“Dark City’s Pokemon Gym Leader has survived the explosion, as well as her referee and Pokemon partner, Bisharp,” the newswoman reported. “They all are being hospitalized but it’s been reported that they all are in stable condition. While the horrifying event is being labeled by authorities as an explosion by Team Solace’s promised means to attack Pokemon Gyms, others have said this was not related to Team Solace at all! The sole witnesses of the attacks, two children who have chosen to go unnamed or seen, and their Pokemon, are claiming some other kind of literal monster was behind the attack.”

The screen with the dark haired woman in a black and white suit now displayed Gary and June with their backs to the cameramen shouting out questions, escaping into the Pokemon Center.

“That’s about enough!” an Officer Jenny barked and her hand covered the camera filming the scene, the view going all over the place.

The female newscaster returned. “Authorities have commented that the children were likely traumatized and didn’t understand anything of what was going on, and insist that the attack was at the hands of Team Solace, despite the fact that the Gym had been cleared for bombs only yesterday.”

Gary turned from the screen as the report continued. Great... he thought. My story is just the delusions of a traumatized child. At least my face wasn’t seen... No one will recognize me.

June was nowhere near Gary, instead sitting as far away as possible, hidden inside of a phone booth in a corner.

This had surprised Gary. While he didn’t mind it entirely, this meant something was wrong with her. As her friend, he knew he had to talk to her. I, as someone who was actually there, need to help her through this difficult time, he knew. Neither of us are alone.

After having been questioned separately by the police for hours, the two separated inside of the Pokemon Center.

Gary had wanted to know if they had asked her the same things they had asked him, but left her alone to give her some time while he put his words together. Once he was as relaxed as he knew he’d be able to get considering what he’d been through, he stood up from his chair and walked to June’s secluded booth. He leaned to the side to catch a glimpse of his friend.

June sat with her eyes closed, her head against the wall. She stirred, but didn’t open her eyes. Her cheeks had streaks from dried tears.

She knows, Gary thought. She knows I’m here. “June,” he spoke carefully.

June’s eyes opened slowly and they moved to Gary, but her head stayed still. “Leave me alone...” she whispered.

“June, please.”

June’s eyes lowered and her breath came out audibly through her nose. “Gary, this is beyond you; us.”

“Huh?” Gary didn’t get what June was saying. “What? What are you talking about?”

“Exactly.” Her eyes closed. “I just need some time alone...” Fresh tears forced their way through her eyes and she turned her head quickly, trying to hide them.

Gary moved into the booth and sat in a chair beside June’s. “Hey. Ju-”

“Gary!” June said sternly. She turned to Gary with pained, tearful, narrowed eyes.

Gary returned his own determined eyes.

June seemed to instantly give in, sorrow filling her eyes, and she looked away. “You wouldn’t understand...”

Gary didn’t speak, thinking up a number of responses that he didn’t find suitable. “I’m not saying I will. I’m just asking you to talk to me. As a friend,” he finally settled. “If I don’t understand, help me to. The worst possibility is that I can’t help you. But I can’t help you either way if I don’t know what’s going on. So we’re already at the worst possibility. Let’s try to find a better one.”

June turned to him with wide eyes.

That wasn’t bad, Gary thought, impressed with himself. Good one. Especially on the spot.

June nodded and then blinked a couple of times. “Okay... Well... I think I’m losing my ability to speak to Pokemon.”

“Why would you think that, June?”

She let her breath out through her nose again. “Remember Ish?” she spoke irritably.

“Yeah,” Gary nodded.

“It started with his Pokemon. His Clefairy. It really pissed me off what he said about him being a male and not a female and calling him gay.”

“Alright...?” Gary felt a little uncomfortable. He just didn’t feel like it was that big of a deal like June did.

“His Clefairy. I was certain he was angered by how Ish was talking about him. Even though he seemed happy. And I tried to read those emotions. But I couldn’t see them. It was as if Clefairy really wasn’t bothered by him saying those things.”

