioned how pretty Dawn was in her dress and he blushed. I could already see a positive change in Dawn's attitude; she seemed so much more cheerful since she found out that Kenny liked her.

Now the hard part would be actually getting them together. Since every time they saw each other they were rivals, finding time for a tender moment would be tricky. But I swore to myself that I would get Dawn the person she deserved.

Dawn was really a pretty teenage girl; I couldn't understand why more boys didn't try to appeal to her. Of course, Conway and Kendall from the academy tried, and Dawn wasn't exactly thrilled about it either. Then again, those two were creeps to the extreme, so I couldn't blame her.

But Kenny was different. Kenny was to Dawn as I was to Ash. I could see there were a few sparks even before I caught Kenny in my trap, but now I was sure. But I couldn't think about that at the moment, I was outside the Celestic Town Pokémon Center with Ash, watching him test out his new "anti-Hypnosis" technique.

Normal POV

"Pikachu, spin and use 'Thunderbolt'!" Pikachu leaped into the air and launched the attack, but instead of heading directly for a target, it dispersed in all directions and spun like a carousel, completely surrounding Pikachu and protecting it.

"You're looking great Pikachu! Next time make it stronger!" Ash exclaimed. "I've gotta hand it to you Ash, if you can manage to hit a target with one of these, this may be your biggest success yet!" Misty exclaimed.

"Thanks Mist, I owe you for pointing out Ambipom's technique for me." Ash said. Misty smiled and held up her hand in a peace sign. "That's what I'm here for."

"Hey Ash! Misty! We're leaving now!" Dawn exclaimed, coming out of the Pokémon Center and waving her hand to get their attention.

"Dawn, can we wait a while longer? I feel like I'm onto something!" Ash said. "Really? You mean you found a counter for Fantina's sleep move?" Dawn asked. "Yeah, Misty pointed out one of Ambipom's moves in your Pokémon Contest yesterday and then the idea hit me like a ton of bricks." Ash replied.

"See, Ash's strategy so far is to use an attack move that causes damage AND blocks the opponent's attack. It's the best of both worlds." Misty explained.

"You mean like Ambipom's 'Double Hit'!" Dawn realized. Now Brock came out of the building, holding Happiny in his arms. "But Ash, haven't you used an attack move as a defense sometime in the past?" Brock asked.

"Yeah, but the thing is that Fantina's sleep moves are a whole different ballgame. Since her ghost-type Pokémon move in a really tricky way that's hard to get a grip on, the only thing to do is to attack and defend at the same time." Ash explained.

"I tell ya Ambipom, you sure showed me a lot yesterday." Ash pet the head of his former Pokémon, who chattered happily at the affection.

"But I would think that a technique like that would only work with Ambipom's skills, since it can be done because Ambipom's got two tails." Brock said.

"Ahh, that's where you're wrong Brock. Whaddya say Ash? Let's give 'em a sample." Misty said. "Sounds good to me! Buizel, let's show 'em what we've got." Ash said.

"Misty calls Vaporeon!" Misty called out her bubble-jet Pokémon, who stretched and yawned upon release.

It and its trainer then headed over to the end of the field, and waited for Ash's signal. "Alright Misty, call it off!"

"Vaporeon, use 'Water Pulse'!" Vaporeon fired the energized ball of water, and it hurtled towards its target. "Alright Buizel, spin and use 'Aqua Jet'!" Ash countered.

Buizel leaped into the air and spun like a top. "That's the spin from the Oreburgh Gym!" Dawn exclaimed. Now in the air, Buizel activated 'Aqua Jet' and nosedived for the ground enveloped in a swirling vortex of water.

In doing so, Buizel deflected the 'Water Pulse' and sent it back to sender. Vaporeon dodged the deflection, but it got hit by the swirling remains of the spinning 'Aqua Jet'.

"By putting an attack into a spin, we can attack and defend at the same time. That way we should be able to beat those ghost-type Pokémon's sleep moves and cause a little damage while we're at it." Ash explained.

"Then that means our little spin move has evolved all the way up to an awesomely powerful attack!" Dawn squealed happily.

"So of course I really wanna master this move. You can understand why I don't wanna leave just yet, right?" Ash said.

"It won't matter Ash, I still haven't packed my things from the room." Misty said. "You what? I thought we were finally ready to go!" Brock moaned.

"Sorry Brock, I was so busy training with Ash that I forgot. But it works out since Ash still wants to keep working anyway." Misty said.

"Fine…I guess. But try not to take too long, we'll have to get moving soon." Brock said. "No problem, you can help me pack and speed things up. Just don't touch my clothes, I'll do that MYSELF." Misty warned.

Brock groaned and followed the water-trainer back into the Pokémon Center. "Alright Ash, now I'LL be your sparring partner for a while!" Dawn exclaimed. "Sure thing, let's see what you've got!" Ash replied.

So while Misty went back and forth packing up her clothes, Brock sat around waiting. "All Misty has is clothes, what does she expect me to help her pack anyway? Oh well…guess I'm better off waiting around here until she's done." Brock got something to do when Happiny playfully unloaded Brock's backpack.

"Happiny, don't do that." Brock said in his usual calm, breeder manner. Brock switched on the TV while he repacked his backpack, and what turned on intrigued both him and the redhead in the room. "What's Rhonda reporting on this time Brock?" Misty asked.

"We have some more information concerning this morning's theft of the Adamant Orb." Rhonda said, "Fortunately, the transport ship executed a successful emergency landing and it appears nobody was hurt."

"Whoa, serious stuff." Misty said. By this time, Ash had completed his training and had walked back into the room with Dawn. "What's serious Misty?" Dawn asked. Misty pointed to the screen, where Rhonda continued her report.

"We have just received a report from Officer Jenny who was actually ON the transport at the time of the incident! It was stated that the organization responsible for the theft calls themselves Team Galactic. They are reported to be a secret organization with operations all around the Sinnoh Region. They are also believed to have some connection to the recent meteorite theft in Veilstone City." Rhonda continued,

"However in this juncture their objectives continue to be unclear. At the time of the theft, the legendary Adamant Orb was in the process of being transported from the Eterna City Museum to the Celestic Town Historical Research Center. The Research Center is currently conducting research on the Adamant Orb's counterpart, the Lustrous Orb, and has tightened its security in light of the recent criminal incident." Rhonda continued,

"The Adamant Orb was en route so that both objects could be researched together. Now however, it is widely expected that this morning's incident will seriously impede the progress of the research." Rhonda concluded with that.

Just then, Nurse Joy walked into the room. She was on her way to check on the teens when the news bulletin started, and she managed to hear it from the hall. "This is quite a serious situation, and the champion is scheduled to return soon."

"Hey wait, are you talking about Cynthia?" Ash asked. "You mean the league champion that you guys met? She's here?" Misty added.

"Yes, she's coming to the Historical Research Center. Celestic Town is where she's from, and her grandmother is in charge of everything that goes on at the Research Center." Nurse Joy explained.

"I wanna meet this Cynthia for myself; it's not fair that you get to have friends in high places and not me." Misty said jokingly. "Good idea Mist, if she's here, we probably should go say hi." Ash replied.

The conversation was cut short when Brock leaped in front of Nurse Joy, knelt down on one knee and held her hand tenderly. "Nurse Joy, can't you see that you're my Lustrous Orb? I would do everything in my power to protect you!" Brock exclaimed.

"Um, thank you?" Nurse Joy stammered nervously. After noting that Croagunk still hadn't appeared, Misty took matters into her own hands.

Misty grabbed Brock by the ear and dragged him away. "That's nice Brock, but the only thing she needs protection from is you."

Just then, Brock realized something. "Hey wait a second; wasn't Croagunk supposed to do this?" Brock asked, still straining from the pain of having his ear pulled.

Once Misty decided they were a safe distance away, she released the breeder, who fell on the floor in pain. "Ok Croagunk, where are you? You were supposed to do this, remember?" Misty said.

They looked around and saw Croagunk staring out the window. "That's weird…what's up with Croagunk?" Ash asked. "It looks kinda tense if you ask me." Dawn said.

"Put Croagunk back in its ball Brock, maybe he needs a break or something." Misty suggested. Brock obliged and sent the frog back into its Pokéball. "Alright then, let's head over to the Research Center and see Cynthia!" Dawn exclaimed.

The group waved to Nurse Joy and exited the building, and in no time at all they found which building was the Research Center. "Check out all the police cars, that's gotta be it over there." Misty said.

The group agreed and headed over to where all the cars were. "Wow, it's gigantic!" Ash said. "Not only is this the Celestic Town Research Center, but the Celestic Ruins are right behind it." Brock explained.

"That's where they discovered the Lustrous Orb!" Dawn exclaimed. "How convenient to have the ruins right near the lab, saves money for expeditions I guess." Misty joked.

As they walked closer to the lab, they earned someone's attention. "Hey, it's Ash." Cynthia said.

"Hey Cynthia, long time no see." Ash said. Brock ran up to the champion with hearts in his eyes. "Wow! TOO long to see the champion!"

"It's good to see all of you again." Cynthia said. An elderly woman who was standing next to Cynthia spoke up. "Who are the children?"

"I told you about them, remember? They're the ones who love to challenge everything." Cynthia said. "Oh, the rebellious ways of impetuous youth." the woman said kind-heartedly.

"I've never met you before, who is this Ash?" Cynthia asked, obviously referring to Misty. "My name's Misty, former gym leader of Cerulean City." Misty replied.

"Former? What happened?" Cynthia asked. "Nothing really HAPPENED; let's just say I found a higher calling." Misty said, playfully bumping into Ash. Ash gave a light chuckle and smiled.

Cynthia smiled and looked at the couple. "See Ash? I was right." she said. "What do you mean by that?" Ash asked.

"When one life meets another life, something will be born'. This is your girlfriend, isn't it?" Cynthia said knowingly. Ash and Misty blushed and nodded.

"Ahh, young love. How innocent it is." Cynthia's grandmother chuckled. "Oh yes, allow me to introduce grandmother. Her name's Carolina and she's in charge of the research center." Cynthia said.

"Wow, it's an honor to meet you ma'am." Ash said. "Thank you. The pleasure's all mine, I've heard so much about you all. Except for this new girl that is." Carolina said.

