*Nathan's POV*

My heart races with anticipation at the sight before me. Voltflare and I had sequentially conquered all of the gyms of Johto, and, now, we stand at our final obstacle.

The final door of the Pokemon League... The last challenge... Behind this door is Lance, the Dragon Master!

"Are you ready, Voltflare?" I ask the Equilibrium Pokemon, smiling. He returns my gaze and nods.

I stoop down and pull a small piece of red and yellow fabric from my bag. Voltflare looks at the object curiously.

"Wha- what's that?" he asks. His eyes glow, and his left ear twitches; I know that he won't let me tie my Focus Sash to his leg without me telling him what it is.

"Just a little something that I think will help us in our battle. Consider it a gift from me." I gently stroke his head, trying to soothe him about the article before he asks any more questions.

Luckily, he doesn't seem to be opposed to the idea of wearing a gift from me, and he smiles when I wrap it around his leg. I am careful not to tie the Sash too tight- I want it to be secure in the heat of battle, but, at the same time, I don't want his leg to lose circulation.

"Let's give Lance a battle he'll never forget!" Voltflare shouts once I'm done securing the strip of cloth, and we slowly walk towards the next room. His demeanor drastically changes, however, when we are only a few steps away.

"It feels... Colder in there," my Pokemon tells me, and he shivers for a few seconds.

"Don't worry, Voltflare. We can do this! There's no need to be afraid!" I try to encourage him, but he lowers his head further.

"No, that's not it..." he mumbles, looking down at the ground.

"I'm just thinking of home... Markus... I can still feel him out there, somewhere..." He pauses for a few seconds looks at me with a new determination.

"That's why I have to fight as hard as I can for him! Come on, Nathan. Let's win this- for him- for everyone!"

That's my Voltflare! I can't help thinking, and a smile works its way across my face. Both of us wear the same resolute expression, and I take that as my signal to push open the door in front of us and step through.

As soon as we enter the new room, the sounds of our footsteps echo through the acoustics of the room, and Lance holds out a Pokeball towards the wall, away from us, for a second before lowering it again and smiling. The dragon statues shake with anticipation, as if they, themselves, are ready to spectate the inevitable skirmish between Lance and myself.

"Ah, you again!" Lance finally says, turning to the two of us.

"I was wondering when you would appear again! You see, back when we fought Team Rocket together, I just knew that, one day, you would appear here, in this very room, ready to challenge me for the title of Pokemon Champion."

"Lance, are you ready to battle?!" I call out. Voltflare looks at the man with eagerness in his eyes.

"I was born ready! Let us fight, Savior of Johto!" he smirks. I turn to my Pokemon one last time.

"Are you ready?" I ask him.

"Did you even need to ask? Come on, let's go!" he shouts, and Lance laughs.

"I admire your Pokemon's enthusiasm," he smirks,

"But let's see if it can stand up to the might of my Dragon-type brethren and I!"

Lance pulls his arm back and lets his Pokeball fly through the air, and I brace for the ensuing fight against the Pokemon within.

The familiar white light appears, and it quickly spirals into a massive blue serpentine Pokemon. Its yellow underbelly slowly undulates over the battlefield, and the dark blue scales on its head glisten in the light. I had seen that glow before- the glow of anticipation, of a Pokemon ready for battle. The Pokemon lets out a savage roar, and I have to hold my ground to avoid being blown back by the incredible force of the shout. I already know what type of Pokemon that Voltflare's up against- this is a Gyarados, and, by the looks of it, the strongest one that I've ever seen.

"Gyarados, use Aqua Tail!" Lance yells, and the massive Pokemon, without warning, speeds through the air towards Voltflare. The miniature, by comparison, Equilibrium Pokemon braces itself for an impact as Lance's Gyarados roars in anticipation, curving its tail like a battering ram and hurling itself towards Voltflare.

If I don't do something, he's going to be crushed by the force of that Pokemon! I panic. My nerves had already gotten to me, seeing my partner in mortal danger like this.

