HOME | DD

Description
The trek up the final length of the volcano was very long and treacherous. Barren rock, ash, and heat commanded the terrain as the blankets of snow were left behind. Jake's clothes were almost entirely soaked through in his own sweat. Even after getting his winter gear off and reducing his attire to merely a plain green t-shirt and simple jeans, the overwhelming heat waves made him utterly dizzy and drained. But he thought to himself that he would definitely prefer this over the frigid cold wastelands from before. He had to wipe the sweat away from his eyes for the third time and took a great big gulp from his second wattle bottle that was now nearly gone.

'Well, it could be worse,' Jake thought, immediately getting his unmade wish by the volcano violently trembling beneath him.

The ground in front of him sputtered and cracked, plumes of trapped steam and smoke busted out of the seams. Jake jumped back just in time as chunks of the ground gave way and fell into a boiling river of lava below. The shaking settled to a low rumble and disappeared as quickly as it came. Jake carefully slid his feet to the edge of the ravine and poked his head over the side. A few pieces of rock that fell away near his feet plunged into the river of magma over two stories below, instantly incinerating on contact. Jake looked across to see bits of rock still falling into the swirling reddish-yellow pool from the other edge as well. He judged it was a good five or more feet across the gap with the ravine stretching too far out to either side to tell if there was another way to cross.

'*Sigh* I just had to say it.'

Jake backed up as far as he could from the ravine; taking one last glance to both sides in case he missed something. Taking a deep breath, Jake sprinted to the ledge and kicked off as hard as he could into the air. The magma bubbled angrily below him like it was waiting for Jake to fall into its gapping maw. But with all his strength behind him, Jake cleared the ravine, diving into a tuck and roll on the other side. He earned a few good scrapes on his hands and arms, but was otherwise unharmed as he scrambled to his feet again. He looked back over his shoulder at his triumph over the obstacle and moved on.

After what felt like another hour of climbing, one last wall of vertical rock stood in Jake's way. He could tell it was the final step to the summit above as globs of puffy black smoke and wavering lines of heat were spewed into the air just above. Clapping his hands together, Jake prepared for the last ascension. HE stepped up to the volcanic wall and set a hand on the first handhold he could find.

"Aaaagghh!"

Jake screamed and ripped his hand away from the wall. He shook his hand hard to dissipate the pain that came from touching the red hot rock face.

'That could have gone a lot better,' Jake thought as he flexed his fingers against the burning pain.

With no other way up, Jake stood vacantly near the wall as he thought about what he could use to make it up to the summit. He looked down at the ground and found a nice little pile of ash lying next to his feet. He scooped up a handful of the volcanic ash and rubbed it vigorously between his hands.

'It's not much,' Jake thought as he approached the rock wall again, 'but it'll have to due.'

In a flash, Jake began to scale the incline as fast as he could. It wasn't very tall, only about ten feet up, but he had to keep moving faster to keep the heat off his hands as he climbed. The pain was excruciating, and his skin felt like it was peeling away under the thin ash barrier; in another instant, he leapt up for the top ledge and clambered to the top. The heat was far more intense as the side he came up seeing as it was the closet to the lava pool that filled the volcanic basin. The basin itself was enormous, stretching as far out as Jake could see pat the wafting black smoke. The lava inside bubbled furiously, churning to its own rhythm of red hot death for any who would be unlucky enough to fall in. Of course there wasn't much time for gawking as Jake dug into his drawstring bag to retrieve he last bottle of water and a few Rawst berries. Finding a nice little outcrop of rocks further along the edge, Jake sat down and closed up his bag again. He popped the berries into his mouth and chewed until there was a paste. HE spit the gooey paste out onto his hands that were pretty raw red from his ordeal. He cringed from the first contact but after letting the burn healing berries soak on his skin for a moment, the pain began to lift away. He opened the last bottle of water he had and cleaned away the sticky gunk. Gulping down the remnants of water, he threw the empty bottle into the lava, watching as the thin plastic melt away into nothing.

'Better than just leaving it on the ground.'

