After a brief visit to Jubilife City, Gabe had met up with Dawn and Professor Rowan. In that same meeting, Dawn and Barry had a strange encounter with a man who called himself; Looker, and found themselves in a battle against Team Galactic, who proved to be no pushover in battle. After the scuffle, the two managed to drive them off. Now, Dawn and Gabe were approaching Floaroma Town and were soon greeted by the sight and scent of the beautiful, flower covered haven.

"Whoa!" Gabe exclaimed, his eyes widening as he laid eyes on the town before him. "I knew there would be a lot of flowers but... wow..."

"Yup," Dawn began with a smile. "This town certainly is gorgeous isn't it? And to think that this place was once barren and dreary looking," Dawn mused.

"Wait... this place was barren?" Gabe replied with a raised brow. "I find that hard to believe."

"So did I until I did some research. Floaroma Town never used to be covered with flowers. But, people decided to begin planting flowers, even though they knew that the soil wasn't very good," Dawn stated.

"But wouldn't it be hard for anything to grow in bad soil?" Gabe wondered.

"Normally that would be the case, but not here. See, according to the historical records, Shaymin is the cause of the flowers that bloom here. It all happened after someone was grateful enough to be thankful for nature's blessing. Shaymin just happened to be nearby and decided to make all this happen," Dawn explained.

"That's pretty cool," Gabe replied, looking back at the endless array of flowers that blanketed the town.

"Hey Barry, I have a friend here in town that I want to visit. I was gonna help her make some poffins today. Wanna join me?" Dawn inquired.

Poffins huh? I've always wondered what those actually tasted like. I guess I'm about to find out aren't I? Gabe thought, giving Dawn a nod of confirmation.

"Sure! That sounds fun actually," Gabe grinned.

Dawn smiled.

"Sweet! Follow me then, it's just up ahead," Dawn replied happily.

With that, the duo strolled through the town, admiring the colorful display as they went. After a short walk, they came to a flower shop called Pick A Peck Of Colors. As they entered into the shop, Dawn called out to her friend.

"Forsythia! I'm here!"

A moment of silence passed, and soon, a young woman approached from the back of the shop. She had teal colored hair and wore a cream colored top with an orange skirt and brown boots.

"Dawn!" Forsythia exclaimed excitedly, crossing the room to greet her friend.

Wait a minute... Forsythia? This is unexpected, Gabe contemplated, scratching his head as he observed the interaction.

"Who's your friend?" Forsythia inquired, jerking her thumb towards Gabe.

"This is Barry. He's an old friend of mine. We went to school together," Dawn explained.

"Ah, so this is the Mister Impatient I've heard about. Nice to meet you Barry," Forsythia smiled.

"Mister... Impatient?" Gabe blinked, arching a brow at Dawn who did her best to hold in a giggle that threatened to escape.

"That's my favorite one so far, aside from Sir Runs A Lot and Fleetfoot," Forsythia giggled.

Did Barry really run that much? Who am I kidding? Barry couldn't sit still if his life depended on it, Gabe mused. I guess I had it coming. Just another thing to get used to I guess.

"Anyway, you two up for making some poffins? It'll be fun!" Forsythia said ecstatically.

"That's what I'm here for. What say you Barry?" Dawn inquired.

"I'll give it a shot," Gabe responded, prompting a happy response from the two girls.

After taking time to gather berries from the bushes just outside the shop, Gabe and Dawn had their aprons tied on and were ready for a lesson in making poffins.

"Alright, so let's take a look at what we've got here. Rawst Berries, Chesto, Pecha and Aspear Berries. These are the easiest ones to make poffins with. Now, let me show you how to start," Forsythia stated. "But first, Roserade? Could you distribute the berries please?"

The Boquet Pokémon smiled and followed the request he was given. Though he was fairly timid due to Gabe's presence, he saw that his trainer had no qualms with the young man, so he concluded that there was no need to worry.

"Thank you Roserade. Now, first, take your berries and pour them into the cold water. They should be nice and soft so when you turn the heat up, they'll melt," Forsythia explained.

Dawn and Gabe followed the given instructions, and poured their berries into the pots in front of them. As they did this, they were instructed to turn the heat all the way up and stir. After a short period of time, the mixtures were poured into the molds and after a while, the poffins were finished.

"Alright! Looks like we're all done here. All we need to do now is bake them and we'll be finished," Forsythia explained.

"That was so fun!" Dawn grinned, picking up her poffins and moving them to the oven.

"That was kinda cool. I always wondered how these were made," Gabe stated, following Dawn with his own tray.

"You both did well. Now, why don't we-"

"Forsythia!" came a voice from the doorway as it burst open.

Standing in the doorway was a young girl no older than seven. She was holding onto the door handle and trying to catch her breath.

"What's wrong Maggie?" Forsythia addressed the girl, concern in her tone as she spoke.

"Some really mean people are inside where my daddy works and they have every door locked! You gotta come help!" Maggie exclaimed.

Gabe and Dawn exchanged glances. They knew exactly who was causing the trouble.

"Let's go Dawn," Gabe called back as he darted out the door.

"Right behind ya!" Dawn shouted, bolting after him.

Forsythia soon followed suit with her Roserade at her heels and Maggie trailing just behind.

