Chapter 24 - "That Was Protect!"

One Year Previous

"Okay, class. As you all know, today we're each going to present. The theme of today's presentation is our dreams for the future," Ms. Eriko told her class. "I know that a presentation might not seem like much, especially in terms of Pokémon training, but having people watch while you do something personal can be nerve wracking. Imagine hundreds of people watching you battle."

A ten year old Kala sighed. "I hate presentations."

Lilo laughed and then lightly punched her friend in the arm. "You'll be okay. But, just like battling, I'll show you how it's done."

"Who wants to go first?"

Lilo, without hesitation, stood up and walked to the front of the class. She took one glance at her paper and then put it upside down on the podium.

"Hello."

"Hello," the whole class said back.

"My dream is simple. I want to be the strongest trainer to ever come from Alola. I want to travel the world and become a champion in a foreign land. I study battle techniques every day, and I read about Pokémon from foreign lands."

Ms. Eriko smiled. "Where do you want to become champion?"

"Galar, miss."

"The Galar League is a little bit different from other places, but I'm sure you'd make a great champion one day, Lilo," Eriko said before she started to clap. Everyone followed along, and Lilo took her seat once more. "Who's next?" Ms. Eriko asked.

"Kala!" Lilo exclaimed. She grinned, and Kala groaned before forcing herself to stand up.

She walked to the podium and looked at her class. It was roughly thirty people ages ranging from seven to ten. She knew all of them very well, but she still didn't like the idea of talking about her future with them. She gripped at the sides of the podium and ran her fingers across its wood, feeling where some of it had been chipped over the years.

"I-I want to…" she started. She looked down at the podium, avoiding the gaze of her classmates. "I want to become…"

It was silent once again. She felt like this was a ridiculous task. What was the point in sharing her future goals and dreams? What did she learn about Pokémon battling through this presentation? She looked up again.

"I want to become the Island Kahuna for Melemele."

Ms. Eriko clapped her hands together once. "Just like your grandfather! I expected an answer like that!"

Kala nodded.

Ms. Eriko continued, "And the Kahuna gets to choose who's next in line, so I'm sure if you try really hard, you'll be chosen. Why do you want to be kahuna?"

Kala stood up straight, but she still attempted to avoid everyone's gaze. "It's my duty to protect Alola. I met Tapu Koko, and my mom thinks that it chose me to be the next kahuna."

Ms. Eriko smiled. "Like destiny."

Present Day

With their loss heavy on their minds, Cyan and Kala now made their way through Route 13. Oddly, they were quiet. Cyan would usually fill up the silence with talk about his home, and he'd relentlessly ask Kala questions about all of the Pokémon and flowers and clothing items that they'd see on their journey. But today, he was quiet and walked slower than usual.

"You want to know anything about your upcoming trial?" Kala asked.

Cyan slowly shook his head. "No. I'm good."

"Are you sure? This trial is a doozy!"

Cyan stopped walking and then sighed. "I can't afford to have you help me anymore."

"What?"

"Today, we got beaten really badly by Team Skull."

"That's a sentence I thought I'd never hear."

"I think that I've been going into my trials too prepared. I know what I'm getting into, and I can sort of make strategies beforehand. We walk up a volcano, I know I'm fighting a Fire-type, we go into a jungle, I'm guessing that it'll be a Grass-type, and so forth and so on."

Kala nodded. "I mean, that's an obvious assessment."

"But then sometimes I ask you to give me advice before we go in, and I want to go in completely blind. When we fought Guzma and Plumeria, we were completely blind, and we lost."

"So, you want to learn to be more adaptable?" Kala asked.

"Yeah. You never know who you'll battle. You can never be too prepared, but I want to be a trainer who can go in without preparing."

Kala folded her arms. "That's one way of tackling everything. Sounds good to me, I guess. But what about us?"

Cyan was slightly taken aback. "U-us?"

"Yeah. What do we do? If you don't want my advice, then should I keep traveling with you?"

"Oh. Um, yeah! Of course!" Cyan answered now that he understood what she was getting at. "I mean, you're my friend, and I still want to learn everything I can about Alola. I just want to become the best trainer that I can."

Kala simply smiled.

The two continued down Route 13 for a little while longer. There were more trainers than usual, and from the looks of most of them, they were pretty strong. But there was one trainer that caught their eyes. A trainer dressed all in black with green hair managed to stick out from the rest. And upon seeing Cyan and Kala, she appeared delighted. At her side was a small bipedal Pokémon with scalchops on her thighs.

"Emma!" Cyan yelled.

The goth girl approached the two and she waved. "It's been awhile. How goes your challenge?"

Cyan grinned and gave her a thumbs up. "Not bad!"

"We did have a run in with some bad people yesterday though, and that's taken its toll," Kala explained. "It looks like Oshawott has changed a bit since we last met."

"Yeah!" Emma exclaimed. "My little Oshawott evolved into a Dewott just a few days after our battle. She's super strong now."