Now returning his attention back to the volcanic basin, Jake took in more of the scenery. Much of the surrounding fiery enclave was jagged and unreachable, but some spots were flat and wide enough for people to climb up much like the side Jake emerged from. Other than that, not much else could be seen that stood out; that is unless you squinted past the haze and smoke to see a lone island directly in the center of the volcano high above the flow of lava. A single path extended like a natural bridge to the center a little ways from Jake. The bridge itself was very narrow, but extended out toward the outside of the volcano like the topside of a funnel. Carefully working around the pool of fire below, Jake made it to the open land leading to bridge which dipped down a little toward the basin. HE slid down a small path and peered out again to the island. Now closer, a small shape took form on the island itself. It looked much like a pedestal and on top of it, a piece of silvery white rock with an imprint of a paw print sat peacefully.

"That's gotta be it, but where's-" Jake was cut off by a sharp lion like roar.

A ring of black smoke parted in the mere presence of Entei as the legendary bounded through from a top of a cliff like edge to the left and down to the volcanic terrain before Jake. He was almost twice the size of his brothers and with a regal stature to match. His long saber like fangs shone menacingly with the red flares of lava surrounding him. His mane trailed behind him with the searing air in a blend of pure white and flashing oranges and reds.

"Human," Entei hissed angrily, looking Jake over, "Those fools Raikou and Suicune must be getting weak to allow someone as the likes of you get here."

Jake felt a little bad for the great deity's brothers at the harsh words, but he was here for a reason, "I've come to challenge you Entei for you Paw Print."

"I know why you are here," Entei scoffed, "All you humans are the same; nothing but greedy, ignorant animals only seeking power."

"I'm not like that," Jake said, his pride hurt by Entei's assessment.

"Oh? Then tell me, what is that you hope to gain from the Paw Print?"

"I-I haven't thought of it yet."

"Then you've already proven that you are ignorant. But enough of this, it is time I cast you off of my domain."

Entei took his battle stance and roared, the lava in the basin bubbling up with the legendary's rage. Jake immediately reached for two pokeballs on his belt, nervously ready for battle.

"Dagger, Xylon, time to fight."

The shimmer of lights from the pokeballs disappeared to reveal Jake's Gallade and Metagross.

"Good gracious, I would have to venture a guess that our opponent is a legendary, correct?" Xylon asked as he eyed Entei with a bit of worry, "Quite interesting."

"Careful Xylon, you have the type disadvantage, so don't do anything crazy."

"Indeed. Well then my companion Dagger, are you up for a rousing battle at my side?"

Dagger nodded plainly and took his stance, "Ready."

The battle began with Entei, literally, blazing in with the fist attack. His fangs glowed and sparked as fire engulfed them with a Fire Fang attack. HE was incredibly fast and only gave Dagger and Xylon a few moments to dodge to either side just in time. Catching only air in his attack, Entei switched to target Xylon first and shot a powerful Flamethrower in his direction.

"Quick, Hyperbeam!" Jake commanded.

Xylon charged the lethal energy in time and countered the incoming attack with his own, creating a large explosion where they met. Entei knew the last attack would take a pokemon a moment to recharge and barreled through the explosion's smoke to attack Xylon point blank. Though before he had Xylon within range, Dagger jumped out from the side barely missing with a slicing jab. Entei jumped back and used another Flamethrower attack that caught Dagger from behind.

"Dagger, counter with Psycho Cut!"

Dagger got back up from the surprise attack and focused his psychic power into his blade like arms. He swung his arms rapidly, flurrying the attack at Entei and managed to hit Entei twice. It didn't seem to phase Entei all that much though, and retaliated with a few swiped of his paws. Dagger caught the broadside of a crushing swing and was hurtled into a boulder that shattered and collapsed on top of him.

"Dagger!" Jake shouted for the buried pokemon, "Xylon, hold Entei off with a Rock Slide!"

The massive Steel/ Psychic pokemon focused his psychic energy into creating a tidal wave of near by rubble which he threw toward the legendary. Entei backed away and only suffered some light bruising after the attack. Meanwhile, Jake was rushing to Dagger's aid, but the Gallade was able to free himself by blasting the rubble off with his impressive psychic abilities.

"*Phew* thank Arceus you're alright," Jake said relieved.

Dagger tottered to his feet and shook his head, "A few cuts and bruises; I'll be fine."

"Glad to hear, ready for round two?"

Dagger gave a quick nod and rejoined the battle. The fight was now barely evenly matched as each side exchanged their attacks, each in turn either dodging or receiving a minimal amount of damage in the exchange.

"Hmm, if it would suit you master Jake, I wish to test our opponent's true capabilities," Xylon said after he blocked another Iron Tail attack.

"Ok," Jake replied, "But be careful."

"Very good. Now good sir, have at thee; let me take note of your supreme potential."

