I Wish

Fainting sucks. Seriously, you may never have to go through the experience in your life, but, for us battling Pokémon, it's a continuous source of anxiety. I am going through the process of losing consciousness at this very moment, and let me tell you, it doesn't get any easier.

My mind froze; becoming a simple observer of my body's shut down. I noticed that the noise of the crowed became a monotone hum. My skin felt very sensitive, almost like I could feel each individual strand of fur growing. My ears went numb and my nose started tingling. Then the whole world started getting lighter, beginning at the middle of my vision and then expending outward. It was like I was slowly being erased.

In those last moments my rational mind returned. I wish I had just a little more time. I wish I could get up just once more. I wish that I had that strength. I wish…


"I wish all humans were like this." I said.

"Ricochet," Aza pulsed to me. "You shouldn't talk with your mouthful."

I glanced over at the kadabra. He was using his psychic powers to lift the food into his mouth. I thought that maybe he should be eating with that spoon he's always carrying around, but then I thought that would look bizarre. Then I started thinking about why I would think that Aza eating with a spoon was odd. After a bit I realized that thinking was stopping me from eating, and considered to stop thinking so I could consume this glorious meal, so I never got around to deciding on anything, because I started eating again.

We were in a house in Lavender. We hadn't had a chance to leave yet. It's all for the better though. A man called Mr. Fuji invited us to his house for a real dinner and I have to say that it maybe the best thing that's ever happened to me since I left the farm. The food was spectacular; I hadn't had anything this great since my days back on the eevee farm. Well, not that anything I have eaten since Lin became my trainer could actually be called food.

"Part poison. Do you know how much that could change Agatha's standing in the Elite Four?" the fantastic Mr. Fuji said.

This wonderful Fuji guy looked funny for a human. Normally all humans look the same. The one or two exceptions usually had to do with extreme hair styles. Lin was pretty easy to pick out of a crowed, not just because people tend to avoid walking within a four foot radius of her, but because she had a ridiculous amount of midnight black hair all tangled into one large mass at the top of her head. It all use to be held down by a beanie but now several rubber bands kept it in check. All in all, the cancerous looking mass at the top of her head was a dead give away.

Mr. Fuji, a great host by the way, was another good example of a recognizable human. He had no hair. The man was short and wrinkled and smelled funny and had no hair. I couldn't even imagine me not having hair because I was too busy eating. I paused between swallowing and taking another bite to activate my imagination. I shuddered at the image.

"You're thinking about being bald again, aren't you?" Aza pulsed.

I responded by mumbling something into my food dish.

"Agatha will be fine," Lin said, "She was a good trainer before she discovered ghost types."

"A good trainer, yes, but good trainers don't last in the elite four. Incredible training ability is what is required," Mr. Fuji countered.

"Fuchsia is one of the best gyms in Kanto and its poison typed," Lin argued. "Koga can even hold his own against the Elite Four. Even when her ghost type's weaknesses are discovered, she could adapt her team to cover it."

"But she won't my dear," Mr. Fuji said. "She will keep the same Pokémon on her team that she always has had and that will cost her a place in the elite four."

"What's wrong with the Pokémon she has?" Lin said. "I said adapt, not replace. With a little careful planning, I bet she could teach her Pokémon to handle ground and psychic types."

"You're putting too much stock in certain Pokémon's abilities," Mr. Fuji sighed. "Take your eevee for example."

My head snapped up at Mr. Fuji saying the name of my species. This had better be good old man.

"No one would dream of bringing an eevee to a real fight for three reasons," The smelly human said. "One, they aren't that powerful. They don't have extraordinary talents in any one area, is what I mean."

"My eevees super tough." Lin said.

"Yeah," I said, "What about that!"

"But he isn't tougher than any given rock type. Even a few water types will have a higher defense than him. Second, eevees don't have any extraordinary abilities. As I'm sure you know, even a weaker Pokémon can be crucial to a team if it has the right ability. I believe your eevees ability makes it easier to run away from Pokémon."

"Hey!" I said, "He makes that sound as if it's not useful!"

"And third, eevees don't learn any spectacular moves. All are pretty weak when compared to moves like flamethrower and ice beam. The most powerful move an eevee learns is bite."

Lin flinched at that last statement. "He might be able to learn more by inheriting them through his parents or technique machines. Ricochet already has a move I don't know about when you met. I'm sure that with time and a few more members on our team, we can find a role where Ricochet will be crucial."

"If everything's been great for you, then why are you on your last legs, financially speaking?" Mr. Fuji said.

"Huh?" I said.

"He's speaking about matters of the heart," Aza said, having now finished his meal.

"Oh, so financial means money stuff? So he's saying that nobody loves Lin?"

"Very good Ricochet," Aza said. "You picked up on that quickly." He sounded a little sarcastic when he said that but I couldn't figure out why.

I hadn't thought about it in a while but as I thought about it, I hadn't seen Lin steal anyone's money for a while. I hadn't even seen Lin's metal heart in a while.

"This must be why he's feeding us all," Aza said. "He must have learned about her eating habits."

"We eat just fine," I said. "Yes, the food is really mushy paste, but at least I'm filled."

"Sure we eat just fine," Aza said. "If by 'we' you mean you and I. Think, when was the last time you saw Lin eat?"

I normally have a great memory for food, but for some reason I couldn't place the last time Lin ate.

"I don't know," I finally said. "I think I saw her pop a few berries in her mouth yesterday… or the day before."

"Exactly," Aza said. "Lin must see that her Pokémon are her number one priority so she makes sure she can pay for us before she buys anything for herself. We are the primary source of income, after all."

"But she's not eating?" I said. Aza didn't respond. Something about the idea of Lin starving herself made me uncomfortable.

"There are not that many trainers this far east." Lin said. "We'll be fine once we get to Fuchsia."

Mr. Fuji sighed. "You aren't even going to stop at Saffron first?"

"Maybe I'll work my way up cycling road afterwards." Lin said.

"You don't follow the norms do you?"

"I make it a point not to."

"Well maybe this will interest you." Mr. Fuji said. "You're going to need some money if you want to keep going out of your way. I have a way you can do just that."

"I hope its testing pillows," I said.

"More probable, it's spooning out soup for the poor," Aza said.

"Is it a battle?" Lin said.

"No, it's a dishwashing job," Mr. Fuji said.

"Oh," Lin, Aza and I said.

"The S.S. Anne is on its way here for a pit stop before it returns to port in Vermilion. I guess they had some kind of food poisoning in the crew's kitchen so now they have to do some emergency rehiring. I'm friends with the dishwasher on board and he told me to look out for anyone who could help him. I'm recommending you."

"Well…" Lin shifted in her chair. "I guess it wouldn't hurt delaying a bit. Besides, L.T. Surge is in Vermilion anyway."

"It's a practical job too," Mr. Fuji said. "Who knows, if you work hard and stick with it, you could end up running the ship."

"That would make it difficult for me to become champion," Lin said.

"Just think about it," Mr. Fuji said. "Back in my day we just stuck to real jobs, none of this leaving home on adventures and malarkey. None of us would even dare to try and train a psychic type."

"I don't blame them," I said, "especially if they're all like you, Aza."

"I think he's referring to the rumor that you have to be psychic in order to train a psychic Pokémon," Aza said.

"Is that true?" I said.

"I guess we'll find out."

"Thank you for everything," Lin said, "I accept your offer. When will the ship be here?"

"Tomorrow night, but they won't start loading the new crew and supplies until the next morning. Meet me at six o'clock by the docks south of town and I'll get you set up."


