Chapter 29
<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> <A HREF="mim27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 27"><U>Chapter 27</U></A> | <A HREF="mim28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 28"><U>Chapter 28</U></A> | <B>Chapter 29</B> | <A HREF="mim30.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 30"><U>Chapter 30</U></A> | <A HREF="mim31.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 31"><U>Chapter 31</U></A> | <A HREF="mim32.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 32"><U>Chapter 32</U></A> | <A HREF="mim33.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 33"><U>Chapter 33</U></A> | <A HREF="mim34.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 34"><U>Chapter 34</U></A> | <A HREF="mim35.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 35"><U>Chapter 35</U></A> | <A HREF="mim36.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 36"><U>Chapter 36</U></A> | <A HREF="mim37.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 37"><U>Chapter 37</U></A> | <A HREF="mim38.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 38"><U>Chapter 38</U></A> | <A HREF="mim39.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 39"><U>Chapter 39</U></A> | <A HREF="mim40.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 40"><U>Chapter 40</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" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>My Fanfics</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/zrart/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>My Fanart</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/a-j/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Authors A-J</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/k-z/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Authors K-Z</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/art/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Fanart List</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/ffsubmit.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Submit a Fanfic</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/fanart_submit.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Submit Fanart</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://pub46.ezboard.com/beeveesmb" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://pub46.ezboard.com/beeveesmb"><U><B>Message Board</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/links.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Links</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=380 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Chapter 29</I></div> <div> <B>A Master in the Making: Chapter 29: Talon Flies Again</B></div> <bR> <div> Destiny shoved open the door to the pokémon center, calling out to her friends inside, "I'm back!"</div> <bR> <div> Zeth was sitting down next to a vidphone, talking to a teenager that Destiny didn't know. Glancing up for a moment, he smiled and called back, "It's about time! I thought you were only going to be gone for a couple hours, and then you leave for three days!" Turning back to the screen he told the person that he would call him back in a little while. Standing, he walked over to Destiny, "What took you so long?"</div> <bR> <div> Destiny rolled her eyes, "Blame it on my new Rattata. He's the one who decided to run all over Onyx Town instead of staying in bed. I'd have come back last night, but Nurse Joy didn't want me flying home in the dark."</div> <bR> <div> Zeth grinned, "As if that's the most dangerous thing you've ever done... Well, I'm glad you found the Rattata, anyway. Can I see him?"</div> <bR> <div> "Well, that's probably not a good idea right now," Destiny confessed. "He's not exactly happy to be with me, and he really doesn't like humans much at the moment. I somehow don't think he'd be thrilled to be called out of his pokéball just to say hi to you. Wait until dinner, so I can have another reason to get him out."</div> <bR> <div> Zeth waved a hand at the door that led to the rear of the pokémon center, "Actually, Blaze just led all my pokémon back to the dining room for lunch. I was going to go with them, but I was on the phone with my friend Brock. He's helping Professor Ivy out at the pokémon lab back on Valencia Island. I asked him to tell Florio that I'll want him back soon."</div> <bR> <div> "You're already bringing him back, huh? So are you sending your Spearow back or another one of your pokémon?"</div> <bR> <div> "Well, I wasn't actually planning to send any of my pokémon back to Valencia right now," Zeth told her.</div> <bR> <div> "Don't you have to? You're not supposed to have seven pokémon with you at one time, it's against league rules."