Cyan knelt down and examined the new Pokémon. "She looks so strong.

Emma looked over her two friends. She could see that something was a little bit off about them, so she offered what any trainer would. "Kala, how about a battle? The people here are chumps, and I'd love more of a challenge."

Kala looked down to her Litten and smiled. "I think I'd like that. I gotta beat you as repayment for the battle royale."

Kala is growing more confident in battling. Win or lose, this can be good for her. Cyan thought. He stepped back.

"How about two on two?" Emma suggested.

Kala nodded. "Sounds perfect to me!"

They created space and both prepared to make their selections, but then suddenly, a bright white light exploded from Emma's belt, and a small brown Pokémon appeared on the field. It looked up at Emma with its hopeful eyes before laughing and turning to Dewott. It swooned upon seeing the Water-type Pokémon, wistfully rocking from side to side as it became entranced with love.

"Eevee…" Emma muttered. "Sorry. He's still kind of young. But I guess he's made my decision for me. I'll go with Eevee first."

Kala smiled and pulled out a Poké Ball that was extra shiny. "In that case, I'll use my youngest Pokémon! Jangmo-o, go!"

Jangmo-o materialized onto the field and stretched. He yawned before catching Cyan's glance. He playfully opened his mouth and danced around.

"Peek-a-boo," Cyan said silently, making the Pokémon laugh hysterically.

"Tackle!" both of the girls ordered in unison.

The two young Pokémon turned to one another before charging forward, weakly stumbling into their attacks. They collided and then both fell back, laughing at their own attempts.

"Hey, let's get serious," Kala said, slightly embarrassed.

"Use Growl!"

Eevee got back up and then growled at Jangmo-o, terrifying the Dragon-type. He took a step back, a look of horror plastered across his face.

"Tackle!" Kala ordered, thinking that's all she could do at the moment.

Jangmo-o cautiously jumped forward, tackling his head into Eevee, doing enough damage to irritate the Normal-type.

"Tail Whip!" Emma called.

Eevee turned his body and wagged his tail around, brushing it softly against Jangmo-o's face. The Dragon-type started to giggle playfully once more, but then Emma made her next command.

"Tackle!"

Eevee shot around before lunging forward, jabbing the entirety of her body into Jangmo-o. The Dragon-type was flung backwards, and he landed hard on his back. He slowly got back to his feet, but now, his smile had faded away from his face.

"Tackle!" Emma ordered once more.

Eevee ran forward, but then Jangmo-o howled, and a blue forcefield formed in front of his body. The Normal-type collided with the shield and bounced off of it, landing back a few feet. Eevee looked at the forcefield, perplexed by the complicated attack.

"That was Protect!" Kala yelled out happily. "I didn't know that you could do something like that…"

"Jang!" the Pokémon snapped. "Mo!"

With that, Jangmo-o's body began to glow with blue energy, and he twisted around. Blue flames exploded from his tail before he swung wide, crashing it into Eevee and sending the Normal-type Pokémon into the air. Eevee landed hard on the ground, unflinching. Jangmo-o soon fell after, the effects of the attack wearing on his body.

"Whoa…" Kala muttered.

"I thought you said he was a baby Pokémon!" Emma yelled.

"He is! That was his first battle!"

The two trainers ran onto the field to their Pokémon, and they smiled as they picked the playful creatures up. Both Jangmo-o and Eevee stirred in their arms, and to both of the trainers' relief, started to giggle. The trainers walked back to their original positions, and returned their Pokémon to their balls.

"How about a more serious battle?" Emma asked.

Kala simply nodded and then looked down to Litten. "You're up."

"Dewott."

The two Pokémon slowly walked onto the field and they stared each other down. Litten crouched as Dewott readied to grab her scalchops if commanded to.

"Litten, use Ember!"

"Cut through it with Razor Shell!"

Litten leapt into the air before raining small spurts of fire towards Dewott. But it was no issue for the Water-type, as she quickly drew out her blades of aquatic energy, and with one swift swipe, destroyed all of the fire. Then, she continued forward, preparing to strike Litten directly.

"Scary Face!"

As soon as Litten landed back on solid ground, she growled, and black energy exploded from her face, forming what appeared to be a ghostly scowl. Dewott stopped in her tracks, and the aquatic blades dissipated.

"Ember again!"

Now that Dewott was frozen, Litten unleashed her flames yet again. This time, it was a direct hit, sending Dewott rolling backwards. Once Dewott was back to a standing position, she raised her two scalchops, blocking the rest of the flames.

"Water Pulse!"

Dewott leapt into the air, sheathed her scalchops, and then formed a ball of energy in between her two palms. With a quick movement, she flung the orb towards the ground. It exploded, creating a small wave of water that raced directly towards Litten.

"Jump!" Kala commanded, knowing well that she had no attack that could properly fend off Water Pulse.

