Double Deino Duo!

''As morning dawns, our heroes set out from the Monkshood Town Pokémon Center in the hopes of finally reaching Phlox Town. But, as afternoon rolls around, lunch is served and a new adventure awaits!''

"My stomach won't stop growling!" Silus angrily snorted.

"I told you to eat breakfast before we left the Pokémon Center." Lyra snapped. "You always let your excitement get in the way of your stomach."

"I bet the Pokémon are hungry too. Besides, its not like we'll make it to Phlox Town today." Silus complained.

"Look, mister!" Lyra shouted, jabbing her index finger in the young man's face. "Route six is extremely long. If we want to make good time, then we—"

She paused at the sound of her own stomach growling, which seemed to greatly amuse Silus.

"Looks like someone needs to take her own advice." Silus said, grinning mischievously.

"Hmph!" Lyra grunted, folding her arms. "Fine, we'll stop for lunch."

Deino Duo Surprise!
Silus and Lyra each let out their Pokémon and set them aside with an assortment of berries which Lyra had collected. The two trainers, on the other hand, were reduced to eating beef jerky, as neither of them could actually cook, nor had they thought to stock up on travel meals before they left.

"This stuff hits the spot!" Silus chirped happily, taking a gulp out of his water bottle.

"This is hardly what I would call 'lunch'." Lyra said pointedly, "But, I must admit, it is pretty good."

As the two chatted, they became aware that their Pokémon were staring at some nearby shrubs rather than actually eating. Silus got to his feet to see what was so interesting, and, upon doing so, noticed two identical Pokémon coming out of the shrubs, near where they had sat the feast of berries, to investigate the assortment of grub.

"What kind of Pokémon are those?" Lyra said, joining Silus.

"They're called Deino." said a younger voice from the direction of the road.

Silus and Lyra both flipped around, only to see a young boy, no older than ten or eleven, with long brown hair and green eyes standing at the edge of their camp. A small rodent Pokémon was perched firmly on his shoulders, standing no taller than Silus' Pichu had stood.

"Who're you?" Silus asked, absentmindedly.

"I'm Nathan, from Monkshood Town. I often come out here to play with Emolga here." the boy said, indicating to the Pokémon on his shoulder.

"Emolga?" Silus repeated, taking out his Pokédex.

"Emolga, the Sky Squirrel Pokémon." The dex chimed mechanically. "It glides on its outstretched membrane while shocking foes with the electricity stored in the pouches on its cheeks."

"You've got a Pokédex?!" Nathan yelped excitedly.

"Yeah, I got one from Professor Changi." Silus replied, not sure what all the excitement was about.

"Then that must mean you're a good trainer!" Nathan declared, suddenly serious. "Let's have a competition!"

"Competition? What kind?" Silus asked, now genuinely lost.

"See those Deino over there?" Nathan said, gesturing towards the Pokémon from earlier. "Let's battle them! The first one to catch one wins!"

Before replying, Silus pointed his Pokédex, which he was still holding, at Deino; "Deino, the Irate Pokémon. Lacking sight, it's unaware of its surroundings, so it bumps into things and eats anything that moves."

"A blind... Pokémon?" Silus chirped, bewildered and a little unsure.

"Don't let that stump you!" Nathan barked. "Deino are Dark and Dragon-type Pokémon and are really powerful when trained properly."

"Dragon-type, huh?" Silus said. "Alright, you're on!"

Deino Competition
Both trainers stood in front of a Deino, who regarded them with indifference; pecking away at the berries that had rolled away from the main group of Pokémon.

"Alright, for this battle, I'll pick Glaceon!" Silus declared.

Hearing its name, Glaceon tore itself away from the rest of its Pokémon companions and joined Silus' side. Emolga, on the otherhand, leaped down from Nathan's shoulder, joining its trainer on the battlefield too.

"Alright, let's get started, Emolga! Shockwave!" Nathan roared.

Leaping into the air, Emolga electrified itself before releasing a powerful wave of electrical energy, which slammed into the leftmost Deino, sending it flying away from its companion.

"Can't let them get the upper hand on us!" Silus retorted. "Go Glaceon! Use Ice Shard!"

"Glace!" the fox-like Pokémon barked.

Leaping into action, Glaceon formed a large chunk of ice in front of it before launching it as a projectile. Like with Emolga, the ice hit its mark, sending Deino reeling after letting out a shriek of surprise.