</div> <bR> <div> "Yeah, I know that," Taking a pokéball from his belt, Zeth offered it to her, "I was wondering, though, if you would take care of Eva for me. She won't be able to battle soon, but if I send her back to Professor Ivy, Teak will want to go too. Would you be willing to hold her for me?"</div> <bR> <div> Destiny took the pokéball from Zeth and nodded, "Yeah, sure! I'll keep her for as long as you want."</div> <bR> <div> "Great! Now, as I was going to ask a moment ago, can we see your Rattata while we have lunch?"</div> <bR> <div> Destiny shook her head, "I guess so, but you might end up regretting it."</div> <bR> <bR> <div> The two of them walked back to the dining room, Destiny letting out Star and Snow so they could eat too. As Zeth watched in amusement, Destiny walked around the whole room, closing the windows and slamming the doors shut. "Is this really necessary?"</div> <bR> <div> "Yes" Destiny stated.</div> <bR> <div> Chuckling, Zeth pulled out his pokédex so he could understand the pokémon in the room. "This is going to become some kind of ritual you do before every meal, isn't it?"</div> <bR> <div> "Count on it."</div> <bR> <div> "And here I thought you were joking about how uncooperative your Rattata is... I'd still like to see him, though."</div> <bR> <div> Destiny took the Rattata's pokéball from her belt, "Just remember, he's not going to like you. He'll probably refuse to talk to you at all, and he might even try to bite you if you get too close to him." Dropping the pokéball on the table, Destiny grabbed a bowl and poured some pokéchow into it. As the Rattata appeared on the edge of the table, she set the bowl down in front of him. "Here, lunch is served."</div> <bR> <div> The Rattata took a sniff of the food, then sat down and glared at the bowl. Destiny sighed, "See what I mean, Zeth?"</div> <bR> <div> Blaze took a moment to glance over at the stubborn Rattata, {Hey, is something wrong with your food?}</div> <bR> <div> {I don't want any,} the rodent informed him.</div> <bR> <div> "You should eat some, Rattata." Destiny said. "Nurse Joy said that you hadn't been eating enough, and I don't want you to get sick or something."</div> <bR> <div> The Rattata kicked the bowl away, almost spilling the contents out on the table, {I don't want it! I'm not hungry!}</div> <bR> <div> At the other end of the table, Talon shook his head, {Liar. I've never met a Rattata that wasn't hungry. Eat up, kid. You'll need to keep your strength up or you'll never get better. Life's like that. If you can't bounce back, you won't last long.} Talon waved a wing at the Rattata, {I know all about that. See my wing? You know what I did to it?}</div> <bR> <div> {No, what?} the Rattata asked, before remembering that he was trying to be uncooperative. {I mean... Why should I care?}</div> <bR> <div> Talon knew he had the Rattata's interest. {I snapped it! Right in two! And we were in the middle of a great battle, too! Ha! I was such a bloody mess when that happened... Look at me now, though. You can hardly tell that I did that now!}</div> <bR> <div> The rodent stared at the Spearow's wing, {Uh... Yeah, I guess so. But what does that have to do with me?}</div> <bR> <div> {I'll tell you what it has to do with you. When that happened to me, I didn't run away or give up. I recovered! Now you need to decide what you're going to do. Are you planning on becoming a weak, worthless wreck, or are you going to fight back and become a powerful pokémon? You think your life's bad? You think it'll help if you refuse to eat?}</div> <bR> <div> {Well, uh...}</div> <bR> <div> {Of course not! So there you go... Stop being so stubborn and eat that food!}</div> <bR> <div> The Rattata glanced around at the other pokémon, who had all halted their own meals and were watching the two of them. Then, silently pulling his bowl back, he started eating his food. Zeth stared at Talon in amazement. "You're very... uh... persuasive, Talon..."</div> <bR> <div> The Spearow shook his head, {You mean foul-tempered.} At that, Talon resumed his own meal.</div> <bR> <div> Zeth shrugged, "Yeah, that too."</div> <bR> <div> Talon looked up from his meal again, {Oh, and one more thing. You're not going to keep calling him Rattata all the time, are you? Everyone else here has a name, what about him?}</div> <bR> <div> "I think Talon's right, Dest. What do you think we should call him?"</div> <bR> <div> Destiny shook her head, "I don't know... Star, Snow, what do you think?"</div> <bR> <div> Starlight glanced at the Rattata a minute, {Don't ask me. You can call him anything you want. I'll be happy as long as I don't have to dash around all over the city again to make sure he doesn't get into trouble.