"I'm not exactly new per say, I traveled with Ash in Kanto and Johto, and then I got called back to the gym when my sisters wanted to take a cruise." Misty said bitterly.

"I don't see anything wrong with a weeklong vacation." Cynthia said. "It was actually a YEAR long vacation, and then they loafed around the gym for a second year." Misty replied.

"Oh…" was Cynthia's short reply.

"Oh, never mind about the past, let's talk about now! Cynthia's told me about all of your rivalries Ash." Carolina said. "What ended up happening with Paul?" Cynthia asked.

"Well…we had a battle earlier; it wound up in a tie." Ash replied. "I would then venture to guess that you still can't beat my granddaughter either." Carolina chuckled.

Ash quietly growled at the elderly woman. "Grandmother, stop that." Cynthia said disapprovingly. Carolina giggled mischievously and backed off.

"The thing is, since we last saw you we've been training like crazy and made a bunch of new friends." Ash said. "Hey, I like your spunk! At least they can't take THAT away from you, can they?" Carolina said.

Ash scratched his head in frustration; Carolina really knew how to push his buttons. "Come on Cynthia, why don't you and I have a battle right now?" Ash asked.

"Ash, we're still working on beating Fantina, I don't think you're ready for the Sinnoh CHAMPION." Misty said. "That's alright. Now's not such a good time anyway." Cynthia added.

"You're quite the little challenge seeker, aren't you?" Carolina asked. "Grandmother isn't exactly shy with her words, is she Misty?" Dawn whispered. "I've seen movie stars with more subtlety than her." Misty replied.

Just then, a spiky haired man in a tuxedo came walking up to the group, laughing heartily at the amusement they were providing. "See, that's just Carolina's way of saying hi." the man said.

"Land there are a lot of visitors today, and here's one with a big mouth and blue hair." Carolina joked. "Oh my, you must be the world famous mogul of Sinnoh's industrial complex. Cyrus." Cynthia said.

"It's indeed an honor to make the acquaintance of a true champion." Cyrus bowed in greeting. "You see, Cyrus is responsible for building and library construction throughout Sinnoh." Cynthia said.

"Mark my words; Cyrus is quite a big deal around these parts." Carolina said. Cyrus put his hand behind his head with embarrassment, "Now stop that. You're all very kind."

"But at this point I'd rather be thought of as an amateur history scholar if you don't mind." Cyrus said. "Did your concern about the Lustrous Orb bring you?" Carolina asked knowingly.

"Exactly. When I heard about the Adamant Orb theft, I felt like I had to do something." Cyrus said. Out of nowhere, Brock got a hormone rush and grabbed the hand of the Sinnoh Champion. "I know just how you feel!"

Ash, Misty, and Dawn slumped with sweat-drops on their heads as they watched Brock make a fool of himself AGAIN. "I must protect the Lustrous Orb AND this lovely champion." he said with passion.

The trio groaned as they watched Brock ramble on, waiting for Croagunk to come and snap him out of it. Just as Misty was warming up her pacifying ear-grabbing skill, Brock snapped himself out of his trance when he didn't feel the sharp pain he was supposed to.

"Croagunk…? That's twice now…" Brock said. "I wonder what's up with Croagunk." Ash said.

"Has Croagunk ever acted like this before Brock?" Misty asked. "Not that I can remember." Brock replied.

"No doubt there's something on his mind." Dawn said. Croagunk was indeed acting out of the ordinary. Getting a chance to jab Brock in the back was an opportunity it NEVER passed up, but at the moment, Croagunk was merely staring off into space. "Croooa."

"Eh, what say we stop standing out here like a herd of Tauros and go inside? I'd much rather be where the air conditioning is anyway." Carolina said.

The group agreed. Brock returned Croagunk to its ball and followed the others inside the building. "Why don't you tell them why we're here grandmother?" Cynthia suggested. "Yes please! What's the mystery about?" Dawn asked.

"See, since ancient times, our town has had a deep connection with Dialga as well as Palkia. And all through my extensive research of the town's history, I've acquired mountains of material as a result." Carolina led the group into a room filled with research papers, books, artifacts and other items, all key components to her research.

One particular item caught the group's attention, and Dawn ran ahead to get a better look. "Wow! What an impressive piece!" As Dawn scanned closer, she came to a realization about one of the designs of the tablet. "Hey wait…that's it! I've seen that part before!"

This caught the adults by surprise. "You have?" Carolina asked in shock.

Ash and Misty now moved up to look at a different design. "Ash, do you see what I see?" she asked. "Yeah! I think we saw that one too!" Ash replied.

"Quite frankly…I'm speechless!" Carolina said. "Tell me where you saw them." Cynthia said, trying to remain calm.

Dawn was the first to speak up. "At Lake Verity…it was kind of hard to make out…but I'm sure that it looked just like that!"

"Misty and I saw ours at Lake Valor!" Ash exclaimed. "Me and Ash were just relaxing near the lake when we saw something hazy come out of the water, and now that I think about it, it looked just like that!" Misty added.

"I'm at a loss for words! There isn't a single example I can think of where people actually got a glimpse of Lake Guardians." Cynthia said.

"So we saw Lake Guardians?" Ash asked.

"Dawn, the Lake Guardian you saw was most certainly the being of emotion, Mesprit. Ash, Misty, you two must've seen the being of willpower, Azelf. It's rumored that there is one more Lake Guardian, the being of knowledge, Uxie, who lives in Lake Acuity near Snowpoint City." Cynthia explained.

"That sounds oddly familiar." Misty said. "Yeah, it sounds like the same legend Zoey and May told us about." Brock added.

"It's been said for countless generations that all three of those Lake Guardians live in Sinnoh Region lakes, but they've only existed in legend until now." Cynthia said.

"One of the legends states that only the spirits of the Lake Guardians emerge from their lakes, so that they're able to watch over and protect humankind. There's a distinct possibility that what you saw were those same spirits." Carolina said.

Ash, Misty, and Dawn exchanged glances with each other. "Spirits?" they said rather nervously. "I knew something weird was gonna happen." Misty said.

"Hold on a sec, what's the meaning of that thing in the middle of the tablet?" Brock asked.

"Our research says that it's either the Adamant Orb, or the Lustrous Orb." Cynthia said. After a long while of listening, Cyrus finally spoke up.

"Professor, if they've seen Mesprit and Azelf, perhaps you should show them the Lustrous Orb. Their reaction may be important to your research." Cyrus said.

"An interesting idea, come with me." Carolina led the group out of the research room and into a top security area.

"Ash, can I tell you something?" Misty whispered. "Yeah sure." he replied.

"Something doesn't seem right about Cyrus, I get a really bad vibe off of him." Misty said. "Well, Cynthia and her grandmother seem to trust him. Maybe it's just you?" Ash suggested.

"Maybe…still…I almost feel sick to my stomach when he gets too close to me, just try and feel that vibe the next time he talks to you, see what it feels like." Misty said.

"I'll try Mist, but I'm not sure how to do that." Ash shrugged.

As the group kept walking, they met up with Officer Jenny, who was in charge of security around the Lustrous Orb. "Identify yourself and state your business here." she said. Carolina showed Jenny her identification card as the head of research. "I'm here to see the Lustrous Orb; you're free to escort us if you wish." Carolina said.

"Very well ma'am, but I have bad news, due to our heightened security, I'm afraid I can't let you stay very long." Officer Jenny said. "Yes yes, of course, we know." Carolina said dismissively.

Officer Jenny escorted the group to a locked titanium door, where two guards, one male and one female, and a Meowth watched vigilantly over the artifact.

Officer Jenny saluted the guards. "Anything unusual to report?" she asked.

The guards saluted back, and the male responded. "No officer, status quo."

"I'll go ahead and open the door then, but you officers please keep a sharp eye out." Officer Jenny said. "Yes ma'am!" the guards stood at attention as Carolina inserted her identification card and placed her hand on the fingerprint analyzer.

Seconds later, the doors opened and the criss-crossing steel bars moved back into the wall, revealing the glorious Lustrous Orb.

"Amazing how it even has a strange glow." Dawn said. "Ah, its beauty is timeless." Cyrus said.

Cyrus gently pushed the trio of teens into the room, and was followed by the others. "Tell us what you feel, if anything comes to mind."

Ash, Misty, and Dawn carefully examined the orb, waiting for any sort of feeling or thought to make itself present to them. Cyrus leaned closer to the orb as well, giving Misty chills down her spine. Misty quickly stood up straight, which caused Ash and Dawn to as well.

"What is it?" Cyrus asked excitedly. "Mr. Cyrus, sir, could you please step back a little? You're making me nervous." she said without turning her head.

"Yes of course, of course." Cyrus stepped to the back of the room and allowed the trio to go back to staring at the orb. After a few minutes, Ash, Misty, and Dawn gave up.

"Nope, don't feel a thing." Ash said.

Same goes for me." Misty said.

"Me neither." Dawn said.

Enraged, Cyrus got up in the teens' faces and roared. "Impossible! You're just not looking at it carefully enough!"

The trio cringed at the sudden outburst, but then Carolina came to their rescue. "Now now Cyrus, no reason to be upset. Remember they're only looking at it for the first time."

"Oh…right…sorry, but when I'm standing in front of this treasure, it's so hard for me to try and be calm. You see, the Lustrous Orb is supposed to be directly connected to the Dawn of Time." Cyrus said.

"You study that stuff, don't you?" Ash asked.

"Cyrus has recently taken up the investigation of many myths that relate to the beginnings of time and our world." Carolina said.

"Cynthia, aren't you doing that as well?" Brock asked. "Yes. All to find where our world of people and Pokémon began." Cynthia replied.

Cyrus chortled quietly, and then roared out. "Yes!"

The teens cringed at the sudden outburst, and then Cyrus began explaining. "You see, the Sinnoh Region is said to have originated with Mt. Coronet, just try imagining the beginning of the world…a time of no war…a brand new paradise of peace."

"There you go again Cyrus. Our Cyrus is a real peacenik through and through." Carolina said.