It wasn't exactly a taunt, but Entei took it as a challenge and prepared a devastating Fire Blast attack. The intense fireball flew like an arrow, awaiting to pierce its target with powerful flames.

"Use Mirror Coat Xylon!"

Xylon braced for the impact, taking the Fire Blast attack head-on. To say the attack was powerful was an understatement. Xylon felt like he was being torn to shreds under the supercharged fire attack and hung on as long as he could. The sheer force of the attack pushed him back toward the edge of the lava basin; mere inches separated the Metagross from the swirling pool of fire, but he was able to hold his ground and glowed with the stored energy courtesy of Entei's assault.

"I believe it is my turn now," Xylon shouted and unleashed the reflected attack on Entei. The mighty beam of energy struck Entei with surprising force and nearly knocked him off his feet.

"Enough!" Entei shouted in rage, "I will not allow a mere human to possess the Paw Print!"

Xylon and Dagger stood side by side, waiting as Entei roared viciously. The lava basin began to bubble up again, the whole volcano shook brutally. Towering jets of magma rose from the basin and around Entei, his show power was immense. He stomped the ground and roared again, the towers of lava rained down toward Jake and his team in the attack known as Eruption. Dagger stepped into the center of the trio and threw up one of his psychic barriers just as the first streaks of lava closed in; Xylon used his own Psychic attack to fortify the shield as well. The columns of liquid fire pounded against the shield with devastating force. Dagger and Xylon grimaced and groaned as their barricade absorbed the blows. Jake noticed the barrier begin to flicker and distort. He glanced over at Dagger and saw his fear coming to life. Dagger's eyes were shifting from their normal lucid blue to flickers of a dull red; his entire body seemed to fume with excess psychic energy.

'Come on Jake, think," Jake screamed inside his head as his Gallade struggled to stay in control.

Jake looked outside the barrier for anything he could use; he spotted a precariously perched boulder resting uneasily just above Entei alongside the basin's cliff sides. He had no choice; Jake grabbed a piece of rubble next to his feet and dived outside the barrier, narrowly avoiding the rain of lava that fell. He ran further back to get a clear view, taking quick aim toward his mark. The shield was cracking under the stress of Entei's attack; the fumes of energy around Dagger grew to a burning fire showing his weakening control.

'Only one shot.'

He threw as hard as he could, the small rock arcing over the field. The rock hit the overhead boulder, chipping away pieces at the base and dislodging it from its nest. Entei looked up to see the falling boulder and backed away to avoid being crushed. His Eruption attack broke away as well leaving the two psychic pokemon inside the barrier out of breath.

"Xylon, Dagger, are you two ok?"

Dagger was in the middle if clutching his head in agony, trying to use his Calm Mind ability to regain his control. The boulder that Jake knocked out of the cliffs suddenly exploded into tiny fragments, revealing a very pissed off Entei in its wake. Xylon created a psychic barrier around himself and Dagger, a way for him to concentrate his energy on Dagger and help him regain control.

"We will be fine master Jake," Xylon said, "Be sure to show our adversary that we will not give up so easily."

"Ok, I will."

Jake stood up and turned to face Entei, pulling his last pokeball from his belt, "My friends and I are here to win this challenge Entei. We're not about to give up now! Go, Ryo!"

His final pokemon, Ryo the Salamence, spread her wings wide and roared fiercely as she was released.

"No one will harm my Jake so long as I'm alive," Ryo growled.

Although Entei was weakened from his fight with Dagger and Xylon, he still proved to have enough strength to fend off the Dragon-type pokemon in their battle. Ryo used everything she had to try and take down the legendary; Getting in close with an Aerial Ace then following up with a powerful Dragon Claw. Entei countered with a Flamethrower and Iron Tail and dodged out of the way from Ryo's whip like tail. Ryo used the hot air from the volcano to rise quickly out of Entei's reach again and again, dive-bombing with an Aerial Ace when she wanted to get close for an attack.

Jake made his command, "Ryo, use Crunch!"

Ryo folded in her wings and dropped as fast as she could. Entei stood his ground, igniting the air with a barrage of fireballs. Ryo zoomed in on a collision course on the legendary, but at the last second used the hot air to again to evade the fire storm and position herself behind Entei to attack. Her jaws gleamed with the attack she prepared, razor sharp fangs ready to catch Entei by surprise. She bit down hard, but instead of catching Entei's neck in her jaws, she caught empty space. She only had a moment to see out of the corner of her eye as Entei's massive jaws began to clamp down on her shoulder near the base of her neck. Ryo bellowed in pain as Entei's teeth dug into her hide and drew blood.

