I'm back, everyone! I hope you're all excited for this chapter, which is bound to provide lots of action for any reader here. I would know, since I wrote the whole thing myself. I hope you all enjoy this chapter as well as the rest of my story!

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Sandgem Town

"Ash? Can you hear me?"

The raven-haired trainer's eyes snapped open as he tensed up, scanning his surroundings until he saw a familiar face floating in front of him. Azelf was smiling at him slightly as it flew above him, waiting for him to respond back.

"Azelf, is that you? Man, it's been a long time! How've ya been?" Ash asked.

"I'm fine, but my fellow lake guardians and I could be in grave danger in only a few hours. That's why I brought you and your friends here to discuss some important matters." Azelf explained.

Azelf pointed to its right, and Ash followed its gaze to see Dawn and Brock standing next to Mesprit and Uxie, their eyes widening in surprise once they noticed their friend standing next to the Being of Willpower.

"Ash? You were brought here too?" Dawn asked.

"I think I just got here, but yeah. I guess Mesprit and Uxie brought you guys here as well, right?" Ash inquired.

Brock nodded. "I hope we were all called here to talk about something not distressing to the fate of the whole region, but let's just hear what they have to say."

"Good thinking, Brock. The main reason we brought you all here was that we've heard something about people targeting us, and we hoped you would be there to help us out in that regard again." Uxie explained.

"Wait, people want to capture you again? Is it somebody like Team Galactic who wants to do that?" Dawn asked worriedly.

"We're not exactly sure, but some of our fellow legendaries have spread some rumors, and we wanted to make sure you could help us out if we needed it." Mesprit added.

"We knew you were already in the region, and so that's why we called you over here right now to talk about this. Do you think you would be able to help us out if these people try and capture us again? You already know we're not the best at defending ourselves… " Azelf murmured.

"Sure! You can count on us!" Ash grinned.

The three lake guardians smiled. "Great! You will forever be in our debt for this, everyone."

Suddenly, Mesprit started to convulse in pain and shake around in midair, and Dawn ran up to it and tried to calm her friend down. She held the Being of Emotion in her arms and tried to help it out, but it didn't seem to be working.

"Mesprit, please be okay! We don't want to lose you now!" Dawn cried.

Suddenly, Azelf and Uxie started to convulse and shake as well, prompting Ash and Brock to rush to their aid as well. Their efforts didn't seem to amount to any improvement, as the three lake guardians continued to cry out in pain.

"Ash… Brock… Dawn… they're coming closer… we need you to save us… " the three murmured in synchronization.

"We'll help you as soon as we can, all right? You can trust that we'll be there whenever you need it." Dawn reassured.

"Yeah. We promise!" Ash added.

A black shadow seemed to appear from behind the lake guardians, and it got closer as the guardians broke out of Ash, Dawn, and Brock's grip and flew behind them. The three friends sprinted after them, trying to avoid the shadow all while making sure Azelf, Mesprit, and Uxie were safe.

"Come on! We have to keep running!" Brock cried.

Ash and Dawn tried to keep up with Brock and the lake guardians, but their legs eventually gave out on them after what seemed like minutes of running. The two friends stared back at the shadow and to themselves, trying to get a last gasp in before everything went black. Ash's eyes shot open again as he sat up in his bed, panting to catch his breath as he finally felt the sweat all around his body. He lifted his head up to see Misty still lying fast asleep in the other bed, and he got up out of his sheets to compose himself for a few moments.

The clock shone a bright 5:30 AM as Ash paced around the room, wondering what to do and where Dawn and Brock's rooms were so he could talk to them about this. If he was up at this hour because of that "dream", then they were probably also awake and looking for answers as well.

"All right. Here goes nothing… " Ash mumbled as he walked over to the door.

He opened the door slowly, trying not to make any noise as he closed it and walked into the hallway of the second floor of the Pokemon Center, looking around for any signs of Dawn or Brock nearby. He looked to his left and saw Dawn standing outside of what seemed to be her room, and saw Brock running over to them out of the corner of his right eye. The three grouped up and stood in the middle of the hallway, trying to catch their breath before talking.

"Let's go downstairs so nobody else wakes up from this. Besides, nobody else is probably gonna be in the lobby at this hour." Brock reassured.

Ash nodded. "I understand. Let's just get this over with… "

The group made their way towards the stairs and walked down them slowly towards the main lobby, where they found a booth and began to recount the events of their shared dream, with the darkness alongside them.

"So do you guys think that was real? Or was it some sort of trick or something… "Ash asked.

"I have no idea, but we need to be careful if we're going to check it out. How do you think we should counter whatever the enemy's planning for?" Brock asked.

"Well, we don't know where we're going, but it makes sense for us to split up into a few groups so we can go to each of the lakes with equal firepower." Dawn explained.

"That sounds good, but we really need to be at our best strengths once we get to the lakes and see who we're up against. Do you think we should wake up the others and tell them about this?" Ash inquired.

"No, they need to get some sleep if we want to prepare for the rest of the day. Let's just form a game plan here so that they don't have to worry about it." Dawn reassured.

Brock nodded in understanding. "All right. So what else do you think we should do?"

"I don't think we really have to do anything right now, since we should have everyone else's say on what decisions we're making for the group as a whole. We can't assume that the others are gonna go with everything we say once we talk to them." Dawn explained.

"Yeah… but I just hope Azelf's okay. I wouldn't want to let it down again, after what happened last time… "Ash murmured.

Dawn looked back at Ash with concern. "Ash, we totally understand. I'm worried about Mesprit, and I'm sure Brock feels the same way about Uxie right now."

Brock nodded in approval. "Dawn's right, you know."

"I guess you're right. So what do you wanna do, now that we're all up?" Ash asked.

"Well, we could keep thinking of ways to deal with whoever's trying to capture the lake guardians again, since it would be much better for us if we planned it ahead of time. We don't want to rush into battle again like we have the last few times we've had to deal with something like this." Brock explained.

"Yeah. Let's just try and do all we can before the others wake up, and we can go from there." Dawn reiterated.

"Ok, so where should we start? I know you guys want to split us up into a few groups, and I really think that would work well against whoever we're facing against at the lakes. But what are we going to do from there?" Ash asked.

"Well, we can try to surround the enemy by going around the whole lake, so they have no room to run once they at least make it near each of the three lakes. If they're all targeting one lake, then we can just get there as fast as possible to help that group out." Dawn exclaimed.

"But these lakes are all across the region. How do you suppose we're going to get there so quickly?" Brock asked.

Ash grinned. "Easy, Brock. Max can Teleport groups of people along with him, so there's no problem with that at all."

"I completely forgot about that! Good thinking, Ash." Brock complimented.

"So we've got that down, but we still don't know how strong these people can be, and that means we can't underestimate them one bit or else they'll get the upper hand almost instantly. We need to get the others up soon so that they can hear this, but we also need to be spiritually ready for this as well." Dawn explained.