“Maybe he wasn’t,” Gary shrugged. “That doesn’t mean you can’t read Pokemon. It means you can, in fact. Clefairy knew Ish meant no harm.”

“NO!” June leered at Gary. “That’s ridiculous!”

“Huh?”

“The things Ish said were wildly insensitive! Clefairy must have felt something by them! But,” June lowered her eyes, “for some reason, I couldn’t see, or hear it...”

Gary, not getting what the big deal was, held his tongue, keeping these thoughts to himself. “Well, maybe he was just pretending to be okay with it, then. Maybe you just couldn’t tell because he was acting.”

June nodded. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. I thought that, too. I thought it, until...” June paused. “Earlier today.”

Gary straightened up.

“That monster we ran into...”

Gary swallowed, no longer wanting to continue this conversation, and yet all the same, wanting to hear more.

June’s eyes rose to Gary’s. “What did you hear when it spoke to you?”

“What do you mean?” Gary asked slowly.

“What did it say??” June pushed urgently. “Did you understand anything it said?! What did it sound like, because I couldn’t hear a damn thing!”

“What do you mean you didn’t hear anything?” Gary asked, his heart thumping rapidly.

“It was like, nails being driven into my ears.” June’s head lowered. “It was sharp, screechy static. The sounds I heard weren’t like anything I’m familiar with, Gary!” She shook her head. “My head could have exploded had I been in that thing’s presence any longer!” She looked up to him, tears running from her wide, wild eyes, reliving something traumatic. “Gary! That thing is not a human being.”

I know that much, Gary said silently.

“And if you didn’t hear what I heard; if you heard things that I didn’t, then I think it must be a Pokemon,” June continued, her voice shaking.

Gary’s heart stopped. “Why would you think that, June?” He struggled to keep his body steady as it began to tremble uncontrollably.

“Because you can’t understand Pokemon,” June answered. “You only hear their names. You don’t see what I see in them, or hear what I hear. Aside from Pokemon, you and I hear and see exactly the same way. So why couldn’t I hear what you heard? Why didn’t you react the same way I did? What did you hear, Gary??”

Gary lowered his head and shook it. He swallowed nervously. “It spoke... English. Its tone changed throughout the encounter, but I heard the words. She said... She said weird things. I don’t really recall. She seemed to smirk at your Electivire.”

“Yes!” June burst out. “Electivire! What did they say?? Before Electivire shocked me, he spoke to the thing! He said something! He told me to stay out of the way! He wanted to handle that thing! What happened after that? What did she say??!”

Gary shook his head, struggling to remember exactly what was spoken. “It was like, she agreed with him. She smiled and, like, said, yes. Or, okay, or something. I’m sorry. I can’t remember exactly what it was. It was so short. She spoke to my Charizard, too. I don’t remember what it was, though. But I know I understood it. It was English. It was a short sentence, but it was English.”

June squinted hard at Gary. “I heard that voice in the forest, when you found your sister. I couldn’t understand it there, either.”

Gary didn’t respond, just staring at June.

“My ability to read Pokemon... Why am I losing it?”

Gary looked to the floor. “I can’t say what that creature was, Pokemon or not.” Gary’s heart was going mad in his chest, and he wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t want to believe that the monster was a Pokemon. He wasn’t even sure if he could admit the possibility of it being one. He was only certain of one thing. “All I know is, it, is a she.”

“The breasts. The figure. Right?”

Gary turned to June. “Pretty much. We got a good look at it. They called it female back at Prof. Cozmo’s. I think they might have been right. At least, I’m willing to accept that much about it. For now.”

“But, female based on human standards? Animal standards?” June questioned. “Is this a safe way to try and define this thing? Is it accurate?”

“It’s all we have until we tie this monster down, right??”