Cyrus chortled again, but to Misty it sounded like an insane snicker. "Of course, the wars I'M talking about are different from Pokémon battles." Cyrus paused a moment to snicker some more.

"Hey Misty, I think I'm starting to understand what you meant." Ash whispered. Misty nodded, but then became nervous when Cyrus loomed over them with eyes that showed insanity. "How can Cynthia not see how crazy this guy is?" Misty thought.

"As Pokémon trainers, you three owe it to yourselves to know the difference between battles and wars, you should never, ever forget that…especially since you've actually met two of the Lake Guardians, Mesprit and Azelf…now give thanks…for miracles." Cyrus discreetly looked at his watch, and Misty just barely caught that, but Ash and Dawn had other things in mind.

"Miracles…?" Ash said.

"I don't get why they went and chose us." Dawn said.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to hear more about what happened at those lakes." Cyrus requested. "Uh, nothing really happened, it just sort of appeared for no reason." Ash said.

"Well…one thing did happen before we saw it…" Dawn said. "Please, do tell." Cyrus said.

Before Dawn could explain her story, the building began to shake violently, forcing the group to try and keep their balance by pushing against the walls. "What is this? An earthquake?" Ash yelled.

Misty took one glance at Cyrus, and for a moment it seemed like he had an evil grin on his face, but with all the shaking she couldn't be sure.

After a few seconds, the shaking stopped, and Misty looked again at Cyrus, and he looked just as surprised as everyone else. "There's something up with this guy, I just know it." Misty thought.

"Is anyone hurt?" Officer Jenny asked. The group answered with a fortunate "no". "You alright Mist?" Ash asked. "I'm fine Ash, but that earthquake seemed all too…" Misty was cut off by an officer shouting over the PA system. "There's been an explosion at the ruins! The entire area is overrun with Golbat!"

"Did he say Golbat?" Officer Jenny asked.

"An explosion at the ruins?" Carolina asked.

"It's just gotta be Team Galactic!" Ash growled.

Officer Jenny sprung into action, and began barking orders into her walkie talkie. "Squads Three and Five, blockade the ruins now! Squad Four, make sure you cover Area B at once! And Squad Six, you cover Area C and get on it immediately! Now go!"

Grandmother, lock up the orb and hurry!" Cynthia exclaimed. Carolina nodded and activated the fingerprint analyzer, but for some reason, the machine refused to take orders. "Carolina, what happened?" Ash asked.

"That's odd, for some reason these doors don't seem to want to close!" Carolina replied. "What did you say?" Officer Jenny exclaimed.

As if on cue, Officer Jenny's radio beeped, and an officer began talking through. "The research facility's security system has been taken over! We've completely lost control!"

Officer Jenny growled and put her radio back on her belt. "And that means we won't be able to protect the Lustrous Orb!" she exclaimed.

"Then we have to move it somewhere else, now!" Cynthia exclaimed. "We'll all help protect the orb!" Ash declared.

"We're lucky you all are here to help just like we were lucky in Veilstone City. So, are you ready to go?" Officer Jenny asked the teens. Ash and Co. saluted the officer, and replied with an enthusiastic, "Yes ma'am!"

Officer Jenny then turned to the two guards. "And what about you two?" she asked. They also gave a salute and responded, "Yes ma'am!"

"Alright then, grab that cart and let's move!" Officer Jenny ordered. The two guards gently placed the Lustrous Orb onto the wheeled cart and ran for an exit. Just then, an officer came over Jenny's radio once again. "Team Galactic incoming at 4:00!"

As soon as that was uttered, a white light flashed from Brock's jacket pocket, and Croagunk emerged, staring towards the ceiling. "Croagunk, what are you doing out of your Pokéball?" Brock asked.

Croagunk ignored its master and ran down the corridor that led to the stairs. "You guys go on ahead!" Brock exclaimed. "You want me to go with you Brock?" Ash asked.

"Stay with the others Ash, they'll need you. I'm grabbing Croagunk and I'll meet with you guys later!" Brock exclaimed.

"Alright then, move out!" Officer Jenny shouted. The group took off for the exit while Brock chased after his poison frog.

"We're almost out!" Carolina shouted. The group ran into the main hall, only to be stopped in their tracks by… "Team Galactic!" Ash roared.

"How about handing over that Lustrous Orb now?" Commander Saturn said, holding his hand out expectantly.

"I get it! Destroying the ruins was nothing more than a diversionary tactic to weaken our defenses!" Cynthia predicted.

"Perhaps you should concern yourself with what's happening now. The truth is, Bronzor's put all of the security forces outside this facility to sleep. And right about now, Toxicroak should be taking good care of everyone on the inside." Saturn said.

"That's it! Croagunk was acting weird because of Toxicroak!" Misty realized. "Brock's running right into a trap!" Ash exclaimed in horror.

Indeed it was true; Croagunk and Toxicroak were currently having a stare down in the corridor just as Brock ran up. "Toxicroak? That's it…Croagunk was sensing Toxicroak the whole time." Brock said.

Right then and there, Toxicroak bolted for the stairs to head to the roof, forcing Croagunk to follow. "Croagunk wait!" Brock yelled. Croagunk once again ignored Brock's orders and chased its evolved form up the stairs.

"Croagunk doesn't stand a chance on its own, this time I'm giving it some help…Sudowoodo, let's go!" Brock threw the Pokéball, and Sudowoodo emerged and saluted.

"Come on Sudowoodo, we've gotta help Croagunk!" Brock and his rock-type ran up the stairs to the roof, hoping that they would get there in time.

Meanwhile, the group was still blocked off by Team Galactic and the hundreds of Golbat. "You are now witnessing what is merely a small part of Team Galactic's brilliant plan!" Saturn exclaimed.

"I don't think so! We're not giving you the Lustrous Orb!" Ash yelled. Misty called out Corsola and flanked Ash and Pikachu on their right, and Dawn and Piplup flanked the Pokémon Trainer on his left. "Never!" the two girls shouted determinedly.

"Wow, such brave children and Pokémon." Carolina said to herself. "Alright then, Bronzor, 'Hypnosis'!" Saturn ordered. Bronzor backed up and began glowing in a red aura.

"Ash, I think now would be a good time to try out that technique we worked on!" Misty exclaimed. "Right. Get ready Pikachu!" Ash yelled. Pikachu's muscles tensed, as it awaited Ash's signal.

But suddenly, Cynthia threw out a Pokéball. "Now Garchomp, battle dance!" Cynthia's dragon/ground-type emerged and flew at amazing speed towards Bronzor. Slightly intimidated, Bronzor moved back further in hopes of getting the attack off in time.

"Brick Break', go!" Cynthia ordered. Garchomp surged forward and slammed the steel/psychic-type with its claw before it could put everyone to sleep.

Saturn growled furiously. "Return!" Saturn sent the pained Pokémon back to its ball before Cynthia could cause any further damage to it.

"Check it out…it stopped the 'Hypnosis'." Ash said in awe. "That's just because Garchomp moved so fast that Bronzor didn't have a chance." Misty said.

"Well done, you definitely earned the title of Champion." Saturn said, trying to maintain his cool.

"If you don't mind Officer Jenny, we'll take care of this. You need to look after the orb." Cynthia said. "Alright then…you keep your guard up." Officer Jenny said. Cynthia smiled and nodded.

"Cyrus, and grandmother, you go with her." Cynthia ordered.

"Right." Cyrus said.

"Fine with me." Carolina added.

"I hope you'll forgive me Professor as this was my idea." Cyrus said. "My granddaughter will take care of everything, so don't worry." Carolina replied.

"Come with me!" Officer Jenny shouted. They started to head back into the corridor, but before they knew it, they had been blocked off by yet another Team Galactic commander. "Ah, Mars, excellent timing." Saturn said. "Phase Four complete: Reunion." Mars said.

The group turned around to see the female commander blocking the way. Ash, Misty, and Dawn had cold sweat on their foreheads, as the increasing pressure of the situation started to get to them. "I should've known…there WERE more of them." Ash said nervously, his fists instinctively clenched.

To make matters worse, Croagunk and Sudowoodo came crashing through the glass ceiling, and landed painfully on their backs. "It's Croagunk and Sudowoodo!" Ash exclaimed.

They looked up and saw Toxicroak plummeting down with its poisonous fist spikes outstretched to finish its murderous task.

Sudowoodo managed to block Toxicroak's spikes with its rocky body, but Croagunk was nowhere near as lucky. Toxicroak jammed its spike into Croagunk's abdomen and held it there, waiting for its poison to kill its devolved form. "No! Croagunk! Sudowoodo!" Brock yelled from the roof.

Croagunk gave one last shriek of pain and fell unconscious. Sudowoodo growled and kicked with its legs to knock Toxicroak off of the pained Croagunk before it was killed, but it couldn't stop Toxicroak from badly poisoning it.

Toxicroak decided that it wasn't worth pursuing, so instead of re-advancing, it jumped back to join its master. In a lot of pain, Sudowoodo got to its feet and held its arms outstretched to protect Croagunk from any further harm in case Toxicroak decided to attack again.

"You…you people are homicidal! You could've killed Croagunk!" Misty screamed furiously. "To be perfectly honest, we have no desire for excessive violence. Just give us the Lustrous Orb and we'll leave." Saturn said.

Enraged, Cynthia clutched another Pokéball tightly in her hand. "Not on your life! We know you've got something up your sleeve! You're not getting any of Sinnoh's treasures! Gastrodon, come forth from the seas!"

Her water/ground-type emerged, ready to battle alongside Garchomp and the other Pokémon. "I'll be right there!" Brock yelled from the roof. Brock ran off and disappeared from sight.

"Your move." Saturn said. "Gastrodon, 'Stone Edge' now!" Cynthia ordered. Gastrodon created a whole bunch of sharp pointed stones, and then launched them at the Golbat that one by one stared falling out if the sky.

"Whoa, check it out." Ash said. Dawn pulled out her Pokédex to scan Cynthia's Pokémon. "Gastrodon, the Sea Slug Pokémon, and the evolved form of Shellos. Gastrodon inhabits the shallow tidal pools of the ocean, and its sturdy shell serves to protect its body." her Pokédex said.

"Well now, that was pathetic." Carolina snickered, "Now get out of the way before we move you out!"

