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Pokémon:

Quest of a True Master

Chapter 2

It was decided that very night.

Spending the evening on his computer to gather information on the top trainers of the other regions, using it to make a bingo book for him trip, Mark rallied his Pokémon team and packed without another thought the following morning and headed to Mauville. He made a pit stop at the bank to cover all of his bills, deliberately overpaying so that they would be credited in the following months to pay the rest; he'd have to earn some money when he could, but he'd manage. From there, he double-checked the groceries he'd packed as supplies, making sure he hadn't forgotten anything and adding to whatever he was short on, sticking to non-perishable items for the road.

With all preparations made, he left Mauville and carried on to Slateport.

Today, he decided to give Siren and Vitesse a turn to be out of their Poké balls; it had been a while since either of them had a truck ride and he felt a little guilty about not letting them have one sooner. Vitesse sat in the cab with Mark, in the passenger seat. Siren, of course, was entirely too big for the cabin, so she rode in the box, the back window open to allow her to stick her head through and 'talk' with Vitesse and Mark while they travelled down the road.

The drive to Slateport had been long for Mark; he was so excited to get this new journey underway, to travel to all of the other regions, find their Champions and challenge them to a battle, to finally test the limits of both himself and his team. He had shared his idea with Vitesse, and the Blaziken had been so excited by the idea she'd almost jumped into the ceiling with eagerness, thrilled by the challenge.

Halfway to Slateport, Mark pulled over into a rest stop area, to let Vitesse stretch her legs and Siren find a drink of water. He also let out the other Pokémon so they could run around for a bit and get some exercise; it was going to be a long boat trip to Kanto. Meanwhile, Mark reviewed the information he had gathered on the Kanto Champion and Ex-Champions, starting with the more renowned one.

"'Red... lived in Pallet Town before embarking on his journey at the age of 11'," Mark read aloud to himself. "'First trainer to ever complete a Regional Pokédex, defeated all Kanto Gym Leaders and the Elite Four inside of the year before battling Ex-Champion Blue Oak. First Pokémon was a Charmander, later evolved into a Charizard which remains his most famous partner, and Red is currently the only known trainer in Kanto who'... 'Who has a Pokémon that can Mega Evolve'?" Mark arched an eyebrow, eyeing the entry quizzically. "There are no Mega or Key Stones in Kanto; they were all discovered in Kalos, so how'd Red find one?"

Shaking his head, he decided not to dwell on it. "Well, he's not the only one with Mega Evolution available to him," Mark stated, glancing at the armband he wore that carried his own key stone, and turned to look over at his Pokémon; two of them, namely Vitesse and Tanker, also had Mega Stones of their own -Vitesse wore hers on a hand-crafted leather shoulder strap while Tanker's was worn like a choker, although Vitesse was much more practiced; Tanker had only used his mega form once in training, but never in battle, and though a Mega Steelix was possibly one of the toughest Pokémon in the world, having defense higher than any other, it was slow, and would be vulnerable to Fire types.

"Certainly can't use that against Red," stated Mark. "If Charizard is his most popular Pokémon it's a safe bet that's the one who mega evolves on his team. As much as I hate to admit it, Tanker wouldn't stand a chance against a Mega Charizard with or without his own Mega Evolution." Mark rubbed his chin in thought. He frowned as a thought passed through his mind. 'Unfortunately, there's no way to be certain of Red's other team choices; if he's the first trainer to ever complete the earlier model of a Regional Pokédex then he's caught one of every Pokémon in Kanto, and that means he's got well over a hundred Pokémon he could use against me.'

Reaching into his pocket, Mark picked out his own Pokédex; his was a completed, imported model from Kalos, the only region to have every known species of Pokémon be native to it. He sorted the list by region, choosing Kanto, and checking the list. "A hundred and forty-nine... crap," he said, scowling. "Why did I think checking the numbers would help me?"

He leafed through the various types, sorting them to narrow down the competition. "Well, there are no Dark-types native to Kanto so I can safely assume he isn't using one of those, at least." He chuckled. |Though it's not like I'm using any of the types those are strong against, so I guess I'm safe anyway."