June nodded slowly. “I almost wish it had just been Team Solace. It’d just be a terrible bomb attack, and we could get out of here without the mystery. At least no one was killed.”

The blonde kept her blue eyes on Gary and shook her head. “Kid, you’ve no idea what Hell you’ve let go loose on this planet... Unless we kill off that bitch, this is the end for us all. The end of Team Solace. The end of mankind. We were just trying to save the poor girl.” As she sneered at him, her eyes suddenly began to shimmer. “No one is ready for this!”

Gary shut his eyes, holding back the tears. “We’ve gotten too deep now to just be thinking that way. We’ve run into this thing only a week ago. We already know it exists. There’s no denying it.”

“Maybe we should call Prof. Cozmo and the Trick Master. To update them on this.”

“Oh!” Gary had completely forgotten he had the cell phone of the Trick Master on him. He opened his bag and pulled out the phone.

The phone was white and square shaped.

Gary turned the device in his hand, viewing the back with the symbolic diced, golden pineapple all Pineapple products had on them. “I’ve never had a cellphone... How do you use it? Hello?”

June giggled lightly. “You have to turn it on. Press a button.”

“A button? Where do you see a button? It’s literally just a box here. Is it dead? Do I need to use the charger?”

“Maybe.” June tried to take the phone from Gary.

“Hey, let me figure it out! You don’t know any better than I do.” Gary held his grip.

June struggled against Gary. “I know more about phones than you, at least. Enough to know that phone’s an older model. I should be able to work it out if you let go.”

“The Trick Master showed me how to use it. Let me do it! Or tell me how to do it!”

“Just let me see, Gary!”

“No!”

Suddenly, amidst the struggle of the two, the screen came on and the phone moved!

Gary and June gasped, releasing the phone, and it landed in Gary’s lap.

There was a photo of multiple different Trick Masters on the lock screen, all in differing suits with bowties of different sizes. Whether they were the same guy or not was a mystery to Gary, but they all had huge smiles and were in different positions. Some were upside down, others were on top of trees, others had their arms extended, while some were even with their arms around one another. This scene seemed to be taking place in a park where a party was being held, balloons, banners, benches, and tables with varying foods including large cakes were visible. All the occupants were Trick Masters, though.

The small device suddenly expanded! Somehow, it seemed that the phone had opened itself to twice its original size! It was as if it were a book that had been closed, and it suddenly opened itself up. The image of the Trick Master party expanded to fill in the new space automatically.

“Ah, yes! The Flipbook Mini!” June smiled. She reached out and touched the phone, moving her hand upward across the screen.

The phone expanded even further! As if the phone had been folded over in half already, it opened again, this time vertically. The strange image moved along with the new size to fill the void.

“You see? You can make the screen as small as when we first had it, or, depending on how you touch the screen, make it larger. It’s the mini version. There’s also the Plus, which is old but gets a lot larger than what this thing can. It takes a little practice but it’s pretty easy to use.”

“Let me try!” Gary tapped the screen and then lifted his hand, moving it upward.

Nothing happened.

“You do have to be touching the screen to make it work, Gary,” June snickered.

Duh, Gary thought to himself. Gary, you idiot. He touched the screen and swiped up again, making sure his fingers were pressed to the phone.

Nothing happened.

“Sure you don’t want my help,” June smirked, teasing him.

“Go help yourself,” Gary muttered, swiping again.

June rolled her eyes. A moment later, she gasped. “Oh, no...”

“What??” Gary whipped around quickly to see June was leaning out of the booth and looking up at the TV.

“If anyone has seen this young boy, police are urging you to contact them with any information you have,” the newswoman was saying.

A bald, brown skinned child had the biggest smile ever on the TV, the top of his blue and white striped shirt just visible. His image shrunk and moved to the top right of the screen as the newswoman continued talking.

“I hope he’s okay,” June said.