Mars flinched from Carolina's outburst, but Saturn kept a cool head. "I really don't like showing off, but I guess I've no choice. The burden of great power." he said coolly.

"Oh please. Well I'm just fine with showing off." Cynthia replied just as coolly.

"We're behind ya all the way!" Ash grabbed a Pokéball and tossed it out. "Come on Chimchar!"

Chimchar emerged and flanked Pikachu's right.

"Staryu, we need help!" Misty also tossed out a Pokéball, and her faithful starter Pokémon emerged with a loud "Hyahh!"

"Pachirisu, we need you too!" Dawn threw out a Pokéball as well, and her hyper, little electric-type emerged and joined the other Pokémon in the confrontation.

"Sudowoodo, pick up Croagunk and get behind us! I'll have Azurill do something about that poison." Misty exclaimed. Sudowoodo saluted the water-trainer and complied.

Misty placed a Pokéball on the floor, and her Azurill immediately popped out and tended to the pained poison/fighting-type.

"However, Mars had regained her cool thanks to Saturn's confidence, so she too sent out her Pokémon to battle. "Purugly, come out and use 'Shadow Ball'!" Her cat Pokémon emerged and launched a ghostly blob of energy at the small group of Pokémon.

"Toxicroak, 'Dark Pulse'!" Saturn ordered. Toxicroak fired its own attack, and now attacks were coming from both sides.

"Alright, Pikachu, use 'Thunderbolt'! And Chimchar, use 'Flamethrower' now!" Ash ordered. Pikachu and Chimchar complied, as the 'Thunderbolt' countered the 'Shadow Ball', and the 'Flamethrower' did likewise to the 'Dark Pulse'.

But now the battle was on full on, so the surrounding Golbat started firing 'Air Cutters' from every direction. "Misty, Dawn, cover us!" Ash yelled.

"Staryu, use 'Water Gun'! And Corsola, you use 'Power Gem'!" Misty ordered.

"Quick Piplup, use 'Bubblebeam'! And Pachirisu, use 'Discharge'!" Dawn ordered.

The four Pokémon launched their attacks, and managed to counter the Golbat's moves. But with all the explosions taking place, it was getting hard to see. "I say we stop playing defense and take out those Golbat once and for all!" Misty exclaimed.

"Right! Everyone stand back!" Ash yelled. Cynthia gave a confused look to Ash, but his determined expression showed he knew what he was doing. "Garchomp, Gastrodon, back off!" Cynthia ordered.

The champion's Pokémon also gave looks, but nevertheless they obeyed. "What's this? Come to your senses have you?" Saturn asked.

"Alright Pikachu, spin and use 'Thunderbolt'!" Ash roared. Pikachu started break-dancing, and sparks flew in all directions as the 'Air Cutters' were all countered at once. "It's working! Awesome!" Dawn cried.

"Keep it up Pikachu!" Ash cheered. Pikachu continued to dance, and sure enough, Golbat started falling out of the sky from the barrage of electricity. "Well now, that's impressive." Cynthia said sincerely.

"Oh please, you must be joking. Toxicroak, use 'Poison Jab'!" Saturn ordered coolly. Toxicroak surged forward and blasted through the small electricity storm, forcing Pikachu to stop and jump back before getting badly poisoned by Toxicroak's knuckle claw.

"Guess we'll have to work on that." Ash said nervously. More Golbat began firing 'Air Cutters', forcing the group to duck. "Where are they all coming from? It seems endless!" Misty cried.

"Then we'll just have to keep fighting! Garchomp, 'Dragon Claw'! Gastrodon, 'Muddy Water'!" Cynthia ordered. Garchomp leaped into the air and started blocking attacks with its powerful claws, while Gastrodon surrounded itself with disgusting brown water to deflect the attacks.

"I'm breaking through all of that! Dawn, you cover me from above! Misty, you handle the front with Corsola's 'Mirror Coat'!" Ash yelled.

"Right Ash!" they replied.

"Piplup, Pachirisu, attack together!" Dawn ordered. The two Pokémon complied and fired 'Bubblebeam' and 'Discharge' respectively, knocking out the surrounding Golbat.

"Now it's our turn! Corsola, go on ahead and use 'Mirror Coat'!" Misty ordered. Corsola complied and hopped ahead to block and bounce back all incoming 'Air Cutters'. "Now Pikachu, 'Volt Tackle'!" Ash ordered.

Supported by Corsola in front, Pikachu charged ahead to slam into the poison frog. "Stop it now." Saturn said coolly. Toxicroak raised its claw to jab Pikachu with its seeping poison, but Chimchar saw that and quickly bumped Pikachu out of the way.

"Ash, look out!" Misty screamed suddenly. Thinking fast, Ash barked out an attack. "Chimchar use 'Flame Wheel' and hurry!"

Chimchar managed to get the attack started, but Toxicroak still landed a direct hit on the little fire monkey. "Chimchar!" Ash ran to catch the poisoned monkey and hold it close. He could feel Chimchar shivering in his embrace from the poison it had just taken.

"That does it!" Ash roared, "Now you've made me mad!" Before Ash could summon Charizard, everyone in the room was distracted when the two security guards and their police Meowth were caught trying to sneak away with the Lustrous Orb.

Shocked from getting caught, the guards quickly turned around and held their hands up in the air. The male guard had foolishly placed the orb on his head, so when he held his hands up, the orb had nothing to support it and it fell.

"It's falling!" Officer Jenny cried. "Not for long!" the police Meowth dove to catch the orb before it hit the ground, and succeeded in rescuing the priceless artifact from a perilous fate.

"That was some fancy paw work!" the male exclaimed.

"Time to breathe." the female sighed with relief.

"Wait a second, did I just hear that Meowth talk?" Carolina exclaimed in shock.

"Busted!" Their cover had been blown for sure.

"Oh no." Dawn moaned. "Afraid so Dawn, it's Team Rocket!" Ash growled.

"Who's Team Rocket?" Cynthia asked. "These three are a trio of pathetic thugs who've been making our lives miserable since day one of Ash's journey." Misty explained.

"Yeah? What lives?" Jessie hissed. "Whoever's got the orb is the one in control!" Meowth exclaimed. With that, Team Rocket tossed off their disguises to begin their motto.

Jessie: "Seems you want what we've got."

James: "Team Galactic's not so hot."

Meowth: "We grab the gusto cause we're Johnny on da spot!"

They were interrupted when Ash and Cynthia cut in. "You're not funny!" Ash growled. "Give us the orb while you can!" Cynthia added.

Jessie: "You're quite a champion at hurling empty threats too."

James: "Though I'd stick to Pokémon if I were you."

Meowth: "Zip it! We got woik to do!"

Meowth cut their motto short, realizing that at any moment either Ash and his team or Team Galactic could make an unexpected move, they had to get out of there as fast as possible.

"You dopes make one wrong move, and there'll be Lustrous linguini all over dis lobby, capiche?" Meowth threatened.

Team Rocket slowly began walking around the room, trying to find an exit while avoiding any unforeseen circumstances. Nobody moved, so the two humans felt comfortable heckling the Team Galactic goons.

"Good, you're only half as dumb as you look." Jessie snickered. "Although we'd love to stay and continue this fun fest, we do have a boss to tend to." James added.

Both Saturn and Mars growled angrily this time; they definitely weren't expecting Team Rocket to interfere with their affairs.

"There's gotta be something we can do." Ash whispered. "Maybe there is…" Misty replied. Misty slowly reached for her Pokéballs, shuffling around for Surskit's. "If I can call out Surskit, maybe it can sneak up on them and grab the orb." Misty suggested.

Unfortunately for the group, Saturn had already thought of a Plan B. He moved in closer to Team Rocket, provoking Meowth. "Freeze, weirdo." he threatened.

"I think you should leave." Saturn said coolly. That statement caught everyone in the room by surprise, but Team Rocket was never one to refuse an opportunity to bolt. "Excellent! Fashionable and generous to a fault!" James chortled.

The moment Team Rocket ran out the doors of the research center, Saturn snapped his fingers and all the Golbat swarmed the group and crashed through the windows of the research center. By the time they were all gone, they weren't the only ones.

"Where's Team Galactic?" Jenny exclaimed. "Probably going after the Lustrous Orb." Cyrus replied.

"Cynthia, we should go after it too!" Ash exclaimed. "Hold on Ash, what about Chimchar and Croagunk?" Cynthia pointed out.

Ash reeled back a bit, once again feeling the shivering monkey in his arms. He looked back and saw Sudowoodo kneeling over Croagunk, who despite slowly being healed by Azurill, was still feeling the effects of being directly poisoned by Toxicroak.

"I know how you feel, but right now, shouldn't you be helping out these brave Pokémon of yours who battled so hard for us all?" Cynthia said.

"Oh…Chimchar…" Ash gave the brave fire monkey a soft squeeze, and Chimchar gave a weak but grateful chatter in response.

"Of course Cynthia's right," Officer Jenny said, "Now you all just leave getting the Lustrous Orb back to us." the officer ran out the doors of the building, leaving the others alone.

"Ash, Misty, Dawn! Is everything alright?" Brock came charging into the room. He saw Croagunk lying unconscious on the floor with Azurill's tail on its head, and Sudowoodo looking down on him with a sorrowful expression.

"Oh no, Croagunk!" Brock kneeled down in front of his poison frog, and checked to see if it was even still alive. He was relieved to find a stable but weak pulse. "You put up a great battle Croagunk, and I'm so proud of you."

Brock took a glance at Sudowoodo, who seemed ashamed to even meet Brock's gaze. "Don't feel bad Sudowoodo, you did your best too." Brock consoled.

"If we wanna be totally honest, I don't think Croagunk would even be alive if it weren't for Sudowoodo knocking Toxicroak off it." Misty said.

"I'm proud of you too Sudowoodo, you can't imagine how grateful I am that you were there to help." Brock said. Sudowoodo looked up at Brock and gave a small smile.

"What happened to the orb guys?" Brock asked. "Team Rocket stole it." Ash replied. "As impossible as that seems." Misty added bitterly.

"We have everything under control here; you all should get to a Pokémon Center. Cynthia, you should go too." Carolina said.

