Chapter 26

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=100 BGCOLOR="#CCCCFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="14800640egdysm.jpg"> <div> <B>Dark Reflection (Beginning):  </B><A HREF="dr_pro.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Prologue"><U>Prologue</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr1.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 1"><U>Chapter 1</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 2"><U>Chapter 2</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 3"><U>Chapter 3</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 4"><U>Chapter 4</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr5.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 5"><U>Chapter 5</U></A></div> <div> <B>A Master in the Making:</B>  <A HREF="mim18.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 18"><U>Chapter 18</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 19"><U>Chapter 19</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim20.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 20"><U>Chapter 20</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 21"><U>Chapter 21</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 22"><U>Chapter 22</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 23"><U>Chapter 23</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 24"><U>Chapter 24</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id734.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 25"><U>Chapter 25</U></A>   |   <B>Chapter 26</B></div> <div> <B>Dark Reflection:  </B><A HREF="dr6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 6"><U>Chapter 6</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 7"><U>Chapter 7</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr8.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 8"><U>Chapter 8</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr9.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 9"><U>Chapter 9</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 10"><U>Chapter 10</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr11.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 11"><U>Chapter 11</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr12.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 12"><U>Chapter 12</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr13.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 13"><U>Chapter 13</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr14.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 14"><U>Chapter 14</U></A></div> <div> <B>Dark Reflection (Finale):  </B><A HREF="dr15.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 15"><U>Chapter 15</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 16"><U>Chapter 16</U></A>   |   <A HREF="dr_epi.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Epilogue"><U>Epilogue</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#000066" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/oldnews.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Old News</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/zrfic/" TARGET="_top" 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or your other five pokémon are toast!"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth Raltier glared at his unwanted companion, "Yeah, I think you've made that point abundantly clear."</div> <bR> <div>     The third Dragon, Chelsey, finished unlocking the door and signaled to them.  Danielle nodded back.  "All right, then.  Let's go."</div> <bR> <div>     Chelsey entered first, calling out her Crobat to break the security cameras guarding the center.  They worked their way to the pokéball storage room, where dozens of pokéballs were set on shelves along the walls.  Zeth knew that most of the pokémon in the balls were not injured, but rather belonged to traveling trainers from Sapphire City.  Unhappily, he started to help Chelsey toss the pokéballs in a large bag.  Danielle stopped him after a few moments, though.</div> <bR> <div>     "We're going to the dorm to see if there's any trainers with pokémon we can snatch." She told him.  "Come on."  Zeth reluctantly followed her.</div> <bR> <div>     It turned out that there actually was a trainer in the center, fast asleep and blissfully unaware that he was about to lose the pokémon in the single pokéball sitting atop his backpack.  Danielle pointed at the pack and whispered to Zeth, "This is it, Zeth.  Get in there and grab that pokéball."</div> <bR> <div>     Hating himself for what he was doing, Zeth did as he was told, creeping through the room and gently picking up the pokéball.  He carefully walked back, aware of every creak the floorboards made.  Once he made it back to Danielle, the Dragon gave him a stern look.  "That was too slow, but I suppose it'll do for now.  Let's get back and help Chelsey finish up."  Zeth tried to hand her the trainer's pokéball but she shoved his hand away, "No, keep it.  Consider it your first victory as a Dragon."  Feeling tremendously guilty, Zeth snapped the pokéball onto his belt.  </div> <bR> <div>     "CHANSEY!"  Zeth and Danielle both spun around, finding that one of the pokémon center's Chanseys had discovered them.  "Chansey chanse chansey!" the pokémon shouted at the top of its lungs.</div> <bR> <div>     "Time to get out of here," Danielle said, grabbing Zeth's arm and dashing away as fast as she could pull him.  Pulling out of her grip, Zeth ran alongside.  The alarm sounded as they neared the back door, probably triggered by the Chansey.  Looking back, Zeth saw Chelsey chasing after them.  By the time the Sapphire City Officer Jenny arrived, the three of them were long gone.