Yeah. When I wrote it, I was going off of memory, and the difference has only now occurred to me.

Haha at least now you could change it's functions if you needed to... it isn't the GTS afterall it could 'theoretically' do anything.

It does function a little differently. This will be played upon and explained in the plot, but just so you know it's purpose, it's one of several centers linked together all over the world that administrate the transportation of Pokemon through the network.

Sorry about the delay. Totally forgot thanks to World of Warcraft which my mate got me into.

----

There was a light rustling in the bushes moments after Aaron fled, and when Batoy turned to look, a dainty paw stepped forward. Gracefully, a lavender creature slid through the foliage, a small red gem on its forehead glowing faintly. Its forked tail quivered lightly as it gazed at Batoy and Jet. ~Esp…~ it said lightly before sitting on its haunches. Batoy looked at the Espeon with confusion and then towards the direction Aaron had run off too. Had this been the thing that spooked him?

“Hey, girl, what’re you doing out here?” Batoy said tentatively, approaching the Espeon slowly and carefully, watching his own motions and making sure they weren’t threatening. The Espeon merely watched his actions without making a sound, then swiftly stood and turned, looking expectantly at the boy over her shoulder. ~Quil…~ Jet chirped, glaring at the Espeon, but Batoy scooped the Quilava up into his arms. “Don’t scare it away, Jet,” he said softly, and the Quilava snorted and looked away.

“Do you want us to follow you?” ~Peon…~ the lavender feline purred before walking off, and Batoy started after her. ~Quil… Quilava~ Jet said in protest, nuzzling the back of Batoy’s neck, but the boy only scratched behind his ears. “Don’t worry, Jet, everything’s gonna be alright. It’s just an Espeon.” Jet gave a defeated sigh and fell silent again, catching a single glint in the Espeon’s eye when she turned to watch them. He glared back at her.

The three trudged through the forest for several minutes, and Batoy grew curious. “Hey, girl… where’re you taking us?” he asked softly, but though he was trying to be non-confrontational, the Espeon suddenly darted ahead, moving with incredible speed and flexibility. Batoy started for just a second before running after her. “Hey, don’t run off! Please, slow down!” But the Espeon continued and eventually left their sight, and Batoy came to a panting halt. He set Jet down on the ground and tried to catch his breath. “I… wonder what I said to make her run….”

Jet flicked his ear and snorted in annoyance, but turned his head in the direction the Espeon had gone. He stood on his hind legs, his sharp red eyes peering. ~Lava, Quilava!~ he chirped, pointing ahead, and he began to trot in that direction on all fours again. Batoy followed after him. It wasn’t long until the forest began to thin and Batoy could hear the sounds of civilization. First there were only nondescript warehouses, abandoned from the looks of things, and locked up with heavy chains and bolts, rusted with exposure. These warehouses slowly faded away as Batoy reached the older shops, struggling for business with every other building falling into disrepair. The boy grimaced. Brand would have chosen a place like this to take up residence…

The Quilava continued to move forward, his nose sniffing the ground, following the scent of the vanished Espeon. The two moved on an erratic course, not so complex that Jet lost the scent, but enough to slow them down considerably. There was more than a considerable amount of backtracking, and Jet’s back smoldered with irritation. He glanced back towards Batoy, whose eyes were looking everywhere but towards him, sighed, and continued. He missed the good days.

“I dunno, Jet,” Batoy mused to himself, looking up at the sky. Tiny clouds dotted the blue like the scales on a mackerel. By the time the day was done, it would probably be raining again. He sighed. “Maybe we should give up on following that thing and just turn that microchip in.” ~Quil?~ Jet looked up, hardly able to contain his approval of that idea. ~Lava, Quilava!~ he chipped, nodding his head enthusiastically.

Batoy sighed. Jet was too enthusiastic about giving up the search. He didn’t want to stop; there was something he could feel. He just had to find that psychic Pokemon. His gut churned; it spoke loudly. If he could find that psychic Pokemon and go wherever it was she wanted him to go, then something would happen. Something good. He couldn’t just give up right now. He glanced around, hopelessly hoping that he could see something, anything, that would keep them going forward. He’d made almost a full circle without seeing anything, only to stop and peer. Sitting patiently in an alley not 20 meters away was the lavender cat, her split tail waving like a metronome. She gazed at him before standing and trotting down the alley.

“H-hey, there she is, Jet!” Batoy said excitedly and began to jog after the cat. Jet looked around confused then let out a frustrated chip before following the boy. So close, only for a stupid cat to take them off course again. The two followed the Espeon through the alley, a fairly wide backroad between two ivy-covered buildings, until it came to a rest in an open plaza. There were several people walking around now, but only a few paid them any attention. It was a city with a gym in it; Pokemon trainers were a common sight.

“Eifi!”

The voice was sudden and unexpected, and Batoy turned to see a boy with brown shorts and a blue apron approaching them. He rushed towards the Espeon and wrapped his arms around the Pokemon. “Eifi, ya had me freakin’ worried! If Beth found out you ran away, my tail’s fired! You gotta stop doing that!” The Espeon sat there motionless and silent, but her eyes rolled in annoyance.