"I will…Garchomp; I'd like you to handle everything with the orb please." Cynthia said. Garchomp nodded and flew off through the hole in the roof.

"Then I know just what to do too…Staravia!" Ash tossed up a Pokéball, and Staravia emerged with a shrill cry. "I want you to go with Garchomp and find Team Rocket, now!" Ash exclaimed.

Staravia nodded and took off through the same hole in the roof. "And this Pokéball is just for Team Galactic…Charizard!"

Charizard emerged from his Pokéball and gave a mighty roar. He glanced over at Ash who was holding the pained fire monkey in his arms. Charizard was taken aback my Chimchar's physical condition. The dragon was not one to show sympathy, but whether it admitted it or not, Charizard did have a soft spot for the small fire-type.

They shared a similar background after all. As a Charmander, it was abandoned by its trainer and was left to die in a rainstorm before Ash came and rescued it. And Chimchar was adopted by Ash when Paul abandoned it.

Ash nodded at the dragon. "Go get 'em Charizard." Charizard roared and blasted through the roof to get revenge on the butcher responsible for hurting its fellow fire-type. "I'm counting on ya Charizard."

"You know Cyrus, I'm so sorry that your visit had to turn out like this." Cynthia said. "Don't be. It's all MY fault for asking to see the orb. Forgive me." Cyrus replied.

"You're both wrong. The fault is mine. Don't forget I'M the one who took the orb out and put it in harm's way." Carolina said.

"Oh, never mind whose fault it was! We've gotta get to the Pokémon Center already!" Misty cried. "Right. Let's go everyone." Cynthia led the group out of the research center and to the Pokémon Center.

"May I suggest going to check on the ruins?" Cyrus said. Carolina nodded, and the two went to the destroyed ruins to check the damage.

Back at the center, Ash and Brock charged in first, holding their poisoned Pokémon. "Oh my, what happened to these Pokémon?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Team Galactic happened." Ash growled. "Chansey come quick! And bring a gurney!" Nurse Joy cried. The alarmed Pokémon rushed out of the office and grabbed a gurney for Chimchar and Croagunk.

"Nurse Joy and Chansey rushed the Pokémon into the emergency room, and hooked them up to life monitors. She soon came out again to meet up with the group. "What was it that poisoned them?" she asked.

"It was a Toxicroak using 'Poison Jab'." Brock said. "Jab? It looked more like stab to me!" Misty exclaimed. "Say that again!" Nurse Joy exclaimed.

"Their Toxicroak literally dug its claw into Croagunk! I don't know what would've happened if my Azurill hadn't of used 'Refresh' on it." Misty explained.

"This might be very bad. Directly taking the poison can lead to serious side effects. Did the same happen to Chimchar?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Yes, but to a lesser degree of intensity." Misty explained. "Ok, thank you for your help. Chansey! Get the anti-Toxicroak-venom, STAT!" Nurse Joy rushed back into the emergency room and closed the door, leaving the group to wait.

"I'm truly sorry Ash and Brock…is there…anything I can do to help…?" Cynthia asked. "No, no there isn't. I think I'll go sit down." Brock walked away and slumped into one of the Pokémon Center chairs.

"Brock must be really depressed if he turned down YOUR help Cynthia." Dawn said. "I know exactly how he feels. He's concerned for Croagunk." Cynthia replied.

"And what about you Ash?" Cynthia asked. "…What about me?" Ash replied bitterly.

"I'm sure you must be very concerned for Chimchar as well." Cynthia said. "Of course I am! Why would you even ask a question like that?" Ash growled.

"Ash, don't be rude!" Misty scolded. "Well how would YOU feel if it had been Corsola or Staryu…or Azurill that had gotten poisoned instead?" Ash replied angrily.

Misty wasn't quite sure how to answer that, but she had to say something. "I'd…probably feel just like you, but I wouldn't go biting people's heads off!" she hissed.

"Look, just leave me alone, alright? I'll feel better when Chimchar feels better." Ash turned his back to them and also trudged over to the chairs to wait. He was lucky enough to find the couch, and he buried his face into the cushions, to hide the tears that were begging to escape.

"Don't worry Misty; I know exactly what he's feeling in his heart. And I think I just might know why." Cynthia said.

"Well…if what he wants is to be left alone, I think the best thing we can do is to do just that." Dawn suggested.

Misty sighed and nodded. "So we just wait then?" she asked. "Unless you can think of something to stop Team Galactic, yes." Cynthia replied.

Just then, an idea popped into Misty's mind. "Maybe not something…maybe SOMEONE."

"What do you mean Misty?" Dawn asked. "Cynthia, can you try and take care of Ash for me? I need to make a phone call. Dawn, come with me." Misty said. The two girls ran for the videophones, leaving Cynthia to tend to Ash.

She sat down next to the weeping Pokémon Trainer and sympathetically stroked his hair. "Misty…please, I just wanna be left alone." Ash said.

Ash looked up and was surprised that it was Cynthia there, and not Misty. "Oh, hi Cynthia…listen, sorry about getting so mad but…" Ash was cutoff.

"Don't be. I would expect nothing less from a trainer that truly cares for his Pokémon." she said. Ash managed a small smile and wiped the tears from his eyes.

"So, when did you get a Charizard? It looked really powerful." Cynthia asked, trying to make conversation.

"Well, it was actually a long time ago. You see, Charizard was abandoned as a Charmander and I took it in. For a while we were friends, but when it eventually evolved into Charmeleon, it rarely listened to me. So you can imagine that when it evolved into Charizard it ignored me even more." Ash continued,

"Then one day in the Orange Islands, we met a guy named Tad who had a Poliwrath that had been dubbed 'the strongest Pokémon in the area'. After Pikachu failed to do any damage, I figured Charizard could handle it. Thing is, I couldn't handle HIM. Charizard wound up being frozen solid by Poliwrath's 'Ice Beam', and it naturally wasn't happy about that." Ash continued,

"Me, Misty, and another old friend of mine, Tracey, spent all night rubbing Charizard down to try and warm it up. I guess Charizard really appreciated it because he never disobeyed me again after that. Heh, but he did keep his habit of hitting me with a 'Flamethrower' every now and then." Ash concluded.

"Amazing Ash. You're one of the most dedicated trainers I've ever met. I wonder how many Pokémon's lives you've impacted throughout your travels." Cynthia said.

"Well I wish I hadn't just impacted Chimchar like this." Ash groaned. "It wasn't your fault Ash. Chimchar was just looking out for a friend, just as I'm sure YOU would've taken a hit for one of your friends, especially Misty." Cynthia said.

Just then, Nurse Joy came with Brock. "Your Chimchar is resting now. I must say, your little Chimchar fought the poison valiantly, I'm proud to say that all it needs now is a little medicine and a little rest." Nurse Joy said.

"Thanks Nurse Joy…would it…be ok if I saw Chimchar?" Ash asked. "By all means, come with me." Nurse Joy replied.

"Wait a sec; I wanna go get Misty and Dawn." Ash said. "They're making a phone call." Cynthia said. Ash ran for the videophones, happy that his little fire-type was alright.

"Ok thanks, we can use all the help we can get." Misty said, finishing her phone call. Misty hung up just as Ash came rushing over. He grabbed Misty by the wrists, causing her to squeal with surprise, and he twirled around and around with her in celebration.

"Ash, what are you doing?" Misty exclaimed. "Sorry Mist, but…Chimchar's ok! And so is Croagunk! That calls for a celebration!" Ash replied happily.

A smile quickly spread across Misty's face, and she hugged her boyfriend ecstatically. "Congratulations Ash! It's a huge relief." Misty said.

Dawn had stayed back, but she was smiling nevertheless. "Get in here Dawn." Misty said. Dawn's smile grew wider, and she leaped into the embrace to form a group hug.

"C'mon, let's go see them!" Ash exclaimed. They ran to join the others, and were led by Nurse Joy to the recovery room.

Nurse Joy quietly opened the door and led the group in to see their sleeping Pokémon. Ash quietly moved up to Chimchar, who stirred upon Ash's arrival. "Hey Chimchar." Ash said softly. Chimchar rolled over and gave its master a small smile.

"Now Ash, Brock, have them take these after breakfast, and after dinner as well." Nurse Joy said, handing the two trainers bags of prescribed medicine. "Right." they replied.

"If you need me, just call." Nurse Joy said. "Thanks Nurse Joy." Ash said. The pink haired nurse and her Pokémon nodded and left them to be alone with their Pokémon.

"Now Croagunk, I know you're still very upset, but you've got to rest." Brock said.

Croagunk wheezed out a weak reply, but its anger towards Toxicroak was obviously still burning intensely.

"Chimchar, thanks for looking out for Pikachu…if only I hadn't have said to use 'Volt Tackle' in the first place…" Ash said, more tears threatening to surface in his eyes.

"Come on, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself." Dawn said. "Why are you beating yourself up like this Ash?" Misty asked.

"Because Misty…I was so wrapped up in getting that orb back…I wasn't thinking about Chimchar at all…I acted just like…PAUL…I'm sorry Chimchar." Ash said sorrowfully.

Chimchar found the strength to sit up, and slowly raised its hand to Ash's face. Upon feeling Chimchar's hand, Ash opened his eyes and saw Chimchar smiling brightly at him. "Chimchar…" Ash was deeply moved by Chimchar's loyalty.

"You see Ash? Chimchar knows you'd never try to do anything to hurt it." Misty said soothingly. Ash choked out a relieved sigh.

"Ash, I've been meaning to ask you if your Chimchar was actually Paul's Chimchar once." Cynthia said. "Yeah, it was." Ash said, wiping away his leftover tears on his sleeve.

Cynthia sat down on the chair next to Chimchar's bed and held Chimchar's hand. "You've certainly been through quite a lot, haven't you my little sweetheart? I want you to remember that Ash and Paul have been through quite a lot of experiences with you. I know they walk different paths pursuing their dreams, but it's important to watch over them both as you all go into the future."

"Watch over us? What do you mean?" Ash asked. "Remember I said, 'When every life meets another life'…" Cynthia paused to let Ash finish.