}</div> <bR> <div> {Hey, wait, that's it!} Snow exclaimed. {You can call him Dash! It fits perfectly!}</div> <bR> <div> Destiny smiled, "Yeah, I think you're right." Looking down at the Rattata, who was still eating and appeared to be ignoring them. "Okay, Rattata, what do you think? Would you mind if we call you Dash?"</div> <bR> <div> For a moment, Destiny thought that the Rattata wasn't going to respond. Then he replied, without bothering to look at her. {Sure, go ahead and call me Dash if you want. Doesn't mean I'll listen to you, but if it makes you feel better, then you might as well.}</div> <bR> <div> Frowning, Destiny shot Zeth a glance that suggested she had absolutely no idea how she was going to take care of the uncooperative rodent. Giving her an "I'm as clueless as you are" expression in response, Zeth shook his head, "At least it's a start."</div> <bR> <bR> <div> Zeth stared at the elaborately carved wooden door in front of him. After lunch, he and Destiny had come to the Amethyst City Gym, but now that they were there, it seemed as if they couldn't get inside. The front door had no doorknob. It wasn't that it had fallen off. It was just simply not there to begin with. Zeth gave the door a shove, but it didn't move. "I don't get it. What this about?"</div> <bR> <div> Destiny pointed to a line of words etched into the door. "'The mind opens all doors.' What do you suppose that means?"</div> <bR> <div> Zeth considered the words, "I don't know. Maybe there's some puzzle to opening the door to get in?" Glancing around at the carvings on the door, Zeth tried pressing and twisting various ones, but nothing happened.</div> <bR> <div> "Well, we could always climb in the window," Destiny suggested, pointing to an open window farther down the side of the building."</div> <bR> <div> "Nah, I have a better idea. Aqua, I choose you!" Zeth nodded at the door as his Cloyster appeared. "Aqua, teleport us to the other side of this door."</div> <bR> <div> Destiny smiled, "Hey, good idea!" A moment later, both she and Zeth were on the other side, and Zeth was recalling Aqua to his pokéball. This side of the door actually had a knob, making Destiny wonder what the trick to opening the door really was. "Okay, so where's the gym leader?"</div> <bR> <div> Zeth pointed to a pair of crimson curtains at the far end of the room. "Let's check over there, shall we?" Walking over to the left curtain, Zeth shoved it aside, revealing an archway, filled in with bricks. "Uh, I guess that's not it..." Pulling aside the other curtain, Zeth found another archway, also blocked. He glanced around the room, but there were no other exits. "I suppose the mind opens this door, too, but I have no idea what the puzzle's about, much less what the answer to it is!"</div> <bR> <div> "Maybe there's a secret brick that you can push to get in," Destiny said, feeling the wall behind the right curtain. "I'll check this one, you check the other."</div> <bR> <div> Pressing each brick carefully, Zeth worked his way along the wall, until he started getting near the bottom of the wall. "You know, I'm starting to think that there's no way through these bricks." Standing up again, Zeth walked towards Destiny and took a quick look at her wall. "Maybe there's really another way out of this room."</div> <bR> <div> "But how? Other than these two arches, this room just has a bunch of blank walls!"</div> <bR> <div> "Yeah, I know. Wherever the door is, it's invisible."</div> <bR> <div> Destiny walked toward the left arch, then stopped and took a step toward the right. "Wait a minute... Maybe the door is marked off!"</div> <bR> <div> "Huh? What do you mean?" Zeth looked around, "I don't see any markings that might show where a door is!"</div> <bR> <div> "Yes, you do! The arches may look like the exits, but what if they're only outlining the real door?!" Destiny stepped toward the blank wall between the arches. "This room only needs one exit, and I bet this is it!" Extending her arm forward, Destiny walked toward the wall. But, instead of stopping her progress, the wall allowed her through.</div> <bR> <div> Blinking in surprise, Zeth quickly followed her through the hidden door. Destiny was waiting for him on the other side, along with a young man about Zeth's age.</div> <bR> <div> "It was a hologram," Destiny explained. "And I would guess that he's the gym leader."</div> <bR> <div> "Yes, you are absolutely right," the man confirmed. "I am Ian Foster, the gym leader here. I see you have solved both of my puzzles."</div> <bR> <div> "Yeah, although I didn't really understand the first one. I had one of my pokémon teleport us in here, since I couldn't figure out the door. What was I really supposed to do there?"