Ash nodded in approval. "I know I'm ready, and I'm sure you both are as well. All of our adventures over the past month has led to this, and I know we can win.

"Well, then what are you waiting for? You didn't think we would sleep in that late, would you?" Misty's voice registered in Ash's mind.

"Hey, Ash, what's going on now?" Dawn asked.

His face was tense, his eyes closed and the rest of his body looked like it was intensely concentrating on something as he continued to close his eyes, leaving Dawn and Brock to act as spectators for the moment as Ash continued to be silent.

Ash opened his eyes and looked behind him. "Oh, you can just see for yourself, Dawn. Look over there!"

The raven-haired trainer pointed up at the balcony with glee to see Misty and the rest of the group while Dawn and Brock followed his gaze towards the group. The others ran quickly downstairs towards the booth, making their way towards the trio as they got up from their seats to greet them as well.

"Hey, guys! Why did you wake up so early without telling us?" Barry asked.

Ash's face immediately tensed up again, and he turned around to face Dawn and Brock as the three conversed for another few seconds. The rest of the group stared at them as they continued to talk amongst themselves, wondering when they would ever respond.

"The truth is, Barry, that we've got another problem on our hands." Ash explained.

Dawn nodded. "So if you want to know what's going on, then you better sit down and listen up for all of this."

The others nodded in approval as they dragged some chairs over to the booth, where the trio sat back down in as the others got ready. Dawn took out a sheet of paper which already had some notes on it and a pencil, while Ash and Brock stared back at the others determinedly.

"Good thinking, guys. Now let's get down to business." Brock answered.

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 201

"Commander Mars! We've found a safe route for you to lead us through towards Lake Verity. Should we begin our trek there now?" a Grunt nervously asked.

Mars peered up from her industrial laptop screen and towards the lowly Grunt, who's green hair was shaking from her lack of confidence. Mars shrugged and closed the laptop, while standing up from the tree stump that she was sitting on.

"Then what are you waiting for, kid? Let's get a move on it already!" Mars yelled.

The Grunt slowly nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I'm sure we'll be on our way shortly."

Mars opened back up her laptop and clicked on one of her apps, which opened up an aerial map of this route and the surrounding area. She zoomed in on Lake Verity's southwest location while the routes around it lit up, and Mars gazed in at the nearby towns located on the map. Her eyes landed on a town directly to the south of Lake Verity, with its name listed as "Twinleaf" right next to its dotted location. She clicked on the label and a new tab popped up to the right, her eyes darting over to see the new information.

Mars grinned evilly as she stared at the words. "Hmph… so this is that brat's hometown… "

She pushed herself up off the stump just as the breeze started to flow through the area, brushing up against her cheeks as she held her arms closer for warmth. Just because Articuno was captured and the temperatures rose didn't mean it was summer weather outside, since it was still early January.

"Hey, you three! There's been a change of plans, so get over here!" Mars shouted.

She waited impatiently as the three Grunts awkwardly ran towards their Commander, bowing to her once they stopped about five feet in front of her. She slowly backed away as the Grunts continued to wait for her, but she stood her ground and started to speak.

"Now, I've discovered something that will drastically change our game plan, but it will lead to massive success here. Once you hear this, you will tell your teammates and nobody else. Is that correct?"

The Grunts slowly nodded.

"Okay. There's apparently a town to the south of here, and you Grunts are gonna surround it so nobody tries to interfere with me at the lake. I'll have a few of the Grunts come with me, while the rest of you go south to that town." Mars explained.

The Grunts nodded in unison again. "We understand, Commander Mars. We'll get the other Grunts with us towards that town right away."

"Good. Now get a move on it already!" Mars shouted again.

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 214

"Master Cyrus, this is G1. We're approaching Lake Valor as we speak, and some of our Grunts have already closed off the area. Not that it'll matter very much, since it's still very early in the morning." Saturn exclaimed.

"That's very good, Saturn. Make sure nobody gets inside that perimeter your Grunts are enforcing, or else you'll know how bad it'll get for you. I expect you to succeed without fail today, unlike last time… " Cyrus's voice added through Saturn's earpiece

Saturn nodded and shut off the earpiece, his eyes darting back towards his group of tired Grunts as they played cards to pass the time while their boss was talking. He slowly walked over to them slowly, his sharp eyes gazing at their cards carefully.

"There will be no time for games right now, Grunts. We have a mission to fulfill, and I expect you to complete it with success." he reprimanded.

"Aw, come on, Saturn! Don't you wanna play some cards while we wait?" one of the Grunts asked.

The Galactic Commander smirked at his subordinates, the wind ruffling the two peaks of his hair as he crossed his arms. The Grunts stared right back at him, slightly intimidated by his unnerving gaze as their cards fell to the floor.

"How about no, since we've got a lake to secure. Now get up!"

The Grunts flailed with their cards and got back onto their feet in a rush, following Saturn as he made his way further down the route and towards Lake Valor. They then split up through the route, with some staying near the route and others heading to Valor Lakefront to secure the perimeter.

"G1 to Master Cyrus… the Grunts have started to encircle the lake. My team and I are waiting for any more updates from them, and I'll relay them over to you once I get them." Saturn explained.

"Good, Commander Saturn. Do not fail me again!"

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 217

"Why in Arceus's name is it so cold here!" a lonely Grunt shouted.

"We're all as cold as you, but you don't see us complaining, do you?" Jupiter fired back. "So just shut up and follow orders!"

"I think he got the memo, Commander Jupiter." a female Grunt exclaimed as she pointed towards her comrade sitting on the snow.

"Oh, stop being so soft! We have a lake to raid and a Legendary Pokemon to capture, so you need to get up!" Jupiter shouted.

The Grunt shakily pushed himself back onto his feet and trudged ahead of Jupiter, who had a weird look on her face as she stared him down. She marched over to him, grabbed his uniform, and tossed him aside as she continued to walk in front of her Grunts.

"Now, will everybody listen to me? Your job is to secure the whole perimeter of the lakefront so that I won't be disturbed while I capture Uxie, and that the residents of Snowpoint City don't be disturbed and try to stop us." Jupiter explained.

The Grunts all nodded in unison, and Jupiter smiled. "Good. Now are you all ready to go? Because we have to rush to get everything prepared on time!"

Most of the Grunts flinched as Jupiter yelled in their faces, but their nodding remained persistent. "Good, then we're going now. So get up already!"

The Grunts shook themselves out and began to walk behind Jupiter, who rubbed the sweat off her forehead as she fiddled with the pockets of her parka. She was still upset that she had to travel all the way north in the snow, but she would make sure she would get the best spot during her next mission.

"Man… I hope Saturn or Mars are doing any better than I am… "

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Sandgem Town

"Hey, Barry… are you okay?" Dawn asked.