</div> <bR> <bR> <div>      "That went well, I think."  Danielle told Zeth, as she escorted him to his new room at the Dragon base.  "We got quite a few new pokémon out of that little raid!"</div> <bR> <div>     "I'm glad you're happy," Zeth growled.</div> <bR> <div>     "Well, well...  You seem to be in quite a mood.  You do realize of course that you can't go back to your normal life now.  You'd just be sent straight to jail."</div> <bR> <div>     "Actually, I don't really care," Zeth told her.  "I never want to do that again!"</div> <bR> <div>     "Too bad for you, then." Danielle replied.  "We'll be doing that quite a bit."  She suddenly stopped, grabbing Zeth's arm to stop him as well.  "This is your room, here," she told him.  "You'll be allowed to go just about anywhere on the base, but I've had extra guards stationed around the exits, the pokémon storeroom, and the armory, so don't even think of trying anything."</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, whatever."  Zeth shoved open the door to his room and walked inside.  Danielle closed the door behind him, but when he tried to open it again, he found that it was still unlocked.  "I guess she meant what she said about letting me go anywhere I want," Zeth said to himself.  Reaching to his belt, Zeth took both of the pokéballs clipped to it.  One was the stolen pokémon Danielle had told him to keep, while the other contained Sting.  Zeth had asked for Aqua, but the Dragons weren't dumb enough to give him a pokémon with teleporting abilities, so Zeth had gone for his strategy expert instead.  "Come on out, Sting and... whoever-you-are..."</div> <bR> <div>     Before Zeth appeared Sting and a Stantler.  Zeth's backpack had been taken, but, fortunately, the Dragons had left him with his pokédex.  He had just taken it out when Sting flew over to him and gave him a hard blow to the chest, knocking him over.  "Hey, what was that for?"  Zeth demanded.</div> <bR> <div>     {That was for joining these punks instead of standing firm!} The Beedrill buzzed angrily.  {I can't believe you'd do this!}</div> <bR> <div>     "Hey, it wasn't my idea," Zeth shot back, as he jumped to his feet.  "So sue me for keeping all of you alive!  I had the Dragons give you to me first so you could help me to think up a way to get out of here, but if you're just going to beat me up, I'll tell them I'd rather have Florio!"</div> <bR> <div>     Sting looked like she was just about to have him do that for a moment, but then she shook her head.  {Fine, I'll help you get out of here.  Florio wouldn't even be able to get you out of the room.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Nice to know you think so highly of your teammates," Zeth said dryly, pulling the door open, then slamming it again.  "I wouldn't need him for that part, though."</div> <bR> <div>     {Um, excuse me?} The Stantler cut in.  {Would you mind telling me who you are and where I am?  Where's my trainer?}</div> <bR> <div>     "Well, uh, this is kinda embarrassing, actually..."</div> <bR> <div>     {You've been stolen,} Sting interrupted.  {I'm Sting and that's my trainer, Zeth.  He's way too overprotective of his pokémon, but I suppose that's forgivable.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Actually, I'd prefer to think of you as being temporarily borrowed, with every intention of returning," Zeth added.  "I didn't want to take you, and I'm planning to give you back as soon as we get out of here."</div> <bR> <div>     The Stantler still looked confused, {Uh, okay...  Where's here, though?}</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth waved at the door, "We're inside one of the biggest Dragon bases in Obsidia.  They sort of drafted me after I tried to raid this base to save my pokémon.  I've been trying to think up a way to escape from here, preferably with the rest of my pokémon.  So far I haven't had any luck with a plan, though."</div> <bR> <div>     {Well, now that I think about it, Florio does have one advantage that I don't.} Sting conceded.  {You could see if you could get him back, then use his Sleep Powder to knock out the guards.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, that sounds good.  First, we'd have to see if we can switch you for him, then me and Florio'd have to knock out the guards around the pokéball storeroom.  The trick is doing it before they can call for any reinforcements."</div> <bR> <div>     {I have an idea, if you don't mind hearing it,} the Stantler offered.</div> <bR> <div>     "Sure, go ahead."</div> <bR> <div>     {With my Hypnosis attack, I can make people see things that aren't there, and hide things that are.  Do you think that would be any help?}</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth grinned, "Yeah!  I think we can think of a way to use that!"  A knock at the door halted any further conversation.  "Okay, guys, we'll talk more in a little bit."  Returning the Stantler to his pokéball, Zeth opened the door.  He found Chelsey standing outside, holding his backpack.  "I thought you might want this back," she told him, handing him the pack.  "You'll find that the only thing missing from it is your vidphone, which we kept for obvious reasons.  Everything else is still in there, including your evolution stones.  There's also something else in there for you," she added.  "Your very first Dragon Gang uniform."</div> <bR> <div>     "Oh, joy..."  Zeth tossed the pack onto a nearby chair.  "Is that it?"</div> <bR> <div>     "Nope, not quite.  Danielle suggested that I show you our mascot.  She always has someone show him off to the new recruits.  Come on, follow me."  Curious, Zeth decided not to argue.