Gary nodded silently and looked back to the phone. The lock screen was gone, the phone screen black again. There’s no password on this, Gary thought. It’s simple enough to turn on. Just, what did he say to do? There were options for face recognition and other things he said I could set up when I felt like it, but there was one surefire way to just cut this damn thing on. Gary swiftly set his right thumb on the screen, and then played his other four fingers along it in turn.

The phone came on! The lock screen didn’t show this time. Instead, Gary had gotten past that and to the home screen.

The background was an open field, all grass except for the large blocks that sat in them, spaced far apart from one another. Each block was a different color. Behind a few blocks, there seemed to be something trying to hide behind them. The shadow of a figure. A variety of apps were lined up all over the screen.

“Oh! You’ve gotten it open! What was it again?” June asked.

“Just keep your thumb on the screen and then strum your fingers across it.”

June nodded. “Right! So we’re calling them, right?”

“Might as well.” Gary hit an app, a small green circle that had a little white square in the middle with green dots inside. He was taken to the contacts and saw the only person that hadn’t been deleted from the phone.

Prof. Cozmo.

Gary tapped the name.

A picture of a young boy and a man and woman filled the phone’s screen, the word: CALLING... blinking at the top of the screen slowly.

Gary tightened his eyes on the image.

The boy was holding a telescope in his hands with great delight. Next to him, the man knelt down with his arm around the kid, beaming proudly at him.

The woman was staring down lovingly at the two.

“It’s Prof. Cozmo’s parents!” June spoke with surprise.

Gary’s eyes widened, June confirming what he had suspected. “Then that kid is Prof. Cozmo?”

The two Trainers eyed the happy little boy for a moment longer before the CALLING... went away, replaced instead with the numbers 0:00. A count began by the second, timing the call.

“Gary?? Is that you??” the voice of Prof. Cozmo was heard.

“Prof. Cozmo! Yeah! It’s Gary and June!” Gary shouted at the phone, unsure what to say, remembering why he had called.

“One moment! I’ll put you on video!” Prof. Cozmo stated. Shortly afterwards, the picture of the kid and Prof. Cozmo’s parents went away, and a live video of Prof. Cozmo appeared. Behind him were his parents. They both waved with their son.

“Hello!” Prof. Cozmo’s father greeted them. In his arms was a huge, clear capsule, the end caps of it golden and a bright light glowing from the middle of it.

The capsule looked a lot like the one Ish kept his Bonsly Egg in.

The voices on Prof. Cozmo’s end were now much louder, background noise also more present.

“I’m so glad to get to see you two again! How are you?” Prof. Cozmo’s mother added.

“We’re great, thank you!” Gary nodded.

“Hello, everyone!” June waved.

“Gary, I haven’t heard from you in so long! Something must be up! Please, fill us in!” Prof. Cozmo insisted with a warm smile.

“Honestly, I don’t have a whole lot to say,” Gary admitted. “We ran into her again, and I sort of had a battle with her.”

“A battle?!” Prof. Cozmo exclaimed.

His parents both gasped, Mrs. Cozmo covering her mouth with her hands.

Gary nodded. “It was short, but it fought me and June’s Pokemon and beat them all pretty swiftly. There was no chance.”

“But did you catch her, Gary! The Master Ball works without failure! You know this! You didn’t have to actually fight her!”

“I know. I was in a rough spot and had to battle, though.”

“So this thing is actually a Pokemon, then? You saw her using Pokemon attacks?”

Prof. Cozmo’s parents turned to each other before leaning in, listening carefully to Gary.

“I didn’t recognize any moves it used. It tried to do that... hair... thing... it did back then...” Gary lowered his head.

Prof. Cozmo waited for a bit. “On you?” he asked.

Gary shook his head. “On Charmeleon.” He looked up again. “I jumped in in desperation and got hurt. I’m sure it’s Electric.”

“GARY!” Prof. Cozmo shouted in shock. “That’s dangerous! You cannot put yourself in such danger!”

