Hey guys! Sorry for the wait!

I'll admit that the battle scene from last chapter just sucked terribly. Action scenes, as of right now, aren't my strong point. I'll try to flesh them out a bit more later on. I tried a little bit harder this chapter, though.

Sore as hell from an Ultimate Frisbee tournament over the past weekend. I needed Icy-Hot BADLY. Pain meds, here I come.

Sorry for the long wait again. Life is hitting me a bit hard right now so please be patient.

Here's Chapter 7.

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"Speech" – Human Speech

"Speech" - Pokemon talking to Kurtis

"Thoughts"- Telepathy

'Thoughts' – Inner Thoughts

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I was walking through a white landscape with nothing but pillars of the most perfect structure continuously lining my path for me. It appeared as though there was no ending point for the hallway, as the perspective was endless.

It started to get creepy when I saw the people.

They started one by one, continuously growing more numerous by the minute. They stood in between the pillars on either side, staring at the other side of the 'hallway'.

The only features they had on their faces were eyes.

I kept walking for minutes, getting the strange feeling that after I passed them, they started watching me.

I turned to check if they were staring, but it was worse than I thought. They weren't just staring.

They were following me and were only a few feet away from me.

I freaked out. I started sprinting toward the impossible ending of the landscape.

That was when my world went white.

When I opened my eyes, I expected to view the landscape again. But I didn't see white.

I saw darkness.

It crept around me in waves as I was unable to see myself, wondering what was happening.

A distorted laugh sounded, as if intending to mock me. Turning to where it came from, I noticed a very faint blood-red light in the distance, as if it was entrancing me to venture further.

I began a slow walk towards it, but my legs were acting on their own accord, not by my will. Getting closer, the light began to change into an elongated shape while sprouting two protrusions equidistant from the center.

My face contorted into a look of absolute fear as the line split horizontally, as if to imitate fangs. My legs kept going while my brain told them to stop. My inner world began to distort with static as the purple mass contorted with jagged lines.

It pounced.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I woke with a start, jolting to a sitting position. A cold sweat was beginning to form on my forehead as I was trying to comprehend what just happened.

I looked out the living room window to view the luminescent night sky. The stars were barely visible and were drifting slowly towards the west, preparing for the sun to rise.

Opposite of the nightmare, I moved my legs so that they were on the floor and that I was in a sitting position.

'What was that?' , I thought as I stood up; although I fell right back down on the couch.

'Ugh… I hate head-rush…'

After regaining control, I got up and walked towards the bathroom so I could do my morning duties.

I grasped the copper handle and opened the solid, white oak door. Walking in, placing my palms on the countertop, I looked in the mirror.

If I auditioned for any horror movie, I might have made the cut.

My hair was sticking up in random spikes jutting out in every conceivable direction. Underneath my eyes were the worst possible dark spots that almost made me look like a member of the undead.

'I'll take that as a sign that I need a shower.'

I walked towards my backpack, took out my spare set of clothes, which consisted of a simple red shirt and khaki shorts, and went upstairs to where the shower was.

As I was walking up the stairs, Mrs. Birch was walking down, apparently singing a happy tune.

"Hey Mrs. Birch, can I…", I was interrupted.

"Use the shower?", she said.

"Yeah…", I said while scratching the back of my head in embarrassment.

She giggled, "Don't worry. I've had those mornings. You might want to get ready quickly or you might miss all the pancakes."

Without a word, I bolted up the stairs.

Shaking her head, Mrs. Birch made her way towards the kitchen.

'Boys will be boys. Always thinking with their stomachs…', she thought.

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I entered the hallway fully dressed and ready to begin the day, still basking in my freshly washed skin. The moment was ruined when a three-foot blur burst past me.

"Foooooooooooooood!", James, the Birch's young son screamed.

I was two steps into chasing him down, but before I could reach him, a blue blob flew up the stairs and slammed into my face.

"What was that?! What happened?!", Milo screamed as I pulled him off of my face.

I sighed, "It was just James. Nothing happened."

