Just as the sun began to light the morning sky I awoke to the sound of a whimpering cry. Groggily, I sat up and rubbed the crust from my eyes as I looked towards the sound. It turned out to be my new Riolu friend, Kylee. She was crying into her paws while Sil lay at my feet covering his ears. I could tell he was awake, but he looked to have a splitting headache for some reason.
“What’s wrong Kylee?” I asked caringly as I reached down to lay a hand on her head.
“Mommy… Daddy… Left me…” She whimpered between sniffles in a heartbroken voice. She was trying to stop her tears while whipping them away but she wasn’t succeeding. Surprised, and still having not fully awakened, I quickly looked around. Sure enough, they were gone! That old school trainer and his Lucario had just up and left, and without even so much as a goodbye to the Lucario’s little girl!
“Sil, can you still smell which way they went?” I asked my Absol as I nudged him with my foot.
“Sooolll…” He groaned as he moved his paw and opened an eye to look at me. I guessed that was a no and that the morning dew and breezes had destroyed any scent path. However, Sil groaned again as he rose and shook to right his fur. I thought he would try to find the pair’s scent for me but instead of putting his nose to the ground he put it in my pack and pulled out a piece of paper. He casually stepped over and around Kylee, being careful not to bump her as he went, and leaned down to drop the paper where I could reach. As Sil and I had our exchange Kylee’s cries slowed to light sniffles as her attention was drawn to us rather than her missing parents.
“What is…?” I asked, but realized Sil wasn’t really listening… He could be rather stubborn when annoyed or in pain. He left Kylee and me in the clearing alone while he presumably went to relieve himself somewhere and gather us a bite to eat. As was his usual routine when we slept out in the woods; I just hoped Kylee liked what he brought back. I mean, I wasn’t sure what she liked or if she could even eat solid food.
Kylee seemed to be a little hurt as she watched Sil leave, probably thinking he didn’t care or didn’t like her, but she looked to the piece of paper, then to me as I picked it up to read. As I scanned the note quickly I couldn’t believe what it said… What trainer, and for that matter parent, as I was sure the Lucario was Kylee’s mother, leaves a puppy with someone they just met!? … And just what was I supposed to tell Kylee, ‘Sorry, you’re mine now. They abandoned you.’?
“Whas that…?” The golden pup asked with another sniff, recovering a little from the shock of being left behind and letting her curiosity get the better of her.
“Umm…” I began hesitantly but quickly managed to think of something. “It’s from your mommy and daddy. They said you can stay with me and Sil for a while, but they promised they’ll come back.” I tried to explain confidently and sympathetic enough to cheer Kylee up. She seemed a little suspicious as she watched me, but thankfully not upset.
“P-promise…?” She questioned, seeming to understand my every word somehow, and wanting to believe me despite her intuitive suspicion.
“Yup. See right here? It says, ‘We’ll see you again soon.’” I replied as I held the note down for her to see and pointed to the part I was quoting. She looked where I pointed and looked over the rest, but obviously, and thankfully, she couldn’t read, so she took my word. As she looked back to me though I could still see the sadness in her eyes.
“Don’t worry. They’ll come back, but don’t you want to stay with us until they do?” I offered to try and remind her we were friends and that she wasn’t really alone. She sniffled again and I still saw her pretty blue eyes wavering, but she nodded softly in reply.
Just as I managed to calm Kylee and get out of my sleeping bag Sil emerged from the nearby brush. He was carrying a large leaf folded around a bunch of berries. Like he always did, he set the leaf where I could reach and as the berries were exposed he grabbed the stem of the largest, which he usually took for himself. This time however, I was shocked to see him offer his prize to our Riolu friend! Kylee looked up at him curiously as he leaned down to offer his berry to her. Gingerly, she took the large fruit without knowing Sil’s true gesture. She sniffed at it and took a little bite before giving a loud “Mmmm!” as she smiled thankfully up at my Absol and quickly dug in. Sil smirked lightly at her enthusiasm, which was something else I rarely saw from him… He caught me giving him a dumbfounded look and his expression quickly turned stern again as he growled softly. He then took two of the remaining berries and moved to lie close to Kylee and eat his own morning snack.
“You’re going soft old man.” I teased, since in the years I’d spent with him I had never seen Sil give up his big breakfast berry.
“Solll…” He growled softly in annoyance once more as I rubbed between his shoulder blades with the joke, but I knew he wasn’t serious in his threat.
After breakfast Kylee seemed a little happier, and thankfully Sil was being rather nice to her, unlike his normal gruffness towards my other pokemon… As I packed up my things Kylee talked with Sil, mostly about what he was since she admitted she’d never seen something like him before.
Once I finished I decided Kylee might like to make a new friend and meet another member of my team. So I pulled a ball from the magnetic strap of my pack as I put it on. Kylee looked up as I stood, wondering what I was doing but Sil knew it was time to go. Seeing Sil stand to join me the Riolu did too and waited for us to make another move.
“Want to meet someone else who travels with us?” I asked Kylee as she looked up at me, almost seeming like she would fall over as she was so short by comparison. In response she tilted her head with a questioning look, since her limited vocabulary didn’t let her ask what she wanted to. I smiled and knelt as I held out the ball to her and told her what it was. She didn’t seem to understand my explanation until I told her to press the button I had facing her. The ball quickly broke open releasing a beam of light that materialized my Swablu. Shocked first by the ball cracking open Kylee took a quick step back, but tripped over her feet and fell. Wide eyed, she watched the little fluffy bird form on the ground between us, yawn and ruffle its down before it even noticed her. Ryla blinked and cocked her head to one side as she looked Kylee over curiously, already knowing this was a new addition to our group but not knowing what she was. After all, Riolu were almost unheard of in this region anymore, let alone a golden one...
Not knowing what to think, Kylee stared at Ryla confused until the bird hopped a little closer. Kylee looked at Sil in fear and for help, wondering just what the thing coming at her was and where it had come from. Fortunately for Ryla though, Kylee must have been taught by her mother and the old school trainer not to outright attack something she was afraid of…
~Relax. Ryla is one of us. She won’t hurt you.~ Sil said calmly and sternly without much sympathy in his tone. Though I could only guess what he was saying by his tone, I did know he wasn’t one to baby those around him. At his words Kylee relaxed slightly, but still didn’t move as the bird pokemon looked at her, then me. She chirped as she pointed at Kylee with a fluffy wing to ask what I had come to figure out was “Is this a friend?” I nodded and grinned, knowing how Ryla liked to say hello and waited for Kylee’s reaction.
She had obviously seen birds before, but not fluffy blue ones that appeared out of nowhere and were interested in her. She watched as Ryla flapped her wings to take off and flew over her. As the Swablu tried to land on Kylee’s head, she yelped and rolled away onto her knees and scurried quickly behind Sil’s front legs. Ryla was utterly confused as she landed on the ground where Kylee had been and cocked her head with a confused look.
Sil let out a little bit of a growl as he refused to hide the pup. He stepped back and nudged her forward with his head. Kylee resisted by leaning back against him, not knowing what to do or why her large friend wouldn’t protect her, but being so small she was easily pushed a foot before Sil stopped.
I almost felt bad seeing Kylee so scared of something new, and it was rather obvious her mother and trainer had protected her a lot, perhaps even too much. In fact, seeing her behavior I began to think maybe those two really did know what they were doing when they left Kylee with me… Being sheltered her whole life wouldn’t do her much good at all, and no offense to that old school trainer but… she seemed to have been babied quite a bit, despite still being quite young.
Kylee stood rigidly still where Sil had pushed her and watched Ryla intently. Despite what had happened before Ryla tried her normal greeting a second time and flew up over Kylee once more. The little Riolu watched the bird fly but closed her eyes and stood still as the Swablu descended and landed on her head, which to Kylee’s surprise wasn’t painful in the least. I did notice though… that Sil took a step back as Kylee tensed, and he seemed to watch her cautiously, which had me wondering just what he could see or feel from her that I couldn’t.
Shyly, Kylee slowly opened one eye after Ryla landed. What she saw was an upside down Swablu face looking curiously back at her. When she actually looked Ryla happily chirped at her, to which Kylee gave a soft “Hi…” in reply. After that Ryla was gleefully chirping away, talking to the pup who quickly took a liking to the bird.
I decided after her first experience with a new friend I’d spare Kylee the stress involved with meeting the rest of my team. Especially my Milotic… She might be a bit scared of him since he was quite large. Soon enough Kylee was even playing with Ryla, so Sil and I encouraged our two smaller party members to follow us back to the path we had been on the day before. When we finally got back on track from our detour Ryla had taken to sitting on Kylee’s head as she almost jogged to keep up with us. It was my Swablu’s favorite place to perch no matter who it was on, but it seemed like Kylee would be her preferred person for now. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched the two since Kylee had a big, cute smile on her face as she walked while looking up at her new friend.