"That move was super effective." Lyra noted from the sidelines. "At this rate, Silus is sure to win!"

Raising themselves to their feet, both Deino pulled together, launching jets of violet-bluish flames at the two opposing Pokémon, causing both to scatter to get out of the way.

"That was Deino's Dragon Breath." Nathan noted.

"I'm not gonna let that slow us down!" Silus trumpeted, "Go! Icy Wind!"

Gathering a pale blue energy in front of its mouth, Glaceon released a turret of freezing wind, effectively hitting both Deino, but only knocking out the one it had hit previously.

"Dei!" the other Deino shrieked, surprised.

Taking out a Pokéball, Silus tossed the sphere enthusiastically, slamming into the Deino he had knocked out and sucking it into the ball in a brilliant flash of crimson light.

"Oh no!" Nathan thought aloud. "He's gonna beat me to it!"

The young trainer retrieved a ball of his own, tossing it in an attempt to ensnare the still conscious Deino. In an instant, a similar situation occurred; the Deino being sucked into the Pokéball by a bright red light, landing next to Silus' ball, which was still struggling to hold its own Deino inside. Nevertheless, Silus' ball sparkled first, indicating that he had, in fact, captured the Pokémon.

"We did it!" Silus trumpeted triumphantly, opening his arms to allow Glaceon to fill them.

"Awww, looks like I was too slow." Nathan admitted grumpily, noticing that his own Pokéball had captured Deino.

Nathan and Cable
Silus retrieved his new Pokémon and placed it on his belt, "Guess I won our competition." he sneered.

"Not quite." Nathan sneered back. "Now, let's have a Pokémon battle."

"A battle?" Silus asked confused. "But I just finished my Gym Battle at Monkshood Town yesterday. I'm all battled out for now."

"You beat Cable?!" Nathan gawked.

"That's right." Silus replied, pulling out his badge case and showing Nathan his two badges. "What's it to ya?"

"Cable is my big brother." Nathan revealed, drawing a shocked expression from Silus and Lyra.

"Your big brother?!" Lyra interjected. "But you don't look anything like him!"

"Its true." Nathan replied. "I've always wanted to go on a Pokémon journey, but Cable says I should stay behind and take over the Gym."

Silus was suddenly serious, "You should follow your heart. I'm sure Cable would understand."

Nathan smiled weakly and shook his head, "I don't think so. I thought that if I beat a strong trainer like you, he might let me, but now..."

"But now I see that you're ready." a voice said from nearby.

Cable stepped out from behind several bushes, revealing himself to have been watching for quite some time.

"Cable, what're you doing out here?" Silus asked, stunned.

"I came to see what my kid brother was up to and saw you guys battling those Deino. Watching he and Emolga battle alongside you made me realize that I shouldn't keep him cooped up in the Gym." Cable replied.

"Wow! Brother! Do you mean it?!" Nathan asked, starry-eyed.

Cable nodded, "I do. Silus, would you mind taking my kid brother along with you and Lyra for awhile? I know its a lot to ask, but I would feel much better if he was traveling with a trainer like you."

"Hahaha! Yeah! That would be fun!" Nathan shouted happily. "Don't worry! I'm a real good cook! I'll make myself useful."

Silus smiled back, and looked at Lyra for assistance. Lyra only offered a warm smile and a nod of encouragement before Silus turned back to the brotherly duo who were eagerly awaking his decision.

"Alright, you can come with us, Nathan." Silus agreed with a firm smirk. "We need a good cook around anyways."

"That's a relief." Cable sighed in relief. "Thank you Silus. You take care of yourself, you hear me, Nathan? Go and do good."

Nathan grinned, "Uh huh! You got it!"

Setting Off Once Again
A few hours later, the newly assembled group of three was much further onto Route 6, trucking ahead straight towards Phlox Town. The sun was beginning to set, and the three soon began to set up camp for the evening.

"It only gets worse from here." said Lyra as she finished erecting her tent. "I was reading the guidebook during our walk and it says that the latter end of Route 6 is very treacherous; with sandstorms and rocky terrain."

"Then we'll just have to do our best and get through as quickly as possible!" Silus replied, confidence brimming in his words.

''As our heroes once again prepare to tackle Route 6, they are joined by a new friend, and new Pokémon! What adventures await them in the sandy dunes of Route 6? Stay tuned to find out!''