"What an eventful day we had yesterday." Aza pulsed as our team made its way to the docks south of Lavender.

"You said it," I said. "I don't think I'll ever look at oddishes the same way again."

"There's Mr. Fuji over there." Lin said.

It was early morning of the first day on the job. I was excited. Not so much because of the work we'd have to do, but because I'd never seen an ocean before. Both Lin and Aza had. They kept talking about how inspiring it was. I didn't care so much about being inspired, I just wanted to talk with them about being inspired.

Mr. Fuji was talking to a man in a white and blue uniform. All around them there were other humans in white and blue uniforms carrying large boxes onto wood over water that lead to some large floating thing.

That must be the ocean. "Wow it's huge!"

"Yes, it's quite large isn't it? Awe inspiring." Aza pulsed.

"Yeah, and so sturdy," I said.

"What do you mean?" Aza pulsed.

"Well no amount of splashing is going to knock that thing over."

"No you fool, that's the ship."

"Then where's the ocean?"

"The ship is floating in it."

I laughed. "You can't fool me. That's just a lot of water."

"That's what an ocean is."

"A lot of water? That seriously inspires you? Gezz, I haven't been this let down sense I learned a forest was just a bunch of trees."

"Ah, Lin. Let me introduce you to your boss." It was Mr. Fuji waving us over to him. The human he was with looked like he had short brown hair underneath his weird white hat. He was older, but not Fuji old. He was large though, and built like a brick house.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Lin," Lin said.

"Hum… I guess you'll have to do." The man in white handed Lin a bundle of what looked like cloth. "Go below deck, second floor down, and get yourself changed in room five C. then come meet me for your first shift at ten O'clock sharp, in the kitchens."

"Uhm, yes sir," Lin said. She was about to march off when the man in white spoke again.

"Call me Mr. Washer," He said.

"Oh please tell me that's his real name." Aza pulsed. "This could be so much fun."

Lin walked us down the hallway, too, early. I'm sure it's because she wanted to make sure she was on time. However, a part of me thought it was because she didn't want anyone to see her in her new uniform.

That's what Mr. Washer's bundle had been. Lin's uniform looked a little like his except it was mostly dark blue with a little white around the stitching and boarders. The most shocking features were the sleeves. They went down to Lin's elbows but no further. For the first time ever I could see Lin's forearms. They were very white in color. So white in fact that color may be a bad word of it. Another fun feature was the skirt. Or at least it would have been a skirt on anyone other than Lin. For her it was a dress going all the way down to her feet. Lin always wore the same get up, the ugly jacket, the scarf, the combat boots and snow pants, so for me this was a very fun experience. Of course, Lin rebelled any way she could. She still kept her scarf and the boots since the uniform didn't provide her with any substitutes.

"I think this is it." Lin said, coming to a stop in front of some large double doors. She took a deep breath then pushed them open to find… nothing.

"Why does our lives get anticlimactic in all the wrong places," Aza pulsed.

The kitchen itself was sterile and silver. Some large spoons were handing around and I'm pretty sure the large door in the back was the food storage area. I was slightly offended that this kitchen was larger than the one I used to sneak into at the farm. "There can't be this many people on the boat. This is just too big." I said.

"No, it just means humans eat a lot." Aza pulsed. "You just haven't noticed because Lin doesn't eat anything."

"I do too," Lin mumbled.

For the first time Lin's jacket wasn't blocking my view so I could get a better look. "He's right. Underneath all those stinky winter cloths, you're just skin and bones. You're just all fluff."

"Ah, the jokes I could make," Aza pulsed, "But in all seriousness Lin, you might want to consider-"

BAM!

The double doors behind us burst open. Mr. Washer entered the kitchen. He spotted us and nodded. "You're early, good. If you're not ten minutes early your ten minutes late." He marched over to another section of the kitchen and we followed.

The dish watching room was like the kitchens with one small difference, nobody cared about this place. Well, that's not fair. Really the people in charge didn't expect people to ever go back here so they didn't make it look as sterile. All of us fit in just fine but that's not saying much considering that I could fit on a plate, Aza was a disembodied mind in an apricot sized ball and Lin's growth must have been stunted from malnutrition. Two big tubs took up most of the space and there was a small hole in the wall to the left of them.

"Let me explain how this will work." Mr. Washer said. "See this hole in the wall? Soon it will be filled with dishes. Now where's your kadabra?"

Lin reached down for her solo pokeball. "How-"

"Mr. Fuji." Mr. Washer said.

Lin called out Aza, who immediately pulsed to Lin and me, "If he thinks I'm doing manual labor, he's-"

"What's your name kadabra?" Mr. Washer said. "And don't be shy. I've been around long enough to spot a strong psychic type when I see one."

I couldn't tell if Aza was annoyed at Mr. Washer's bluntness or because he was interrupted. "Aza. You must have a good eye if you can determine my abilities from a twenty second observation. What did you do before you were a dish washer?"

"I'll tell you latter, on one condition," Mr. Washer said. He pointed to his head. "You stay out of here."

"Fair enough," Aza said, "What would you have me do?"

"I hope you can lift things with your mind."

"Naturally."

"Good. You've got the job of moving the dishes form this hole to the washtub on the left. You'll have to put them in gently enough so that they don't break on the ones you've already put in there. A little latter will have you move the clean dishes to make room for more, that is if you can handle two jobs at a time?"

"Rudimentarily." Aza said.

Our boss nodded. "As for you Lin, I want you at my right. You'll be drying the dishes for me, as soon as you're done rinsing them. I'll handle the hot water washing."

"Yeah," I said. "Sounds like hard work, but it seems you guys have it covered. Lin, asked him where I can take my nap."

The dishwasher turned down to face me.

"Oh. You're not translating for him are you, Aza?" I said.

"I wouldn't dream of doing something so offensive as that to a man we've barely met." Aza pulsed.

"As for you…" the washer said. "Make yourself scarce." Mr. Washer grimaced and turned away.

"Hey!"

"What's the matter? A few seconds ago you didn't want a job."

"That doesn't mean I don't want to be considered for one!"

"Are you sure Ricochet can't help out in some way?" Lin said.

"Kid, another thing I've learned over the years is that eevees make good companions but that's about it."

"Ouch," I said.

"I'm sensing some unresolved anger issues with your species." Aza said. "It's my recommendation to you to back off a bit."

"No kidding," I said. I backed myself into a corner by the towels which looked suspiciously brown and got ready for a boring day. Soon the hole in the wall started making weird sounds and dishes started to appear. Aza, Lin and Mr. I-hate-eevees began their work. It started a little awkwardly at first, but after a short time Aza and Lin got into the movements of it.

"I'm I the only one who thinks this man use to be a trainer?" Aza pulsed.

I caught Lin giving a slight nod before saying, "That's some training technique you've got Aza doing sir."

"What do you mean?" he said.

"I'm just saying that it's pretty difficult to find an activity that can challenge a kadabras precision and multitasking ability," Lin said. "Getting him to handle delicate items at the same time as working on both sides of the room is a great way to train. You even appealed to Aza's since of pride to change a job he was apathetic towards into a challenge he could enjoy."

"I had a hard time following that." I said. "But from what I understood it sounded like Aza just got played."

A stack of towels from the shelf above me mysteriously toppled over and I was buried.

"Yeah, I use to be a trainer kid. That was a long time ago." Mr. Washer said, never missing a beat form his dish washing rhythm. "Life changes, and now I do this for a living."

"Still, you must have been pretty good," Lin said. "You showed some great creativity just now."

"It's not just about skill of the trainer kid. Its how much you're willing to sacrifice."