Thankfully no other trainers came by on the path we were traveling. I hadn’t captured Kylee yet and with a visor any other trainer could see that, and possibly take her. However, despite the danger it just didn’t feel right to force her into a ball, and it wasn’t the first thing I wanted to explain to her either. Actually, I didn’t know how TO explain it… She seemed too young to understand what a pokeball was, much less what it meant. But I figured if we could get to a pokemon tower center maybe Sil could help in the safety of a private room.
Luckily though, I had two things working to my better fortune. One was Sil’s innate ability to sense “disaster.” His ability was rumored to be common in Absol, but it was actually quite rare, and Sil was exceptionally skilled at it for his species. Second, was that I had a strong team. Even if someone wanted to take Kylee, only the corporate cheaters who bought pokemon would be able to easily defeat Sil and the rest of my team. Thankfully, those kinds of people never traveled by foot so I was safe there too.
It wasn’t more than two hours before Kylee started to get tired of walking, but the tops of the buildings were visible over the trees so we were at least close to our destination. Ryla seemed quite energetic though, and from some of Kylee’s responses I guessed the Swablu was trying to figure out why she seemed tired. I couldn’t help but snicker to myself but Sil gave me “the look” again when he heard.
“Oh alright…” I conceded, and took Ryla’s ball off my pack again. “Come on Ryla, time for a rest.” I said and knelt to point the ball at the bird. With a small squeeze of the ball the return mechanism triggered and dematerialized Ryla from atop Kylee’s head. The Riolu blinked as she held still and watched, but this time she didn’t seem fazed by it. Instead she stared curiously at the ball.
“Where Rrryaa?” She asked as she looked up at me, still having difficulty speaking some of the new words and names she was hearing.
“She’s in here.” I replied and showed her the ball again. She remembered the last time when the ball opened with a crack, and withdrew slightly but for the most part seemed to be lost in thought. “She can rest in here, and it keeps her safe.” I continued, hoping she might understand. However, it seemed I wasn’t giving her enough credit. She looked up at me as I spoke but then looked to Sil for a moment.
“No Sil?” She asked as she pointed to him. I blinked once in a momentary confusion until it dawned on me that she was asking if Sil had a ball.
“Oh! Yes, Sil has one too.” I replied as I pulled another off my bag strap and showed it to her. This time she looked at it for a moment, then to Sil and finally at the other balls on my bag.
“Why... Why…?” She started but growled to herself as she looked down, not knowing the words she wanted to ask.
“Why do I use them?” I tried to ask for her but she shook her head no. “Why don’t you have one?” I tried again but again the answer was no. I racked my brain for what else she could mean and admittedly was getting a little frustrated… Having a pokemon that spoke English was supposed to be easier, not harder than a normal nonspeaking pokemon, wasn’t it? As I thought Sil took a step up beside me with a low “Sooolll.” I looked over at him and for some reason it clicked… “Why does Sil stay out with me?” I asked, this time getting a quick bark and a happy nod. “Well, he protects me, and he doesn’t like being in his ball.” I continued, though I hoped she didn’t ask me why… I really didn’t know how to explain it any better.
“Absol.” Sil chimed in again, having grown tired of standing still. I assumed he was trying to say “Let’s go.” So I stood back up and headed off with my friends at my right. As we walked Kylee started talking to Sil, and he was actually speaking back! Kylee could understand pokemon speak but she seemed incapable of it herself, so I could understand her half of their conversation even if she was still working with limited phrases. Finally, just as we were about to enter the city limits Sil stopped when Kylee said something about her and a ball. She seemed to be very trusting of Sil which I wasn’t sure, was entirely a good thing because Sil was skeptical about everyone but me… Although perhaps it was just the authority he always seemed to exude. After another short exchange on Sil’s part Kylee nodded and looked to me.
“Ball, for, me?” She asked as she pointed at the crystalline orbs on my pack.
“Y-you want me to catch you?” I asked, not sure she understood what it really meant. It turns out I was wrong though. She shook her head quickly and Sil even gave a small nod as he sat down to indicate he wasn’t moving until I did. Clearly I was out voted, but if she understood and wanted it… well I did need to keep her safe from others. “Alright, here. Just push this button.” I said as I enlarged a ball from my pack and held it out for her. Kylee nodded and reached her paw towards the small button but Sil stuck his blade in the way. “What? I thought you sai…” I argued in annoyance but he interrupted with a small growl.
It did bother me a little that Sil acted this way towards me. After all… I was HIS trainer, not the other way around! But he was always there for me, and in most of these cases… He was the one who was right, and this time was no different. He tapped the top of the ball twice with his horn to show me what he meant, and thank Arceus he did. I had bought new pokeballs and had forgotten to take the obedience chip out of them. I felt a little guilty about trying to scold him but he knew what my silence meant and sat back to let me continue.
After flipping up a small port on the ball and pulling out a tiny computer chip I once again offered the ball to Kylee. My Riolu friend looked confused as to what I’d just done but Sil said something which must have been to the effect of “I’ll explain later,” because Kylee nodded and reached out to press the button. The ball quickly cracked open as she pressed it, but Kylee didn’t have time to react as she was dematerialized and taken inside. The ball’s button glowed red but quickly gave a sharp chime. I immediately dropped the ball and stepped back, as that sound usually meant the ball was in danger of failing. It had been a recent safety feature that was added due to pokemon becoming much stronger. If the ball failed it wouldn’t just crack open and release the pokemon. It would actually shatter and scatter shrapnel! As the ball hit the ground though the shaking and beeping quelled, letting the capture complete. I looked to Sil in both fear and astonishment. How could such a young and little pokemon hold enough power to nearly break a crystal ball? Those things were meant to be a lot more durable specifically for that purpose. On the other hand… if she was that strong, perhaps we actually stood a chance in getting to the professionals this year… For that matter, if she evolved… who knew how strong she’d be. Just the thought made me almost giddy about starting her training.
After a few seconds I was convinced the ball wouldn’t explode if I touched it. I picked it up and looked at it ponderingly before moving to put it on my strap and start off again. Sil had other plans once more though… He remained seated and growled again.
“What now!?” I said exasperated as I turned to look at him while still holding Kylee’s ball. In response Sil pointed a paw at the ball in my hand as if telling me to let Kylee back out. “Huh? Why? She’s safe in here.” I replied but started to get an eerie feeling as Sil looked at me, something else he’d figured out how to do with his ability… He could sometimes let me feel what he did. “Ok ok… Jese…” I conceded and pressed the button, releasing Kylee in a flash of red to stand right next to Sil. I refrained from saying any kind of retort to Sil, lest I confuse Kylee, but I guessed I’d be having another one of my pokemon almost permanently out of their ball traveling with me, so in the end I hadn’t won the argument…
“I, yours?” Kylee asked as she looked up at me after ensuring both Sil and I were still around.
“Mhmm. You’re one of us now. Ready to keep moving?” I asked, more to Sil than Kylee though I tried to keep a cheerful tone. Sil caught my underlying annoyance but obeyed this time and stood to follow with Kylee staying right beside him.
When we reached the outskirts of the city Sil did something else that I could hardly believe... He seemed to be worried about Kylee’s safety in the city so he lay down and had her climb on to ride him!
“Ok… What’s wrong with you? You’re never this nice to new teammates.” I had to say as we walked along the sidewalk. Admittedly we were getting more than a few odd looks from passersby at the golden Riolu riding my Absol, though Kylee didn’t notice. She was far too busy gawking up at the enormous buildings of a city. I spared a look at her myself and couldn’t help but notice how cute she was with her mouth agape and head back so far she might fall off of Sil had she not been holding on to his fur.
At my words Sil just looked up at me with a “Drop it…” expression. I could tell he was trying to hide something though… He was actually embarrassed about what he was doing! I could hardly believe my hardened friend was willingly sacrificing his perceived dignity, but I knew if I pushed it I’d regret it somehow. So I simply smiled inwardly and opened the door to the pokemon center towers for him.
The looks were no less plentiful inside the building. In fact a group of trainers immediately started whispering at their table as they pointed to Kylee. The clerk however didn’t seem to care one bit, though he probably didn’t notice the Riolu because he never looked up from his hurried paper work.
“One trainer room for three nights please.” I said calmly to get his attention.
“Sponsor card and trainer certification.” Hey replied uncaringly as he seemed to shift into handling my request as well. I put my pokedex and the card issued to me by my father’s Archeological organization on the desk before him and he quickly snatched them up to verify them. With only a quick look to my face he confirmed my identity and slid the two items back. “Your dex will serve as your key, please feel free to use the training facilities and have a pleasant stay. Thank you.” He said in a nonchalant tone that was still welcoming in a way. I’d grown used to it though. In this age, nobody really cared too much about strangers anymore.
After he handed back my card and dex we headed for the elevator. According to my dex I had a room one up from the standard, and on the 20th of 30 floors. I wondered how Kylee would react to seeing other aspects of a modern city.
