The Pokemon Master

…

A/N: Hi, guys. I know I'm mostly known for writing in the Mass Effect universe, but I've always been interested in writing my own Pokemon story, even before I began to write The Homefront. It's not going to be typical, and it won't be as formulaic as the thousands of other Pokemon fanfics out there. I was personally inspired to write this story after reading the Traveler by The Straight Elf, who is a magnificent writer and will always be the best Pokemon story writer in my opinion. So I hope that you all enjoy this story and join me along in the ride. Thanks, and begin reading!

…

"Feraligatr, use aqua tail!"

"Dodge it, Raichu!" The thin-furred yellow mouse deftly leapt to the side as the monstrous feraligatr smashed its thick tail on the ground where Raichu had only been an instant before. Thrown by the impact, Raichu was flipped over but quickly regained its balance as it bounced and landed on its long, prehensile tail. The feraligatr barely had time to look up before it was blasted by an overpowered thunderbolt, showering it with sparks and driving the creature back as it roared in pain.

The Red trainer saw his opening. "Raichu, hit him with Thunder! Give it everything you've got!"

The electric mouse quickly curled in on itself as its body became charged with tens of thousands of volts, so much that sparks were leaking from its fur and erratically spraying the ground around it. The feraligatr righted itself and turned hateful eyes onto its opponent.

The Green trainer didn't have many options left. "Feraligatr, use hyper beam!"

The eight-foot beast of a feraligatr roared once in confirmation as it opened its massive jaws. A second later, an incredibly small but dense sphere of energy formed in its maw. The ball, glowing with the power of a miniature sun, soon grew to the size of Feraligatr's head as the beast prepared its dangerous attack.

Too late. Raichu released its trump move and fired a ridiculously powerful bolt of lightning at the feraligatr. The entire arena flashed white, and a roll of thunder boomed across the stadium. The camera was blinded by the light, and no one could hear anything for several seconds. When the camera finally refocused, the battle was over.

Raichu was pushing itself up from the ground, using its tail to support its tired body. The electric mouse looked exhausted, but fire blazed in its eyes as it raised itself to face the feraligatr if it rose again. On the other side of the field, the smoke cleared to reveal the feraligatr. Only, the massive pokemon was lying on the ground, unmoving. Scorch marks ran as far away from its body as ten feet, and the beast's hide was blackened from the Thunder. Its chest heaved slightly as it took in deep breaths, but it was obvious it wasn't getting back up anytime soon.

"Feraligatr is unable to battle! Victory goes to the Red trainer!"

The crowd roared.

"No!"

Ethan pounded his fist against the frame of his bed. The twelve-year old turned the TV off as he flopped onto his bed in frustration. He had been cheering on Alex, the Green trainer, since his start in the Indigo Conference.

The Indigo Conference. It had been his dream to win the Conference ever since Ethan had turned eleven last spring. Oh, he had always wanted to be the best pokemon trainer there ever was, but the Conference was a tangible goal for him as a trainer. Now that he was finally twelve, it could be reality.

Today was the day he started his journey.

Downstairs, Ethan was scarfing down his breakfast so fast he started coughing as his body couldn't handle the intake. His mom stared at him bemusedly from the other room. "Ethan! Calm down! You can't go to Professor Elm's lab if you're at the hospital getting your stomach pumped."

Ethan jumped up from the table and grabbed his traveling backpack. He and his mother had gotten it the other day in preparation for his journey. Like most trainer backpacks, it was light, elastic, and contained multiple compartments for all that he would have to bring with him on his journey. "Today's the day I become a pokemon trainer, mom! I can't waste a second or all the pokemon will be gone!"

"I hardly think Professor Elm will forget to carry enough pokemon for all of the young men and women starting their journeys today," said his mother as she hugged him. Her expression was a mix of love and worry. "Please be safe on your journey okay? Oh, I'm going to miss you so much, Ethan. What am I going to do without you? Just…be safe, Ethan."

"I know, mom," said Ethan, hugging his mother back before releasing her. Then he was at the door. "Love you, mom!"

"Write home and visit sometime!"

His feet carried him quickly across New Bark Town. It wasn't like he had far to walk; his hometown was relatively small compared to most cities in the Johto region. And it didn't take him long at all to locate the building; Professor Elm's lab was easily the largest building in town and as such it was located close to the center. By the time he got there, though, there was already a small group of people at the door. One of them heard his arrival and turned around.

"Ethan!" said Lyra, smiling brightly as ever. "I would have thought you'd have been the first person here."

"I was just catching Alex's Conference match," replied Ethan, skidding to a stop in front of the lab. "And he lost! I can't believe it. I never thought his feraligatr would lose a battle."

Lyra rolled her eyes. "It's hard to beat an electric type with a water type. He's good, but he's not that good."

"Alex is one of the best—

The door to the lab opened, and a somewhat short, brown-haired man in a lab coat stepped outside. Professor Elm pushed up his glasses and his eyebrows rose as he looked at all of expectant trainers. "What? What are all of you doing out here? Did I schedule a field trip today?"

"No, Professor," said Lyra patiently. Everyone knew the good Professor, famous and intelligent as he was, was absent-minded at times and tended to forget about things outside his research. "Today's the day everyone starts their pokemon journeys, remember?"

Professor Elm's eyes widened. "Oh! Um…I…forgot."

Ethan's mouth dropped open slightly. "Professor Elm! You forgot about one of the most important…well, one of the only events of the year in the town?"

"I had almost achieved a breakthrough in pokemon egg research last week," said the Professor protested. "I was up all night for the past three days running tests in the lab. It could change the way pokemon breeders raise pokemon and our understanding of the process as we know it! Come to think of it, I think I was in the middle of a test…"

The professor started mumbling, and Ethan waved an arm. "Professor? You're rambling again."

Elm looked up with a start. "Oh, sorry. Here, you kids come inside. I'll, uh, see what I have."

The young trainers followed the professor inside. Ethan looked around the large, dome shaped building in awe. They passed by several harried assistants who seemed to be working around a cluster of incubators on their right. One assistant was chasing a baby Pidgey which had somehow gotten loose. Bookcases lined the other side of the main lab area, each filled with reams of books about pokemon breeding and evolutionary theory. One of the assistants carried a small chest and quickly made his way over to Professor Elm, who accepted the box with a quick thanks and turned towards the trainers.

"There we are!" said the professor brightly. He opened the box and frowned. "Oh, um. There isn't as many pokemon as I thought there would be. Harris, where are the other starter pokemon?"

The assistant shrugged helplessly. "Sorry, professor. We forgot to fill out that part of the requisition form last week. These are all the ones we had on hand."

The professor's expression grew worried. "Oh, that's a problem."

Elm turned towards the rookie trainers, who had been attentively watching the scene the entire time. "Um, I definitely have enough pokemon for all of you. It just might take a bit longer than usual for some of you. Um…form a line?"

Ethan sighed as the trainers scrambled to form a recognizable line in front of the professor. Unlike most trainers who had started their journeys when they turned ten or eleven, he had started his journey at twelve because his mother thought he wasn't ready yet. If he had waited a year to start his journey, then he could afford to wait a few more minutes. So he made his way to the back of the line.

Lyra was just ahead of him. "Looks like we got the short end," his oldest friend said, shrugging. "It's okay, though. The professor said everyone would get pokemon!"

After a minute, the lab began to clear out and soon Lyra and Ethan were the only ones left. Lyra excitedly dug her hand in the box and pulled a pokeball out, frowning. "Oh, Professor Elm. This is the last one."

"Ah, yes," said the professor sheepishly. "Don't worry, Ethan. I'm having my assistant run into the back to pick up a pokemon from the lab. He'll be here any minute."

Ethan sighed. "It's okay, Professor. Hey Lyra, let's see what you got."

The girl brightened and released her pokemon. A flash of light appeared on the floor, and soon the light coalesced into the small form of a pokemon. The pokemon was small, as most people would expect a new, untrained pokemon to be, and was pale green, save for the dark, emerald green color of the big leaf attached to its head. The Chikorita looked up at Lyra expectantly with wide, red eyes.

"Hi there!" said Lyra, crouching down to more or less eye level with her pokemon. "We're going to be great friends." The grass type backed away slightly, but still kept its curious look. She slowly reached out with her hand and stroked the chikorita's back, who soon pushed back against her hand contentedly.

"I guess I have to think of name for you," said Lyra, looking up thoughtfully. "Hmmm…how about Emerald?"

The Chikorita squeaked and did a short little hop. Lyra giggled and stood back up again. "Emerald it is! We're going to be best friends."

Ethan watched the scene with a mingling sense of amusement and jealousy. He quickly banished the negative feeling away; he would have a pokemon soon. He secretly hoped it would be a Totodile, but he knew that the Professor wouldn't have any more conventional starter pokemon on hand.

"Thank you, Harris," said Professor Elm as he took a pokeball from his assistant. He handed it to Ethan, whose hands were eagerly stretched out. The professor placed the pokeball in Ethan's hands.

"Let's see what you got, Ethan," said Lyra, looking curiously at the pokeball.

Excitement raced through Ethan's mind and body as he held out the pokeball in front of him. His fingers pressed the release button, and a bright flash of light illuminated the room. Ethan stared through the light, unwilling to be hindered by the light to see his first pokemon.

The red energy that had shot out from the pokeball coalesced into a small yellow creature, which was in a sitting position on the ground. Ethan looked at the pokemon curiously. Its eyes were closed, and its head was held at an angle as if it were asleep.

"It's an Abra," said Elm proudly. "It's a result from the breeding program I have here."

Chikorita approached the Abra cautiously, reaching out with a hesitant vine. The vine prodded the abra in the side, and the vine was suddenly alight with glowing blue energy. Chikorita squeaked and quickly retracted its vine as it ducked behind Lyra's legs. Abra still hadn't moved.

"Here, Ethan and Lyra," said Elm as he handed the two rookies each a small silver square of plastic. He quickly began to explain the functions of the pokedex to them, though Ethan was barely listening. His mouth was slightly open in shock as he held the Pokedex in his hand. He had always dreamt of the day he would became a trainer and leave his mark on the world, but this was confirmation, if his pokemon weren't already. This was the mark of his first step as a trainer. This was the beginning of everything.

"The Pokedex contains your Trainer ID as well as an encyclopedia of all known Pokemon," continued Professor Elm. "It is an essential tool of any Pokemon trainer. It functions as your identification, so you'll need it when registering for competitions and tournaments."

Lyra tapped Ethan on the shoulder. "Ethan, are you even paying attention?" she scolded. "This is important information!"

"So is this," said Ethan, and he quickly aimed the pokedex at the Abra. A thin red light shot out of the top of the pokedex and fell onto the psi pokemon, where it then widened and fanned out.

"Abra, the psi pokemon," uttered the pokedex, as it quickly scanned Abra's sleeping form."Female. It sleeps for 18 hours a day. It uses a variety of extrasensory powers even while asleep. This abra knows teleport, confusion, and barrier. Its ability is Magic Guard, which prevents indirect damage from weather conditions, poison, burns, certain ghost type attacks, and other environmental effects."

"Cool!" said Ethan as he looked at his pokemon expectantly. Abra evolved into Alakazam, an immensely powerful psychic type. Although he knew that his Abra wouldn't start slinging psychic attacks everywhere at the moment, with training his Abra would be hard to beat. "Why does it know so many moves though? I thought most Abra could only use Teleport."

"As I said before, this Abra here is a part of our breeding program at the lab," said Elm proudly. "Baby pokemon are able to retain some knowledge of abilities from their parents. Otherwise, I doubt it would have been able to learn Barrier."

