Sometimes I think about Gladion, who ran from home, left his family, broke away from the only life he'd ever known, and found himself needing to care for both himself and his Pokémon, all when he was only a kid. He is strong and brave, but I'm sure that his troubles weighed on him.
Anyway, I'd like to specify that this story was inspired by Pokémon Sun and Moon. I haven't played Ultra Sun and Moon yet, but I've heard that the story is different, so I'm putting this note here just in case.
As always, thank you for reading. I truly appreciate everyone who reads any of my stories.
Vivid Resolve
Even in the dead of night, the summer heat remained oppressive. This was blazing hot weather even by Alolan standards. Gladion lay on his motel bed, limbs spread out like a Staryu, wishing futilely for the air to cool down. His hair stuck to his forehead. He constantly rolled from one end of the bed to the other, alternating between staring at the wall and staring at the curtained window.
And staring at Type: Null. The Pokémon provided one of many reasons Gladion couldn't sleep. He kept glancing at the pet bed on the ground, wondering if his partner felt uncomfortable in the heat. But every time he looked, Null appeared to be sleeping soundly. He considered it a gift that Null was faring better than him tonight, and he felt grateful.
Gladion rolled over again and sighed into the darkness. He still couldn't believe where they were. He had run from the Aether Foundation with a created Pokémon in tow, traversed the Alola region in a rush to get away, and then landed in this lonely motel room . . . . So much had happened, so quickly, flipping over his life in the blink of an eye.
After their escape from the Foundation, Gladion soon realized they needed a form of shelter. He'd stumbled upon the motel on Route 8 and paid two years in advance for this room. But now, as the pair of them spent their first night in these unfamiliar beds, he questioned if that had been a wise move. Doubt spilled into his head like water flowing into a bowl. Maybe he should've saved some of that money for other things. And anyway, did they really want to commit to a whole two years here?
He could barely imagine what they were going to do tomorrow, let alone for the remainder of two years.
Suddenly, Gladion sat up, heart racing. Why was he here? This felt like standing at the very foot of a mountain, craning his neck in a pointless attempt to see the icy, shrouded peak. His head was empty of any ideas for how to climb. The infinite possibilities stretched to the sky and left him paralyzed. Perhaps this was why his mother always made every decision for him, down to his clothes and the words he could say. She knew he couldn't handle choices on his own.
But then, just as abruptly as they'd arrived, his fears were dashed by a swift strike of anger. He let out a quiet huff and rubbed his face with his hands, as if trying to knead sense into his head. For a second, he actually envisioned running back to Lusamine, to tell her that he made a grave mistake and to beg her forgiveness. Thankfully, that flash of weakness lasted only a moment before he remembered that a life with her was no life at all.
Just then, Type: Null snorted in its sleep. Gladion looked at it, but the Pokémon did not wake. It kicked one of its hind legs, briefly, but that was all. A peaceful slumber.
Despite everything, a smile pulled at his lips. A wave of affection rose within him, followed shortly by determination.
He and Null were a lot alike. Every time he looked at the Pokémon, he was reminded of this truth. Both of them were created to be a certain way. And both of them yearned to escape the roles that their creators designed for them.
They could not go back. He would never again sit still as a piece in his mother's doll collection, to be decorated by her and silenced by her. Null would never again lie dazed on a lab table, blinking at the bright lights, while scientists hovering nearby prepared to fuse more parts and powers into its body. Never again. They had run fast and far in order to grasp this freedom, and neither the boy nor the Pokémon had any intention of letting it go.
At this thought, a sudden pang hit his chest, as he remembered someone who was not free.
Lillie. His only real regret about fleeing. He'd left her behind.
It probably didn't matter that he missed her. This emotion, held tightly inside his own heart, would not save anyone. He was too far away from his sister to help her. Was she doing all right? Was she finding the courage to survive each day? Perhaps he didn't have the right to know. He wanted to go back and rescue her, but he didn't have the strength to face the Foundation. Not yet.
One day, he would offer his apology to her. But for now, his head was stuffed full with the need to save Null, and himself. He couldn't think about anything else. They had to get stronger, as soon as possible. They needed to attain the power to achieve anything, and stand up to anyone.
He looked at Null and saw a creature that embodied both strength and vulnerability. Two opposites, combined into one being. And . . . Gladion supposed that he was the same.
Both of them had survived much just to make it to this motel room. They were strong. But still weak in many ways. His hands shook at the thought of how far they'd come, and how far they still had to go.
I want to give you a good future, he thought as he gazed at the sleeping Pokémon. The desire coursed through his whole mind and body, like a second heartbeat. Quickly, this thought was chased by another one: he wanted to give himself a future, as well. But of course, he should've realized by now that their futures were one and the same. The moment he'd made the choice to break Null out of the Foundation and flee, their fates had fused into one. Now, whether they fell or rose to great heights, it would happen to them together.
END