After our elevator ride, which Kylee seemed to enjoy seeing as she wanted to ride again, we walked down the hall to our room. I waved my pokedex over the pad on the door and the lock clicked open. Inside was a nice, open room, with a bathroom off to the side containing a spa bath. A large bed took up a third of the room, though it was out of the way. On the far wall was an enormous window with the curtains drawn closed. I grinned and looked at my Riolu friend. She was busy once again gawking at the strange things, looking around, feeling the soft bed sheets, anything she could think to do in her amazement. This would take the cake though…
“Kylee, look.” I said cheerfully and pulled the cord to open the blinds. Light flooded the room as she looked and squinted briefly, but as her eyes adjusted her jaw dropped yet again. With careful steps she came over to the window and hesitantly reached out a paw. It pressed against the window and she stopped for a moment. Once she figured out she wouldn’t fall though she was nearly pressed against the glass as she stared at the city below.
Sprawling beneath her were large buildings everywhere, though pokemon towers was one of the four largest. The people and pokemon looked like ants below, and from our vantage point we could see the large park for trainers in the middle of the city. It was then that I had the idea of taking Kylee there to see what she could do. My lazy Absol had leapt onto the bed and lay down to rest his eyes but it was too early for that.
“Come on Sil, Let’s take Kylee to the training grounds.” I said as I turned and shook his horn softly as I passed. He growled at me and gave me a glare, but again I knew he was just annoyed. I couldn’t help but laugh softly as I turned to use the bathroom before we left. As I entered though I looked once more at Kylee to see her tail still wagging feverishly as she looked around. She looked so cute in her innocence that I was starting to see how her parents could make the mistake of going too easy on her.
I didn’t take long in the bathroom, but it was long enough for Kylee to manage to climb up on the bed with Sil. She was having fun walking around on the squishy surface and leaping into the large pillow. As I exited Sil looked to me with a bit of an annoyed look and I once more just had to laugh.
“Hey, you wanted to keep her out old man.” I taunted and he groaned as he got up and jumped to the floor. Kylee watched curiously and quickly followed, running to the edge of the bed and jumping off to follow Sil as we went through the door. All the while she was looking up at us expectantly. When we started back towards the elevator she yipped happily and ran ahead, however… the doors opened to reveal a suave looking young man who looked down at her with a glare then up at me. Seeing I was a trainer and with the look Sil returned, the man said nothing, and thankfully left Kylee alone. He continued on down the corridor to his own room, but Kylee stood frozen, watching. She seemed almost disturbed by the man even though he had essentially done nothing. A short bark from Sil snapped her out of it though as we waited in the elevator. She turned and ran to join us but until the doors closed she stared out in the direction the man had gone. A few encouraging words from Sil made the Riolu forget about him entirely though and she was soon enjoying the reverse of the heavy sensation from before. As we neared the ground floor I moved and picked her up to set her on Sil’s back. “You stay close to Sil ok?” I told her perhaps a bit more sternly than I needed to, but she smiled and nodded softly, hugging to my Absol’s back to show she understood. Sil didn't move, but I saw his claws flex and retract softly before the doors opened. At least he was lightening up a little bit, but he did say something to her as we entered the lobby and I saw her release her grip on his fur a little.
Once again we garnered quite a bit of attention from surrounding trainers and other commoners. I knew it was because of the strange colored Riolu, and the more I noticed the more curious I grew as to why she was such a draw. Yes rare pokemon were highly sought after in this age, yes strange colored pokemon were desired as well, but this seemed to be more than that… So as we walked I pulled out my pokedex and started looking for information about Riolu and Lucario.
Media and commercialism owed its life blood to the birth of the Global Trade Network (GTN). Just a few short years after the interregional network had been established the media and businesses of the world adapted it and improved it for other applications such as news and information distribution. Shortly after that, the pokedex underwent a major renovation and it could now be used as a video phone, as well as a computer to access the net.
Unfortunately… what I was finding thoroughly explained why people were looking funny at me, Kylee, and Sil. “Lucario populations diminishing? Species on verge of extinction?” “Another Lucario mutilation discovered.” “Champion’s Lucario defeats Moltres!” Were just a few of the headlines that I found right off the bat. Though that last one was the search going off track… So Lucario were an extremely rare species the world over, and there were rumors of Lucario being hunted and killed intentionally by some kind of serial killer. It sent a chill down my spine reading one rather graphic article… and I was more determined than ever after that to make sure Kylee could defend herself.
By the time I was done with my research we were just around the corner from the park. Trees abruptly sprouted and towered over the pavement bordering it. Sil and I looked at the map of the area and found a training spot we’d visited before. We took the winding sidewalk through some trees to a small clearing with several large, human shape and sized, wooden training dummies. There was a set open next to a kid and his Scyther, so we took the spot and I pulled out my visor. Pointing it at Kylee gave me some idea of her strength, endurance and attacks, though if she didn’t know she could do something yet, my telling her to did little good. As I looked at the data Kylee stared curiously at the device on my face.
“What that?” She asked when I hadn’t addressed her in a while.
“It’s called a Pokevis. It lets me keep you safe.” I answered and pet her on the head.
“Pokaball?” She questioned next, having connected the two from my descriptions. She really was quite smart.
“No. Not a pokeball. Pokevis, this tells me if you’re hurt.” I explained a little better as I pointed to the visor.
“Ohhh.” She replied contemplatively. I gave her a little smile and looked around. Now that I had an idea of what attacks she could use I had to find someone who could show her. Sil could show her quick attack but she was capable of so much more as a fighting type. Still, it was a place to start and it should help her figure out how to summon energy for attacks.
“Alright Sil. We’ll start with quick attack.” I said to my friend as I took off the visor. “Kylee? Watch Sil ok? He’ll show you what to do then I want you to try.” I said to the Riolu as I sat down cross legged next to her. She nodded and stood there while Sil prepared. He hunkered down to get a lunging start at the wooden dummy, and in a flash of white he bolted. He gave a long growl as he ran and collected energy in his horn. It too glowed white and he slashed just as he reached the target.
His goal in training now was to save energy, which for him meant stopping immediately after the attack was over. This time he had done well, stopping just inches behind the dummy as the streak behind him caught up and dissipated. A second later the dummy’s head fell to the ground beside Sil, having been knocked up into the air by the hit.
Kylee stared wide eyed at the display and yipped happily when it was all over. In an effort to save me time Sil turned and picked up the head in his mouth and stood to replace it on the target. The limbs and head were all easily detachable and it was courtesy to reassemble them when you were finished. Although, if someone destroyed the dummy there was a pretty hefty fine…
“Ok Kylee. Think you can do that?” I asked and she looked at me with confusion.
“How?” She questioned as Sil came up and sat behind her. He gave a soft “Sol.” to get her attention and seemed to proceed into an explanation. Whatever he was saying… seemed rather detailed, because he was actually pointing to different points on her body. She never spoke as he explained though, so I guessed she was getting the idea. Finally, after a minute or two Sil finished and Kylee happily said “Ok!” as she looked to me with her tail wagging.
“Alright then. Quick attack Kylee!” I instructed and she instantly flew off at a speed that matched and perhaps exceeded Sil’s! Even my veteran Absol was stunned as he turned to watch her do exactly as he had told her. She crossed her paws in front of her and at the last second shifted to the left and whirled her paw out to knock the dummy’s leg with the metal patch on her wrist. The dummy buckled as it was meant to, though the leg that was hit swung loose and knocked off the other leg as well.
A little lacking in grace, Kylee slid to a halt and fell on her rump behind the dummy, but her tail thumped happily as she barked to see if she had done it right like she thought. However… Sil and I were both aghast… In one try she not only pulled off the attack, but had done so with a speed Sil would have to go all out to attain.
As Sil and I exchanged shocked glances Kylee thought she had done something wrong. She looked back to the dummy and remembered what Sil had done to put it back together. So she quickly got up and awkwardly gathered up the two legs she’d knocked off. She dropped one as she tried to stand on her tip toes to put the other back into place but the dummy was too tall for her to get it to hold. As she tried Sil and I recovered from our stupor and quickly went to help.
“That was amazing Kylee!” I said proudly as I put a hand between her ears. A little surprised we were there she looked back but quickly smiled with a wag of her tail. I gently took the leg from her in an offer to help and she let me as Sil said something to get her attention. It almost sounded like he was scolding her at first but that was just how he sounded to my ears. Actually, he was trying to figure out how she’d done what she did…