It wasn't long before they reached the Valley Windworks where Maggie's father worked. Reaching for one of his Poké Balls, Gabe let Psyduck out of his chamber. The blue duck canted his head in confusion upon being released. Was there a battle going on?

"Get ready you guys," Gabe stated, turning to Psyduck to issue a command. "Okay Psyduck, I need you to open that door with your Confusion. It's locked, but you should be able to get it open."

Psyduck blinked, not exactly sure why it was necessary. Nevertheless, he didn't question it as to not impose a headache worse than the one he already had. Concentrating on the door, he held his hands to his head and focused. His eyes lit up with a vibrant blue light as he expelled a small amount of psychic energy toward the door, outlining it with an azure aura.

On the opposite side of the door stood a few lower ranking members of Team Galactic. They were assigned to guard the door until the project was complete. One of them caught sight of the glow around the door, and watched as it flew off its hinges and stopped short of smashing into the wall.

"What the hell!?" One of the Grunts said as the door flew through the air.

The door hovered for a moment before dropping. Gabe and company stepped through the doorway.

"Intruders!" Three Grunts exclaimed, realeasing their Pokémon for battle.

One sent out a Golbat, another a Stunky while the last sent forth a Croagunk. Gabe recalled Psyduck to give him a bit of a rest. Reaching down, he grabbed Aron's ball and launched it.

"Aron, time for battle!"

A man stood over his workstation, feverishly typing away at his computer, inputting data so he could transfer power to the device hooked up to the generator just inside the lab on the top floor. Standing by the door were two Team Galactic members who were keeping watch for their commander.

Mars idly sat in one of the chairs as her cohorts did the rest of the work. One hand drummed the arm of the chair while the other stroked the head of her Purugly. She kept an eye on the machine as it charged. It showed that it was sixty-five percent full. She frowned and looked over at the man at the station.

"Hey, can't you make this work any faster?" She asked in a firm tone.

The man looked up nervously and shook his head.

"I-I'm sorry but... if I add even a little more to the input it could destabilize the machine and possibly cause it to explode," he explained.

"Tch... figures. Fine. Carry on then," Mars grumbled, crossing one leg over the other.

The man swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded.

That was close. The truth is, whatever the hell that machine is, it can take more than what I'm giving it. Whoever made this certainly knew what they were doing, he thought as he continued his work.

As he continued his work, an explosion shook the floor, causing the two guards and the researcher to stumble.

"What the hell was that!?" Mars exclaimed, shifting her gaze to the two Grunts before speaking. "You two, go check it out!"

"Yes commander!" they obeyed, darting out the door to investigate.

"Let's see here," Mars mumbled, reaching up and tapping the device in her ear. "Ground unit, what's going on down there?"

"We have a situation down here Commander!" she heard, causing her to knit her brows in confusion.

"What do you mean a situation?" She stated flatly. "Explain."

"The door to the building was blown off its hinges and some trainers stormed into the place!" the Grunt explained.

"So? Drive them out. You have more than enough power to do so," Mars snapped.

"We tried, but this one guy has us walled with that darn Aron-"

The feed cut off before the Grunt could finish his statement. Mars took a deep breath and exhaled.

"Sounds like someone's trying to rescue you. Figures. Some people just can't resist playing hero," Mars sighed as she cracked her knuckles.

"You," she began, gaining the attention of another team member, "make sure he finishes this. I'll go handle the situation downstairs."

"Yes Commander!" The Grunt replied, assuming her post by the door as Mars turned back to the man.

"Now you stay here and be a good little hostage. After all this is done, my cohorts and I will be on our way," Mars smirked. "Come Purugly, let's go have some fun..."

Purugly gave her a cheshire grin as she followed her trainer out the door. After a few minutes, Mars and her companion reached the bottom of the stairs and came upon a scene that was somewhat sad to look at. Mars turned her head as a Stunky was sent flying into the wall behind her. She watched it slide down and collapse. Raising a brow, she turned to see that the perpetrator behind the attack, was in fact, an Aron. Judging by the azure aura emanating from his head, he knew Head Smash.

So this is the Aron who's causing all this trouble, mused Mars as her crimson eyes trailed up to who she believed was his trainer.

Huh, so that's the guy Jupiter mentioned she battled, Mars thought as she gave him a subtle once over. Soccer build...not bad. Guess I should get to work...

"Not bad you three," Mars commended while applauding their efforts. "I really didn't expect anyone to come here, but I suppose it was a slip up on my part," she chuckled.

Gabe turned his attention from his teammates, to Mars, his eyes widening upon seeing her face. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but there was something off about her appearance. The earrings for starters. Last he checked, Mars didn't have those.

"You guys must be those thugs I've heard so much about. Why are you here? What do you want with this place?" Forsythia demanded firmly.

"Thugs?" Mars blinked, narrowing her brows as she made a fist. "We are Team Galactic! How dare you refer to us like common ruffians!" Mars snarled, reaching down to her belt to grab a single Ultra Ball.

"Kangaskhan, time to fight!" Mars shouted fiercely.

The Parental Pokémon emerged from her sphere with a mighty shout and stomped the ground in an intimidating manner. The moment she was released, Gabe's eyes grew wide with realization and fear. There, on the neck of the adversary, was a collar and in the center, a Mega Stone...