"Oh, I know that," Lin said, while attempting to dry several pieces of silverware at once. "Long days and lots of time are required to be champ. Ha! This is why I'm running low on money too. It will all be worth it in the end."

Mr. Washer shook his head. "I don't think you see what I'm getting at kid. I'm talking about different kinds of sacrifices. Tell me, what's the dream you wish for above all others?"

"To be champion!" Lin said without hesitation. "It's been my wish since I was a little girl."

"Are you willing to dump the eevee for your wish?"

I poked my head out of my nest of towels. "Excuse me? Lin, bite him for me, will you?"

"I'm sure I will do just fine," Lin said. "There's a place for everyone on my team."

"You don't get it kid." Mr. Washer said. "You think that just because you want it means you've got a shot. The truth is wishing doesn't get you anywhere. No matter how hard you're team wishes to be champs, there are simply better Pokémon out there that yours can't overcome. You've got to be willing to trade out your Pokémon for ones you think will bring you to the top. You can't let friendship and sentimentality get in your way. That's the kind of sacrifice I'm talking about."

I wasn't quite sure how to take that. No. That's not what Arazul taught me. I thought back to my time on the farm. Arazul had always told us that we were special, even the less likeable eevees like Feral and Zip. But other words came back to haunt me. As I thought about it, I realized that Arazul was the only one who told me eevees were special.

"Now I wish to be champion even more," Lin said, "Because now I wish to prove you wrong."

Mr. Washer turned to Lin with what was either surprise or anger. Then he laughed. "You know what Lin; I'm beginning to think that if anyone can, it would be you."


"Wow." Aza said from outside his pokeball. "I don't think I've had that kind of exercise in a while. I'm gong to feel that in the morning."

"My arms are sore." Lin said.

"So is my butt," said I.

"So where shall we be going," Aza said.

We must have been getting into the evening. It turned out that the breakfast shift and the lunch shift are one and the same. Now we had a few hours break before we had to report back for dinner.

"We could go back to our room," Lin said. "I've got some thoughts I need to write down."

"Yes, that way I can officially die of boredom," I said. "Geez, now I know why sailors love the sea so much. It's a lot better then being trapped inside of the boat."

"Ship." Aza corrected.

"Whatever," I said. "Can we please go top side?"

"Sure." Lin said. "I'm sure we can find a few trainers up there for you. That should get your blood flowing a bit."

"Be careful what you wish for," Aza pulse to me.

I wasn't too upset about it. Maybe if I faint this day will end faster.

After some maneuvering around the endless hallways, I finally saw a bright light. We'd made it to the top of the ship.

"Now," Lin said. "Let's see-"

We looked up just in time to see a huge Pokémon cross the ship. I don't know what it was, but it was green and black and had a menacing look to it. It must have been some kind of flying type but I didn't see any wings. Instead it had some sort of disk above it that made a chopping sound.

"What kind of Pokémon is that?" I asked.

"That's not a Pokémon, moron." Aza said. "It's a helicopter; a machine. Honestly Ricochet. A propeller on a Pokémon? That's just ridiculous."

"I think it's landing on the boat!" Lin said.

"Ship," Aza corrected.

"Whatever," Lin said. She bent down and scoped me up into her arms. Then we took off towards the landing helicopter, Aza following behind.

When we reached the back of the ship there was already a large crowed. At first I couldn't understand them. I caught bits and pieces, like 'no way', 'believe it', 'lightning American', and 'Agrahhh'. Though, to be fair, that last one may have been a jumbled mix of sounds and not a real word.

"What's an American?" I said.

"Someone from America?" Guessed Aza. "Sounds made up to me."

"It can't be!" Lin said. She then dove into the crowed. Using her small shape, Lin managed to worm her may through the maze of people to reach the center of everyone's attention.

I just saw a human at first. Then I realized that this was by far the largest human I'd ever seen. He was at least three times the size of Lin. His hair was golden, short and spiky. Oh, and he was buff, like machoke size buff.

"It's Lt. Surge!" Lin said. I could tell by her tone that this was someone important. I scanned my memory to see if she's mentioned him before.

"Wait," I said. "You mean the gym leader of Vermilion, Lt. Surge?"

"You seem to know this man very well," Aza said.

"Of course," Lin said. "He's the lightning American."

"There it is again, what's an Amer- wait, lightning as in lightning Pokémon? How do you know what type of gym he runs when you didn't know what type of gym Brock or Misty ran?"

"Because Lt. Surge is famous!" Lin said. "He and Koga are probably the best known gyms in Kanto. See, Lt. Surge was a lieutenant in the rebellion."

"That- what now?" I said.

"A while ago, the people of Johto rebelled against our authority. It didn't last long though. Lt. Surge kicked their butts with his lightning attacks."

"Well that's quite the one sided view of events, but yes, now I remember hearing something about this man."Aza said.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Lt. Surge's voice was as loud as he was big. "I hope you don't mind if I make a pit stop!"

The crowd laughed.

"He must be here to smooth over the food poisoning incident," Lin said.

"Doesn't surprise me," Aza said. "This ship represents his city just as much as he does. He can't have a mistake tarnishing his image."

"Now let me be clear, I'm here to relax a bit before pulling into port so if you see me playing shuffle board don't panic." Lt. Surge certainly knew how to get a crowd going. People were either cheering or trying to get people to quiet down so they could laugh. "We're about two days from the great Vermilion, so let's just kick back with the time we have. I mean it now, I just want to relax."

This got the crowed going for some reason. They all started chanting 'Surge'.

"Ok," I said. "Does this guy have some weird control over people or something?" Then I noticed Lin was chanting with the rest of them. "Lin!"

"Ok, ok, I may participate in a battle or two," Lt. Surge said. At this the crowd and Lin cheered even louder. "But I want them to be flashy. None of this weakling junk I've been running into lately. I mean seriously, I want it big, am I alone here?" The crowd, many humans strong, all said 'No'. "Then don't bring any of this weak sauce to me!"

Lt. Surge was pointing in our direction.

"Please tell me we're standing by a magicarp." I said.

"As much as I would love to turn that eevee there into a static cling experiment, I'm actually looking for a challenge!" Lt. Surge continued.

I felt Lin's arms tighten around me. I also noticed she was no longer cheering.

Then as quickly as our time in the spot light came, it left, "See this woman over here?" Lt. Surge pointed to a small woman to his side. And by small I mean only twice as tall as Lin. She was in uniform and had short-

"Blue hair?" I said. "Is that even possible."

"Trust me," Aza said. "In our world that's completely possible."

Lt. Surge continued. "This is Captain Carol Ish. If any of you want to go toe to toe with me then you're going to have to clear it with her first. Now let's all relax and have a wonderful evening!"

The crowed dissipated. Lt. Surge and Ct. Carol vanish below deck. Everywhere though the mood had changed. Lt Surge said he wanted a relaxed time, but now everyone seemed more energized; everyone except Lin.

She put me back on the ground. I was able to get a good look at her face. She wasn't angry like I expected. She was… I really didn't know what word it was. I understand the feeling though. I could feel it tugging at the corner of my mind.

"Well," Aza said. "How are we going to beat that jarhead? I hope we get to take down that blue haired freak first."

The look on Lin's face vanished. "Yeah." She said. Her eyes coming back into focus. "I think Surge has been in retirement too long. Let's kick his butt."

"Err… I don't want to be the rational one here, but don't we have to be back at work in a few hours?" I said. "When are we going to find the time to impress Carol?"

"Right now!" Lin said before bolting below deck.