“She was going to kill my Charmeleon!! You can’t expect me to just sit there and do nothing! Not again!”

Both males stared at each other.

Sympathy came over Prof. Cozmo’s face, and he nodded.

Gary shut his eyes. “I didn’t catch her, but I didn’t think to, either. Next time, I’ll be better prepared. I never thought I’d ever see that shit again.”

Prof. Cozmo sighed.

“At least you’re alive,” Mrs. Cozmo said softly.

“You, and your Pokemon,” Mr. Cozmo said.

No one spoke after this.

Yeah, me. Great, Gary thought. And what about Melissa? Had I jumped in and not been so freaked out when I first saw that thing, she’d likely be alive right now...

“So, it is a Pokemon, after all...” Mrs. Cozmo said in a low voice.

“We don’t exactly know this for certain,” Prof. Cozmo said sternly.

Gary focused on the professor.

He had a stern face, but not an intimidating one. It was like he was trying to be serious, but his true, kind self couldn’t be hidden. His eyes then went to June and tightened. “And you? Were you there during this battle?”

“I-I-I-I, I was involved...” June stammered.

“Did she speak, June?” Prof. Cozmo pressed her. “Did you hear anything?!!”

June closed her eyes and shook her head, trembling now. She looked ready to break down into tears, refusing to eye the man. “Th-th-the same thing happened as last time, P-P-Professor Cozmo,” she whimpered. A tear slid out from each eye.

Prof. Cozmo opened his mouth and seemed to freeze, watching June, looking as if he wanted to continue. But he didn’t.

Mr. Cozmo rested a hand on his son’s shoulder.

The professor looked to his mom, who stared back sadly at him, and he looked back to June and finally to Gary. He sighed and nodded. “We really need that Master Ball to be used to figure this out. Gary, for now, I’ll keep this from the Trick Master. He might be more upset than anything. But, if you do run into her again, please, try and use that Master Ball! It’s why we gave it to you.”

Gary nodded, swallowing. I don’t think it’s all that fair to put this all on me, Gary thought bitterly. If you want your stupid Master Ball back, I’ll gladly hand it over!

“Is the Trick Master not with you?” June sniffled, wiping at her eyes, trying to get over her emotions.

“No, he’s in Kanto, with you two,” Prof. Cozmo answered. “I’m in Hoenn at the moment doing research. I’ll definitely be returning back, in time. I just have more to look into. Please, you two. Be safe. And don’t do anything crazy. Your safety is top priority.”

“Okay,” June nodded, speaking stronger.

“We’re sorry. We’ll update you should it happen again,” Gary added.

“Thank you. I understand that this is a huge task. It’s bigger than anything the both of you combined, times two, should ever have to endure. But you’re also both all we can safely trust right now.”

Gary nodded first, June following, but neither spoke.

“I have to go. But, please, contact me as soon as you get further information.”

“We will,” Gary told him.

“Thank you, and goodbye for now.”

“Byyyyye!!” the parents smiled and waved before the call hung up.

The length of time of the call was displayed on the screen, the photo of Prof. Cozmo’s parents and that little boy returning before it all went away and showed the only contact in the phone again.

Gary turned to June.

June turned to him. “Gary, why didn’t you tell him what you heard? From that monster.”

Gary’s breath came out through his nose. He shrugged. “I don’t know what I heard. I can’t say what she said. To me, or the Pokemon.”

“But you said it was English! That’s something, Gary! More than what I got out of it!”

“I think he could use a breather, don’t you?”

June managed a little smile and looked down, nodding. “So, now what?”

The doors at the back of the Pokemon Center swung open, the squeaky wheels of a cart coming through. A smiling Chansey was behind it, pushing along the separate trays of Poke Balls atop it.

Nurse Joy came out with a matching smile. “Uh... Idawild...?” she called out hesitantly.