"Of course, I remember. Something will be born." Ash said. "But what does that have to do with Ash, Paul, and Chimchar?" Misty asked.

"I think that's a question that only Ash can answer. So Ash, what do you think you and Paul have discovered by meeting and working with Chimchar?" Cynthia asked.

This was something Ash needed to think about. "It's alright if you don't know the answer now. One day you'll realize it." Cynthia said.

Just then, Nurse Joy came in with Chansey. "How's everyone doing?" she asked. "We're doing great." Ash replied.

"If you'd like, you can sign Chimchar and Croagunk out and be on your way." Nurse Joy said. They thought about it for a moment. "Not yet Nurse Joy, I think they need a little more rest here first." Brock said.

"Very well, have you all had something to eat?" Nurse Joy asked. No one in the group was really all that hungry. Even Ash's never-ending appetite seemed to have vanished. Team Galactic was weighing down too heavily on their minds.

"Well…if any of you are hungry, you're free to help yourselves in the cafeteria." Nurse Joy finally said. "Thanks Nurse Joy." Misty replied.

The nurse and her Pokémon reluctantly walked out once more. "I think she was trying to hint at something." Dawn said. "Yeah, like it's time to let these guys get some rest." Misty replied.

"You just rest up, ok Chimchar?" Ash said. Chimchar wrapped its arms around Ash's neck for a hug, and Ash gladly reciprocated the gesture.

"Come on, let's let them sleep." Cynthia said. Chimchar lied back down in its bed, and curled up into a ball to get comfy.

Soon after, the group walked out one by one, and sat themselves down in the waiting room. The room was tense for a few moments, as no one really had anything to say. Although Piplup did get a start when Dawn's grip on it tightened slightly.

"What's on your mind Dawn?" Misty asked. "Nothing's on my mind, what makes you think something's on my mind?" Dawn replied.

"Your little pressure gauge went off, that's what." Misty replied, pointing at Piplup. Dawn looked down and saw Piplup squirming uncomfortably in Dawn's arms. She loosened her grip and Piplup gave a relieved sigh.

"Sorry Piplup." Dawn said. "Now you mind telling us what's up?" Misty requested.

Dawn hesitated for a moment, but eventually gave in. "I don't know why…but I'm scared."

"Scared?" Ash inquired. "I mean…what is this 'new world' Team Galactic keeps talking about? And what are they trying to do?" Dawn replied.

The group grew silent once more, as they pondered that for a moment. Then finally, Cynthia spoke up. "I'll say this. Whatever it is, I'm fairly certain it'll mean nothing but disaster for all of us."

"And I'm fairly certain you're right." Ash replied. "Do we know anything about what's happening?" Misty asked.

"No, but although we don't know what their new world is, it's obvious they don't like this one. Of course, they're not the kind of criminals that are EVER going to give up without a fight. We saw now that Team Galactic's managed to steal the Adamant Orb, and now they're going after the Lustrous Orb with a vengeance." Cynthia said.

"I'll just bet they're targeting Dialga and Palkia! Through the orbs!" Brock realized. Ash, Misty, and Dawn gasped in shock at this new revelation.

"That's just what I'm thinking as well. Team Galactic has big plans for those two orbs, something that will affect the world of people and Pokémon. A challenge like none before." Cynthia said.

"We can't just sit here when there's stuff to do!" Ash stood up and was determined to somehow stop Team Galactic.

"Ash, calm down, we don't need to waste energy when we don't know where they are." Misty said. "But we've gotta do something!" Ash exclaimed. Misty grabbed Ash by the hand and gently pulled him back down to his seat.

"Just relax. Going out there without a plan is asking for trouble." Misty said. Ash grunted, but in his mind he knew she was right.

"Hey, look out the window!" Brock exclaimed suddenly. The group turned and saw a small black and white bird flying towards the center. "It's Staravia!" Ash exclaimed.

The group ran out the door to meet up with the small sentry. "Staravia, you found Team Rocket?" Ash asked excitedly. Staravia nodded and pointed in the direction it found them in.

"Great Staravia, let's go!" Ash exclaimed. "I'll call Garchomp and get the jeep; you should call your Charizard back too." Cynthia said. Cynthia grabbed a Pokéball and blasted its return light into the sky for Garchomp to see, and then she ran for the parking lot.

Ash did the same with his Pokéball, hoping that Charizard would see it. Within moments, Garchomp returned to where it saw the light flash. "Cynthia went to get the jeep; she'll be back in a minute." Brock said. Garchomp nodded and awaited its master's return.

"C'mon Charizard, where are you?" Ash wondered. He got his answer when he heard a victorious roar ring through the air. "Found him." Misty joked.

As if on cue, Charizard came over the horizon, holding a whole armful of fainted Golbat. "Same old Charizard. Never could resist a chance to kick some butt." Brock chuckled.

"I know you enjoyed that Charizard, but leave them in front of the Pokémon Center so Nurse Joy can take care of them." Ash said.

Charizard growled, but obeyed its master and dropped them, rather harshly, in front of the doors. "That's one way to do it I guess." Misty said with a sweat-drop.

Just then, Cynthia drove up in her jeep. "Hurry up and get in!" she exclaimed. The group hopped into the jeep, and Cynthia jammed down the gas-pedal and sped off.

Garchomp, Staravia, and Charizard took flight and followed them. After a few moments, Dawn was beginning to get kind of twitchy. "Wait a second, this can't be! Are we going to the research center?" Dawn asked.

"Maybe. Either that or to the ruins." Cynthia said, "Garchomp! Fly on ahead and make sure Team Rocket stays put!"

"Charizard, Pikachu, Staravia, I want you to go with Garchomp, ok?" Ash said. Pikachu hopped onto Charizard's back and looked on with a determined expression. "Be careful." Ash said.

Not one to be left out, Piplup hopped out of Dawn's arms and onto the back of the now startled Staravia. "Piplup, you too?" Dawn said.

"It looks like Piplup wants to help." Brock said. Just then, a white light flashed and Sudowoodo popped out of its Pokéball, and hopped onto Garchomp's back before anyone could comment.

"Alright then Sudowoodo, I know why you wanna help. Just be careful, alright?" Brock said. Sudowoodo saluted Brock and looked on as well.

"Ok, we're counting on all of you!" Ash exclaimed. The Pokémon surged forward with a burst of speed, and before they knew it, they were at the ruins where they saw a whole bunch of sleeping guards.

Pikachu pointed down and announced that that was where they had to be. The Pokémon agreed, and they headed for the opening in the roof. They weren't exactly surprised to see Team Rocket, but they were surprised to see Team Galactic.

After seeing Purugly and Bronzor ready attacks at the trio of bumblers, Pikachu said they had to protect Team Rocket, seeing as the orb would do less damage in their hands.

While everyone else just nodded, Sudowoodo leaped off of Garchomp's back and launched a mid-air 'Double Edge' attack that knocked Bronzor to the ground.

With the extra weight off, Garchomp swooped down as well, and knocked Purugly onto the floor with its 'Dragon Claw'.

Then, Garchomp landed and spread its arms in front of Team Rocket, it was followed by Charizard, Sudowoodo, Staravia, Piplup, and of course, Pikachu, thusly creating a wall of Pokémon to get through with two giants backing up the rear.

"It's Garchomp!" Carolina exclaimed happily. Carolina and Cyrus had gone inside and exposed Team Rocket before Team Galactic had even arrived, and were relieved to see the champion's Pokémon make an appearance.

"You can't do that to my Pokémon!" Mars exclaimed. After hearing that, Sudowoodo started shooting off infuriated comments at Mars in its own language. It basically said that she was a hypocrite seeing as they almost murdered its friend, Croagunk, and then complaining that they merely bounced Purugly back.

In the back of the Pokémon wall, Team Rocket watched in shock. "Dis scene reeks of twoip!" Meowth said. "But…that can only mean one thing…" Jessie paused. "We're under the Pikachu Protection Plan!" James finished.

As soon as he finished talking, the trainers of the Pokémon wall came rushing in. "Uh oh, Team Galactic!" Ash exclaimed.

"I would say that you all came just in time!" Carolina exclaimed. Their timing was perfect, but Team Rocket had just formed a totally different plan.

They leaped from behind the Pokémon wall and stood tall in front of the ruins' carving. "To prove it's not just word of mouth, focus your eyes on the Lustrous prize!" James said.

James' Carnivine opened its mouth, and the Lustrous Orb was revealed to everyone. "They're crazy!" Mars exclaimed.

"One wrong move and this Lustrous treasure turns into lunch!" Jessie threatened. "And I sincerely doubt dat Lustrous lasagna's gonna do you yo-yos any good." Meowth added.

"We win! Just like I knew we would." Jessie gloated.

Ash growled with frustration. The fact that they were helpless against Team Rocket of all people annoyed him to no end. "Cynthia, what are we going to do now?" Dawn asked worriedly.

"Come on, where's that backup I called for?" Misty thought nervously. "They're so desperate they just might go through with it!" Carolina exclaimed nervously.

Cyrus growled menacingly, "Don't you realize how important the Lustrous Orb is? Idiots!" he roared. Team Rocket flinched in fear of the infuriated man.

Everyone in the room looked at Cyrus questionably, caught off guard by his sudden tantrum. "Watch this Ash, watch his attitude." Misty whispered. Ash nodded and listened to Cyrus rant.

"You! Look behind you!" Cyrus, eyes flaming with fury, pointed towards the wall behind Team Rocket, "I trust you fools know that the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs give great power to Dialga and Palkia! But it is when the orbs are combined together with the three Lake Guardians that their full power emerges! To put it in simple terms even YOU can understand, the three guardians plus the two orbs will gloriously bring forth nothing less than legends!" Cyrus cackled maniacally.

Even Misty, who had been trying so hard to watch Cyrus' attitude instead of his words, was taken aback by Cyrus' speech. "Did he just say…bring forth legends?" Ash asked nervously.

"Cyrus, calm down!" Carolina demanded.

Cyrus growled and turned to Carolina with an intense expression. "Don't you see that if we don't make them understand what's happening, they'll do something foolish like shatter the orb? I refuse to let that happen at all costs!" Cyrus turned to Team Rocket again with clenched fists. "I'm sorry if I seem so upset, but when the stakes are this high, our strongest weapon is the truth! Now listen well…the Adamant Orb IS in fact Dialga, and the Lustrous Orb IS Palkia! The orbs will bring them to this world!"