</div> <bR> <div>     Chelsey led them down through the Dragon base, into an area that wasn't as well-kept as the rest.  As they continued deeper into the base, Zeth noticed that there were no other Dragons around.  Before he could ask Chelsey why that was, they came to a large metal door in a stone doorway.  Zeth couldn't help but notice that the door was covered in warning tape, indicating that it was dangerous to venture further.  Chelsey walked up to the door, but didn't open it, instead rubbing the dust off of a small window on the door.  "Here, take a peek in there."</div> <bR> <div>     Wondering what could possibly be so interesting, Zeth stepped up to the door and took a glance through the window.  He jumped back with a yelp as a blast of blue fire hit the other side of the door.  His reaction made Chelsey laugh, "He can't get us on this side of the door, you know."</div> <bR> <div>     "That's the biggest pokémon I've ever seen!" Zeth exclaimed, jumping back to the door to take another look at the pokémon inside.  "He's gigantic!"</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, I know.  See, there used to be a big opening in that chamber that led to the outside.  About ten months ago, he wandered in here.  That was back when we had just finished this base.  Anyway, we tried to battle him and capture him, but a normal pokéball just wouldn't hold him.  We eventually used sleeping darts to knock him out, then sealed him inside here.  Danielle likes to tell new recruits that she'll feed them to him if they double-cross her.  Hasn't done it yet, though."</div> <bR> <div>     "Well, how do you feed him?"</div> <bR> <div>     "We found that it was too dangerous to go in ourselves, so we eventually added in a chute from the kitchen.  Now all we have to do is drop some food down the chute for him every day.  Of course, you can see that we need to feed him quite a bit.  Sometimes I wonder why we bother, since it's kind of a waste of good poké-chow, but I suppose just having him makes up for it."</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth tapped the door, "So does this thing still open?"</div> <bR> <div>     Chelsey reached for one of two large metal slide bars that held the door shut.  Grabbing a knob on the side of the bar, she pulled the bar, then pushed it back into place.  "Yeah, it still works, although I guess it's a little sticky now.  It's really only there so that he can't flame us while we watch him.  The tunnel's far too small for him to fit through, and it extends far enough from here that he couldn't reach out and grab us if this was open."</div> <bR> <div>     "That's good," Zeth said, not really paying attention as he peered through the little window.  <I>This might just be it</I>, he thought to himself.  <I>If I can somehow get that giant Dragonite to help me, I just know I can get out of here!</I></div> <bR> <bR> <div>     Zeth flung himself onto his bed, intending to get some sleep before he did anything else.  Sting had other ideas, though.  Before Zeth's head even hit the pillow, the Beedrill was already poking him to get him up.  "Hey, Sting, stop it!" Zeth protested.  "Come on, I didn't get any sleep at all last night, can't I at least take a little nap?"</div> <bR> <div>     {Nope,} Sting told him.  {We're going to start planning.}</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth sat up, "Well, I already have a good idea.  They're holding a Dragonite as big as a building captive down in a big chamber in the lower levels.  If we can convince him to help us, we'd have a huge advantage over the Dragons!"</div> <bR> <div>     {What, are you crazy?  If the Dragons have been holding him, then he's bound to be mad at humans in general!  How are you even going to get close to a pokémon that big without getting squashed, eaten, or otherwise mutilated?}</div> <bR> <div>     Slipping on his backpack, Zeth took the Stantler's pokéball from his belt.  "I'm way ahead of you, Sting.  Come on, let's see just how good of an illusion this Stantler can make!"</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     Zeth, Sting, and the Stantler made their way back through the Dragon base, using the Stantler's Hypnosis attack to sneak past any Dragons they saw.  "This is going to be easy!" Zeth exclaimed as reached the metal door leading to the Dragonite's chamber.  "If we can keep doing this, we might be able to sneak into the pokéball storeroom, grab all the pokéballs, and have Aqua teleport us out without the Dragons even noticing!"</div> <bR> <div>     {Then why even go through with this crazy plan to get the Dragonite's help?} Sting asked.  {It'd probably be safer to just leave him.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, but the Dragons aren't stupid.  They probably have some kind of security measures that we can't trick.  A security camera would easily do that.  We'll need a backup plan, in case the stealth approach doesn't work.  Besides," Zeth added, "I feel sorry for the poor Dragonite.  How would you like to be stuck in the same dull room for ten months straight?"</div> <bR> <div>     {You've got a point there.}  Sting pointed at the metal door blocking the way, {Okay, open that up, but remember to be careful in there!  I'll just stay back here if you don't mind!}</div> <bR> <div>     "Sure, whatever you want, Sting,"  Yanking both slide bars back, Zeth pulled the door open.  It creaked loudly, prompting a stream of blue fire from the chamber ahead.  The fire shot around the edges of the door, and Zeth jumped back with a yelp.  "Now would be a good time to make him forget we're here!" Zeth called to the Stantler.</div> <bR> <div>     {Sorry!  