"Voltflare, Thunderbolt!" I struggle to force out, although Voltflare seems to be able to keep himself cool despite the colossal Atrocious Pokemon that's only mere seconds away from landing its mark. Voltflare quickly runs as fast as he can towards one of the battlefield's walls, while the Gyarados continues to fly towards him.

Then, the marks on Voltflare's green ears light up, and I can feel the static leaping through the air from ear to ear. My hair stands on end, and I slowly place my backpack on top of my head to keep it in place. Voltflare's eyes close, and, as Lance's Gyarados draws within only a few feet of him, he lets loose an incredibly-potent electric shock that crackles with a yellow light as it dances through the air towards the Gyarados.

As soon as the two entities connect, the Atrocious Pokemon is blown backwards with a force unlike any shock that I had ever seen before, straight into the wall on the opposite side of the room. The Gyarados crashes into the nearest dragon statue, instantly shattering it under its weight and scattering large bits of debris and smoke everywhere. The Pokemon writhes in pain on top of the wreckage for a few seconds and roars, only adding to the visual and verbal pollutions. I have to close my eyes and cover my ears to avoid the intense racket, and I hold my breath for as long as I can. I can only that Voltflare is doing same, while the Gyarados's roars continue to crescendo as it contends with Voltflare's attack.

Finally, after about a minute, the noise slowly dies down, and I shudder to open my eyes. However, all I can see is Voltflare, curiously pawing at the Gyarados' unmoving body, and Lance, standing on the other side of the battle with a smile on his face.

"You are quite strong for such a small Pokemon, able to best my Gyarados with a single hit," he muses,

"But let's see what he can about this!" Lance laughs and throws his second Pokeball into the battlefield.

This time, a large orange draconian Pokemon appears out of the light. Its large green-girded wings seem to reflect an unseen light source, glittering like a precious gemstone. The Pokemon rears its blunt head and defiantly spews a small stream of fire into the air. The striated underbelly, the sleek frame: I recognize the Pokemon immediately- a Dragonite, and my realizations are quickly met with a sharp cry of pain from Voltflare.

"No! Go away! Don't hurt me!" he practically screams, and his legs lock in place. His crimson face pales, and Voltflare immediately falls to the ground in a fetal position.

"Please, no! I don't want to go back there! I never wanna experience that again!"

His pleas for help don't make any sense to me at first, until I remember,

Maxwell... His Pokemon is a Dragonite. And... No... I shudder, myself, remembering what my partner had looked like after he had escaped being swallowed alive, and I understand, very quickly, why this, out of all of Lance's Dragon-type Pokemon is sent out to face me.

"You monster! Don't you see what you're doing to him?!" I yell at Lance, quickly closing the distance between me and my downed Pokemon, who is still crippled with fear. I sit down and place my hand under his paralyzed head, gently coaxing it out of his fur. As I do so, tears begin to stain my skin.

"Voltflare? I... I had no idea that this was going to happen. Please, forgive me for that," I try, in vain, to free him from his horrible memories at the claws of Maxwell's Dragonite.

"Make it go away..." he shudders, and his flow of tears continues to increase.

Voltflare... I almost shed a few tears, myself, until I realize that Lance and his Pokemon are beginning to grow restless, and I am forced to return to the battlefront.

Standing up with a newfound fire in my eyes, I pull my Metagross's Pokeball from my belt and fling it towards the slotted floor. It opens, and the blue metallic behemoth emerges from the light a second later. The monstrous strength of my Pokemon fits my ultimatum perfectly.

"That was cruel. Very cruel, indeed. You knew that he would be terrified of your Dragonite, yet you saw fit to terrorize the poor thing! I have no respect for a Trainer like that!"

My Metagross points a spiked leg towards the Dragonite.

"Meta?" it bellows, scanning the room for any other potential threats before finally settling its two red eyes on Lance's Pokemon. Then, it spots Voltflare, still slumped over in terror, curled up near one of the dragon statues that line the wall.

"Metaaa!" Metagross roars, and, at my command, it charges the waiting Dragonite.

"Metagross, use Ice Punch!" I yell, and the Iron Leg Pokemon's forefist turns a bright blue, signifying the element imbued into the punch.