Ethan crouched down next to his Abra, who was still asleep. "Hey Abra, I don't want to wake you up from your nap, but I think it would be great if you had a nickname. Do you want a nickname?"

Abra didn't move. Ethan shrugged and started to think of some names. It wasn't easy, especially because he wasn't expecting to get an Abra this morning. "Hmmm…Aura? Because of that blue aura around…no, that won't work. Oracle? Psy? Zen? Espy?"

Ethan froze as a light blue energy suffused the air around the Abra. It eyes suddenly glowed blue through its thin eyelids and Ethan felt something touch his mind. It wasn't like he was reading words in his mind or hearing anyone's voice, but Ethan felt a general pulse of acknowledgment coming from the Abra. The young trainer stood up excitedly.

"She likes it!" said Ethan. "Wait, I think she just spoke to me in my head. Sort of."

"Abra are able to read minds and communicate using telepathy," said Lyra before the professor could respond. "Your Abra is barely grown, so I don't think she's able to talk to you yet, but she probably could in the future."

"It's great to see you all getting along with your pokemon," said Elm, looking at the two of them. Ethan and Lyra turned back to the professor, the initial excitement from getting pokemon fading away. "It's a bond you'll keep with you throughout your trainer career. The journey to becoming a strong trainer is a hard one, but one well worth traveling. You'll need that bond with your pokemon."

Ethan nodded, listening intently to Elm. The professor was a bit absent-minded at times and easily distracted, but there was a reason Professor Elm was a renowned scientist and a pioneer in the field of Pokemon breeding research.

"And you'll need these, too," said the Professor as he reached into his coat pockets and pulled out several small spheres. Ethan recognized them instantly.

"Pokeballs!" said Lyra, taking a couple from the Professor's outstretched hand while Ethan took the rest.

"Thank you Professor!" said Lyra.

Elm smiled. "The pleasure is mine, Lyra. I always love watching new trainers venture out into the world on their journeys. But never mind that now; I have research to do, and you have a world to explore! Go on! The world is waiting."

"Thank you, Professor!" said Ethan and Lyra. Lyra began to move toward the door with her Chikorita, but Ethan looked quizzically at Espy, who was still asleep on the floor. "Uh, Espy? I guess you could ride on my shoulders…?"

Blue energy surrounded the abra again. Then the pokemon promptly disappeared, popping out of existence. Ethan staggered as an unexpected weight landed on his shoulders. He quickly righted himself and patted Espy on the shoulder, her body warm to the touch. "This is so cool."

The pair exited the building. "This is awesome!" said Lyra, pumping her fist in the air. "We have our own pokemon. We're finally trainers!"

"Not yet," said Ethan, a smile creeping onto his face. He turned to face Lyra and her Chikorita. "I challenge you to a battle!"

Lyra met Ethan's grin with one of her own. "You're on. Emerald, let's go!"

The chikorita dashed in front of Lyra and readied itself for a battle. Ethan looked up at his abra expectantly. "Let's win this, Espy! First battle."

The abra teleported, leaving Ethan with a weird sucking sensation at the back of his head as Espy appeared on the ground in front of him. Abra's eyes glowed bright blue through its eyelids as Chikorita warily approached the psychic pokemon, having learned its lesson before.

"Emerald, use Tackle!" Lyra shouted, her voice carrying across the small space. Chikorita barked shortly before charging at Abra, its short, stubby legs carrying it slowly but steadily across the ground. Abra didn't move.

"Dodge it, Espy!" The Abra flitted out of existence just as Chikorita leapt at the psychic. The grass type met no resistance and crashed to the ground, winded. Abra appeared in front of Lyra this time and cocked its head in Chikorita's direction, the first movement Ethan had seen it make. Espy glowed bright blue just as an aura of the same color enveloped Emerald, who squealed as it was lifted into the air. Then she threw the Chikorita. The grass type landed and continued rolling across the ground until it hit the side of the professor's gym with a thud.

"No, Emerald!" The Chikorita dizzily stood on its feet for a few seconds before collapsing onto the ground. Apparently, being levitated into the air and thrown against a building had been too much for the small creature.

Abra teleported onto Ethan's shoulders again, and he clapped the psychic type on the back. "Espy, that was great!"

Lyra was patting her Chikorita on the back. "Emerald, are you okay?" The grass type shook itself for a second before righting itself again, barking affirmatively. Lyra laughed and hugged her grass type, who squealed in return.

"Do you have everything you need?" said Ethan to Lyra.

"I've got my camping gear, clothes, money, my phone, food, pokemon food, and some potions," said Lyra as he counted them off on her fingers. "I'm good to go."

"Then let's head—

"Wait!"

Ethan repressed the urge to groan as Professor Elm came running from the lab, skidding to a halt in front of the duo. He was panting harshly, and he held his knees as he struggled for breath. "…wait," said the renown Pokemon Professor of the Johto Region. "I have an errand for you two."

The Professor straightened and exhaled. "I just received an email from a friend who has recently made an important discovery. He lives not too far from Cherrygrove City; he actually lives on the route to Violet City so it shouldn't be too out of your way. I've already sent the address to you both. As I'm very busy here at the lab with my research, I can't spare the time to make the trip there. Could you two visit my friend and see what he's up to this time?"

Ethan and Lyra both looked at each other. "No problem, professor," said Lyra, smiling brightly. "You can count on us."

Ethan really didn't want to have to run the errand and run straight back home again, but he bit his tongue as the Professor sighed with relief. "Thank you, Lyra. I'm glad you two were here to help. Best of luck on your journey, Ethan, Lyra. A word of advice: the best results lie on the most difficult paths. Your journey is what you make of it."

Ethan nodded solemnly. He would definitely take those words to heart. "Got it, Professor."

The Professor looked at his watch. "And I've wasted too much time already! Goodbye, you two! Again, good luck!" And in a flash Elm was gone.

"All right, now let's go," said Ethan, looking off towards the woods that held Route 29, which eventually led to Cherrygrove City. The nearest city wasn't that far away, and they could make it in a couple of hours if they left now. Plus, it was the morning.

As Ethan and Lyra reached the edge of New Bark Town, Ethan noticed a flash of movement near the lab. He curiously craned his head past Lyra, who had continued walking, undaunted. In the alley next to the lab, there appeared to be a person with red hair standing in front of the window. Ethan rubbed his eyes and squinted to see the person, but there was no one there. Okay, I'm seeing things. Focus on the journey. World, here I come.

Ethan took a deep breath. His pokemon journey had begun.

…

"Pidgey, the Flying pokemon. Female. It rapidly flaps its wings in the grass, stirring up a dust cloud that drives insect prey out into the open. This pidgey knows peck, tackle, and sand-attack. Its ability is Keen Eye, which prevents loss of accuracy."

"Hang back, Ethan," said Lyra, grinning as she took out her pokeball. "Pidgey's mine."

Ethan shrugged. The bird pokemon didn't particularly strike him as interesting. He knew from watching League battles and the Conference that Pidgeot, the final evolved form of Pidgey, were powerful fighters and forces to be reckoned with. Their speed was nearly unparalleled and they were masters of the sky, but the pokemon didn't really speak out to him. There wasn't a gut reaction in him that said, "This pokemon belongs on my team. This pokemon is perfect for the team."

Emerald had stalked forward on the ground towards the tree which the Pidgey was currently roosting on. The bird type either hadn't noticed them, which wasn't likely, or it was ignoring them. Either way, it was a mistake it wouldn't be able to correct.

"Emerald, tackle the tree! Bring it down." The Chikorita squealed as it charged forward and rammed the tree trunk with its body, shaking the thin tree. The pidgey chirped and fluttered off the branch, zeroing in on the Chikorita which had disturbed its roost. The pidgey cried out once, circling in the air and building up momentum before diving towards Chikorita, which held its ground in the face of the oncoming bird pokemon.

"Chikorita, use Razor Leaf!" Lyra commanded. Chikorita quickly whipped its head around in a short circle and flung three sharp leaves from its main leaf towards the pidgey. The first leaf was wildly aimed and the pidgey easily dodged it. The second and third leaves, however, stayed true to their target and cut into the pidgey's feathers, eliciting a loud pained chirp from the pidgey as it struggled to stay afloat as some feathers began to fall from its form.

"Good enough for me!" Lyra shouted as she reared back and threw the pokeball. The sphere sailed through the air and smacked the pidgey directly on the head. The pokeball automatically shot a beam of red light at the pidgey and opened. The pidgey turned bright white and was quickly sucked into the pokeball, which clattered on the ground moments later. The pokeball shook and the indicator flashed red. Lyra and her chikorita silently watched the ball stir on the ground, and Ethan couldn't help but feel a certain sense of anticipation and, to his surprise, yearning. The pokeball shook. The indicator blinked red. It shook again.

Then it stopped.

Lyra waited a few more seconds before jumping into the air. "Yes!" Lyra cried triumphantly as she picked up the pokeball. "I caught my first pokemon!"

Chikorita was hopping with Lyra. Ethan watched the pair with amusement from his place by the tree. Abra had teleported off his shoulders when Lyra stopped to battle the pidgey and was quietly resting by the tree next to him. Ethan looked towards Abra, whose eyes were still closed. "Don't worry, Abra," said Ethan. "We're going to find some pokemon to join the team. We'll make some good friends."

A general pulse of agreement ran through his head, and Ethan grinned again. He couldn't wait until his Abra could talk to him with telepathy. Though, according to Professor Elm, it wouldn't happen until his Abra was sufficiently powerful.

Light blue aura surrounded his cap, and the front end tipped downward of its own volition, causing Ethan to jump up and quickly grab at his cap, twisting it until it was back to its original position. He looked down at Espy, who was still silent and unmoving. He grinned and returned his attention to Lyra.

By this time, Lyra had likely already named the Pidgey and befriended it, evidenced by the fact that the Pidgey was now roosting on Lyra's shoulder as she walked towards Ethan and Espy, her Chikorita trailing next to her. "I named her Phoenix," she said proudly, stroking the bird's crest, which contained a few lines of red within the plumage.

"Nice," said Ethan. "Just wait until I catch my pokemon."

"If you ever catch one," said Lyra, sticking her tongue at him. "You're so picky."

Ethan shook his head and pushed off the tree. Abra seemed to notice him somehow and quickly teleported onto his shoulders. Ethan almost staggered again, but he was rapidly getting used to the presence of Espy near his head and didn't break stride as the pair continued down the route to Cherrygrove.

A few minutes later, it was Ethan's turn to shine. It wasn't a pokemon, though, that caught his attention. At least, that wasn't the only thing that caught his attention.

It was also the trainer that stood confidently behind his Rattata, looking at Ethan with friendly but determined eyes. Ethan looked up at Espy, who looked for all the world as if she was still asleep. "Espy? Looks like a battle."

Espy teleported onto the field. The psychic made no attempt at hiding its awareness this time and was lightly suffused with blue light as it faced the rattata, which growled at the abra.

"Rattata, use Tackle!" said the trainer, and his pokemon complied. The purple rat rushed at abra, much faster than Chikorita had been able to manage.

Ethan thought it might be time to test another one of Espy's abilities. "Espy, use Barrier!"

The aura around Espy intensified. A light blue wall of light appeared three feet in front of Espy, who calmly watched as Rattata leapt at her, only to ram its snout into the psychic barrier that Espy had erected.

"Use Confusion," said Ethan. Espy's eyes glowed bright blue as Rattata was suddenly lifted into the air, squealing as it lost control of its body. The rat pokemon was flung through the air and into an adjacent tree, which it slammed into with a thud. The rattata slid to the ground and collapsed.

