Author's Note:

Hello everyone, and welcome to the long awaited (not really) reboot of "Pokemon – Generation Bonnie" now retitled "Generation Z – Hoenn Alone". As you can probably guess, this is a story about one of my favourite characters, and no, it's not one of the main protagonists, but an important one nonetheless. The hero of this series will be Bonnie from Lumiose City!

I've been planning this out for a while. In fact, I've had an outline I've fiddled with since about April of last year. I know Lumiose University is still going, and I can be slow with updates, but I'm actually a little ahead with this one, and honestly, I need some variety. It's nice to get back into the adventure genre again, which is something I miss when it comes to Lumiose University (as well as the current version of the anime), so I hope you'll enjoy that about this story as well.

So, as mentioned before, this will be about Bonnie's adventure as a Pokemon trainer, and to begin with, she'll be going to Hoenn, as the title suggests. And, well, some things are going on in Hoenn as she prepares to get started on her journey. That is where our story begins. So sit back, relax, and I hope you enjoy the prologue to "Generation Z – Hoenn Alone".

Prologue:

It was cold. No, it was very cold. Courtney wasn't used to that, with all the work she'd done with Team Magma over the years. And experiencing such temperatures now was definitely not enjoyable. Of course...it was her job now. She didn't love her job, she didn't hate her job, she didn't really feel anything about her job, but it was a job, and she did make sure to do all tasks she was assigned with. Her coworkers were much the same, each of them fiercely loyal to their leader. It was more than she could say about working with Team Magma.

With Team Archaic, things were much different. Their leader was a hard, strict man, and knew how to get his subordinates to carry out his orders. Courtney could admit to being somewhat...distracted during her time with Team Magma, but with this organization, she was very much focused on the task at hand, and when she worked hard, she was rewarded for her efforts. Darwin was a leader she could respect, with a goal that could be achieved, even if she didn't much care for it.

"Agent Courtney," a voice spoke from the radio transceiver at her belt. "Agent Courtney, come in. Leader Darwin has a message for you. Over."

She smiled to herself, stepping back from the monument she'd been studying, the ice sculpture of the legendary titan Regice standing tall in front of her. They'd been here for days, searching Island Cave for this beast, this titan. Oh, Darwin was a fascinating leader to be sure. Courtney was sure, that in another life, she may very well have been interested in this quest. However, was it any different than Maxie? Was Darwin's search for yet another legendary Pokemon anything unique? Regice, Groudon...were they not different means to the same end?

"I am...here," she eventually spoke, her soft voice barely audible over the drilling in the distance as her fellow Archaic agents searched the cavern for Regice, or anything else that could be of use. "What is it...that our leader...wants? Over."

"We've sent Viktor out to meet you. We've found something, and he may need your help," the agent on the other end responded. "Over and out."

Courtney sighed, eyes drifting over the monument of Regice once more. "Oh dear...he's found something," she said to herself, ignoring the stares she received from a couple of the agents that were surveying the area near her, apparently about to dive into the small lake that was in this area of the cave. Their dirty brown suits with the reddish brown bones forming an 'A' on the front, now replaced with diving gear, the two agents appeared hesitant to go into the the water. As Courtney walked past them, she pushed them in, ignoring their gasps from hitting the cold water. "Return...when you have found...what he desires," she said quietly, not even knowing if they heard her. Sometimes, she preferred to speak for her own benefit.

As she slowly made her way towards the entrance to a dark tunnel, where she noticed the agent known as Viktor standing to meet her, Courtney studied the operations around her. Once again, she almost felt impressed with Darwin's work, the evidence of his ability to gather people to his cause appearing quite clear in this cave. Dozens of men and women were digging, drilling and diving as they searched for Pokemon, or artifacts, or any sign of what their leader was searching for. Few of them knew his true purpose for being there, but Courtney did, and for that, she could admit to feeling some small sense of pleasure.

She pulled her hood up over her lilac hair as she approached Viktor, feeling the chill of the cave creep into her once more. The man watched her as she approached, his black eyes meeting her purple ones, before they drifted up to stare over her head, presumably at the horns atop her brown hood. She smiled at that, knowing how infuriated some members of her new organization felt when they saw the signs of her old home. She was never quite sure why she kept them, but with Darwin allowing it, and with many members of Team Archaic displeased by it, Courtney was glad to keep the look.