In a fraction of a second, my Metagross is upon the Dragonite, and, although my Pokemon is still substantially shorter than the 7'3" Dragon Pokemon, it slams its azure fist into the Pokemon's gut and shoves it backwards with all of its might.

The Dragonite crashes to the ground, almost landing on top of Lance, and I have to stifle a smile while he dodges his falling Pokemon. Lance sees the slight smirk and smiles, himself.

"You think that's funny, do you? Why don't you try this on for si..." He is interrupted by a sharp cry of pain from his Dragonite, before it lets its body go limp, and it faints.

Lance sighs and recalls his Pokemon.

That's two down! We're making progress- I think we actually have a chance to win!

Lance pulls his arm back, ready with his next Pokeball, when Voltflare slowly stands up from his hiding spot.

"Is... Is it gone?" he asks, tentatively walking towards me.

He's shaking his body as if he is ridding himself of acid, just like he did when... Enough of that- the horrible imagery is starting to get to me, too.

"Yes, it's gone," I smile, stooping to my knees and letting Voltflare run up to me and jump into my arms. He bowls me over with his weight, but his touch is quite warm, easing my nerves just a little. Even though the feeling of having a sixty-pound Pokemon on one's chest isn't reassuring to some people, I have since come to reconsider that notion, although this really isn't the proper time for something like this.

"Hey, settle down, buddy," I chuckle, and he licks my face a few times for good measure.

"Thank you, Nathan," he smiles, carefully removing his paws from atop my stomach and turning to face Lance.

"Alright, I think I'm ready again!" he says cheerfully.
"You seem to care a great deal for your Pokemon. Quite an admirable Trainer, I must say," Lance muses.
"But it's time to kick this up a notch! Come on out, Charizard!" the Champion roars, letting another Pokeball fly into the battlefield. This one opens to reveal a large bipedal draconian Pokemon, a primarily orange Pokemon that I had seen many times. The Pokemon's large cream belly seems to ripple with the flames inside it, which wait to spew forth in the heat of battle, rearing forth a pointed orange head and two slitted blue eyes. A large tail protrudes from its back, bearing with it a flamed tip, burning intensely enough to melt anything in the room. Two sleek clawed hands and a large set of wings further add to its dragon-like persona, yet I know from experience that the Pokemon isn't actually a dragon. That fact doesn't make it any less threatening, however.

Lance's Charizard stomps one of its large feet, causing a short, yet poignant tremor that sets me off-balance and bounces my next command all around the room.

"Voltflare, use Thunderbolt!" I yell, and Voltflare immediately begins to crackle with energy.

The waiting Charizard sizes up the much-smaller Equilibrium Pokemon and spits a miniature fireball towards the floor in outrage.

"This is what I'm fighting?! A little weasel like that?" the Pokemon would have said, if it could vocalize English. The Charizard takes a deep breath, and I can see a charred counterattack slowly pooling in its mouth.

It's waiting. I realize,

Waiting for Voltflare to do something before it strikes. Those claws could definitely tear him to shreds if he isn't careful...

"Make this count!" I tell my Pokemon, but his legs suddenly begin to falter.

*Voltflare's POV*

It's a lightning rod. An oversized, fiery lightning rod. There's no reason to be afraid! I calmly reassure myself. I can feel the electricity inside me, leaping between nerves and veins, just waiting to leaving and zap its target. The longer I wait to release it, the more charge I can build up, but, at the same time, the more it hurts. I... I don't know if I can take down this beast with just my electricity...

Come on, Jake, you can do this... What would Markus saw if he saw you backing down right now? I reassure myself.

Ngh... The pain of this shock inside me...

"I can't hold this charge any longer!" I slowly stand up, and, in one quick move, my battle cry echoes my aching insides while an enormous crackling Thunderbolt leaps from my body to the Charizard in front of me. I am forced to the ground from the bolt's recoil as it exits my system, but I can still keep my eyes open to see if I had been successful.

The Flame Pokemon's back arcs, and its pupils suddenly dilate to cover the entirety of its eyes, and I can place, roughly, where the charge is in its body based on the contorted expressions on its face. I can tell that the Charizard's surprised, and it's trying as hard as it can to fight off my bolt's energy.

