I don't exactly feel too proud of the structure of this chapter due to how I tried to rush it a bit and was having a bit of trouble staying focused this month. I have been lacking the inspiration and motivation needed to get any actual writing done, but hopefully it will pass soon enough.
Chapter 34: Chain Reaction
Aura sat at the table in the main room with his phone in one hand and a fork in the other. He slowly ate the breakfast him and Dan prepared for everyone as he scrolled through information of the Gym Leader, doing his research to figure out the best strategy to practice while training.
Setting down his plate across from Aura, Dan noticed that the other chair across from him was empty and the food sat completely untouched. "Isn't Diamond going to eat?" He asked.
The guardian looked up from his phone, "Diamond's just in the bathroom doing another quick check on her necklace and earrings. She should be coming out soon here." Aura explained. Moments later, Aura suddenly jumped in his seat, dropping his phone on the table as a panicked scream echoed from his and Diamond's room. Completely disregarding his surroundings, Aura nearly tripped as he leapt from his chair and sprinted toward the bedroom, bursting into the large private bathroom where Diamond stood frozen in front of the wide mirror above the sink. "What happened?! Are you okay?" He cried.
Diamond turned with tears in her eyes. She quickly wiped them away and shook her head, "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scream," she choked. Swallowing hard, Diamond gazed at her necklace draped across her paws, holding back a sob as she stared at the broken silver chain of her most prized possession.
Realizing what was actually going on, Aura sighed as relief washed over him. The trainer kneeled down and looked into the fox's eyes, seeing nothing but disbelief and shock within the scarlet orbs. "It's okay. Take a breath and tell me what happened." He instructed.
Doing what he said, Diamond blinked away the small tears and took a deep breath before locking eyes with her mate. "I-I don't know why it happened… But while I was putting my necklace on after making sure it was cleaned, the chain just fell apart as I was picking it up…" She wiped away another tear, "I'm sorry, Aura… I should have been more careful."
Lightly smiling in a comforting way, Aura slowly took the chain from the fox's claws and examined the broken link as Diamond silently stood and watched. "You don't need to be sorry about this. I may have bought the necklace, but it belongs to you, if anything I should be sorry for not making sure it wasn't damaged… Hold on a second…" Aura lifted the broken chain a bit closer to his eyes, "I think I found the issue here," He held the ends between his fingers, "Looks like the chain was melted where it broke, in fact, it looks a bit deformed all around. I guess it must have been damaged when you were hit with that Manectric's Discharge back in the cave, and it was probably worn down even more from being polished so it finally gave out. But I wonder why it was only this spot that broke?"
When Aura finally looked back up at Diamond, he saw the fox blankly staring at him in amazement with only a few traces of her saddened state remaining. She sniffled and rubbed her eyes from the lingering tears, "Do you know if it can be fixed?" She asked with a bit of hope in her tone.
Aura stared at the chain again and evaluated the damages with a somewhat contorted expression. "I doubt the chain can really be fixed, but we can probably get it replaced, maybe this time with something a bit more resistant."
"Is everything alright?" They heard a soft voice ask from the doorway. Aura looked up and turned to see Prince and Lilly standing in the doorway. The two slowly walking in with Stan and Tia following behind.
"It could be better. Just some issues with Diamond's necklace, but other than that everything's fine." Aura explained.
Lilly placed a paw on her chest and sigh in relief, "That's good, we all got kind of worried when we heard Diamond scream."
Prince took a step and knelt down, "We would have come in sooner, but Miss Lilly felt it was better to allow you to handle the situation without disruption." The Lopunny looked away with a faint blush behind her brown fur from being referred to as "Miss Lilly".
Aura tilted his head a bit and thought about it, if the others were worried about Diamond, he wouldn't have minded them coming in to check. Brushing it off, Aura politely nodded to the four and thanked them for their concern. "With this settled, we should probably finish getting ready for the day since we got a lot of training to get done, not to mention finding a jeweler to replace the chain as well."
Obeying their trainer, the Pokemon all exit the room as Aura calmly looked back at Diamond. After quickly reassuring her he would get it fixed, the two left the bathroom as well to finish preparing for the day ahead.