Mark carried on with his study, moving on to the Ex-Champion, Blue Oak, who he intended to challenge first; even if Blue was a former Champion like Mark, to even make it to that title required a trainer of skill, so it was quite likely Blue himself was a strong trainer, and would be a good warmup for Red and the real Champion.

"Says here Blue is also the Gym Leader at Viridian City... interesting change in career, going from a Champion to a Gym Leader; that's almost a demotion if you ask me," muttered Mark. "'Although leads a Gym normally associated with Ground-Types, Blue has two Pokémon teams; one for official Gym matches to uphold the tradition, and one he uses casually, the most popular of which being his Blastoise. Apparently claimed the title of Champion before Red did, only to have it taken from him only a day later'." Mark grimaced. "I kind of feel sorry for the guy."

Finally, he flipped the page, expecting it to be about the current Champion. "'Lance, the Dragon Master'," he read, eyes widening. "Lance... man, there's someone I never thought I'd be facing."

Everyone in the world knew Lance; the world famous Dragon Master, the first to ever successfully train a full-team of Dragon-types at a young age, instrumental in bringing about the down fall of the second Team Rocket in Johto. At one point, the Dragon Trainer had become the champion of both Johto and Kanto; the only trainer alive to ever be the Champion of _two_regions. These achievements were in Mark's bingo book too, along with additional information. "'Only recorded defeats are by Ex-Kanto Champions Red and Blue during his time as a member of the Kanto/Johto Elite Four, and current Johto Champion, Ethan of New Bark Town'."

Mark swallowed nervously, pushing his blond hair out of his eyes and rereading that last sentence. The man had only ever lost three Pokémon Battles in his career as a Pokémon Trainer, and was a master of Dragon-Types? Mark had only ever met one other Dragon Trainer, and that was Drake of the Hoenn Elite Four, who although was older and seemingly more experienced than Lance, somehow the younger champion was much more famous.

"I know I can handle Dragon-types; I proved that at the Hoenn League," said Mark. "But this guy is a living legend; I better not underestimate him."

Mark felt hot breath on his shoulder as he started to resume reading. Frowning, he looked over his shoulder, seeing Coal standing behind him, arms raised and mouth open as if about to roar, though the expression on his face immediately fell flat as he realized he'd been discovered before he could act out his prank. The Charmeleon flushed with embarrassment, and stepped back nervously, emitting a guttural croaking sound from his throat.

"Nice try," stated Mark, giving Coal a wry smile. "But on a cool day like this you're easy to detect." He chuckled. "Well, I've done all the study I need to do for Kanto anyway; the rest can wait. Time for us to get going," he tucked his bingo book under his arm, and stood up, putting two fingers to his mouth and blowing hard, letting loose a high-pitched whistle.

Hearing the whistle, his Pokémon immediately stopped what they were doing and rushed over. "Okay guys; time to keep going," he said, producing their Poké Balls from his pockets and expanding them.

Tanker let out a low whine, and gestured towards the truck with his large head. Mark frowned, knowing what the Steelix was asking for. "Sorry, Tanker; I told you," Mark replied. "You're too heavy to ride in the truck; the tires would pop like balloons under your weight," he explained. "Don't worry, you'll get to hang out on the deck of the ship; it'll be more than big enough to support you. We're travelling on a cruise line, not a ferry, so you won't have to be waiting in the Poké Ball this time, okay?"

That seemed to lift the Steelix's mood a little, and he 'voiced' no complaints as the red beam shot from the ball, striking the Steelix and converting him into a mass of energy that was drawn inside. He repeated this for Palm Tree, Coal and Fang, before looking at Vitesse and Siren. "You two ready to get going?" He asked.

Both Pokémon nodded, and as Mark walked back to the driver's side door, Siren returned to the box of the truck and Vitesse climbed back into the passenger side. Starting the engine and shifting back into gear, the group was off once again, Slateport in sight...

________________________________________________________________

Mark had no idea what awaited him when he got to Slateport, proceeding to the docks for the ship to purchase his ticket...

"One ticket to Kanto, please," Mark requested at the office.

"Certainly," the female receptionist returned. "Your name?"