"Great job, Espy!" Ethan shouted as he picked up the abra. "You're the best."

The trainer looked crestfallen but walked over to Ethan after he had returned his pokemon. "Here you go."

Ethan accepted the trainer's winnings and slid the money into his wallet. After the trainer had left, he glanced back at Lyra, who had been watching the battle from the side with her pokemon still out. "I may not have gotten another Pokemon, but I did just win another battle," he teased.

"We'll see about that when we get to the next trainer," Lyra reassured him, smirking. "I've got to let you win sometimes."

Ethan grinned.

It was midday when they reached Cherrygrove City. "I don't know about you or Espy, Ethan, but Emerald could use a quick rest," commented Lyra as she looked down at the chikorita. The grass type was worn and scuffed, the result of having battled a few battles with other starter pokemon and one particularly stubborn hoothoot. Ethan looked up at Espy. The abra had mostly slept between battles, and when she did emerge from her slumber she normally swept the competition with her burgeoning psychic powers. Most young pokemon didn't have the ability to effectively fight psychic pokemon, and Ethan almost felt guilty for having a pokemon with a big advantage if his abra wasn't so cool.

"You can go to the Pokemon Center if you want," said Ethan, putting his hands into his pockets. "I'm going to the store to grab a few more supplies."

Lyra rolled her eyes. "You didn't pack everything, did you?"

"I packed enough," Ethan responded defensively. "I just need a couple of potions and a maybe a few more things."

"Right," Lyra laughed as she turned to head to the Pokemon Center. Ethan shook his head and made his way towards the Poke Mart, which was the second largest building in town save for the Pokemon Center. Most stores in cities today carried supplies for traveling trainers, but the Poke Mart was a store specifically catered towards providing gear and supplies for Pokemon trainers. They had the best deals, and generally the best equipment. They were also relatively low priced, perfect for a trainer on the go.

Ethan paid the cashier as he quickly stuffed the potions into his backpack. Alongside the basic potions, he also had bought a few antidotes and paralyze heals, knowing that bug type pokemon were common in this area and often used their natural toxins to help them in battle. It wouldn't pay to not be prepared for them.

Ethan sat down on a bench in front of the Pokemon Center. Espy was sitting next to him and was breathing slowly, clearly asleep. Although he knew that Abra needed several hours of sleep per day and were sedentary to an extreme degree, he still couldn't suppress a feeling of exasperation at the abra. It's like the only time she does anything is during a battle.

His cap jerked down again and covered his eyes, and Ethan laughed as he yanked the cap back up to its previous position. He looked at Espy, who looked asleep but now had a faint aura of blue outlining her body. Ethan shook his head and leaned back in the bench, looking out at the vast blue sky. It was oddly peaceful, and he exhaled deeply. I'm a pokemon trainer. An actual pokemon trainer…

Ethan was half asleep when Lyra exited the Pokemon Center. She looked down at him and lightly kicked his legs, which was enough to jolt the young trainer awake and have him jump to his feet. "Ethan," said Lyra, giggling. "I wasn't in there that long."

"Yeah right," said Ethan as he stretched his limbs. Espy teleported onto his shoulders again, and this time he barely noticed as he shrugged his backpack on. "Come on, let's go. I want to make it to Violet City by tonight."

"Remember that we need to stop by Professor Elm's friend's house before we get there," Lyra warned him.

Ethan waved her away. "I know, I know. Let's get moving."

They walked for a mile or two before running into the first trainer. He was short and wore a small blue cap, which was currently turned around on his head so that the bill faced out backwards. As soon as he had seen them, the young boy had quickly ran over to the duo and stopped directly in their path.

"I challenge you to a battle," announced the boy, huffing. "One on one."

Ethan glanced at Lyra, who looked back at him. "I'll take this one," said Ethan, stepping forward. The boy cried out and immediately released a mean-looking raticate that was nearly half the boy's height. Ethan blinked in surprise; he wasn't expecting to face an evolved pokemon before even his first gym battle. Shouldn't be too tough, he reasoned. It would certainly take a great deal more effort to bring down a raticate compared to its pre evolved form.

Espy teleported onto the short grass. Her eyes flared bright blue as she slightly turned her head towards the raticate, the first movement she had made the entire day.

"Raticate, use tackle!" The big rate growled and lunged forward, easily crossing the distance between the two pokemon in one leap. "Dodge it, Espy," said Ethan, and the abra complied, blinking out of existence in a flash of bright light. The raticate skidded onto the ground where Espy had just been and shook its head to clear its blinded eyes. Ethan rubbed his own eyes and when he finally opened them again, the raticate was already lifted into the air, though at a lower height than Espy typically levitated her opponents to. It was probably the heaviest thing she had lifted with Confusion.

The raticate slammed into the ground. The big rat growled as it got to its feet and glared at Espy, who had reappeared in front of the other trainer on the opposite side of the field.

The young trainer looked down at Espy in annoyance. "Use pursuit and quick attack, raticate! Don't let the abra escape this time!"

Ethan's eyes widened at the sound of the combo. Pursuit and quick attack? Pursuit was a dark type move that cloaked its user in a light form of the dark energy that most psychics couldn't detect, essentially removing the user from a psychic's "vision." A pokemon activating a dark move would appear to have disappeared in the eyes of a psychic. Quick attack tapped into the hidden latent energy in a pokemon that allowed the pokemon to move exponentially faster than it normally would. The two together meant that Espy wouldn't be able to sense her opponent and react in time.

So Ethan did the only thing he could do. "Espy, use Barrier!"

The raticate, slightly shrouded in dark energy, blurred forward and leapt at the abra. A sphere of light surrounded Espy as she poured energy into the barrier. Raticate slammed into the barrier at high speed and bounced off, though Ethan could see cracks in the wall of energy where the raticate had impacted. The rat pokemon stumbled back, dazed and confused, and its dark energy wore off. Ethan saw his opening. "Espy, get him with Confusion!"

The barrier dissipated and abra lifted one arm towards Raticate, which now squealed as it was lifted into the air once again. This time, though, the rat pokemon wasn't thrown but was instead continuously assaulted with psychic energy as Espy poured her power into the attack. Raticate twisted and turned in mid-air as its body was surrounded with a blue aura, but the big rat finally succumbed to the psychic assault and went limp. Espy closed her eyes and released raticate, which fainted upon hitting the ground.

"Yes!" Ethan pumped the air with his fists. Lyra laughed and clapped, her Chikorita barking as well. The trainer's shoulders were slumped as he handed Ethan his winnings and left the two on the road. Ethan picked up Abra and held her in front of him. "Espy, you were awesome! I knew you could do it."

A general hum of amusement echoed in his mind as a blue light surrounded the abra again before she teleported onto his shoulders. Espy's head rested against the back of Ethan's head, and the boy knew Espy had fallen asleep again. It was fine, though. She had earned a good rest.

Ethan let Lyra battle the next few battles on their way to Violet City. Her chikorita wasn't very fast and took a lot of hits, but it was very capable of dishing out that damage right back at her opponents. On one occasion Emerald had sprayed poison powder all over the field and simply let the spores fight the battle for her as the opposing pokemon collapsed after a short while. Phoenix was fast and aggressive, though she tended to fly in the face of her opponent's attacks and take the hit while attacking her opponent. Lyra was trying to teach the small bird pokemon to learn to be move evasive (yes, you are fast and fierce, but you still are just a little bird) but Ethan doubted Phoenix would learn her lesson until she took a real beating.

They reached Professor Elm's friend's house in a couple of hours. The house was small and nondescript, sitting just off the path to Violet City. Ethan looked around the neatly trimmed lawn; there were only a few rattata and caterpie on the edges of the house and no trainers. Most of them didn't stray off the path to the city and tended to cluster on the route to battle other trainers. The house was definitely off the beaten path.

Lyra knocked on the door. Seconds later, the door opened and revealed a man with short gray hair wearing a wrinkled suit. His eyes twinkled as he looked down at the two young trainers and he smiled, though it was mostly hidden behind his great mustache which obscured the bottom third of his face.

"Ho!" boomed the man, adjusting the brim of his hat. "I appear to have two young trainers on my porch. I can't say that I get visitors often, so you must be the two young rookies that John sent over here to my humble abode!"

"John?" said Ethan after a moment, slightly overwhelmed by the man.

"John? Ah, my apologies. That would be Professor Elm to you kids. And I completely forgot to introduce myself, such dreadful manners. My actual name is Orin Utaru, but it's such a mouthful for other people to say, so you can just call me Mr. Pokemon! Everyone does."

"Uh, hi Mr. Pokemon," said Ethan after a moment. "I'm Ethan and that's Lyra."

"Glad to meet you both," said the old man, shaking both of their hands. "Let's head inside, now. I wouldn't want to keep the both of you waiting on my porch!"

Inside, Ethan and Lyra sat on the couch while Mr. Pokemon searched his cabinet in the back. "Sorry to keep you kids waiting; just give me a second!"

Ethan glanced around the house. The house was as simple and plain as it was on the outside. There were only a few choice pieces of furniture in what had to be the living room and the only thing on his wall was a painting of a pair of pikachu playing around in a grassy field, with other pokemon in the background. Ethan heard something behind him and turned around to see a different man, who was dressed in a lab coat and wore a plain white shirt with beige pants. "I thought I heard a different set of voices," said the man, looking at Ethan and Lyra. "Orin does seem to talk to himself more as of late, but this didn't sound like his usual rant. You two must be Ethan and Lyra."

Ethan looked a bit confused as to how the old man knew their names, but Lyra stood straight up, causing Ethan to look up and stand as well. "It's nice to meet you, Professor Oak!" said Lyra, stuttering slightly.

That got Ethan's attention as his head whipped towards the old man. The most famous Pokemon researcher in the world and the star of Professor Oak's Pokemon Talk stepped forward and shook their hands, though Ethan's hand remained in the air after the professor had stepped back. "You're…Professor Oak?"

"That's right," said the Professor, smiling. "I'm Professor Oak. Jonathan has told me quite a bit about you two. I have to say, Ethan, becoming a Pokemon Champion will not be easy. But it's a worthy goal for a fine young man such as yourself and I have no doubt that if you work hard and fight with your best, you will achieve it someday."

"…thank you," said Ethan, still slightly gaping at the Professor.

"I admit, it's not the first time I've heard of this," mused the Professor, reminiscing in some memory likely older than the two of them. "But it's how legends are born. Never mind that now; I'm just an old man losing myself in my memories. Professor Elm gave the two of you the Pokedex, correct?"

Ethan and Lyra nodded. "Good, you'll need it on your journey. When I created the Pokedex years ago, there wasn't a single entry in it. It was due to the efforts of young trainers such as yourself that it has become the single most powerful resource you can have. Any pokemon you meet, you can read and learn about from the Pokedex. Of course, I don't believe we've seen every pokemon just yet. There are still many mysteries waiting out there for you all to discover, and it's up to the two of you to find them and unlock their secrets."

"I've got it!" Mr. Pokemon finally emerged from the back and noticed the scene. "Oh, Samuel, my friend, leaving so soon?"

"I've stayed too long already, Orin," said Professor Oak, chuckling and opening the door. "I have to get to Goldenrod for my usual radio show. Ethan, Lyra, good luck on your journeys."

The authority of Pokemon research waved them goodbye and slipped outside. Mr. Pokemon captured their attention now as he held a bundle of cloth in his hands.