"Oh Arceus, Ryo!" Jake screamed, having to watch his pokemon be strung out like a chew toy.

Entei snapped his head to the side, throwing his captive to the ground like a rag doll. It wasn't over yet as he used another Flamethrower to torch the defenseless Salamence on the ground.

Jake shouted, "Stop it!"

Entei finished his attack to face Jake who ran toward the badly burned and bleeding Ryo. He skidded to a halt in front of his Salamence, arms out wide to be a human shield

"I'm not going to let you hurt her anymore!"

Entei felt stunned, he couldn't remember the last time he had seen a human care so deeply for pokemon. No, there was another human just like this one a long time ago that sought to heal one of his pokemon and had such a passion for them as well. Seeing the mighty legendary deep in thought gave Jake enough time to dump the contents of his drawstring bag and find his medical supplies. With his last two Rawst berries and a super potion, he worked as best as he could on the major burn wounds.

"Ryo, Ryo, stay with me," Jake said franticly, tearing pieces of his winter gear to use as make shift gauze against the bleeding, "Just stay with me."

Ryo's breathing was labored and the pain was overwhelming, she was losing a lot of blood and soon Jake's clothes were dotted and splashed in the crimson red fluid.

"Jake," Ryo coughed weakly.

"Save your strength Ryo, I'm going to get you out of here."

Ryo drew in a long labored, "Jake, promise me you won't forget me."

"No Ryo, I'm not gonna make a promise like that, because you're going to live," Jake cried as he used the last of the super potion.

He threw the empty bottle away, desperately searching another through the pile on the ground. He found another and resumed the treatment, the bleeding starting to slow down just a little. Entei slowly approached the trainer that was solely focused on reviving his fallen pokemon.

"Human, why do you care so deeply for your pokemon, even when you've sent them to fight for you in an impossible battle?" Entei asked softly.

Jake shot an angry glare at the legendary, but answered, "I trust them as much as they trust me to overcome new challenges. They all fight alongside me, not just for me."

Entei stared at Jake with a blank look; then his lips rose into a small sympathetic smile, "You are unlike any other human I have met in a long time," Entei proclaimed, "You are worthy of receiving the Paw Print."

Entei, in one leap, crossed the bridge to the central island and retrieved the imprinted rock on the pedestal. He leapt back again and carefully placed the stone on the ground next to Jake.

"Place your hand in the imprint and make your wish," Entei said.

Jake did as he was told and felt a rush of chilling warmth graze his body as he touched the Paw Print. He looked down at Ryo's faded yet bright smile as there goal was reached. Xylon and Dagger gave their own nods of approval as Jake turned to look at them.

Jake finally knew what his wish would be, "I wish for a way to heal all my pokemon that helped me get here."

The Paw Print bursted to life, light expelled from around Jake's hand from the rock as its latent power was unleashed. The bright light died away and in Jake's hand was large pouch tied carefully to hold its lightweight contents. He opened it up to see the bag filled with a mixture of Sacred Ash.

"This ash was made from the power of the Paw Print," Entei proclaimed, "It will heal any and all injuries that your pokemon have."

Jake took a pinch of the fine ash and dusted on Ryo's wounds; it was amazing, the burn marks and bite wounds disappeared and closed up as if there was no damage to begin with. Ryo rose to her feet, fully restored and nuzzled her head against Jake in appreciation. Jake released the rest of his team that fought bravely be his side on the journey. Haze, Tetra, Toran, Dagger, and Xylon all took their turns to receive their treatment and were instantly restored to full strength. Jake returned everyone to their pokeballs and readied himself for the journey back to the stadium; He looked at the empty pouch of Sacred Ash to discover the symbol of Entei's Paw Print sewn onto the center and thought this would be enough to prove his victory.

"I have one final gift for you human," Entei stepped up in front of Jake, "A shortcut, if you will."

Before Jake could ask what he had meant, Entei roared to the sky and Jake was surrounded by a whirl of bright lights that clouded his vision. When he could finally see again, he was no longer on top of the volcano as he was a moment ago. But at the edge of the desert, where he first started the challenge to find Entei's Paw Print. Behind him, he could just make out the speck over 200 miles away, the volcano where Entei and his brothers laid in wait for their next challenger.