"Mark Taylor," replied the trainer.

"Mark Taylor?" She repeated.

"Mark Taylor?!" Another voice called.

"Okay that's either one heck of an echo," jested Mark, turning and looking over his shoulder. "Or someone here knows me."

He saw another young man, roughly his age, looking back at him; a man with black hair, brown eyes under a pair of eyeglasses and tan skin, wearing a blue jacket over a dark gray shirt and blue jeans, standing roughly his height, and with a Lucario standing at his side; a Lucario wearing a blue scarf.

Mark knew that person, and that Lucario, all too well...

"Randy Calvin?" Mark asked, surprised. He turned to the ticket seller. "One moment please," he said, before turning back to Randy again. "What're you doing here in Slateport?"

"Shopping; foreign goods market is open," replied Randy. "You?"

"Taking a boat out to Kanto," replied Mark.

With a tilt of his head, Randy asked, "Why are you going there?"

"Personal business," Mark replied, sternly. "Don't be so nosy."

"Hey, come on; we're old pals, right?" Randy asked. "We had a blast together at the League, right? You're not still angry about me beating you, are you?"

Mark let out an exasperated sigh. "I was never angry about losing; it was a legitimate win," he affirmed. "But you didn't keep it much longer than I did; I'm just as annoyed by that. Makes me question if my own win was legit, I suppose."

"Excuse me," the ticket seller called, catching Mark's attention. "I have your ticket ready, sir; I just need some more information."

"Oh, sorry," he said, giving a 'one-minute' gesture to Randy before returning to the desk. He quickly finished the paperwork, concluded with signing his name on the ticket, and pocketed the item. "How long until the ship departs?" Mark asked.

"It will be departing at seven o'clock tomorrow morning," replied the seller.

"Thank you," returned Mark, and then he walked back over to Randy. "Well, that's out of the way."

"So," Randy began. "You were going to share why you're heading to Kanto?"

Mark scowled at him. "Nosy people get a punched nose, Randy," he warned.

"Yeah, like you're faster than my partner here," returned Randy, gesturing to the Lucario standing at his side, who was watching Mark cautiously after he threatened his trainer. "Say... tell you what." He grinned at Mark. "How about a little rematch?"

"Rematch?" Mark echoed.

"Sure; why not?" Randy asked. "If I win, you tell me why you're heading to Kanto. You win, I leave you alone."

"I could just as easily say 'screw off' and head to my motel," Mark pointed out.

"Like you have anything better to do until the boat leaves tomorrow?" Randy asked.

Mark's eye twitched at that. "I hate it when people do that," he grumbled, thinking for a moment before turning to Randy. "Alright, fine. I accept your challenge, Randy, long as you promise to leave me alone."

"Good... let's go find somewhere to duke it out."

"The beach, maybe?" Mark suggested.

________________________________________________________________

The two trainers stared each other down as they took their positions near the snack shack. Just seeing the two trainers facing each other had drawn a crowd; people who recognized them as ex-champions and nemeses from the Hoenn League. Some were suggesting they were about to settle an old score, not knowing the reasons for the battle.

"Alright, bud," Randy called. "I'm of course picking my good friend, Cairo, here." He gestured to his Lucario.

"Big mistake," stated Mark, producing a Poké Ball. "Your Lucario may have beaten Siren and Fang, but he never got to fight Vitesse." He cast the ball forward; it popped open, and the Blaziken emerged in a flash of white light.

"Chaaaa!" Vitesse bellowed, flexing her arms before she stood facing the Lucario.

Randy smiled. "Ah, the same Blaziken who beat my Sceptile," he said. "She's looking as fit as ever."

"You're about to find out just how fit she is," stated Mark. "So you want to do this vanilla style, or go full throttle?" He held up his bracelet, showing his Key stone.

"Oh, it's on," returned Randy with excited glee in his voice, reaching into his shirt and producing a necklace with a key stone mounted in the amulet; a necklace of similar design was actually worn around Cairo's neck, hidden beneath his scarf, but if one looked close enough, they could see the stone hanging out from under the scarf. "Cairo!" He called, tapping the stone with his other hand.

