The Trial of Juno - The Dawn of Hope (PG-13)

If you go to other forums, you might have already seen this posted, but it's already been long gone at Serebii, and at Pokemon Elite 2000, it's very deep into the old pages of the fan fiction section. In any case, I completed this year old fan fiction a while ago, but I'm currently working on it's sequel which is entitled The Trial of Juno II - The Second Promise. In all, I hope you enjoy this fan fiction like many already have. I've poured a lot of hours and effort into creating this, and I hope it becomes a story you'll remember for a long time.

Part I - The Gray Battlegrounds​

Chapter 1
Enemy of the School​

Randy was a loser. Not just any ordinary loser, but Randy must have been the king of losers. Plus he was the only reason why I found interest at school. Whenever I got angry or frustrated, all I had to do was find Randy Ferguson and release my stress upon him. It always made my day.

And Randy?s Pok?mon were also losers, and they?d always be that way since they always got beat up badly every time he battled. I must have made Randy?s Pidgey and Nidoran kiss dirt at least twenty times, but I?ve lost track of how many times I?ve really beaten him. Randy also had a Growlithe and a Caterpie, and I?ve knocked their lights out plenty of times. Obviously, Randy was too stupid to know how to really battle.

Alex and David, two of my best friends also hated Randy?s guts. While I liked to slowly torture Randy?s Pok?mon in a battle, Alex wiped out Randy?s Pok?mon so fast it was hilarious. David on the other hand liked to just outright pound the stuffing out of Randy?s Pok?mon with his Rhydon and his Tyranitar. Randy said he?s been a trainer for nearly two years. To me, he was practically on the same level as a beginner. Truly pathetic.

We only got caught once picking on Randy, and it was in the hallway between class. But all the other times, Randy pointed blame at us but just had nothing to prove it. One day, Alex put a stink-bomb in Randy?s desk while he was away, and when Randy came back and threw his books in, he broke the glass and the whole classroom stank for the entire day. Of course, we only did it once. That was with all the fun stuff we did to him. We could only do it once otherwise he?d begin to catch on.

Another amusement came from my birthday. Normally, whenever someone?s birthday comes up, their mom makes cupcakes for everyone in the class. My mom did the same thing, and I sprinkled them all sorts of colors, red, yellow, blue, and purple. Each cupcake was its own color, but for Randy, I sprinkled his green to indicate to me which one I would hand to him. After I made sure mom wasn?t looking, I slipped a laxative tablet into the green-sprinkled cupcake. When I handed it to Randy the next day, he ate it so fast and it was a struggle not to burst out laughing. After a hilarious series of events, Randy?s new nickname was ?potty-pants? for the rest of the school year. Still, he didn?t have an ounce of proof.

Since my allowance was small, I needed to rely on Randy?s lunch money as a considerable income. I never felt guilty about it. Heck, I figured that if Randy had the school lunch everyday, he?d become just as fat as Frank Meyers, who we?d always call ?shirt-burster? on a regular basis. I was doing Randy a favor by making sure he wouldn?t eat that day. I then considered that his lunch money was income for my services. It wasn?t much, but a dollar a day ended up being thirty bucks a month. That was prime cash!

We got a big surprise May 14th. Well, it wasn?t during school like most of our pranks took place, it was after. And it didn?t start with Randy this time?

Alex, David and I had been walking down the stairs out of the back entrance of Scottville Middle School and then we saw it. There he was, Frank Meyers lying down in the mud. His short, blonde hair and his pudgy face were soiled with liquid dirt and his shirt (or what was left of it!) was completely soaked with mud. We didn?t even need to do anything to begin laughing hysterically.

?Hey Frank!? David shouted out over a hard laugh, ?What happened to ya!??

?Chill man.? I told David, ?The pig just wanted to cool himself down.?

Frank was in a cross between crying and becoming furious. We laughed even further. Someone who?s in the seventh grade really should?ve learned to stop crying like an infant long ago.

Alex then made the situation more hilarious. He found the backpack that Frank had dropped and opened it up. Alex then threw out Frank?s folders and his books and each of them landed in the mud, effectively soaking the pages full of mud. Frank was getting even worse. Then I saw something that made me laugh even further. Frank had Pok?balls in his backpack that also landed in the mud after Alex threw them out. I really just couldn?t picture a fat, worthless piece of flesh like Frank being a worthwhile Pok?mon trainer?

Then, as if it couldn?t even get better, out of nowhere came Randy Ferguson. He was standing before us like he was all high and mighty, with his frizzy orange hair blowing in the wind. He was wearing a t-shirt and jeans in a hopeless attempt to fit in with everyone else at the school. Alex had dumped everything that was in Frank?s backpack before turning around and seeing our special victim.

?Well, if it isn?t potty-pants himself in living color.? Alex said to Randy, ?If you?re looking for the bathroom, it?s inside, stupid.?

?The three of you are going to pay for picking on Frank.? Randy told us, totally ignoring Alex?s comment.

The three of us laughed even further. Here was Randy, acting like a big hero for shirt-burster. That idiot had no clue what he was getting into.

?Randy,? David told Randy, ?Even you should be aware that Frank isn?t worth the dirt he?s laying in.?

?You?re wrong!? Randy wailed, ?And I?ll prove it to you.?

Then, Randy reached for his belt and pulled out one of his Pok?balls. I could see where this was going?

Did that idiot really expect to win a battle against us? I couldn?t believe it. All this time, Frank seemed to become more hopeful now that Randy was here to defend him. Frank was just about to learn that his guardian angel wasn?t the sharpest tool in the shed.

?Go Nidoran!? Randy shouted, tossing his Pok?ball forward.

The Pok?ball landed on the asphalt of the parking lot, and a moment later, Randy?s worthless Nidoran emerged from its Pok?ball. The three of us looked at each other to decide how we wanted to beat the stuffing out of Randy?s Pok?mon. It was then decided that I should be the one to do it. To us, time plus torture equaled amusement.

I then removed one of my own Pok?balls and threw it on to the asphalt as well. Out came my fantastic Raichu. After Raichu set his gaze upon his opponent, he realized it was the same worthless Nidoran he had crushed so many times before. Even Raichu looked like he was tried of Randy?s brainless attempts to beat us.

?Raichu!? I shouted, ?Use your Thunder Wave against Nidoran!?

It was getting to the point where Raichu didn?t even need commands to kick the stuffing out of Nidoran. It had become so systematic that Raichu could fight almost completely on his own.

Raichu then sent out his Thunder Wave, and when the pulses of electricity hit Randy?s Nidoran, he was rendered helpless, completely paralyzed from the shock. All that Nidoran could do now was quiver as sparks of electricity emerged from his body.

?Slam that Nidoran with a Brick-break attack, Raichu.? I told my Raichu.

Raichu then charged at Randy?s Nidoran, and all Nidoran could do was just watch as Raichu rushed up to punish it. When Raichu reached his target, Raichu threw a bone-cracking punch, sending Nidoran tumbling out of control. Alex and David were laughing again as Randy was losing like he always was.

?Nidoran, return.? Randy said mirthlessly as a red beam shot out from his Pok?ball and landed on Nidoran. The pathetic Pok?mon was then returned to Randy?s Pok?ball.

He then threw out a second Pok?ball, and it also landed on the parking lot. Then, out came Randy?s Pidgey. Randy didn?t even need to lose yet and we already began laughing.

?Randy,? David said to him, ?Don?t you know anything about type-alignments? Flying types don?t do very well against electric types like Raichu??

?I don?t care.? Randy responded, ?My Pidgey is faster than Jake?s Raichu.?

You wish. Raichu?s signature attribute was his speed, and it was ten times faster than Pidgey?s. This time I showed no mercy.

?Raichu, use your Thunderbolt.? I said to Raichu.

And to help Raichu even further, Pidgey took flight. Raichu?s cheeks flared up with electricity and just as Pidgey realized what was happening, a massive fork of lightning emerged from the shining Raichu and struck Pidgey dead-on. Pidgey was thoroughly cooked for ten seconds before Raichu released his power, and let the hopeless Pidgey fall from the sky just before the nice, hard and firm asphalt broke his fall. The only smart move Randy made after that was giving up.

?Fine Jake.? Randy said with frustration, ?I give up. But some day, I?ll become so strong that the three of you combined won?t even beat me!?

?Randy?? Alex said, nearly laughing, ?In your dreams. There?s no way you?ll ever become strong enough to beat us. You can try all you like, but you?ll never do it.?

That normally would have been a very typical day that the three of us tortured Randy. But something else happened that day that we won?t long forget about?

Hey, I'm glad to see you like it. I hope you keep reading it and enjoy the rest of the story. Trust me, it goes a whole lot further than this.

Chapter 2
Out of Nowhere​

Out from behind the hill came none other that Jeff Huntington. I barely knew who he was, other than the fact he was a sports jock. He seemed to have been watching the whole thing from the distance. He looked like he was just about to go to a lacrosse practice, until he decided to hang around here instead.

?The three of you have some nerve.? Jeff told us, ?Why don?t you pick on someone your own size??

?Jeff,? Alex said to him, ?Why don?t you mind your own business? If you hung around Randy for even just five minutes, you?d realize just how worthless he really is.?

?If you want a challenge, then try fighting me!? Jeff shouted to the three of us, ?I?ll make this a two on two battle. If I beat you, then you have to promise to leave Randy alone.?

?But if we win??? David asked Jeff, expecting a response.

?Then you won?t hear from me again, understand?? Jeff told David.

Some bargain. The only reward we would be getting out of beating Jeff?s Pok?mon is Jeff?s humiliation, which usually came free with every successful battle. But, even if we did lose, we had no intention of backing down.

?Jake,? Alex said to me, ?Let me take care of this idiot.?

?Sure thing.? I said to him, returning my Raichu to his Pok?ball.

Alex was quick as lightning when it came to beating Randy?s Pok?mon up. Fighting Jeff was going to be even more interesting. Jeff had pulled out two of his Pok?balls and sent them forward.

?Go, Ampharos and Espeon!? Jeff shouted as he threw forward the two Pok?balls.

And, just like Jeff said, out of their Pok?balls came an Ampharos and an Espeon. For once, we were going to see what a real battle looked like. And at that moment, Jeff was just about to see what his adversary was capable of.

?Go, Houndoom and Mightyena!? Alex shouted as he let loose two of his Pok?balls.

Obviously, Alex had picked his nastiest Pok?mon for the job. I couldn?t wait to see Jeff get wasted.

?Ampharos, use your Thunder Wave attack on Mightyena!? Jeff commanded, ?Espeon, use your Light Screen.?

Clever boy. Unlike Randy, he actually had a strategy going. But Alex wasn?t through yet.

Ampharos let loose a pulsing Thunder Wave that unfortunately Mightyena had no way of avoiding. Meanwhile, Espeon coated himself with a shield of light. That wasn?t about to stop Alex?s Pok?mon.

?Houndoom, use your Crunch attack on Espeon!? Alex commanded, ?Mightyena, use your Howl!?

For now, it looked like Mightyena could fight off the paralyzing effects of Ampharos?s attack. He had let loose a loud howl, and after he had raised his attack, he looked ready to dish out some serious pain.

In the meantime, Houndoom charged right after Espeon, and rendered his sharp teeth to bite down on Espeon. After a harsh attack, Espeon was knocked back, trying to stay on his feet. His light screen fended off some of the damage, but not all. Alex needed to find a way to get past that Light Screen, and soon?