We didn't go directly to Carol's room like I feared. Instead Lin marched us to our room to study.

"Electricity." Lin said. "The Pokémon are sweepers. They hit hard and fast."

"Faster than me?" Aza said. We were all in a circle with one of Lin's books in front of us.

"Faster, probably, but you'll be able to hit harder." Lin said.

"Hitting harder doesn't matter if I'm unconscious before I can move." Aza said.

"That's ok." Lin said then pointed to me. "That's why we've got Ricochet. He'll make this possible."

"Sweet!" I said. "What do I get to do?"

"You'll tackle the Lt. first, that will soften them up for Aza to survive the attack and hopefully knock his Pokémon out in one blow."

"Wait, that sounds like I'm… something you… got ride… to…"

"I believe the word you're looking for is pawn." Aza said.

"Lin, I know that you've been making it a point to say that every Pokémon has a part to play." I said. "But have you ever thought that we may not want to fill it?"

"It can work, Ricochet." Lin said. "Besides, your quick attack is going to be critical for this plan to work."

"Yeah," Aza said. "You-"

"Ok, I don't need you to give it the negative spin," I said. "Fine, are we done yet?"

"Not quite." Lin said. "Now Lt. Surge shouldn't have anything that's super effective against us but we don't have anything that's super effective against him either. Lt. Surge may even have more Pokémon than us. One clear advantage we have over him is the fact that electric moves are unreliable."

"Huh?" I said. "Do they not show up when they're suppose to?"

"No, I'm talking about accuracy." Lin said. "The two main lightning attacks are thunder shock and thunder. Thunder shock is accurate but weak. Thunder is massively powerful but inaccurate. Lt. Surge will most likely have thunder. As long as we take into account that luck is on our side-"

"Always a safe assumption for us," I said.

"Then we should be able to take down his Pokémon before he knows where to aim."

"Fantastic." Aza said. "Now let's find Ct. Carol."

Knock! Knock! Knock! Someone was at our door.

"No, it couldn't be," I said.

"It would be highly improbable," Aza said.

"Well," Lin said. "This could be a sign." She opened the door to the hallway. There were two figures standing there. One was a scary looking human wearing a long tank-top, shorts and a straw hat. Standing next to him was a Pokémon with four hooves and large brown sticks coming out of his head. I would latter know that this Pokémon was called stantler, though this is the only one I ever saw wearing a pink top hat.

"Sorry, wrong room." The boy said. Then both he and his Pokémon marched off."

"Well, it would have been creepy if it had been her," I said.

"I would have started doubting what I knew about causality," Said Aza.

"Why did that stantler have a pink hat?" Lin asked.

"Excuse me, Ms. Ota, I believe."

Our team leaned out of the door and looked to the right. At the other end of the hallway was Ct. Carol. She was pretty unmistakable, you know, with the blue hair and everything.

Lin stepped out into the hallway and waited for Carol to reach her. When she did, Lin said, "Nice to meet you Ct. Carol. I was just on my way to see you. I'm Lin Ka Ota, but it seems you've already figured that out."

Now that Carol was closer to us I could see a few more identifying features. This human had some type of metal hanging from her clothing. I assumed they were name badges but not like any I'd ever seen. Upon closer inspection I realized that her short hair was only blue to the bottom where it looked a little brown.

"Is her hair changing color?" I whispered.

"No." Aza pulsed. "She must have dyed it."

"She killed her hair?" I whispered.

"I'm not getting into this with you right now." Aza pulsed.

"Yes, I looked you up in the police files." Carol said. "You've got quite a record there. Usually that's a bad thing, but with you… well you seem to be an exception. In fact you seem to be an exceptional person in many regards."

"I wonder if she's talking about that night in Viridian forest." I said. "Or the incident in Mt. Moon?"

"What about that onix in rock tunnel or the Lavender tower?" Aza pulsed.

"Maybe she was impressed that we caught that thieving abra," I said.

"Of course, this little guy is what caught my eye." Carol said. She bent down and yanked me up into the air. I was about to show this human that you don't surprise a vicious eevee when Carol started scratching me behind the ears.

"Oh, wow," I said. "I haven't had a good ear scratching in a while."

"What a good thick coat," Carol said. Her face was beaming now. I mean before she was stern and disciplined, but now she looked genuinely happy. I just have that effect on most people.

"Where did you get him?" Carol said.

"The Celadon eevee farm, though I received him from Professor Oak." Lin said. "Are you a fan of eevees, ma'am?"

"Yes, they're my favorite Pokémon."

"Ha! Hear that Aza?" I said.

"Wait for it…" Aza pulsed.

"Useless in battle of course," said Carol. I might have bit her, but she was scratching me behind the ears so I decided to let it slide.

"Sell out," Aza pulsed.

"In fact," Carol said. "I got my eevee at that same farm. It's the best one in all of Kanto after all."

"You know, I just realized that the Celadon farm is the only eevee farm anyone seems to know about," Aza pulsed.

"Hey, if you have an eevee," Lin said. "Then let's have a one on one battle! Your eevee vs. mine!"

Carol chucked. "Under normal circumstances I would applaud your use of subtlety before refusing you. However, I did come down here for this reason." Carol put me down then looked Lin in the eye. "Your file says that you're special, but let's just see how good you really are. Let's go top side."


A few moments latter and we were on the front deck of the S.S. Anne. When we were at the back of the ship, everyone was partying but now that I was at the front of the ship I could see that it was meant for business. The entire area was cleared off and the floor was harder. This place was meant for battle.

Ct. Ish walked to the opposite end of the deck or starboard side, and we walked to whatever the opposite of starboard is side. I was a little surprised to see people gathering. They seemed to be watching us. I was a little unused to people watching me battle. In fact the only time I remember fighting in a crowed was the Cerulean city gym.

"Alright, Ricochet," Lin said. "Let's show them what we got." Then to Ct. Ish she said, "Ok, let's do this, eevee to eevee."

Ct. Ish smiled. "Oh, I think there's a little confusion here." She stretched out her hand and showed us a pokeball. "You see, I said I received an eevee, not that I have one." She pressed the release button on the pokeball and red light arched out onto the battlefield.

The creature that emerged was no eevee, I can tell you that much. It was much too long and far too sleek looking. The tail was all wrong too; it was blue, way too long and had some kind of fin at the end. Really, it looked like a fish. The weird frilly thing on the side of its head didn't help.

"Wait," I said. "If I'm not fighting an eevee, what am I fighting?"

"The name's Venus, eevee." A feminine voice called out. I didn't know how I knew that she was a she. Usually I have to make wild guesses about the gender of another Pokémon. With Venus however, I felt as if I had meet her somewhere.

"You seem… familiar," I said. "What are you?"

"I'm a vaporeon." She said.

"Oh!" Lin said. She sounded slightly embarrassed. "Of course you would have evolved your eevee."

Evolved eevee? Suddenly I understood why I understood this new Pokémon so well. "Hold on, I turn into that?"

"Address me if I'm present, eevee!" Venus snapped at me.

"Yes ma'am!" I striated up a bit. Crap! I can't believe I just took an order form an enemy.

"Now, what's your name?" Venuses question seemed more like an order.

"Ricochet, ma'am."

"Is everything alright?" Ct. Ish said.

"Everything's ok," said Lin. "I think this is the first time Ricochet's met an eeveelution." Then Lin spoke to me. "That's a vaporeon. An eevee turns into a vaporeon when it's exposed to a water stone. Like the name implies, she's a water type."

"I hope you're ready for this," Ct. Ish said. "Venus here was specifically breed to become a vaporeon and she's trained with our navy's best."