Deciding to let the Pokemon all stay outside of their Pokeballs for now, the crew made their way into the elevator and descended towards the lobby. Once they arrived and stepped out of the elevator, Aura took out his phone and opened up a map of the city. "So our fist stop for the day is to get Diamond's necklace fixed as soon as we can, luckily I actually found a jeweler a few blocks away that should be able to do it." Zooming in on a specific location, Aura tapped the screen and a small picture of the shop appeared with the address and business hours.
Beside him, Stan slowed down a bit to stretch and loosen his muscles, a few tiny sparks flying from his body each time his joints would pop, "I could really go for a nice long walk if we had to." He said, popping a few more joints and letting out small moans of satisfaction.
Dan smirked as he carried Missy in his arms, "Electric-types usually need to be active more often since electricity will build up in their joints and could cause serious issues." He point out confidently. "That's why sparks come from Stan each time he stretches."
Aura glanced back and smiled, "Good to know. Maybe I'll have to include him in my special training with Prince then, just to make sure he lets out enough energy." As they were talking, the group had made their way out of the Pokemon Center and were now headed down the road in search of the jewelers.
Roughly ten minutes went by until Aura stopped when he felt a tug on his shirt, looking down at the Lopunny and asking what she wanted. "I think I see the store up ahead," she explained, happily pointing in the direction of a small clean building with a rustic yet elegant design to it.
Taking out his phone again, Aura confirmed it was indeed the jewelers and pat the bunny's head, praising her for her observation. The rabbit letting out a cheerful squeak as well. "Come on guys, let's get this done so we can start training for the gym." Taking the lead, Aura walked up to the window to see that there weren't actually many people inside, although he took notice of the small interior and large amounts of jewelry that would most likely cost millions to replace. "Hmm, it might be best for everyone else to wait outside while me and Diamond go in, I don't want to overcrowd the place and accidentally knock over something expensive."
Stan shrugged, preferring to stay outside anyways and continue moving around. Lilly and Tia took no offense to it either, deciding to sit at a nearby bench and relax in the sun, Nessa following behind them to join. Finally, Prince merely nodded and loyally agreed to his master's wishes and stood by the entrance, curiously glancing around the streets at the small crowds passing by in the early morning.
"I'm going to bring Missy inside with us," Dan told him, "I mean it's not that hot out, but I'd rather keep her from overheating."
"What about me?" They both heard Spyke suddenly whine from their feet.
Dan knelt down and slowly shook his head, "Sorry, Spyke, but you and I both know how reckless you can be. Plus I feel you could use some fresh air and sunlight out here, we won't be too long." Sighing and crossing his arms, the small Chespin agreed with his trainer and walked over towards Prince, sitting on the ground and looking at the sky.
"Alright, you guys just wait out here by the shop and we'll be as fast as we can, don't wander off too far, okay?" Getting a collective sound of agreement, Aura proudly nodded and opened the glass door of the shop, hearing the bell above it chime as they stepped in.
Once inside the air-conditioned establishment, Dan decided to browse around to pass the time while Aura and Diamond promptly headed up to the till, there a clean man with short black hair and a goatee stood busily evaluating what seemed to be a small wooden box of smooth red jewels. Taking notice of the approaching customer, the man set the stone back in the box and set it under the counter. "Good morning, is there something I can help you with?" The man asked with a confident smile.
Digging through his pocket, Aura fished out the black box and set it on the counter, "I was wondering if you could take a look at this necklace for me? It belongs to my Braixen and the chain sort of broke after an incident with a Manectric."
"Of course, let's see what we're dealing with, shall we?" The man picked up the velvet case and flipped it open, he looked at the necklace a bit distraught before gently taking the accessory out. "This looks pretty bad, the chain is certainly unfixable. The only thing it's good for now is extra silver for making new jewelry."
Diamond slightly grimaced at the fact the chain was done for good. Aura lowered his head and sighed, "I figured as much, but do you think it'd be possible to at least replace the chain? Maybe something a bit more durable if possible?"