The blonde Pokemon Trainer had his head lying on the table, breathing deeply as the others held similar expressions of disbelief on their faces. They were all speechless as Dawn, Ash, and Brock stared at them weirdly, waiting for them to get back to normal.

"Are you kidding me… no way! You three casually tell us that the whole region is in danger and you don't expect us to react this way?" Barry shouted.

"He's right, you know. You might want to rethink that next time you tell us something as massively bad as this." Leaf added.

Ash shrugged. "Well, we thought it would be best if we just told you what's going on right away, and that's what we did."

"Yeah, but just take the advice for next time." Gary reiterated.

"Okay everyone, get it together!" Brock interrupted. "Does everybody know what's going on right now?"

The group mostly nodded and gave signs of approval. "Good. Now you all have to listen up, since we already came up with somewhat of a plan."

"So, since there are three lakes in Sinnoh, we divided everyone into three groups of six… and Leaf, but it works nonetheless. Dawn, can you pass me the sheet?" Ash exclaimed.

Dawn handed over a piece of paper to Ash. "Here it is, guys. Take a look."

Lake Verity Group

Dawn, Barry, Kenny, Ritchie, Iris, Clemont

Lake Valor Group

Ash, Misty, Gary, Paul, Drew, Cilan

Lake Acuity Group

Brock, Zoey, Max, May, Trip, Serena

"Wait, where's my name? I thought you said you would include me in your list, didn't you?" Leaf asked.

"Well, since you were the odd one out, we were gonna let you choose where to go instead. How does that sound?" Ash asked.

Leaf grinned back at her old friend. "Seems good to me, Ash. So I'll just join… the Valor group."

Gary cocked an eyebrow. "Well, I'm just glad that's all sorted out. But how in Arceus's name are we gonna travel across the region so fast?"

Dawn grinned. "Don't worry, we have a plan."

"Hey, Max! Can you come up over here for a second?" Ash asked, motioning for him to come closer.

Max slowly walked over to Ash, seemingly tired from waking up so early as he stretched out his arms, leaning them against the table as Ash got up from his chair right next to him. He looked up to see Ash facing right back at him, a smile on his face as he straightened himself out one more time.

"Max, do you think you'll be able to Teleport from this location to each of the three lakes? You can start off with Lake Verity, since it's so close, but I know you've been training over these past few weeks, so it's not that far-fetched." Ash exclaimed.

"Hey, isn't that a Pokemon's name?" Max broke the tension with a laugh.

The group doubled over in laughter as the paper fell to the ground while Max waited a few seconds, grinning at the happy faces of his friends. He stood patiently for a few more minutes until the others came to their senses, and they soon returned to normal as he straightened himself out once more.

"That was a good one, but we need to stay serious right now. Max, are you sure you can teleport us wherever we need to go?" Brock asked. "We need an answer here, you know."

Max bit his lip in frustration, but a nod eventually escaped his tongue-tied grasp. The others all exhaled as they relaxed themselves, seemingly relieved as they finished packing up their stuff and got up from the booth.

"It's settled, then." Ash reiterated. "We're gonna split up with Max's help, sneak up near whoever's up against us and stop them in their tracks."

He grinned. "Now who's with me!"

The whole group threw their hands up and yelled determinedly, shouting words of encouragement as they all turned around and walked out of the Pokemon Center, the lights turning on behind them as Nurse Joy walked out of her office.

"Hello? Is anybody there?"

"Is the Lake Verity group ready to go? If so, then you should be ready to, Max." Leaf commented as the youngest member of the group looked on with her.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Now just walk up to me, and I'll help you from there." Max added.

He walked up to the group and stood in the middle of the clearing they were all standing in, his arms outstretched and his eyes closed as he waited for them to say their goodbyes.

"Good luck out there, Dawn. We'll be rooting for you guys from the other lakes." Ash encouraged.

"Don't lose hope, since we all know you guys can do it. Now go and kick their butts!" Brock added, shaking her hand in defiance.

Dawn nodded her head, her smile beaming across her face as the rest of her small group joined her around Max's meditating body.

"Hey, what about us? Don't we deserve some love too?" Barry moaned.

He looked back at the others with a betrayed look as they just sweatdropped, then turning it into a few shrugs as they stared back at him.

"Sure, Barry. Good luck to all of you guys too!" Leaf shouted back.

Dawn stood next to her group as she looked back to the others, her eyes falling on Paul for a split second before she moved them away once again. She couldn't help herself turn them back to Ash's old rival, who just smirked and gave her a thumbs up as she stood with her group.

While she was looking around, Max created a bubble of psychic energy, spreading it out to surround the whole group. They all stood determinedly around the young Pokemon Trainer as he continued to hold up the bubble, sweat forming on his face from the immense strain he had to uphold.

"I can't hold it much longer, so you have to tell me where to go fast. Or else I'll lose control and send you where you definitely don't want to go. So just give me a location and I can do it right now." Max explained, his eyes still firmly shut.

"All right. Max, take us to Route 201!" Kenny yelled.

"Uh, you got it-augh!" Max shouted back, completely disappearing from the clearing.

"Okay… so what are we supposed to do now?" Misty asked.

Zoey shrugged, sitting down on an empty tree stump. "I'm not sure, but I would think that we should wait for Max to come back so he can teleport us to the other lakes, right?"

"Sure, but how long do you think that will take?" Gary asked.

Ash shrugged. "From what Max told me earlier, probably just a few minutes. He said he would help each group get to a safe place to start their mission, then go right back here and do it again."

"Then I guess we just have to wait for him to get back." Brock explained. "Then why don't we do something while we wait?"

"Yeah, I'm gonna have to say no to that." Paul fired back.

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 201

Ritchie's eyes shot open, his eyes whirling around and trying to figure out why this place looked so different than the one he was in just a second earlier. He soon turned to Max, who was wiping the sweat off his forehead as he sighed in relief.

"Where-where are we?" he stuttered.

"We're on Route 201, from what I can tell. That means we're right near Lake Verity, and… Twinleaf Town…. " Kenny murmured.

"Yeah… but we should avoid going there if we don't want to get caught by anyone. We need to go to the lake as fast as we can and see whoever's trying to catch Mesprit." Dawn explained.

"You're right, Dawn. We need to get a move on, before it's too late." Clemont added.

"Well, I believe my work here is done. See you all in a few hours!" Max exclaimed, teleporting out of there as fast as he could.

"Okay, so what should we do now?" Iris asked. "Do you want to stay here to plan something out, or should we just run to the lake and see what's up?"

"We can't go to Twinleaf Town, Iris. We absolutely cannot." Kenny retorted.

Barry sweatdropped, trying to defend his friend. "What she means is that we should just head over to the lake, since we could get spotted if we go to Twinleaf Town! Right, Kenny?"