</div> <bR> <div> Ian smiled, "Well, there's always the window if you can't figure out the other way in. Your approach is fairly unique, though. The real trick is, if you have a psychic pokémon, you can open the door's latch without the knob!"</div> <bR> <div> "So you're a psychic pokémon trainer?" Zeth asked.</div> <bR> <div> "Yes I am. I presume you want a gym battle with me?"</div> <bR> <div> Grinning, Zeth nodded. "You read my mind!"</div> <bR> <div> Ian chuckled, "A little psychic humor? Well then, let's have a three-on-three battle!"</div> <bR> <div> "I'm ready when you are."</div> <bR> <div> The gym leader tossed a pokéball, "Then I'll start this off. Go, Slowking!"</div> <bR> <div> "Teak, this match is yours! Start off with a Thundershock!" Zeth's Jolteon appeared beside Ian's Slowking. The electric pokémon quickly zapped the Slowking with a blast of lightning. However, the water-type didn't seem to be affected by the attack.</div> <bR> <div> "Don't let him do that to you, Slowking. Use your Psychic attack!" The Slowking smiled and then leisurely waved a paw in the air. Teak, who was about to unleash another round of electricity, found himself suddenly hovering in the air. The Thundershock he released shot right over his opponent's head. "Good! Now use your Dynamicpunch!"</div> <bR> <div> The Slowking calmly strode over to the floating Jolteon, who was slowly twirling in the air. "Come on, Teak, try to do something!" Zeth called. "Use another Thundershock!" The Jolteon sent another round of electricity hurling towards the water-type, but he was suddenly bounced higher in the air, making most of the attack miss its intended target. Before he could correct his aim, the Slowking hit him with its Dynamicpunch, sending the Jolteon into a dizzying spin. "Teak! Don't give up! Use your crazy lightning!"</div> <bR> <div> Ian looked confused, "His what?" A moment later, he found out what Zeth was referring to. Teak lashed out with all the electricity he had, filling the room with arcs of lightning that hit the walls, the ceiling, the floor, and everyone in the room. Since the Slowking was closest, it received the largest amount of the blast, though. It released Teak from his psychic confinement, dropping him to the floor. The Jolteon landed on his back, dazed and exhausted.</div> <bR> <div> Zeth shook off the effects of the electricity that had hit him. "Whew, that was stronger than I remember!" </div> <bR> <div> Destiny shuddered and fell to her knees, blinking away the spots that danced across her vision. "Zeth, do me a favor and never do that again."</div> <bR> <div> "Well, it worked, didn't it?" Zeth pointed to the Slowking, who was lying unconscious beside Teak.</div> <bR> <div> Ian shook his head, "It did, but it had to be one of the most unorthodox strategies I've ever seen. Painful too." Aiming his pokéball at the Slowking, he recalled it. "Time for my second pokémon, it seems. This time you have to face my Hypno!"</div> <bR> <div> "I'll switch too," Zeth replied, returning Teak to his pokéball as the Hypno appeared. "I choose you, Blaze!"</div> <bR> <div> As Zeth's pokéball ejected its occupant, Ian gave commands to his own pokémon, "Hypno, use your Disable attack!" Before Blaze could even take a step, he found himself frozen in place. Growling, he tried to move, but had no success. "Great, Hypno! Now use Headbutt!"</div> <bR> <div> "Stop him with your Flamethrower, Blaze!" Zeth called. However, the Growlithe still couldn't move, so he could do nothing to stop the psychic's attack. The force of the blow knocked him out of his paralysis, though. Scrambling back to his feet, Blaze launched himself on the Hypno, blowing flames. The fur around the Hypno's neck caught on fire, requiring the psychic to fall back so it could put the flames out.</div> <bR> <div> While it was distracted, Zeth gave orders to Blaze, "Use Take Down, then Bite!"</div> <bR> <div> Darting toward the Hypno, Blaze jumped on it, but just before he hit, the psychic teleported out of the way. The surprised Growlithe sailed through the space that the Hypno had just occupied, tripping as he landed. Trying to give himself the time to recover, Blaze fired off a quick burst of flame at the Hypno, but the fireball completely missed its target, impacting on the side of the room and exploding to the sides instead.</div> <bR> <div> "No more games, Hypno!" Ian shouted to his pokémon. "Use your Hypnosis!"</div> <bR> <div> "Blaze, look away!" But it was too late. The Hypno had already captured the Growlithe's attention with its swinging pendulum. The psychic sent Blaze into a deep sleep, while Zeth tried desperately to wake him. "Come on, Blaze, don't sleep now!"