The jeweler smiled kindly as he returned the necklace to the case, "I think that can be arranged. Trainers often buy accessories and clothing for their Pokemon to show a strong bond, so they usually ask if there's a way to make sure it won't be damaged while battling."
Aura thought back to the cave incident and the state Diamond's bag was is. "I think I know what you mean. Like how some equipment and clothes are made with special materials just in case something happens."
The man nodded with another smile, "Exactly, so if you'd like, I could see about replacing this chain with one more suitable for Pokemon, probably a good idea to replace the gem socket as well."
This time, Diamond's ear perked up from the good news. "I guess now it all comes down to the cost?" Aura asked a little less than excited as he worried about the price. But to their surprise, the man simply looked at the box and smiled.
"Normally the extra coating and materials used in these kinds of jewelry don't usually cost as much as the jewelry itself, but considering the silver in this necklace could still be melted down at the very least, I might be able to cut a deal with you." Aura paused and faced the man puzzled, "Like I said, the silver can still be melted down and reused, so if you'd like then I can take the silver as payment for the new materials while you simply pay for the extra stuff? Sound fair?"
Aura thought about the man's offer and the amount of money he'd save with this, with that thought in mind, he promptly nodded in agreement, "If it's okay then I'm all for it. To be honest though," he looked at Diamond and held her shoulder, "so long as she's happy it wouldn't matter how much I spend."
The man smirked and nodded in understanding, "Alright then, I do however have to inform you I have quite a few other orders to take care of first, if you have a way for me to contact you then I could let you know once you can come pick it up?" Quickly agreeing to the man's terms, Aura gave the man his phone number as well as mentioning they could be found at the Pokemon Center too. Then, after getting the final cost of it all, Aura gladly payed the man for his services and left the necklace with him.
"Thanks again, sir. This really means a lot to us." Aura bowed.
The man laughed and waved to them, "No worries, have a good day and I'll let you know when to pick up the necklace." With a friendly wave back, Aura and Diamond quickly got Dan and left the store, glad to see all the Pokemon loyally waiting outside as they were told. The moment they all heard the bell chime and saw their trainers exit the shop, they quickly went to their sides and followed back to the Pokemon Center to finally begin their training.
A loud explosion echoed through the air as a pillar of smoke rose from the Pokemon Center's courtyard, on either side of the smoke stood an Absol and Lucario in the midst of an intense battle. Both Pokemon soon charged toward each other, the Absol's horn flickering with shadowing energy while the Lucario's wrist spikes extended out and split to form three razor sharp claws of silver energy. An intense crackling sound followed suite as the result of the clashing attacks, letting out a shower of light and dark sparks in the process before the pair forced each other to jump back.
"Keep up the good work you two! We need to be prepared when we challenge the gym!" The Absol and Lucario looked towards their trainer and nodded. "Alright, Tia. Since the Gym Leader uses Fighting-type Pokemon you'll be at a type disadvantage, so we need to be able to counter that."
Tia looked over with a bit of a guilty expression, though thankfully she was too far for Aura to clearly see it. "A-Are you sure you want me to fight then?" She subconsciously lowered her tail and glanced away, scratching her leg shyly with her claws. "Wouldn't Stan be a better choice instead of me?"
At this point, Aura could clearly see she was nervous about the coming battle, but Aura simply returned her doubt with a soft smile, "You'll do fine, Tia. Type doesn't always decide the battle, there's more to it than that, and I believe that you can prove it to everyone." Tia looked at her trainer doubtfully. "Trust me, Tia. We've been training for almost an hour and you've been doing great so far."
Glancing toward the others, Tia noticed Stan watching her with a supportive smile, nodding his head at the Absol confidently. Though she still doubted she'd be helpful during the gym match, Tia finally looked at Aura and nodded with a forced smile. "I'll try my best."
"Great, let's go for about another half hour and then you two can take a break while Diamond and Lilly train." Watching as the two Pokemon moved to their starting positions, Aura began to call out his commands.