"What kind of a name is Venus?" Aza pulsed.

"I think it's a Greek god," Lin said.

"What's a Greek?" I whispered.

"I don't know," Lin said, "someone from Greece?"

"Why does everyone keep making up countries?" Aza pulsed.

"Let's begin!" Ct. Ish said. "Venus, surf!"

"Quick attack!" Lin said.

I didn't know what surf was, but at least I got the philological advantage. My soupped up tackle attack hit Venus and gave Lin time to think up my strategy for this fight. However, this didn't happen before I learned what surf was. The Vaporeon blasted a jet of water towards the floor and pushed her way towards me. It almost looked like she was riding a wave. When she got closer, Venus twisted her body and threw her momentum against me.

"That's a powerful water type attack Ricochet!" Lin shouted. Then before I could respond with a sarcastic remark, she said, "I'm already working on something. Keep at her!"

I got to my feet and quickly attacked the water type. For my troubles, I earned another mega fin slap from Venus.

"Uhg," I said. "Lin, this one packs a bit more punch than I'm use to."

"Alright, Ricochet. Get ready to act immediately to what I say." Lin said.

I would have rather used quick attack again, but I obeyed. Ct. Ish and Venus hesitated.

"That eevee, Ricochet was it? He's tough." Ct. Ish said. "Do it Venus!"

The water type jetted over to me. I obeyed Lin's command, stand still. When the order came, it was for me to dodge left. I had time enough to respond, but even as I was dodging I could tell that I wasn't going to make it. The vaporeon's tail flicked me away. I skidded across the wet wood floor until I bumped against a bucket.

"Kick it over!" Came Lin's voice.

I struggled to get to my feet then kicked over the bucket. A mountain of dirt fell on and around me. I glanced up the see a sign that read 'In case of fire.' Well this is convenient. I didn't need Lin's command to know what to do next. I flung the dirt into Venuses eyes.

"Urg!" she said. "I hate that move!"

"Quick attack!" Lin said.

Before Venus had time to blink, I gave her some paw to the face. My momentum carried me to her other side, away form the dirt mound. Then I heard clapping.

"Very impressive." It was Ct. Ish. "Yes, you do have potential. The reports were not lying."

"Ha! Just wait until you see what else we can do," Lin said. "Ricochet and I are about to take you down!"

"No," Ct. Ish said in a soft chuckle. "You can't beat me with your eevee. But you impressed me. That's what I was looking for."

"What do you mean we can't win?" Lin said. "I've got you right where I want you."

"Most definitely." Ct. Carol agreed. "The deck arena was a limitation for both of us at first. You couldn't kick up anything to perform a sand attack and I couldn't perform some of my techniques because they would disrupt the paying customers on board. Not only did you realize this but you found a creative way to eliminate your limits. Not only that but you've positioned Ricochet very well. If Venus turns her back on him to wash away that dirt then it would leave her exposed for some ace in the whole type attack. If she faces you, she'll get sand blasted again. Yes, you've done very nicely."

"Err…you got all that, huh?" Lin said.

"Wow." I said. "I didn't realize Lin put that much thought into a fight."

"You've got a great trainer there," Venus said. "You, though, need to shape up."

Ct. Carol continued saying, "If your eevee had evolved I might have actually lost, unfortunately for you, I can end this right now. Hidden attack!"

Venus's frills on the side of her head stretched out like a spiting monster in a great horror film. Instead of spitting out poison, Venus sent yellowish energy my way. I only had enough time to register that this was an electric attack when a massive seizure ripped its way through my body and tossed me to the floor.

"Hidden power?" Lin said. "I can't believe you have that. I can't believe you have it in electric type!"

"I told you that Venus here was breed to be a Vaporeon." Ct. Ish said. "Besides, I've got to have some sort of electric theme if I'm working for Lt. Surge."

"Really sorry about that Ricochet." Venus said to me. "If only you were evolved you might have been strong enough to handle that."

"I…" I worked to get to my feet. "I'm not done yet."

"Ricochet…" Lin said.

"You're still conscious?" Venus asked. "Maybe you do have potential."

"So not only can he take a physical hit, he also has a great resistence to energy attacks." Ct. Ish said. To my surprise, Ct. Ish walked right up to me and hoisted my soggy tail into the air. "You would make a great vaporeon."

Me? A vaporeon? I glanced down at Venus. But I don't know how to become that. I don't know anything about evolution.

Luckily Lin came to my rescue. She plucked me form Ct. Ish's arms and said, "Well that's a ways off. I don't think I can afford an evolution stone right now."

"What if you didn't have to buy one?" Ct. Ish said. "What if I just offered you one?" The captain reached into a pocket and pulled out a small blue stone. Now let me tell you something. As a one foot high creature, I can tell you a lot about stones. They're constantly in my way when I'm trying to keep up with Lin and they're uncomfortable to walk on. This blue stone was way different than anything I've encountered before. It was still pretty far away but I swear I could feel some sort of energy pulse through me. It felt good, but to tell you the truth, it kind of scared me.

"You would just give me an expensive stone? But why?" Lin said.

"Lin," Ct. Ish said. "You've shown people time and time again that you're talented and resourceful. Your intelligence could serve a much bigger purposes than what you're currently aiming for. I'll give you this stone if you join Lt. Surge and me in the military."

Lin was silent. I was silent. The captain and Venus were silent. Aza was not silent.

"Sweet." He pulsed. "All though I think the evolution would only make Ricochet more annoying, I suppose its better fighting besides sushi."

"Who's that?" Venus said.

"Just some crazy Pokémon." I said. "You really think I'd make a good vaporeon? I mean a soldier?"

"Vaporeons are a defensive Pokémon." Venus said. "We can take a lot of punishment before we ever give out. And as for the soldier, you'll need to work on it but I believe in you."

"Well?" Ct. Ish said. "Do you really need more time to think about this?"

"No." Lin said.

"Well, let me be the first to-" Ct. Ish began.

"No, thank you, I mean." Lin interrupted. "I'm sorry ma'am but I cannot accept your offer."

"Lin, listen to me. You have amazing potential. One day you could even become a high officer in the military," said Ct. Ish. "You will have a steady paying job. You'll get to see the world. Think of all the adventure the military can give you."

"But I wouldn't become champion," Lin said. "I'm sorry, but becoming the best- the champion- is the deepest wish in my heart."

"Then become the champion when you retire," Ct. Ish said. "There will be plenty of time for dreams like that when you're older."

"If it's ok, can I ask you something?" Lin said. "Was joining the military your dream?"

Ct. Ish hesitated, and then said, "Of course."

"Then that's wonderful for you," Lin said, "But do you wish for anything different?"

"Sometimes," Ct. Ish said slowly, "Sometimes we have to be practical and give up on our dreams and wishes."

"You would know all about that now wouldn't you, Carol?" A deep voice called out to us. It was Mr. Washer. Somehow he'd come in with the crowed to watch the fight without us noticing.

"Darrel?" the Captain said. "Is that…" Carol looked a little red. She regained her professional appearance quickly after. "I'm a captain now Darrel. You'd do best to remember that."

"Sorry, captain." Darrel gave her a mock salute. "But I saw the whole thing. You know what; this feels mightily familiar to me."

"Darrel!" Carol hissed, "That's enough!"

"I seem to remember meeting a girl who had a dream of becoming a member of the elite four, maybe even being champion." Darrel continued. "Of course she sold out that dream for a cushy position on Surge's staff."

"Oh? And what have you done with yourself?" Carol said. "You don't seem to be a gym leader. Are you a waiter or something?"