</div> <bR> <div> "Your Growlithe is out of this fight," Ian declared. "Hypno, Dream Eater!"</div> <bR> <div> The Hypno waved its hand over the Growlithe, sighing contentedly. Blaze whimpered in his sleep, and Zeth knew there was nothing more that the fire dog could do. "Return, Blaze."</div> <bR> <div> "That Hypno's tough," Destiny commented. "You have any idea how you can beat him?"</div> <bR> <div> Zeth reached for Aqua's pokéball, then reconsidered and grabbed a different one. "Let's see if my wildcard will work! Go, Talon!" The Spearow appeared on the battlefield, watching the Hypno carefully, as if expecting it to attack him before either trainer gave a command. "Use your Fury Attack!" Zeth shouted, starting the battle up again.</div> <bR> <div> Talon shot toward the Hypno, who countered with a Thunderpunch. Before the Hypno could hit Talon, however, the Spearow darted to the side, avoiding the blow. A split second later, the bird was on the Hypno, tearing at it with his fearsome talons and beak. Zeth knew just how dangerous the Spearow could be in close combat. The Hypno, unprepared for such a violent assault, staggered back a few steps.</div> <bR> <div> "Drill Peck!" Zeth ordered, as Talon continued battering the psychic. The Spearow switched to the new attack without hesitation, bringing his beak down on the Hypno's head with a loud clacking sound. The Hypno fell to the ground, too dazed to continue battling. "That's Talon for you," Zeth told Destiny. "He doesn't fool around when it comes to battle!"</div> <bR> <div> Destiny stared wide-eyed at the Hypno, who had red scratches covering most of its chest and right side. "Yeah, I can see that! I'd hate to be that Hypno right now!"</div> <bR> <div> As Ian recalled his pokémon, Zeth shrugged, "He's scratched up, but I don't think Talon hurt him too bad. He'll be sore for a day or two, most likely."</div> <bR> <div> Talon screeched something, and Destiny looked a little sickened. Zeth frowned, "What'd he say?"</div> <bR> <div> "He just promised not to rip out any eyes this time," she translated, still looking horrified.</div> <bR> <div> Zeth laughed, "Don't worry, he's kidding... At least, I think he is." Zeth stared at the Spearow for a moment, looking like he was trying to figure out if the bird really was joking. "Well, on the next opponent, anyway."</div> <bR> <div> "Your Spearow is a complete savage," Ian observed, shaking his head. "He fights like two pokémon, but we'll see if he can handle two battles at once. For my next pokémon, I'll use Girafarig!"</div> <bR> <div> Talon flew up in the air, circling the two-headed pokémon he now faced. "You'll have to be careful, Talon," Zeth called. "Use Agility to avoid anything it sends at you."</div> <bR> <div> "Agility won't help against a psychic!" Ian pointed at the Spearow darting around the room. "Girafarig, use your Confusion attack!"</div> <bR> <div> Talon was surrounded by a glowing blue aura, suddenly diving down toward the ground instead of continuing his evasive maneuvers. The Girafarig met him in the middle of his fall, knocking him out of the psychic grip with a Psybeam attack. Talon was thrown through a full backwards flip before landing ungracefully a short distance away.</div> <bR> <div> Shrieking in defiance, Talon hopped back to his feet and blasted the Girafarig right back with another Psybeam. "Ha, Mirror Move! Good job, Talon!" Zeth cheered. "Now see if you can use a Drill Peck!"</div> <bR> <div> But instead of darting back toward the Girafarig, Talon began to glow with a fiery red light. At a command from Ian, the two-headed psychic unleashed a Zap Cannon attack. The Spearow dodged the attack, which would have finished him off instantly had it hit. Zeth started to repeat his order for a Drill Peck, but all he got out was "Talon, use --" before the Spearow released a glowing blast of energy into the Girafarig.</div> <bR> <div> The psychic was flung backwards, during which time Talon was diving towards it. Landing on the Girafarig's back, between its two heads, the Spearow finally used the Drill Peck attack, hitting first the Girafarig's main head, then the head on its tail.</div> <bR> <div> "Girafarig, use your Crunch attack!" Ian commanded. Both of the Girafarig's heads turned to attack the Spearow, but Talon shot up in the air seconds before they could bite him. Instead, the two heads, still dazed by the Drill Peck, latched onto each other and started chewing each other up. Ian groaned as his pokémon attacked itself.</div> <bR> <div> Zeth had trouble controlling his laughter long enough to call out a command, "Keep going, Talon. This match is ours!" The Spearow spun around in the air and swooped past the Girafarig, smacking him with a Steel Wing attack during the fly-by. The Girafarig fell over, utterly defeated.