While Espeon wasn?t looking too great from the Crunch attack, Mightyena looked like the Thunder Wave was starting to get to him. Alex had to give Mightyena a moment to recover. Meanwhile, he was making sure he was getting the maximum he could out of his type advantage over Espeon.

Jeff commanded his Ampharos to attack Mightyena with a thunder attack. I was crossing my fingers hoping it wouldn?t hit, but Jeff got lucky this time. Mightyena was barraged with another harsh amount of electricity. Still, he wasn?t down and out yet?

Meanwhile, Jeff ordered Espeon to use his Morning Sun. To our dismay, Espeon was coated with light for a brief second, and every bit of pain Houndoom had dealt to Espeon had been recovered. But Alex knew that Espeon wasn?t too much of a threat because both Houndoom and Mightyena were dark types. While Mightyena needed a brief moment to recover, Alex decided on a new target for Houndoom.

?Houndoom, use your Flamethrower on Ampharos!? Alex shouted.

Houndoom put his front paws forward, arched back his head and then let loose a red-hot stream of flames upon the unsuspecting Ampharos. Jeff?s Ampharos twitched painfully as he was slowly barbecued. Then, to our surprise, when the flames cleared, Ampharos had been inflicted with a harsh burn on his side.

Then, Jeff commanded his Ampharos to also put a Light Screen shield on himself. Ampharos was also coated by the shield, which was going to make things harder for Alex. But, he still had a plan. For now, Mightyena was back in action.

?Mightyena, use your Headbutt attack on Ampharos.? Alex commanded.

Mightyena then charged toward Ampharos, thirsty for revenge. Mightyena then put his head down, and then slammed into Ampharos, completely ignoring the effects of the Light Screen shield. Ampharos was knocked into a back flip before landing face first on the asphalt. Too bad for Jeff, because at that moment, Ampharos didn?t look like it could handle any more.

?Ampharos, return.? Jeff commanded as he summoned Ampharos back to his Pok?ball.

Taking down Espeon was Alex?s next objective. Mightyena needed another turn to rest, so Houndoom was up for the fight. Still, Jeff?s Espeon was going to get the first strike.

?Espeon, use your Quick Attack!? Jeff shouted to Espeon.

Espeon then burst into a blur, and slammed right into Houndoom. However, it was more of a surprise than a really painful attack. Houndoom growled off the pain, and then focused on his target.

?Headbutt attack.? Alex commanded.

Houndoom lowered his head, and then charged right into Espeon, again ignoring the effects of the Light Screen. Espeon was hit hard, due to his cruddy defense. And best of all, Espeon flinched from the attack. Houndoom now had another opportunity to deal another hearty serving of pain.

?One more time, Houndoom.? Alex said with a smile on his face.

Espeon was slammed again, and this time, he didn?t get back up. Jeff had been defeated, and he looked far more miserable as he returned Espeon to his Pok?ball. After that, Alex returned Houndoom and Mightyena to their respective Pok?balls.

?As long as you bother Frank and Randy every day, you?ll have to deal with me.? Jeff warned, ?Mark my words.?

?I thought you said you?d stay out of our way if you lost!? David shouted back, ?And right now, Alex just beat the pants off of your pathetic Pok?mon!?

?Well,? Jeff remarked, ?I changed my mind, just like you three would have done if you lost!?

I was getting sick of this. Why on earth would Jeff want to defend Randy so much anyway? No one seemed to really care except him. Even the many people that were walking around didn?t seem to care at all.

?Fine Jeff.? I said to him, ?If you really want to lose to us each and every day of the school year, you can go ahead and be my guest.?

?It won?t be that way for long.? Jeff warned us, ?The three of you bullies are going down, and very soon.?

Pathetic moron. He had no idea what he was dealing with. And to even further our amusement, Jeff, Randy, and worthless shirt-burster became friends after that. If that doesn?t make you laugh, I don?t know what will?

While we never really bothered Frank and Jeff as much as we did Randy, everything had changed that next day. Worthless Frank and Jeff were going to suffer just as much as Randy was. And my patience was ending. Why the heck did Jeff come from nowhere and fight us? I just didn?t understand it.

Now that those three clowns were watching each other?s back, it was going to be harder for us to get them one by one. But, all it took was just twenty-four hours and Randy would make the biggest mistake in his life. I just couldn?t believe it until it actually happened.

Right after school, Alex, David and I headed out the back like we usually do, and there they were, Frank, Randy and Jeff just waiting for us. Randy was looking incredibly confident of himself, as if he was packing a pistol and ready to just gun down the three of us.

?Well, if it isn?t the three losers.? Frank giggled.

?Losers?? I asked in some surprise, ?Guess what you stupid idiot!? It was Randy and Jeff that lost yesterday, so why don?t you just shut your worthless trap!??

Jeff seemed to grow more impatient. He looked at the three of us, especially Alex, and seemed to wear a very dark expression.

?Randy is going to become more powerful than any other trainer.? Jeff told us, ?In a matter of moments, he will become more powerful than you can ever imagine??

We started laughing hysterically. Obviously Jeff had been hanging around Randy?s brain cell killing aura for just too long. If Randy really wanted to lose again, I would gladly make his wish come true, but there was no way Randy could become better than us in just a matter of seconds.

Then, out of the blue, Randy pulled out of his pocket what appeared to be a blue and black beaded necklace with a large red crystal as its pendant. He held it with confidence like it was a detonator to blow up the whole planet.

?Ah, so Randy?s into jewelry.? David snickered, ?Big deal. How is some ordinary piece of junk like that going to help Randy become a better Pok?mon trainer??

?This is no ordinary piece of jewelry, David Miller.? Jeff told him, ?This is a necklace that was worn by Quista, the child of the legendary bird Phoenix.?

?Say what!?? Alex asked in surprise, ?What the heck are you talking about??

It was really sad to see Jeff go this far into threatening us. To me, that necklace looked like a fake. Plus I didn?t believe in Phoenix birds or whatever. Jeff and Randy couldn?t win at Pok?mon to save their lives, and this was their way of trying to bluff us out. What a joke.

?Jeff,? I told him, ?Get a life. You don?t really expect us to believe that, do you? Just where did Randy even get that piece of garbage??

?I gave it to him.? Jeff told us, ?My father is an archeologist, and he found this in an Egyptian tomb three years ago. He was supposed to sell it to a museum, but he decided not to. You?re not going to believe what kind of power it has.?

?You?re right, Jeff.? I remarked, ?I don?t believe it whatsoever.?

At that moment, Randy took the necklace, and strung it around his neck. He then held the red jewel in his hand while the necklace was around his neck. At that moment, the red jewel began to pulse with light.

?That?s some neat trick you got there.? Alex said sarcastically, ?Now why don?t you three fools just get the heck out of our way??

Suddenly, we were instantly blinded by a harsh, ruby light. I shut my eyes tight, thinking the whole thing must have been some stupid electronic device or something like that. Then, with my eyes shut, I felt a harsh wind blow around us, whipping the cloth of my t-shirt and jeans like I was standing in the middle of a windstorm. I then knew that necklace wasn?t some electronic toy like I thought it was?

Well, yeah, that may be true but it's been nearly a year since I've written this, and I have gotten better in time. Regardless, thanks for your feedback, as well as taking the time out to read this.

Chapter 3
The Unexpected Challenge​

After a sick feeling of what seemed to be falling, we landed in what seemed to be a dark forest. The sky was a mix of light and dark gray clouds, and the trees were all dead and twisted. When I looked around, Jeff, Frank and Randy were completely gone. Alex and David got up off the ground and looked around.

Maybe Jeff was right. Maybe Randy felt he could become a better Pok?mon trainer by running away from us. I would have laughed at that thought, but reality told me I still had absolutely no idea where we were, and that certainly wasn?t anything to laugh about.

?What? is this place?? David asked, looking around.

I took a closer look around, and it seemed somewhat familiar, but not completely. I then guessed it was most likely the same place.

?It looks somewhat like the Hollow.? I told the two of them, ?It?s only about three miles away from the school.?

?Think again.? Alex told me, ?Then why does it look like it?s about to rain??

Alex was right. It didn?t completely look like the Hollow, and the sunny weather we were experiencing seemed to have quickly vanished.

?Look,? I said to the other two, ?let?s just try to get the heck out of here. Even if we?re all the way in Celadon or something, there has to be some way of getting back.?

?How would Randy?s stupid Egyptian necklace bring us all the way to Celadon?? David asked realistically, ?We could be anywhere right now.?

?Just forget about it, David.? Alex told him, ?Let?s just try to find some way out of here.?

We then began walking through that dark forest for some time. It felt like two miles and nothing had changed. After nearly an hour of walking, we came across a large valley along with a cabin down a long beaten path snaking its way through the valley. We decided to check out the cabin and hopefully get some directions back to Scottville Middle School, or at least back to our home town of Viridian. Right now, I was guessing we were someplace out east.

When we arrived at the cabin, we saw there wasn?t a single window. It was made of logs and only had one door. We just shrugged it off and opened the door. It was pitch black inside, and just as the three of us entered, the door slammed closed completely by itself, and suddenly, the room was filled with light. The room was completely empty. I turned around and tried to open the door but it was stuck. We then heard what seemed to be a female giggling.

?If you think it?s going to be that easy, you?d better think again??

?Who?s there!?? David shouted, looking around.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, we saw a cloud of pink dust appear in the corner of the room. After some time, the dust began to form into a fairy with a bright pink dress. When we saw that, we realized we were likely no where even close to Viridian City.

?Just who the heck are you!?? David asked the fairy.

?My name is Caska.? She replied, ?And I know who you three are. You?re none other than David Miller, Jake Kossak, and Alex Davidson. You are the three villains who oppose the king!?

?What?? I asked in surprise, ?Who the heck is this king you?re talking about!??

?Randy Ferguson.? She told us.

We immediately burst out laughing. There was no way on earth Randy would ever be respected by anyone besides some idiot like Jeff or Frank. Nothing was making sense.

?Randy created this world out of his desperateness.? Caska told us, ?This is his world, created by everything he loves and hates, and from his happiness and his anger. He is the supreme ruler here, and the three of you are his worst enemies.?

?You have got to be kidding me.? Alex snickered, ?We?re living in Randy?s mind? If that?s the case, then we?re all about to become braindead really soon.?

?He created you?? I asked Caska, ?Since when was Randy into fairies??

She seemed somewhat insulted by that comment. I was glad at that moment, since if she was really telling the truth, then everything I would come across had to be considered a threat.

?I represent a part of Randy?s childhood.? She told us, ?One of the happier moments of his life. And right now, the two of us are enemies. There is only one way to settle this.?

?You want to fight me?? David asked, turning his hands into fists, ?Let?s go.?

?No Miller.? She said to David, ?I want to battle your Pok?mon.?

?Even better.? David challenged.

I couldn?t wait to see David lay waste to a happy moment in Randy?s childhood. If we defeated her, then Randy would feel even more miserable in ways that we would never dream possible! Randy had this match in the bag.

?We?ll both use two Pok?mon.? Caska said, ?If you win, then you get to make Randy feel even worse and more depressed, which I know is what you want the most.?

?You?d better believe it.? David said with a confident grin.

?But if you lose?? Caska said, ?Then you?ll be the one feeling the depression and humiliation.?