A young guy in the back of the hospital stood up, a towering, dark teenager in dark blue jeans and an even darker blue button up shirt. He sighed as he approached Nurse Joy, rolling his eyes. “It’s Adewale,” he said with a very heavy African accent as he came to a stop in front of her.

Her face went really red as she smiled. “I’m so sorry, Ide... Idle... Um... sir!”

Chansey raised up a tray with six Poke Balls and both her and the nurse bowed their heads especially low.

“Your Pokemon are fighting fit! Thank you for visiting us!” Nurse Joy spoke frantically.

He sucked his teeth and took his Poke Balls from Chansey, walking away angrily.

Nurse Joy and Chansey turned to each other with embarrassed smiles and chuckled lightly. The nurse then looked around. “Gary? June?”

They both stood up and came towards the nurse.

Gary slipped the huge phone into his bag, deciding to toy around and shrink it down later.

The nurse and Chansey beamed at them. “Your Pokemon are all in tiptop shape. Thank you for counting on us!”

Gary and June obtained their Poke Balls.

“Thanks a lot, Nurse Joy!” Gary gave the nurse his best smile.

“Yeah, I really, really appreciate this,” June nodded and turned, walking away.

Gary remained, staring up lovingly at Nurse Joy. His heart was galloping stronger than any horse could. Each thump was an Earthquake radiating his body.

“Gary?”

Gary knew that voice didn’t come from Nurse Joy, so it was safe to completely ignore it. Nothing else mattered in this moment except for Nurse Joy. Something about this one nurse wasn’t like the others. They all looked so identical, but Gary could see something more in this one, for sure. Her skin seemed so smooth to him. A hand caressing it would simply sink into her face like a puddle. To Gary, her eyes had their own flavor, even. Their own aroma. They had a feel to them. Her eyes are massaging me from the inside, Gary thought. I can feel them.

“Gary?” It was Nurse Joy speaking this time.

“Yes!” Gary burst out. “Nurse Joy, yes!”

“Yes?” Her eyes went wide. “Really?”

“Gary, what’s wrong with you?”

Gary ignored this voice that belonged to anyone but Nurse Joy. “Nurse Joy, of course I do! I do! I DO! Anything in the world for you! Oh, sweetest Nurse Joy, my favorite Nurse Joy. My very joy, yes!!”

“Gary, I can’t believe this! You’re the sweetest boy! Thank you so much!” Nurse Joy gushed, her clasped hands to her face.

“CHANSEEEYYY!” Chansey jumped with delight.

The fact Nurse Joy had just called him a “boy” somehow brought him back to reality. “Huh?” He blinked hard a couple of times, staring at Nurse Joy. “Wait, what’s-?”

“I’ll be right back, Gary! I know he’ll be thrilled to hear this!” Nurse Joy and her Chansey rolled the cart back through the double doors and were out of sight.

Gary was still, blinking in shock, his heart now beating out of confusion and concern over exactly what had just occurred. What did I just do...? Before Gary could even move, the double doors opened, and out came a Raichu.

Nurse Joy and Chansey followed behind it.

Raichu looked pretty scuffed up and had a large bandage on its back, but aside from that, it seemed okay. It looked up at Gary and smiled sweetly. “Rai Rai...”

“A Raichu?” Gary looked to Nurse Joy.

“Of course! The Raichu you agreed you’d take in!” Nurse Joy smiled.

“HUH???!!” Gary exploded.

“RAAAAAAAII!!” Raichu leaped into the air.

Gary, on reflex, caught the Pokemon. The surprise, weight, and thought in his own head that he hadn’t actually caught Raichu as well as he actually did, all resulted in him falling hard.

Nurse Joy and Chansey ran to them.

Gary groaned.

“Oh, my! Are you okay?” the nurse asked.

Gary could only groan, but he nodded, staring into Raichu’s eyes.

The Mouse Pokemon was staring back at him with the simplest, yet cutest smile. “Raichu, Rai!”