"Well tell him to calm the f-", I muffed his words by smacking his beak shut.

"Language, Milo."

I let go of him and he let out a breath. "Let's get some breakfast."

I walked down the stairs, only to thrust myself into madness.

Prof. Birch and his son were both arguing on whom should get the first waffle, both giving each other their various reasons as to why.

"I'm your son! I get the first waffle!"

"But I'm your father! I have to eat to maintain this healthy figure and protect this family!"

'This could go on forever', I thought. Then I noticed Mrs. Birch at the griddle nodding me forward. I nonchalantly grabbed a plate and approached her so she could lay two fresh, steaming-hot pancakes on it.

This effectively silenced the father-son duo.

I calmly sat down next to them, lathering syrup and butter on the pancakes. James slowly got down from his seat and grabbed a plate while the professor did the same, both with crestfallen looks plastered on their faces.

Steps came thundering down the stairs, "Okay. Who got them to stop yelling at each other?", Brendan said.

I raised my hand briefly, not wanting to be turned away from my food.

"You. Are. My. Hero.", he exaggerated. I grumbled in reply. "How'd you do it?"

I swallowed the bit of pancake that was in my mouth and simply said, "I got there first.", while pointing to Mrs. Birch.

Stumped, Brendan walked over to his mother for his breakfast.

At that moment, Prof. Oak walked down the stairs. "It's too early for shouting…" , he said groggily.

"Good morning, Professor.", I quickly said before stuffing my face with more pancakes.

"Good morning, Kurtis. Everybody.", he said blatantly. My guess was that he needed his morning coffee to get moving.

After about an hour of generic conversation that would bore a Slakoth, we finished breakfast and started to get ready for the day.

I grabbed my backpack full of stuff, put on my shoes, let Milo perch on my shoulder, and walked out the door. The sun greeted me with its obnoxious rays, threatening to blind me if I stared at it too much. I was about five steps outside before I was stopped by Professor Oak, who was poking his head out a bedroom window.

"Kurtis! Don't leave yet! I'll be right down!", he quickly yelled.

Stumped, Milo and I decided to lie down on the soothing autumn grass that was filled with the dew of the morning, waiting to soak up the rays of the sun. Milo decided to take a spot in the crook of my neck, enjoying the warmth on his fluff.

I decided to break the silence.

"Milo, can I ask you a question?"

He nodded intently, as if prepared for anything.

"Do you miss your parents?"

I felt him flinch slightly. "Yeah…. More than ever", he said with a sigh. Apparently he must not have been ready for that question.

"What happened?", I inquired.

We were momentarily distracted by a flock of Taillow flying overhead.

"They were taken from me. I wasn't awake to see it, but Hughes told me enough."

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Through the fire, Milo could only see so much. He saw the panic in many of his friend's families as they flew up and towards safety.

Those that could not get away were not as lucky.

This included his parents.

It was the middle of the night; young Milo was sound asleep and curled next to his soft and tender mother, Martha, while his husky and well-built father, Jones, had one wing draped around the pair.

It started as a nauseous smell, but within a second there were flames shooting out in jet-streams, enough to wake up all of the families and send panic through the entire flock.

His mother cried out in panic, scooping up Milo with all she could muster. Taking a glimpse, Milo noticed that humans were operating the foreign objects, all of them with a maniacal grin plastered upon their faces.

His father cried out, "Take him to Hughes!"

"But what about…!", she was cut off.

"Don't worry about me! Just focus on getting him to safety!

All she could do was mumble out sobs as she hastily grasped her husband with as much passion as she could muster.

He looked at her solemnly, "I love you, always."

They shared their final embrace as an explosion rocked the area, causing Milo's father to be blasted into a tree and his mother to be sent sailing hundreds of yards away.

She skidded to a stop about a hundred yards away, in a small clearing where you could only faintly hear the sound of toppling trees and burning woods.

Hughes looked down to see if there were any survivors that are somehow unable to fly. Luckily, he noticed a splotch of blue and white on the eerie green grass. He quickly dove down to investigate.

The sight was not pretty.