Caska then pulled out a pink and white Pok?ball, and threw it towards the center of the cabin. I had no idea what a fairy would use as a Pok?mon, but then it became quite clear.

?Go Blissey!? Caska shouted just before her Pok?ball hit the floor.

And out of her Pok?ball emerged a Blissey, and the three of us slightly cringed just staring at it. We couldn?t stand cutesy Pok?mon.

?Go Tyranitar!? David shouted as he threw his Pok?ball.

Out came David?s beastly and nasty Tyranitar with a tremendous roar. He looked ready to crush Caska?s worthless Blissey into a pulp.

?Blissey, use your Minimize!? Caska commanded.

Blissey suddenly then began to decrease in size, making it harder for Tyranitar to even hit it. However, David certainly wasn?t going to give up that early.

?Tyranitar, Earthquake attack.? David said coldly.

Tyranitar gladly accepted, and sent a violent tremor through the ground that shook the entire cabin. However, it completely missed Caska?s Blissey.

?Minimize again!? Caska shouted.

?This is getting cheap.? David said, truly despising this type of strategy.

Blissey grew even smaller, and our expressions began to grow grim.

?Rock Slide!? David commanded Tyranitar.

But that missed as well, instead making Tyranitar?s summoned rocks tear a hole in the cabin. David was becoming quickly frustrated. Again, Caska told Blissey to Minimize again and again, and David missed each and every time. But then, it got even worse.

?Use your Sing attack Blissey!? Caska shouted.

Blissey then began to sing peacefully, and Tyranitar was beginning to lose it. After stumbling around to try and stay awake, Tyranitar crashed to the ground fast asleep.

?Blissey, use your Metronome.? Caska commanded.

Blissey then seemed to dance for a short while, and then all of a sudden, it lunged toward the sleeping Tyranitar, and performed a wicked Cross-chop attack, the worst attack that Tyranitar could?ve been hit by. Tyranitar took a serious beating in an extremely short amount of time. Then, to David?s dismay, he realized Tyranitar was no longer asleep. He had fainted.

?What!?? David protested, ?What the heck are the chances of that!??

?Bring out your next Pok?mon, Miller.? Caska told David in a cold voice.

For once, I was somewhat glad not to be in David?s shoes. I seriously didn?t like where this was going. David returned Tyranitar to his respective Pok?ball, and chose his next best Pok?mon.

?Go Rhydon!? David shouted, ?Make mincemeat of that Blissey!?

Rhydon had emerged, ready for onslaught. We were crossing our fingers in hope that Rhydon would be able to handle an already grim looking situation.

?Rhydon, Stomp attack!? David shouted.

Genius. Rhydon squashed the already shrunken Blissey like a bug with his hard, rock foot. Blissey took a beating, but she wasn?t out yet.

?Sing attack.? Caska commanded.

Again, Blissey sang a peaceful song and Rhydon stumbled around just like Tyranitar, and he hit the ground fast asleep. David wasn?t looking too pleased at that moment.

?Metronome, Blissey.? Caska said coldly to her Blissey.

Blissey danced for a moment, and then we watched in horror as Blissey coated itself with a Reflect shield, which was going to be a pain to get past for Rhydon. Fortunately, Rhydon got up quickly, but it was going to have a lot to deal with?

Hrm. These boys sure are vile. But it's neat to see a story from the pov of a scumbag. The feeling for loathe of the main characters comes off really well, but there's little to no description to them. The battles, as was mentioned, sound too game-like because the trainers shout out attacks and the Pokemon take turns. I imagine more realistic Pokemon battles to be more pulse-punding than that. But other than that, this is a cool fic so far.

Wow...just wow!

Very realistic, how Randy was bullied from the beginning. The faerie part was interesting, how she was the remnants and the pieces of Randy's happier childhood. Somehow, her battling technique reminds me of Molly, from the third movie. XD But so far, your detested and loathed emotions you're portraying for the boys to Jeff and Randy are turning out pretty good, as I really enjoyed reading how they kept bothering him.

It's an excellent fanfic so far, and I really liked reading all three chapters...hm, wonder what Caska will do next...?

Keep it up! ^-^

I usually try to keep it to a chapter a day, otherwise it looks overwhelming and people won't feel like trying to catch up. Still, I do appreciate the fact that everyone has been reading it.

Also for Caska's battling technique, I find it intresting that you compared it to Molly's from the third Pokemon movie, because I've never actually seen it. I'll definitely have to look into that.

Also, don't be surprised if you see some references that look like they're from Road to Palantria. This actually came before that, but I used the ideas from this story to build upon the fantasy-like approach of Road to Palantria, simply because I was running low on ideas at the time. Still, I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

Chapter 4
The Scare​

Rhydon was going to have to take down Blissey, and now. Only then would it have at least some chance of defeating Caska?s next Pok?mon.

?Stomp attack, Rhydon.? David declared with a sick feeling in his throat.

Normally, that attack would have punished Blissey like last time, but the Reflect shield fended off most of the damage. Then, things went into a sickening turn.

?Softboiled Attack, Blissey.? Caska commanded.

Blissey then began to recover a large portion of her health, and David looked ready to throw up. Caska?s Blissey had nearly become invincible?

?Focus Energy, Rhydon.? David said nervously.

That was the best move David could have decided on. Rhydon was steaming, ready to deal serious damage to Blissey. He had this one chance to stop Blissey, and he had to get it just right.

?Metronome, Blissey.? Caska told her Blissey.

Blissey began to dance again, and suddenly, a tremendous jet of water had fired from Blissey?s mouth and slammed into Rhydon, dealing a terrible amount of damage. Rhydon fell to the floor, completely worn out. When Rhydon refused to budge off the floor, we couldn?t believe it. David had just lost to a worthless little Blissey?

?Oh shoot?? David gasped, ?I don?t believe it!?

Caska then began clapping sarcastically for David?s miserable performance. Right at that moment, I had no idea what Caska was about to do to David next, and I really didn?t want to know.

?Ready to receive your punishment for losing, Miller?? Caska asked sweetly, looking like she was already enjoying David?s misery.

?You cheat!? David shouted, ?How could you get so lucky with Metronome!??

?That?s just the way things go, Miller.? Caska said to David, ?Now its time for you to feel some misery, justice for what you?ve done to King Randy.?

?Oh don?t.? David begged.

At that sick moment, Caska had looked toward the trembling David, and she snapped her fingers. She became a cloud of pink dust, and seemed to have disappeared. We were hoping by some miraculous chance that she just left us alone, but then, Alex and I looked at David, and David had swallowed hard.

Alex and I watched in horror as David slowly began to change into a fairy just like Caska. His blue jeans suddenly became a bright pink dress, and two fairy wings and emerged from his back. It was a pretty sick thing to do to a guy in the seventh grade.

?Oh man?? David said as he looked at himself, softly fluttering his wings, ?What did she just do to me!??

We couldn?t help but turn away at that moment. Of course, only then did we hear the door unlock?

?That does it!? David shouted as we walked out of that nightmare cabin, ?If this really is Randy?s world, then we can?t trust a single freakin? person while we?re here.?

Better late than never, I suppose. Right now, if Randy could see David, he would be laughing hysterically. The last thing I wanted was for the three of us to fight Randy while David ended up looking like Tinkerbell. That would only make matters fifty times worse. I didn?t want to see Jeff acting all high and mighty again and Frank snorting while he had his finger way up his nose. It was enough to make me go ballistic.

?How the heck do we get out of here!?? Alex demanded.

?We probably need to beat the pants off of Randy, but first we need to find him.? I said to Alex.

We continued our way down the path, and day quickly turned to night. We had nothing to sleep on except the grass. All I could hope for was that maybe this whole thing was a dream, but it seemed far too real for that to be true. We then quickly went to sleep, hoping we would be getting out of here soon.

When morning came, we headed down the path through the valley again. Then, for some strange reason, the grass slowly turned brighter in color. And then, ahead of us was another forest, except this one seemed to be more of a tropical one instead. This couldn?t be real.

?We don?t have much of a choice except to continue.? David said grimly, ?Hopefully this forest isn?t too big.?

We then continued our way through the dense foliage without a single path to go by. All we could do was push forward, and then suddenly, we came to a clearing. When we emerged from the forest, we saw what seemed to be some sort of gathering. There were several humans running about, dressed in tie-dye shirts and other colorful clothing, like a bunch of hippies. Nearby were two muscle cars I swear were taken right from the 60?s. Then, in the distance, we saw a large, brown, sac-like object hanging from a post.

?Oh yeah baby.? Alex said, nearly laughing, ?Now I?ve seen everything??

?Hey man!? One of them shouted, pointing at Alex, ?You must be the one!?

I rolled my eyes. This must have been the braindead part of Randy?s mind. What else could it have been? I didn?t know what these hippies wanted with Alex, and I wasn?t really itching to find out.

?I bet you want to battle, don?t you?? Alex asked, looking like he was honestly hoping the answer was no.

But they didn?t say anything. Instead, the group of them jumped us, and pinned us to the ground. The guy on top of me had overgrown blonde hair, a rainbow tie-dye shirt with a skeleton on it, while his necklace with a metal symbol for peace was dangling over my face. I struggled to break free, and then I realized it wasn?t me they wanted, it was Alex. But for what reason?

?Let me go you crackheads!? Alex shouted as he was being pulled away from us.

I struggled with the hippie that was on top of me, hoping to get up and help Alex escape, but for some reason, he seemed so much stronger. I then saw Alex being dragged closer and closer to the hanging brown sac. I was crossing my fingers hoping that sac thing wasn?t actually some living creature ready to devour Alex.

?Get your hands off of me you deranged psycho!? Alex shouted as he struggled to break free.

Then, they had arrived at the sac. Seconds later, they lifted the shouting Alex up, and dumped him right in. Suddenly, the open sac closed up, and Alex was trapped. After they started laughing, I saw Alex trying to struggle to get out, but there was no escape. And then, after some time, my fear began to escalate.

Alex had completely stopped moving?

David and I both thought that Alex could have suddenly died at that moment. But then again, I thought better. I then realized that Randy didn?t necessarily want us to croak while we were here, he wanted us to suffer. He made David suffer, and now he was going to make Alex suffer. And then to make matters worse, he was probably going to make me suffer somewhere along the line.

?What the heck are you doing to him!?? David demanded, ?Let him out of there!?

?Ah, he?ll be comin? out soon enough.? One of the hippies responded casually.

I stopped struggling after some time, since I was getting exhausted and wasn?t getting anywhere. I continued to look at the sac, and then I suddenly realized what the heck it was. It was some sort of cocoon. I needed to get Alex out of there as soon as possible.

I had only one choice. I struggled to reach for one of my Pok?balls. Then, I managed to grab one, and I hurled it into the air. When it landed, I saw I had released my Ariados. Now was my chance.

?Ariados, use your Poison Sting to get this guy off of me!? I shouted.

The hippie turned around just to be greeted with a barrage of sharp, poison spikes. He immediately let go of me, and I got up off the ground. I then looked at the cocoon and saw the group of hippies that had dragged Alex guarding it.

?Ariados, Sludge Bomb attack on those hippies.? I commanded Ariados.