---

{Sil}
~Did you feel that energy I told you about?~ I asked the golden pup before me as I sat. It seemed she had trouble speaking in a pokemon tongue since she could speak human, but she could still convey her answers well for that handicap. She nodded softly with a smile in reply, allowing me to continue. ~How much did you draw on it? Did you really try to use what you found?~ I asked curiously, only now beginning to understand just what that human might have meant when he said she needed me to train her.
“Little. I try.” She replied, and looked a little disappointed at having to answer.
~I know you tried, and you did well.~ I tried to encourage, but I never had pups of my own to deal with so I may have sounded a little too negative. ~Could you try harder? Could you feel more energy?~ I tried to ask again. She looked down and seemed to think before she looked back and nodded softly…

---

“Sil! She did great, don’t make her feel bad.” I said as I finished repairing the dummy and turned to see Kylee seeming a bit forlorn.
“But.” Kylee tried to reply but didn’t have the words to continue. She seemed ok though so perhaps I had been mistaken.
“Alright. Sorry Sil. Let’s try again though, ok Kylee?” I asked as I stood up. She nodded and moved to follow as I went back to where we were before, however, a quick “Ab.” From Sil got her attention. I looked as well and he seemed to be telling her where to aim, marking the center of the torso with a point of his horn.
“Ok.” Kylee said in acknowledgement before the three of us went back, with Sil adding another tip or two on the way.
Once more Kylee readied herself when we stopped, and with my order she rocketed off again. She bolted, but this time just as she reached the dummy she leapt into the air and spun with a small grunt. She brought her paw around and whacked the dummy’s side with her metal patch. The whole dummy started swinging, but there was a sharp crack as she hit. Kylee pushed off the dummy for what little resistance it gave and she landed shakily on the ground just to the side. She looked back to us to see how she did just as the dummy crashed to the ground with a thud. Scared by the noise Kylee yelped and put her paws to her muzzle as she stared wide eyed, afraid she’d broken it. I couldn’t help but smile at her reaction as Sil and I came up once more.
“Don’t worry. It’s supposed to do that.” I said to calm her as I moved to inspect the dummy. It had fallen off its stand after Kylee’s hit had dislodged it, but more impressive still… was the bit of splintered wood and the dent she had made in the thing. Now it was by no means the only mark on the dummy, and not the worst. There were burns, slashes, erosion marks, etc, all over this thing, but for Kylee to be able to do that to a hard wood dummy! I had severely underestimated her strength it seemed…
“Wow Kylee… This is amazing!” I stammered as I ran my fingers over the hit to make sure I wasn’t imagining it. I looked back at her to show her my approval of her strength and she smiled back happily.

---

~That was impressive. Was that the best you could do you think?~ I asked the pup as Valiora once more started to reassemble the dummy, giving me a chance to talk with Kylee.
“I think.” She said with a nod after contemplating it for a moment.
~Ok. Do you know why Val is so impressed?~ I asked next, and she shook her head. ~It took her other pokemon quite a bit of training before they could do that much damage. You are very strong for your size and age.~ I said, though my tone must not have been praising enough.
“Good?” She asked hopefully, seeming to understand that Valiora valued such a quality, but my concern was confirmed. This pup had great reserves of strength, and if that’s what she could do her first time, just a short time of training might make her too dangerous to fight in a battle of her age class.
~It is, but you have to be careful. You don’t want to hurt your opponents.~ I replied cautiously, but at least trying not to sound harsh this time. She seemed a little confused but once again Valiora was ready to continue. Still, I needed to explain battling in a way that humans couldn’t…

---

After I finished reattaching all the limbs to the dummy I turned to my two partners. Sil was once more lecturing Kylee and I was beginning to grow curious as to what he was telling her. The Absol always sounded gruff and scolding in his tone, but Kylee seemed to be paying close attention, giving him occasional nods.
“Alright you two, let’s see if we can figure out another attack.” I said as I started to walk back to my pack with the two of them falling into step though still talking. Once more I pulled out my visor and pointed it at Kylee. It popped up a list of known moves for her species but none of the others were ones my other pokemon would know. Just then I remembered the kid and his Scyther. Maybe it would know something Kylee could do.
As I looked to my right to see if the kid was still there he told his Scyther to use a move called vacuum wave. It seemed as though I was in luck, because that move was also one in Kylee’s list. Respectfully, I waited until the bug had done its run before approaching and asking for help. The kid looked at me a bit suspiciously but agreed and came back over to Sil and Kylee with his Scyther.
“Whoa! Is it supposed to be that color?” The kid asked, immediately noticing Kylee had different colors than the pictures of what the region champion’s Lucario looked like as a Riolu.
“Yes and no. It’s her natural color, but it’s rare.” I explained, hoping he wouldn’t push further than asking about the odd Riolu.
“Oh wow. I’ve never seen a rare colored pokemon before. So what did you need again?” He asked, still looking at Kylee as she looked back curiously but thankfully… remained shyly silent.
“Well, your Scyther might be able to help her learn a move. She can learn vacuum wave but she’s still too young to figure things out on her own. Could you and your Scyther try to explain how and show her?” I asked politely, but of course, nothing came free.
“Sure, but would you mind giving me a pokeball in return? There’s a pokemon around here I’m trying to catch and it fried my last one yesterday.” He explained and I nodded.
“If she gets it I’ll give you one of the new crystal great balls. That alright?” I replied, to which he seemed surprised.
“That’d be great! Thanks.” He answered before turning to his Scyther to tell it what needed to be done. Once it had been given its task the Scyther looked down at Kylee and started talking to her. Sil sat behind her with a protective air about him but still made Kylee face the bug as it explained…