"Yeah, sure. I don't want to get caught, and I don't think any of you want to either." Kenny finished.

The group still made their way through the forest path as the trees continued to surround them, blocking some of the sunlight as they made their way west towards Lake Verity, and Dawn started to feel some strain on herself as she trudged along with the group.

"Hey, Dawn! Are you all right?" Clemont asked.

"What? Yeah… I'm fine. Don't worry about me… " she murmured as she brushed some sweat off her forehead.

She tried to catch up to the others, but a massive pain surged through her head as she fell on one knee, trying to get back on her feet as she still was in pain. The others rushed to her from their stances in front of her, looking around her as she struggled to get up.

"Dawn, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Kenny asked worriedly.

She shook her head in pain. "No… it's Mesprit… she's in trouble… "

"We have to move faster, guys! I'll stand by and take care of her, but we need to get a move on!" Kenny yelled.

"You heard him, right? Let's go!" Barry shouted.

He shot up in front of the others and ran in front of them, the reaction taking a while for manifest in their minds until they caught on and chased after the speedy Pokemon Trainer, with Kenny carrying Dawn on his back behind the others as the lake got ever closer.

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 217

"Hey, we made it!" Zoey exclaimed happily. "Thanks for the lift, Max!"

"Anytime, guys. See you later!" Max fired back, teleporting away with a smirk.

Brock chuckled to himself, putting a hand to his forehead in laughter. "Man, it's gonna get really annoying with him doing that all the time, huh?"

"Yeah… but Max is always gonna be Max, and that won't ever change. I should know." May exclaimed sheepishly.

"He is your little brother, after all. It would make sense that you would think that." Zoey added.

"We should really get back to the plan, though. We still have to walk through the snow to get to the lake, right?" Trip asked.

Serena nodded. "Trip's right, you know. How long will it take to get to the lake, and how much longer until we can buy a coat or something?"

"You don't really need a coat in this weather, since it's supposedly a pretty warm day up here. Sure, there's still snow up here, but do you feel cold right now?" Zoey inquired.

Serena shrugged. "Yeah, a little… "

"Then you guys just aren't used to the weather here yet. We should get going now, but we don't have time to stop for anything at the moment." Zoey commented.

"Zoey's right." Brock interrupted. "Uxie seems tense at the moment, and I don't want to get to Lake Acuity any later than we should."

"I guess that's settled, then." May added, taking a few steps in front of her group.

The others followed alongside her as they walked in the snow, trudging towards the northern lake as the cold breeze brushed up against them mildly. They continued to make their way up the snowy path and towards the lake, wondering what they could face once they reached the lakefront.

Brock clenched his fists. "Stay strong, Uxie… we're almost there… "

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 214

"Yeah, I'm gonna go back up to Lake Acuity, but good luck to you too!" Max encouraged as he disappeared from sight again.

"All right, guys! Who's ready for the biggest mission of our lives!" Gary shouted.

The group cheered, but the yelling soon turned to silence as he noticed Leaf standing in the background, determined as usual and crossing her arms as she walked towards the others.

"Well, we shouldn't just rush into the lakefront without some kind of plan, right?" Leaf asked. "Then again, I think that's why I'm here in the first place."

Ash shrugged. "What do you have to offer, Leaf?"

"So let's say the enemy's already surrounded the lakefront and are just waiting for anybody else to show up before they get started, and so that means the whole areas' gonna be surrounded by those troops." Leaf began.

She grabbed a map right out of Cilan's open backpack and laid it on the grass. "So if they're surrounding the whole lakefront, then we need to find a way to break through the surroundings so we can get to the lake easier."

"Yeah… I can tell Azelf's worried right now… and I wouldn't want to let her down again." Ash murmured.

"Don't worry, Ash. I bet Azelf's gonna be okay once this is all over." Misty reassured.

"Hey, I think I hear something!" Cilan exclaimed, breaking the silence with a shout.

The grass was trampled with upcoming footsteps as the group whirled around, trying to hear whatever Cilan had heard just seconds before. They quickly tensed up as some more mysterious sounds registered in their minds, and they all stood in fear as they got closer.

"Quick, everyone! Hide anywhere!" Leaf shouted.

She quickly dove behind a bush, and the others followed suit as a group of people stopped short in the clearing they were standing in just a few seconds ago. Their green bowl-cut hair and their gray and white uniforms easily identified them as Galactic Grunts, but under the ownership of Rainbow Rocket as well.

"Hey, sarge! What's this map doing here?" asked one of the Grunts.

"How would I know, ya fool!" the one in front shouted. "It's probably just something that a couple of tourists dropped. You do know they love it here, right?"

The Grunt shrugged. "Yeah… sure. I'll just throw it out later once we make our way back to the northern sector, if that's okay with you."

"Do you think I want any unnecessary baggage here? Just leave it here and get a move on already!" the sargeant shouted back.

The Grunt shakily dropped the map and followed the rest of his comrades away from the clearing, heading north as the map laid still on the ground, slightly trampled from the recent events.

"Did you hear that?" Misty asked. "They're increasing forces to the north side, leaving the south side wide open for us to go through!"

"That's perfect, and we don't even need an elaborate plan!" Gary rejoiced.

Leaf raised an eyebrow. "We still need a strategy to make sure nobody gets caught or hurt, you know. We can't just rush in there with-"

"This is a golden opportunity, Leaf! We can't let this go to waste, so let's go!" Ash interrupted.

Leaf clenched her fists as she caught up to the rest of her group. Didn't they know that their foolishness would get themselves all captured or killed one day?

Either way, she would have to smack some sense into them before it was all too late.

"Check it out, guys! There's nobody here on this side of the lakefront!" Gary whispered.

He was tiptoeing through the trees of Valor Lakefront at the head of the group, making sure to go slowly as he saw the clearing of the lake and the city north of it growing closer with each step.

He definitely remembered this place, where he got his butt kicked by Team Galactic's Commander Saturn, leaving Azelf completely open to be captured by Pokemon Hunter J later on. He knew he wouldn't let that happen again, especially if he wanted to save this region from another attempt to destroy it.

"I won't lose this time… mark my words… " he instinctively murmured.

"Gary… are you alright? You sound kinda upset about something." Ash interrupted.

Gary perked up, his eyes landing on Ash as he relaxed for a moment. "Yeah, I'm fine… you don't need to worry about me."

"What we do need to worry about, is the fact that we have no plan!" Leaf shouted from behind. "We can't just run into the fight, since we'll be crushed that way!"

"Listen, Leaf… I know what I'm doing here!" Gary fired back.

"But we need to be careful, Gary! Let's just stay here for a couple of minutes while we make some sort of plan to use. It's better than nothing, after all." Leaf reinforced.

"We're just gonna end up wasting more time, then!" he fired back. "We need to go and stop them now, before it's too late!"