The Altaria he was looking at was none other than Martha. He could barely hold back his tears.

Her legs were bent in a way that he should not describe, as the multiple breaks and bones protruding from flesh were too numerous to count. Also she had multiple bruises on her face. Her breathing was labored, as if she was nearing her time to go.

Hughes hastily rushed up to her. "Martha! Dear, Arceus! No!"

A small cough was the start of her response. "Hughes…"

"What happened to Jones?! Where's Milo?!"

Slowly but surely, Martha painfully opened her broken wings with contorted groans, bending her limbs to reveal a small, blue and white ball of fluff. It looked as though Milo was knocked unconscious.

But he was completely unharmed.

Hughes sighed in relief, "And Jones?"

Martha painfully shook her head in grief.

"Please… All I ask *cough*… is that *cough* you take care of *cough* him….", she stuttered out.

"Of course, dear.", Hughes said desperately through sobs. "You have my word."

"Thank…. You…", She said as she took her last breath.

"No… Martha!..." Hughes started sobbing uncontrollably. Hughes then gently cradled Milo as best he could on his back while he slowly flew away from the scene towards the survivors.

He sorrowfully wept that night and didn't fall asleep until he ran out of tears.

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I looked at Milo very briefly before immediately saying, "I'm so sorry…."

"Obviously, I don't remember it at all. I was young, but I still remember my mom's face before that day. It was always fully of joy, and I remember thinking, 'I don't ever want to live without her'."

I quickly enveloped him in a tight embrace.

"So what happened to your dad?", Milo quickly said.

Like Milo, that was a question that I was not prepared for.

Before I could answer, the front door of the Birch's house opened.

"I'll tell you another time. I promise.", I said somberly, still thinking about Milo's recall of the event.

A voice interrupted my thoughts. "Alrighty, then! Who's ready for battle 101?! Here's your host, Brendan Birch!"

I stared dumfounded and confused at the elder Birch boy's enthusiasm.

"Didn't Oak tell you?", he said curiously as the front door opened.

I just shook my head in response.

"Allow me to elaborate, shall we?", the now fully-clothed Oak stated while his lab coat billowed in the morning winds.

"Please?", I said with confusion.

"Alright. Remember last night when we said that there was a Pokemon we wanted to see if you could take care of?"

"Yeah. When can I see him? Or her?"

Oak laughed, "Kurtis, my dear boy! One does not simply receive his second Pokemon! You must earn the right!"

"Okayyyyyy…. And how am I supposed to do that?", I said

"Well that's simple. A battle."

'Ah. Hence the Battle 101 part.'"Cool. When do you want to start?"

Brendan laughed even harder than Oak did before him, "You thought you would be battling him?! That's too rich! I'm going to be your opponent, bro!

My face paled. "You're kidding."

"I'm afraid not, Kurtis.", Oak said. "In order to give you this Pokemon, we decided that you need a challenge. Brendan here gladly accepted our offer when Birch and I talked to him last night."

I inwardly grimaced. A battle couldn't hurt. But, Milo would probably be going up against a very high-leveled Pokemon.

Brendan stayed put, figuring that I would walk towards the Eastern side of the house, which I did. Oak took his place in the middle of the 'sideline' to be the referee.

"Okay, boys. One on one, no substitutions, one Pokemon. Ready?

We nodded.

"Battle, begin!"

"Alright, Milo. Make me proud." I said with a smile. My faithful friend floated down onto the soft grass.

"I don't think it would be fair to have your bird battle one of my main Pokemon, so here's one I'm in the process of training! Go Cacnea!

A fairly small, chubby humanoid-looking cactus appeared on the field. Its body was primarily lie green with spikes jutting out from its arms, which resembled those of an actual cactus, abdomen, and also appeared to be its feet. The first thing that I noticed though was that there was a yellow protrusion from its head, taking the semblance of a crown.

Due to my prolonged observation, Brendan gave the first command. "Pin Missile!", he cried. The Cacnea's arm started glowing bright green and hundreds of thin, sharp needles came soaring towards Milo.