“Um… is that… your Espeon?” Batoy stammered, suddenly nervous. The boy seemed about two years older than him, and Batoy had hoped that he wouldn’t run into anyone at all. “I… I wasn’t trying to catch her or anything? I just thought she wanted me to follow her….”

“Huh?” The boy looked at Batoy and then Jet, shocked that he hadn’t noticed the two of them before. “Oh, really? That right, Eifi?” The Espeon didn’t move. “Well… Eifi is a psychic type… maybe she was gonna take you to my boss. She’s one of his prize Pokemon. She was like his second bred Pokemon ever.” The boy looked at Jet and back at Batoy. “Heh, looks like you guys could use some rest, too. Why don’t guys stop by? We have lots of food, and I’m sure Boss wouldn’t mind.”

“Well… we… shouldn’t,” Batoy said, looking at Jet. The Quilava looked back at him expectantly. “But… we haven’t eaten in a while… maybe… we could stop by just for a little bit…” Jet sighed and shook his head.

“Awesome! Name’s Peter, by the way. Your’s?” the boy said jovially.

“Um… Batoy…”

“Cool name. Nice to meetcha. Haven’t met a kid around my age in god knows how long. It’s just been me, Beth and the Boss. Oh, and those snobby rich guys he deals with. We don’t get normal people to visit much anymore, ‘cept when there’s a show, and I still don’t get to hang out with anyone. But it’s a cool job, getting to help raise Pokemon and whatnot. You’ll get to come see! It’s not too far away from here, just turn down this road right here. Madison.”

Batoy stayed silent as the boy continued to talk. It seemed as if he were holding it all in for a while, and now Peter was erupting. He spoke of his many important duties, how the girl Bethany was a loser, and his boss’s famed Pokemon. He spoke of many; his Roserade, his Persian, his Ampharos, but it was only when he mentioned of an Arcanine that Jet’s ears perked, and the Quilava leapt into Batoy’s arms, growling a bit.

“Whoa, boy,” Peter said grinning, holding his hands up. “Didn’t mean any offense. Your Quilava got something against Arcanines?”

Batoy shook his head. “I dunno… I’ve never seen an Arcanine in my life, and Jet’s been with me almost since he was born. He’s probably just jealous.” Batoy rubbed Jet’s head, who snorted in irritation.

“Yeah, he seems to be the rash type, anyways. A lot of fire-type Pokemon seem to hold grudges against other fire-types for some reason. Maybe my boss would know. He’s like a genius at this stuff.”

“Really? I guess that is pretty cool…” Batoy allowed himself a smile. It felt good, being around someone who didn’t want anything from him; who wasn’t trying to chase him or hurt him or fight him. He could ignore everything bad and just hang out with his new friend for a while. And all the talk about the boss’s Pokemon sparked his interest.

“So, Batoy, where’re you from? Somewhere close, or really far away?” Peter asked, still holding the Espeon in his arms.

“Um… pretty far away, actually…” Batoy said hesitantly. “I’m from Lavaridge in Hoenn…”

Peter shrugged. “Never heard of it. I never been outside Sinnoh ever in my life, but sometimes I wanna. This place is great, but I wanna see some new places. But my job takes all my time, but that’s okay! Since I get to work with the Boss, that’s good enough for me until I’m just as good as he is! I’ve never seen anyone able to handfeed a Dodrio and not get dirty at all!”

“Wow, he can do that?” Batoy was more shocked at Peter’s ignorance towards national affairs, but that was perfectly fine with him. “So… you don’t get to watch TV much or keep with the news, huh?”

“Sometimes, but that’s boring. Playing with the Pokemon is just so much more fun.”

“That’s pretty cool, Peter… your job sounds pretty fun.” Batoy looked away, pretending to be admiring the city, but he couldn’t look at the boy right then. Any job was better than what he had to do, and probably a lot safer, too. “So how long until we get to that place, huh?”

“Just about there. See that building over there?”

“The huge one with the dome? That one?”

“Yeah, that’s it!”

“Oh… wow….”

The building was quite impressive. It was a massive structure easily 15,000 square meters in size, with a dome that reached 3 stories in height. Its surface was covered by a white rubber that shimmered in the light. “That’s the facility the Boss is having built. It’s almost done, and he says he’s gonna hire a bunch of workers, but he’s gonna leave the best Pokemon under us.” They reached the building, and Batoy could see the construction on the inside; construction tape was everywhere, and at places, the floors and walls had not yet been finished, and doors had not yet been installed except in a few places. “When it opens, it’s gonna be sweet! They’re holding a show in the main dome in a few days to show it off!”

“That’s really cool, Peter,” Batoy mused. For something like this to be bought, the Pokemon had to be extraordinary. It was a wonder he’d never heard of it before. Neither Lizbeth nor anyone else had ever mentioned it. He shivered at the thought of being forced to even try to steal one of those prize Pokemon.

The two boys and two Pokemon circled around the building to come to a smaller establishment connected to the larger by a covered sidewalk. Peter held open the door, and Batoy came in to be greeted by the plentiful smells of Pokemon, feed, and other more unspeakable things. The room they were in had a warm, cheerful feeling; the walls were made out of a brown wood, there was a brown desk and chairs with a shelf along a wall, but everything was covered in Pokemon merchandise. There were breeding magazines, trainer guides, tidbits of miscellaneous information everywhere, and dolls and figurines scattered about.