The moment Cyrus finished, a swarm of Golbat flew through the roof of the ruins, giving the entire group a jumpstart. "How ironic! I'll bet anything this guy is a PART of Team Galactic!" Misty had made up her mind. Cyrus wasn't just a creepy guy with a temper problem, he was a criminal.

"Listen up Pikachu! Use 'Thunderbolt'! And Charizard, use 'Heat Wave'!" Ash ordered. Pikachu's cheeks sparked madly as it launched its electric-attack, and Charizard launched a blazing wave of pure heat. Both attacks aimed at the swarm of Golbat and knocked a bunch out.

"Alright Piplup, use 'Bubblebeam'!" Dawn ordered.

"Sudowoodo, 'Double Edge'!" Brock ordered.

"Garchomp, 'Dragon Claw', let's go!" Cynthia ordered.

The other three Pokémon also fired attacks at the Golbat. Piplup fired a flurry of bubbles that shot the bat-Pokémon out of the sky, Sudowoodo tackled them in mid-air and knocked them down like they were bowling pins, and Garchomp slashed them down one by one with its mighty claws.

Meanwhile, Cyrus just stood in place, quietly snickering as he watched the battle take place. "Cyrus, don't just stand there, do something!" Carolina cried.

Cyrus snapped out of his haze, and pretended to pull out a Pokéball, but before anything could happen, a Skuntank jumped through the roof of the ruins and slammed down hard on the head of James' Carnivine.

Both surprised and hurt by the assault, Carnivine relinquished its item and fell to the floor, just as Skuntank took the orb for itself.

"Look Ash, the orb!" Dawn cried. "Who's that Pokémon?" Ash wondered out loud. "I dunno, but it's about to use 'Hyper Beam'!" Brock yelled.

The group hit the deck, as Skuntank's 'Hyper Beam' sent Team Rocket flying into the stratosphere. Skuntank then turned and ran for the exit, as the Golbat tried to block the group from pursuing. "It's getting away with the orb!" Dawn cried.

"I can't wait any longer! Time to take matters into my own hands!" Misty pulled out a Pokéball, and threw it over the Skuntank's head. What emerged from it forced Skuntank to stop in its tracks due to the exit now being blocked.

"Great timing with Gyarados Mist!" Ash exclaimed. "Whatever you do Gyarados, don't let it escape with the orb!" Misty ordered.

Gyarados complied, and matched every maneuver that Skuntank could pull off by moving its snake-like body in the way wherever it went.

"Now let's take the orb back! Go Charizard!" Ash yelled. Charizard flew low and fast and charged for the Skuntank. But the Golbat still in the area had different plans.

They flew up in front of the dragon and fired their 'Air Cutters' at point-blank range and knocked the dragon down. And to ensure that it wouldn't get back up to try again, one powerful Golbat landed on Charizard's stomach and dug its razor sharp teeth into its abdomen with a 'Poison Fang' attack.

"Charizard, no!" Ash cried. Charizard groaned from the poison it had taken intravenously, and struggled with all its might to get back up again, but all it could muster was to get on one knee before collapsing to the ground. "Charizard, return!" Ash recalled his mighty friend back to its Pokéball to avoid further pain and suffering on Charizard's part.

Now with Charizard out of the way, the Golbat targeted Gyarados. "Oh no you don't! Gyarados, use 'Hydro Pump'!" Misty ordered.

Gyarados fired and managed to knock a few back, but the swarm was too much to handle for the mighty water-dragon. Skuntank managed to find a crease in the doorway, and quickly jumped through. With the mission supposedly completed, the Golbat vanished along with Team Galactic.

"Oh no! If we don't get that orb back, we're all in trouble!" Cynthia said. "Come on, let's move!" Ash yelled.

The group ran out of the ruins, and found the final Team Galactic commander, the female Jupiter, congratulating Skuntank on a job well done. They quickly ran towards a van and prepared to speed off. "We're too late!" Brock groaned.

Just when all hope seemed to be lost, a voice yelled out from the sky. "Say cheese!"

"Finally." Misty thought.

A Pokéball was thrown from the sky, and a Luxray emerged from it, preventing Team Galactic from reaching their escape vehicle.

"A Luxray?" Cynthia asked.

"Hey Ash, you don't suppose…?" Brock asked. "Guess we'll find out now!" Ash replied.

"We can't fail now! Skuntank, use 'Flamethrower'!" Jupiter ordered. As Skuntank prepared to fire, a tall, blonde man in his early twenties leaped off from a Staraptor and landed behind Luxray.

"Just watch this! Luxray, use 'Charge Beam'!" The moment the order was uttered, Luxray launched the charged up attack and countered the fiery move.

"Didn't even break a sweat! Now Staraptor, grab that orb!" The Staraptor that was previously acting as transportation made the transition into a battler as it swooped down and snatched the orb in its large and sharp talons.

"All hail D. Shad!" the group cheered jokingly. "So you must be Darkness Shadow, you were in the Sinnoh Star for apparently saving the world." Jupiter said.

"It's always nice to be recognized by an admirer." D. Shad replied cockily. "Admire? No. PERHAPS, respect. But either way, we can't let you have the orb." Jupiter said.

"Naturally. But who said anything about letting me? Now we'll show you our ultimate power!" D. Shad roared, "Luxray, use 'Thunderbolt'!"

Luxray fired, and shocked Team Galactic down to the ground. "Hmmph! Pathetic thugs!" D. Shad gloated.

"We're not done yet!" Jupiter hissed. "Hmmph, there's no more time to play games." D. Shad looked towards Cynthia, who had been quietly watching D. Shad in action. "Would the champion care to finish the job?" D. Shad offered.

Cynthia smirked and summoned Garchomp to her side. "It would be an honor." she said.

Jupiter quietly groaned, knowing that there was virtually no chance for success now. "Garchomp, take it out with 'Brick Break'!" Cynthia ordered.

Garchomp charged ahead and knocked the skunk Pokémon on its back, leaving it fainted. Jupiter finally growled and was force to concede defeat. "G3…backup plan has failed due to unforeseen circumstance. We're returning to base to regroup." Jupiter said through her microphone.

Jupiter and her two cohorts ran towards the van empty-handed, but not before D. Shad gave one last comment. "You're lucky I let you escape."

Jupiter hissed loudly, and they drove away with nothing except their shattered pride. The group walked up to D. Shad, who was congratulating Luxray and Staraptor for a job well done.

"Well well, long time no see. Seems you just can't stay out of trouble no matter how hard you try." D. Shad joked.

"It's about time you got here!" Misty exclaimed. "Hey what can I say? There was traffic in the skies." D. Shad replied.

"How'd you know that we needed help D. Shad?" Ash asked.

"Well, I got a call earlier from a couple of young girls, they explained what was happening here and since I was dying of boredom anyway, I figured I'd come and kick a few cans just for laughs." D. Shad replied.

"Way to go Misty and Dawn!" Brock said. "Well it was really Misty's idea." Dawn admitted.

Just then, Carolina came out of the ruins after finally coaxing the supposedly depressed Cyrus to come out. "Did you get the orb back?" Carolina asked.

"Please. How could ANYONE fight against the overwhelming odds that were set against us? The orb is lost forever." Cyrus groaned.

"You might wanna rethink that." D. Shad took the orb from Staraptor and held it proudly in his hand. Carolina stared in awe, while Cyrus seemed to just be in shock.

"Thank goodness! And thank you young man, we would've never gotten the orb back without you. Isn't this wonderful Cyrus?" Carolina said.

"Y-Yes, it's…truly a…pleasant surprise to see the orb is in safe hands once more." Cyrus said with mild hesitation.

"That Luxray of yours is quite impressive." Cynthia said. "Well, me and my buddy Luxray have been through thick and thick together," D. Shad joked, "We got a lot of time to work on power and battling."

"Well we can't thank you enough…D. Shad you said?" Cynthia asked. "Most people call me Darkness Shadow, my friends call me D. Shad, but you can call me by my real name if you like." D. Shad replied.

"It'd be an honor. What IS your real name?" Cynthia asked. "David. My real name is David. But don't tell anyone else, only the people I want to be close to know my real name." D. Shad replied.

It was very slight, but Cynthia seemed to have a hint of blush spreading across her cheeks. "Your secret is safe with me…David." she replied softly.

"Now, what say we get to the Pokémon Center for a recharge?" D. Shad suggested. "Oh man! I forgot about Charizard! One of those Golbat got him with a 'Poison Fang'!" Ash exclaimed.

"Come on! We'll hop on Staraptor and get there in no time!" D. Shad said. Ash and D. Shad leaped onto Staraptor's back. "Meet you guys there!" D. Shad yelled.

Staraptor took off and headed into the sunset with its two passengers. "Well, he's really cute, isn't he?" Carolina teased. "Grandmother!" Cynthia hissed.

When Carolina saw that Cynthia was pink around the edges, she giggled mischievously. "And you seem to agree with me." she snickered.

Cynthia looked away from her grandmother and turned to return Garchomp to its Pokéball. "We should get going. Ash and Davi – I mean – D. Shad are probably waiting for us by now." Cynthia said without meeting anyone's gaze.

"Yes, I agree. I'm very eager to see the Lustrous Orb now that the danger has passed." Cyrus said, now apparently past his depressed state.

The group agreed and returned their Pokémon, and hopped into Cynthia's jeep and drove off. When they finally reached the Pokémon Center, the sun had set and night had fallen. They found Ash and D. Shad talking in the lobby.

Misty jogged in and gave Ash a surprise hug from behind. "How's Charizard, Ash?" she asked. "He's doing great, and now Chimchar has someone to talk to." Ash replied.

Cyrus came rushing in next, and he confronted D. Shad as soon as his eyes made contact with his form. "Please, show me the Lustrous Orb!" he exclaimed desperately.

