Alex strode between the trees, humming happily as she tossed her two Poke Balls in her hands. A scream broke through the forest, stunning her into silence. She froze a moment as the sound of it pierced through her, and then instinctively she began running; not away from the sound, but towards it. Dodging branches and ferns, she burst through the trees and came skidding to a halt, staring dumbstruck at the oversized man who stood in front of her. His belly rumbled with laughter as he held a young girl with blond hair, about Alex's age, in the air effortlessly by her neck.
"Hey, stop that!" Alex shouted, charging forwards. The man turned, looked at her, and guffawed at the sight of the Poke Balls in her hands.
"Put 'em away, pintsize," he chuckled. "Unless you fancy getting' hurt yourself."
"Let go of her," Alex hissed, her body trembling with rage. "What has she done to you?"
"She's my girl, I can do what I wants with her," the man retorted. "Now put them Balls away before I hurts ya."
"Squirtle, Rattata, let's go!" Alex shouted, choosing to release them instead. If I run away from this now, I will never ever be able to forgive myself, she thought. Squirtle, Rattata, I know that this is new for both of you but please; don't let me down, or I'll be in just as much trouble as that poor girl!
"Bad move," the man said, tossing the girl to the side. She landed in a crumpled heap and didn't move. The man reached toward his belt and loosened it. Alex stiffened, prepared to run despite her earlier resolve, but the man reached into a hidden pocket in the lining of his jeans and brought out a grimy Poke Ball of his own. "Go Typhlosion, mop the floor with 'er."
"Grarrh!" the Typhlosion roared as it burst from the familiar red light onto the forest floor.
"Go, Squirtle, Bubble! Rattata, you use Tackle!" Alex shouted.
"Take em out, Typhlosion; Flame Wheel!" the man ordered. The Typhlosion leapt forwards, its body becoming enveloped in a wall of flames. The Bubble attack sizzled out of existence before it even reached its target, and both Squirtle and Rattata were struck by the attack with devastating force, sending them both flying backwards into the trees. Squirtle hit an oak shell-first; it struggled to its feet but then Rattata slammed into its stomach, and they collapsed into an immobile heap.
"Squirtle! Rattata!" Alex shrieked.
"Gee, that was quick," the man grinned, folding his arms. "Watcha gonna do now, kid?"
"This!" Alex said, clenching her fists and running forwards without any hesitation. "Hiiii-yahh!" she screamed, dashing past the stunned Typhlosion, lifting her leg, and kicking the man in the crotch as hard as she could. His eyes widened in shock as his knees buckled; and as his hands slid downwards, he crashed to the ground gasping for breath.
"Come on!" Alex shouted, grabbing the girl by the hand and dragging her up upright. She hauled her over her shoulder, giving the girl what little support she could, and pulled her into the trees, making sure to recall her fallen Pokémon with her free hand as she did so. They ran for several minutes, Alex not letting go of the girl's hand until they had come to a halt well under cover in the depths of the forest. Panting, they stood under the shade of a large tree on the edge of a clearing, trying to catch their breath.
"Are you okay?" Alex asked after her breathing turned back to normal. The girl nodded, her eyes wide.
"Y-yes," she whispered. "Thank you."
"I couldn't leave you like that," Alex said. "Who was that creep anyways?"
"He's my uncle," the girl said quietly. "My Mom died, and when Dad left home I had nowhere else to go. He took me in, but he beat me. I didn't even have any chores that I forgot to do; he just liked hitting me…"
"What a horrible person," Alex said decisively, and the girl nodded.
"I can't go back…" she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. "He'll hurt me again if I do. I don't have anywhere else to go though…" Alex looked at her closely, examining the girl properly for the first time. Her blond hair hung loose and ran a little shorter than her own raven tresses, but it was a lot finer too. Her face was puffy, scratched and bruised from the numerous beatings she must have received, and her torn clothes were riddled with dirt. All in all she looked more like a vagabond than a scared ten-year old girl, but there was a certain aura about her; something about the way she held herself suggested that no matter how many times she was beaten down, she would continue to get back up and face her troubles head on. She didn't know why, but there was something about this girl that she liked.
"Why don't you come with me?" she offered. "I'm a Pokémon Trainer, so I'm always walking the land. We'll be far away from here – and your uncle – before you know it!"
"A Pokémon Trainer?" the girl repeated. "But… but I don't know how to train Pokémon."
"Well… to tell you the truth, neither do I," Alex admitted. "I only just started a day ago; but my Dad was one of the best, and my Mom's pretty good too, so I'm sure I'll be able to figure it out really soon!" A wan smile crossed the girl's face, and she held out her hand.
"My name is Yui," she said, and Alex took the proffered hand with a smile.
"I'm Alex, Alex Ketchum," she said, and the girl's eyes widened.
"If your Dad is who I think he is, than you weren't kidding when you said he was one of the best," she murmured.
"If she's the daughter of Ash Ketchum, then her chance to take on his crown has just died along with her," a heavy growl spoke, cutting through their brief moment of camaraderie.
Yui's uncle forced his way between a pair of trees, his small eyes glaring angrily as he strode awkwardly over to them, wincing slightly with every step. "You are going to pay for what you just did," he growled, his face distorted with wrath. Without any hesitation Alex scrambled to her feet and dashed forwards again, aiming for the same spot as before. His arm shot down and caught her by the leg. "Nice try," he grinned, before hoisting her upside down and smashing her in the cheek with a thickly muscled fist.