Ariados then blasted the running hippies with a hearty helping of sludge, sending them running in all directions. They ran right for the two cars, and once they all got in, they immediately shut the doors, turned on the ignition, and sped off in the distance. I quickly ran to the cocoon and tried to open it up, but it seemed impossible. And Alex didn?t seem to be moving at all.

?See if you can use your pincers to rip that thing open, Ariados.? I said to my Pok?mon.

Ariados approached the sac, and tried to tear away at the cocoon, but it seemed like rubber. After several minutes of trying to tear it open, it seemed hopeless. I then had only one tool left that could possibly help Alex.

I had a small Swiss Army knife that I usually kept in my pocket. I pulled it out, flipped out its sharpest blade, and tried to cut the sac open. I couldn?t believe it. It was like trying to cut through thick rubber with a wooden stick. If that knife couldn?t rip that thing open, then what could? I was beginning to grow frantic.

And then, another horrifying moment arose. Suddenly, I saw the cocoon begin to crack open from the middle. All I could do was back away. I didn?t even want to look, and it was a good thing I didn?t. However, David had been watching in horror while I grimaced and looked away.

?Oh no?? David moaned with utter depression.

?Don?t tell me?? I warned David.

And then, David slapped his right hand against his eyes. I bet at that moment he had regretted watching the whole thing.

?Jake, don?t look.? David warned me, ?Don?t look, whatever you do.?

?I?m going to need to look at him some time or another, David.? I told him honestly, ?Just tell me in words what happened.?

I could tell there was some hesitation in David?s speech. And then, he let it loose.

?Those sick maniacs just turned Alex into a human butterfly?? David said softly.

Fanfic of the Week-ified! XD

Again, thank you for the outstanding feedback and making this fan fic of the week. Sorry I haven't been around too much, final exams are just around the corner and I badly need to study. Anyway, I thought it wouldn't hurt to post a quick chapter and then head off. Again, thank you for reading and reviewing!

Chapter 5
Foreign Encounters​

Only then did I look at Alex, and then I wished I hadn?t been so fast in doing so. His body from head to toe had been completely black like he landed in an oil slick. On his head were two long antennae with bulbs on the ends. And to make matters even worse, on his back were two enormous butterfly wings splashed with a rainbow of colors.

?THAT LITTLE FREAK RANDY FERGUSON IS GOING TO DIE!!!!!!,? Alex shouted loudly.

?That?s right.? I supported Alex, trying to calm his rage, ?All three of us are going to slaughter those little twits. You said it Alex.?

?Jake?? Alex said softly, trying to calm down all of a sudden.

?What?? I asked him.

There was silence for a dark moment.

?Just shut up.? Alex told me with a bit of frustration in his eyes.

Fine. I was going to let Alex have his way for now, just like David. One way or another, Randy was going to make sure we were humiliated and depressed even before we battled his Pok?mon. And since this was his freakish world, we had to expect anything.

And then, we saw what seemed to be a dark figure emerge from behind us. As he got closer, we realized he was wearing a black fedora and trench coat, looking like a Chicago gangster. When he approached us, he shook his head in disgust.

?Ya three didn?t deserve this kinda misery.? The gangster told us.

?And who the heck are you?? I asked him.

?Name?s Black.? He told us, ?I?m Randy?s frustration. I owe ya one.?

We were surprised. But then again, could we really even trust this guy?

?Ya three made me strong by makin? Randy feel weak.? Black told us, ?I?ll let ya in on some of Randy?s darkest secrets.?

?And what?s this?? David asked Black.

?Believe it or not, Randy?s world is actually a hundred times bigger than Earth.? Black told us, ?An? the funniest part is Randy warped around the entire planet jus? because he sucked at Pok?mon trainin?. Talk about frustration. There was nothin? more he wanted than to beat the three of ya.?

I couldn?t understand why worthless little Randy would go through so much trouble to beat us. Couldn?t he just accept the fact he was a natural loser at Pok?mon and there was no hope for him in the world?

?But, if ya try ta battle him now, ya?ll most surely lose.? Black warned us, ?That necklace gives him enough power ta give him any Pok?mon he wants, as well as use any move, even ones that don?t even exist.?

?Are you kidding!?? David shouted in shock.

?In Randy?s world, if he can think it, it becomes real. His new, super-powered Pok?mon are nearly invincible. It?s a good thing I found ya three, because if I didn?t, there?s no way ya would?ve won??

I had a feeling this might just be one person in all of Randy?s world that we could trust. What he said was certainly making sense. The last time we saw Randy, he seemed ready to do anything, even something like this. We pushed him too far, but even then we didn?t regret it?

?How do we stop Randy and get out of here?? Alex asked Black.

?Ya need ta defeat Randy, and well as Jeff an? Frank.? Black said to the three of us, ?Ya have ta make Randy feel defeated enough to the point where even in his dreams, he still can?t beat ya. Only then will that lil? twit give up this pointless crusade of his.?

Heh, that was worth chuckling for. Randy would NEVER be able to say he was better than us, because it would be a cold-blooded lie. It then became clear what we had to do.

It was evidently clear that in order to get out of this place, we had to find Randy as well as those little morons Jeff and Frank and kick their butts. I certainly didn?t want to stay here any longer, after seeing what had happened to Alex and David. I had to be extra careful to make sure I didn?t end up like them, which was exactly what Randy wanted to happen?

?There?s only one way ta at least put yaself on the same level as Randy.? Black told us, ?Ya need these.?

Then, out of his coat, he pulled out three golden chain necklaces. He handed one to each of us, and we wore them around our necks.

?While those are nothin? compared ta the Quista Necklace Randy has, they have a similar power while ya use ?em here.? Black said to us, ?Heck, I should know. I know everythin? that jus? presses that lil? boy?s buttons.

And then, he reached back into his trench coat. It seemed he had one more thing to give to us.

?Here.? Black said, also handing a Pok?ball to each of us, ?These Pok?mon will at least put ya on the same level as Randy. Once he throws his Pok?balls and his desired Pok?mon comes out, he has no way of changin? it. But be careful. Make sure he?s the one to send out his Pok?mon first, or he?ll always have a type advantage over ya, usually in the worst kind of way.?

?Thanks Black.? I said to him.

?It?s the least I can do for the three of ya.? Black responded, ?See ya around.?

And then he turned around and left. After that, we headed back into the tropical forest, hoping we would find Randy soon and get out of Randy?s dream world as soon as possible. I was already beginning to hate it here, and I was sure Alex and David were too.

Again, we made our way through the dense foliage, this time I was in the front. I constantly had to lift my feet and swing them over the dense shrubs on the ground, and it was wet everywhere. My jeans were soaked and my t-shirt was damp. I picked up the pace, just wanting to get out of this miserable forest as soon as possible. After some time, I turned around to see how Alex and David were doing.

And then I realized they weren?t there?

I looked back frantically, but I didn?t see them anywhere. Where the heck were they? I shouted out several times, hoping they were nearby, but there was no sight of them at all. Things were just getting better and better. And I top of that, I felt like I was starving. I hadn?t eaten in nearly a day and a half.

All I could do was keep moving, but after some time, it became night again and I couldn?t even see the path ahead. I had no choice but to wait until dark. Stupid Randy. Just who the heck did he think he was anyway?

Surprisingly, I fell asleep and when I awoke, I could see again. I got up and kept moving, hoping to leave this stupid forest, but it seemed to keep going on forever. And then, I heard a noise to my right. I thought it might have been Alex or David, so I decided to track it down. And then I came across an interesting sight. I came across a small fountain spring, and there were tiny little pixies surrounding it. They all seemed to look at me in shock for one moment, and then they calmed down.

?Oh, it?s only you.? One of them said in relief, ?For a minute you had us scared.?

?Who are you?? I asked them, wondering who they were.

?We?re Randy?s mischievous side.? Another told me. ?But, unfortunately, Randy doesn?t get into mischief very often, so we?re always put on the back burner.?

Didn?t seem very fair to me. What was the point of creativity if it wasn?t put to good use? Randy disappointed me again.

?Well, I plan on taking Randy out.? I told them, ?Just like I always have.?

?Heh, yeah, go figure.? One of them said, ?We knew you would. Plus I don?t know how you?re able to tolerate it being in the mind of the one person you despise.?

I didn?t know either, and my patience was growing short. After some of them got up and flew away, only about three of them remained. After they flew to a nearby branch, I suddenly felt my hunger arise again. I couldn?t help but ask if they had anything to eat.

?I?m starving.? I told the three of them, ?You? wouldn?t have anything around here to eat, would you?

They suddenly became surprised. They looked at me like I was crazy. One of them giggled a bit, whispered something to the others, and then they looked at me.

?You? still need to eat?? One of them asked, ?That?s silly. Obviously you?ve never heard of Sun Water before, have you??

?Nope.? I told them.

?It comes from that spring.? The pixie told me, pointing to the fountain, ?If you drink a few cups of Sun Water, you?ll never need to eat again. Drink, once in a while yes, but eat, never again.?

That sounded ridiculous. But then again, after I stole Randy?s lunch money a countless number of times, maybe this was an element of him that had put up with never having lunch again. Who knows, because in Randy?s world, it seemed like anything goes.

I walked over to the fountain and bent down. Honestly, the water didn?t appear to be any different that normal water, so I just shrugged it off. And since these pixies seemed to be another part of Randy?s naughty side, maybe I could trust them. They already looked like they trusted me.

And as my hunger grew stronger, I wasn?t about to argue. I found a pewter cup nearby, and I dipped it into the fountain. I then gathered some water in the cup. I then decided to drink it. While it looked like water, it tasted super-sweet like sugar. It tasted great, so after I drank down the first cup, I decided to go for seconds.

My hunger melted away immediately, but the Sun Water was so tasty I couldn?t help but keep drinking it. I must have had twelve cups of the stuff before I felt like I had enough of it. There was no soft drink on Earth that had a better taste than Sun Water.

And then, I heard a slight giggling in the distance. I turned around and saw it had come from one of the pixies. I looked up at one of them and she looked at me.

?Boy, you?re going to look awfully cute?? She said before flying away with the other two.

Yay! Sun water, the most worst thing that can happen to a guy! I love that-nya! Meow meow meow meow meow!

Sorry I haven't been around too much. Final exams have been on my mind all this week, but I'll post a chapter anyway. Again, thanks for your feedback and enjoy!


No. No. No. I couldn?t believe what I just did. Randy was going to have me just where he wanted me. I was right, boy was I right. He was going to screw all three of us, and I just walked into his trap. He just turned David into a fairy and Alex into a butterfly. Now what the heck was going to happen to me?

Those blasted little pixies were gone. Right now I wanted to wring their little necks, but I couldn?t do anything. I even said myself we couldn?t trust anyone while we were here. What the heck was I just doing!?

I dropped the pewter cup, and watched it as it fell on the ground. And then I saw my hand. I brought it up it front of me, and saw it had turned a soft light green color, along with the rest of my arm. All of my skin turned a soft green color and completely lost texture, and then my fingernails vanished. I swore under my breath.

And then, in less than a single second, my jeans were torn to shreds as a dress of rainbow-colored flower petals surrounded my waist and reached down to ground. And then a belt of bright and colorful lily flowers blossomed around me. I shook my head and must have said the ?S? word ten times.

?Randy Ferguson, I?m going to make you cry blood?? I growled angrily.