Slowly, yet surely, more and more of the Pokemon ceases to move, paralyzed, and, after a few scintillating minutes, the Charizard rears its head and utters a cry of pain before its eyes close, and its crashes to the ground, face-first, luckily landing only a few yards away from me. Its fiery tail narrow misses crushing me, and I begin to breath heavily to ease my nerves.

"... *huff* ... Did... Did I do it?" I manage to gasp out. I could feel myself slipping into an exhaustion-wrought unconsciousness, but I didn't want to let myself go just yet.

Lance smiles and holds out his Pokeball to the Charizard to its capsule in an instant.

"Impressive," he says to Nathan,

"But let's see how your Pokemon can deal with this!"

At this, Lance brings out his fourth Pokeball and throws it to the ground in front of me, releasing the Pokemon inside.

The explosion of light envelops me, temporarily blinding me, and I have to shut my eyes for a few seconds. When I open them, my first instinct is to immediately run away from the creature in front of me, but I know that any move that I make will trigger an immediate counterattack. The new dragon Pokemon seems to be just a little taller than Nathan, but it easily makes up for its short (for a dragon, anyway) stature with its intimidating appearance.

Two streamlined blue arms each bare a fearsome set of claws, and its large blue tail bears a striking resemblance to a Sharpedo that wanted to live on land for too long.

Now that I think about it, the entire Pokemon looks like a shark! It's a living, breathing land shark!

The Pokemon has a sleek dorsal fin on its back, and, coupled with the fins on its arms, it looks like it would be able to cut through the air just as easily as in water. A sharp, yet blunt head houses a starred snout and a large, jagged set of fangs, perfect for tearing me open.

I shut my eyes, taking one last look at its claws and knowing that this is the end for me. The Pokemon seems to relish over my weakened state, and it casually stomps closer and closer to me, each footfall sending another shockwave towards me that threatens to break my spine. From my position on the ground, the Pokemon looms over me like an enormous blue skyscraper. A small flake of blood from one of its claws drips onto my face, and I quickly curl up into a fetal position.

If it's going to tear me apart, I might as well stall it as long as possible... Nathan, please- isn't there something you can do?

The Pokemon draws closer and closer to me, its claws mere feet from ripping me open. Then, without warning, it lunges towards me, fins and claws bared to strike.

I don't have the strength to fight back. Nathan... Anyone...

I cry, weakly, for help from Nathan, and my call is immediately answered by a loud command of, "Metagross, use Ice Punch!" from Nathan.

Huh? Am I...?

I slowly open my eyes to see Nathan's metallic Pokemon slamming a blue fist into Lance's draconian land shark and smashing it into the wall with the momentum of the blow. The Pokemon groans in pain, and Nathan's Metagross grabs it in a free fist and throws the helpless shark over its head.

"Metaaa!" it roars as it watches its opponent fly through the air and into another dragon statue, which shatters from the weight of the falling Mach Pokemon, scattering even more debris everywhere.

"Voltflare, hang in there, buddy!" Nathan yells to me- amid the chaos- while his Metagross quickly moves over to the Pokemon and pounds it in the chest again and again with a chilled metallic fist. The land shark roars in outrage and continues to grapple with Metagross, but to seemingly no avail- its claws seem to scratch harmlessly off the Iron Leg Pokemon's stannic hide, and Metagross roars in triumph when it finally plants one of its legs firmly on its opponent's chest, pinning it to the ground with tremendous force.

A calm voice to my left draws my attention away from the two tyrants' struggle, but my exhaustion had already started to kick in again, and I slowly close my eyes.

"Voltflare? Voltflare, don't give up on me!" Nathan tells me, bounding across the battlefield to me. He quickly loops one arm under my head as a makeshift cushion- a warm reprieve from the cold, tiled floor of Lance's room- and gently pets my head with the other.

"You're going to be fine. You're not going to die on..." he starts to say, but I stop him.

"I'm not going to die- rest assured, but I... I just don't have the strength to move.... Finish the fight with Lance, and win for me!"

With that, I slowly close my eyes and let fatigue give my body the unconscious abeyance it so desperately wanted.