---

(Sil)
~Ok! So your blade. You slash your blade real hard and air moves. Air moves and BOOM. Hits target.~ The Scyther said quickly and… rather inaccurately before he looked at Kylee a little closer. ~Where your blades?~ He asked and Kylee looked at her paws.
“What?” She asked looking back confused. Since she had spoken out loud Val now had to explain to the surprised boy that she could actually talk… but that was the human’s problem, I still had to help Kylee with this illiterate bug…
~She doesn’t have blades like you. You use energy for the attack right?~ I tried to help the bumbling bug.
~Yes! Yes, energy goes to tip of blade and SLASH! Attack happen.~ The bug continued excitedly.
~Where does the energy come from?~ I asked to try and get more detail for the still confused Riolu.
~Inside, umm… outside… all around. You pull from self, from… spirit, trainer says.~ The Scyther finally managed to articulate.
~Ok Kylee. It’s a special attack, you try to feel for energy inside yourself and all around. Just like quick attack, you focus it…~
~At blade tip!~ The bug interrupted, still trying to help… I looked up at him with a glare for a moment before turning back to Kylee as he went silent.
~Try your paw. Hold your paw out and collect the energy before pushing it forward at the dummy with your thoughts.~ I finished, just as the bug spoke again.
~Slash slash!~
“Ok!” Kylee exclaimed happily and looked back to Valiora. The humans had been talking between themselves since Kylee first spoke… which would undoubtedly happen often with the pup. When she spoke again though, Val seemed surprised it was explained so quickly.

---

“You want to try?” I asked Kylee as she stood there with her tail swaying and a smile on her face. She nodded eagerly so I figured why not. “Alright, use vacuum wave then!” I instructed and she turned to point her paw at the dummy. A flash of light went off and there was a tiny pinpoint of white light in front of her paw. The attack backfired the first time though, exploding where it was and tossing her back with a yelp! I barely had time to react as she flew into my arms, knocking me to the ground as I caught her. “Are you ok!?” I asked worriedly as the explosion was… surprisingly large for a backfire, not to mention the first try. Without even acknowledging me though Kylee sat up on my chest and shook her head, flopping her black head orbs back and forth. “Kylee?” I asked again but she only gave a mad growl as she leapt off of me and went back to her spot to try again.
This time, the flash went off again but the ball of light was the size of a marble, and she yipped with her concentration in firing the energy. A visible double helix of swirling air darted from the light to the dummy, making a tube about two inches in diameter that according to the attack description was said to contain no matter what so ever. When the vacuum was created the air rushed back in, following the tube down its length and exploding violently at the dummy’s chest!
The ground actually shook as dust and smoke billowed from where the dummy had been. Kylee was knocked on her rump once more from the blast, and the Scyther and Sil just managed to shut their eyes and brace for the blast wave. The boy and I held up our arms as shields from the dust and wind. When we opened our eyes… there were simply no words to express our astonishment... The dummy was gone! Not just knocked to the side, GONE! Splintered, disintegrated, obliterated, blown into absolute dust! Where the dummy once stood was a crater in the ground an inch or two deep.
“Great Arceus! What did your Scyther tell her!?” I blurted at the kid in my astonishment.
“Are you kidding!? I can’t get him to do that when he tries! What the hell are you feeding that thing!?” He shot back in amazement and fear.
Scyther looked stunned to see the dummy obliterated and slowly looked down at Kylee with a terrified look. The Riolu sat up and shook her head to get the dust off before she looked to see her work. A wide smile came to her face as her tail wagged happily seeing she had done the attack. Sil just gawked, dumfounded and frozen for a moment before a realization hit him… If that had been a real pokemon, even one at a high amateur level, it would probably be seriously injured…
Hearing me and the kid start to talk Kylee quickly and happily got to her feet, thinking our outburst meant we were proud of her. After our exchange the two of us looked at Kylee and her ears lay back when she noticed the looks weren’t the ones of praise she’d gotten before. Worried, she looked to Sil who was just now shaking off his disbelief.

---

(Sil)
~Kylee, could you do more? Was that all the energy you found?~ I asked the Riolu as her attention turned to me. As she heard and understood she seemed to become ashamed and her eyes began to water.
“I try!” She said quickly and sadly with tears in her eyes as she turned and focused on another dummy.

---

~“No!”~ The boy, Sil, and I all said in unison as we heard and saw Kylee take aim again. The Riolu flinched and whined as we yelled at her. She held her tail submissively between her legs and her ears were flat against her head as she turned with a sniffle to look at me.
“I’m outa here. Good luck with that one lady!” The kid stuttered quickly and moved to run, but I had time to stop him.
“Wait! Here.” I said and quickly tossed a great ball to him. He caught it as he turned and waved quickly in gratitude with a nervous smile before he took off again, quickly followed by his nervously fluttering Scyther. After that I brought my attention back to Kylee, who was trying to wipe the tears away from her eyes as she whimpered sadly. “Kylee… It’s ok. You did good, REALLY good!” I tried to praise her but it only got her to look up at me. “It’s ok Kylee. Really, please don’t cry.” I said, trying to be caring which wasn’t something I was used to or good at.
“Hey!” A man’s voice sounded just as I seemed to be reaching Kylee. I turned to look and Kylee clutched to my leg to hide, afraid someone else would be mad at her. “You can’t destroy the dummies out right! You know that.” The man said sternly as he slowed to a walk.
“I know, I’m sorry, we were seeing what a new pokemon of mine could do and she surprised us. How much is the fine. I’ll pay it.” I said calmly, not making excuses as I knew very well I couldn’t get out of this.
“Oh… Well if you need more durable equipment try the rock or steel areas. It’s $5000.” The man said, seeming a bit relieved he wasn’t dealing with a vandal.
“Alright, and the account number?” I replied and handed over the pokedex for him to enter the number. He hit enter, waited a few moments and the screen read “Complete! To: Park Authority.”
“Thank you miss. Just be more careful.” He replied as he handed back my pokedex and strolled off.
“S-sorry…” I heard Kylee say after the man headed off. I looked down as I realized she was talking to me. She still clung to my leg as she looked up with those tear filled blue eyes.
“Don’t worry, its ok. Just be careful next time.” I replied, trying to give her a kind smile as I pet her head. She still seemed quite upset and more than a little confused at having been yelled at. I felt bad but I couldn’t have her blowing up the entire park by trying harder... “Let’s get going. The others still need a workout.” I said more to Sil than Kylee since she wouldn’t understand. Kylee nodded though and let me go to wipe her eyes. As we walked about half a mile across the park towards a large water area Sil and Kylee talked amongst themselves.