"This is what I want Professor Elm to examine," said Mr. Pokemon, and took off the top layer of cloth. A small spherical object sat in his palm. Light blue and red squares dotted its surface, though the majority of the object was covered in a milky white. It seemed almost alive in his hands, and it took Ethan a few moments to realize what he was looking at.

"A pokemon egg?" said Ethan, confused.

"Not just any pokemon egg," said Mr. Pokemon, grinning. "I have no idea what's in this egg, and I have seen quite a few on my travels. A friend of mine in Ecruteak gave it to me. I bet you can't find this kind of egg in Johto. I thought Professor Elm might be able to tell me what this is. He's the best when it comes to the research of Pokemon evolution, better than even Professor Oak. I'm sorry to trouble you both, having the two of you going back and forth. But please make sure to hand this egg to Professor Elm!"

"Will do, Mr. Pokemon!" said Lyra, taking the egg and cloth from the eccentric man. After fiddling with the egg for a few moments, the egg was safely secured in her backpack, peeking out from behind the zipper. "We're going to head back now."

"Happy traveling!" said Mr. Pokemon as the door closed behind them. Lyra adjusted the backpack on her shoulders before looking at Ethan. "Let's go."

At that moment Ethan's phone rang and he curiously held the device up. "It's from Professor Elm," said Ethan, and he answered the call. "Hello?"

"H-hello?" said Professor Elm, stumbling over his words in the call. "Ethan? It's a disaster! What should I do? It…oh, no…please get back here now!"

"Professor?" said Ethan, a bit of worry creeping into his voice. "What happened?"

"Someone has stolen a pokemon from the lab!" Elm cried. "Come back immediately!"

The call ended.

Ethan frowned at the phone in his hand for a second before he shoved the device into his pocket. "What's going on?" said Lyra, having picked up on the urgency.

Ethan was already walking back. "Someone just stole a pokemon from the lab. We've got to head back now."

Lyra frowned and nodded. "Let's."

…

"I don't like this," said Ethan, looking down at his phone again. "He's not even answering his phone."

"He's probably talking with the police trying to track down whoever stole the pokemon," said Lyra. "Don't bother him. We'll find out what happened when we get there."

Ethan glanced up at the sky. The sky was mostly blue, but there were a few tinges of orange on the horizon as the sun began to set. It looked like they wouldn't be able to make it to Violet City tonight. He was feeling a bit frustrated, but he knew it couldn't be helped.

"Hey, you!"

Ethan looked up at the sound. A person dressed in a black jacket and dark pants stood directly in the center of the road back to New Bark Town. He had red hair and a haughty countenance. His dark eyes were fierce and his lips were curled in a smirk. Ethan instinctively disliked him.

Lyra stepped forward. "Who are you?" she asked, though a note of annoyance had entered her voice. It appeared she didn't really like the red haired boy either. Chikorita had adopted an attack stance, having picked up on the tension and ready to react to anything if necessary.

The boy ignored her and focused on Ethan. "You got a Pokemon at the lab."

It wasn't a question. Ethan frowned. "So what if I did?"

The boy grinned darkly and snorted. "What a waste. A wimp like you."

Emerald growled now. The boy barely glanced down at the grass type as he stared at Ethan, who stepped forward now. Ethan could actually feel Espy's psychic energy as it sprang to life, and a note of anger echoed across his mind.

"That thing's not even a real starter," scoffed the boy, reaching into his pocket to pull out a pokeball. "I, on the other hand, actually have a good pokemon."

A flash of white illuminated the boy's figure as he released his pokemon. The white energy soon coalesced into the form of a squat, blue pokemon. The pokemon cried out as it appeared on the ground, and seemed to smile at them with its large mouth and rows of sharp teeth, completely at odds with its scowling trainer who stood behind the totodile.

Ethan looked at the pokemon he had hoped would be his starter, his mind making the connection instantly. "You're the one who stole the pokemon from Professor Elm's lab."

The boy flicked a lock of red hair from his hair. "You sound a bit mad. Something wrong?"

"Yeah," said Ethan, glaring at the boy. "You're going to give that pokemon back."

The boy grinned. "You going to make me?"

Espy teleported onto the ground, her body outlined in blue. Her eyes were shining blue, brighter than they had ever been before. She was going to give it everything she had. Ethan wholeheartedly agreed.

"Espy, use Confusion!" Ethan shouted. The abra practically glowed as she raised her arm towards the Totodile, which was still grinning at them.

"Totodile, focus!" The boy snapped. "It's a psychic type. Use Bite!"

The water type snapped up as it realized it was in a battle. The totodile quickly ran at abra and opened its jaws wide, which glistened with the dark type energy that the Raticate had used earlier as well. Ethan gritted his teeth; the trainer wasn't stupid. He knew exactly what he was up against.

Espy lowered her arm, confused now that her target had "disappeared." The abra instinctively teleported before the totodile reached her position, appearing just to the water type's right side. She doesn't know he's there!

"Espy, use barrier!" Ethan shouted just as the totodile lunged at the abra. A wall of light appeared between the two pokemon and totodile reared back and bit the shield with its large jaws. The totodile hung there in mid-air, biting down on the barrier with what had to be bone-crushing force, even for a barely grown pokemon. Totodile and its kind were known for their enormous bite strength. Even the smallest Totodile could grind down anything once it was between their teeth.

And the barrier was cracking. Ethan ran a gauntlet of possibilities through his mind. As he stood there, watching the two pokemon contest, an idea sprang into his head. "Espy, the totodile is where your barrier is breaking! Use confusion on that spot!"

Espy glowed as she turned her head towards the totodile, which was still gnawing on the barrier. "Hop off, stupid!" said the angry trainer, and Totodile complied, hopping off just as a wave of light blue energy washed over the space he had occupied moments ago. "Use water gun!"

"Teleport!" Espy flickered out of existence as the totodile disengaged its bite attack and launched a jet of water towards the psychic type, crashing through its weakened barrier and narrowly missing the abra. Espy appeared behind totodile, who was completely unaware of the psi pokemon's position now.

"He's not using Bite! Confusion!"

Espy raised her arm and Totodile was lifted into air, struggling as Espy began to pour psychic energy into its body. "Don't panic!" demanded the trainer, who glared at his pokemon. "Just focus and use water gun on that abra!"

Totodile squirmed and managed to turn towards abra. The water type opened its jaws wide and launched another water gun at abra, who teleported away. Totodile landed and immediately fired another water gun where abra had teleported to. Espy brought up another barrier and held it there as Totodile continuously fired a stream of water from its gaping mouth. Espy's eyes were shining blue as the psychic type poured energy into the barrier, which was barely holding against the stream of water washing against it.

"Hang in there, Espy!" said Ethan, though he was worried for his friend. He didn't know how strong Totodile was, and he knew that her barrier couldn't hold forever. But Espy held strong in the face of totodile's assault as the water type continued to pound her psychic barrier with its attack. It was a battle of attrition, and Ethan didn't know who would win.

"Stop!" ordered the trainer, and totodile complied, instantly halting its attack. Espy wearily drew down her barrier as the totodile grinned and hopped around. Ethan looked confusedly and angrily at the trainer, who was twirling a pokeball in his hand. "I've seen enough. That was a waste of time."

"Finish the battle!" said Ethan, though he worriedly glanced at his friend, who was sitting silently on the ground. "This isn't over yet."

"Yeah it is," said the red head, returning his Totodile in mid-hop. "We're done here."

"That's what you think," said Lyra angrily, the first words she had said in minutes. Emerald growled as it stepped towards the trainer, who didn't seem fazed at all. "You're not going anywhere, except back to the lab where you're going to return that pokemon."

"Do you know who I am?" said the trainer, eyes flashing and completely ignoring Lyra's threat. Ethan and Lyra blinked. This was not what they had expected him to say at all.

He seemed to take their momentary silence as an answer. "I'm going to be the world's strongest Pokemon trainer. No one's going to stand in my way, especially not you two."

Then he turned and sprinted into the adjacent forest. Ethan and Lyra stood there, stunned, before Lyra snapped out of it. "Chikorita, follow him!"

The grass type barked as she leapt into the forest. Ethan held Lyra's shoulder before she ran into the brush herself. "Ethan, what are you doing? We have to stop him!"

Ethan shook his head. "You're not going to be able to run through those woods as fast as Chikorita. You could get lost or hurt in there, and I don't care if that happens to that trainer. Chikorita will find him and stop him."

Lyra bit back her response and sighed, explosively. "Fine."

Ethan picked up Espy now, who looked fully asleep now. "Guess I won't be asking Espy to see if she can sense him," the young trainer said as he placed the psychic in her usual position on his shoulders. "Looks like we're waiting."

Minutes later, Emerald returned, her leaf limp and her head down as she walked back to Lyra, who picked up the grass type immediately. "Oh, it's fine, Emerald. We'll find him eventually."

Ethan stared at the forest in which the red head had disappeared, as if he could see the boy scoffing and smirking at him through the cover of the woods. He clenched his fists. "Yeah. We will."

…

"You found the culprit?" Professor Elm exclaimed, running his hands through his short brown hair. "And he escaped?"

"He ran off before we could stop him," said Ethan sheepishly.

"And Chikorita couldn't find him either," said Lyra. "Sorry, Professor."

"No, it's fine. I'm just glad you two kids weren't hurt." The Professor sat down in his chair, sighing. Ethan had winced at the damages around the lab when they had arrived. The side window was broken, where the angry trainer had likely broken in through, some of the computers were smashed, a few pieces of furniture had been beaten or knocked over, and, obviously, one of the lab's pokemon was missing.

Ethan's hands had clenched into fists. There was no way that he was going to let that jerk get away with this. Not if he had anything to say about it.

"We had just gotten a new batch of starter pokemon from the center when it happened," said Professor Elm glumly. "I knew I shouldn't have closed down early for the evening."

"Things happen, Professor Elm," said Lyra. "You just got to keep moving on. We'll find him and bring that totodile back."

Elm shook his head. "No, it's not your job to find that young man. You let the authorities handle it; they'll keep an eye out for him. With your description, it shouldn't be too difficult for them to get word out. It's a shame we didn't get his name with it, too."

Ethan nodded, but he knew that it wasn't over. Not yet. He would go ahead and find that trainer for the police. He would get to finish that battle, and he would win.

"Don't worry, Professor, I know something that will cheer you up," said Lyra as she reached into her backpack and pulled out the pokemon egg. True to her word, Elm's eyes lit up as soon as she had taken the cloth off. The Professor leapt off his seat and quickly ran his hands over the egg.

"An egg? So this is what Orin wanted to show me!" Professor Elm quickly took the egg from Lyra and pored over the object, clearly taking mental measurements and absorbing the details. "Ah yes. I think I know what egg this is. It's quite rare, especially in Johto."

The Professor seemed to stop, as if he had thought better of what he had been about to say. He looked at Lyra, and then back at the egg. Back at Lyra. Then slowly towards the egg.

"Actually, I have a different idea in mind for this," said Professor Elm as he turned towards Lyra. "Pokemon eggs are a fascinating area of my research. Over the course of our study, we've learned that the eggs grow and mature through proximity to other pokemon and a natural environment. Like everything else, they don't change unless there is change around them."

Professor Elm handed the egg back to Lyra, who took it with wide eyes. "One of the more exciting experiences as a trainer is the chance to raise a baby pokemon from the moment it hatches. It's a bonding experience that will never leave you. I believe that both you and the egg will grow in time during your travels. I hope you'll accept it."

"Uh, thank you, Professor Elm," Lyra blurted out, excited as she gazed at the egg.