But it certainly didn?t end there. I felt the back of my t-shirt tear open as another giant lily suddenly emerged from my back, and when it bloomed, it become a giant, rainbow eighteen-petal lily that covered my entire back. My t-shirt was instantly reduced to a rag, and lowly fell to the ground.

And then to further my misery, a headband of lily flowers circled around my head. And only seconds later, it felt like someone had just opened up an umbrella over my head, only instead it was another giant lily flower. I nearly screamed.

And then to finish it all off, small bracelets of lily flowers blossomed on my arms. After that had happened, I stood there for nearly five minutes just hoping it was all over with.

?Oh, somebody please tell me this isn?t happening?? I said to myself, looking over the giant flowers that were coming out of my body.

But it was hopeless. My jeans lay completely ruined on the ground, and I was wearing nothing except this stupid flower petal dress. All that I could do was take the belt with my Pok?balls on it, attach the wallet that was in my pocket to it, and put it on. Now all I had to do was find David and Alex to show and tell them what happened. I was furious. Now Jeff, Frank and that little freak Randy were going to have a laugh and a half just looking at us.

I only needed to walk for fifteen minutes before leaving that tropical forest of nightmares. Then, I saw them. I didn?t expect to encounter them so soon. They had already left the forest, and were waiting for me.

?That?? Alex said softly with sad compassion, ?That isn?t you Jake, is it??

?Randy Ferguson?s not going to have any teeth left once my fist reaches his face.? I told them both.

Then they knew it was me. Alex looked miserable, and David looked even more grim.

?Oh man, Jake.? Alex said with complete depression, ?You look like an overgrown Bellossom.?

I certainly didn?t need to hear that. I felt like a complete idiot, and it was growing even worse by the moment. I felt ready to crush Randy?s skull with my own hands, that?s how angry I was. Randy should have been praising the skies above there weren?t any automatic weapons in his world, because if there were, Randy was going to need a whole lot more than Pok?mon to stop my incredible rage.

?I?ve never hated Randy as much as I do now.? I told Alex and David, ?Never before.?

?Neither have we...? Alex responded, shaking his head in shame.

Part of me felt like staying away from Randy and his two stupid, moronic friends as much as possible. There was still this small bit of hope in me that Randy didn?t actually know what happened to us yet. And then again, there was this small bit of reality told me that if we didn?t fight Randy, we might just be spending the rest of our lives here.

Regardless, Alex and David wanted to get the heck out of Randy?s world as soon as possible, and I certainly couldn?t blame them. We had already stayed here longer than we should have.

And on top of it all, I didn?t know who to believe anymore. Black seemed like he was trustworthy, and he seemed to have helped us big time. And then again, I thought I could trust those blasted little pixies, and they completely screwed me over. I certainly didn?t want to walk into a trap like that again, but I didn?t want to turn down someone who was only trying to bring us one step closer to defeating Randy.

As we kept walking through that valley, hoping we?d find Randy or at least someone worthy enough to bring us to him, I could only think of one thing. Exactly how were we going to stop Randy? And even if we really did beat him, would we wake up in the real world again? I was certainly hoping this transformation wasn?t permanent.

And after nearly an hour, we encountered another shady figure. When he drew closer, we saw he was wearing a gray cloak with a hood over his head. He moved toward us very quickly, almost running. When he reached us, he stopped, and stood still. I couldn?t see his face from the shadow of his hood.

?He? didn?t?.? The figure groaned.

?And who are you?? Alex asked, looking at the hooded figure strangely.

He stopped, and then slowly turned toward Alex. This guy was really freaking me out.

?Depression.? He mumbled, ?That?s right, I?m King Randy?s depression. His worst nightmare. He fears me.?

?Great.? I told him, still a little unsure about this guy, ?We?re trying to find him so we can make him feel even more depressed. Do you know how we might find him??

Depression then started laughing hysterically. He quickly threw off his hood to reveal a gaunt, scarred face with frizzy, gray hair. We were instantly shocked.

?Oh yes.? Depression said, still snickering, ?Now I know who you three are. I didn?t recognize you at first. Obviously King Randy has gotten to you first, but there?s still time. Yes, time to do lots and lots of damage to King Randy??

?Where do we find him?? I asked again.

He mumbled a bit, and then looked up again.

?He? likes to spend his time in Victory City Stadium.? Depression told us, ?It almost seems like? he?s waiting for you??

?Can you take us there?? David asked, ?We want to make him lose.?

Depression stopped moving, and then he looked at David.

?I can bring you to the city in no time at all.? He told David, ?But be warned. He?s knows more about Pok?mon and battling than anyone else now. No one has ever beaten him. If you really plan on battling him, you should take these, for the protection of you and your Pok?mon??

He then took his shriveled hand and reached into the pocket of his cloak. Then, he handed us three ordinary-looking silver rings. We slipped them on, and then looked back to Depression.

?I will take you there now.? He said, slightly grinning, ?Make him lose miserably. Make me happy??

Depression snapped his fingers, and instantly we saw everything around us swirl into a blur. Not even three seconds later, we found ourselves standing amongst a gigantic city, with buildings towering hundreds of stories above us. The streets were like any ordinary city. But, there was only one difference?

There wasn?t a single person around. In a place that should have been brimming with people, there was nothing. Far in the distance, we saw a massive stadium. That was where we had to go. I had a feeling that was where we would find Randy.

And this time, he wasn?t going to cheat. Black and Depression had at least given us some sort of power and protection against Randy?s Quista necklace. At least we would have some sort of fighting chance against him.

Closer and closer we drew toward the stadium, and there still wasn?t anyone around. There were no lights on in the buildings, no nothing as if everyone just got up and left only an hour ago. Behind the stadium, the sun had begun to set, and by the time we had arrived at the stadium, it was night and the stars were out.

The silver stadium was huge. When we entered the field, there were probably enough chairs to seat a million people, and there?s no exaggeration about that. In the center of it all was a gray battle area for Pok?mon with the gray outline of a Pok?ball. And then, we saw him. We had suddenly laid eyes on Randy, who was seated on a metal throne on a platform at least fifteen feet high, and he was still wearing his stupid necklace. Besides him were Jeff and Frank, seated on similar thrones on platforms ten feet in the air. And to even further our anger, they were all dressed in black leather and wearing shades, as if they thought they were actually cool. When we approached them in the big, empty stadium, I could hear the snickering.

?Well hello ladies.? Randy snickered.

?Listen here, you schmuck!? Alex shouted to Randy, ?I don?t know what your problem is, but if you don?t restore Earth the way it used to be right now, you?re going to have some really bad problems coming your way!?

Then, Randy took off his shades, and looked at us cynically. After that, he crossed his arms. Now he was starting to act pompous.

?Well, how does it feel?? Randy asked with a sick smile, ?Has the utter shame begun to set in alright for you? Let me just tell you this. If you?re here to battle me with your pathetic Pok?mon, you?re about to experience a new revelation in losing. It is impossible to beat me.?

?That?s what you think.? I told Randy, ?Two can play at your game, Randy Ferguson.?

?Oh really?? He asked, almost laughing.

Suddenly, I heard a snap, and I heard what sounded like metal links hitting the ground. When I looked down, I saw the gold necklace Black had given us, only it was in pieces. Alongside it was Depression?s ring, reduced to a twisted lump. When I looked to my left, I saw Alex and David were without protection either.

?Not good.? Alex said coldly as he looked down at the shattered necklace, ?Not good at all??

?You might as well get used to living here.? Randy said, sitting back in relaxation, ?You can spend the rest of eternity in my world, and you?ll always be under my power, under my rules, and don?t forget, you?ll always be weaker than me.?

?Rest of eternity, Randy?? Alex asked, nearly laughing, ?I don?t think so. No one lives forever, remember??

?Well everything is different here.? Randy said with another smile, ?In my world, time doesn?t weaken the body. It?s the perfect place? for me anyway.?

I was getting more furious by the moment. I didn?t want to lose to an overconfident jerk like Randy. Then I saw Frank, who just kept giggling constantly by looking at us. I was ready to slaughter him. And there was Jeff, just sitting there like he was big stuff. It was making me sick.

?Frank,? Randy said, looking to his right to face Frank, ?I would really enjoy watching you beat the stuffing out of Jake?s Pok?mon after what he did to me back in the parking lot. Could you do that for me? Thanks.?

And then, Frank?s metal platform was lowered, and when it reached the bottom, he approached me. I couldn?t stand his fat face with his stupid shades on.

?Hell?o Jake K-o-s-s-a-k.? Frank giggled, ?Ready to lose right now, or would you like to do a little curtsy first??

?Go to hell, Frank.? I told him, pulling out one of my Pok?balls.

Very good! =] I love how the concept of Pokemon is weaved into everyday life. xD; I feel Randy's pain though... Bullies will never cease to exist. =/

Frank was a little freak, and there was no way I was going to lose to him. I had much better Pok?mon than he did. Randy could brag all he wanted to, it wasn?t going to help Frank?s situation.

?I want this to be a two-on-two match.? Randy told us both, ?It should be rather interesting??

?It most certainly shall.? Frank agreed with a giggle.

I knew exactly who to send out. I already had my fingers on the Pok?balls I was going to use. There would be no chance little Franky would stand a chance against my Ninetails and Jolteon. I grasped both of their Pok?balls firmly, and tossed them into the field.

And when their Pok?balls hit the ground and opened up, I already got an extremely sickening taste of what Randy could do with his stupid necklace. He made two completely different Pok?mon come out, a Bellossom and a Roselia. Not only was he putting me at a disadvantage, but he was mocking me in a really nasty way.

?What the heck!?? I shouted in disbelief, ?What happened to my Jolteon and Ninetails!??

Frank began snorting in humor uncontrollably.

?I?m sorry, Jake.? Randy said casually, looking away for a moment, ?Were you saying something??

Great, just great. I had never raised a grass-type Pok?mon in my life, and now I was going to have to handle two of them while fighting one of my worst enemies. Frank just sat there and laughed.

?Prepare to suffer, flower boy.? Frank laughed, as he threw his two Pok?balls, ?Go, Moltres and Articuno!?

And there they were. With a flash of Frank?s Pok?balls, I lay eyes on the legendary birds of fire and ice. I was ready to kill myself, knowing I was probably at the greatest type disadvantage of all time. Frank could slaughter me in no time. All he had to do now was decide how he was going to do it. I had no idea how I was going to handle this. I already knew grass-type attacks were going to do nothing.

?Heh, heh, heh.? Randy snickered, ?Let the battle begin!?

I knew at the moment the only way I was going to win was to take out them out one by one. I was starting to get a faint idea of one small, yet possible way to at least get my foot in the door on this battle.

?Moltres, protect yourself and Articuno with Light Screen,? Frank commanded, ?Articuno, attack Roselia with your Ice Beam!?

I don?t know how Moltres was able to use Light Screen on both himself and Articuno, but it certainly worked. Grass moves were going to do absolutely nothing now. In the meantime, I grimaced as I watched helpless Roselia get barraged by a wickedly cold Ice Beam. I could feel the chill myself, and I was twenty feet away.

?Man, this is going to be a piece of cake.? Frank smiled, thinking he had it in the bag.

?This isn?t over yet, you idiot.? I said to Frank.

And then, an incredibly brilliant idea came to my mind. I had to do it now, or there was no way I was going to win?

Roselia had been badly hit, but she wasn?t about to call it quits right now. And now that Moltres and Articuno were protected by Light Screen, Special attacks were completely out of the question. At that moment, I had come up with an idea, and I was going to need to take out Moltres first if I wanted it to work right?