"Gary, don't! We can't try to do anything foolish before you or anybody else gets hurt!" Leaf yelled.

"Guys, stop it!" Ash yelled. "We can't fight with each other before we try to fight an enemy, so you all need to calm down!"

Gary and Leaf both whirled around to face Ash, who had held out his hands between the two with his Aura flaring up as well. He slowly backed away once he realized where he was and laid his arms back to his sides, knowing that his message had been sent.

"Ash's right, guys. We need to work together as a group to defeat these guys, not fight with ourselves!" Misty added.

Leaf nodded. "That's exactly what I'm trying to say, but this guy's just standing in my way here!"

"Well, I think I have a better plan, so can you give me a chance to say it before you do anything else?" Gary asked, shutting his eyes closed instinctively.

He was met with silence, and so he cleared his throat and began to speak. "So what I was trying to say for the past ten minutes was that we need to-"

The silence was still omnipresent around him as Gary noticed that his friends were gone, almost as if they had never been there in the first place. He whirled around, trying to spot them until he felt someone tap him on the shoulder.

Gary relaxed, feeling safe for the first time in a couple of minutes. "Oh, I thought you were pulling some kinda prank or somethin-"

As his head spun around to see who had tapped him, he first noticed more green-haired people holding his friends in some sort of handcuffs, his eyes widening in horror at the sight.

The problem was, that wasn't even the worst thing to happen to him right there.

As his body turned around to meet his turned head, he first saw the two peaks of blue hair that stuck up the sides of a rather intimidating man, who had his hands on his hips and a defiant smirk plastered on his face.

"Well, well, well… look who the Meowth dragged in." Commander Saturn chuckled.

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 201

"Mesprit… I'm coming… don't lose hope… " a semi-conscious Dawn murmured while still on Kenny's back, shaking due to the speeds her friend was running at.

"Don't worry, Dawn, I'm right here for you!" Kenny gritted.

"Huh… Kenny, what are you doing!" Dawn shouted, her eyes fully open.

Kenny stopped short on the path and let her down from his back, her angry expression catching him off guard. "Well, you collapsed earlier on the path, so I figured I would help you out there."

"Thanks, Kenny, but I don't need your help anymore. Now we just have to figure out where we are, and see where we go from there." Dawn exclaimed.

"Hey, guys! I think I can see Twinleaf Town from over here!"

Dawn and Kenny instantly perked up at the sound of an obnoxiously loud voice reverberating throughout the forest trail.

"Hey… don't ya think that sounded like Barry? I haven't seen him since he pulled away with the others… " Kenny murmured.

"If it is, then let's go. We don't have time to lose, especially with Mesprit depending on us!" Dawn exclaimed, running ahead of Kenny.

Kenny's eyes widened as he watched Dawn take off in the direction of the shout, and the male Pokemon Coordinator soon regained his senses and took off after her, determined to reach her and the others as soon as possible.

"Barry! Is that you up there!" Dawn shouted.

Her legs pumping with each step as she continued to run, with Kenny right on her heels as she saw a clearing past the surrounding trees that seemed to be on the edge of a cliff. After getting a glimpse of her friend's peaked blond hair, she began to walk slower towards the clearing.

"Hey, Dawn! You're okay!" Barry cried, noticing her running up behind him.

Dawn shrugged nonchalantly. "Right back at ya, Barry. How's everyone doing here?"

"We're fine, but we were just waiting for you and Kenny to show up before we could get moving again." Iris exclaimed.

"Well, he should be right behind me, so don't worry about that." Dawn reassured. "But do you guys know where we are right now?"

"Yeah, about that… I think you can tell from here." Barry murmured.

His right arm was outstretched to his side, choosing not to look in that direction that he was pointing to. Dawn rushed to the edge of the cliff to see the landscape below her, the familiarity of the buildings shocking her. She recognized the small houses in the dirt streets, and the patterns of the stores on the main road that ran through the town. Sure enough, her eyes turned even further south to see the road of houses that had defined her childhood, including the one at the corner of the road.

"What the… how did we end up near Twinleaf Town!" Dawn shouted. "I thought we were heading towards the lake, not as far south as here!"

"I guess this is just where we ended up, but I agree with Dawn. We really need to get going towards Lake Verity now." Ritchie exclaimed.

"Hey, guys?" Clemont interrupted. "You might want to take a look at this… "

Iris raised an eyebrow. "What's going on, Clemont?"

"It's a good thing that I brought some extra Clemontic Binoculars for everyone, or else I would be the only one to see, but just take these and zoom in on the town. It doesn't look too good down there." the Lumiose Gym Leader explained.

Kenny snatched a pair of binoculars from Clemont's hand as he put them to his eyes, zooming it to the maximum level as he scanned the town below. He didn't see any signs of terror until he reached the main paved road, where he saw a few people with green hair running down with their Pokemon. One of the green-haired people pointed in front of him, and a Houndoom right next to the man sent out a Flamethrower attack that barely singed the building next to it, and their motives became incredibly clear for Kenny.

"What are they doing… no… " he muttered.

The binoculars fell out of Kenny's shaking hands as he stared at the town below him, the others rushing up to his aid as they wondered what was wrong with their friend.

"Kenny… what did you see down there?" Dawn worrily asked.

He took a deep breath, still shaking in fear. "The… green-haired freaks… they're practically invading the town… "

Dawn's eyes widened, and her arms fell to her sides as she slowly moved toward the edge of the cliff, knowing exactly what Kenny meant by what he said. While the others looked confused as they stood around the clearing, Dawn was worried sick for what the next few hours entailed for her, her friends, and Mesprit.

"Dawn… do you know what Kenny's talking about?" Ritchie asked.

She painfully nodded her head, not taking her eyes off the sight of her hometown. "Yeah… its the same ones we met in Canalave…"

"The remnants of Team Galactic."

"Dawn, I thought you said you didn't want to go near Twinleaf Town!" Ritchie asked. "So why are we going there right now?"

The group of six had raced down the path after Dawn as she ran in front towards the houses and roads of Twinleaf Town, determined to get there before anybody else as she knew how big of a problem this was.

"I'm going because I want to make sure my family's all right. If these guys are here, then they're not drawing as much attention to Lake Verity right now." Dawn explained in stride.

"Okay, then why don't some of you go to the lake to see if anyone's there while Barry, Dawn, and I check out the town?" Kenny exclaimed.

Iris nodded. "If we split up like that, then it'll distract these Galactic guys from both sides! It's perfect!"

"Wait a second… I thought these guys were part of Rainbow Rocket, not Team Galactic. Aren't they the same ones from Canalave City as well?" Clemont asked.

Dawn shrugged. "Maybe so… but they're former members of Team Galactic as well, and I guess I'm just used to calling them that."

"So it's all set, then." Ritchie commented. "Iris, Clemont, and I will all go to Lake Verity, while you three go back to Twinleaf Town."