Litten tried to jump backwards, but the water was too quick. It engulfed Litten completely, forcing the Fire-type back. She screeched as the water dragged her body across the field, and once it faded away, she slowly stood back up, her movements staggered.

"Fury Cutter!" Emma's voice called.

Upon landing on the ground, Dewott drew one of the scalchops from her thigh and focused energy into it. A long blade formed from dark green energy was created, and she ran forward with it over her head, prepared to swing.

"Double Kick!" Kala commanded.

Litten was still staggered, but she managed to twist her body around as Dewott approached. With one kick, she knocked the scalchop from Dewott's grip, and then with another, she hit the Water-type directly in the face. Dewott yelped as she stumbled backwards slightly. She held at her nose and squinted her eyes, leaving herself open to Kala's next command.

"Fire Fang!"

Litten jumped forward and latched onto Dewott's shoulder, and then suddenly, flames exploded from her mouth. The two were set on fire, and they struggled as Dewott tried to shake Litten off of her.

"Roll and use Razor Shell!"

Dewott took in a deep breath and calmed herself down for a moment. She tucked and rolled to the side, dragging Litten along with her. And then, with one movement, she picked up her scalchop, put aquatic energy into it, and swiped, knocking Litten off of her. The Fire-type fell to the ground with a sickening thud, and her body went limp, indicating that the match was over. Dewott fell to one knee, and keeping one eye open, looked out at the fallen Litten.

The trainers ran onto the field. Kala scooped up Litten from the ground, and Emma allowed Dewott to fall into her arms.

"That was exciting!" Emma declared. "You're a pretty good trainer, Kala."

"Thank you," Kala said as she looked at her Pokémon. Litten breathed softly as she rested in her arms. "You too."

Cyan clapped and walked to the middle of the battlefield to meet them. "That was intense! I didn't know that Litten has so much fight in her!"

"Where are you off to next, Emma?" Kala asked.

Emma pointed in the direction opposite of where Cyan and Kala were headed. "I have a match with the kahuna in a couple of days. I've been preparing for that."

"So, you've already cleared Acerola's trial?" Kala asked. "You really are good."

"Yeah. Her challenge reminded me of 'the broken teacup incident!" Emma said. She opened her mouth to elaborate, but then Cyan quickly interrupted.

"No!" he yelled as he put his hands against his chest, forming an 'x' shape. "Dame! Dame! Dame! I don't want any hints!"

Emma appeared puzzled before laughing to herself. "Well, okay. I guess I'll save it for another day."

The three laughed as something from a distance looked on curiously.

Roughly Two Years in the Future

The wind blew softly through the Alola Region. It was a warm day in the spring and the people of the region were out and about on their day to day activities. The kids on Melemele Island all went to the packed school near Hau'oli City. On Akala Island in Paniola Town, the people went to work on their farms, providing food for the whole region. On Ula'ula Island children played near the meadows. Poni Island was as noisy as ever as the strongest trainers in all of the region battled with one another while they prepared for the second ever Manalo Conference.

But at the entrance of Vast Poni Canyon, was a quiet lone building. From the building, Alolan music softly radiated. A girl, nearing the age of fourteen, slowly danced to the music on what appeared to be a battlefield, her long green skirt waving with every motion. She moved to the music with her eyes closed, waving her arms around calmly. To the side, a canine Pokémon with a thick orange mane sat, watching every movement. Next to her was a small feline Pokémon with black and red fur. She laid down with eyes closed, enjoying the warmth that came from her companion.

The door creaked open, and the girl stopped moving. She opened her eyes and looked out. A young girl with long pitch black hair poked her head through the door and nervously smiled.

"M-miss Kala, you have a challenger," she said.

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

So, quite a bit. Emma made her reappearance. She'll be back a couple more times. And then there's something watching Cyan and Kala…?

And we got a glimpse of Kala's future. What kind of challenger do you think she has coming for her?

REVIEWS:

pokemonking0924 - "I wonder if Cyan will get a mega stone for Venusuar and the z moves that only specific Pokémon can use. Can't wait to see what sort of training our heroes will do to be better prepared for team skull" - The Mega Stone question is a good one, but Mega Evolution hasn't really happened yet in the world I've made. (Logan's story takes place two years after this) That said, who knows?

CrescentApple - "That was sorry one sided until Venusaur showed up. I can see now that Cyan does not like to lose. I guess I'm so used to him winning I assumed he was okay losing too." - I think he'll take losses a lot better than Logan. (Cyan isn't the kind of character to ever run away from a loss, whereas Logan becomes obsessed with his losses)

wisdom-jewel - "Cyan can't win them all. At least Ivysaur becomes Venasaur. It would be wise for Cyan to work with his Pokemon and have trust-building exercises. Maybe next time when he faces Guzma the battle would end in a tie, hopefully." - They'll be seeing Team Skull again sooner than later. He'll get another chance.