"Vitesse; let's show 'em what we got!" Mark chimed, tapping the stone on his bracelet.

Both stones glowed brightly, and the two Pokémon were engulfed in light. The light formed into violet, crystalline spheres, shining like stars. Then, the spheres began to break, shattering in all directions like glass, before the two Pokémon emerged in new forms. Vitesse's mega form had noticeable changes; the feathers around her legs, from the thighs down to the shins had turned black, her crest feathers stood upright at an angle, giving her head an almost X appearance seen from the front and long ribbons of flame trailed from her wrists, flowing like strands of silk in the wind, but ablaze with red-hot fire.

Cairo's appearance was far more obvious to its changes; the yellow fur around his upper and lower torso had become thicker. His long, blue tail had been replaced by a wider, bushier tail matching the pale yellow fur of his upper body. The spikes on the tops of his paws were now curving ever so-slightly forward, and had second, smaller spikes behind them just before the wrist and the fur around his paws had turned to a burgundy red, both traits were matched by similar features around his feet, and the dreadlocks from the back of his head had doubled in length, trailing behind him in the wind. The last, distinguishable change to occur in the Lucario was the addition of black markings over his blue fur, trailing up his legs like lightning bolts, and he retained the black 'mask' pattern around his eyes, though there were a few slight changes to the shape.

"Holy cow; a Mega Lucario and a Mega Blaziken!" One of the spectators exclaimed, the entire audience in complete awe of the battle about to unfold. And of course, this was followed imminently by more chatter.

"Classic rivalry, man!" A surfboarder declared.

"My money's on the Blaziken."

"What? Why?"

"Hello? Fire/Fighting-Type? Lucario is part steel-type; the Blaziken has the advantage."

"Dude, no way; Lucario is far tougher than any Blaziken."

"Yeah, type advantage don't mean nothin'; I got a hundred bucks on the Lucario."

"Okay; I'll take that bet."

"Same; easiest hundred bucks I'll ever make!"

Mark listened to the banter, rolling his eyes to the side to watch the spectators as they started shelling out cash and writing cheques. "Even on a day at the beach, always seems to be a gambler or two, huh?" He asked Randy.

"Eh, what can you do? They'll wager, we'll give them either their money's worth or a world of disappointment," returned Randy.

"Ain't that the truth," stated Mark. "Alright, Randy; you ready to get clobbered?"

"Cairo's going to be doing the clobbering," returned Randy. The Lucario followed up with a bark of challenge to Vitesse.

The Blaziken returned the challenge with a powerful screech, the flaming ribbons trailing from her arms becoming more intense as she stood wide-legged, keeping her hands up to guard her head. Cairo stood with his left leg forward, paws held outward at an equal elevation, ready to catch any strikes towards his own head.

"Vittesse; use Flamethrower!" Mark commanded.

"Cairo; Aura Sphere!" Randy returned.

Vitesse breathed in, and exhaled a large cone of flames. Cairo held his paws at his side, one over the other, and streams of light swirled between his paws, forming into a sphere of energy swirling with colour, which he launched towards Vitesse with a thrust of both paws, sending the sphere hurtling directly into the flames. The sphere forced its way through the flames; Vitesse attempted to get out of the way, but the sphere was too close, and slammed into her chest, bursting upon impact and sent her skidding back, stirring up dust as she dug her feet into the sandy ground and fought to stay on her feet.

"Vitesse; you okay?" Mark asked.

"Chak," the Blaziken returned, nodding her head, but keeping her eyes on Cairo.

"We can't fight this Lucario at a distance; he's too powerful," Mark muttered. "Vitesse; close the distance with Flame Charge!"

Vitesse broke into a sprint, her entire body going ablaze as she ran at Cairo. Randy ordered another Aura Sphere; the Lucario cast the attack towards Vitesse, but with a good strong jump, she launched herself over it, angling her shoulder forward and successfully slamming into Cairo with all of her weight and the heat of her burning body. Cairo was sent skidding much like Vitesse had when she was struck by his Aura Sphere before.

But Randy only grinned. "You don't get off that easily," he said.

"Vitesse, behind you!" Mark cried.