“Hey, Beth, I’m back! Where are you?” Peter called out.

“Will you stop yelling?” a voice drifted out from down a hallway. “Your raucous voice is disturbing my Torchics. They’re still young and need their rest.” A few seconds later, a girl appeared, about the same age as Peter, with light purple hair and deep brown eyes that were clouded with slight annoyance. “You found Eifi finally?”

“I didn’t *find* her, Beth,” Peter said obstinately, “I was on a walk with her and we just got back!”

“Whatever, just keep it down, kid,” she said before turning to walk off. But before she turned the corner to disappear, she looked back at Batoy and Jet. “Oh, hello. Welcome to the Orpheum Breeding Clinic. My name is Bethany, and his name is Peter. Our manager is currently indisposed, but if you would like to freshen up, I’m sure Peter will be able to lead you to the correct facilities. Enjoy your stay.” And with that, she disappeared.

“Wow… she certainly is vibrant, huh?” Batoy found himself saying before sitting Jet on the ground. His stomach growled, and the boy felt a blush coming about. “But… um… heh, sorry about that….”

Peter grinned. “Hey, no worries, dude, just let me take you to the kitchen. We have some stuff there. But I wonder what the Boss is up to? Would you mind if we made a little stop by the atrium?”

“Uh… sure?” Batoy said, looking down at Jet. The Quilava was on his hind legs, rubbing his stomach, pretending he wasn’t hungry, but failing. He wrinkled his nose; his jaw hurt with the chip being held in his cheek. It already took all his willpower not to break the thing. “I guess we could wait a little while longer.”

“Sweet, it’ll just be a minute! Follow me!” Peter trotted off in a hurry, and Batoy and Jet moved to keep up, but the boy showed himself to be quite quick when motivated. They moved through the hallways which seemed to be covered in hay and straw, and as Batoy looked through the doors, he could see glimpses of resting Pokemon; a Nidorino in one room, a Dunsparce in another. Besides his hunger, he could feel hints of excitement and nervousness welling up within him.

They reached a set of double doors, and Batoy’s eyes widened as he looked around, and even Jet’s muzzle parted in awe. They found themselves in a replica of a slightly hilly meadow, with a solitary oak a little more than halfway across the room on top of a raised hill. Light streamed in from the sky, illuminating the grass and giving it an almost ethereal glow. A portion of the large room was even reserved for a small pond, the sunlight reflecting off of its pristine surface. “Oh wow… this place is gorgeous…” Batoy murmured, and Jet shook his head in reluctant agreement. “What is this place…?”

Eifi leapt out of Peter’s arms and sped across the grass, disappearing over the hill, but the boy did not chase after it. “This is the Atrium,” Peter said with a grin. “The Boss had this place built before I started working with him. It’s really incredible, and he’s really protective of it. He said we’re welcome to come in just as long as we stay away from the water. I guess he doesn’t want it contaminated or something.” Peter looked around. “But… I bet Boss is here somewhere… Eifi doesn’t just run off like that for no reason.”

Batoy was about to speak, before he could, Peter began waving. “Hey! Hey Boss, over here! Heya!” Batoy followed Peter’s sight and saw a man approaching them, but as he came closer, Batoy began to wish he hadn’t come at all. He was tall enough to be intimidating, but not disproportionate. His eyes were ice blue, and his hair a long flowing silver. His chin was pointed, but his face was not long, and he had a troubled expression about him.

“Peter… what are you doing here?”

“Beth said you were indisposed so I came to check on you and see if you were okay!” the boy said with a hopeful grin.

“Thank…you,” the man said, his attention fixed solely on Batoy. His shoulders seemed to sink. “And… we have company, I see?”

“Yeah, his name’s Batoy. He was with Eifi when I fo-, erm… when we were on our walk. He’s a cool guy and I wanted to show him the place.” Batoy wanted to make a greeting, but his words were completely lost in his throat. He only nodded his head.

“I see…” the man said. “Peter… if you would wait outside until I call you in? I need to speak to our guest about an important matter that concerns something of great value, and I need to do this privately. If you would?”

“Uh… yeah, sure…” Peter said, not without the least bit of jealously. “Just call if you need me!” He was slow to turn about, but eventually left.

The man looked back at Batoy, who was trying to do everything in his power to avoid eye-contact. Jet moved in front of the boy, growling slightly. “My name is Gidan. I’m the general manager over these facilities. I really don’t mean you any harm, so I will try to do this as quickly and humanely as possible.” He stepped forward to put a hand on Batoy’s shoulder, but Jet snarled. He quickly climbed Batoy’s back and snapped at Gidan’s hand. The man grimaced and pulled back his hand as Jet suddenly began to cough and hack, spitting out the chip onto the ground. Batoy quickly scrambled down to pick it up, and the man sighed. “So… it’s true… you are the one they were talking about…”

“Wh-what’re you talking about?” Batoy said, backing up a bit, stroking Jet’s back as he gasped for air. “Jet… Jet, are you okay…? Did you keep it in your mouth too long?” He pulled the weasel from his shoulder and began to rock it in his arms.