?Bellossom, use your Sleep Powder attack!? I declared.

Bellossom then immediately sprayed both of Frank?s Pok?mon with a cloud of Sleep Powder. Frank?s face changed from excited to panicky the moment both Moltres and Articuno landed on the gray battlefield fast asleep. I knew it wasn?t going to last forever, so I had to act quickly.

?Roselia, Sludge Bomb attack on Moltres, now!? I shouted.

And a moment later, Roselia looked to Moltres and blasted him with a helping of thick, poisonous sludge. Moltres?s type-alignments and Light Screen weren?t going to help him here.

?Come on you fools, wake up!? Frank shouted, ?We don?t have time for this!?

I needed to have Moltres taken out, and now. I wasn?t going to wait any longer?

?Bellossom, use your Hyper Beam on Moltres, Roselia, use Sunny Day.? I commanded the both of them.

Suddenly, the night sky that was above us quickly faded, and almost a second later, it looked like it was in the middle of the afternoon. The bright sun had returned, and its light poured into the stadium. Meanwhile, Bellossom focused her attention on Moltres, and a moment later, Moltres was hit directly with a devastating Hyper Beam. Moltres took a serious beating, but to my dismay, he wasn?t out yet.

?Sunny Day?? Frank laughed, ?What, do you want Moltres to roast your Pok?mon even faster now!??

True, Sunny Day was going to make Moltres?s fire attacks even worse, but that wasn?t going to help Frank with Moltres still sleeping. However, things were about to change. While Moltres was still sleeping, Articuno had woken up. Frank wanted to make sure he wasn?t going to screw up.

?Articuno, Arial Ace attack on Roselia.? Frank commanded, with a smile on his face.

And Articuno didn?t even need to blink before taking flight and blasting at Roselia at mach speed. I heard a very nasty slash sound, and only a second later, Articuno had returned to his position. Roselia was hanging on a string.

?Roselia, use another Sludge Bomb attack against Moltres!? I shouted.

While Bellossom was recharging from the Hyper Beam attack, Roselia was using her last bit of strength to attack Moltres with another Sludge Bomb attack. The already beat up Moltres had received another helping of sludge, and then, it was all over for Moltres. He had fainted?

?WHAT!?? Frank shouted in fury, ?I DON?T BELIEVE THIS!!!?

?You?re going down Frank.? I told him, ?Very painfully.?

Frank returned Moltres to his Pok?ball, and Frank was in an intense rage. I thought he was going to explode.

?Blizzard attack, Articuno.? Frank growled, ?NOW!!!?

And not a second too soon, the entire stadium was frost-blasted with icy, chilling snow. Both Bellossom and Roselia took a serious beating. After the harsh blizzard had passed away, Roselia had dropped on the ground. However, Bellossom still managed to hang in there. I couldn?t have expected Roselia to last through that attack. Frank began to snicker now that Roselia had been taken out. Without getting angry, I simply returned Roselia to her Pok?ball, knowing I hadn?t lost yet.

?You are so going to suffer.? Frank sneered, ?If you think your pathetic Bellossom is going to win against an Articuno, you?re so dead wrong.?

?This isn?t over yet, Frank.? I told him, ?And I have no intention of losing to you.?

I needed more time. Another attack like that and Bellossom wasn?t going to make it.

?Sleep Powder on Articuno, now, Bellossom!? I shouted.

Articuno was sprayed with another helping of Sleep Powder, but to my dismay, it didn?t work this time. Somehow, he managed to resist the attack.

?Let?s finish this Articuno.? Frank said with glee after my attack had missed, ?Aerial Ace on Bellossom for the win??

Before I could say another word, Bellossom was slashed with Articuno?s Arial Ace attack. I shut my eyes, thinking Bellossom wasn?t going to make it. But, to my surprise, Bellossom managed to survive, but she just barely had enough energy to continue the fight. And worst of all, I hadn?t even manage to inflict one attack on Articuno yet. But, I still had on resource left I could rely on.

?Use your Moonlight, Bellossom.? I told her, ?We aren?t about to lose now.?

And then, Bellossom summoned the moon, and the light from both the moon and the sun completely restored her energy. Bellossom was back in action for now.

?You?re only delaying the inevitable, Jake.? Frank sneered, ?There is no way for you to win! Don?t you realize that by now!??

?Shut up, Frank.? I told him, ?I?m not about to let a freak like you win against me.?

Frank was now going for an all or nothing attack. He looked at Articuno, and begun to smile.

?Let?s crush Jake?s pathetic Pok?mon with another Blizzard attack!? Frank shouted, ?Turn that Bellossom into a popsicle!?

And again, Articuno let loose a devastating Blizzard attack, and I was blinded by the snow for a short time. But when I looked back up, Frank?s reckless attack had actually completely missed Bellossom. Frank wasn?t too happy about that. But right now, I had to give Sleep Powder one more try.

?Sleep Powder attack, Bellossom!? I shouted.

And this time, when Articuno was engulfed by the powder, he immediately fell asleep. Now was my chance to do some serious damage.

?Sludge Bomb attack on Articuno!? I commanded Bellossom.

And then, Articuno was blasted by a vicious helping of poisonous sludge. Articuno couldn?t stop the attack, but unfortunately, the attack had woken him up. Articuno was back in action.

?Ice Beam, Articuno!? Frank commanded, pointing right at Bellossom.

And at that moment, Bellossom took the nastiest Ice Beam ever, right in her weak spot. Bellossom tumbled on her side, but she still managed to hang in there. By now, the sunlight from the Sunny Day had worn off, and Moonlight alone wasn?t going to heal Bellossom enough. I had almost run out of choices for one last final attack, but then, worthless little Randy interrupted my concentration.

?You know Jake, Bellossom has only one chance left to attack.? Randy sneered, ?And Articuno still has plenty of health left. Your Sleep Powder isn?t going to work anymore. Articuno?s already gotten used to it.?

?Shut up, Randy.? I growled at him, ?I haven?t lost yet.?

?But you?re about to.? Randy continued, ?But I hope when you finally lose, you won?t have any hard feelings. I hope you?ll just see the truth and realize that you just naturally suck at Pok?mon training.?

I was getting angry. How could Randy feel I had already lost? But, on the other hand, it was getting desperate. Another Sludge Bomb wasn?t going to do enough damage.

?And after you lose,? Randy said to me with a snicker, ?You?ll see that there will be no escape from my world. There will be no hope for you to return to normal, but that?s alright. Bellossom still really loves you anyway.?

And Frank started snickering uncontrollably. He thought it was actually seriously funny that Bellossom and I actually looked somewhat alike.

?Well you know what, Randy?? I told him, now finding a way to finish this, ?As much as I hate your guts, I certainly hope you?re right.?

I then looked to Bellossom, who had this one chance to finish off Articuno.

?Return attack, Bellossom!? I shouted.

And at that last moment, Bellossom got up and charged right after Articuno. Frank looked in horror as Bellossom violently slammed into Articuno, dealing a serious amount of damage. When the dust had cleared, Articuno was on the gray battleground with its wings spread out. He had been defeated?

Chapter 8
Turning Back​

Frank looked at Articuno like the whole thing hadn?t happened. He shook his head in disbelief, still unable to figure out why he lost.

?NOOOO!!!!? Frank shouted in horrible anger, ?This isn?t possible!!!?

?Man, do you suck Frank.? I told him, nearly laughing, ?You couldn?t even beat me while you were cheating. You couldn?t even beat me when you had the greatest advantage possible.?

Frank?s face turned bright red. He looked ready to explode.

?I hate you!? Frank shouted loudly, ?You should have lost!?

?Should have?? I asked Frank, ?Man, you just get more amusing by the minute.?

?Nobody wants to hear stupid comments for your face, Jake!? Frank squealed.

And then, Randy stood up like he thought he was a hero. He looked down at the two of us like we were his subjects. Just the look at his face with his phony shades was driving me insane.

?Shut up, both of you!? Randy shouted menacingly, ?Frank, you highly disappoint me. In fact, I?d go as far as saying you couldn?t get much worse when it comes to training Pok?mon.?

?WHAT!?? Frank shouted in disbelief, ?I thought we were friends, Randy!?

?And I thought you could handle the responsibility of authority, Frank.? Randy said with a cold voice, ?But for now, farewell Frank, and I hope we don?t meet again.?

And then, Frank watched in horror as Randy waved his hand, and the image of Frank suddenly vaporized. I didn?t know what happened to Frank, and I certainly didn?t want to find out.

?Well, that?s perfectly fine with me.? Jeff said, breaking his silence, ?After all, I didn?t have much respect for him anyway.?

Nice guy. What better way to treat your friends than to utterly betray them? But then again, maybe it took sheer discovery for Randy to realize that Frank was just a piece of dirt anyway.

?Enough Jeff,? Randy demanded, ?Right now, I want to see our best friend Alex in complete shame. And I know you have a least half a brain to make it possible Jeff. I want to see their shame, and NOW!?

?Don?t worry Randy.? Jeff responded with confidence, ?We?re taking Alex out for good.?

?That?s what you think.? Alex responded, ?I?ve only just begun to fight!?

And then, on that gray field, the two of them stood ready for the very nasty battle that was about to unfold. I was hoping Alex was already prepared to deal with Randy?s nasty and unexpected cheating?

It was on those gray battlegrounds that Alex and Jeff had exchanged stares. Alex had beaten Jeff before, and now the only thing Jeff wanted was to win and seek revenge. Even with all that had happened to us, Alex wasn?t about to lose because of humiliation. It wasn?t like Alex to feel humiliated, even as a giant butterfly. I could even bet that Alex could lose to Jeff, and he still wouldn?t care. After all, Randy certainly wasn?t playing according to the rules.

?I will be savoring the moment you finally lose, Alex.? Jeff told him, ?Jake might have gotten past Frank, but then again, how much of an accomplishment is that!??

?That doesn?t matter to me, Jeff.? Alex told him, ?This is between you and me, and you and me only. Hear that Randy??

But Randy looked away like he didn?t hear anything. I could just smell another trick in the air, and it was making me sick.

?Get ready for your worst nightmare, Alex.? Jeff said, pulling out two of his Pok?balls, ?Go, Ho-oh and Entei!?

Ugh. I couldn?t believe my eyes when I saw Ho-oh, the rainbow bird of complete fiery destruction and Entei, another legendary Pok?mon of fire. They both glared menacingly at Alex, but Alex wasn?t going to let a scary face stop him.

But then again, when he pulled out two of his Pok?balls, I could already see the hesitation. Alex?s Pok?mon were going to have no defense under the power Randy?s Quista necklace. Now, it was up to Randy to decide what Pok?mon were going to come out of Alex?s Pok?balls. And as sad as it sounded, I could already guess which two?

Alex threw his two Pok?balls, not even declaring who he had selected. And then to his disgust and Jeff?s delight, the two Pok?mon Alex was going to be stuck using were a Butterfree and a Beautifly. As if the situation I had just experienced couldn?t get any worse, Alex?s example clearly showed it could.

?What the heck is the matter with you, Randy!?? Alex shouted, knowing he was the one responsible, ?Can?t you keep your butt out of this!??

?Keep going Alex.? Randy laughed, ?I love to watch you squirm.?