The Blaziken looked over her shoulder, and much to her shock, she saw the Aura Sphere she had previously dodged was still following her. She tried to block it, spinning around and crossing her arms in front of her, but was sent spiralling as a result, hitting the sand and grunting as she blinked the stars from her eyes and jumped up before she could be caught helpless.

'I forgot; Aura Sphere can't be dodged,' Mark thought. 'It homes in on the aura of the opponent Pokémon, and never loses its target.'

"Use another!" Randy called.

The Lucario began to charge another Aura Sphere, but Vitesse lunged forward and punched him before he could throw it, delivering a hard punch right to Cairo's gut and throwing off his focus, sending the attack harmlessly into the sand.

"How the heck?" Randy asked.

"I may have forgotten about Aura Sphere but you seem to have forgotten about what a Mega Blaziken does," Mark began. "When it Mega Evolves, they gain a little ability called 'Speed Boost'; the longer Vitesse stays in that form, the faster she'll get, along with Flame Charge already giving her a boost! Now that she's in arms reach of Cairo, his distance advantage is out the window!"

"Don't get overconfident, buddy; Cairo's just as tough up close as he is from afar," Randy retorted. "Go, Force Palm!"

Cairo's paw glowed; Vitesse put up her arms in defense as he thrust his paw forward. It struck her arms, and she reeled, but managed to keep her balance.

"Blaze Kick!" Mark called.

"Force Palm again!"

The two attacks collided; glowing paw and burning foot, one deflecting the other and causing the Pokémon to almost stumble before regaining their posture and returning to the attack. They traded blow after blow; eventually the two trainers changed their commands to Bullet Punch and Fire Punch, and it became a clash of hands. Again and again they struck each other, but as Vitesse continued to gain speed, so too did her strikes, until eventually she was able to land two consecutive hits on the Lucario, before following it up with another Blaze Kick and sending him flying.

"Man, this is better than an action film!" A spectator stated.

"They're both Fighting-Types; it may as well be an action film!"

Cairo hit the sand, skidding through it before pulling up his legs, somersaulting back onto his feet with stunning grace. "Pretty good, Mark," said Randy. "But my Lucario has a powerful attack of his own I've yet to reveal! Cairo; use Reversal!"

Cairo's expression hardened, and he lunged forward at full speed, catching Vitesse off guard and striking her in the chest with a clenched paw; the attack struck with such force that Vitesse was sent flying through the air, back towards her trainer. Instinctively, Mark strode forward, trying to catch Vitesse in his arms, but she landed on him with such force he too was blown off of his feet, sending both of them falling onto their backs in a cloud of dust.

"Oowww..." Groaned Mark.

"Whoa... hey, you okay man?" Randy called.

Mark sat up, and looked at Vitesse. "You alright, girl?" He asked the Blaziken.

"_Chaka,"_returned the Blaziken, sitting up, rubbing her belly where Cairo had struck her.

"Whoa! That was a hell of an attack!" A spectator called.

"What does Reversal do?" Another asked.

"I-I think it turns the damage the user has taken back on its opponent, kind of like Bide or Counter but, even stronger and doesn't take more than one hit."

They were, in fact, correct; Reversal, as its name implied, did just that. The more damage the attacking Pokémon had taken prior to using the move, the more powerful the attack would be. Vitesse's Blaze Kick was powerful enough to defeat most Pokémon in a single hit, but Cario had endured it, and was probably harmed considerably by it; Randy had turned the tide of the battle by using Reversal, making the previous battle advantage into a disadvantage. He was just as tricky as Mark remembered; the moment you thought you had him, he would yank the rug out from under you and leave you back at square one.

Now, Vitesse was winded, battered and barely able to sit up. Mark had to try something, quick; one more like that and she would lose.

"Okay, Vitesse," Mark whispered. "I'd wager Cairo knows Sky Uppercut too in order to take on Flying-types, but if you use Bounce, and come back down with a Blaze Kick, I think we can finish this." He put a hand on her shoulder. "One more win and we're heading to Kanto on our new adventure; you ready girl?"