I didn't expect the door to creak like that!} The deer pokémon exclaimed in embarrassment.</div> <bR> <div>     "It's ok, just make him think that we left."  The Stantler nodded, then, a moment later, the Dragonite stopped blowing fire against the half-open door.  "Much better" Zeth whispered.  Slipping around the edge of the door, Zeth ran to the end of the tunnel, with the Stantler following close behind.  Zeth quickly slid to a stop as the tunnel ended, dropping straight down to the Dragonite chamber's floor.  "Well, I guess I won't be going any farther without a parachute," Zeth murmured.</div> <bR> <div>     Looking up at the huge dragon, which was now leaning back against the stone wall, Zeth called out, "Hey, Dragonite!"  His voice echoed around the enormous chamber, and the Dragonite jumped back up, looking around for the source of the voice.  "Don't bother looking for me," Zeth yelled.  "I have a Stantler who's using hypnosis to make you unable to see me.  I didn't want you to think I was one of the people that captured you and then have you pulverize me."</div> <bR> <div>     The Dragonite responded with a strange, haunting call.  {Who are you?}</div> <bR> <div>     "I'm Zeth Raltier, a fellow prisoner.  The Dragons know you're dangerous, so they didn't think I'd be crazy enough to try to come down here to rescue you."</div> <bR> <div>     The Dragonite stomped toward the tunnel, and for a moment, Zeth wondered if he could see them.  He realized a moment later that the dragon would know that without a way to get down from his position, he couldn't possibly be anywhere else in the room.  {Show yourself, then, if you are truly a friend.}</div> <bR> <div>     {Should I?} The Stantler asked.</div> <bR> <div>     "I think he already has a good enough idea of where we are to fry us if he wants to." Zeth told the deer.  "Go ahead and let him see us."  Zeth could tell the moment that the Stantler released the Dragonite from Hypnosis.  The huge pokémon immediately looked directly at them and leaned over to get a better look at them.  Zeth found himself uncomfortably eye-to-eye with the Dragonite.  "Uh, do you have any idea how we can get you out of here?" he said, almost stumbling over his words.</div> <bR> <div>     {None,} the dragon declared, {This hole here is far to small for me to leave through, and the only other entrance has been sealed.  I have not been able to break out, despite my formidable strength.  I do not see how you could possibly free me.}</div> <bR> <div>     {Well, we could always use a pokéball to get you out of here,} the Stantler suggested.</div> <bR> <div>     The Dragonite rolled his eyes, {Not one of those infernal spheres again...  The others tried to get me in them quite a few times, but they were never able to.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, but that was because you didn't want them to catch you," Zeth explained.  "If you allowed me to catch you in a pokéball, I could probably find some way to get you outside the base and release you again.  As long as you didn't try to break out, it should work fine."</div> <bR> <div>     {Under any normal circumstances, I would never let you do such a thing to me, you know.  I have been here for far too long, though.  I was supposed to be the master of this temple, not it's prisoner.  Because of that, I will allow you to capture me in your device for as long as it takes you to get me out of here.}</div> <bR> <div>     "That's great!" Zeth exclaimed, grabbing an empty pokéball from his backpack.  He stopped just a moment before he threw the pokéball, and looked around at the cavern, as he realized what the Dragonite had just said.  "You just said that this place was a temple, didn't you?  The Temple of the Dragon?"</div> <bR> <div>     {Yes,} The Dragonite said, puzzled.  {But how did you know?}</div> <bR> <div>     "Well you're obviously a dragon, for one thing." Zeth explained, taking the medallion from around his neck and showing it to the Dragonite.  "I've been to three other temples already and collected the Orbs there.  Fortunately for me, no one else knows how important the Orbs are, or they might have taken them along with my vidphone!"</div> <bR> <div>     {You're the Seeker!} the giant pokémon realized.  {You've come for the Orb I hold, the Orb of the Dragon!}</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, I guess I have, although I hardly expected to find the last of these things under a stronghold of evil.  I hope this doesn't mean I have to battle you after we escape.  Somehow I think I'd need an army of pokémon to defeat a pokémon as big as you!"</div> <bR> <div>     The dragon shook his head, {I'll give you my Orb just for getting me out of here!  Come on, catch me in that ball of yours and let's go.  I'm sick of looking at this place.}</div> <bR> <div>     "I'll second that!" Zeth said, throwing the pokéball.  "It's downright dismal in here!"</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     To keep the Dragons from noticing his extra pokéball, Zeth slipped the ball containing the Dragonite back into his backpack.  "Okay, you two."  Zeth told Sting and the Stantler.  "We're going to head up to the pokéball storeroom.  We'll tell the Dragons there that we want to switch Sting's pokéball for Florio's but in reality, we're just going to sneak Sting inside.  I'll pretend to put her back in her pokéball, but I won't actually do it.  Stantler, you'll make them think that Sting's actually gone back in the pokéball.  Don't let them see you, either, or they might catch on."</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth turned to his Beedrill, "Sting, once I give them the ball, you'll follow them and find my pokéballs.  