Alex's head rang at the impact, and blackness began to envelop her senses. Now I know what Mom meant when she suggested I take one of Dad's old Pokémon to protect me from bad people… she thought dazedly. What is he going to do to me? I wish I'd said yes to her now… There was a scream of pain, a roar of rage, and suddenly she was flying through the air. Hitting the ground on her side, she blacked out momentarily. She rolled limply across the ground, and came to rest at Yui's feet.
Alex groggily opened her eyes, her body rebooting with the cessation of movement, but she closed them again almost immediately, sure that she must be dreaming. Yet when she opened her eyes again, the same scene presented itself to her. A Pidgeot had burst through the canopy at its maximum speed, smashing into the man beak-first; as he had gone flying backwards his grip on her had loosened, and she had ended up moving in the opposite direction.
"Alex… Alex, are you okay?" Yui whispered, shaking her nervously.
"Pidgeot… I must be dreaming," Alex murmured.
"No," Yui said. "It really is a Pidgeot!" Suddenly Alex was awake, bolting upright and staring at the angry flying-type in disbelief.
"It can't be!" she gasped.
"Go, Tyranitar!" Yui's uncle roared. "Get rid of that bird! Typhlosion, you get the girls!" Both of the man's Pokémon materialized, and while the Tyranitar swung at the air, trying to land a hit on the Pidgeot, the Typhlosion barreled towards the two girls, its back igniting into a maelstrom of terrifying flames.
"Look out, Yui!" Alex shouted, twisting and knocking the stunned girl to the ground. She threw herself on top, trying to protect her new friend, as she waited for the impact with closed eyes.
"Errr-lade!" a voice roared, and there was a yelp of pain as the Typhlosion was thrown away on a single sharp blade.
"No way…" Alex mouthed, barely able to form the words as she turned and saw the Gallade standing defensively in between them and the fire-type.
"Where are all these Pokémon coming from?" Yui's uncle shouted in frustration. "Gastrodon, Ambipom, Rhydon, Golem! Get them!"
"Come on, Yui," Alex said, helping her to her feet. "We'd better get out of here, this is going to be really ugly."
"It's six on two, what do you expect?" Yui asked dully.
"I know, it would be a bit more even if it was ten on two," Alex agreed, "but they still wouldn't have a chance."
"What?" Yui asked, openmouthed.
"You'll see," Alex said, dragging her behind a tree. Huddling behind its safety, they watched the battle closely. Yui's jaw dropped further and further in her astonishment, and even Alex was surprised at the ferocity and severity with which the flying and psychic-types lunged into battle. They watched as the Typhlosion leapt for the Gallade, only to be met by thin air before it was smashed to the ground with a Slash, knocked unconscious in one hit. They watched as the Pidgeot took out the Tyranitar with a Steel Wing, as the Gallade knocked out the Rhydon and the Golem at the same time with a Leaf Blade, and as the Pidgeot finished off the last two Pokémon with a flurry of Quick Attacks. The six enemy Pokémon collapsed before even a minute had passed, leaving the Pidgeot and Gallade in the middle of the clearing without having received any damage at all.
"It's… it's impossible!" Yui's uncle gasped.
"I'm inclined to agree with him," Yui murmured.
"Not when it's my Dad's old Pokémon that he's facing," Alex said, stepping out from behind the tree. "Get out of here," she shouted across the clearing to Yui's uncle. "You can't beat Ash Ketchum's Pidgeot or Gallade."
"But… he's dead," the man whispered.
"Yeah, well see, the thing is his Pokémon like to keep a close eye on me to make sure I don't fall into the same kind of trouble that he always did," Alex called back. "Now if I were you, I'd run before they decide to start trying." Yui's uncle gasped, took a step back, and then fled from the clearing as quickly as his large size would permit, not even bothering to recall his defeated Pokémon. Waiting until she was sure he was gone, Alex ran across the clearing and buried her face in Pidgeot's breast feathers, breaking down in relief that she and Yui were safe.
"Thank you… thank you both," she whispered. "If you hadn't shown up…"
"Er," Gallade nodded, a look of happiness on his face. Maybe he hadn't been able to protect his master, but at least he'd been able to protect his master's daughter this time. Though it was rare for a Gardevoir or Gallade to bond so strongly with anyone other than their trainer, Ash's Ketchum's Gallade had been a close caretaker of Alex since her birth. There was an affection in his heart for her that nearly rivaled his undying bond with Ash, and because of that he had sensed the danger and teleported to her side.
"Pijo," Pidgeot fluted softly, hopping away from the grateful girl and taking to the air. Circling once, the flying-type wheeled upwards and vanished into the sunlight.
"Lade, erlade er," Gallade cautioned her, wagging his blade sternly before vanishing into thin air with a salute, leaving the two girls alone in the forest.
"Is… is it safe?" Yui asked, cautiously emerging from behind the tree.
"Yeah, he's gone," Alex said, gazing into the sky. "Gallade would never have left if there was any chance that we were still in danger."
"And those were really your father's Pokémon?" Yui asked.
"Yeah. And I'm glad they were there," Alex said softly before turning and moving with her newfound friend into the forest. Before she left, she took one last look into the sky; though she could not see her father's Pidgeot, she had the funniest feeling that it could still see her.