The three in front nodded, and the ones behind them waved their goodbyes and started to walk up the hilly trail towards Lake Verity, and the inevitable conflict over Mesprit as well.

"So, guys… are you ready?" Kenny asked quietly, his footsteps making soft sounds on the dirt.

Barry enthusiastically jumped into the air. "Ready as I'll ever be! Let's do this thing!"

"Yeah… I'm ready as well." Dawn nodded solemnly.

"Let's go home, guys."

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Route 217

"How are we supposed to climb up here to get to the lake?" Max exclaimed. "This hill is massive!"

"I should have known that Lake Acuity is on a fairly elevated plateau, but I completely forgot to mention it with all the commotion this morning! So much for our victory here… " Zoey mumbled.

"Yeah, that would have been a good thing to mention, even with the cold wind kicking in right now!" May added.

"Yeah, and I can't concentrate enough to Teleport us directly through the lakefront because of the snow!" Max added. "If we could move somewhere with less snow falling down and less commotion in general, then maybe I could do it… "

"It's fine, Max. We don't want to waste your energy any more than what you've already done, so you can sit tight for now." Brock reassured.

"If that's the case, then how are we gonna to the lake now?" Trip inquired. "What are we supposed to do, take a helicopter or something?"

"I think I have an idea, but it's incredibly risky for our sakes. We have to make sure we get out of there safely, unless we'll get caught and that'll ruin our whole mission here." Zoey exclaimed.

"Zoey, what exactly are you suggesting?" Serena asked.

Zoey turned around to face the others. "What I'm trying to say… is that we have to go into Snowpoint City."

"My hometown."

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Twinleaf Town

"Let's just go onto Main Street, then head over to the side to evade any Rainbow Rocket Grunts." Dawn explained, pointing towards a map of the town.

"That sounds good to me… let's go!" Barry whispered.

He ran ahead of Dawn and Kenny, making his way to the end of the block and shifted his feet inside a doorway, with the two behind him following suit as more Grunts rushed down that very street, not noticing the three teens hiding.

"Okay, let's keep moving left." Kenny added, sneaking left and avoiding even more Grunts on the way.

"Are you sure you wanna go this way, Kenny?" Dawn asked. "You know you're heading… towards home."

Kenny nodded solemnly. "Trust me, Dawn. I know what I'm doing here."

"If you say so, man… I don't wanna get caught because of this. You know this is really risky, right?" Barry added.

"I'll trust Kenny here, and we shouldn't talk much if we want to divert attention from us right now." Dawn commented.

"Let's just keep going so we don't lose our momentum here. If you want, I'll lead the way in front of you guys." She added.

The two boys nodded, and Dawn led the way further south into town with the two right at her heels. They passed blocks and blocks of buildings on their way until the large office buildings and shops started to turn into small houses and dirt pathways as they continued to walk and avoid Grunts.

"Quick, guys! Hide!" Barry shouted.

He grabbed Dawn and Kenny by their shirts and pushed them into the shadow of a doorway as a group of about five Rainbow Rocket Grunts ran directly past them and further south towards the houses down there.

"That was close… but what are they doing so far down south? We already passed by the main section of the town, and there's nothing here but houses and dirt roads." Kenny commented.

Dawn shrugged. "I don't know, but we better go check it out."

She walked in front of the boys as they followed the Grunts further down the dirt road, watching their movements as they stopped in front of a few houses, checking the front doors before moving on and grouping back with each other.

"We need to listen to what they're saying!" Dawn whispered.

She ran further towards the group of Grunts, eventually leaning on an opposite side of a house as the Grunts began to speak to each other. Barry and Kenny followed her over a few seconds later, making sure before they ran not to get spotted by anyone.

"I checked the other houses, but nobody was there. Did any of you guys move them to the warehouse already?" one of the Grunts asked.

Barry's eyes widened. "What? Warehouses?"

"Be quiet! You don't want them to hear us!" Dawn hissed.

"Yes I did, Private." exclaimed the leader. "You can go and check it if you want to make sure, while the rest of us actually focus on the parts of the town we haven't covered yet."

"I'll do just that, sir!" the private responded.

The sargeant sighed and put his head in his hands, shaking his head as he walked away along with the rest of his Grunts. The lone private remained, looking around the empty intersection for a few seconds before heading on even further south, towards the edge of town.

"We have to keep following him! Let's go!" Kenny whispered.

Dawn nodded. "This is definitely worth the risk, guys."

The three once again ran past the empty dirt roads towards the south edge of town, tailing the single Grunt closely as he made his way past the last few streets of houses and eventually walking into the grass fields until he spotted something in the distance.

"Where do you think he's going?" Barry asked.

"I don't know, but we need to find out." Kenny added as he slipped in front.

The Grunt made a right turn into a nearby cluster of trees, and the three continued to follow him before he stopped in front of a steel bunker, almost a mile away from the main area of town. He slipped in a key card and the heavy door slid open, allowing him to slip in undetected.

Dawn was in front of the boys as she stopped behind a fairly large tree extremely close to the bunker, peeking out from its side as she saw the Grunt turn on the light and look in front of him at the trapped residents.

"It's a good thing you haven't escaped yet, or else I would have been in big trouble right now." the Grunt exclaimed. "So how are y'all doing?"

"How are you so happy when we're in chains… you monster… " a familiar voice muttered.

Dawn gasped. "Mom?"

"Well, I am getting paid for this, so I kinda have to do my job. And it's real funny to see the leader of the Battle Frontier in chains, too." the Grunt added. "Isn't that right, Johanna?"

"What does that guy think he's doing? He's not some king, he's just a guy working at minimum wage!" Barry hissed.

"You may be asking where my fellow Grunts are, but they have to drag more of your friends and throw them in here. I know it's inhumane, but you gotta do what you gotta do to win." the Grunt added.

"Who do you think you are, honestly? You can't just capture us and leave us here to die!" a different voice shouted.

The Grunt shrugged. "Whatever, man. I control all the cards, and you just wait before my sergeant and the Commander gets here. Then it'll be game over for all of you here."

"Besides, what can you do right now? You're tied up in chains with nowhere to run, and no battle maneuvers can get you out of this one, Palmer." he added.

Barry clenched his fists as he stared from behind that tree, absolutely fuming once he heard his father's name come out of that idiot's mouth. He tried to keep his emotions down right then, but they were at the verge of getting the better of him.

"Now, who here is gonna stop me!"

Barryfelt something snap in his chest, and everything went white for a moment as his emotions completely took over. He focused her eyes on the Grunt, who was still bragging in the bunker, and took off.

He could hear his loud footsteps as he ran towards the bunker, grabbing the Grunt by the collar and dragging him outside the steel structure. She heard gasps from the people inside and maybe from Kenny and Dawn, but she didn't care.