Stantler will have to go with you to maintain the illusion."  Zeth reached into his backpack and pulled out a small plastic bag.  He had originally gotten the bag back at the Starlight Tower in Emerald City, but he had never gotten around to throwing it away.  Zeth hung the bag from the Stantler's antlers, "Here, take this.  When you find the others, throw all their pokéballs in this bag, and as many others as you can grab.  Then have Aqua teleport you out of there.  I'll try to make my own way out while you're doing that."</div> <bR> <div>     {Sounds good enough,} Sting decided.  {Let's try it out and see if it works as well as it seems it should!}</div> <bR> <div>     The three of them headed for the pokéball storeroom, the Stantler hiding himself with his Hypnosis, as Zeth had suggested.  As they walked up to the four guards standing just outside the room, Zeth recognized Trent along with the other guards.  "Oh no... He would have to be here, wouldn't he?" Zeth mumbled to himself.</div> <bR> <div>     Trent saw him coming, and stormed toward him, a look of rage on his face.  Before Zeth could ask him what he was upset about, Trent threw something at him.  Zeth clumsily grabbed the object out of the air, finding it to be Teak's Ultra Ball.  "That Jolteon of yours is worthless!" Trent growled.  "He couldn't hit the wall with an electric attack if he was close enough to reach out and touch it!"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth clipped the pokéball to his belt, "Good, then you won't try to take him from me anymore."</div> <bR> <div>     "Take him from you?!" Trent exploded.  "I'd be embarrassed to have a pokémon as pathetic as that one!  Go ahead and keep him; you definitely won't get any use out of him!"</div> <bR> <div>     "I'll do that."</div> <bR> <div>     Trent's temper suddenly turned to suspicion.  "What are you doing up here anyway?  I thought Danielle told you to stay away from the pokéball stash."</div> <bR> <div>     "She told me not to cause trouble," Zeth corrected.  "It's not quite the same.  Anyway, I came up here to see if I could switch my Beedrill for my Ivysaur."  Zeth took Sting's pokéball from his belt and waved it at Trent.</div> <bR> <div>     "I'm not giving you your Ivysaur," Trent told Zeth.  "He's too powerful, and I don't want to have to stop trouble I could have avoided."</div> <bR> <div>     "Danielle said I could switch Sting for any pokémon except Aqua--"</div> <bR> <div>     "I don't care what she said.  You're not getting your Ivysaur from me!  I just gave you your defective Jolteon, that makes two of your pokémon you have back."  Trent looked at Sting for a moment.  "I suppose I could let you have your lame Eevee in exchange for your Beedrill.  Then you'd have two messed-up pokémon."</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth bit back a nasty reply, remembering just in time that Trent just wanted a reason to get him in trouble.  "She's not lame, but I suppose if you think that her twisted ankle makes her less of a threat to you, then I'll take her instead."</div> <bR> <div>     Trent shook his head.  "You know, I don't even know why you want to switch so bad.  Is it just to annoy me?"</div> <bR> <div>     "I'm just one of those old-fashioned trainers that believes in having a bond with my pokémon.  I have this emotional condition that makes me want to know if they're all right.  I'm sure you'd understand if you had a heart."</div> <bR> <div>     "Yep, that's just what I thought...  You want to annoy me and make my life miserable.  Well I'm not going to fall for it."  Trent turned to the other three guards, "Hey, guys, come with us!"  Grabbing Zeth by the arm, Trent pulled him into the storeroom.  Once inside, he told the other guards to spread out.  "He wants to see his pokémon, so I'm going to get him off our back and let him.  Each of you grab a pokéball.  If he tries anything funny, hit him with everything you've got."  Trent walked over to one of the shelves and picked up three pokéballs, ignoring a fourth that was labeled as "Zeth's Shellder."</div> <bR> <div>     Throwing the three selected balls to the ground, Trent released Florio, Blaze, and Eva.  "There, see?  They're all fine.  I guarantee that your Shellder is too, but I'm not stupid enough to let it out."  Trent recalled the three pokémon to their pokéballs and put two of them back.  The third he handed to Zeth, taking Sting's pokéball and returning the Beedrill to it.  Zeth quickly glanced at the Stantler, who had followed them in, but the deer shook his head, looking worried.</div> <bR> <div>     "I hope you're happy now," Trent said, putting the pokéballs on the shelf.  "I'm not going to do this for you all the time."</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, that's good enough for me.  Well, you don't have to see me to the door," Zeth turned, winking to the Stantler as he started for the door.  "I'll find my own way out of here."  As he walked past the deer pokémon, he whispered to him, "Show them I'm leaving."  Zeth continued to the door and pulled it open.  However, instead of exiting, he simply closed it again and turned around.  As he had hoped, the Stantler had made the four Dragons think that he had left the room.</div> <bR> <div>     He only had to wait a few moments for Trent and the others to "follow him" out the door.  The moment they left the room, Zeth dashed for his pokéballs, releasing all of his pokémon.  "Time for some quick action!  Throw all the pokéballs you can grab in that bag and then we'll teleport out of here.  We don't have much time, so hurry!"</div> <bR> <div>     {You know,} Florio mentioned.  {That Stantler looks really strange with a bag on his head.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Shut up and work, Florio," Zeth growled.  The Dragons could come through that door at any minute."</div> <bR> <div>     {Yes, and I would say sooner, rather than later,} Sting added, pointing at a security camera which was aiming directly at them.  {Too bad we don't have a Snorlax to sit in front of the door.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Never mind that, we'll just do the best we can."  Zeth and his pokémon continued throwing pokéballs into the bag until it was totally full.  They had just started loading up Zeth's backpack when the door flew open and Trent and the three guards rushed in.</div> <bR> <div>     "You!"  Tent raged.  "You're going to regret this!"</div> <bR> <div>     "I don't think so!" Zeth called back, returning all of his pokémon to their pokéballs, except for Sting and Aqua.  Grabbing the bag from the Stantler, Zeth returned him too.  Sting grabbed him by the shoulders and Aqua flipped into his arms.  "Teleport us straight up, Aqua!" Zeth called.</div> <bR> <div>     Trent dove at Zeth, but the teen disappeared a split second before he could catch him.  Spinning around, Trent ran for the door.  "Come on, we'll catch him up above!"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth, Sting and Aqua reappeared outside the Dragon Base, in the air just above the treetops.  Immediately, Sting began to flap her wings to keep them from plummeting to the ground.  They slowly drifted down, Zeth taking out the Dragonite's pokéball as he saw the first of the Dragons run out of the base.  "Hey, you!  Why don't you battle this!  Zeth shouted as he released the enormous pokémon.  Seeing the giant Dragonite appear, the Dragons screamed and fled.  Cheering the dragon pokémon on, Zeth, Aqua, and Sting set down in a nearby tree.</div> <bR> <div>     "Now that's what I like to see," Zeth said, as the Dragonite leaned over to the base's entrance and blew a stream of fire down the opening.  "A happy ending!"</div> <bR> <div>     Unsurprisingly, the rest of the Dragons refused to come out of their base, so the giant Dragonite stomped over to the tree Zeth was in.  {Here,} he rumbled, {this is for you.}  The Dragonite held up a tiny object.  Zeth actually had to step off the branch onto the dragon's paw to retrieve the item, his fourth and final Orb.  As Zeth jumped back onto his tree branch, the Dragonite seemed to smile.  {Thank you for all you have done.  I will remain here to guard this entrance while you flee the island.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Okay.  We'll just get going then."  Zeth glanced at Aqua and pointed down.  The clam quickly teleported them to the ground in response, and Zeth returned him to his pokéball.  "Be careful that they don't capture you again!"</div> <bR> <div>     The Dragonite waved as Zeth ran off.  {Don't worry, these guys won't get their hands on me again!}  Spotting one of the gang members peeking out from the base entrance, the dragon spun around and blew fire at him, chasing him back into the base.</div> <bR> <div>     Meanwhile, Zeth was dashing across one of the clearings, no longer worried about stealth.  Sting flew along beside him, {Where're we headed?}</div> <bR> <div>     "The <I>Skylark</I> was parked in a big thornbush over in this direction," Zeth explained.  "I'm just hoping ShadowWalker didn't decide to take it when I was captured!"</div> <bR> <div>     {Him?  What does he have to do with anything?}</div> <bR> <div>     "It's a long story, Sting.  I'll tell you later." Zeth continued running until he was exhausted, then slowed to a fast walk.  "I think those are the thorns up ahead," he finally told Sting, spotting the island's coastline just beyond that.  "Fly up above them and see if the hopper's in there."</div> <bR> <div>     "Are you really leaving so soon?"  Zeth spun around in surprise to find a Dodrio, carrying Danielle Mason on its back.  Danielle jumped to the ground, "Dodrio, use Drill Peck on the Beedrill."  The Dodrio dashed at Sting, hitting her with a nasty blow that instantly knocked her out.  "Perfect!  Now you're going to be taking a little nap!  Go, Jynx!"  Zeth jumped back as the Jynx appeared, grabbing for a pokéball.  "Give him your Lovely Kiss!"</div> <bR> <div>     Before the Jynx could grab Zeth, the ground seemed to explode between them.  Both Zeth and the Jynx jumped back as a cloud of smoke rose to block their vision.  "What in the world!?" Zeth yelled.</div> <bR> <div>     "Remember this well," said a familiar voice, somewhere in the smoke.  "It is quite dangerous to steal the pokémon of ShadowWalker, specter of the night!  I will always return to deal vengeance on those that have wronged me!"  As the smoke cleared, Zeth found ShadowWalker with one arm around Danielle's throat.  "It appears we have both succeeded in our goals after all, the mercenary observed, spotting the bag of pokéballs Zeth was holding.  "Do you have my pokémon as well?"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth plucked out five grey-and-white pokéballs.  "Would these be yours?"</div> <bR> <div>     "Ah, yes.  Just hold them for me a moment while I tie up my captive here."  Once Danielle had been bound and the Jynx returned to her pokéball, ShadowWalker took his pokéballs back.  "Much better.  It's good to have these back where they belong."  The mercenary pointed to the huge thornbush.  "You'll find that your aircraft is still in there, Zeth.  I'll be calling Team Rocket for my ride, so I suggest you leave now."</div> <bR> <div>     "Consider it done!" Zeth agreed, releasing his Ivysaur and pointing to the thornbush.  "Come on, Florio, we have some gardening to do."</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     Zeth walked into the Sapphire City pokémon center, this time during the day and through the front door.  There were policemen everywhere, still investigating from the night before.  Spotting Officer Jenny, Zeth dashed over to her.  As he reached her, a nearby Chansey spotted him and ran towards him, shouting and pointing.  Zeth realized that this must be the Chansey that had spotted them during the heist.</div> <bR> <div>     Everyone turned to look as the Chansey reached him and pointed accusingly at him, still yelling at the top of her lungs.  Officer Jenny looked sternly at him, "You're one of the thieves, aren't you!"</div> <bR> <div>     In response, Zeth handed her the bag of pokéballs he had taken from the Dragon base.  "Yeah, sort of.  I hope you find most of the stolen pokéballs in there."  Unzipping his backpack, he pulled out six more pokéballs and handed them to the Chansey.  "Here's some more."</div> <bR> <div>     "I'm afraid that I'm still going to have to arrest you, even though you brought back what you'd stolen." Jenny told him.</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, that's okay."</div> <bR> <div>     "I don't get it," Officer Jenny looked confused, "Why did you come back after what you'd done, anyway?"</div> <bR> <div>     "I didn't really do it on purpose," Zeth explained.  "The Dragons told me they'd kill my pokémon if I didn't join them, but as soon as I got back, I managed to trick them, rescue my pokémon, and escape."</div> <bR> <div>     "An interesting story," Jenny said, handing the bag of pokéballs to another officer.  "You'll have to tell us all about it down at the station."</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, I will," Zeth agreed.  "I have to do one more thing to do here first, though.  Where's the kid who was here last night?"  Jenny pointed to one side of the room, where the young trainer was sitting by himself, looking so melancholy that Zeth almost found himself with tears in his own eyes, as he remembered the time the Rockets had taken his own pokémon.  "Thanks, I'll be back in a minute."</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth walked over to the trainer, taking the Stantler's pokéball from his backpack.  "I believe this belongs to you," he said, placing the ball in the kid's hands.</div> <bR> <div>     The trainer looked up at Zeth with a shocked look on his face.  "My Stantler?  You got him back for me?"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth smiled, "Yeah, that's him.  You wouldn't believe how much he helped me out!  He's a fine pokémon and I'm glad to be able to return him to you."</div> <bR> <div>     The trainer sent out the Stantler and gave the pokémon a hug, "Oh, thank you, thank you!"  He exclaimed happily.</div> <bR> <div>     "Hey, no problem," Zeth told him.  "I have to go now, but I hope I'll see you around."</div> <bR> <div>     "I hope so too!  I can't possibly thank you enough!"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth shook his head, "Trust me, you've already given me way more thanks than I deserve."  Leaving the trainer and his Stantler, Zeth walked back to Officer Jenny.  "Okay, Officer, now we can go."</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     "You ought to be able to beak in through the--"  Kat stopped talking when someone knocked on the door.  "Hold on a minute," she told the duo of Rocket agents that she had been giving an assignment to.  Walking to the door, Kat opened it to find her partner Duke, along with the Jag Colson, the Dragon second-in-command.  "Ah, yes.  You're both just in time."  Kat turned back to the two agents, "You're dismissed.  Go get ready for your mission and I'll get back to you with the rest of your briefing."</div> <bR> <div>     Duke waited until the two Rockets had filed out before speaking.  "He's here."</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, yeah, I'm sure she can see that," Jag taunted Duke, as he always did every time he met with them.  Jag knew that Kat and Duke couldn't stand him, and he took advantage of that fact constantly.</div> <bR> <div>     "He didn't mean you," Kat informed the Dragon, before nodding to Duke, "Get them in here."</div> <bR> <div>     Jag watched Duke leave, then grinned.  "Got someone you'd like me to meet, huh?  I do hope you're not planning to lock me away.  You know what will happen if you do that."  Kat knew exactly what the Dragon was talking about.  Recently, the Dragons had found out the location of a good number of Rocket bases, including the one they were in at the moment.  Jag now showed up much more often, claiming that if anything should happen to him, the Dragons would reveal all the bases to the police.  So far, Kat and Duke had decided to go along with his blackmail until they could find a way to turn the tables.</div> <bR> <div>     "It's more like someone you already know, actually," Kat said, smiling cheerfully.  Jag gave her a suspicious glance, probably wondering what trick she was about to pull on him.  As the door opened, and Duke walked back into the room with two other people, Kat was pleased to see Jag's face change from suspicion to outright shock.  "Miss Mason!  What are you doing here?"</div> <bR> <div>     "What are you, an idiot?" Danielle snarled at him, pointing at ShadowWalker, who was holding her other arm to keep her from running.  "I've been captured, obviously!"</div> <bR> <div>     "Yes, she has," Duke agreed, "thanks to the talents of ShadowWalker here."</div> <bR> <div>     "Hardly," Danielle pulled over a chair and yanked her arm free from the mercenary's grip.  