The three of us were furious. How could Jeff even see this as a true Pok?mon battle? Butterfree and Beautifly were NOT Alex?s Pok?mon, and I knew for sure he wouldn?t use them in a million years. But now he had no choice. It was either going to be a severe struggle to win fighting with the two of them, or just plain losing altogether. This truly was Pok?mon battling at its worst.

?As always?? Randy said, nearly laughing as he brushed his hair, ?Let the mayhem begin??

?Thank you, your highness.? Jeff remarked, ?This is for Ampharos and Espeon. Ho-oh, Sacred Fire attack on Butterfree. Entei, burn Beautifly to a crisp with your Flamethrower attack!?

Merciless little freak. He was going to go as far as seeing that Alex wouldn?t even get a single turn before it was all over with. Butterfree could only wait as an enormous rush of flames nearly consumed it alive, leaving it with only a fragment of energy left. Beautifly took a similar beating, even though it still in better condition than Butterfree. Now, Alex was reduced to all or nothing attacks even on his first round.

?The two of you are cowards.? Alex told them both, ?You can?t even battle for real, that?s how poor you are!?

?Alex,? Randy said, snickering again, ?This IS for real. My world is real now, and you have to accept it or you have to accept losing. There is no other way around.?

There was nothing Alex could do but continue. If he really was going to lose, at least he would lose honorably. To the three of us, none of this was real. And the only thing that needed to be done to return Randy to the worthless little punk he was before was to swipe that necklace right off his neck. Unfortunately, we couldn?t even get near it.

Alex?s two butterfly Pok?mon were badly bruised, but they didn?t give up yet, and neither did Alex. The last thing Alex wanted to do was give Jeff the satisfaction of winning when he clearly didn?t deserve it. However, he was going to need a little luck.

?Butterfree, use your Stun Spore attack,? Alex said firmly, ?Beautifly, use Sleep Powder.?

Alex left no holes in the system. Both of them were going to be inflicted with at least something to slow them down. Ho-oh had fallen asleep and Entei was paralyzed. Now was Alex?s chance. Entei?s speed had drastically decreased, and Ho-oh was left snoozing.

Then, Alex ordered both of his Pok?mon to use Morning Sun to recover the damage that had been done. Ho-oh was still asleep, but Entei was going to get another chance to strike.

?Flamethrower on Butterfree!? Jeff shouted loudly.

And after a violent rush of flames had blown from Entei?s mouth and smothered Butterfree, the damage had gotten worse. I would have hated to say it, but Alex was going to have to go kamikaze if he wanted a chance to win. He was just going to have to forget about the damage that had been done.

?Butterfree, Psychic attack on Entei!? Alex shouted.

Entei was hit dead on as a blue and white flash had covered his body. However, it certainly wasn?t enough to slow him down at all.

And then, Ho-oh had woken up, and Jeff couldn?t have been happier. After rubbing his hands and snickering, he prepared to strike.

?Ho-oh, Sacred Fire on Butterfree.? Jeff ordered, ?Entei, use Fire Blast on Beautifly.?

And then, the unimaginable happened. Butterfree had been stormed with flames, and I just couldn?t watch. Butterfree had been burned to oblivion, and it couldn?t handle anymore. Meanwhile, Beautifly had been struck with the flaming asterisk symbol, and embers were thrown in all directions. When the fire had cleared, both of Alex?s Pok?mon had been eliminated.

As bad as it was, I wasn?t surprised. Alex had an even worse disadvantage than me. Butterfree and Beautifly just didn?t compare to the power of Ho-oh and Entei. I don?t think he could have possibly won that disgusting and dishonorable match?

?Well, that certainly was fun.? Jeff smiled, ?Now get out of here. We don?t have patience for losers like you.?

?There?s no way anyone could have won that!? Alex shouted at Jeff, ?That wasn?t a real match!?

But, then a wave of silence had kept them both quiet. Randy had stood up and looked at the three of us. I was really getting tired of these antics.

?That certainly was a real match.? Randy told Alex, acting like he knew everything on the planet, ?And you lost.?

?Randy, I?m tired as hell living here!? Alex shouted angrily, ?You and your cheating. Is this the only possible way you can win a Pok?mon match!??

Randy found that rather insulting. He looked at Alex, and couldn?t even feel pity for him.

?Jeff, thank you for your time.? Randy told him, ?But now I?d like you to move aside.?

?Are you kidding?? Jeff asked in shock, ?The rules are that if they don?t win against me, they have to turn around and get out of here. Losers don?t belong here.?

?I want to battle the three of them myself.? Randy told Jeff, ?I?ve been waiting to beat them for a long time??

I was getting sick of this trash. How could Randy feel like he was a hero when the only thing that was keeping us bound here and keeping Randy in power was a single stupid necklace? Plus on top of everything else, I hated being tossed around like a piece of dirt when it was really us who were more powerful than Randy.

?I want to crush you.? Randy said with a smile, ?Your efforts will be so hopeless here.?

And out of all the sickness I was feeling, I couldn?t help but protest against it.

?You know what Randy?? I asked him, ?You?re probably right. We don?t stand a chance against your necklace.?

?It?s me who you?re going to lose against Kossak.? Randy smiled.

?No.? I told Randy firmly, ?It?s your necklace. If we fail to beat your Pok?mon, then we lose to your necklace, but not you.?

Randy was getting furious, but the truth was getting to him. I didn?t want him to start a battle thinking it was through his own power that he was going to win against us. I was on a roll.

?Battle me, you fools!? Randy shouted.

?No Randy, I don?t feel like losing to Quista today.? I told him, ?Can?t you see you?re hopeless without your stupid necklace!??

He looked at me with a dark stare. He knew the truth, he just didn?t want to accept it. But one thing was for sure, he wasn?t going to take it off. That was the last thing he was going to do.

?If you?re not going to fight me, then I want you out of my face.? Randy told us.

Even though we had come here with a strong urge to defeat Randy and get out of here, I was getting a feeling that unless we found someway to block Randy?s power, there was no way we were going to win. He already screwed up my Ninetails and my Jolteon. I didn?t feel like making the damage any worse.

?Fine Randy.? I said to him, ?Then we?re leaving.?

Immediately, Alex and David looked at me like I had lost it. They didn?t see that we didn?t stand a chance against Randy at the moment.

?Jake, are you crazy?? Alex asked me, ?We have to beat him so we can get out of here!?

?Remember what Black and Depression told us?? I whispered to him, ?There?s no way we can beat him. And it?s better if we turn down his offer than lose to him. If we lose to him, then he might want to stay here forever.?

?Ugh, I didn?t think of that.? David said with disgust.

Alex was annoyed, thinking we would only need to stay here for only a few more moments. In truth, so was I, but I didn?t want to risk losing to Randy. We would have to find a way to block his power so he couldn?t cheat against us. It was the only way.

And as much as it pained us, we then turned around and began to walk out of that giant stadium. Randy was truly furious, but we couldn?t afford for him to be in absolute glee. We would lose everything?

I thought I would post another chapter on the eve of Christmas Eve. Enjoy, and have a merry Christmas.

Chapter 9
The Separation​

It was a long walk to get out of that giant stadium. Longer than it should have been. I had no idea how long we were going to have to wait now, but it already began to feel like ages. We were all losing our patience. Some of us more than others?

?Well, that went swell.? David said sarcastically, ?Just what do you expect to do now, Jake??

I was silent. I really didn?t know. I wanted a solution as much as David did but there wasn?t one to be found. Still, David was looking at me like I made the worst choice possible.

?Look, maybe we?ll come across a solution.? I told him, ?Randy can?t be invincible, not even in his own world.?

?Well hotshot,? David said to me, looking at me with a cold stare, ?Why didn?t we battle him? At least we could have given a try you know.?

?David,? I said to him, ?If we lost to Randy, we might just be suffering a blow we might never recover from, understand? It could mean being stuck here forever.?

David still looked at me like I was crazy. He just wasn?t understanding anything.

?Maybe not.? David said in a hopeful tone, ?Look, it?s not for certain Randy would want to stay here even if we do lose to him. Sooner or later he?s going to get sick of his own world.?

?Yeah David,? Alex said to him, ?Not soon enough for me. Randy doesn?t want to ever leave this place. If he gets bored with it, all he has to do is change the scenery to fit his desires. I really don?t feel like living to what Randy desires.?

David still didn?t care. Obviously he wasn?t heeding the warnings that Black and Depression had given to him. Still, he felt there was some hope.

?I?m not going to sit here hoping we just happen to bump into a solution.? David said with annoyance, ?I?ll battle Randy right now, and I don?t care if it?s all or nothing.?

?Go ahead then, David.? Alex told him, ?We?ll see you later.?

And not a second later, David turned right back around and headed back into the stadium. I knew there was no way he could win. If he couldn?t beat Caska, he sure wasn?t going to beat Randy. I didn?t want to stick around to find out.

?Come on.? I told Alex, ?Let?s get out of here.?

?Where?? Alex asked me, ?You sure don?t seem to have a plan here, Jake. We?re not going to find a way out of here by wandering around mindlessly.?

?Yeah,? I said to Alex seriously, ?But we?re not going to find anything by staying around here either. There?s nothing for us here.?

Alex really didn?t seem to agree. He just looked away and turned back at the stadium.

?Look,? Alex told me, ?I know you?re right about us not being able to win against Randy and all, but I think we could sure do better than just walking around. Maybe we can find something here instead. We can just??

?Fine Alex.? I told him, ?You can stay here and see what you can find, but I think our solution lies elsewhere. To me, this place seems like nothing but emptiness.?

And that was where we split up. I didn?t feel right by leaving Alex and David behind, but I didn?t feel right about staying in this deserted city. After I said goodbye to Alex, I left them all behind, still having a sliver of hope in me that I would at least draw closer to finding the solution to all our problems.

I had hoped to find a way out of this forsaken place, even while I was walking away from the very source that could bring me back home. But even then, maybe Alex and David were right. How was I supposed to find the key to our escape by aimless walking? Where would I be going after all?

I felt like I was slowing going insane. I had been walking for nearly three days now, which seemed so much longer when I was constantly burdened by endless thoughts. Not only that, but the only thing I could consume was water. What a nightmare. I wasn?t even human anymore?

Those endless plains seemed like a desert. By now I was too far away to turn back, and even if I could, what was the point? Could I possibly hope to accomplish the impossible? Nothing would have changed from before, only my morale would be diminished.

But on the evening of the third day, everything had changed.

Long and behold, I had come across a two-story brick building within the shadow of a nearby, grassy hill. I didn?t care if death itself was inside, I was ready to cope with anything right now. I approached the small brick building, opened the door, and stepped inside the dimly lit room.

Inside seemed to be what appeared to be a small office, with a large desk, shelves with books and a carpeted floor. I shut the door and the lights became brighter, revealing a middle-aged man in a business suit sitting in the squishy wheeled chair behind the desk. He looked up at me and crossed his arms. He had a serious face and dark black hair.

?I?ve been expecting you, Jake Kossak.? He had said.

?How do you know me?? I asked him.

He crossed his legs and sat back in his chair as he fiddled with a pen in his hand. I can already tell he knew exactly who I was.

?I?m Randy?s hatred, Jake.? He had told me, ?The name is Coldblood. I am one of the strongest forces of Randy?s mind. Because of me, his anger, sorrow, and depression exist in their fullest form. And you, Jake Kossak, are my most valuable ally.?