---

(Sil)
~Could you really have summoned more strength for that attack?~ I asked as I walked with the little Riolu behind Val. I could still hardly believe she had that much power in her small form but I had seen the proof.
“I-I try…” She replied with a whimper, still trying to get over being yelled at.
~Come now. The humans did not mean to be harsh, their customs make them worry about strange things. You did well today for your first try.~ I tried to comfort, and to my credit her sniffling quieted slightly as she looked up at me. ~But you can’t use so much power carelessly. If you were to hit me with such an attack you might kill me. Do you understand?~ I continued while I had her attention, but perhaps I was a little too forward. Her eyes widened slightly and she looked scared as she focused her gaze back on the ground.
“I-I hurt you…? But I try, you say.” She replied, confused as to why we had told her to try as hard as she could but were scolding her now.
~I know but…~ I started defensively, trying to think of how to explain it but ended up growling softly out of habit. Kylee of course took it the wrong way and lowered her ears and head. ~No, no. Don’t be afraid. Stand up.~ I told her, trying to help her be less timid, as well as hide her reaction from Val lest the human scold me as well… ~Now… do you remember when I hit the dummy with my attack?~ I started again, and got a nod in return. ~And do you remember what happened when you hit it the first time?~ I continued.
“I… It fell?” She replied, wondering where I was going with this.
~Well… yes but, do you remember how you dented the dummy?~ I asked, and once more got a nod. ~I could have done the same, but I didn’t. You have to know how much of your strength to use so that you can win a fight, but not seriously hurt your opponent. Do you understand?~ I finished. Kylee listened intently and thought about it for a moment before she smiled and nodded.
“Don’t hurt, try hard!” She said cheerfully, which was what I was trying to tell her but I knew it wouldn’t be so simple. She had to learn how much she could do, and even then she might not get a real test until she was actually in a battle. I simply hoped that test wouldn’t end badly.

---

“I always love this area.” I said with a pleasant sigh as we came to the edge of a large pond. There were platforms anchored across the water’s surface and wave breaks around a central water battle field. However, the edges all around the pond were like the beaches of the ocean. After another deep breath I looked over to see Kylee had been taken from her conversation with Sil by my comment. Her tail wagged happily as she looked out over the water, giggled, and ran to the water’s edge. It seemed she was no stranger to water. Sil seemed a little worried or distracted, I could never tell with him and he watched Kylee intently as he took a seat.
As Kylee put her paws in the water and started to get wet I couldn’t help but grin. She was cute, I’d definitely give her that. But the others needed some time to train and stretch as well, so I reached for the balls strapped across my chest. First I grabbed Ryla’s ball and released the Swablu. She shook her fluffy down like she always did and looked around. She chirped hello to me and Sil but quickly spotted Kylee and flapped over to land on the pup's head once more. Surprised by the sudden touch Kylee yelped and fell forward into the shallow water with a splash. She gave playfully growl as she recovered to see Ryla chirping in laughter. The two quickly started playing, with Kylee chasing my Swablu and leaping in attempts to catch her. However… we got quite a surprise when Ryla floated up about ten feet in the air and teased the Riolu. In her determination Kylee hunkered down on all fours and sprung at Ryla, but overshot her! Sil and I both wore the same expression as we watched Kylee leap 15 feet in the air! Ryla chirped in shock as the Riolu came at her but quickly dodged the clumsy attack. Kylee on the other hand, hadn’t intended to jump that high… She cried out as she started to fall towards the ground. I was too far away to do anything but thankfully Sil snapped out of his stupor. In a flash of white and black he managed to intercept her just a foot from the ground, grabbing her scruff in his mouth as if it were mere target practice.
“Kylee are you ok!?” I asked franticly as I came up and looked the scared Riolu over. Her eyes had been held tightly shut as she thought she would impact the ground, but thanks to Sil she hadn’t. As she cracked her eyes she started to cry just as Sil released her and collapsed to his side. “Sil?!” I continued with concern and momentarily, but unintentionally, forgot about Kylee. I scrambled to my Absol’s side and shook him gently, trying to figure out what was wrong! As my checks became rational I thankfully could tell he was still breathing. It seemed he had just been knocked out, but by what…? Kylee had stopped crying as I rushed past her but she was now quivering with her eyes wide and watering as she looked at Sil lying there motionless. I sighed softly and stroked his flank before taking his rarely used ball and withdrawing him.
“I sorry! I sorry! I not mean hurt!” Kylee suddenly blurted as her tears returned when Sil disappeared. I remembered Kylee as she spoke and the first thought that crossed my mind was why was she apologizing? But after that split second I wondered if she really had done it somehow…
“I-It’s ok Kylee. Calm down.” I started, hesitantly reaching out to pet her, hoping the same thing didn’t happen to me. She quickly stopped her apologies and remained there sniffling softly. As I pet her though she gave one last whimper. “Kylee, how did you jump like that?” I couldn’t help but ask next as I stopped petting her. I failed to notice that Ryla hadn’t gone to Kylee until the little bird perched on my head, still staring at Kylee.
“I-I not… know… I… jump.” She sniffed as she looked down and relived the moment, but she seemed to think of something as she looked back up at me. “I think… I use…” She continued and held her paws out like she had when she used vacuum wave. My muscles tensed as she held her paws out, fearing she’d blast me but she lowered them again and sniffled sadly once more.
“Y-you think you used Vacuum Wave?” I asked to see if I understood but she looked a little frustrated as she shook her head.
“No… just…” She continued once more but again couldn’t find the word.
“You used your energy?” I questioned, and thankfully my intuition was right. She nodded quickly and looked back at me with her pleading eyes. It was then that I noticed something about her eyes in particular, they were darker but… lightening? A soft red twinge to her irises was fading as I noticed and in another moment they were back to her normal deep blue color. I didn’t want to scare her but… It was something I made a mental note to look into. “It’s ok Kylee, don’t worry. That’s good but… you need to learn when to use your energy so try not to do that again ok?” I continued after she’d answered. She nodded again and wiped her nose, but I still had to wonder why Sil had fainted… All he did was touch her I thought, or had she attacked him somehow that I couldn’t see? I had to remember to ask him when he woke, but for now the others still needed some air.
“I sorry…” She said again as I stood and took my hand from the pup’s head.
“Don’t worry, Sil is tough. I’m sure you just surprised him.” I replied with a bit of a smile at her. “Now come on. Maybe you’d like to meet the others who travel with us?” I continued and started to walk back towards the water where my pack was.
Thankfully that seemed to cheer her up a little as her ears perked up. She quickly followed and Ryla even flew off my head to once again hover around Kylee. Although I could tell my Swablu was being a little cautious after the outburst...
I knelt at my pack as I reached it and pulled a crystal dive ball from the strap. Just as Kylee came to a halt beside me I tossed the ball out over the water. My Riolu seemed to be growing accustomed to the devices and she watched with curiosity as the beam of light shot from the ball and started to coalesce on the water. With a splash of displaced water my Milotic, Nayu, was released and arched his long serpentine body as he yawned wide. I couldn’t help my own curiosity at the moment as I watched Kylee for her reaction, and I had to stop myself from laughing as well. Her jaw dropped as she watched him and when he started to snake through the water towards us she started to panic a little and took a few steps back before she looked at me and scrambled to hide behind my leg.
Ever prideful and forward, the serpent looked curiously at the running creature as he came to the water’s edge. As Sil had done before though I didn’t hide Kylee from her fears, after all she couldn’t be so shy in a battle or she’d be automatically disqualified… “It’s alright Kylee, this is Nayu. He’s a Milotic and a friend, just like Ryla.” I said, and to show her I wasn’t lying; Ryla started floating up to try and perch on Nayu’s head.
“Myyyyyylo…” ~Try it again, and I beat you with my tail…~ He said to her as she rose, making her chirp and grin as she lowered back down to land next to Kylee. Whatever he had said seemed to scare the Riolu though as she seemed to lean into my hand I had kept on her back and shoulder.
“Hey! Don’t scare her; and Ryla I’d be willing to bet you know why he doesn’t want you up there.” I said to them, knowing it was a game to Ryla but an old insult to Nayu that made them rather bitter rivals… Ryla had once used Nayu’s head as a toilet and he has never forgiven her…
“Swa Blu!” ~It washed off!~ She chirped back defensively and smiled at Kylee, earning the Riolu a suspicious gaze from Nayu as he literally towered over all of us. Little Kylee’s ears laid back and she whined at the look which seemed to ease Nayu’s suspicions. He leaned his head down until his tassels were barely above the sandy ground and looked her over.
“Go ahead, he won’t bite.” I encouraged and nudged Kylee away from me as I looked at Nayu with an authoritative gaze that usually got him to behave. Kylee was still hesitant but with the nudge she took a step nearer to him and looked up at his face.
“H-hi…” Was all she managed to squeak out, but it made Nayu cock his head.
“Tic?” ~You speak human?~ He said, to which Kylee nodded, seeming to lighten up a little and continuing to talk with him. It was nice to see Kylee was at least trusting if a little shy at first, and hopefully she would grow out of the shy part. For now though I had other things to tend to… The gym challenge tournament for this town was set to begin tomorrow, and I needed to register. So while Kylee got to know Nayu a little I pulled out my pokevis and pokedex to get to work.