</div> <bR> <div> "I've never seen a Spearow battle like that!" Ian exclaimed, as Talon flew over to perch on Zeth's waiting arm. "You must have been training him for quite a while!"</div> <bR> <div> "Well, uh, he's sort of the self-training type," Zeth admitted, not wanting to tell the gym leader that this was the first battle Talon had fought in quite a few weeks. "He's very low-maintenance. All I have to do is feed him right and let him battle his heart out, and he's quite happy."</div> <bR> <div> Talon gave an affirming nod as Zeth reached for his pokéball. Returning the Spearow, Zeth walked over to Ian, who was searching his pockets for his gym badge. "Hold on... I know it's here somewhere. Ah! There we go!" Ian handed Zeth an oval badge with an eye printed on it. "This is the Mind's Eye Badge. You've earned it, for solving my puzzles and beating my pokémon. Remember, as you continue on your travels, that not all problems can be solved by battling. Some situations require thought instead of brute force."</div> <bR> <div> "Talon might not believe you if you told him that," Zeth joked. "I'll keep that in mind. Come on, Destiny, let's get back to the pokémon center."</div> <bR> <bR> <div> Nurse Joy was busy with another trainer's pokémon when Zeth arrived, so he decided to take care of them himself. Releasing all five of his current pokémon out of their pokéballs, Zeth flicked on his translator. "All right, everyone. Teak, Blaze, and Talon all did a great job fighting the gym leader and earning us another badge! I figure that congratulations are in order. What do you think, Sting, Aqua?"</div> <bR> <div> {Yeah, sure,} Aqua agreed. {Should we wait until Blaze is awake, though?}</div> <bR> <div> "No problem!" Walking over to the Growlithe, who was still sound asleep from the Hypno's Hypnosis attack, Zeth gently rubbed his back. "I'll have him up in just a minute." The Growlithe moaned as Zeth continued to stroke his back, "Come on, Blaze, time to wake up."</div> <bR> <div> {Here, I can wake him up faster!} Sting declared, poking the fire dog in the side with one of her stingers.</div> <bR> <div> Blaze jumped in the air with a yelp. Whirling around, he glared at the Beedrill accusingly, {Hey! What are you trying to do, skewer me?}</div> <bR> <div> {It woke you up, didn't it?}</div> <bR> <div> "I was trying to wake him up gently, Sting," Zeth told the Beedrill, shaking his head.</div> <bR> <div> Blaze sat down, scratching the spot Sting poked him at with his hind leg. {Yeah... I like Zeth's way of waking me up better than yours!}</div> <bR> <div> Destiny broke out laughing, "I've had worse awakenings than that, believe me!"</div> <bR> <div> {Well, so have I,} the fire dog admitted. {I've woken up soaking wet because it was raining on me. That's pretty miserable, even if you aren't a fire type!}</div> <bR> <div> "Definitely," Zeth agreed. "Well, other than congratulating you for your hard work, I also wanted to make sure that you three were fine after your battle. Anyone here want a potion or something?"</div> <bR> <div> {Not at all,} Talon told Zeth, {I feel great!}</div> <bR> <div> {Same here,} Blaze added.</div> <bR> <div> Teak stepped forward, {I'd like something. I can barely stand and my back is killing me!}</div> <bR> <div> Zeth took a Super Potion from his pack, accidentally knocking out a few other items as he pulled it out. He quickly grabbed the two objects that spilled out and was just about to put them back in the pack when Blaze put a paw on his hand to stop him. {Hey, was that what I thought it was?}</div> <bR> <div> Sighing, Zeth turned his hand over to reveal the Fire Stone he had been saving. "Yeah, it is. I wanted to keep it for a while, then surprise you for your birthday or something." Tossing it back in the backpack with the pokéball that had fallen out with it, Zeth gave Teak the Super Potion. "I've had that in there since Emerald City, actually. You don't want to use it now, do you?"</div> <bR> <div> Blaze looked at the pack, {Well, no, I guess not. It's nice to know you buy me stuff, though!}</div> <bR> <div> Zeth grinned, "You're welcome." Tossing the empty Super Potion bottle in the trash, Zeth glanced over at Teak again. "Feeling better now?"</div> <bR> <div> {A little.}</div> <bR> <div> "Well, I know how we can make you feel better! Dest, why don't you let Eva out of her pokéball?"</div> <bR> <div> Destiny chuckled, "Sure! That should make Teak perk up some!"