"Do you want to know what's in the egg?" asked the Professor.

Lyra looked at the egg. "No, thanks," she said, smiling slightly. "I'd rather be surprised. It's part of the experience too, isn't it?"

Professor Elm smiled back. "It definitely is." Now he turned towards both Ethan and Lyra, his face turning serious. "I appreciate the help, but the two of you can be rest assured that I will handle things back at the lab from now on. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have told you to come back for this. You're on your pokemon journey. It's your path and I shouldn't have interrupted it. You could stay here for another night and head out in the morning. I won't hold the two of you back any longer."

"It wasn't a problem for us, Professor," said Ethan. Abra hummed in agreement in his mind. "We don't mind helping."

"Really, Professor," said Lyra.

Professor Elm sighed. "I knew the two of you would say that. But, trust me, I won't do it again. Go home and get some rest. It's getting late."

Ethan and Lyra said their goodbyes and returned to their respective houses in the morning. Tomorrow, their journey would begin in earnest.

And nothing would stand in their way again.

…

The bug catcher stood at one end of the field. Ethan stood at the other.

"Go Beedrill!" The pokeball whistled through the air and snapped open, releasing a dangerous looking pokemon with sharp spikes at the end of its arms that buzzed around the bug catcher as it waited for its opponent to come forth.

Espy teleported off Ethan's shoulders, appearing roughly twenty feet away from the beedrill. Ethan's eyes had narrowed as soon as the beedrill had appeared. "Stay away from those stingers, Espy," warned Ethan. "If you let that beedrill too close, you'll be finished."

Abra said nothing but simply raised her barrier. While Ethan and Lyra had made their way back to route 31 this morning, Ethan had had Espy practice using her barrier, pushing her to hold it longer and stronger every time. So it was with practiced ease that Espy held her barrier in place now, all but immune to any attack beedrill could throw her way.

The bug catcher had a confused expression on his face, not having expected a trainer with a psychic type, but he quickly regained his scowl from before as he pointed at Espy. "Beedrill, use poison sting! Then horn attack."

Beedrill buzzed angrily in response as it flew straight towards Espy, firing several poisoned stingers towards the psychic. The projectiles simply bounced off the barrier, which was when Espy retaliated. Light blue energy surrounded her body again, and the beedrill froze five feet away from striking her barrier with its deadly stinger. Espy held the beedrill in place while the bug struggled to break free, but it was no use. Espy had a lock on the beedrill and there was no escape. After several seconds, the beedrill collapsed to the ground.

"Good job Espy," Ethan called out. Espy dissipated her barrier and quickly teleported back onto Ethan's shoulders. The bug catcher returned his beedrill and, with a sidelong angry look at Ethan, ran away.

"Hey!" Ethan shouted after the fleeing trainer.

"There's no point in it, Ethan," said Lyra, laughing from where she stood. Emerald followed closely behind her as she made her way towards her friend. "Some people are just sore losers."

"Yeah, I know," said Ethan, still annoyed but quickly working over it. "But it's like the third time's it's happened on this route. Why can't people just take a loss?"

"Because that's not the way the world works," replied Lyra, walking past him now. "Come on, Ethan. Violet City is just up ahead."

Ethan grinned. Now that was something that could take his mind off the cowardly bug catcher.

Violet City. The fifth largest city in the Johto region, home to the famous Sprout Tower and, more importantly, the flying type gym, headed by Gym Leader Falkner. Ethan looked around the city in amazement. He hadn't been in Violet City since he was little. The tiled roofs and flowing architecture of the city was a relic of the past, back from before the Great War that had consumed the Johto region. It reminded Ethan of the history of Violet City, though that feeling quickly disappeared as he remembered that there was a gym in the city.

"Hey, where are you going?" said Lyra as Ethan began to walk away.

"To battle the gym leader of course," said Ethan confidently. "That's what we're here for."

"Nuh-uh," said Lyra, grabbing him by his shoulder and yanking him back. Espy was jostled but remained asleep, or something close to it. "We're going to the Sprout Tower first. Professor Elm said it was definitely something we should see while we're in Violet City."

Ethan struggled against Lyra's grip. "Yeah. Right after we battle the gym leader."

"Professor Elm also said that inside the Sprout Tower the sages there test the abilities of young pokemon trainers and their bond with their pokemon."

Ethan stopped. He did want to battle Falkner, but it couldn't hurt to train a bit more before taking on a gym leader. The young trainer sighed. "Fine. We'll go to the Sprout Tower."

Lyra smiled. "That's the spirit. Follow me. It's this way."

After a few turns, they arrived at the Sprout Tower. Ethan gazed up and up at the tall, wooden tower. If anything was a relic of the past, the Sprout Tower was the epitome. The tower stood several stories high, taller than every other building in the city. Something about the old building seemed alive to Ethan, as if the tower was almost moving. Ethan blinked; the tower actually was moving. He could see the edges of the building slowly but surely moving and obscuring the sky behind the tower.

"Uh, should the tower really be swaying like that?" said Ethan nervously. "It doesn't seem safe."

"Oh, calm down," said Lyra, clearly admiring the building. "The Sprout Tower is a pagoda. It's meant to sway with the wind and vibrate a little. Not only does it protect the building from environmental disasters like earthquakes, it also speaks to the philosophy of the sages. How everything is alive, how the building is tune with nature. It's really—hey!"

Ethan had wandered towards the side of the building and was looking intently towards the space between the edge of the woods and the tower. Lyra frowned and walked over to Ethan. "What are you doing?"

"I thought I saw something," said Ethan, concentrating on something. His eyes had narrowed, and he felt a pulse of curiosity from Espy when he neared the tower. Something was definitely there, hidden in the shadows.

His eyes scanned the alley. The wind had died down, but the short grass was still rustling as if something was passing through it. No other shadows anywhere, but…

A wisp of smoke was curled around the edge of the tower, seemingly out of place in the green and peaceful setting. Ethan frowned, and that's when Espy teleported in front of Ethan, eyes glowing and ready for battle. "Espy? You see something?"

The smoke seemed to stop moving. Then it writhed and expanded, quickly taking up more than a foot of space as the smoke seemed to form into a rough ball shaped object, where the smoke was the darkest. Trails of purple mist lingered around the edges of the more solid mass in the center. Then two blood red circles appeared on the mass, and the sphere was partially "opened" towards the bottom, like a mouth. It took Ethan a second to figure out what he was looking at, and he aimed his Pokedex at the ghost type pokemon before him.

Dexter took a second to register the reading. "Gastly. It wraps its opponent in its gas-like body, slowly weakening its prey by poisoning it through the skin. This gastly knows the moves hypnosis, lick, spite, astonish, and curse. Its ability is Levitate, which allows the pokemon to float off the ground and become immune to ground-based attacks."

"Uh, Ethan, you want that thing?" asked Lyra worriedly as Ethan withdrew a pokeball from his pocket. "Gastly are poisonous and notoriously hard to control; all ghost types are. Plus, Espy's a psychic type. They usually don't place nice with psychics."

"I know," Ethan muttered, looking intently at the gastly which curiously floated towards the two of them now. "I just have a feeling."

The gastly seemed to notice Espy now, and a second passed before the gastly grinned with its fanged mouth and stuck its long tongue out at the psychic type. Ethan raised an eyebrow. That was not the reaction he had been expecting.

A pulse of worry echoed in his mind, and Ethan realized it wasn't his. He looked down at Espy, who was still lightly shrouded in blue. Ethan grimaced. Psychic types were weak to ghost types. The otherworldly energy that was ghost energy was absolutely foreign to the psychics, which immersed themselves in the trappings of this reality. Ghost energy easily phased through psychic energy and could ravage the psychic's mind, disorienting it and causing the psychic to go catatonic. An instinctive fear of ghost types was built into every psychic pokemon, an evolutionary trait that allowed them to detect when a ghost was near and, more often that not, evade and flee.

Ethan's jaw tightened as he looked at the gastly, which was busy laughing in an eerie and unsettling way. The ghost type's eyes and mouth rotated around its face and its tongue was also stuck out, pointing towards Espy, who had already drawn up a barrier. Not that the barrier would do anything against a ghost type. Ghost energy would be able to pass through the psychic shield with no trouble and reach Espy. No, Espy couldn't let Gastly within five feet of her. Not only was she vulnerable to the ghost type energy, but gastly was also made up of toxic poisonous gases that would have even a grimer shirking away.

It would be a hard fight. But Ethan didn't start his journey to lose.

"Espy, use Confusion! Teleport away if gastly gets even close to you." Espy's eyes flashed and a pulse of psychic energy fanned out towards Gastly, which instantly noticed the attack and levitated above the psychic wave. It stuck its tongue out again, and this time it flew hard and fast towards Espy, clearly intending to grasp her with its body.

Espy teleported before the gastly had even made it halfway across the field, causing the ghost type to pause as it searched for its prey. The ghost pokemon suddenly froze up, surrounded in a blue aura which held its corporeal form in an iron grip. Gastly shifted around, expelling poisonous gas and rasping as it struggled to free itself. Its eyes rotated 180 degrees around its body and found Espy, who had teleported behind a small bush near the tower. It seemed to grin.

Then Gastly exploded in a puff of gas and ghostly energy. Ethan frowned as the remnants of the gas quickly moved towards Espy and reformed as they hurled towards her, coalescing back into the cackling form of the gastly as it lunged towards the psychic. Espy teleported again, and Gastly whirled around and dodged an expertly aimed confusion at its back. It wouldn't fall for the trick again.

Ethan and Espy warily watched the ghost type as it pulled in on itself and shrunk to half of its size, condensing its gases into a dark purple color. Seconds later, gastly exploded outward and propelled itself and its gases towards Espy faster than Ethan could react. Luckily, Espy had recognized the danger of Astonish and teleported backwards, slipping just out of Gastly's grasp. As soon as Espy had reappeared, the psychic type raised both arms and Gastly, overextended, was trapped in its psychic prison again. This time, Gastly didn't destroy its corporeal form and instead struggled to free itself, locked into this reality and trapped with confusion. Ethan internally breathed a sigh of relief. He was lucky that that particular trick was probably a draining effort and couldn't be done more than once. He twirled the pokeball once in his hand before he threw the sphere at Gastly, whose eyes comically widened before the pokeball entered its center mass and sucked in its body and its gases. The pokeball, now slightly purple, clattered onto the ground and twisted back and forth as gastly tried to break free of its new prison. The pokeball pulsed red and finally stopped rolling after a few more tense seconds. Ethan stumbled over to the pokeball, where he picked it up and held it in trembling hands.

"Yeah!" Ethan shouted as he held the pokeball triumphantly in the air. "I caught my first pokemon!

Ethan knelt down to the abra's level. "You did great, Espy. You held your own against a ghost type."

Amusement and relief flooded through him. Espy teleported onto his shoulders and Ethan stood up, looking back at Lyra. "How's that for you, Lyra?"

"Kind of looked like Espy did all the work," said the girl, shrugging as she and Emerald walked over to them. "But good job anyways. Still can't believe you're going to try to train that gastly."

"I love a challenge," said Ethan, looking down at his pokeball. "Might as well see what I'm up against now."

Bright light suffused the air as gastly was released. The ghost type hovered in the air a few feet away from Ethan, who looked at the ghost type curiously. Gastly looked back, its eyes slipping down its body and ending up below its mouth. Espy's eyes were bright blue as a thin barrier washed over Ethan, protecting him from the small wisps of poisonous gas that escaped Gastly's control.