I was silent. I sure didn?t feel like it at the time. I felt more like a loser that was a waste of space.

?Don?t feel that way.? He told me, reading my expression, ?I know how you feel. For the last few days you have been feeling nothing but misery. I can easily take that away.?

?How?? I asked him.

But, he never answered my question, and I never figured it out on my own. He snapped his fingers, and then I felt amazing relief. When I looked down, the flowers were gone. Everything was gone, and I was back in my normal clothing again. But before I could even thank him, he spoke again.

?Jake, someone needs to take Randy out of business, and that someone is you.? Coldblood said to me firmly.

?Not while he still has his stupid necklace.? I told him, hoping I didn?t sound like a whiner.

?That?s all about to change?? He said to me.

I had heard this before, and it didn?t work in the past. Black and Depression had attempted to help us before, and it still didn?t work. What could Coldblood do that they couldn?t?

?Coldblood, Randy destroyed our protection, and he changed my Jolteon and my Ninetails into a Bellossom and a Roselia.? I said to him.

Coldblood was silent. It almost seemed like? he had been waiting for me to bring this up.

?Give me your Pok?mon.? He told me, not giving me a clue as to what he was going to do with them.

What could I have done? I had nothing to lose anymore. I had no choice now but to trust him, even if it was dealing with a very dark side of Randy.

He laid out my Pok?balls on the desk, one by one. He placed his hand on one of them, and the whole Pok?ball began to glow white. When the white glow died down, he moved to the next. He had done it to all of them, and I just stood there just wondering what he was doing to my Pok?mon.

?What did you just do to them?? I asked Coldblood.

?There.? He told me, ?Now they?re the same level as Randy?s, the highest level possible. Your Jolteon and Ninetails are completely back to normal.?

While that certainly made things easier, I had remembered Black telling me Randy?s Quista necklace would allow him to use any attack Randy?s whacked imagination could come up with. And I knew the necklace Black had given us had done nothing.

?What I?m about to offer you is something completely different.? Coldblood told me. I could swear this guy was reading my mind.

?How so?? I asked him.

?Randy can?t destroy something he can?t see.? He said to me, ?You need to have an innate power that Randy can?t touch. I?m just the person who can give you that, so you can attack Randy?s Pok?mon with whatever you can think of. Only then will you be put on the same level as him.?

I was sure hoping this wasn?t anything like intensive surgery. But even if it was, I had no other choice. I didn?t want to lose to Randy now.

?It only takes about a day.? Coldblood told me, ?You go to sleep, and a day later, you?ll have all the power you?ll need to fight Randy. But be warned, it isn?t half as powerful as Randy?s necklace, which can do much more than Randy?s attacks a reality. There are some powers that Randy doesn?t even know of yet.?

And so, he took me to a back room where the only thing in the blank, white room was a single, plain bed. He told me to simply go to sleep, and everything would be done as soon as I woke up. I knew at that moment I was ready to do anything.

Chapter 10
The New Dawn​

Contrary to my first belief, I woke up feeling absolutely no different from before. At that moment, I had already begun to believe that perhaps Coldblood had decided not to go through with this. It was possible. Maybe he had decided he liked his new physical form and by giving me the power to fight Randy evenly might result in his dissatisfaction.

?Very painless, wasn?t it?? He asked me as he stepped into the room.

?I don?t even feel anything.? I told him.

?That?s good, because you shouldn?t be.? Coldblood told me, ?If you did, then something would have been wrong.?

Outstanding. Now all he needed to do was tell me how I needed to get it to work. At first, I could visualize just thinking up an attack, ordering which Pok?mon to attack with, and that would be it. But, it wasn?t as easy as I thought.

?First off,? Coldblood told me, ?Randy makes it look easy. He comes up with an attack in his head, sends it to one of his Pok?mon in a psychic decoded message, and because he wants to, the Pok?mon he sends it to understands it, and immediately attacks with Randy?s desired move.?

?It can?t be that easy?? I remarked in disbelief.

?But it is.? Coldblood said firmly, ?Or to him, at least. You?ll definitely need to focus more on what your Pok?mon are thinking. You need to make them realize that in Randy?s world, your imagination is probably the most powerful weapon you can wield, and as long as they can listen to you, you and they can make it possible.?

This was crazy. I couldn?t believe Randy had even come up with such a thing. Making up your own Pok?mon attacks seemed like a pretty difficult task, and I didn?t even know where to get started. It seemed like the biggest cheating tool of all time in the history of Pok?mon battling.

And I was already certain that Randy had done this numerous times. Right now, his simple imagination had become a god-like power. No wonder he was so keen into wanting to battle us. He would wipe the floor with us in no time. It was probably what he was itching to do all this time. All he had to do was see my face, and he would let out his absolute worst.

Obviously, he was expecting me to show up again to battle him. He would probably be enraged that I was no longer the flower princess precious that he expected me to be. I was thinking it would probably be a far better idea to go in disguise than show my face to his.

?Absolutely.? Coldblood told me, reading my mind again, ?And I already have something in mind.?

Coldblood had already helped me out immensely. Right now, I was all ears for another good idea of his. I had a feeling it would be something completely perfect. I couldn?t wait to see what Coldblood had come up with.

?I had seen what Randy had done to you.? Coldblood said, ?He wanted you to feel demoralized and pathetic the moment you stepped up to battle him.?

Definitely sounded familiar. I felt embarrassed as hell when I was in that stadium, and I?m sure that wouldn?t have changed one bit if I were to do it again. I had a feeling Coldblood knew exactly how to turn the tables around in my favor.

?I know of a way you can make Randy feel demoralized, disguise yourself, and encode your commands to your Pok?mon, and Randy won?t have a single idea what you just said.? Coldblood said with a hint of delight in his tone.

PERFECT!!! I loved the idea! As if Randy didn?t have enough to worry about now, he was just about to see something that was going to wet his pants even more. If Randy couldn?t understand the commands I was giving to my Pok?mon, and they were going to be made-up attacks just like his, he was going to be in deep trouble.

?So what is it already!?? I shouted, eagerly waiting for Coldblood to reveal his outstanding plan.

?I want you to disguise yourself as the one Pok?mon Randy has hungrily thirsted for all the years of his life, but has been unable to capture. Seeing this Pok?mon will surely bring back some rather bitter memories that Randy will not want to be reminded of. On top of that, Randy will not know it?s really you. And third, your Pok?mon will understand your commands, but Randy won?t.?

Well, that certainly fit the criteria but it certainly wasn?t what I expected. I had never remembered Randy so desperately wanting a single Pok?mon that he couldn?t get. I tried to imagine what Pok?mon it would be, but nothing came to mind.

And then, I knew that Coldblood had figured out what I was thinking. He was just about to tell me everything?

It was then that Coldblood had told me about Randy?s childhood, and how even as a little kid there was nothing more he wanted than this one Pok?mon. Coldblood told me he asked for it every single birthday and Christmas of his entire life but was left disappointed every time. He also told me how he had failed to capture it three times. At that point, I think I would have been frustrated myself.

?For the longest time, Randy had desperately desired a Pikachu above all other Pok?mon. Even at this time, Randy still wants a Pikachu, but his mind is possessed by power and his own idea of what his personal image should be, and therefore he only has the best Pok?mon possible.?

Fantastic. Now Coldblood wanted me to square off against Randy as a Pikachu? Things were really starting to get looney now. I had only been normal for a few hours. Couldn?t I at least have a few moments to spend as myself?

?Randy always loved giving his Pok?mon nicknames.? Coldblood recalled, ?He called his Growlithe ?Striker,? his Nidoran ?Spike,? his Pidgey ?Storm Wind? and his Caterpie ?Enigma?. He never called his Pok?mon by their nicknames while you three were around because he was afraid you would make fun of them.?

Yeah, we probably would, even though for once I personally didn?t feel they were that bad, though his Pok?mon were truly weak and probably undeserving of such names.

?If he had caught a Pikachu, he would have named it ?Juno.?? Coldblood told me, ?Of course in Randy?s world, there is such a Pikachu, but he lives too far underground and too far away to make any use of. Instead, you will take Juno?s place and confront Randy. You will pretend you?re the Pok?mon that Randy craves so desperately.?

It was a bold move to fight Randy as something he truly wanted and desired. Randy would surely hold back some of his power, but I certainly wouldn?t. It would certainly make my day if Randy lost to me just because he didn?t want to hurt the feelings of a Pikachu he really wanted. I loved Coldblood?s whole plan. It was cleverly delicious.

?Very well then, Coldblood.? I told him, ?I?ll take Juno?s position and confront Randy.?

?It isn?t that easy.? Coldblood warned me, ?Once you become Juno, the real Juno will disappear, and you?ll be stuck as him until you find a way to restore the world back to normal again. Unless Randy forgets about Juno, you?ll have to take his role from here on in, and don?t expect Randy to just completely forget about something he?s been desiring his entire life.?

Good point, but I really didn?t care. The plan was too good to let go, and I had to act upon it. It was definitely worth the risk, even if it meant staying a Pikachu for the rest of my life. I wanted to be free of Randy?s mind, and I wanted it at any cost.

?Let?s go then.? I told Coldblood firmly, ?I?ve made up my mind.?

?Very well.? Coldblood said as he snapped his fingers.

Instantly, I felt like I was falling but I never hit the ground. Everything in the room became huge, as if I was lying on the floor. When it all stopped growing huge, I looked up and I realized now I was only a few inches more than a foot off the ground. I couldn?t help but look at my hands. Sure enough, they were small and yellow with tiny fingers. I had become a Pikachu all right.

Then, Coldblood handed me the belt with my Pok?balls, only now they were huge. It was like using a bungee cord to tie basketballs around my waist. And I couldn?t help but think that when I pressed the button the prep the Pok?ball for use, it would grow to the size of a giant beach ball. I quickly realized why Pok?mon trainers that were Pok?mon themselves were extremely few in number.

?You must be careful.? Coldblood warned me, ?Anyone that loses to Randy immediately becomes his servant. That?s exactly why happened to Alex and David. David had lost badly against Randy, and after Alex heard the news, he immediately challenged Randy only to fail. If you lose as well, there will be nothing to help bring the three of you back to the real world. Most likely, if you lose to Randy, you?ll be stuck as his favorite Pok?mon to train and care for. I?m sure that?s not what you want.?

Hell no. In fact that was probably the last thing I wanted. This was truly all or nothing, and there was no other way about it. I had to win, I had no choice. It hurt to know that now, David and Alex were Randy?s slaves, the one thing in the world they didn?t want.

?Normally, you can?t fight Randy whenever you want to.? Coldblood told me, ?There will be a tournament held in only a few days, and the winner of the final round will challenge Randy with the promise of a large cash prize if they win. If you were still were Jake Kossak, you could challenge Randy whenever you wanted to, but now is different. You don?t want to give Randy any hint that you?re Jake in disguise.?

Of course I didn?t care about the cash. I just wanted to get out of here.

?Of course, no one has ever won this tournament other than Randy.? Coldblood said, ?That?s why Randy now has at least fifty slaves. You have to be the one to fight Randy in the final round, and you have to be the one who wins. I can only wish you the best of luck from here on in.?

There was only one thing I could think of as I walked out that door and bid him farewell. Thank God for Coldblood. I have no idea what I would have done without him?