Description
The trek up the final length of the volcano was very long and treacherous. Barren rock, ash, and heat commanded the terrain as the blankets of snow were left behind. Jake's clothes were almost entirely soaked through in his own sweat. Even after getting his winter gear off and reducing his attire to merely a plain green t-shirt and simple jeans, the overwhelming heat waves made him utterly dizzy and drained. But he thought to himself that he would definitely prefer this over the frigid cold wastelands from before. He had to wipe the sweat away from his eyes for the third time and took a great big gulp from his second wattle bottle that was now nearly gone.

'Well, it could be worse,' Jake thought, immediately getting his unmade wish by the volcano violently trembling beneath him.

The ground in front of him sputtered and cracked, plumes of trapped steam and smoke busted out of the seams. Jake jumped back just in time as chunks of the ground gave way and fell into a boiling river of lava below. The shaking settled to a low rumble and disappeared as quickly as it came. Jake carefully slid his feet to the edge of the ravine and poked his head over the side. A few pieces of rock that fell away near his feet plunged into the river of magma over two stories below, instantly incinerating on contact. Jake looked across to see bits of rock still falling into the swirling reddish-yellow pool from the other edge as well. He judged it was a good five or more feet across the gap with the ravine stretching too far out to either side to tell if there was another way to cross.

'*Sigh* I just had to say it.'

Jake backed up as far as he could from the ravine; taking one last glance to both sides in case he missed something. Taking a deep breath, Jake sprinted to the ledge and kicked off as hard as he could into the air. The magma bubbled angrily below him like it was waiting for Jake to fall into its gapping maw. But with all his strength behind him, Jake cleared the ravine, diving into a tuck and roll on the other side. He earned a few good scrapes on his hands and arms, but was otherwise unharmed as he scrambled to his feet again. He looked back over his shoulder at his triumph over the obstacle and moved on.

After what felt like another hour of climbing, one last wall of vertical rock stood in Jake's way. He could tell it was the final step to the summit above as globs of puffy black smoke and wavering lines of heat were spewed into the air just above. Clapping his hands together, Jake prepared for the last ascension. HE stepped up to the volcanic wall and set a hand on the first handhold he could find.

"Aaaagghh!"

Jake screamed and ripped his hand away from the wall. He shook his hand hard to dissipate the pain that came from touching the red hot rock face.

'That could have gone a lot better,' Jake thought as he flexed his fingers against the burning pain.

With no other way up, Jake stood vacantly near the wall as he thought about what he could use to make it up to the summit. He looked down at the ground and found a nice little pile of ash lying next to his feet. He scooped up a handful of the volcanic ash and rubbed it vigorously between his hands.

'It's not much,' Jake thought as he approached the rock wall again, 'but it'll have to due.'

In a flash, Jake began to scale the incline as fast as he could. It wasn't very tall, only about ten feet up, but he had to keep moving faster to keep the heat off his hands as he climbed. The pain was excruciating, and his skin felt like it was peeling away under the thin ash barrier; in another instant, he leapt up for the top ledge and clambered to the top. The heat was far more intense as the side he came up seeing as it was the closet to the lava pool that filled the volcanic basin. The basin itself was enormous, stretching as far out as Jake could see pat the wafting black smoke. The lava inside bubbled furiously, churning to its own rhythm of red hot death for any who would be unlucky enough to fall in. Of course there wasn't much time for gawking as Jake dug into his drawstring bag to retrieve he last bottle of water and a few Rawst berries. Finding a nice little outcrop of rocks further along the edge, Jake sat down and closed up his bag again. He popped the berries into his mouth and chewed until there was a paste. HE spit the gooey paste out onto his hands that were pretty raw red from his ordeal. He cringed from the first contact but after letting the burn healing berries soak on his skin for a moment, the pain began to lift away. He opened the last bottle of water he had and cleaned away the sticky gunk. Gulping down the remnants of water, he threw the empty bottle into the lava, watching as the thin plastic melt away into nothing.

'Better than just leaving it on the ground.'

Now returning his attention back to the volcanic basin, Jake took in more of the scenery. Much of the surrounding fiery enclave was jagged and unreachable, but some spots were flat and wide enough for people to climb up much like the side Jake emerged from. Other than that, not much else could be seen that stood out; that is unless you squinted past the haze and smoke to see a lone island directly in the center of the volcano high above the flow of lava. A single path extended like a natural bridge to the center a little ways from Jake. The bridge itself was very narrow, but extended out toward the outside of the volcano like the topside of a funnel. Carefully working around the pool of fire below, Jake made it to the open land leading to bridge which dipped down a little toward the basin. HE slid down a small path and peered out again to the island. Now closer, a small shape took form on the island itself. It looked much like a pedestal and on top of it, a piece of silvery white rock with an imprint of a paw print sat peacefully.