"A dish washer." Darrel said in-between clenched teeth.

"Ha! Well excuse me then." Carol said. "I'd feel sorry for you, but you got the same offer I did. You choose to follow some silly wish and now look where it's got you."

"At least I'm not a glorified secretary," The dish washer said.

"I challenge you!" Carol was red again but I suspect that it was for a very different reason than before. "Right here right now!"

At this point Lin started backing us away form the angry shouting people.

"Your Pokémon is injured!" Darrel said.

"And I have type advantage." Carol said. "This will make it fair. Now get him out here."

"Fine."

Lin and I were off to the side now. Carol and Darrel got to the trainer box on the battle field and sent out their Pokémon. That was easy for Carol since Venus was already out there, but Darrel had to pull out his pokeball and toss it out to the field. When the light vanished, I almost said, 'Holy charmander, Aza!' the Pokémon looked like a charmander just a tad bigger. And by the tad I mean this thing was huge. Not just body size either. The claws and teeth immediately caught my eye, but even the flame on the end of the tail seemed to blaze brighter.

"Venus." The super charmander said.

"Mars," The vaporeon said.

Mars smirked. "You look blue. Something got you down?"

"Nothing a water attack can't fix." Venus said.

"Hidden power!" Carol ordered.

"To the sand!" Darrel said at the same time.

Mars was definitely faster than my evolution. He was half way to the sand before vaporeon even started frilling. As soon as Mars reached the dirt pile, Venus hit the deck with her electric attack. I was about to say vaporeon's attack must have crappy aim when I noticed the electric energy travel through the whole wet deck.

"What just happened?" I said.

"Water conducts electricity." Lin said. "By soaking the deck with surf, she can fill the whole place with electricity."

"Why didn't she get electrocuted?" Aza pulsed.

"Don't know." Lin said. "Hidden power's not a normal electric move."

"Flamethrower!" Darrel said.

Mars unleashed a massive column of flame form his mouth. The pillar hit right besides Venus. At first I thought he had missed too but I realized that he must be drying the deck. Sure enough, Mars spread his flame through the whole arena, leaving it slightly warm but curiously uncharred.

"Surf!" Venus sprayed herself into the air and charged Mars.

"Smoke screen!" Mars opened his mouth and a large black cloud of ash bellowed onto the field. I almost missed what happened next. Venus missed Mars who then twisted around to slash her across her side. I remembered that charmander's scratch attack hurt but this fire type's slash attack looked much grittier.

"Do it Venus!" Carol shouted.

Whatever Venus did or was trying to do, Mars and Darrel didn't wait to find out. "Focus energy!" Darrel cried out. Mars tightened his focus. It seemed like whatever he was going to do next was going to really count.

"Focus energy." Lin said. "Mar's next attack will-" She stopped when water hit her square on the nose. Then another bit of water splashed against her uniform. When I felt drops of water on me I realized that it had started to rain.

"Rain dance." Lin said. "Venus caused it to rain!"

"No!" Darrel said. "Finish it now Mars!"

"Rest!" Venus's trainer said.

As the fire type rushed towards the eeveelution, Venus closed her eyes. Almost like magic, the wounds she had received vanished. Mars then slashed her so powerfully that he carried her up and over the railing to the arena. Venus was then hurled into the sea.

It was quite for a while. Only the now pouring rain could be heard. The clowds Venus had summoned were covering the little sun this evening had left us.

Then a dark shadow loomed over us all. It was a colossal wave and on top of it was Venus. She brought the wave directly down on the arena. Both Lin and I got even wetter, but otherwise we were fine. Mars on the other hand…

Darrel recalled his sputtering fire type.

"You see," Carol said. "We never stood a chance."

"I'm not saying we could have succeeded." Darrel said. "I'm just saying that you could have tried." And with that, Mr. Washer left.

Ct. Ish watched him go, and then turned to Lin. "My offer still stands." She said, then she, too, walked away.

As Venus started after her trainer, she hesitated. Looking back at me she said, "If she's a real trainer, then she'll listen to you. What do you wish for, Ricochet?" Then she went below deck.

What do I wish for? I thought. I really don't know.


That night in the dish washing room was awkward. Mr. Washer didn't say a single word to us and Lin didn't try to start a conversation either. I was too busy thinking about Venus's parting words. Aza tried to crack a few jokes but gave up after no one reacted.

"What do I wish for? I thought. Lin wants to become the best. Aza already thinks he's the best and wants others to realize it. But why am I here? Am I just along for the ride? If Lin's wish was to become a professional clown would you be just as happy?

I tried to imagine myself in a rubber nose while doing a tightrope walk. Ha, no. That would suck.

I thought back to what Lin had said that day she became my trainer. We will be the strongest. Is becoming stronger what I want?

I thought about my recent battles and what people had been telling me about my species. Eevee's are useless in battle. They aren't powerful. They don't learn any great moves. My evolutions do though.

I thought of Venus's abilities. She was able to take massive damage and not faint. She could make it rain on a whim. She could shoot electricity and ride giant waves. What could I do? Hit people with my furry paw? Kick sand into others eyes? Even my most powerful move was techniquly illegal.

If I'm going to be the strongest then I need more power. Maybe that's what my true wish is, to become the most powerful Pokémon ever?

The entire room went dark. "So is that a yes or no?"

"What's going on?" I heard Lin say. "Did a light bulb burn out?"

"No," Mr. Washer said. "The lights in the kitchen are all out too."

"They're out everywhere." Aza said. "Everyone in this boat just got very upset."

"Could something be wrong with the electrodes?" Me. Washer said.

"What's an electrode?" I said.

"They're the Pokémon that are powering this ship." Aza told me.

"Well let's head out to check." Lin said.

"You'll stay here. I'll go check." I heard some rummaging then a click. Light formed a pillar out into the kitchen. I guess Mr. Washer found a flashlight.

"You're going to leave me in the dark with a bunch of breakable dishes?" Lin said.

Mr. Washer sighed. "Fine, come along. It's probably nothing anyway."

It was definitely something. At a certain point we didn't even need the flash light. The buzzing light from down the hall was enough to see by.

"What in heaven's name?" Mr. Washer and the rest of us reached a door that seemed to glow.

"Darrel!" It was Carol. She was racing down the hall towards us.

"What's going on?" Darrel said.

"Rain dance!" she shouted so she could be heard over the load buzzing. "I agitated a real storm. Lightning must have struck something and aggravated all the electrodes."

"Well this is going to be extremely uncomfortable."Aza said.

"What's wrong with an angry electrode?" I said.

"They tend to explode."

"Why on earth would humans put them on a ship then?" I yelled.

"Can't we calm them down?" Lin's shrill voice said over the buzzing.

"There's an emergency shutdown button inside the room!" Even Darrel's voice was strained. "If I can just…" he reached out and touched the door.

CRACK!

Darrel flew away from the glowing door. I couldn't see what had happened to him but the hallway now had a funny smell. I could also make out Carol kneeling down besides him. She was crying.

"We need to get in there!" Lin shouted.

"No!" Aza pulsed. "We do! Ricochet and I!"

"What?" I said. "Why me? Why can't Venus do something?"

"She's weak against electricity!" Aza pulsed. "She'll get torn apart if she goes in there."

"Aza!" Lin's voice sounded even more horrible than usual fom all the shouting. "You can't take this kind of damage either! I'll need you to teleport Ricochet in there! It will be up to you after that Ricochet!"

I knew that I didn't have time to argue.

"Are you ready for this?" Aza asked.

"NO!"

"Me neither!"