</div> <bR> <div> Taking a pokéball from her belt, she released its occupant on the ground in front of Teak. But instead of Eva, the ball ejected a surprised Dash. Teak, who was just about to put his paw around the Rattata as he appeared, jumped back in surprise. {Hey, you're not the love of my life!}</div> <bR> <div> {I should hope not!} the Rattata retorted. He looked around, probably noticing that all the windows were open. Destiny wondered if he'd try to jump out one of them but after a moment it appeared that he had decided not to attempt an escape with so many other pokémon around to stop him. Instead he looked up at Destiny in confusion. {Why'd you send me out? It's not dinnertime yet, is it?}</div> <bR> <div> "No," Destiny explained, "I must have grabbed the wrong pokéball. I meant to let Eva out."</div> <bR> <div> Destiny was about to return Dash to his pokéball, but Talon stopped her, {Just leave him out for a while. I'll make sure he doesn't get into any trouble. You might as well let all the rest of your pokémon out too.}</div> <bR> <div> "Yeah, that sounds like a good idea, Dest. I'll get Florio from Professor Ivy, and then maybe we can all do something fun. Perhaps go to the park for the afternoon before we leave for Jade City."</div> <bR> <div> Destiny nodded, "Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Let's do it!"</div> <bR> <div> {Except that there's no need to get me!} Everyone turned to find Florio coming out of the examination room, looking tremendously battered and bruised. The Ivysaur stumbled toward them, {I'm right here!}</div> <bR> <div> "Florio!" Destiny exclaimed. "What happened to you?!"</div> <bR> <div> {It's all <B>his</B> fault!} Florio declared, pointing a vine at Zeth. {I have gone through much misery today because of his sadistic tendencies. He has to be the absolute cruelest trainer in the entire planet!}</div> <bR> <div> Dash looked horrified. Backing away from Zeth, he called over to the Ivysaur, {What did he do to you?!}</div> <bR> <div> Florio sat down and winced. {It's too horrible to say!}</div> <bR> <div> Zeth rolled his eyes, "But he will anyway. Go on, tell us how I managed to ruin your life while I was at a gym battle."</div> <bR> <div> {And he mocks me too!} Florio protested. {He makes fun of my suffering!}</div> <bR> <div> "Come on, Florio," Zeth said, sounding annoyed. "Get on with the story."</div> <bR> <div> {All right, fine...} Florio cleared his throat. {To begin my wretched tale, I was in the middle of my Gligarman fifth-season marathon when he sent Brock to bring me back.}</div> <bR> <div> "Hey, wait a second," Zeth interrupted. "You were watching the fifth season? I thought you'd have watched the third and fourth first."</div> <bR> <div> {I did!} Florio retorted, {In my third- and fourth-season marathons! Anyway, then Brock came and--}</div> <bR> <div> "To watch all those episodes you'd have had to stay up all night! That's what, 48 hours of Gligarman!? Have you been watching Gligarman ever since you got back!?"</div> <bR> <div> {Of course I have! And then you just had to send Brock to get me! You know what he did? He got out his Onix and his Vulpix and beat me up and dragged me back to Ivy's lab, where he tossed me back in my pokéball and shipped me back here! And I know that you told him to! All my suffering and misery is your fault!}</div> <bR> <div> {Somehow I seriously doubt that,} Talon mentioned.</div> <bR> <div> {Quiet, you!} Florio raged. {I'm sure you're the one that got Zeth to get Brock to get his pokémon to get me! That's just the thing you would do!} The Ivysaur noticed Zeth starting to laugh. {You think it's funny!?}</div> <bR> <div> "I think you've been awake for three days straight and were so out-of-your-mind tired that you attacked Brock when he came to get you," Zeth said. "Go on, tell me you didn't try to fight his pokémon. I bet you even did a Gligarman pose before you started the battle!"</div> <bR> <div> Florio's face turned a darker shade of green, {Well... Uh... That doesn't matter! It's still your fault!}</div> <bR> <div> Destiny shook her head, "Go to bed, Florio. You'll feel better after a nice long nap."</div> <bR> <div> The Ivysaur looked like he was about to protest, then spun around and stormed back toward the dorm, grumbling about trainers "all being the same" and "never understanding what I go through." Destiny barely managed to keep herself from laughing until Florio was out of hearing range. "Poor Florio... He always has something happening to him."</div> <bR> <div> "Don't worry too much about him," Zeth told her. "Knowing him, tomorrow he'll be as cheerful as he usually is, and will be acting like today never happened."</div> <bR> <div> Destiny nodded, then winked at Zeth, "Yeah, that is, if he's even awake tomorrow!"</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>