---

(Nayu)
~So what are you? I’ve never seen a pokemon like you.~ I asked as I looked the creature over. She sure seemed shy for one of Val’s pokemon but… maybe this was another of her save the pokemon things?
“Riolu…” The golden pup answered and I could feel my eyes widen. I’d heard about those… but weren’t they being hunted by something…?
~Really? Huh. Thought you’d be bigger and more threatening.~ I replied as I looked straight down at her, to which she raised her head to look right back.
“Well! I grow!” She barked back a little defensively, making me smile. So she did have a tough streak in her somewhere.
~Nah… I bet you’ll be a pipsqueak forever, especially compared to me.~ I teased and flexed my body, bringing my tail to make a five foot diameter circle while I raised my head with the rest of my 20 and a half foot length. I smirked as Ryla flew to avoid me rolling over her and sat on Kylee’s head for defense. Meanwhile, the pup worriedly looked around as I surrounded her. She looked back up at me and I gave her another smirk. ~So pipsqueak. What do you think?~ I asked as I lowered my head to my coil, and seeing I meant no harm she relaxed as she looked me over.
~You stink that’s what she thinks!~ That fluff ball of a Swablu, Ryla said in response, and with a grimace I lifted my tail to bop her softly on the head. After all, the pup under her hadn’t done anything to me yet.
~No one asked you ya dirty bird.~ I said with a snerk, leaving the pup completely confused as she watched our mean spirited banter. ~I was asking lady pipsqueak here.~ I continued and lowered my tail fan next to her gracefully. The pup turned and stared at my fin and scales as they shimmered with color, which brought another grin to my lips. ~Go ahead, I’ll let you touch them this once.~ I said and inched my fin a little closer to her. She smiled very softly as she looked when I spoke then quickly looked back at my colorful fin as she started to reach out to touch and admire it.
~Ewww, don’t touch that it’s all fishy!~ Ryla chirped in disgust as “her” friend seemed to get lost in my beauty.
“But… It pretty.” Kylee replied, looking up at Ryla confused.
~Why thank you lady pipsqueak. It’s good to know you at least can appreciate good looks.~ I said with a charming smile as I caught her gaze. She seemed a little shy but she smiled very cutely back at me. Softly she seemed to ignore Ryla’s protest, which only made me happier. The Riolu reached out and gently stroked over my fin which felt rather good with how gentle she was, almost as if she thought she’d hurt me. Her touch tickled a bit as she stroked over the scales, making me reflexively spread it a little more as a soft shiver ran through the length of my body. I chuckled and lifted my tail from her after that but remained coiled there awaiting her next move.
“N-nayu?” She said as she pointed to me.
~That’s right! By far the most handsome of Miss Val’s team.~ I said proudly as I raised my head to show off for the pup. She giggled softly as her tail wagged, which at least told me she seemed to like me.
“You fly like Ryla?” She asked next, obviously not knowing much about serpent pokemon.
~Nooo. I swim. And very well I might add.~ I answered, smirking at Ryla since I’d stolen her friend's interest.
“Really!? I swim!” She barked back, which surprised me… I didn’t think such a young thing would like to swim so much.
~Then why don’t you show me what you’ve got pipsqueak!~ I teased as I lowered my head to her level for the first time and grinned at her. She smiled wider as her tail wagged faster, and the Swablu on her head just rolled its eyes. Not needing another invitation; I slithered my strong body past her to go back to the water as she eagerly ran to join me. Ryla wasn’t about to be left out though and despite our rivalry the two of us were soon playing with Kylee in the shallow waters.