“Eifi, stop it.” The man said, and the Espeon that was hidden behind him stepped out, her jewel’s shimmer turning dim. Jet managed to regain his breath, panting and casting the Espeon a look of pure hatred. “Child, I don’t want to hurt you or your Pokemon, but all I know is that my own Pokemon have been threatened over what you carry with you. I’m going to politely ask you to please hand over whatever electronic device you had in your hand.”

Batoy shivered. So much for the happiness he’d been feeling up to that point. “You’re gonna try and take it from me, too, aren’t you… I can’t let you! I was told to take it, and if I don’t… I… I don’t even want to think about what’ll happen to me!”

“Eifi has told me. She showed me how you fell, how that boy saved you but had hatred for you. I don’t want to show you that harshness. I just ask that you give it to me so that I may protect what’s important to me. Please, boy.”

“But… I can’t….”

“Child… I was told what that thing you have can do… do you know?” Despite himself, Batoy shook his head. “The Global Trade Center was developed to connect trainers all over the world, and that chip helped govern where all the Pokemon went. Without it, no one can access these Pokemon… they’re going to be trapped in whatever space they are in now. If someone of despicable means were to get a hold of it…” The man shook his head. “I can’t let you leave with that thing if you’re going to give it to such a person…”

“But… they said that they were gonna use it to help their cause….”

“By stealing the Pokemon raised by other people? I hardly see that as a justifiable means. Do you trust your superiors?”

“I… I….”

“Then I can’t let you leave with that. Please… hand it to me?” Gidan reached forward again, but likewise, Jet snarled and snapped at him, this time his fangs nicking the tip of his fingers. Gidan recoiled sharply, his pleading look replaced by fury. “I’ve shown patience, but this is just unacceptable. I gave you the easy option, but now it seems I have to be rough! Eifi!” He began to back away, putting some distance between the two of them. “I breed my Pokemon to be beautiful and powerful. Don’t try to resist.”

~Espeon!~ Eifi leapt forward, landing with her legs spread deep and her lavender eyes blazing with anger and hatred. Jet squirmed out of Batoy’s arms and matched her glare, his vents now blazing with flames. He had been feeling very agitated for a while now, and now it was time to vent some of those frustrations. He’d been right; going here was a bad mistake, but that was past, and it was time for him to correct everything.

Batoy bit his lip. Jet wasn’t in a listening mood, and he, himself, didn’t want to fight. But he had to try to stop the fight before it began. “Jet, please…” he started, but Jet sprinted towards the Espeon, a faint after-image and a light glow trailing behind him. But as he approached, Eifi’s tail tips twitched, and she leapt straight up into the air, Jet sailing behind her. He skidded to a stop as Eifi landed daintly, looking over at the Quilava with contempt. ~Peon!~

~Quil….~ Jet growled as he looked over the Espeon. He couldn’t remember the last time his Quick Attack had been so easily dodged. Had it really been so long since he’d gotten to fight? Batoy frowned. “Jet… why’re you fighting…” he muttered. He sighed. Maybe there was no avoiding it. “Alright, Jet, you can do it!” he called out. “Flame Wheel!” The little weasel nodded and broke into run towards the Espeon again, the flames from his head and lower back flaring up violently now. He leapt in the air and curled up, starting to spin so quickly that his entire body became enveloped by those flames. The wheel of fire rapidly sped up, racing towards Eifi, leaving scorched grass in its wake.

But like before, this attack was deftly avoided like the last, but now Eifi’s eyes began to glow bright cerulean. A pulse radiated from her, flattening the grass, and as Jet rolled around, the pulse struck him with enough force to send him flying sideways. The fire dissipated as Jet skidded against the ground, a grove left in the soft topsoil. “Jet, are you okay?!” Batoy yelled as the little weasel slowly crawled to his paws, shaking himself off. ~Lalalava!~ chirped Jet, in a bit of a grin before he took off again.

“Eifi, do not play around,” Gidan said sternly as the Flame Wheel approached the Espeon. Rather than jump, Eifi’s eyes glowed again, and right before the wheel impacted, it came to a sudden halt, and Jet was forced to unravel. ~Q-Quil?!~ He found himself suspended in the air, squirming around in panic as Eifi held him there with her telekinetic hold. Her eyes shone teal for a moment before reverting back towards cyan.

Batoy winced as Jet flailed around helplessly before his eyes lit up. “Jet! Let’s show ‘em what we can do! Lava Plume!” Gidan’s eye twitched slightly as Jet began to glow and the fires on his head and back exploded with crimson flames that quickly surrounded both him and Eifi. The Espeon yelped, the seething hot fires enveloping her body. The grass around them brightened then wilted into ash as the fires slowly expanded. It was only after a few moments of them that Eifi’s concentration broke and Jet fell to the ground, the Espeon leaping back out of the heated fumes, shaking her scorched head and fur. Batoy couldn’t help but grin. “Way to go!” Jet smirked as well as he moved into a crouch, ready to press his attack.