“Thank you again for taking him in, Gary. He’s had such a hard time since the incident yesterday. And to think he’d then be caught up in that explosion this afternoon at the Gym. I’m so grateful he’s made such a healthy recovery. I’d just recommend not using him in any battles for a couple of weeks and have him checked up each time you reach an appropriate medical institution until he’s deemed safe to battle with.”

“Um... Right...” Gary managed. “I could use some air, Raichu.”

“Rai Rai.” Raichu calmly removed himself from Gary, his steps forcing grunts out from the young Trainer before he was standing on the floor.

Gary sat up and took a deep breath, turning to Raichu wearily. “So.” He turned to Nurse Joy hopefully. “You and I...”

Nurse Joy’s eyes widened, waiting for a second for him to finish his sentence. Suddenly, realization dawned on her face and her mouth broke into an open smile. “Oh, we most certainly can!” Nurse Joy nodded eagerly.

“Really?!” Gary jumped to his feet. “You and I? We can-??”

“We can totally keep in contact and discuss Raichu! I’d love to hear updates!” she smiled so sweetly, her hands raised to her chest in tight fists.

A vacuum appeared inside of Gary’s stomach and flipped on, the hose sucking away his heart. “I mean, that works, too, of course,” Gary pursued. “But, maybe some of those calls could be about u-?”

A white beam shot out from one of Gary’s Poke Balls and a Pokemon appeared. “Tyyyyy!” Tyrogue leaped up and boxed Gary right in the side of the head!

“AAAAAH!!” Gary raged, holding his injured, throbbing area. “WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT??!” Overcome by his anger, blinded, even, Gary released his head and punched Tyrogue right back in the head!

Nurse Joy and Chansey both gasped, startled by this action.

Tyrogue toppled over and looked up at Gary, surprised.

Gary leered back at Tyrogue, holding back any feelings of regret. “What’d you go and do that for??”

Tyrogue frowned back. “TY!” Tyrogue threw a punch for Gary’s leg.

Gary cried out and dropped to his knees. “You little!” He pushed forward and tackled Tyrogue, now on top of him. He raised a hand and made a fist. Though he wanted to punch the little guy again, Gary opened his fist and slapped Tyrogue across the face instead.

Tyrogue returned this by grabbing at Gary’s face, digging his fingers in.

Gary was now holding down Tyrogue’s head and delivered a couple of hard punches.

“STOP! PLEASE!” Nurse Joy begged as the Pokemon and Trainer continued fighting. “You two, don’t fight! Oh, my!”

Gary was then hit over the head with a blunt object and landed on his back. His head was spinning. He blinked hard and constantly, trying to see what had happened. That wasn’t Tyrogue, he knew. What hit me? He closed his eyes and shook his head hard, trying to stop the dizzy feeling and nausea in his stomach, and he swallowed down the urge to puke. When he finally opened his eyes, he saw that Primeape was hopping from one foot to the other, his fists pumping the air, doing some kind of happy dance.

“Primeape...?” Before Gary could make sense of what was going on, Tyrogue got up and attacked Primeape with Bullet Punch!

In an instant, both Pokemon were furiously pummeling one another with a variety of moves.

“PRIMEAPE!! TYROGUE!!” Gary roared. “CUT THE CRAP, WILL YA??!”

The two refused to let up on each other, swinging punches, throwing kicks, and getting dirty with the moves, as well.

“RETURN!!” Gary returned them both. With a sigh, he said, “We’ll sort this nonsense out later. Sorry about all that, Nurse Joy.” Gary couldn’t even bare to look her in the eyes, embarrassed by so much, and turned away.

June was right there, her arms crossed. At seeing Gary’s face, her face frowned and she turned her back on him.

“June, I’m sorry! He punched me! I just reacted! Come on, does it make it worse because it’s a Pokemon and not a human?”

“That was bad,” June said grumpily before her voice lowered to a mumble. “But it wasn’t that.”