D. Shad snuck a glance at Cynthia, silently asking if it'd be ok. Cynthia nodded at the guardian and confirmed it.

He threw out a Pokéball, and Luxray emerged holding it on its back. "Yes, the glory and beauty of the Lustrous Orb. What a relief to see it safe." Cyrus said, practically drooling.

Just then, Officer Jenny came in to see the group. "You've all done it again! Thanks to you the Lustrous Orb is safe and sound!" she said.

"Actually, if it weren't for D. Shad, they would've gotten away with it." Misty said. "Oh yeah, you're Darkness Shadow, right? You were in the Sinnoh Star!" Officer Jenny exclaimed.

"Meh, no big deal. Cynthia, Ash, and everyone here did the dirty work, I just mopped up." D. Shad shrugged.

"Don't be so modest, you had a big part in this too!" Cynthia said. "Thanks Cynthia, but like I said, it's no big deal. I'm just a guy who likes to help." D. Shad replied.

"Well if you don't mind, I have to fill out the police report, so could I get a statement from you Carolina?" Officer Jenny asked.

"Yes, but I'll make it brief." Carolina said. Officer Jenny nodded and pulled out a clipboard and pencil. "Go ahead." she said.

"Even though we managed to keep the Lustrous Orb out of Team Galactic's clutches this time, it's still painfully obvious that Team Galactic know a lot more about Dialga and Palkia than we do. What could they be after knowing they stole the Veilstone City meteorites as well? Whatever it is, we must remain vigilant." Carolina said.

"If I may say something…" Cyrus said. Officer Jenny turned to the tycoon. "Since I was not of much help in retrieving the Lustrous Orb, I hereby offer my services to keep the orb safe in my own personal care." Cyrus said.

"No!" Misty exclaimed suddenly. All eyes fell on Misty, who was now blushing from extreme embarrassment.

"Is there a reason you feel that Cyrus should not keep the orb in his care?" Officer Jenny asked.

"Um…well…I…" Misty stammered, "I-I-Is this on the record?"

"It doesn't have to be." Officer Jenny said. "W-Well, it's just that…I…think that it'd be safer in…a safe…or something." Misty trailed off at the end.

"I assure you dear girl, my home has only the highest security measures in the whole Sinnoh Region, it wouldn't be safer anyplace else." Cyrus said.

"Then it's settled. Cyrus will take the orb home for safe-keeping." Carolina said. "Thank you for your time everyone. Now you all get a good night's rest." Officer Jenny waved farewell to the group and walked out the doors of the Pokémon Center.

"I think it's about time I got going as well. If you'll excuse me ladies and gentlemen, I shall take the orb and be on my way." Cyrus said.

Cyrus walked up to D. Shad, who after Misty's outburst had become a little wary of the tycoon. Luxray gave a low growl when Cyrus moved his hand to take the orb. "If you'll permit me." Cyrus said as gentlemanly as possible.

D. Shad hesitated, but he was forced to give in and allow Cyrus to take the orb. "Thank you. I assure you that the Lustrous Orb will be well taken care of." Cyrus walked out of the Pokémon Center without another word.

"Hey D. Shad, is something wrong?" Brock asked. "I'm not sure." D. Shad replied. Although they didn't notice, D. Shad wasn't the only one with a look of suspicion on their faces. Cynthia was just as perplexed.

"Well, I'd say that we should get some rest. You kids have a long trip ahead of you." Carolina said. "Yeah, and I've got a long flight back to Sonzonia City. I hope Staraptor can handle flying this late." D. Shad said.

"Why don't you stay here with us tonight? I'm sure you must be tired as well after all that's happened." Cynthia said.

D. Shad gave a small smirk. "Sure, why not? How'd you like to grab something to eat?" D. Shad said enticingly.

Cynthia smiled back. "I would love to…David."

So while Carolina escorted the teens to their room, D. Shad and Cynthia went to have dinner. "Looks like D. Shad's finally getting over J." Misty said. "And with Cynthia of all people!" Dawn exclaimed quietly. "I can't believe HE gets to go with my beloved champion!" Brock moaned. The group groaned incredulously at Brock's attitude.

After Carolina wished the teens goodnight, they started getting ready for bed. The extremely depressed Brock insisted on going to shower first to try and wash off his disappointment. Having one of the many loves of his life taken by D. Shad was something he really hated.

"I feel sorry for Brock, I really do." Misty said. "Hey Misty, do you really think that the orb will be safe with Cyrus?" Dawn asked.

Ash and Misty became forlorn at that question, which gave Dawn some discomfort. "Did we make a mistake?" Dawn asked.

"I don't trust him Dawn, I think he may be...one of them." Misty said. "Them? You mean...Team Galactic?" Dawn asked fearfully.

"I hope we didn't make a huge mistake. I really do." Ash said. "Ash...Misty...I'm scared." Dawn whimpered.

The couple glanced at each other, and invited Dawn in for a group hug in an attempt to comfort the frightened coordinator. As the three teens held each other closely, their nerves slowly began to settle down, but a certain amount of anxiety remained.

"We'll be alright, we always come out on top in the end." Ash said comfortingly. The two girls released the hug and nodded at the trainer. "I'm gonna go see what's holding up Brock." Ash left the room to enter the bathroom, which luckily was left unlocked, leaving the two girls to themselves.

"So...on a lighter note, have you thought about maybe giving Kenny a call?" Misty asked. "Well, to tell you the truth, I'm a little nervous, I mean, this is a whole new sort of situation for me! Kenny's never been anything more than just a friend to me." Dawn replied.

"That was the case between me and Ash, and even Pikachu and Buneary! Pokémon take on the behavior of their trainers, why not take a lesson from your Pokémon for a change?" Misty suggested.

Just then, a white light flashed from Dawn's backpack, and Buneary emerged from it. She hopped onto the bunk Pikachu was resting on, and the two happily cuddled up to each other for a well needed rest.

"You think the trainer should take on the behavior of the Pokémon?" Dawn asked. "Well, just don't start hopping around eating carrots, don't wanna go overboard." Misty joked. Dawn giggled and thanked Misty for the advice.

After everyone was clean, the group said goodnight and turned off the lights in the room. Pikachu and Buneary were happily snoozing on Dawn's bunk, while Ash and Misty shared the bottom bunk. But Misty had trouble getting her eyes to close.

Since she was in his embrace, Ash could feel that Misty was having issues getting to sleep. "What's on your mind Mist?" Ash asked wearily.

"Too many things Ash. Way too many things." Misty replied simply, "Just...hold me tight so I can try and relax." she whispered tenderly. Ash smiled and held the water-trainer closer to him. She nuzzled her head into his chest, and listened to his steadily beating heart. *Bum bum*

So many things were plaguing her mind this particular night. She had to try and find a way to get Kenny and Dawn together. But how would she do that when the two barely saw each other?

*Bum bum*

And what about herself and Ash? Was he being a good boyfriend to her? And more importantly, was SHE being a good GIRLFRIEND?

*Bum bum*

Brock was feeling so alone now. First it was Dawn, now it was Brock. But Brock would be so much harder to help because of his attitude. Would he ever find someone right for him?

*Bum bum*

And Team Galactic...what were they up to? Why were they so ruthless with their Pokémon? And what did the orbs have in common with Dialga and Palkia? Was Cyrus merely a criminal after a great treasure, or was he so much worse?

*Bum bum*

As much as she had on her mind, her thoughts were slowly becoming incoherent to her as the sound of Ash's heart tranquilized her troubled mind. In order to keep from losing it all, she quickly thought up some answers.

Dawn and Kenny would get together soon enough. All she had to do was make sure she could keep the rivalry to a minimum, and nature would take its course.

Ash was the perfect boyfriend to her. He loved her with all his immature but caring heart, and that was all that counted to her. And the fact that he was happily holding her in his arms proved that she was being a good girlfriend to him.

One day Brock would get a girl, all she had to was make sure to teach him proper manners. No one was totally unchangeable. Ash was perfect proof of that.

And Team Galactic would most certainly get their just-desserts. Now with Cynthia and D. Shad on the case, and even getting to know each other better, there was no way they could lose.

*Bum bum* Misty fell asleep with a perfectly content smile on her face. "G'night Misty." Ash whispered lovingly.

The next morning, Charizard, Chimchar, and Croagunk were back to full health, and the group was being sent off by D. Shad, Cynthia, and Carolina.

"So Ash, where are you all headed next?" Cynthia asked. "The Hearthome Gym. I've gotta battle Fantina."Ash replied.

"Well good luck, and remember I'm rooting for you." Cynthia said. "Same goes for me big guy, go win a couple of badges for me, and then me and Brad'll celebrate with a party." D. Shad added.

"Thanks Cynthia, thanks D. Shad." Ash said.

Just then, Nurse Joy came out with a message. "Excuse me, Cynthia? We've just now received confirmation from the office concerning related scheduling for all the upcoming title battles."

"So the next challenger has been decided." Cynthia said. "Next challenger? For what?" Misty asked.

"The next challenger for the title of Champion. Could be tricky getting back to regular living after everything that's happened…including…well, never mind." Cynthia took a glance at D. Shad before turning back to the group.

"And what about you D. Shad?" Dawn asked. "Well, seeing as I've got a new bunch of thugs to pick on, I figure I'll stick with Cynthia for a while and help her deal with them." D. Shad replied.

"But what about Sonzonia City?" Ash asked. "Meh, ever since the Giratina thing, the local crooks don't wanna tangle with me. So, basically it got real boring. I could use a challenge." D. Shad replied.

"Remember, while Team Galactic must be dealt with, it's important for you to live full lives and work hard to realize all your hopes and dreams." Cynthia said.

"I thank you all very much, so until we meet again, be well." Cynthia and D. Shad waved farewell to the group, and they parted ways with the traveling teens.

But somewhere in the Sinnoh Region, Team Galactic was busy initiating their brilliant plan to create a new world, and now they had both the Adamant Orb and the Lustrous Orb, thanks to their leader…Cyrus.
_

A/N: makes a cameo appearance! And not only that, could we be seeing some sparks flying between the guardian of Sonzonia City and the Sinnoh Champion? I sure think so! Not a lot of romance in this one, mostly action. But I did try to squeeze some in near the end! Remember to read and review everyone! I get better and better everytime I get some! And I get more excited too!