"That's gotta be it, but where's-" Jake was cut off by a sharp lion like roar.

A ring of black smoke parted in the mere presence of Entei as the legendary bounded through from a top of a cliff like edge to the left and down to the volcanic terrain before Jake. He was almost twice the size of his brothers and with a regal stature to match. His long saber like fangs shone menacingly with the red flares of lava surrounding him. His mane trailed behind him with the searing air in a blend of pure white and flashing oranges and reds.

"Human," Entei hissed angrily, looking Jake over, "Those fools Raikou and Suicune must be getting weak to allow someone as the likes of you get here."

Jake felt a little bad for the great deity's brothers at the harsh words, but he was here for a reason, "I've come to challenge you Entei for you Paw Print."

"I know why you are here," Entei scoffed, "All you humans are the same; nothing but greedy, ignorant animals only seeking power."

"I'm not like that," Jake said, his pride hurt by Entei's assessment.

"Oh? Then tell me, what is that you hope to gain from the Paw Print?"

"I-I haven't thought of it yet."

"Then you've already proven that you are ignorant. But enough of this, it is time I cast you off of my domain."

Entei took his battle stance and roared, the lava in the basin bubbling up with the legendary's rage. Jake immediately reached for two pokeballs on his belt, nervously ready for battle.

"Dagger, Xylon, time to fight."

The shimmer of lights from the pokeballs disappeared to reveal Jake's Gallade and Metagross.

"Good gracious, I would have to venture a guess that our opponent is a legendary, correct?" Xylon asked as he eyed Entei with a bit of worry, "Quite interesting."

"Careful Xylon, you have the type disadvantage, so don't do anything crazy."

"Indeed. Well then my companion Dagger, are you up for a rousing battle at my side?"

Dagger nodded plainly and took his stance, "Ready."

The battle began with Entei, literally, blazing in with the fist attack. His fangs glowed and sparked as fire engulfed them with a Fire Fang attack. HE was incredibly fast and only gave Dagger and Xylon a few moments to dodge to either side just in time. Catching only air in his attack, Entei switched to target Xylon first and shot a powerful Flamethrower in his direction.

"Quick, Hyperbeam!" Jake commanded.

Xylon charged the lethal energy in time and countered the incoming attack with his own, creating a large explosion where they met. Entei knew the last attack would take a pokemon a moment to recharge and barreled through the explosion's smoke to attack Xylon point blank. Though before he had Xylon within range, Dagger jumped out from the side barely missing with a slicing jab. Entei jumped back and used another Flamethrower attack that caught Dagger from behind.

"Dagger, counter with Psycho Cut!"

Dagger got back up from the surprise attack and focused his psychic power into his blade like arms. He swung his arms rapidly, flurrying the attack at Entei and managed to hit Entei twice. It didn't seem to phase Entei all that much though, and retaliated with a few swiped of his paws. Dagger caught the broadside of a crushing swing and was hurtled into a boulder that shattered and collapsed on top of him.

"Dagger!" Jake shouted for the buried pokemon, "Xylon, hold Entei off with a Rock Slide!"

The massive Steel/ Psychic pokemon focused his psychic energy into creating a tidal wave of near by rubble which he threw toward the legendary. Entei backed away and only suffered some light bruising after the attack. Meanwhile, Jake was rushing to Dagger's aid, but the Gallade was able to free himself by blasting the rubble off with his impressive psychic abilities.

"*Phew* thank Arceus you're alright," Jake said relieved.

Dagger tottered to his feet and shook his head, "A few cuts and bruises; I'll be fine."

"Glad to hear, ready for round two?"

Dagger gave a quick nod and rejoined the battle. The fight was now barely evenly matched as each side exchanged their attacks, each in turn either dodging or receiving a minimal amount of damage in the exchange.

"Hmm, if it would suit you master Jake, I wish to test our opponent's true capabilities," Xylon said after he blocked another Iron Tail attack.

"Ok," Jake replied, "But be careful."

"Very good. Now good sir, have at thee; let me take note of your supreme potential."