Sitting down, she nodded at ShadowWalker, "He barely did anything, actually.  The one who really is responsible for this trouble is that pokémon trainer, Zeth Raltier."</div> <bR> <div>     "Raltier?!  You've got to be kidding!" Kat nearly fell over in surprise, then suddenly she began to laugh.  "Well it serves you right!  I'm glad he finally decided to go after someone else for a change!"</div> <bR> <div>     "Does this mean that you won't want me to go after him again?" ShadowWalker inquired.</div> <bR> <div>     Kat glared at him, "Of course I do.  I'm still going to have my revenge on him!  Perhaps I will just make his final demise a little less painful, though.  Go on, continue the search for Zeth Raltier.  Maybe you can find him before we all die of old age."  Kat waited for an answer, but ShadowWalker ignored the remark as he turned and left.  "I suppose that all we have left to do now is figure out what to do with you," Kat said, turning to Danielle.</div> <bR> <div>     "Actually, I have an idea that I think would benefit us both." Danielle mentioned.  You'll never get anywhere trying to get the Dragons out of Obsidia, but I have another option for you."</div> <bR> <div>     "And what would that be?" Duke asked.</div> <bR> <div>     "I suggest that you stop trying to set up bases in Obsidia and shift your focus westward to Cusim.  The Dragons have no bases there and only a few operatives.  We would be quite willing to let you spread into that territory, provided you stop competing with us here and build no more bases in the sections of Obsidia we still control."</div> <bR> <div>     "And how much of Obsidia do you expect us to give up in this deal?" Kat asked sourly.</div> <bR> <div>     "Hopefully, all of it!" Jag piped up.</div> <bR> <div>     Danielle glared at him, "Shut up, you."  Turning back to Kat and Duke, she continued, "You would retain control of Quartz and Peridot Towns, as well as Ruby City and Pearl City.  Anything west of those cities would be yours as well.  Obsidian City could be shared between our two gangs, perhaps as a joint operation.  That would promote good feelings between our agents, and ensure that this gang war we've had doesn't happen again."</div> <bR> <div>     "I have one more question, though," Duke said.  "Why should we bother?  We have you as a bargaining chip, after all.  We might be able to get an even better deal from your father.  I'm sure he wouldn't want to see you come to any harm."</div> <bR> <div>     "If you tried that, you'd be a fool.  My father retired last month, leaving me in charge of the Dragons' operations.  He won't bother trying to rescue me.  You know we already know the locations of almost all your bases.  He knows I can take care of myself, so he'll just give away the bases to the police and whatever happens to me is my own fault.  I may end up in big trouble, but you'd have your own problems trying to move all your operations elsewhere, while in the meantime, the Dragons find themselves a new leader.  I'm sure Jag's already used that little escape rope, or he'd be your prisoner too."</div> <bR> <div>     "I like you," Kat declared.  "You're devious and heartless -- wonderful traits in our line of work.  We'll accept your solution.  You'll be free to go, along with Colson.  We'll leave Eastern Obsidia to you and move into Cusim instead."</div> <bR> <div>     "And perhaps, now that that's settled, we can discuss the topic of Zeth Raltier," Danielle mentioned.  "Specifically, how we both get suitable revenge on him."</div> <bR> <div>     Kat smiled, "You know, I think I'm going to enjoy working with you!"</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     Officer Jenny handed Zeth his pokéballs and backpack.  "You're free to go."</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth looked at her in surprise, "What?  You mean no one's pressing charges?  I'm not even going to be fined?"</div> <bR> <div>     Jenny chuckled, "No, you're not.  The pokémon center got all but two of its pokémon back, and we're hoping to find them when we secure Dragon Island.  The other pokéballs you brought back will be returned to their owners as soon as we figure out who each one belongs to.  Nurse Joy wanted me to tell you that she understands why you stole the pokémon, and that she doesn't want you to have to pay for the Dragons' evil deeds.  According to her, you made up for your theft by rescuing all those pokémon.  I've also gotten reports from some of my relatives in Obsidia, and they all speak quite highly of you.  It seems you've had your fair share of encounters with the Rockets, and now the Dragons.  I suggest you lay low for a while, since both of them will be after you now.  Maybe if you don't cause any trouble for them, they'll leave you alone."</div> <bR> <div>     "I sure hope so," Zeth told the policewoman.  "I'm getting tired of running into them, myself."</div> <bR> <div>     "Well, good luck to you.  Try not to get in any more trouble!"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth slung his backpack over his shoulder, "I'll try, but I think the world conspires against me.  It's a wonder I'm not totally overcome with paranoia."</div> <bR> <div>     "True, trouble does seem to have followed you everywhere you go.  Speaking of which, where are you headed next?  Are you going to go to the Sapphire Gym, now that you're off the hook?"</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth shook his head, "No, I've got a promise to keep first.  A friend of mine is counting on me to help her out.  I just hope they've run into less trouble than I have!"</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>