"Okay, Gastly," said Ethan, capturing the pokemon's attention. The ghost type floated closer to him. "I caught you. You know what that means. You're part of the team now. And we're going to be the best we can on this team. But that means listening to us when you're out of line and doing something wrong. We'll all grow together on this team, and that also means we don't leave each other behind. We help each other. Got it?"

Gastly seemed to ponder his words for a few seconds before "nodding", essentially meaning that its eyes and mouth moved up and down. Then the ghost type rushed towards Ethan without warning. Espy's eyes flashed blue but there was nothing she could do but tighten her barrier as gastly exploded into gases and whirled around Ethan in a tornado of purple. Seconds passed, and the gases retracted back into Gastly's form. The ghost type cackled and stuck its tongue out as Ethan coughed from the prank. Lyra, alarmed at first, started to chuckle and giggle as well. "Told you, Ethan. Ghost types are notorious for being mischievous and really hard to train."

"We'll see about that," said Ethan as he recovered from his coughs. The young trainer looked at his new companion. "I guess you need a name, don't you? Hmmm…it's got to be something that suits you."

Gastly flew around in a vertical circle as he thought aloud. "You're definitely a prankster; you like to play jokes on people. Hm. How about…Tricky?"

Gastly stopped moving and seemed to hover towards Ethan as its face contorted into something that Ethan guessed to mean "thoughtful." After a moment, gastly returned its attention towards him and nodded, cackling as it flew around in the air.

"Tricky it is." Ethan's eyes tracked the gastly in the air and the ghost type finally returned to its position in front of Ethan, who now pulled out his pokeball. "Okay, Tricky. Do you mind going into your pokeball? I don't think the Sprout Tower sages are going to like a ghost type running around in their tower."

Tricky turned towards the tower and turned back, sticking its tongue out at Ethan again. Then the ghost nodded, and Ethan returned it back to its pokeball.

Lyra was shaking her head as Ethan looked back at her. "Still think you're crazy for it," she commented. "Come on. We've out here long enough."

Inside, the Sprout Tower was as large as it looked on the outside. The ceiling was high above his head as he looked at the massive wooden structure positioned in the center of the tower. The wooden balance slightly swayed, moving left and right, and Ethan found himself almost hypnotized by the sight. It felt…peaceful, oddly enough, and his eyes began to drift close as he stood there in the warmth of the building, surrounded by a quiet murmur of voices in the background and the occasional cry of a pokemon. Espy shifted in her spot on his shoulders and Ethan's eyes snapped open. He shook himself out of his reverie and noticed that Lyra had already approached one of the sages, who bowed before he released a bellsprout.

Ethan walked over closer to the impending battle. Lyra had released Phoenix, who had more than enough space in the vast room to fly around and maneuver in. The pidgey cried out once before taking to the air, circling above Bellsprout. The bellsprout swayed in tune with the pagoda, waiting for pidgey as the bird pokemon circled its prey from above. "Bellsprout, use razor leaf," the sage called out.

"Phoenix, use quick attack!" The bird pokemon flew up and dived down, blurring as it achieved terminal velocity and accelerated towards the grass type. Bellsprout slung several sharp leaves towards Phoenix, though it was obvious that the bird pokemon had learned its lesson from before as Phoenix effortlessly dodged the razor leaf and struck Bellsprout squarely in the center of its vine-like body. Bellsprout collapsed as the pidgey fluttered back onto Lyra's shoulder. She stroked the bird's crest, who nuzzled her neck in return. The sage smiled and returned his pokemon, bowing to her. Lyra repeated the gesture and walked back to Ethan.

"Good battle," he commented. Lyra had taught Phoenix how to use gravity and its body to its advantage. Not a move was wasted, and her attacks were efficient and powerful.

"Thanks," said Lyra, rolling her shoulders to the annoyance of Phoenix, who chirped as its roost was disturbed slightly. "I'm going to train Phoenix more here. She has some catching up to do with Emerald and she'd do well against the grass types they like to use here."

"I think I'll use Espy until she gets tired," said Ethan, shrugging. "I don't know how Tricky will do, but it seems pretty strong." Ethan gestured towards the stairs. "Do you know how many floors this thing has?"

"Five," said Lyra, raising an eyebrow and smiling a little. "Lots of battles."

Ethan grinned back. "My kind of place."

Several floors up, they had finally reached the top of Sprout Tower. As expected, Lyra's pidgey had dominated every sage they had run across. The only time Phoenix had run into trouble was when the opposing trainer had released a Pikachu. At that point, Emerald had come into the battle and took a few nasty shocks that left her back slightly blackened before the pikachu had been knocked out.

Espy was stronger than the pokemon she went up against and easily avoided any attack they threw at her. She could raise a barrier to block an attack and teleport if the other pokemon got too close. Confusion then trapped the pokemon and either threw the pokemon around until it fainted or held the pokemon in place and assaulted it with psychic energy. But Espy grew tired from using her powers after several battles, and then Ethan had to use Tricky.

Tricky was as different from Espy as ghost types were from psychic types. They had completely different battling styles and personalities. Whereas Espy was more reserved and tended to use her abilities efficiently, applying a certain amount of energy when needed like the tip of a fulcrum, Tricky was loud and effusive, taking every chance to terrorize the opposing pokemon and fly around as if the ghost type were performing a show for everyone watching. But Tricky proved to be fast and strong, and it was just as intelligent and cunning as Ethan had imagined a ghost type would be. In one battle, Tricky had rushed towards a bellsprout who lashed out with a vine whip. The ghost type would dissipate at the blow and flow around the bellsprout, choking it with its poisonous gases before it reformed itself. In another instance, Tricky had been battling another trainer's butterfree when the ghost type used Astonish to cause butterfree to flinch and then reappeared behind the pokemon and used its Lick to paralyze the bug type. Tricky was dangerous, and it was easy for Ethan to see how many young trainers were often involved in "training accidents" with ghost type pokemon. Not that he would let that happen, though.

Ethan and Lyra made their way to the center of the tower, where a much older and well-dressed sage stood. His eyes were lined with wrinkles and his white mustache hung over his face. He greeted the pair with a smile and a bow. "So good of you to come here! I enjoy seeing the bonds between pokemon and their trainers. I am Li, the Elder of the Sprout Tower Sages."

"Hello, sir, I'm Ethan," said Ethan.

"And I'm Lyra," said Lyra.

The Elder smiled wider and gestured with a cloaked arm at the room they stood in. The top floor of Sprout Tower was spartan and devoid of any decoration or furniture, save for the few kneeling pads in front of the wooden balance beam, which continued to sway as Li spoke. "Sprout Tower is a place of training. People and pokemon test their bonds to build a bright future together. I am the final test. Allow me to check the ties between you and your Pokemon!"

"Let's do it," said Ethan, stepping forward. Espy teleported onto the wooden floor from his shoulders, having rested from her previous fight.

Li continued to smile as he released a bellsprout, this one slightly bigger than the ones they had faced previously. The bellsprout swayed in tune with the wooden balance beam, but its beady eyes were focused on Espy.

"This is Twi," said the Elder, folding his arms together within his cloak. "He would like you to make the first move."

Ethan shrugged. "Espy, use confusion."

The abra's eyes lit up as it poured psychic energy across the room. The attack easily reached bellsprout and enveloped the grass type as it stood there, swaying slightly. Ethan frowned as the bellsprout continued to look at Espy, who was also puzzled at the lack of struggle. Li stood there calmly, not even calling out a move for Twi to use. Ethan raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. "Knock him out."

Espy renewed her assault. The bellsprout was struck with psychic energy, and it twisted and wriggled in its prison. Half a minute passed, and Espy was still attacking the bellsprout with Confusion, which refused to go down. Ethan was confused. Twi was probably experienced and had fought more than a few battles, but it should not have been able to endure a psychic attack for as long as this. Ethan watched the bell sprout carefully. Every psychic attack Espy threw his way, the bellsprout would wriggle and twist, swaying and recoiling in the opposite direction of the attack. Then another attack, and it would twist the other way. Espy pushed, and Twi pulled. Espy pulled, and Twi pushed.

Ethan's eyes widened as he realized what was happening. The Elder seemed to smile as he noticed the expression on the young trainer's face. "Good. You are a smart young man."

Ethan's expression turned determined as he faced the battle with new knowledge. "Espy, lift the bellsprout into the air and knock it out."

Espy complied, levitating the bellsprout high in the air before bringing it crashing down to the ground. Before it landed, a thin red beam of light shot out and intercepted the fall, returning Twi. "Most young trainers rely too much on the power of their pokemon," said the Elder, smiling. "They do not realize that power is useless without direction. As your abra attacked, Twi simply redirected the flow of energy and rendered the power useless. It is always wise to use your opponent's strength against them. You can see beyond the trick. This will serve you well."

Li withdrew another pokeball from within his cloak and released another bellsprout. this one stood stock still as it looked at the psychic type.

Ethan glanced at Espy. The psychic's shoulders were slumped, having spent a lot of energy trying to defeat Twi, and its eyes were no longer as bright as they were at the start of the battle. Ethan was worried; Espy was obviously tired but seemed to be able to continue on. He hoped.

"This is La," said the Elder, gesturing towards the bellsprout who had an entirely different stance from the previous one. This bellsprout's body was curled and pointed towards the abra, scuttling side to side with his vines. If Ethan didn't know any better, it looked as if the bellsprout were stalking Espy. "She is Twi's opposite. She is much more aggressive, as you will see."

"La, use vine whip." The bellsprout scuttled forward and two vines shot out from its body, lashing at Espy, who quickly drew up a barrier and repelled the vines. The bellsprout continued to pound at the barrier with its vines as it drew closer to the psychic. Espy was showing signs of strain as the barrier began to fade from the attacks.

"Get out of there, Espy!" The abra teleported just as the bellsprout reached her position, attempting to encapsulate her barrier with more vines. Espy appeared behind La in a flash of light, another sign of her exhaustion. Most of the time Espy could teleport with ease and without any sound or light. A visible teleportation meant that Espy was using her abilities more wildly and with less precision. He needed to finish this battle fast.

"Espy, confusion! Trap her." Espy's eyes glowed blue and the bellsprout froze, its eyes closed as it writhed. This particular bellsprout didn't seem to absorb the attacks like its counterpart, and soon collapsed to the ground. Espy's eyes dimmed and her head dipped. She teleported onto Ethan's shoulders and slumped against his head.

"Good job, Espy," he said, patting her shoulder. A sleepy pulse of happiness resonated through him and he chuckled as he faced the Elder, who had pulled out another pokeball.

"Your abra fights well," Li commented as he released his last pokemon. "It is obvious your bond is strong with your pokemon. Let us see how your last pokemon fares against my own."

The hoothoot fluttered around the room, coming to a stop on a perch near the top of the room as it turned its enormous red eyes on Ethan, who now released his pokemon. Tricky cackled as it was released into the room, swooping around until it finally came to a stop a few feet in front of Ethan, who sighed. "Tricky, it's another battle. Careful, that hoothoot might have a few tricks up its sleeve."

Tricky grinned as it stuck its tongue out at Ethan and turned to face Hoothoot, who fluttered down to the ground now.

"This is Ro," said the Elder. "She has been my companion for years now. She will not be easy. Prepare yourself for the final test."

Ro hooted in agreement as the bird type took to the air, flying above Tricky now. Tricky cackled and raced towards hoothoot, expelling gas as it flew.

"Ro, use whirlwind," said Li, and the hoothoot began to beat its small wings, still generating enough of a wind that it impeded Tricky's ascent, who struggled to stay afloat against the gust.