It wasn't exactly a taunt, but Entei took it as a challenge and prepared a devastating Fire Blast attack. The intense fireball flew like an arrow, awaiting to pierce its target with powerful flames.

"Use Mirror Coat Xylon!"

Xylon braced for the impact, taking the Fire Blast attack head-on. To say the attack was powerful was an understatement. Xylon felt like he was being torn to shreds under the supercharged fire attack and hung on as long as he could. The sheer force of the attack pushed him back toward the edge of the lava basin; mere inches separated the Metagross from the swirling pool of fire, but he was able to hold his ground and glowed with the stored energy courtesy of Entei's assault.

"I believe it is my turn now," Xylon shouted and unleashed the reflected attack on Entei. The mighty beam of energy struck Entei with surprising force and nearly knocked him off his feet.

"Enough!" Entei shouted in rage, "I will not allow a mere human to possess the Paw Print!"

Xylon and Dagger stood side by side, waiting as Entei roared viciously. The lava basin began to bubble up again, the whole volcano shook brutally. Towering jets of magma rose from the basin and around Entei, his show power was immense. He stomped the ground and roared again, the towers of lava rained down toward Jake and his team in the attack known as Eruption. Dagger stepped into the center of the trio and threw up one of his psychic barriers just as the first streaks of lava closed in; Xylon used his own Psychic attack to fortify the shield as well. The columns of liquid fire pounded against the shield with devastating force. Dagger and Xylon grimaced and groaned as their barricade absorbed the blows. Jake noticed the barrier begin to flicker and distort. He glanced over at Dagger and saw his fear coming to life. Dagger's eyes were shifting from their normal lucid blue to flickers of a dull red; his entire body seemed to fume with excess psychic energy.

'Come on Jake, think," Jake screamed inside his head as his Gallade struggled to stay in control.

Jake looked outside the barrier for anything he could use; he spotted a precariously perched boulder resting uneasily just above Entei alongside the basin's cliff sides. He had no choice; Jake grabbed a piece of rubble next to his feet and dived outside the barrier, narrowly avoiding the rain of lava that fell. He ran further back to get a clear view, taking quick aim toward his mark. The shield was cracking under the stress of Entei's attack; the fumes of energy around Dagger grew to a burning fire showing his weakening control.

'Only one shot.'

He threw as hard as he could, the small rock arcing over the field. The rock hit the overhead boulder, chipping away pieces at the base and dislodging it from its nest. Entei looked up to see the falling boulder and backed away to avoid being crushed. His Eruption attack broke away as well leaving the two psychic pokemon inside the barrier out of breath.

"Xylon, Dagger, are you two ok?"

Dagger was in the middle if clutching his head in agony, trying to use his Calm Mind ability to regain his control. The boulder that Jake knocked out of the cliffs suddenly exploded into tiny fragments, revealing a very pissed off Entei in its wake. Xylon created a psychic barrier around himself and Dagger, a way for him to concentrate his energy on Dagger and help him regain control.

"We will be fine master Jake," Xylon said, "Be sure to show our adversary that we will not give up so easily."

"Ok, I will."

Jake stood up and turned to face Entei, pulling his last pokeball from his belt, "My friends and I are here to win this challenge Entei. We're not about to give up now! Go, Ryo!"

His final pokemon, Ryo the Salamence, spread her wings wide and roared fiercely as she was released.

"No one will harm my Jake so long as I'm alive," Ryo growled.

Although Entei was weakened from his fight with Dagger and Xylon, he still proved to have enough strength to fend off the Dragon-type pokemon in their battle. Ryo used everything she had to try and take down the legendary; Getting in close with an Aerial Ace then following up with a powerful Dragon Claw. Entei countered with a Flamethrower and Iron Tail and dodged out of the way from Ryo's whip like tail. Ryo used the hot air from the volcano to rise quickly out of Entei's reach again and again, dive-bombing with an Aerial Ace when she wanted to get close for an attack.

Jake made his command, "Ryo, use Crunch!"

Ryo folded in her wings and dropped as fast as she could. Entei stood his ground, igniting the air with a barrage of fireballs. Ryo zoomed in on a collision course on the legendary, but at the last second used the hot air to again to evade the fire storm and position herself behind Entei to attack. Her jaws gleamed with the attack she prepared, razor sharp fangs ready to catch Entei by surprise. She bit down hard, but instead of catching Entei's neck in her jaws, she caught empty space. She only had a moment to see out of the corner of her eye as Entei's massive jaws began to clamp down on her shoulder near the base of her neck. Ryo bellowed in pain as Entei's teeth dug into her hide and drew blood.