"Courtney," Viktor said, giving a small salute as she came to a stop in front of him. "I've been asked to escort you to our leader's location. Please follow me."

Cute, she thought, smirking to herself as the man turned around and began to walk. He thinks...he's valuable.

Courtney wasn't going to allow a man of lesser standing in the organization think he was so crucial, though, so she slowed her already slow pace, forcing him to walk a few steps back after hurrying ahead. There were few things that were enjoyable for Courtney, and exercising her power was one of them. She didn't often like to be cruel, but when it came to men like Viktor, who envisioned themselves as something greater than they were, she felt she needed to do it. She did pick up her pace eventually, though, deciding she didn't want to look at the back of the man's head much longer, his short, greasy black hair making her gag a little.

"How was the search up above?" Viktor asked eventually, their trek into the tunnel taking them downwards, deeper into the cave. "Anything of interest?"

"Some...things," Courtney answered, squinting as she stared around the cave, noticing a Tentacool in the stream below, watching them curiously. It was a little surprising to her that it hadn't been caught yet, but she supposed Darwin was concerned with more than a simple, low-level Pokemon such as a Tentacool.

Viktor appeared to tense up at her slow speech, something she knew was infuriating to many. She honestly couldn't help it, though, always analyzing things, never wanting to rush her words. The slower things were, the more she could understand. If Viktor, or the others for that matter, had a problem with that, they could take it up with Darwin, who cared less about her speech, and more about the results she brought him.

"The...titan?" she asked, breathing some warm air into her cold hands. "Is that...why I...have been called?"

"You'll find that out soon enough," Viktor told her, apparently pleased to know something that she didn't. At least, he thought she didn't know it. She knew far more than he did about the entire operation, which was well beyond what was occurring in this cave.

Courtney remained silent as the two finished their descent down the tunnel, emerging into another open space, where a small boat was waiting for them to take them into another tunnel up ahead, past a small lake. A couple of regular Team Archaic grunts were standing there, as though guarding it, but in the boat, Courtney was pleased to see one of the few competent members of the organization.

"Zinnia." The woman in the boat turned, pushing her black hair out of her face as she looked at Courtney with her red eyes, smiling upon seeing her. Her ragged white cloak billowed in the soft breeze that blew across them, causing her to look in the direction of the tunnel they would soon be approaching.

"Our leader awaits us," the Draconid spoke, her voice calm as she looked ahead. "Please, get in the boat Courtney. You know how Draconids feel about the cold."

Courtney smirked at that, stepping carefully into the boat alongside Viktor, who took a paddle from one of the grunts, and pushed the boat out towards the centre of the lake. "Last I checked...Meteor Falls...wasn't exactly...warm."

"Perhaps not," Zinnia admitted, smiling as Viktor guided the boat forwards. "However, you know the being that makes this place so...uninviting for me."

"Indeed," Courtney breathed out, nodding sagely. Zinnia was one of the few members of Team Archaic that she could actually speak to, the Draconid having a far greater sense of the world than most of the people within the organization. "Yet...you approach it...why?"

"A job is a job," Zinnia said, a rustling heard from under her cloak, the pink shape of her Whismur appearing, its ears folded in as it tried to warm itself up. "Aster and I are always ready, though."

"Of course," Courtney nodded, looking up as Viktor steered the boat into the next dark tunnel. "I believe...your other friend...is quite capable...against the cold...as well."

Zinnia snorted a little at that, the two of them quiet a moment as Viktor guided the boat through the tunnel, until they emerged out into another small lake, where near the opposite end, a man could be seen waiting on the icy floor of the cavern. "Your partner is suited better to this temperature, I must say," Zinnia finally spoke. "However, you are correct. Mine will still serve."

Courtney smiled at the expected answer. Zinnia was clever, and would never let her fears or weaknesses get the better of her. It was admirable, even to someone like Courtney, who would often think of that as foolishness. She knew Zinnia too well to think of her that way, though. The woman was far too calculating to be considered a fool.