The Espeon crouched as well, a grin on her face. The attack had certainly caught her off guard, and the burn was very painful. It was almost enjoyable. “Eifi, I repeat, do not play around.” ~…Peon…~ she whined before her eyes flared again, and this time, a pulse so large that it caused the clear dome to rattle rolled towards Jet. Amidst that, a shimmering bolt of rainbow colored energy spiked out of her jewel.

~Quil?!~ yelped the little weasel as the large telekinetic bolt sent him soaring through the air, the psychic energies defying even gravity as he flew straight into a wall close to the small pond. The pond rippled. Another pulse followed that, slamming him into the wall yet again, followed by a second bolt, then another pulse. After just a few sequences, Jet was left whimpering and crying pitifully, lying curled on the ground before another pulse slammed him against the wall again. “Jet!” Batoy yelled before turning towards Gidan. “Please stop it! Stop hurting Jet!”

“Eifi, you’re getting dangerously close…” Gidan said, this time a change in his voice, as another pulse sent Jet sprawling just centimeters away from the edge of the pond. His body quivered and he coughed and spasmed. ~Quil…ava…~ he groaned, wincing. The fight was no longer fun. There was just too great a difference in their power. He tried to push himself up, but collapsed. The pond gave another ripple, than another, the source slowly approaching the fallen Pokemon. “Child, if you value your Pokemon’s life, you should recall him immediately.”

Batoy gritted his teeth. He didn’t want to push Jet any further, but at the same time, recalling him would be admitting defeat… neither of them wanted that. “I…”

“Boy, this is not a time for pride! Eifi, prepare for restraining procedures!” The Espeon crouched, but at that moment, the waters of the lake exploded, and a monstrous beast burst from the surface. Its huge muscular body was covered in hard blue scales and red fine jutted from its back, head and tail. The bottom of its jaw was goldenrod, and its teeth glimmered from its misshapen snout, jutting every which way. ~Frrraaaliggtrrrr…~ it snarled, its eyes set on the small Pokemon.

Batoy stood wide-eyed. The Feraligatr was monstrous. “J-Jet, get out of there!”

The giant Pokemon gazed at the fallen weasel and then towards the humans. He snarled before opening his jaws, snapping them closed and taking a step towards the Quilava. “Eifi, get ready for a helping hand,” Gidan warned. The Espeon began to glow with a greenish aura, and Jet could vaguely feel strength returning to his legs. He began to slowly struggle to get to his feet.

“Jet, get out of there!” Batoy hollered, and Jet snapped back into reality just in time to spring forward before a pair of jaws snapped shut around his body. He staggered and rolled, painfully looking back to see grooves left in the ground where he'd been laying. His eyes went wide when he saw the beast, and he began to quivering. ~Q-Quil…. Quilava….~ Batoy broke into a run just as the Feraligatr charged again, and Jet barely managed to roll out of the attack. But the giant water Pokemon spun, and its huge tail slammed into the fire-type’s body, sending it sprawling away. Batoy reached Jet first and tentatively picked him up. The weasel was unconscious. “Oh… Jet….”

“Eifi, Psychic! Restrain him now!” The Espeon moved forward, a blue light surrounding her, and the Feraligatr suddenly came to a halt, his body covered in the same aura. He was frozen in place, but Eifi began wincing. ~Esp…peon…~

Gidan turned to Batoy. “She won’t be able to hold him for long. We need to go. Now.”

Batoy only nodded, clutching Jet tightly. “A-Alright….”

Must every one of Batoy's pokemon die! :c

No. As far as what I have planned, only one of Batoy's Pokemon ever dies.