“What do you mean? What else did I do?”

June just growled and didn’t answer.

“June?” Gary didn’t understand what was wrong.

A loud static came on over the TV, grabbing everyone’s attention. The screen was gray and blurry for a moment before clearing up.

“Protests continue against Pokeland Discounts,” the newswoman spoke before fading out again.

All eyes were focused on the unclear television.

“-asma continues to insist on the e-” The newswoman had returned only to cut out again. “-ga Evolution. Pokela-”

The screen remained blurred this time, a static sound in the air.

“What could be going on?” Nurse Joy approached the TV. She stopped right under it and placed her hands on her hips, looking up. “Chansey, I need a little help!”

The screen suddenly cleared up.

“Oh, never-” Nurse Joy stopped talking, staring at what was being shown onscreen.

The newsroom was no longer there. The newswoman was gone as well. A very clear, familiar face was set up. The screen went out again in a staticky blur, but only for a second before the man returned. “I’d like to make this perfectly clear,” the hard, sneering face of Isaac spoke out. Behind him were several monitors displaying things unclear. “The recent attacks in Dark City, injuring the Gym Leader there, were not the results of Team Solace! There were no bombs placed there, and Team Solace will not have its name smeared upon random attacks taking place! We do, however, make claim to what it was that attacked that area. A Pokemon! Yes, as usual, a POKEMON! It was a Pokemon that had attacked Dark City! A very, very powerful one never seen before by modern man and on the name of Team Solace, I swear to bring the head of the bitch on a stick and display it for the world to see! This thing is very much the most dangerous Pokemon the world has ever known. Team Solace is currently seeking to track her down and prove, once and for all, the evil nature, the destructive tendencies, the apocalyptic future, this terrible, terrible beast will have this planet in in very little time. Those in doubt, I only ask for a little more time to prove my point! To have this monster KILLED! KILLED before far, far worse incidents than Dark City take place. Team Solace proudly takes claim of its actions! Team Solace refutes, outright, that what this Pokemon has done is in ANY relation to us! I warn you, this thing can level entire cities! Team Solace is here to protect you before any further damage arises. TRUST IN US BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!!”

The screen fuzzed out again before returning to the original newscaster. Her face was horrified. She looked on the verge of tears and her voice quaked as she spoke. “After that terrifying and disturbing interruption, I’ve been informed Mayla, the Fire type Gym Leader of Magma City, has been reported to be killed in an explosion at her Gym. This looks to be irrefutably linked to Team Solace.”

A picture of a smiling, older woman with straight black hair just above her shoulders was shown in the upper right corner of the screen.

“While her Gym was shut down for safety reasons until officially cleared by authorities, she herself was in the Gym, though it’s unclear how she got in during the search, or why.” The woman’s mouth was open as if to speak, but she didn’t. She took a deep breath and let it out. Inhaling again, she continued, “Gyms around the planet continue to be inspected, those still unchecked remaining closed. As has been reported before, recently, brave professionals checking for the safety of Gyms in a couple of varying regions have been the victims of the bombs themselves.”

Gary lowered his head and shut his eyes, his eyebrows furrowed as much as possible, his lips pressing against one another, his teeth grinding together.

The blonde kept her blue eyes on Gary and shook her head. “Kid, you’ve no idea what Hell you’ve let go loose on this planet...”

Team Solace... The name flew around his head like a pigeon trapped in a building.

“Unless we kill off that bitch, this is the end for us all. The end of Team Solace. The end of mankind.”

They’re the bad guys. They’re the murderers. The terrorists.

“We were just trying to save the poor girl.” As she sneered at him, her eyes suddenly began to shimmer.

Gary shook his head sharply, trying to stop the voices, and he covered his face with his hands as tears filled his eyes. He pressed his palms against them, as if they would keep the tears in.

“No one is ready for this!”

They were trying to save my sister...?

By trying to kill this...

This...

Pokemon?