"Prince, I want you to charge at her with Extreme Speed!" Sliding his leg back, Prince harshly stared at the Absol across him with a white glow suddenly outlining his body, immediately lunging forward at full sprint tailed by a glowing white streak. "Tia, avoid it with Double Team!"
Just as quick as Prince took off, Tia firmly spread her forelegs and lowered her head before splitting into multiple blurry projections of the Dark-type, leaving Prince to instantly faze through the spectral image left where the original once stood. Coming to a halt completely surrounded by the Absol clones, Prince frantically looked around as they all flickered faster than light while staring him down.
"Now, Tia! I want you to jump and use Slash! Prince, try and block the real one with Metal Claw!" The horns on each of the Absols began to glow as they all lunged into the air. Prince spun around as he watched them all approach, the Lucario hastily tried to determine which was the real one with the use of his heightened aura, however it backfired as he still hadn't fully adapted to his heightened senses and overestimated his control over said power, leaving him momentarily blinded and unable to detect Tia.
Prince felt his head throb as he cut off his aura sense, he slightly wobbled but refused to give in to the dizziness as he still had a chance to guard against the real Absol. Triggering his Metal Claw, Prince pivoted to his right and raised his claws in an X above his head, unfortunately for him, he not only felt even more dizzy from the quick movement, but he was unsuccessful in guarding himself as the Absol he faced merely fazed through his claws an instant before the one just to his left had made contact with him.
Tia bounced back with her horn returning to normal while Prince stumbled backward and fell, kicking up a small cloud of dirt as he hit the ground and slightly winced. Despite Tia having successfully taken him down, she felt concerned that she may have done more than intended and slowly stepped forward. "A-are you okay? I wasn't too rough was I?" She worried.
Prince grunted and pushed himself into a sitting position, grabbing his head and moaning in pain as it throbbed. "I'm alright, but thank you for your concern." He replied, hissing silently through his teeth and wincing again.
Tia's worry began to grow as she continued to watch her teammate endure whatever pain he was in, unable to feel anything but guilt as she presumed this was her doing. The Absol opened her mouth to apologize, but stopped as Aura quickly jogged over and knelt down beside the jackal. "You okay, buddy? It looked like you just suddenly lost focus in the middle of all that, did something happen?" He asked, taking a few glances around the Lucario's body, mainly his head, as he wondered if it was from an injury.
The canine slowly bowed his head, avoiding any sudden movements to prevent his headache from worsening. "I am fine, Master Aura. It was due to an error on my part." The Lucario rubbed his temples and took a breath to calm his mind, soothing the pain just a bit.
"What do you mean by 'error'?" Aura inquired.
"It seems that I still haven't fully adapted to my increased strength from evolving. I failed to properly control my heightened senses and suffered for it." Prince let out another wince and rubbed his forehead.
Aura smirked at the Pokemon and rubbed his shoulder, "Well then I guess we'll have to work on that during out special training together, eh?" He suggested, grinning confidently and giving him a thumbs up.
Prince returned the grin and nodded, "I will not disappoint you, Master Aura."
"Good. For now let's get you and Tia some rest for a while so Diamond can train with Lilly. I don't need you guys overworked and exhausted for tomorrows training session." Standing up, Aura was about to reach for Prince's Pokeball, however he paused after remembering he promised to let them all remain outside their balls during their stay, besides, he had forgotten them all back in the suite. Laughing awkwardly, Aura knelt down and wrapped Prince's arm around his neck, swiftly yet gently carrying the Lucario bridal-style across the field toward the others.
Once Prince was set down in one of the chairs, Diamond and Lilly jumped from their seats and waited for their trainer before heading out onto the battlefield.
While editing this my browser messed up so sorry for the sloppy end note.
Thank you all for reading my story thus far despite the minor mistakes on my part. I can't promise next chapter will be structured too much better than this one, but I will try my best to make sure it is done well enough since what happens could very well change the course of the entire story, or not, we'll just have to see. Hopefully it won't take too long to write since I have a bit pre-written, but I hope to get it out as soon as I can.
Thanks for reading and I hope you all enjoy what's yet to come. Until next time.