---

While Kylee got to know Nayu I took another of my pokeballs a short distance away. I didn’t want Kylee to meet this pokemon of mine just yet… however, I knew he would be able to help me train her. At least if he agreed… After a quick flick of a switch the ball in my hand cracked open, materializing my Gallade. I stood as strong as I could like always, trying to show this jerk I wasn’t just a weak human.
When he gained consciousness from the materialization he met my eyes with a glare and folded his arms in front of him, standing there silent and stoic. I couldn’t blame him really, he had his reasons for being mad, and the collar around his neck didn’t help my case much either…
“Look, I know your feelings towards me and the others but I need your help with something.” I started sternly. Unfortunately… it had the opposite effect I wanted it to. Gallade actually cracked a grin through his glare. “I figured that might be your reply… So here’s the deal. You do this, and I let you go.” I continued, playing my trump card earlier than I wanted, but this time getting exactly the reaction I wanted. His eyes widened a little at first but his glare returned as he frowned. I could tell he was trying to read my thoughts to see if I was just trying to trick him, but I knew even if my thoughts proved what I said he wouldn’t believe it.
~This is just another trick…~ He said telepathically, usually a talent I usually had to pull teeth to get him to do.
“No trick. I swear to you I will take that thing off and release you if you do this for me. You can go get captured again, run from hunters and collectors, or just die. I won’t try to stop you, I gave you your chances.” I replied harshly, getting the snarl I expected from him.
~Good! I can start killing the humans who stole my life! What do I have to do huh? Beat the damned slave champion!?~ He screamed in my head, lowering his arms and looking down at me threateningly.
I didn’t answer right away, giving him the chance to cool off a bit, though he was still fuming when I spoke again. “You see that gold pup over there? You teach her to fight in any kind of style and I break this.” I said, pointing at Kylee who was encircled by Nayu at the time and holding up his ball as I finished. Gallade followed my finger to see Kylee and gritted his teeth. Looking back to me his stare was just as cold as before.
~You want me to train another pokemon as a replacement… How stupid do you think I am…? Is there nothing you won’t do to get what you want you filthy human!? That’s just a pup! Let alone, how did you get it!? Did you buy it like you bought me!? From one of those farms!!!?~ He yelled at me again, this time getting in my face to tell me off.
“I told you! I SAVED you! They weren’t going to sell you, they knew you had strength. You were going to be a breeder! They would have slapped a collar on you and sent you to rape countless Gardevoir and they wouldn't have hesitated to actually use an obedience chip! If I had really wanted a pokemon to train I would have bought a Ralts. You were already a Kirlia by then and they were haggling over the price of a dawn stone when I came along!” I spat back, becoming quite pissed off with him. If he did this any other time I would have simply hit a button on his collar and withdrew him back into his locking ball.
~If they were going to put one of these things on me they would have done it! They were going to release me AND my mother until you came along!~ He retorted bitterly.
“Oh!? And how many kids did your mother have to take with her?! And you do know those collars don’t change sizes when a pokemon evolves right? You idiot! They were waiting till you evolved before they put one on you for good! Who wants to buy a pokemon with a collar already? ‘Oh why yes sir, I’ll take the one that might try to kill me in my sleep.’” I answered back, probably making a mistake in taunting him so much… That was something Sil usually managed to avoid by breaking up our fights before now. So unfortunately for me I got belted in the cheek by the pokemon, to which the collar automatically shocked him…
Clenching my jaw I tried to rub the pain away while the collar finished its light punishment. Despite being angry at him though… I hated seeing him fall to the ground with a shout of pain as the collar shocked him for a full two seconds. It was the lowest setting I could put it to though… And I couldn’t have him running off and hurting someone. I would be charged for whatever he did. On the other hand, I didn’t want to release him either. With his grudge he wouldn’t just go after me, he’d go after the breeder I’d bought him from, and probably the man who broke his promise by selling him to the breeder in the first place. His rage was justified but I couldn’t… I just couldn’t let him run to his death…
“Worth it?” I asked with a calm tone as I offered a hand to him. As usual though, he batted my hand away with an elbow blade as he stood on his own.
~More than you’ll ever know…~ He grumbled angrily and stretched his sore neck when he got to his feet.
“So what do you say?” I asked as my head returned seeing that he seemed to have gotten his fill for now.
~Never… You can lock me in that ball for millennia. I don’t care…~ He huffed as he looked over at Kylee and shook his head.
“I didn’t buy her you know. Some weird guy and his Lucario gave her to me after spending the evening with Sil and me.” I confessed as I turned to watch the Riolu playing in the water without a care in the world.
~You humans all disgust me…~ He replied with another growl.
“Look, I’m not forcing this on her. You have no idea what she can do. If she doesn’t learn some form of control, if she doesn’t have some kind of focus she WILL hurt someone, human AND pokemon.” I said, starting to become a bit more desperate to make him understand. He looked at me through the corners of his eyes and seemed to raise an eyebrow in curiosity. Either he was contemplating turning her to his side or he doubted what I said.
~That’s a pup. Not a fighter. There’s no way she’s that strong.~ He said as he kept my gaze.
When he answered I knew how to get him to help… He was too proud to pass this up, even if my original plan had failed. “Wanna bet?” I asked with a sly grin, to which his features hardened once again.
~Fine… I win, you let me AND her go. I can care for her until I can find a pack of her kind to take care of her.~ Was his steadfast deal.
“Deal, and if I win…”
~I train her and stay with you right…?~ He interrupted sharply.
“Hey if that’s what you want.” I shrugged. “I was going to say, you take my original offer. You train her to fight in any style you choose, and you go free when I’m satisfied she’s good enough. But if you…”
~Shut it… You know I’ll agree to that. What game do I have to play with the pup?~ He cut me off again, but he had no idea what he agreed to…
“She gets to fire a vacuum wave at you.” I said simply and calmly, trying to clear my mind so the psychic couldn’t figure out what I was hiding. It wasn’t easy but I’d had practice, plus the collar helped my cause with a mild telepathic inhibitor.
~That all?~ Gallade replied with a chuckle and a grin, not suspecting a thing.
“You have to stand there as she fires it, no dodging. You come out unharmed and you two go free right here. Even if you’re just winded you go, but if there’s one scratch on you. You stay. Got it?” I said as I turned to face him. He seemed a little suspicious but agreed with a huff and started walking towards the other three. I was right beside though, and although I had seemed sure in the beginning… I hoped I was right about Kylee… or that trainer’s Lucario might be the one hunting me down instead of my Gallade…
“Alright you three… Playtime’s over.” I said as Gallade and I reached where I’d left my pack. Gallade stood there with his arms crossed, staring at Kylee appraisingly. Ryla flew over ahead of the other two to land at my feet with a chirp. As Kylee started to swim back to shore as quick as she could Nayu slithered though the water ahead of her and with a boastful grin. He beached a few feet of his length before looking back at his furry admirer and lifting his tail under her. With a soft yip Kylee found herself lifted out of the water and balanced on Nayu’s colorful fan. The sopping pup smiled at him as he shifted, bringing her the last few yards to the shore and letting her hop to the sand.
“Kylee, this is Gallade. He’s going to help Sil train you.” I continued as the golden pup shook the water from her fur. Once she was mostly dry she hurried closer and looked up at Gallade.
“Hi!” She yipped cheerfully at him, having gotten used to my pokemon being relatively friendly. As Gallade only stared down at her disapprovingly though her tail stopped wagging and her ears laid back with a soft whine.
“It’s ok Kylee. He’s not going to hurt you. I need you to do something for me though ok?” I said as I knelt and put a hand on her head. She looked at me curiously as Gallade started to move, stopping about 20 feet away in the open field, eager to win his bet and be free.
Kylee murred softly in curiosity but looked over at Gallade as he walked. Her gaze soon focused back on me with a bit of confusion in her eyes.
“Alright Kylee. You know what you did before with the dummy?” I asked and she lowered her ears once again. “No no. It’s ok. I need you to do that again. Try as hard as you can ok?” I continued, trying to be encouraging, though I wasn’t sure I could erase our original reactions from her mind.
“But… I hurt Sil.” She whined.
“I know but… you won’t hurt Gallade. I promise ok? He can move and protect himself.” I tried to convince her, but she looked to Gallade.
~Bring it puppy. You can’t hurt me so let’s get this over with.~ Gallade said to both of us using telepathy, which I should really have thanked him for… Kylee’s ears perked and swiveled a little, looking for the voice in her head before she looked over at Gallade.
“O-ok.” She said and a bit nervously followed my lead. I went to get my pokevis to see if perhaps I could get a better judge of her strength as she tried. I left Nayu and Ryla out of their balls to watch if they wished, though Nayu took to getting a good swim in the deeper parts of the pond. Ryla however got up on my shoulder to watch as Kylee stood there and held her paws out. Shutting her eyes the Riolu once again started to strain a bit to summon her energy. Sure enough a small pin prick of light started to glow in her palms, but something went wrong. Kylee yelped as her eyes shot open and the light exploded once more in her face. Dismayed, Kylee whimpered as she shook her head, her ears laying back. I looked quickly at Gallade to see him grinning from ear to ear, still with his arms crossed.
“Hey… It’s ok Kylee. Look. I know what we said, but I really need you to try. Gallade said he wouldn’t help you unless you could knock him over. And he’s pretty strong.” I tried to convince the pup. She looked up at me with those cute blue eyes and wiped them with a paw.
“Ok. I try.” She said with s soft nod and a smile, getting up and looking at Gallade with a strong resolve… Gallade’s cocky attitude quickly faded as he saw this and when Kylee kept her eyes focused on him and summoned her energy once more I saw Gallade’s eyes widen. He took an expert fighting stance and prepared for the attack as Kylee continued to charge her strength.
“That’s it Kylee! Keep going! Vacuum wave!” I encouraged, and the Riolu growled in her concentration, really pouring her effort into it this time… My pokevis started to register a significant rise in special attack strength coming from Kylee and I saw the irises of her eyes start to darken to a purple color. There was even a buzzing sound as the ball of energy grew from a pin prick, to a marble to a baseball and finally to a softball size before Kylee barked and took a step forward, willing the energy at Gallade as her eyes flashed a shining red for a fraction of a second!
Somewhere in my stunned observance I remembered to watch Gallade taking the attack. In a quick motion he used protect, flashing his nearly impenetrable green shield up around him. The distortion of Kylee’s attack though hit the shield and encompassed it, shocking the Grimer out of Gallade as it imploded, obliterating his shield with the main attack and smashing him into the ground with an unbelievable aftershock! Kylee panted softly as her eyes quickly turned blue once more. She was pretty happy to see she hadn’t hurt Gallade even when she was trying, with her tail wagging she looked up at me.
I couldn’t hide the smile of satisfaction seeing Gallade actually get forced to the ground and having trouble getting up. He groaned and glared at Kylee and me as he weakly pushed himself to his feet. Looking around Gallade blinked in surprise… Once again Kylee’s attack had created an impressive crater. This time there was a rise in the middle where Gallade had protected, but a foot deep by twelve foot wide divot of dirt had been sucked up and scattered about the area, even leaving a few rocks jerked from their buried states and pointing at Gallade.