The Blaziken turned and looked at him, nodding her head with determination. Mark smiled at her, and helped her get to her feet, before he stepped back, letting her get back into the battle. Shaking off her weariness, she readied herself, facing Cairo once more. By now, her speed would be at its peak; she'd be faster than the wind, and Mark was counting on using that to make sure that his strategy would work.

"You two good to continue?" Randy asked.

"We are," assured Mark, "last round, Randy."

"Alright; ready Cairo?"

The Lucario barked in confirmation.

"Then, use Aura Sphere!"

Mark waited, letting Cairo charge up the attack, watching carefully. "Steady, Vitesse," he instructed his Blaziken; she complied, holding her ground as the sphere of energy became larger still, forcing Cairo's paws apart to continue encompassing it...

And then, it was cast; the sphere soared towards Vitesse, flying like a missile, but still she didn't move, until Mark gave the order. "Now; Bounce!"

With a light hop, followed immediately by the strongest leap she could muster, Vitesse launched herself into the air, the Aura Sphere missing her completely only to strike the sand, dispersing it as a result.

"You're not safe up there!" Randy declared. "Go, Sky Uppercut, Cairo!"

The Lucario barked in battle-wrought passion, charging forward and drawing back one of his paws before he too made a powerful jump, thrusting his fist upward as he ascended towards her...

"Now!" Mark called.

Vitesse's right foot alit with flame, and she dropped down towards Cairo with that leg leading, dropping like a burning meteorite. Unable to turn away, Cairo kept rising, bringing up his paw with all of his strength as Vitesse kicked towards him...

The two Pokémon collided; foot met stomach, paw met solar plexus.

Both Pokémon went limp as they fell back down to earth, sand exploding from the beach as they landed, both of them eliminated from sight by the stirred-up dust.

Both trainers called out to their Pokémon in concern and wonder, unsure which one would be the last one standing.The audience watched in stunned silence; nobody was uttering a word, frozen in place as they waited to see the battle's conclusion. Mark and Randy both stood, waiting to see which of their Pokémon would be on their feet when the sand cleared. The suspense was enough to make both of them feel a hundred pounds heavier.

And then, finally, the dust cleared; both Pokémon could be seen. Vitesse was lying, sprawled out on her back, returned to her regular form; the Mega Evolution had expired, and she was lying unconscious in the sand. But she was not alone in her tired slumber; lying draped over her belly was Cairo, also back in his regular form and out cold.

Their trainers sprinted across the beach and fell to the sides of their Pokémon; Randy gingerly lifted Cairo from Vitesse, while Mark lifted her up and cradled her in his arms as he spoke her name. Her eyes fluttered open slightly at the sound of his voice, and she gave her trainer a weak squawk of apology.

"No, don't be sorry girl; you fought well," assured Mark, smiling comfortingly.

"You too, Cairo," Randy told the Lucario, who had since opened his eyes too. Randy reached into his side satchel and produced a water bottle, presenting it to Cairo and letting him take a short sip of it. As Cairo drank the water, Randy glanced over to Mark. "Guess that's a draw."

"Guess so," agreed Mark.

"So... who upholds their end of the deal?" Randy asked.

Mark turned to him as he produced Vitesse's Poké Ball, pausing just as he was about to use the return function. He eyed Randy with consideration for a moment before the red beam shot out of the ball, and she was drawn into the sphere. He shrank down the ball and placed it back into his vest. "Tell you what," he began. "Let's take Cairo and Vitesse to the center; we can talk there."

Randy shrugged. "Works for me."

________________________________________________________________

Cairo and Vitesse were taken into the treatment room, where they were both let out of their Poké Balls, laid out on stretchers and placed under the soothing, bathing light of the recovery machine, designed to accelerate the healing of Pokémon. Depending on how injured they were, they could be healed anywhere from minutes to a few hours, recovering from injuries that would leave a human being down for weeks. The nurse in charge estimated they would take roughly three quarters of an hour to heal before she could let them back out again.

In the meantime, Mark and Randy decided to head over to the cafe for a snack. They sat down at a table, sharing a plate of nacho's, while they waited for their Pokémon to be healed. It felt odd at first, sharing a meal with the very person who had won his championship title from him, but Mark didn't feel so uncomfortable around Randy. They were no longer competing with one another; maybe they could be friends.