All he could focus on was teaching that Grunt a lesson as he ran off away from the bunker and, still holding him by the collar of his uniform as he kicked and punched him in the face. The Grunt looked like he was going to collapse, but he still continued to bring an onslaught of punches and kicks with every second.

"Stop it, Barry! What are you doing!" Dawn shouted.

Kenny nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it's not worth it! We need to get out of here!"

Barry shook his head, wondering why the voices of her friends were coming from so far away. He ignored the protests either way as he left the Grunt wrecked and speechless, probably due to the fact that he was too injured to speak at the moment.

"That was for my town… " he murmured, punching the immobile Grunt in the face.

Barry smirked evilly. "This one's for my dad… "

He kicked the Grunt in the crotch, causing him to barely squeak out a cry of pain as he wrinkled in Barry's strong grip, now being completely wrecked and basically dead at this point.

"And this one's… for everything else you've done!" Barry yelled, punching him square in the stomach and sending the Grunt flying backwards into a tree, collapsing onto the ground.

Barry relaxed for a moment, standing in place as Dawn and Kenny ran up to him to see if he was okay. He turned around to greet them, having a shaky grin on his face compared to the shock of his two friends.

"Barry, what was that?" Kenny asked. "And how did you beat up that guy so quickly?"

Barry shrugged. "I'm honestly not sure, but we gotta get out of here! I think they're trying to come after us!"

The group turned around to see the people peek their heads out of the bunker, trying to spot their savior as the trio immediately booked it. They ran into the forest and continued to do so, trying to get far away from home as possible and towards Lake Verity.

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Lake Valor

Gary's eyes widened, his fists clenched and the rest of his body frozen in fear as Saturn stood in place, now holding a Pokeball in his right hand as his smirk continued to show on his arrogant face.

"What the-where are my friends? How did you take them so fast?" Gary asked.

Saturn laughed out of the blue. "You did have your eyes closed for a few long seconds, right?"

Gary winced, but he stood strong in front of the Galactic Commander with a hurt look on his face. A short breeze started to flow through the area, ruffling the Pokemon Researcher's hair a little but leaving Saturn unaffected.

"Don't worry about your friends, as they're safely across the other side of the lake already. You're going to have to get to me without any of your meddling friends to help you out." Saturn mocked.

"Fine… then I guess I have to at least try." Gary exclaimed.

Saturn raised an eyebrow. "Cocky, aren't we? I'll be the one to put you in your place!"

"Toxicroak, finish him!" Saturn shouted.

The RR Admin threw the Pokeball he had in his hand into the air, where it burst open to reveal the Toxic Mouth Pokemon in all of its anger and glory. Gary backed up in fear, watching Saturn's ace Pokemon as it stared him down.

"Use Dark Pulse!" Saturn ordered.

Gary jumped sideways to dodge the fast ray of Dark energy, then ducking down when another blast came his way. Saturn grit his teeth as the annoying researcher continued to evade his attacks, and he needed a backup plan to ensure he didn't win against him.

"Now, use X-Scissor to finish him!" he shouted.

Gary tried to avoid the attack, but there wasn't any extra space to move around at all between the attack and his body. He braced himself for the pain as he felt the two blades connect with his chest, sending him backwards onto the ground as Saturn gazed in victory.

"You can't win. We'll take your friends back to Kanto, and Giovanni will have his way with them, I can tell you that much." Saturn bragged.

Gary pushed himself up to his knees shakily. "No… I won't lose to the likes of you again… "

"And after that, my team will be able to capture Azelf once more without any interruptions!" Saturn yelled. "Squadron A, go!"

Gary turned to his right and watched as numerous Rainbow Rocket Grunts raced up to the edge of the lake, and dropped what looked like a cylindrical capsule into the water, landing with a splash and immediately sinking to the bottom.

"What the-what was that thing you just put into the lake!" Gary shouted.

"Oh, that new device?" Saturn bragged. "It's just a smaller and advanced version of our famous Galactic Bomb, developed at Headquarters in Kanto. Our leader was so gracious to gift my fellow Commanders and I these devices so we can capture the lake guardians easier."

"The Galactic Bomb?" Gary asked. "Wasn't that that huge thing you dropped from your giant helicopter that split the lake in two?"

"Nice to see you remembering our work, you brat. The previous model of the Galactic Bomb was used in our first conquest of Lake Valor, and now we have used it again to our success. Just watch!" Saturn yelled.

Gary looked on as the water in the lake again split apart to reveal a deep hole to the sand at the bottom, but a small sphere rose out of that hole, glowing as it left the lake and began to grow in size.

The light blinded both Gary and Commander Saturn for a few seconds, but once the light disappeared and the two of them uncovered their eyes, they both saw Azelf once again in its true glory.

"Yes… yes! I knew it would work again, and I won't fail again!" Saturn yelled.

"Squadron A, fall back!" he continued. "I'll catch it myself."

Gary watched as he grabbed a purple and black-colored Pokeball and spun it around in his hand, waiting for Azelf to see Saturn and his subordinates ready to catch it and succeed in their plans.

Azelf's eyes soon fell on Saturn, flying back in fear from his intimidating gaze but was stopped by the group of Grunts with Pokeballs of their own. The Being of Willpower soon found itself surrounded on all sides of the lake, the city serving as a nice backdrop to the flying Pokeballs.

Gary heard some noise in the distance, and he ran away from a distracted Saturn to find the source. He then saw Ash and his friends in chains on the other side of the lake, running over to him as Saturn was much too distracted with throwing Pokeballs at Azelf, who luckily managed to dodge them all.

"Gary… you need to help Azelf… she's in pain and I can feel it… " Ash murmured.

Gary looked on at his hurt friends as they tried to struggle out of their chains, but to no avail. His eyes locked on with Leaf for a moment, her hurt and weak gaze not matching his sharp and determined one.

It was the first time he had seen that much of a difference, and he could almost hear her voice inside his head, cheering him on and encouraging him to succeed alone against all odds.

He turned back to see Azelf still constantly dodging the Pokeballs that Saturn had thrown, immensely frustrating the Commander as he tried to capture the lake guardian.

"Azelf… I'm here to help you, but how in the world can I do it?" Gary asked to nobody.

He looked on as Saturn threw another purple Pokeball that Azelf then shot back at him with its tail, but it clearly had an effect on the Being of Willpower. It cried out in pain along with Ash as Saturn covered his hurt face, and Gary clenched his fists as the screams of his friends surrounded him.

Saturn soon grabbed another Pokeball from his pocket and enlarged it, ready to strike down an already weak Azelf with a single throw. Gary grit his teeth, his fists still clenched as he knew the fate of his friends depended entirely on him. He felt something building up inside of him until it burst with a large crack, and he rushed at Saturn with fury present in his eyes.

Saturn put his arm back as he smiled evilly, waiting for just the right moment to throw the Dark Ball and capture Azelf for good. He was interrupted by what seemed like a large cracking sound as he looked down to see something slam him in the stomach.