Ethan realized the problem immediately. Not only would the whirlwind keep Tricky away from its opponent, but it would also deflect any residual poison gas that might have been leaked onto the battlefield and kept Ro safe.

He grinned. This was a battle. "Tricky, use hypnosis!"

Tricky stopped struggling and its eyes glowed bright red as it stared at hoothoot, who stared back in return. The bird type was forced to halt its whirlwind as it focused on repelling the attack with its own psychic abilities. Tricky cackled and continued to stare at Ro, now locked into a battle of the minds with the ghost type.

"Tricky, Astonish now!"

The ghost type immediately disengaged the psychic battle and exploded outwards towards Ro, expelling toxic gas all around the bird, who tried to flutter away but was caught in sudden attack.

"Ro, use confusion," said the Elder, calm as always. The hoothoot's eyes began to shine light blue as it drew from its latent psychic abilities. As Tricky reformed a few feet away from Ro, prepared to strike again, the ghost type froze as it was caught in the attack and began to struggle.

Ethan grinned. This battle was his now.

"Tricky, you know what to do. Use Feint," Ethan shouted up at the ghost. Tricky turned to face hoothoot and stuck its tongue out once before exploding in a cloud of purple gas, releasing it from the psychic prison as its corporeal form temporarily vanished. The bird began to cough as it lost altitude, the toxins in its system finally taking their toll. Several feet above Ro, the gases began to swirl and reform until they finally created enough mass for Tricky to appear again. The ghost type, although looking much more tired from before, still retained enough energy to cackle and swoop down towards Ro, who had looked up and chirped once before the ghost type enveloped the bird in toxic gas.

Ro collapsed on the ground as Tricky returned to its initial position in front of Ethan. The ghost type was too tired to play another prank on Ethan and instead floated closer to Espy, who flared up in response to the proximity of the ghost type. The gastly stuck its tongue out at the psychic. "Good job, Tricky," said Ethan, grinning as he returned the ghost.

"That was the best battle ever!" said Lyra, clapping Ethan on the back. Emerald was hopping on the ground, barking.

"Thanks," said Ethan, releasing a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding.

"Yes, good match."

The Elder had somehow appeared not three feet away from the pair. Li was smiling, as he had throughout the entire match. But his expression also looked thoughtful as he looked at Ethan. "Hmmm…" he murmured. "The way you battle is quite elegant. You should be able to stand up to Falkner."

"Wait," said Ethan, frowning. "How did you know—

"You are young," said Li enigmatically. "But the bonds between you and your pokemon will carry you far. You will meet your goal someday if you continue to grow stronger and closer with your team."

"Uh, thank you," said Ethan.

"Be sure not to forget the bond between you and your pokemon," Li warned, his expression growing serious. "Like the red-haired young man who passed through here recently. He did not show care towards his pokemon and treated them harshly. Pokemon are our friends and our partners, not tools of war."

The back of Ethan's neck began to prickle. It couldn't be, could it?

"Elder Li," said Lyra slowly, picking up on the suspicion. "Did that red-haired trainer have a totodile?"

"Yes," replied the Elder. "Though he also had a zubat with him. He treated both unkindly and beneath him. I feel sorry for his pokemon."

"That's because he's a criminal," said Ethan, uncharacteristically dark. "He stole that totodile. Do you know where he went next?"

"Though I am not certain, I believe he is following the same path you tread, young Ethan. I believe his next stop will be Azalea Town."

"Then that's where we'll go," said Ethan. "Thanks for your help, Elder Li."

"It is of no hindrance to me," said the elderly sage. "I am glad to be of assistance."

Ethan turned towards Lyra now. "Let's stop by the Pokemon Center. Then we'll hit the gym."

As they turned to leave, the elder's voice called out behind them, "Wait."

Li produced two small discs from within his sleeve and handed each to Ethan and Lyra. "You should be able to make good use of this. It is a Technical Machine called Flash. Teach it to your pokemon, and they can produce bright flashes of light, either to stun other pokemon or to illuminate dark areas. Use it how you see fit."

"Thank you!" said Ethan and Lyra, and they bade the old man goodbye.

In the pokemon center, Nurse Joy cheerfully handed his pokemon back to him from across the counter. "Your pokemon are back to their full health!" the red-headed nurse said brightly. "Come by again soon, Mr. Rider."

"Thank you," said Ethan, taking the two poke balls from Nurse Joy and walking over to where Lyra was sitting, chatting with her chikorita.

"Hey Ethan," said Lyra as she stroked Emerald's back to the contentedness of the grass type. "Got to say it again, great battling back there. I can see why you like Tricky. He's pretty powerful."

"Thanks, Lyra," said Ethan, taking a seat. "I'm sorry that you didn't get to battle the guy."

"It's fine," Lyra replied, waving him down. "I learned a lot by watching and listening to. That Elder was pretty smart."

"Yeah, he was," said Ethan. He looked down at the poke balls in his hand, running his fingers over the smooth surfaces of the spheres.

"Are you going to face Falkner now?" Lyra asked curiously.

Ethan shook his head. "No. After that match, I figured I have a lot to learn before I face a Gym Leader. I'm going to train tomorrow morning and do some research on Falkner. After that, then I'll face him."

Lyra nodded, as if she was satisfied with his decision. "Good. You usually like to run at things half-cocked. You can't do everything on the fly."

"But that's the fun part," replied Ethan, his lips quirking into a smile. He stood up. "I'm going to head to my room now."

Lyra laughed. "See you tomorrow."

"See you."

…

Ethan released both Espy and Tricky into the clearing.

Tricky looked around the grassy field that they had appeared in and her eyes flashed blue as she looked up at Ethan expectantly. "We're going to train today, Espy," said Ethan. "We've got a Gym match tomorrow and we've got to be ready."

Espy nodded. Her eyes flicked left and she instantly drew up a barrier as Tricky wheeled by, laughing and cavorting around the air. Ethan sighed. He knew Espy and Tricky were going to continue to have problems, but he hoped that they would someday find an acceptable compromise. Psychics just didn't really mesh well with ghosts.

He rolled his eyes as Tricky had found a caterpie at the edge of the clearing and had begun to torment the poor bug, which was desperately trying to crawl away from the ghost. "I'll let Tricky burn off some of his energy," Ethan decided, turning to face Espy. "We'll work on some techniques."

Falkner was a master of the flying type. He had trained for years with his father, the original Gym Leader, and had inherited his flying pokemon from him. That meant his pokemon had to very skilled, though he doubted that Falkner would be using such powerful pokemon against a rookie trainer. Still, it wasn't as if the Gym Leader would lower his own skill and experience level, so Ethan was still up against a veteran trainer who had honed his skills with a single pokemon type for years.

Ethan had to look at the weaknesses of flying types first. Obviously, they were weak to electric attacks. Electricity disrupted their movements and disabled their mobility, which was the single biggest asset a flying type had. But he didn't have any electric types. Ice was another option since the birds were susceptible to cold temperatures and shock, but he didn't have any ice types. Rock types were a good choice, since most tended to have incredibly tough hides and natural armor that allowed them to shrug off most flying attacks, but, again, he didn't have those either. So he had to get creative. What did Espy and Tricky have that would help them against flying types?

After he had Espy work on her barrier for an hour or two, he called Tricky over. "Okay, Espy," said Ethan, looking at both of them now. "We're going to work on your teleportation endurance. Tricky, you're going to try to catch Espy without using any of your actual moves. Espy, you're going to teleport away in this clearing for as long as you can manage."

Tricky cackled as it turned towards the psychic and rushed towards her. Espy instantly teleported away as soon as the ghost neared her spot in the field. Tricky whirled around and stuck its tongue out at Espy, who had appeared on the other edge of the field. Ethan found a relatively flat rock to sit on as he watched the exercise. This would take a while.

Ethan figured he knew what Espy's limits were now. Abra and their line were natural masters of teleportation, having developed the skill much earlier than any other psychic type known. Espy could constantly teleport for more than an hour, though she wasn't really using any attacks and Ethan knew that her endurance would probably be lower if she were using her other abilities in conjunction. She could even teleport with objects, which Ethan was honestly surprised at given her age. But it also gave him a couple of ideas for tomorrow's match.

Espy eventually teleported onto his shoulders as they finished her last exercise. The psychic was tired as she laid her head against his head, and Ethan let her rest. He turned to Tricky, who seemed to have an endless amount of energy and enthusiasm as the ghost swooped around him, almost making him go dizzy at the sight.

"Okay, Tricky," said Ethan, which caused the gastly to pause it waited for his command. "It's your turn now."

Tricky stuck his tongue out at him.

…

Ethan stood in front of the Violet Gym with Espy on his shoulders and Lyra and her pokemon at his side. His hands shook a little as he grabbed the door handle. "You want to go first?" said Lyra. "You look a bit tense."

"I'll be fine," said Ethan, though they both knew better. This was their first Gym battle. They both had no idea what to expect. But Ethan had trained and prepared for this. He would win.

The door opened, letting in a brief gust of wind as the two stepped inside the gym. Inside, the building was enormous, made up of almost wholly empty space save for the bench stands on the side. The floor turned into hard dirt and sand in the center of the Gym, where the battle would be fought. Bright white lights in the ceiling illuminated the vast Gym, though the corners and edges remained shadowed.

"State your name, challenger."

A young man's voice boomed across the Gym. Ethan looked up, towards the other side of the battlefield. An adolescent of about 18 years of age stood on the other end. He had blue dyed hair and wore a loose jacket and shorts. He wore bird training gauntlets on both hands. He looked confident; Ethan knew this would be a tough battle.

"Ethan Rider," Ethan announced, his voice sounding small in comparison. He stopped at the edge of the battlefield and breathed in deeply. Lyra and Emerald took a seat in the benches and watched the scene intently.

Falkner, for it had to be him, analyzed the young rookie, looking him up and down. "How many badges do you own?"

"None," Ethan replied, and internally winced. This was not making him feel any better.

Falkner nodded, and produced two poke balls from within his jacket. "This will be a two-on-two battle," said the Violet Gym Leader. "I will choose first. If you release a pokemon, you can't withdraw your pokemon unless it faints or is otherwise considered unable to battle. No items, no substitutions are allowed. Under no circumstances are either of us allowed to seriously injure the other's pokemon. Pokemon are our friends and should not be used as tools. Understand?"

"I do," said Ethan, exhaling and letting his training take over. Distancing himself from the stress, the anticipation.

"Before we begin," said the young man, producing a small remote from his pocket. "Let me make a few adjustments."

An incredibly loud grinding noise appeared out of nowhere, and Ethan winced as the lights dimmed and turned off. Espy's eyes flared and a pulse of annoyance and pain flickered through him. Psychics were very in tune with their senses and were sensitive to changes in volume and light. Were they going to fight in the dark?

His question was answered when the entire ceiling began to open up into the endless sky. The roof retracted and folded into the adjacent walls, and the grinding finally stopped when the entire Gym was roofless. Ethan looked around in amazement as the entire scope of the battlefield had changed.

He looked back at Falkner, whose eyes now blazed with fire as he strode up to the field. "I am Falkner, the Violet City Pokemon Gym Leader!" the flying type prodigy announced. "People say you can clip a flying-type pokemon's wings with a jolt of electricity, but I won't allow such insults to bird Pokemon! I'll show you the real power of the magnificent bird Pokemon!"

Light flashed in front of Falkner as he released his first pokemon, a fierce-looking Pidgey which chirped and immediately took to the skies, circling above its trainer's head.

"You can do it, Ethan!" shouted Lyra from the stands.