They didn't speak the rest of the way, as Viktor led them to the end of the small lake. When they reached their landing spot, Courtney and Zinnia both stood up and easily stepped out of the boat, neither caring much as it rocked awkwardly for Viktor who was still inside. He was able to steady it, though, before stepping out himself and tying a rope to a rock jutting out from the ice, so that the boat wouldn't float away.

The trio then made their way forward, stepping out in front of the man waiting for them, looking out in front of a wide open space, icy walls on all sides. The man, wearing a dark brown suit and a brown fedora over his shaggy brown hair, turned around, looking at the three agents in front of him. "Courtney. Zinnia," he said, nodding to the two women, before looking at Viktor with a hint of disappointment in his eyes. "Viktor, take the boat back. We'll find our own way out."

"But sir, I thought-"

"Now." Courtney couldn't help but smile as Viktor made his way back to the boat. She, Zinnia and Darwin were quiet until he had made his way halfway across the water to the tunnel they'd entered through. "You two know why I summoned you, I trust?" Darwin finally asked, looking back at the two women, raising his eyebrows expectantly.

"You've found it?" Zinnia asked, folding her arms in front of herself. Courtney suspected she was getting cold, but knew the Draconid would never admit it. "You've found Regice?"

"I believe so," Darwin answered, nodding. His brown eyes were shining, but he remained calm, not willing to give away too much. It was one of the things Courtney could respect in him. His emotions guided him, but they never controlled him.

"Where...is it?" Courtney asked after a moment, while Darwin turned around, fingering the pokeball at his belt. "This place...seems...empty."

Darwin nodded, taking a deep breath. "An agent was here yesterday morning. We found him and his Kabutops unconscious in the cave where you took the boat. This is the only place we haven't looked, and Dr. Carter believes it the most likely place, given the Pokemon activity around here. Most of them have fled in fear at this point, but it appears this is where they were most concentrated."

"As if they were guarding something," Zinnia noted, nodding in understanding.

"So...it is here...within the ice?" Courtney asked, narrowing her eyes as she looked ahead at the walls of the cave, studying them for any sign of movement. Perhaps there was something missing, some detail, that would lead them to their target.

Darwin already knew where to look, though, pointing ahead, dead centre, at a spot on the wall, where Courtney could see a bulky chunk of ice jutting out. Something was definitely in there, and as she stared, she felt as though something was looking right back. "Zinnia," Darwin said calmly, nodding to the Draconid.

"It'll be ours in a moment, sir," Zinnia said confidently, stepping forward and pulling out a pokeball. "Salamence, come on out!"

With a piercing roar, the blue dragon with red wings emerged in a flash of light. As Courtney had predicted earlier, Zinnia's most powerful partner showed no signs of fear at the cold temperatures of the cave, narrowing its eyes as it landed on the ground with a thud. Darwin, however, wasn't impressed just yet, the man watching silently as Zinnia took another step forward.

"Fire Blast!" Zinnia shouted, thrusting an open palm forward as she ordered the attack, her Salamence roaring once more in answer. Suddenly, a five-pronged blast of fire shot out, speeding towards the opposite end of the cavern, striking against the spot that Courtney had noticed the misshapen ice. She was sure that whatever was hiding behind there, would have felt that attack.

They all waited a moment, steam shooting up from the location where the Fire Blast had struck, ice crashing down on the ground around the site of the explosion. Courtney could see how tense Zinnia was, watching for any sign of movement. She wasn't stupid, so she knew that if Regice was indeed in that spot, it would be able to handle more than that.

That was proven a moment later, as the steam began to dissipate. All their eyes locked onto the Pokemon that revealed itself opposite them, its bulky, crystal-like body lumbering forward a few steps, yellow dots on its face appearing to light up as a strange sound echoed out from its location. "Regice ice," it seemed to speak, causing Salamence, one of the fiercest Pokemon Courtney had ever seen, to back up a step. "Regice!" An orange orb began to shine in front of it, as a light flashed in front of Darwin.

The orange beam that exploded outward was one of the most powerful attacks that Courtney had ever seen. She didn't know if Salamence would have been able to handle it, but she wouldn't find out. At least not today. Another creature was in front of the dragon, an orange beam pulsing out from its own jaws, clashing with the Hyper Beam from Regice. The attacks strained against one another for a moment, before ultimately exploding in a massive cloud of smoke, while shards of ice shot out in all directions from the walls of the cave.