I jolted from my stupor. "Dodge! Quickly!"

Milo hastily swept his wings downward in a last ditch effort to dodge them, but a few had grazed his rear tail feathers, causing him to wince.

I grimaced. That was my fault.

I steeled myself. "Alright, Milo get in close and use Peck!"

Milo swooped in at a considerable speed, all the while his beak was glowing a bright white.

Brendan smirked, "Block it with Needle Arm!"

Cacnea's arms started glowing with a similar hue to Milo's, then the Pokemon crossed his arms in an effort to brace itself. Milo's attack connected, but with Cacnea only wincing slightly.

'I see. He used it as a defensive maneuver. It must have decreased the damage as well. I have to be careful', I thought.

"Milo, Fury Attack.", I said decisively. Milo furiously started lunging and pecking Cacnea, hopefully to do whatever damage possible.

"Absorb!", Brendan smirked.

Cacnea let loose a series of green auras that flew into Milo's body in a flash. As they exited the poor bird, Milo's expression grimaced in pain from the loss of energy. The lights were then reabsorbed into Cacnea's body who then appeared slightly refreshed.

'Crap.' I grimaced. "Let loose a string of Pecks, Milo!"

Every opportunity Milo could get, he delivered a blow directly to Cacnea's slower body. Sometimes, Cacnea acted on instinct and deflected most of the barrage with Needle Arm. Milo soon came back to our side of the field, looking heavily winded.

Noticing Milo's exhausted state, Brendan called out, "Ingrain!"

'Dammit'

More green lights appeared to enter the soil from the tips of the green Pokemon's feet. They then retracted from the soil. Cacnea appeared to have at least half of its strength back.

'Looks like there's only time for one more attack.', I thought. "Alright, Milo. Peck at full power!"

Milo launched himself at Cacnea one more time, beak glowing bright once more.

Brendan beat Milo to the punch, "Finish with Faint Attack!"

As soon as Milo punctured the small cactus with his beak, Cacnea disappeared then seamlessly reappeared behind Milo and slammed the bird into the ground, causing a small cloud of dust to kick up from the ground.

When the dust cleared, Milo was clearly unconscious. His was lying on his stomach and his eyes had swirls in them and his wings were spread apart and drooped against the ground.

Oak spoke up, "It appears that Milo is unable to battle. Victory goes to Brendan!" he said jovially.

Surprisingly, a small bout of applause was released on my right. Apparently some of the residents had noticed the commotion and had watched the battle in its entirety. Young children were watching, so I assumed that there were full families that had watched. The applause soon stopped and the crowd slowly dispersed, except for some kids who flocked over to Brendan.

I walked out to Milo, who had woken up from his brief slumber and was grimacing in pain. He grunted out, "Did… did we win?

I smiled sadly, "No, we lost. But you did a great job. Made me really proud, Milo" I said to try and lift his spirits slightly.

All Milo could do was nod before I picked him up and brought him over to the Professors.

"Is there a healing machine in the lab?", I asked.

Birch sat up from his spot on the ground where he was quietly observing the battle. "Yup! Just come with me."

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"There. Good as new!", Birch exclaimed as Milo tested his feathers by ruffling them a bit then flying up to my head, which somehow was comfortable enough for him to perch on.

The lab was much more modernized than Cosmo's lab back In Fallarbor. There were solid white floor tiles that spanned the entire floor. The one thing that stood out, though, was the massive healing machine and a device that had three Pokeballs in its constantly rotating center. I assumed this to be where the three Hoenn starter Pokemon were held. And that was just in the North-east corner of the room. There were boatloads of scientific equipment scattered throughout tables that screamed the word 'experiments'.

Birch noticed I was staring at the equipment, "Oh, don't worry. We don't do experiments on Pokemon. That would be inhumane and cruel." He said with a scowl.

"I believe you. You seem more of a researcher anyways.", I said honestly

"Heh. Good observation, kid. Anyway, I think you should go talk to Oak before you leave town. He might have something good to give you."