Aza put his left hand above my head then pointed his spoon towards the door. I felt the yank in the back of my skull and then the world lighted alive.

The shock of the teleportation protected me from the pain. I got a quick glance around the room.

There are buttons everywhere!

Aza collapsed besides me. That's when I noticed that I was being electrocuted to death. Venus's hidden power had nothing on this pain. The entire room was full of the power too. There was nowhere to run; the emergency button was my only option.

But where is it?

That's when I noticed Aza's out stretched hand. It was pointed to a big red button. Unfortunately it took me right through the area where the electricity seemed the thickest.

I took a deep breath. "BONZLY!"

The electricity kept moving through my body as I worked my way through the room. When I got nearer to the center I realized why the electricity was thicker there. To my right and left I noticed largish pokeballs with eyes. And I thought that I couldn't hate pokeballs more than I already did. It seemed to take me forever to get to them. At first I thought that I was in too much pain put then I realized that I was getting slower. I was being paralyzed.

No! This can't happen! I can't get paralyzed! I don't have the time!

But plead as I might, I couldn't get to the center.

Woohoo. I thought. Halfway there. I didn't understand why that made me so happy. At least I tried right. I felt my whole body go numb. Just standing there in the center of power, I knew that I would not last long. Already I was beginning to hallucinate.

"You chose to follow some silly wishes and now look where it's gotten you."

"Why are you here? Are you just along for the ride."

"The deepest wish of my heart…"

"What do you truly wish for Ricochet?"

"I don't know. I want to help Lin. I need to be stronger. I guess I wish I could have been useful. Yeah, I wish I could be useful to the people I care for."

Strength flowed into my body. I felt great, despite the pain. I can do this! I can reach that button! I've just got to get away from these living pokeballs!

I tried as hard as I could to get away from the electrodes. All the sudden, I could swear that I heard a ringing sound. To my amazement my body became fluid once again. It was almost as if running away came easier to me. I zoomed through the room and reached the red button. I slammed myself against it.

The room immediately filled itself with foam. I'm not an electrician but I prayed that the foam stopped electricity and wasn't someone's idea of a practical joke. Arceus answered my prayer by stopping the buzzing and the stabs of pain. Moments later, Lin opened up the door and started to wade through the room. She quickly recalled Aza then said, "Ricochet! Are you ok over there!"

"I'm fine!" Then I realized that without Aza, Lin wouldn't be able to understand me. I started to wiggle my body out of the foam so she could see me.

The cavalry arrived shortly after. Medics took Mr. Washer off somewhere. Nurses took Lin and me to some back room to be checked up on. I was given an extra large portion of chancy egg. Or maybe I was supposed to split it with Aza. Oh, well, the world will never know.

As soon as Aza regained consciousness, Lin started to speak, "You guys did great. This is what I mean, all the individuals on the team playing to their strengths. It's got us to safety. I'm proud of you all."

"I wish my part didn't have to end in fainting" Aza said. "What about you Ricochet?"

"I was useful." I said quietly.

We heard a few voices mumbling outside. Seconds later Ct. Ish came through our door. "Lin, I can't thank you enough. Your cool head and determined Pokémon may have saved the live of everyone aboard this vessel."

"We all tried our best Ct.," Lin said, "Thanks, though."

"Modesty and humility are good qualities Lin," Ct. Ish said. "Still, once again, you have proven yourselves. Here, I want you to have this." Ct. Ish pulled out her water stone. "I still want you to join the military mind you, but consider this a free gift regardless of your choice."

Lin looked over at me.

"I was useful Lin." I said. "I was."

Lin smiled then turned back to Ct. Ish. "Thank you so much for your offer Ct., that is a generous gift. I don't mean to be rude, but could I possibly ask for something else?"

Ct. Ish was taken aback. "What do you want?"

"Can I get your approval to fight Lt. Surge?"

Ct. Ish hesitated. "Well, I guess I can't say no to you now can I? So be it. I'll set up your battle for tomorrow evening."


Tomorrow evening came faster than I could have imagined. We didn't have to wash dishes, which was great. Evidently people think that hero's shouldn't be slaving away all day after they just saved a bunch of people's lives. Instead Lin gave as the day to go over strategies and to rest. After all, this was going to be one heck of a fight.

When we emerged on deck we received a standing ovation which, Aza told me, was when a lot of people clap at the same time. Personally, I like the word ovation because it sounds a lot better then saying, 'people-being-noisy.'

Lt. Surge was waiting for us at the center of the arena. "You have my thanks kid. I guess I shouldn't have used you as a bad example."

"We were just the right people at the right time," Lin said. Still I noticed her stand a little straighter.

"Well then, ARE YOU READY!" Lt. Surge boomed, his voice boomed like thunder. The crowd cheered. "Then let's get going! Go pikachu!"

"Go Aza!" Lin said.

Both the psychic type and the fat yellow rattata emerged onto the field. Lin and Lt. Surge studied each others Pokémon. I remembered Lin's strategy talks form this morning. There were going to be three key moments in this battle. This was the first. Neither Pokémon could take a hit, but they could dish out the damage. This first moment all depended on whether or not Aza was faster.

"Volt tackle!"

"Confusion!"

The pikachus body turned into a living thunderbolt and shot towards Aza. Aza thrust his spoon out. The pikachu collapsed near inches from the kadabra.

"Oh, thank Arceus!" I said. "One down."

"Was there ever a doubt?" Aza said. "I'm passing the baton to you Ricochet. You can beat it."

"Yeah." Aza was recalled and I stepped out. Moment two, Lt. Surge will have another Pokémon before his strongest. I have to take this thing down or Aza won't have enough strength.

"You've got guts kid." Lt. Surge spoke. "I like that. But don't think for a second that I'll go easy on you. Go voltorb!"

I flinched when I saw what emerged from the pokeball. It was… another pokeball. "Ha! It's like a Russian nesting doll."

"A what nesting doll?"

"Crap." Lin said.

"That's never a good sign." I said.

Lin ignored my statement of fact, "Quick attack."

I moved with unnatural speed and hit the floating pokeball. I was immediately hit with a blast of energy. Except this was different then any attack I'd felt before.

"Sonic boom." Lt. Surge said. "Eevees may have great defenses but it don't really matter with this attack."

"Take him out as fast as you can Ricochet!" Lin said.

Great. I thought. My strengths are useless so I have to rely on my weaknesses.

I used my quick attack again. It didn't really seem to effect the voltorb, but, then again, my attack is only second place to my speed in awfulness. Another sonic boom shook my body, seemingly penetrating it's usual toughness.

"No good, girl!" Lt. Surge said. "I'll knock you out at this rate."

"All right then. Ricochet, time to change strategies." Lin said. "Sand attack!"

"Thunder wave!" Lt. Surge said.

The voltorb was too fast. It coated me with electrical pulses that started to shut down my body... exactly as Lin had foreseen. I crunched down on my berry and felt the effects of the paralysis reversing. Then I unleashed a funnel of sand onto the voltorb.

"I bet you're glad that they filled the arena with dirt for that very attack." Aza said by way of explanation.

"Hum. Well I guess I walked into that one." Lt. Surge said. "Get him as fast as you can voltorb!"

The voltorb hit me with another sonic boom but not before I got another quick attack in.

"So your going to roll the dice, are you?" Lt. Surge said. "You want luck to decide who will win this fight? Well sorry, I said that I wanted a flashy fight and that's what I'm gong to get. Self-destruct!"

I'm no word master, but I didn't need a dictionary to know what self-destruct might do. I hesitated before attacking the voltorb to watch it start glowing. Then I really started wishing hard that this attack wouldn't hurt.