"So, I guess you're going to try to talk me into not bothering you now," began Randy. "But, you know what... that was an awesome battle; so really, I'm willing to respect your privacy if you really don't want to tell me."

Mark sighed. "No... I suppose there's really no harm in telling you. It's going to come out eventually anyway; someone will find out and announce it all across Hoenn if not the world." He munched on one more nacho before he folded his hands out in front of him, waiting until after he swallowed it before he looked at Randy. "I'm going to Kanto on a new journey."

"Challenging the League there?" Randy inquired, prompting Mark to continue.

"Bigger than that," replied Mark. "If I was able to beat the Hoenn Elite Four I'm pretty confident I could beat the Kanto Elite Four too, not to mention their Gym Leaders. Although there is one leader I intend to challenge."

"Who's that?"

"Blue Oak, Viridian City Gym Leader, and formerly a Champion of the Kanto League," replied Mark. "Then, after him, I wish to track down the Ex-Champion who was never officially beaten; the trainer named Red. And finally when all of that's done, challenge the real Champion, Lance."

"Blue... Lance... Red..." Randy's eyes widened with realization. "You're challenging the Kanto Champions!"

Mark nodded. "Both old and new," he replied. "And overtime, I intend to journey to each of the regions to challenge the champions of those places to. I'm just starting with Kanto. Just seems like the best place to begin."

"Dude!" Randy blurted out, loudly enough that most of the cafe probably heard him. "That is bloody ambitious and brilliant!"

"Shush!" Mark hissed, putting a hand over Randy's mouth. "You want to announce it to all of Slateport or something?"

"Sorry," mumbled Randy through Mark's hand. Sensing that the other trainer had calmed down enough, Mark pulled his hand away, letting him speak normally. "Got a little carried away." "Obviously," Mark returned in an exasperated tone.

"Are you doing this because you lost your Championship?" Randy asked.

"Partly," replied Mark. "To be honest with you, it wasn't my idea initially; I got it from this biker I mopped the floor with yesterday, who thought beating me would be a start in preparing for taking on the new Hoenn Champion; I originally thought he meant you... until I heard that apparently you lost the title as well."

Randy grimaced, shaking his head. "Yeah... I did. Just three months after I won it from you, some new kid came along. Little younger than either of us, but, a terrific trainer; it was a close match but he saw through my strategies, and had some powerful opposition for me, including a Legendary."

"What one?" Mark asked.

"Freakin' Groudon, man; don't know where or how he caught that but, he smashed me good with it, along with a Mega Swampert, a Flygon, Aggron, Alakazam and a Hawlucha. That last one was able to even beat Cairo, and I had nothing to take on that Groudon; Gemstar lost to the Alakazam earlier on in the battle, and Thorn got stomped by Groudon anyway."

Mark frowned. "Quite a roster he has," he stated.

"Yeah," returned Randy. "So, now here I am with nothing to do; not the champ anymore so, lost my bragging rights," he said with sarcasm, "and, I seem to be tougher than every other trainer in Hoenn except you."

"Yeah... I know the feeling."

Both men were silent for a moment, before Randy suddenly spoke up again. "Can I... come with you?"

Mark eyed him curiously. "Why; you want to take the challenge too?"

"Partially... but why bother? If you beat all of them all I'd have to do is challenge you again, then I know I could take them," replied Randy, though Mark could tell he was partially joking. "But, mostly... I want to see the other lands, and I'm damn curious to see how you'd fare against these other Champions."

"So that's why; just to sight-see?" Mark inquired.

"More or less," confirmed Randy. "And who knows, maybe you could use a sparring partner; keep your Pokémon in shape?"

Mark admitted to himself, having someone along to practice with would be better for keeping his Pokémon fit rather than just training with them himself as he always did. Do the routine exercises, and then put them to the test; Randy was the only trainer he knew off-hand who had Pokémon capable of matching his. There was logic to the idea, and it'd probably be good to have another person coming along to talk to.

Mark smiled. "Alright... why not?" He returned. "Let's go get you a ticket, then."

Randy returned the smile. "Sounds good to me."