As the smoke settled, Courtney studied the Pokemon that hovered in front of Salamence, noticing the massive jaws, purple wings and razor-sharp claws. She'd never seen it, but she'd heard talk of Darwin's Aerodactyl. She could admit to being stunned at the sight of it, definitely not expecting it to possess the kind of power to match a strong attack from a legendary Pokemon such as Regice. She had never thought much of the rumours about it, always preferring to rely on her own observations. Now that she'd seen it, she was definitely a little more wary of Darwin. Perhaps she'd underestimated him.

"Aerodactyl...mega evolve."

Courtney and Zinnia exchanged a surprised look, before watching in awe as the Fossil Pokemon began to glow in front of them, the Mega Stone around its neck shining brightly while the Key Stone held up by Darwin glowed in response. Courtney had no idea that Darwin held this kind of power. She narrowed her eyes, focusing on Aerodactyl as it screeched loudly, spreading its wings as the light of mega evolution dimmed around it.

It was far more intimidating than it had been, and that was saying something. Dark stones appeared to be poking out from its skin all over its body, each looking as sharp as its monstrous teeth. It had even appeared to grow a little larger, each flap of its wings creating a gust of wind that whipped away the shards of ice that had fallen in front of them. Its large tail swished back and forth as it looked ahead eagerly, ready to continue its battle.

"Ancient Power," Darwin ordered calmly.

"Aerooo!" Aerodactyl screeched, flapping its wings ferociously once more, the Regice at the opposite end of the cave appearing to step back. A moment later, the stones on its body glowed brightly, a blue aura appearing around each. Courtney tried to resist the temptation, but couldn't help herself and she stepped back a few steps out of fear. Her eyes widened as Aerodactly gave another flap of its wings and sent the stones shooting outwards, watching them appear to speed up as they approached Regice. Then, finally, with a loud crash, they struck the Iceberg Pokemon, who cried out upon being hit, before sending it hard into the icy wall behind it.

Courtney, Zinnia and Darwin each took a step forward at that, as Aerodactyl landed softly, its body glowing as it reverted back to its original form. As the dust settled around Regice, Courtney and Zinnia both gasped, while Darwin immediately began to walk forward, patting Aerodactyl as he walked past it. The two women looked at one another, stunned into silence from what they had just witnessed.

"Alert Doctor Carter of our success here. I want the next stage of our operation to begin immediately," Darwin called out to them, now only a few feet from the still and smoking Regice. "We'll need to start excavations throughout Hoenn. We'll need all agents to be active. Courtney, I'll put you in charge of that."

The former Team Magma member nodded, swallowing nervously as she watched the man kneel in front of the titan Pokemon, examining it closely. It was fairly clear that it wouldn't be rising anytime soon. "I will...act...immediately."

"Good," Darwin said, nodding, although at this point he seemed too distracted by his new prize.

Courtney could see the glee on his face, even from this distance. It appeared that he had accomplished a feat that even Team Magma had failed in achieving. He'd overwhelmed a legendary Pokemon, and now, it was in his control. One of the three legendary titans of Hoenn, was his.

And soon, the other two would be as well.

There was nothing that could stop him.

No one could get in his way.

Author's Note:

The prologue was meant to be a bit shorter, so if it seemed quick, that's probably why. However, I do hope it gave you some interesting things to think about when it comes to what is going on in this story to begin with. Obviously, no Bonnie just yet, because we're looking at something she may come face to face with when she begins her journey.

I didn't want it to be from Darwin's POV mainly because I want a bit more mystery about him, and Courtney is...interesting. Didn't want to give away too much, but obviously we got some of Courtney's thoughts on her new organization and how things are run, along with a realization about how strong Darwin actually is. We'll see more about that later, don't worry.

Now, the original plan was to just post this and then put out a couple chapters on Wednesday. Well...chapter one is out now! Chapters 2 and 3 will be out on Wednesday, but you'll get your first bit of Bonnie action sooner than expected. Hope you enjoyed the prologue, and I hope you like what's to come.