It did.

I'm sure that people thought that the boom and bright lights were very entertaining but I wasn't in the mood to enjoy them. Remember when I said that Venuses surf was the most powerful move that I'd ever been hit with? Well never mind that. This was like licking the sun. I think I lost a bit of fur, and that may not have been the aim of the attack.

"Ricochet!" Lin aid. "Are you ok?"

Ok? Ok! Are you serious? My eyes were dried out, my tail was bent again and my back was sore from the landing. And, by landing I mean when the explosion through me into the mast of the ship and ricocheted me, yes, ha-ha, back into the arena on my back. I struggled to get to my feet. I was just hit by a bomb. I stood up and was… fine. "Err, yeah Lin. I guess I'm fine. My body seems to be going bipolar though."

"Ok, get back here." Lin looked at me questioningly.

"Your eevee's got to be ridiculously tough." Lt. Surge said. "Hum, no…it's got to be something more."

"Are you ready for round three?" Lin said. This time it was her that got the crowd going. I was surprised since I'd almost forgotten about them. Now I could here them chanting. Unfortunately it wasn't our names they were saying.

"Do you want to see power?" Lt. Surge said. The crowd got even louder. "Do you want to see something flashy!" the crowd assured the lieutenant that they did. "Then let's get out raichu!"

One flash of energy later revealed a much more threatening version of the yellow rat. This Pokémon looked like a short haired raticate with some serious attitude.

"Go Aza!" the psychic type emerged from his pokeball.

"Ok, Aza. You know what to do."

Moment three. I thought. If Aza's faster, then a confusion or two will do it. He's even got a berry that will help him recover health. If he's slower, then we'll have to rely on thunder's low accuracy. I just hope that Lt. Surge evolved his raichu really early so it didn't learn any fast attacks and only electric ones. No wait, that would just be stupid.

"Now!" the trainers shouted.

The raichu shot a bolt of lightning form its body that moved through Aza's entire body.

"Ah!" Aza screamed. Still he pressed on with his own attack, bombarding the electric type with psychics blows. "That's not thunder shock Lin!"

"That wasn't thunder either." Lin said.

Lt. Surge smiled. "Ladies and gentlemen, revealing for the first time ever, the newest move approved by the elite four and created by me, thunder bolt!"

"Not part of the plan, Lin," Aza said. "That move's way stronger than thunder shock, and it looks to me like it's accurate."

"I know… I need you in there Ricochet," Lin said. I nodded. Lin recalled Aza after he had consumed the berry. "Alright, Lt. Surge, let's see how powerful your new move is! Ricochet, quick attack!"

I slammed my paws into the raichu before he had time to recharge. I knew that I wasn't doing a lot of damage but hopefully I could do enough so that-

My body froze. No! No! How am I being paralyzed?

"Looks like your eevee has fallen prey to my raichu's special effect, static." Lt. Surge said. "Now let the beating commence. Thunderbolt him 'til he's unconscious raichu!"

A massive bolt of electricity funneled through my body.

I've got to get up! I've got to- my body refused to move as another thunderbolt crashed into me.

No, can't end this way…

Again and again I was electrocuted. Eventually my body started to fail. My mind froze; becoming a simple observer of my body's shut down. I noticed that the noise of the crowed became a monotone hum. My skin felt very sensitive, almost like I could feel each individual strand of fur growing. My ears went numb and my nose started tingling. Then the whole world started getting lighter, beginning at the middle of my vision and then expending outward. It was like it was slowly being erased.

In those last moments my rational mind returned. I wish I had just a little more time. I wish I could get up just once more. I wish that I had that strength. I wish… for what I need to be useful to my team.

My body healed. It was no imaginary force I felt, the damage I had taken was simply reversed. I couldn't believe it. I was paralyzed still but I felt like I could have taken another round of thunderbolts.

"Is it my imagination?" Lt. Surge said. "Or is your eevee healed?"

"How is that possible?" Lin said.

"It's his wishes." A voice called out of the crowd. Lt. Surge and our team looked over to see Ct. Carol Ish push her way to the front of the crowd. "You told me that your eevee came form the Celadon farm. That place is famous for many reasons. One of these is for the rare moves they've managed to breed into their eevee's!"

"Wish?" Lin said. "Oh-my-gosh Ricochet, you can perform the wish technique!"

Quick attack, sand attack, iron tail and wish? I thought. As soon as I did I felt the power click in my brain. It had always been inside of me, but now I knew where it was. Now I could direct it.

"Doesn't matter." Lt. Surge said. "Your eevee's still too weak to beat me!"

"Actually this eevee just won me this match!" Lin said. "Wish, Ricochet!"

"Thunderbolt, raichu!"

The electricity wasn't getting old but I knew now that I had a new power within my will. I activated it. I knew something happened but I didn't feel any healthier.

"Return Ricochet!" I quickly left the ring. "Go Aza!"

"Ha!" Lt. Surge boomed. "You'll never survive another THUNDERBOLT!"

"CONFUSION!"

Psychic and electricity tore through the air. The combination of the two was enough to cause seizures. I had to shield my eyes form the clash. One thing was certain though. The electricity hit before the psychic powers did.

When the firework display died down, the crowd went silent. All watched the two Pokémon in the arena. Both were injured beyond words. Only one was standing.

"How?" Lt. Surge said, gazing at his fainted Pokémon. "How did your kadabra beat me?"

"Wish doesn't only heal the Pokémon that uses it." Lin said. "It's a delayed healing move that heals any allies in the battle field at the time. So you see, you didn't lose to my kadabra, you lost to my entire team."

The crowd erupted into chanting again. This time though it wasn't for Lt. Surge.


"So you're saying my dad's a smeargle?" I said. "You know how disturbing that is?"

"Ok, it could be someone in your ancestry." Aza pulsed. "You just had to have inherited it from your father."

"I'm not sure that having a smeargle as a grandfather is any better." I said.

"Hey, as long as you have the power what does it matter?" Lin said while fondling her third gym badge.

"What if you learned that your mother was a jinx?" I said.

"Good point."

"But what exactly is 'the wish technique?" I asked. "Am I powered by my dreams or something cheesy like that?"

"It's actually unknown how wish works." Aza pulsed. "Just because it's a legal move doesn't mean we understand it."

"You know," Lin interrupted. "Some time you're going to have to explain to me how a wild Pokémon knows so much about the minutia of battle laws."

"The passengers are gone now," Aza pulsed. "I think we can leave."

Our team walked down towards Vermilion city. I found the city's small size relaxing. Not every city needed to be as impressive like Cerulean or as important as Viridian. Some of them were just well suited for the purpose they served.

"Hey, you two!" It was Mr. Washer. He was on crutches but otherwise seemed fine. "You weren't leaving with saying goodbye were you?"

"You're up!" Lin sounded surprised. "They said you might be out for a week."

"He was always stubborn." Carol said form his side.

"Thank you both for believing in my team." Lin said. "I wouldn't have even had a chance of winning if you both hadn't taken a chance on me."

"I think you had a bigger effect on us than the other way around." Carol said as she squeezed Darrel's shoulder. "Thank you Lin."

"Yes," Darrel said, looking over at Carol. "Thanks."

"Oh please can we just leave?" Aza pulsed. "You all are making me sick."

"Really?" I said. "You're getting nauseas?"

"No, but all this incessant emotion is giving me a headache."

"Come on, Aza. We've fought ghosts, psychotic drowzees, and overpowered gym leaders," I said. "Compared with that, how bad can a little headache be?"