I nodded and exited the lab, grateful for the aroma of flowers to wash away any lingering 'laboratory' scent. Thankfully, I didn't have to search long because the aged professor was waiting at the Birch household, calmly leaning against the frame of the front door.

"Hey Professor, Birch said I should talk to you?", I inquired.

"Ah! Yes! Remember when I said you had to earn your second Pokemon?", he said while removing his hand from his pocket. He opened my palm and gently placed something in my hand.

A minimized Pokeball.

I stood confused, "But, I lost! Wasn't I supposed to win that match?!"

Oak chuckled loudly. "My dear boy! I never said you had to win! All I said was that you had to prove yourself! And from what Birch and I saw, you are more than capable than taking on this responsibility!", he said with a wide smile. "Now go ahead. Meet your new partner." Oak stepped to the side.

I gazed at the Pokeball for a moment before pressing the button that enlarged the sphere. I thrust it upward. What emerged from the bright light that escaped was somewhat of a surprise.

My sights were greeted to a small bird that had had a primarily gray body. It has orange talons and an orange beak like most common avian, but its beak and wings looked like they were dipped in black paint. It had three tail feathers in perfect alignment with the outside two being black while the one in the middle was a solid white. The bird also had a circular spot on its chest where it was straight white. Most of its face was also white and it also had some stray feathers sticking up in the back of its head.

'A Starly? They must really trust me if they're giving me a foreign Pokemon.', I thought

The bird spoke up first. "Who the heck are you?!", it screamed. Its voice was very low pitched, so I assumed it was male. He started sizing me up like he could pound me into the middle of next week. I chuckled.

"What the heck are you giggling at chump?! You're looking at the number one threat in the skies! Altair is the name! Don't you forget it!", he screamed with as much ferocity as the small bird could.

I started laughing uncontrollably, even rolling on the ground, in which case Milo flew off of my head and onto Professor Oak. Professor Oak just sighed, "You're lucky, Kurtis. I wish I could understand this one."

Altair, the Starly, did a double-take. "You can understand me?", he asked in a completely surprised attitude, completely opposite of how he previously acted.

I ended my laughing while trying to sustain any chuckles from leaking out. "Yeah I can. My name's Kurtis. I guess I'm your new trainer." At that moment, Milo decided to fly on top of my head.

"Don't forget about me now!", the small blue bird chirped.

"Of course not!", I turned back to Altair. "This is Milo. He was my first Pokemon. You, if you want, are the second. Do you want to come with me?"

"Are you kidding?! Why would I pass up a chance to become stronger?! Count me in, Nighthawk!"

I chuckled at the nickname. "Alright! Welcome to the team. You won't regret it."

"Heh. Oh this is gunna be good!", Altair said as he swiftly flew onto my shoulder in less than a second.

I stood there, astounded. "I didn't even notice you moved until now! Just how fast are you?!"

"I have my ways.", he said, grinning.

I shook my head, then headed inside to bid my farewells and endless thanks to the Birches for all of their hospitality. As I walked out the door, Brendan approached me.

"So will you be taking the gym challenge?", he asked evenly.

I shrugged, "Don't know. Hopefully I'll have figured that out before I reach Rustboro."

"Well, if you are, the next time I see you better be in Ever Grande city.", he grinned.

I smirked back, "We'll see about that."

I gave him a firm handshake before walking towards the town exit. When I was there, I gave the town one final backwards glance before stepping into the canopy of trees that comprised Route 101.

'Look out, world. You're about to be taken by storm.'

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Somewhat of a darker chapter here. The background of Milo's story almost made me cry while writing it. I'm such a damn softie sometimes.

With that, Kurtis gets his second Pokemon, a Starly named Altair.

I hope you enjoyed it though! Please keep reviewing!

I'm probably going to take a slight break for about a month or two. School is being a stuck-up piece of jerky right now, it's so annoying. Anybody have any tips on Macroeconomics?

I'm probably going to do a revamp of Chapter 1, but not right away. Looking back, I sucked at writing 5 months ago. Dear lord. Has it already been 5 months? Wow.

See you guys next time!