Saturn felt massive pain in that region as his head struggled to turn up to see who the attacker was, but he could barely recognize him when he did. He had some black glowing thing surrounding him, and his eyes seemed to be filled with that same color as he then grabbed Saturn by the collar of his shirt.

"I won't let you hurt my friends anymore, you asshole. Now you're gonna pay for what you've done." Gary exclaimed defiantly.

Saturn couldn't speak as Gary lifted Saturn up into the air, only to jump up to meet him and send him down with what looked like a dark blade in his hand. Out of the corner of his eye, Saturn's Toxicroak watched in horror as its master was being destroyed by someone of such incredible power.

He stepped to the side as the Grunts rushed over to their Commander, wanting to make sure he was alright as Gary stepped to the side and ran back to his friends, power still flowing through his veins.

Gary grabbed the chains that were holding Ash to a wooden stake and pulled them with all his might, breaking them in half as Ash stretched his arms in freedom. He then did the same to everyone else's chains, leaving them on the ground in tatters as the rest of the group stood up next to him.

"Gary, what you did was amazing! You've unlocked your Aura!" Ash exclaimed.

The Pokemon Researcher just shrugged. "Yeah… I think I could tell."

"That's great and all, but we really should get out of here before they all stop crowding over there!" Misty shouted.

"She's right, let's roll!" Leaf added enthusiastically, not being able to take her eyes off Gary.

Just as he was about to run, Ash saw Azelf fly up to him from the middle of the lake, and nuzzled him repeatedly as the Grunts still were taking care of their Commander. Ash raised an eyebrow, but the Being of Willpower just pointed in front and began to fly away from the lakefront, the group right behind it.

"Azelf, why'd you leave the lake! I thought you needed to be near it to protect it!" Ash exclaimed.

"This isn't the time to be dealing with this right now!" Paul interrupted. " Just follow me and we can get to someplace safe!"

The group turned its collective attention to Paul, and they silently agreed with him after a few seconds of debating inside their heads. They began to run behind him as he led the way north through Route 214, and away from Lake Valor completely.

January 6, 2003. Sinnoh Region - Snowpoint City

"Zoey, are you sure you know where you're going?" Serena asked. "What if someone spots you and the rest of us here?"

Zoey grit her teeth in frustration. "I know what I'm doing, so just follow me and we'll be fine. I guarantee it."

"All right… if you say so." May commented, slightly shivering from the cold.

"I know it's gonna be hard to get to the lake from here, but if Zoey says this way's safe, then I'd trust her any day of the week, including today." Brock encouraged.

"We get it, Brock. Let's just focus on not talking much and getting to where we need to go, so we don't cause trouble." Trip interrupted.

The rest of the group seemed to follow Trip and Zoey's lead as they made their way through the seemingly empty streets, with most people who were even outside to see them mostly brushing them aside as if they didn't matter to them at the moment. The snow was coming down harder, forcing most people back inside their homes and away from looking onto the street or being on it themselves.

"It's nice that the snow's making more people avoid us than usual, and it's helping us get through the city faster." Zoey relaxed.

Max nodded. "Yeah, but we can't have any more distractions here-what are you staring at?"

Zoey's eyes were fixated on a two buildings positioned next to each other on the end of a dirt road, with one being much larger than the other. The closest one was a small, two-story building that was made out of stone, but the one to its right was a massive structure with seemingly new glass panels on the top of its circular structure.

"Zoey? Are you all right?" Serena asked.

The Pokemon Coordinator shook her head, trying to clear her mind as she continued to stare at the two buildings in front of her. She slowly took some steps towards that side of the block as the others looked on, confused and worried for their friend.

May grabbed her left arm, pulling her back a few inches. "Zoey! Snap out of it!"

"Shh! Don't say her name that loudly!" whispered Trip from behind.

The group then quieted down as a whole, but they were still holding on to Zoey for dear life as she tried to break away and run back to those buildings directly in front of her. Brock, Trip, and Serena joined in to help their friend, making sure she wouldn't be too reckless and jeopardize their whole mission.

Zoey's determination soon proved to be stronger than her five other friends, as she broke away from their grips and ran across the street towards the two buildings, with the others taking a few seconds to react and stand still before chasing after her themselves.

"What are you doing! Come back!" Max begged.

Brock shook her head. "There's no time for yelling now, Max. We need to get to her as quickly as possible!"

The five other members raced across the busy street after Zoey, who was already running towards the doors of the building, opening the door to the second one and easily walk inside. The group faltered for a second when they saw her disappear behind the closed door, but they quickly reacted a few seconds later and gave chase again.

They dodged a few cars racing down the uneven dirt road, and the group relaxed for another second once they reached the side of the street that the buildings were located on. Ignoring the increase in snowfall that was falling on them, they regrouped and waited for somebody there to take action.

"Which one did she go inside? We have to find her!" Serena yelled.

"I think it was this one!" Trip shouted. "Let's go!"

He took a sharp right turn towards the second building, pushing the heavy doors open as the group raced in alongside him. They made their way through the hall, with a white and red symbol lining the walls, leaving Brock fairly surprised.

"Guys, wait! This is supposed to be a Pokemon Gym, not some sort of random building!" he yelled. "I'm sure Zoey had a purpose in coming here, so-"

Brock was met with silence as he finished his sentence, and he turned around to match the group's collective gaze in front of them, being greeted with dread and shock at the same time.

He recognized the smirking face belonging to Jupiter of Team Galactic and her fellow Grunts, but what most shocked him was the person standing in the center of it all, tied up in chains. Candice, the Snowpoint Gym Leader, was unconscious and tied to the wall of her own Gym, defeated as Jupiter turned her gaze towards the newcomers.

Zoey's jaw dropped, herself unable to speak due to the amounts of shock she was feeling right now. All she could do was focus on Candice's unconscious body and turn to the Rainbow Rocket soldiers, her stare going back to Candice only a few seconds later on repeat.

"Well, look who just dropped in for us!" Jupiter exclaimed.

"That's a shame, since you'll never leave this place alive after today."

And that's the end of Part 1 to another two-part mini-saga. Hope you're excited for the next chapter!

I know this seems like a big change from my happy attitude over the past couple of chapter commentaries, but I have to be honest with you here for a moment. Even though I really like to write these chapters and hope to finish my story, they take a really long time to write over a two-week period, and it kind of takes a toll on me and leaves me with little time to lots of other things that I like, which is disappointing. I don't know if I'll put the story on a hiatus once this arc is over, give up on it entirely, or keep writing it till the end (I have around 12-13 chapters left), but I hope to finish it eventually. I'm glad many of you have supported this story over the past nine months, but I still need to make a big decision about its fate moving forward.

As always, feel free to review, and I'll see you in the next one!