Oh ok then! =D Good I liked Jet <3

Alright, I've decided to change the title of the story to Rain Dance in light of the plot developments I've been thinking about.

~~~***~~~


~Vee… ~

The faint cry floated through the darkness, repeating itself almost regularly. Batoy turned around, his eyes squinting to see something, anything. But the darkness was almost absolute, and he could see nothing. The cry continued, wavering a bit before growing faint. Batoy spun with greater urgency. “Hello?!” he called out, his voice fading into the distance without echo. It was almost as if he hadn’t called out at all. “Where are you? Are you hurt?” The cry picked up, and Batoy turned around again. It had come from the back, right? He stepped forward, his eyes peeled for anything. There was nothing but darkness. “Where are you? Are you okay?”

The cry turned into a whimper, suddenly loud and close, and Batoy glanced down. Lay there, her body quivering, was an Eevee. Her brown fur was battered and burned, as if a combination of fire and energy had completely washed over her body. Her eyes opened, and despite the horrid shape of her body, they were sharp and clear. Her whimpering came to a sudden halt, though her shivering continued. Kneeling, Batoy gently reached out. “It’s okay, girl. Everything’s gonna be okay.” But before he could reach the injured Eevee, she snapped at his hand, and had Batoy not pulled away, a quartet of sharp fangs would have sunk into his flesh. “H-Hey?!” he yelped, cuddling his hand as if it were the most dear thing to him. “I’m just trying to help!” He softened a bit. “Don’t worry, girl. Everything’s gonna be just fine.”

Rather than listen, though, the Eevee only grunted and pushed herself up to her paws, the excruciating pain obvious as it brought tears to her eyes. She staggered once, her tail dragging against the ground as she forced herself away from Batoy. “You can’t leave in that condition…” Batoy called after her, standing up and matching her tediously slow pace. But the Eevee did not look back towards him, and instead marched forward, one step at a time, a grunt of pain sounding out with each step. ~Vee… vee~ she groaned, a rhythm of pain matching every time her paw set down.

“Stop it!” Batoy called out after a moment. “You’re gonna kill yourself if you keep doing that!” He searched his pockets, and the Eevee’s ears perked at a peculiar sound, and she tilted her head in time to see a pokeball maximize in Batoy’s hand. “Vee…” she growled in disgust and contempt, glaring at the ball with seething hatred. “Here… lemme capture you, alright?” Batoy said, kneeling down again. “I can get you to a Pokemon Center, and they’ll fix you up. How’s that sound?” The Eevee shook her head. “But you gotta get healed up or you won’t ever recover!”

Batoy pressed the ball against the Eevee’s back, and before she could protest, a red light engulfed her body, binding her and pulling her within the sphere. Batoy stood back up, holding the ball, watching as it quivered and shook before finally coming to a rest, the capture net having sealed itself. “Don’t worry, girl,” he whispered to the ball. “We’ll get you all fixed up. You won’t have to be in pain anymore. I’ll be sure to take care of you.”

---

Very slowly, Batoy’s eyes parted to a pale grey light and the light pitter-patter of raindrops impacting against a blinded window. Groaning, he slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes as his vision returned to him. “My… head…” he muttered as he slid off the couch on which he had been sleeping, a light fleece throw falling on to the wooden floor. He must have been in one of the rooms of the breeding center; the room he’d awoken in was fairly small, with nothing but a couch placed adjacent to him and a small television on the opposite wall separating a small inset kitchen from the den. There were two windows, one over each couch, and a door just by the opening to the kitchen.

“Where am I?” Batoy muttered softly, rubbing his head. A terrible pounding scrambled his thoughts, and he felt nauseous. A vague recollection of memories seeped back into his mind. Gidan, the microchip, Eifi, Jet… where was Jet? “J-Jet? Where are you?” Snapping more awake, while resisting the violent urge to vomit, Batoy searched his being. His clothes had been removed, leaving him in a t-shirt and boxers. “Crap… where’s my stuff?”

He stood up, staggering a bit from the terrible headache, and looked around. Besides the sofa, on a microfiber pillow and lush ring, lay Jet, curled up with his snout buried under his paws. Besides the bin, Batoy’s clothes lay folded and clean next to his backpack. “Jet…” the boy murmured as he knelt down, his hand rubbing against the short fine fur that covered the Quilava’s body. The little weasel twitched and mumbled, rolling over in his sleep as Batoy’s fingers played along his body. The boy smiled softly before rubbing his head. “I’m glad you’re alright, Jet. I don’t know… what I would have done had I lost you, too….” His two other pokeballs lay nearby. The tiny displays that scrolled across the silver bottoms of the ball showed both were in good health. Someone had healed their injuries as well.

Pulling away Batoy clothed himself before making his way around the room. His head still ached, but not so much. He moved over towards the TV, but not surprisingly, it did not turn on. The rest of the small apartment was bare; only the kitchen was decently stocked with appliances and food. On the counter were a loaf of bread, a variety of spreads, and surprisingly, a can of Pewter-mix Pokemon chow. Batoy perked an eye at the high quality chow, something reserved for the highest quality of bred Pokemon or those with a quite of bit of money. “Jet’ll enjoy that…” he muttered as he fashioned himself a sandwich.

~Quil~ The light mewl caught Batoy’s attention, and he glanced down to see Jet rubbing across his legs. Bending down, he scooped up the little weasel and set him on the counter. Their eyes locked for an instant before Jet looked away, and Batoy rubbed his head. “Hey, don’t worry about it, buddy,” he said, a weak smile having formed. His eyes watered slightly. “I’m just glad you’re okay. I… I thought you were gonna die….” He pulled the Quilava into a hug. “I should’ve just given it to him…” Jet shook his head, a bit of fire spouting from his neck before fading away after Batoy let go. “Heh… you’re too eager to fight sometimes… or maybe I’m not…either way, you were right. We shouldn’t have followed.”