Ethan turned his cap backwards. The bill would only obscure his vision and get in the way now. He released Tricky, who cackled as it was released and faced its opponent with a smile on its face.

"Begin!"

"Tricky, get him!" The ghost type grinned as it suddenly rushed towards the Pidgey. The pidgey cried out and shot into the faster, much, much faster than Phoenix. Tricky chased the bird type around for a few seconds before Falkner finally made a move.

"Pidgey, use gust!" The bird whirled around and began to flap its wings, buffeting the ghost as it struggled against the attack.

"Tricky, same thing as last time!" Ethan shouted. The ghost grinned and its eyes glowed red. As the pidgey turned its head to face the ghost, it was instantly locked into the ghost's stare. The winds died down as the bird type was pulled further into the hypnosis while Tricky floated closer and closer to the bird, its power increasing with proximity.

"Pidgey, snap out of it!" ordered Falkner, but it was too late. Pidgey didn't have latent psychic abilities like hoothoot and its line. It was a physical fighter, and they were vulnerable to mental attacks. Pidgey's eyes drifted closed and the bird fell to the ground, unconscious. Tricky levitated back in front of Ethan.

"Good job, Tricky," said Ethan. The ghost grinned back at him and waited for Falkner's next pokemon as the Gym Leader returned his first.

Falkner unclipped a pokeball from his belt and looked at it intently in his hands. Then he looked up at Ethan. The wind from outside began to pick up, and dust boiled across the battlefield with the sudden gust. Falkner grinned.

"It looks like the wind is finally with us!" he shouted as he released his last pokemon. A deeper, much louder chirp sounded as Pidgeotto was released into the sky. Ethan looked at it and gritted his teeth; he expected as much. The evolved bird was at least twice as big as pidgey and its talons were dangerously sharp as the bird soared through the air, a master of flying.

"Tricky, this one's going to be harder," said Ethan more quietly now. "Remember what we went over."

Tricky cackled. The ghost type levitated into the air and wheeled towards the massive bird at an angle. Pidgeotto looked at the ghost type with disdain as the gastly drew nearer.

"Pidgeotto, use gust. Full power."

Pidgeotto cawed and began to flap its wings, generating much more powerful winds than its previous form. Soon, a miniature tornado of dust and wind formed in front of the bird as it ensnared the ghost within its power. Tricky cried out as it was sucked into the vortex, unable to use its latent psychic abilities as it had the first time.

But Ethan knew this might happen, having learned from battling Ro. "Tricky, use Feint!"

The ghost type was silent as it was hurtled around the battlefield in the gust that Pidgeotto had created. A few seconds passed, and Ethan began to worry that the ghost hadn't heard him.

Then the vortex of wind turned purple, and his worry eased. The purple gas was whipped up by the wind and scattered all over the battlefield, mostly floating up into the sky, where Pidgeotto was floating. The big bird coughed and began to beat the smog away with its wings. To its side, the gas began to collect and reform into a solid mass.

Falkner noticed immediately. "Pidgeotto, it's behind you! Use wing attack!"

Pidgeotto swooped into the air and hurtled towards the reforming ghost at an incredible speed, crossing the length of the battlefield within two seconds. Ethan knew he only had one shot left. "Tricky, Astonish!"

The barely formed ghost immediately shrunk itself as Pidgeotto neared. When the bird had flown within a few feet, Tricky exploded outward, taking the wing attack directly into its body but expelling toxic gas everywhere. Ethan winced at the impact; even if Tricky was a ghost type, that had to have hurt. Pidgeotto's momentum easily carried the big bird through the attack and Ethan watched as it returned to its trainer's side, feathers unruffled but slightly darker than usual.

Tricky reformed in front of him and collapsed to the ground. It stuck its tongue at Pidgeotto once before finally fainting when Ethan returned him to his pokeball. It was fine. He had expected Tricky to lose to such a veteran fighter. What he really wanted to accomplish with the ghost type had been achieved, though.

Gastly had their ghost type abilities, but they also commanded poison type moves. Gastly and its kind were made up of a solid toxic gases solidified and weaved together with ghostly energy. They were dangerous as straight up fighters, but they could also be effective at indirect damage. Tricky had caused Pidgeotto to inhale dangerous amounts of toxic gas. Yesterday, Ethan had tasked the ghost with infecting Falkner's pokemon with poison and weakening them if the pokemon proved to be too powerful in a conventional fight. Judging from the slightly purple feathers of the pidgeotto and the dimmed eyes the big bird had now, as opposed to what they were at the beginning of the battle, Tricky had accomplished its job.

Now it was up to Espy.

The psychic type teleported onto the battlefield, the wind beginning to pick up as sand blew around her. She quickly drew up a psychic shield and blocked the scattering dirt.

Falkner looked at Pidgeotto, who looked a bit worse for the wear, and back at Ethan. His eyes flashed. "This is the final battle. Prepare yourself."

He turned to Pidgeotto. "Pidgeotto, take to the sky! Use Quick Wing!"

Pidgeotto cawed, the sound carrying across the Gym as the bird shot into the air, high above the battlefield. Pidgeotto immediately began to circle above Espy, a tactic Ethan recognized from watching Phoenix's battles. It was gathering momentum for its attack.

"Wait," said Ethan to Espy as the psychic watched the bird intently. The bird circled in the air for a few more seconds. Then it dove.

The figure of the bird practically blurred as it hurtled down towards Espy, who immediately teleported away just as the Pidgeotto reached her, its talons scraping nothing but dirt. Pidgeotto cawed and swooped around, immediately locating the psychic with its keen eyes and accelerating towards Espy again. Espy teleported, and Pidgeotto missed.

It was a battle of attrition. Ethan had tested Espy's endurance yesterday, and he was hoping the poison in Pidgeotto's system would slow it down and wear it down enough so that Espy could finish the bird. But it looked like the massive bird was still flying strong, and he knew Espy couldn't keep it up forever. Soon, Pidgeotto would be a hair faster, or Espy would be a hair slower to react, and the battle would be over.

So he thought of something else. "Espy, use Confusion!"

The psychic's eyes glowed bright blue and Pidgeotto halted suddenly in the air, trapped. Falkner raised an eyebrow as the Pidgeotto cawed and glared at the psychic. "Pidgeotto, break out."

The big bird cried out and easily broke Espy's psychic hold, rushing towards the abra instantly. Espy teleported away and soon the game was back on.

Ethan had blinked the moment the psychic prison had been broken. Nothing had ever shattered her grip on a pokemon like that. Tricky had escaped, but he was a ghost type. Pidgeotto had simply used its superior strength to break free of the bonds. This was going to complicate things.

He stared at the pidgeotto, his mind flashing back to the training they did. What strategies they developed. How to beat the flying type. A thought struck him as he remember the battle with Elder Li, how the man had talked about redirecting forces. Use your opponent's strength against them. Then the idea hit him.

Espy teleported in front of him, and Ethan made his move. "Espy, hold it!"

The psychic type stopped its teleportation and watched as the pidgeotto made another circle and hurtled towards her. The psychic type sat there, absolutely still. Ethan felt something prod his mind and he knew that it was Espy, taking the strategy from his head. He recoiled at first at the touch of another mind, but he quickly relaxed as Espy read his mind. She knew what to do now.

Falkner's last pokemon jetted through the air, reaching over eighty miles per hour as it descended upon the abra. The bird was forty feet away. Then it was twenty feet away. Ten feet.

Five.

"Espy, now!" Ethan shouted, and Espy's eyes flashed as it teleported again. This time, it appeared directly on top of the flying type. The pidgeotto cried out at the unexpected weight and curved its wings to stop, but before the bird could begin to decelerate, Espy's eyes flashed again and both the psychic and the bird vanished.

"What?" said Falkner in complete confusion. Ethan watched with baited breath. It felt like an eternity had passed since the duo had teleported, but in a little corner of his mind he knew that only a couple of seconds had passed. Then Espy and Pidgeotto reappeared in the center of the battlefield.

Directly above the ground, with Pidgeotto aiming down.

Espy instantly teleported away the moment they had reappeared, but Pidgeotto's momentum carried it downward and the bird slammed into the ground at well over sixty miles per hour. A cloud of dirt exploded from the impact and Espy, who had teleported in front of Ethan, projected a psychic barrier to protect them from the sudden gust. All was silent as the dust cloud began to subside, and Ethan found that he couldn't breathe as he watched the scene.

Falkner looked at Ethan silently as the Pidgeotto revealed itself in the center of the field. The bird was lying flat on the ground, unmoving and absolutely unconscious. It had left a small crater from its impact, and its feathers were covered in brown dust. The Violet Gym Leader returned his pokemon and stared at the pokeball for a few seconds before returning his gaze to Ethan, who was still holding his breath.

"The battle is over. You have won."

Ethan exhaled and took a knee on the ground as Lyra began to cheer from the side. "That was awesome!" the girl cried out, and Emerald was doing her little hop again on the stands. Ethan felt a big smile grow on his face and he stood up, picking up Espy. "Espy, you're the best!" the young trainer exclaimed, and a general feeling of happiness echoed through him. This time, though, he heard something else as well.

Yes.

Ethan stared at his pokemon for a few seconds before grinning stupidly. His pokemon had just spoken to him! It was only one word and it had an echoed and soft quality to it, but he had heard his abra's mental voice, only proving that the psychic was growing stronger. It had sounded like the voice of a young girl, evident of her age.

"Congratulations, Ethan," said Falkner, who had somehow appeared not two feet away from him. "You are a strong and capable trainer. Accept this badge from me. It is the Zephyr badge, proof that you have conquered the Violet City Gym."

Ethan took the small wing-shaped badge from Falkner's open palm and trembled as he pinned it to his jacket. If Ethan had his way, it would be the first of many.

"Thank you," said Ethan, looking up at the Gym Leader, who had begun to smile.

"I haven't had such a tense match in a while," admitted Falkner. "You used unconventional tactics and used your pokemon's natural abilities to their advantage. That says quite a lot about you. You'll succeed wherever your journey takes you, Ethan."

"Thanks," said Ethan again, and Falkner turned towards Lyra now. "I'm sorry, challenger. I would battle you right now, but I need to allow my pokemon to rest from the battle. If you could return tomorrow? I'd be thankful."

"No problem," said Lyra as she made her way towards them. Emerald hopped behind her, looking at the tall Gym Leader with wide eyes.

"I could use another day of training. It looks like I'm going to have to do a lot," Ethan's oldest friend laughed.

Falkner smiled. "Anyways, good match, Ethan." He turned to leave, but continued to speak. "Come back here one day when you've grown stronger, and we can battle again."

"Will do," Ethan promised the Gym Leader, and then he and Lyra were out the door.

Ethan looked at the badge on his jacket as he held it in place. The metal piece glinted in the afternoon light, as if it were winking at him. He gripped the Zephyr badge tightly in his palms as he looked up. Past the city, he could see the road to Azalea town on the edge of the city.

Tomorrow, Lyra would beat Falkner, take the badge, and they would be on their way to the next Gym. And then they would beat Bugsy, the next Gym Leader. Then they would move on to the next Gym, and so forth until they had completed the Gym Leader challenge. After that, they would enter the Indigo Conference, having fulfilled the eight gym badge requirement to take them past preliminary battling. The Conference was bi-annual and would take place at the Indigo Plateau in roughly fourteen months. That was how long he had until he needed to be ready.

Ethan stroked Espy's shoulder, who was still asleep on his back. He couldn't lose, not with his team at his side. He would win the Conference.

He would become Champion.

…

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