"Oh Arceus, Ryo!" Jake screamed, having to watch his pokemon be strung out like a chew toy.

Entei snapped his head to the side, throwing his captive to the ground like a rag doll. It wasn't over yet as he used another Flamethrower to torch the defenseless Salamence on the ground.

Jake shouted, "Stop it!"

Entei finished his attack to face Jake who ran toward the badly burned and bleeding Ryo. He skidded to a halt in front of his Salamence, arms out wide to be a human shield

"I'm not going to let you hurt her anymore!"

Entei felt stunned, he couldn't remember the last time he had seen a human care so deeply for pokemon. No, there was another human just like this one a long time ago that sought to heal one of his pokemon and had such a passion for them as well. Seeing the mighty legendary deep in thought gave Jake enough time to dump the contents of his drawstring bag and find his medical supplies. With his last two Rawst berries and a super potion, he worked as best as he could on the major burn wounds.

"Ryo, Ryo, stay with me," Jake said franticly, tearing pieces of his winter gear to use as make shift gauze against the bleeding, "Just stay with me."

Ryo's breathing was labored and the pain was overwhelming, she was losing a lot of blood and soon Jake's clothes were dotted and splashed in the crimson red fluid.

"Jake," Ryo coughed weakly.

"Save your strength Ryo, I'm going to get you out of here."

Ryo drew in a long labored, "Jake, promise me you won't forget me."

"No Ryo, I'm not gonna make a promise like that, because you're going to live," Jake cried as he used the last of the super potion.

He threw the empty bottle away, desperately searching another through the pile on the ground. He found another and resumed the treatment, the bleeding starting to slow down just a little. Entei slowly approached the trainer that was solely focused on reviving his fallen pokemon.

"Human, why do you care so deeply for your pokemon, even when you've sent them to fight for you in an impossible battle?" Entei asked softly.

Jake shot an angry glare at the legendary, but answered, "I trust them as much as they trust me to overcome new challenges. They all fight alongside me, not just for me."

Entei stared at Jake with a blank look; then his lips rose into a small sympathetic smile, "You are unlike any other human I have met in a long time," Entei proclaimed, "You are worthy of receiving the Paw Print."

Entei, in one leap, crossed the bridge to the central island and retrieved the imprinted rock on the pedestal. He leapt back again and carefully placed the stone on the ground next to Jake.

"Place your hand in the imprint and make your wish," Entei said.

Jake did as he was told and felt a rush of chilling warmth graze his body as he touched the Paw Print. He looked down at Ryo's faded yet bright smile as there goal was reached. Xylon and Dagger gave their own nods of approval as Jake turned to look at them.

Jake finally knew what his wish would be, "I wish for a way to heal all my pokemon that helped me get here."

The Paw Print bursted to life, light expelled from around Jake's hand from the rock as its latent power was unleashed. The bright light died away and in Jake's hand was large pouch tied carefully to hold its lightweight contents. He opened it up to see the bag filled with a mixture of Sacred Ash.

"This ash was made from the power of the Paw Print," Entei proclaimed, "It will heal any and all injuries that your pokemon have."

Jake took a pinch of the fine ash and dusted on Ryo's wounds; it was amazing, the burn marks and bite wounds disappeared and closed up as if there was no damage to begin with. Ryo rose to her feet, fully restored and nuzzled her head against Jake in appreciation. Jake released the rest of his team that fought bravely be his side on the journey. Haze, Tetra, Toran, Dagger, and Xylon all took their turns to receive their treatment and were instantly restored to full strength. Jake returned everyone to their pokeballs and readied himself for the journey back to the stadium; He looked at the empty pouch of Sacred Ash to discover the symbol of Entei's Paw Print sewn onto the center and thought this would be enough to prove his victory.

"I have one final gift for you human," Entei stepped up in front of Jake, "A shortcut, if you will."

Before Jake could ask what he had meant, Entei roared to the sky and Jake was surrounded by a whirl of bright lights that clouded his vision. When he could finally see again, he was no longer on top of the volcano as he was a moment ago. But at the edge of the desert, where he first started the challenge to find Entei's Paw Print. Behind him, he could just make out the speck over 200 miles away, the volcano where Entei and his brothers laid in wait for their next challenger.