He sighed as he poured out the contents of the chow-mix into a ceramic plate found almost straddling the sink. Jet began munching on it eagerly, and Batoy smiled. “Yeah… that’s the good stuff…” He frowned. “I wonder what… Brand’s gonna say…” He winced as the man’s stoic face, harsh brown eyes and rigid lines came into mind. “I don’t even wanna imagine what he’s gonna say to me…” He felt a prodding and turned to look at Jet, who matched his gaze with an almost mischievous and malevolent look. “You can’t be serious, Jet… you want to go back?” The Quilava nodded his head, flaring up again. Batoy grinned slightly. “I guess you won’t back down from anything, huh? Alright, we’ll go for it. We just gotta come up with some kind of a plan…otherwise, we’re just gonna lose again.”

Batoy made his way back to his backpack. He hadn’t had time to check through it earlier. There wasn’t much in there, a few changes of clothes that smelled of the same wash that his other clothes had been through. There were three letters that had torn and were completely unreadable. At the bottom were a few MREs. “Thank you, Lizbeth…” he said in a quivering voice. The woman always looked out for him. He folded and packed the fleece blanket.

A few hours passed with Batoy going back to the couch, dressed now in a pair of khaki pants and a short-sleeved blue hoodie. He laid there, staring at the ceiling, sighing. All three of his Pokemon had been severely injured in just one day, and all because of that one microchip. He shivered, turning cold at the thought of any of them turning out like Meta. He hadn’t even checked on Ollie or Manual since the day before. They were alright, he knew, but still… he needed to spend more time with them. He hadn’t been a very good trainer at all over the past year.

Jet climbed onto his chest and looked down at him, licking his nose, and Batoy rubbed the Quilava’s back. “Hey, Jet? You remember when we first met? We were really happy. We went everywhere and didn’t back down from anyone. You were kinda scared and timid, but you still went into scary places with me. And when those Numel started stampeding… you evolved and saved my life… then… all this started happening… what happened to me, Jet?”

The Quilava folded his ears and nuzzled the boy. ~Lava… Quilava~ Batoy smiled. “Yeah… we’ll always be together, buddy… thanks for always being there by me.”

There was a knock on the door, and Batoy bolted up, Jet nimbly leaping off before he was tossed. “W-who is it?” he asked tentatively.

“It’s… me, Peter,” said the voice. “Can… I come in?”

“Oh.” Batoy’s pitch dropped sharply. He really didn’t feel like talking to anyone, especially someone who idolized Gidan. But he didn’t want to turn away perhaps his only human friend. “Well, I guess so…”

The boy came in tentatively, slowly easing the door shut behind him. Jet crouched at him, and he choked back a whimper. “Hey, look kid… I, um…” he looked around, desperate to bring up a topic other than the obvious. “I saw your Eevee and Jolteon were really banged up… I hope you didn’t mind, but I fed them and nursed their injuries… Um….” He trailed off.

“I don’t really feel like talking about it… but… Peter?” Batoy looked at the boy. “Why do you like that guy so much? I didn’t even do anything to him… and… why was that huge monster in the water?”

Peter looked down. “I… I don’t know what happened, but I know the boss wouldn’t do something like that unless he really thought it was the right thing to do… It wasn’t like he was gloating about beating you or anything… in fact, right after you went to sleep… he made us close for the day. He hasn’t said anything to anyone all day. He’s just been in the Atrium, looking at that little metal thing. He won’t let anyone in there, and he won’t let us open today.”

“Oh…”

“And I swear, I didn’t know anything about the Feraligatr in there. That’s probably why we’re not allowed in there now….”

“How long am I gonna have to stay here?”

“Huh, you don’t,” said Peter, looking with a shocked expression. “You’re not a prisoner or anything… we were just wanting ya to get rested up without anyone disturbing ya. You can leave whenever ya want…”

“Oh… hey, Peter?” Batoy looked at the boy earnestly. “I can’t go anywhere without that thing he took… I know you like your boss, but… could you take me to the Atrium? Please?”

“I… but… that’d get me in trouble, though….”

“I won’t tell him it was you! I’ll say… um… I sneaked around and found it. You don’t even have to take me there. Just tell me where it is.”

“No… no… I’ll take ya. If Beth saw ya, she’d probably kick you out. Just tell me when you’re ready and stuff…”

Batoy grinned at his friend and quickly gathered his things. “Thanks a lot, man! I promise, you’re not gonna get in trouble!”

“Yeah….” Peter backed up and peeked out of the door. He saw no one and motioned Batoy out. The boy quickly gathered his belongings, slinging his backpack over his shoulder, and slipped out, Jet following closely behind. The three of them treaded quickly, but silently, through the halls, until they arrived at the double doors of the Atrium. Peter stood a distance away from it, refusing to come any closer. “Well… here ya go… I don’t know what you’re gonna do, and I don’t wanna. You’re the first friend I’ve had in a long time here, so please don’t try to do anything stupid, okay?”

Batoy nodded before sliding though the doors. He glanced around as Jet hoisted himself onto the boy’s back. “Well… here we are, Jet… I don’t really know what to do now…” ~Lava…~ They looked towards the pond. The waters were still again, but a low metal fence had been erected around it. Gidan was nowhere to be found around it. Batoy frowned. He was certain that Gidan would be there at the pond, perhaps musing or maybe fighting against the giant monster. His shoulders sagged. Now what?

~Quil!~ Jet said hushed and quickly, crouched down low. Batoy glanced around and immediately ducked. There they were, Gidan and the Espeon, and the girl Bethany as well. They were talking close to one of the outside doors, well out of earshot. Beth bent down to rub Eifi’s head before standing and bowing to Gidan, who nodded back. Then the girl left, and Gidan and the Espeon began to move.

~Lava, lava!~ The barks were quiet, but urgent, and Batoy looked to see Jet giving him an anxious eye. Did he want to hide or run and fight? Batoy didn’t know, and neither did Jet. He just wanted to do something besides stand and get caught. Batoy nodded and slowly began crawling, keeping the hill between them and their targets. When he’d crawled long enough, so that the pond was no longer visible, he laid flat against the hill, daring not to breathe. He could hear Jet’s small heart beating quickly and feel the heat rising off the Quilava’s body. “Shh… just keep calm, buddy…” he said to his rash friend.

“Please come out from your hiding spot. Eifi has already alerted me to your presence.” The voice was tired, strained, but Batoy’s heart still seized. He slowly rose to his feet to see Gidan looking at him with a blank expression. Jet leapt to his shoulder, glaring at Eifi who stared back at him without even acknowledging his existence. The Espeon’s once pristine coat was marked with soot-colored streaks from Jet’s flame.

“I… erm….” Batoy swallowed his tongue. He was here, but now he didn’t know what to say. How was he supposed to get that microchip back?

“What’re you doing here?” Gidan asked bluntly, but his voice lacked the anger Batoy braced himself for. He seemed to sigh, instead, as if the boy’s presence was something he’d been futilely hoping to avoid. “Did Peter lead you in here?”

“N-no,” Batoy stammered, and Jet growled. “I snuck here on my own… please, mister, I gotta have that chip. I don’t know what I’m gonna do with it!”

Gidan looked away. “But I can’t give it to you, child. Do you remember what I asked? Can you really trust who you’ll give it to?”

“But can you?” Batoy was on the verge of desperation now. “Y-You said that someone threatened your Pokemon so you had to give them the chip. Why would you give it to someone who would hurt innocent Pokemon?!”

“It is true… those who’re threatening me aren’t to be trusted, either, but I just can’t risk harm to Peter, Bethany or any of the Pokemon that are being raised here. Even though they are doomed to miserable lives, I still hope that some can find those with whom they can really experience the gift of life. I can’t take from them that chance.”

Batoy wiped his eyes and looked at the man. Gidan seemed ashamed, looking everywhere else except towards Batoy. Maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy after all. “But… why don’t you do anything about them? You’re really, really good….”

“It’s more complicated than you understand, child, but I regress.” Gidan looked at Batoy. “I can’t give this back to you, but… perhaps you can earn it….”

“H-huh?”

“Our battle yesterday had consequences… both for you and myself. Eifi’s fur is too damaged to properly compete in the show coming up. She was my helper, but has never competed before, but we’ll have to pass for this showing. But you can take my place in it.”

“Uh… o-okay…”

“If you can make a high enough score… the contest is a showing of both the trainer and the Pokemon’s inner character… I’ll trust in your judgment and give you back what I unfairly took. I can only pray that you do the right thing with it….”

Jet’s growling quieted and he looked down at his trainer. He’d wanted revenge for his loss, but this method caught his interest. Whatever it was, he was up to it. Jet licked Batoy’s ear then nuzzled it. ~Quilava, quil!~ he chirped, nodding his head, urging the boy to accept.

Batoy sighed, then shook his head. “Alright… we’ll try our best, then… I… I don’t think you’d trick us….”

Gidan finally smiled, though it seemed despite himself. “Thank you for accepting. I’m sure you’ll find out a lot about yourself by participating. You are… welcome to stay here, if you wish, but if not… I do wish you luck, and… I’m sorry.”

---

“So what happened, huh? You guys didn’t fight, did ya?”

The barrage of questions came immediately as Batoy stepped through the double doors leading out of the atrium. Peter’s eyes were wide and his lips thin, and it was easy to see that he had not left that spot since Batoy went in. “Please tell me you guys didn’t start fighting with Boss….”

Batoy shook his head, though he didn’t smile. “Nah… we didn’t fight….”

“So… everything’s okay now?” Batoy nodded, and Peter immediately relaxed. “Whee… that’s good… there’ve been weird people asking for Boss all day, but Beth and I have been shooing them away. They looked like they were bad news, so I guess that’s why the Boss has been acting weird lately. They’ve been around here before, too, and Boss talks to them sometimes.”

“I… I wonder… did these guys like… wear blue a lot?”

Peter looked at Batoy curiously. “Well… um… sometimes… there were a lot of guys, though, that wore red. Half and half, really, but they never came together… then, there were this other guys that were totally different, but we don’t see them too often. I never see Gidan talk to them, though.”

“Guys that wear red? I… hey, Peter…” Batoy bit his lip at looked at the other boy. “Can you give me directions to the nearest Pokemon Center?”

“Huh, why? Can’t you stay here?”

“Well… I can, but I gotta check something out there… you know where one is?”

Peter nodded, but his shoulders sagged. “Yeah… um, when you leave, just head east. You’ll find it right along that route… You sure you don’t want to stay?”

Batoy smiled lightly at his friend. “I’ll see you again. I just gotta do something, that’s all. I promise I won’t leave.”

Peter nodded. “Alright… I’ll hold you to that, bro!”

“It’s more complicated than you understand, child, but I regress.” Gidan looked at Batoy. “I can’t give this back to you, but… perhaps you can earn it….”

I have a feeling you should have used digress, instead of regress, here... Other than that another great chapter thing.


"Heavy Rain" has suited the story fine so far... will be good to read these plot changes that make it fit to "Rain Dance"

Good catch. I'll be sure to change it. Thanks ^_^.

Proof-reading your own work gets really challenging.

As for the title change, yeah, around the later chapters, you'll see a distinct plot forming around the four weather abilities.