Jason Creight awoke to the sound of a big ship blowing its horn.
He rolled over and looked at the radio clock, which read 4:30 A.M. Quite early, but once one woke up at that time with things to do during the day, it was very hard to get back to sleep at that point.
Jason didn't bother trying. He knew precisely which ship that was blowing its horn out there.
It was the Colossal.
The first ship for the Atlantis League.
The only ship that ever docked anywhere near land.
And it was here.
Jason propped himself up and threw the sheets of his bed aside. Today was the last day he and Kelly would be in this motel; he would have to get his things together, get a bath, get dressed, and get checked out. He figured it could take a while to do all this.
*Sooner I get started, the sooner we can board and be done with it,* he thought.
He started in.
***
Kelly knew she was dreaming.
That knowledge didn't let her take control of the dream.
She dreamt that she was back in the lab complex in Pallet Town. She was in her room, and there was a knock on the door.
"Who is it?"
"It's me."
She moved to answer the door.
And there was Jason. On his feet. With a mustache and goatee, and the most serious look on his face.
*No!* she thought, even as she continued to play out the events that had actually happened. *That's Creight! It's not Jason!*
But there was nothing she could do to stop it all from happening again.
Suddenly, the parameters of the dream changed. She found herself in a dark area, the borders of which weren't clear. In front of her were Creight on the left, and Jason on the right.
They spoke as one, the harmonics of their voices matching perfectly with the other's.
"Which one of us do you love more, Kelly?"
They both began to circle her. Creight leaned in. "You love me more, right? The tall, dark and handsome guy who's always keeping secrets, has some of the most powerful Pokemon in the world, and came back through time itself to save your life. Ruthless and efficient."
He pulled back, and then Jason leaned in. "You love me more, right? The wheelchair-bound guy who, despite the odds stacked against him, has managed to survive, cared enough to come back to you, and listened whenever you had something to say. Sympathetic and patient."
Creight. "I'm the one who said 'I love you.'"
Jason. "I'm the one you said 'I love you' to."
"I gave my life for you."
"I'd give anything for you."
Both of them. "I said the one thing you most wanted to hear."
Those last words echoed painfully throughout the limits of the area, only to bounce back twice as strong, then four times, then eight...
Kelly felt completely and utterly overwhelmed. She fell to her knees and curled into a ball and tried to shut the voices out. *Wake up! Wake up!*
The voices only got louder.
She screamed, and kept screaming.
Whether it was in agony of the sound or despair of the paradox, she didn't know.
*Wakeupwakeupwakeupwakeup*
She was suddenly and violently snapped out of her dream and into the light of morning by a pair of strong hands holding her shoulders.
"Kelly!"
The worried shout sounded almost far away, though it was right next to her. Her head whipped around, and her eyes focused on Jason.
The one in the wheelchair.
He had more concern in his expression than she had ever known him to have before. His mouth hung slightly open, the space between his eyebrows was split by two creases, and his dark eyes showed more worry than she'd ever seen.
More than she thought he had the capacity for.
She fell into his embrace, and he held her as closely and tightly as possible.
She felt a sense of safety that she'd not fully realized before.
"You're the one I love more," she whispered, so low that he couldn't hear it.
***
Jason had just gotten out of the shower and dressed when Kelly had started screaming. He'd immediately responded, moving his wheelchair as quickly as he could to her side and taking gentle hold of her shoulders.
"Kelly, wake up!" he called. Then, louder, "Kelly!"
Her eyes had snapped open then, and Jason saw unbridled terror in them.
And she'd almost thrown herself into his lap, hugging him so tightly that breathing became a near-impossibility.
"It's all right now," he muttered, as he gently rocked her back and forth. "It's all right."
For a moment, he recalled the night Daniel had first come to Pallet Town and tried to frame Jason for murdering Professor Oak.
Neither the framing nor the murder had succeeded, thankfully. But Daniel had attempted to salvage his revenge by kidnapping Kelly.
And when Jason had found and freed her, she'd thrown herself into his arms with the same aggression.
Jason hated to see her in a moment of weakness like this. He hated it because she had, as far as he could recall, only twice before seen him in a moment of weakness, while he'd seen more than that in her. He knew that she was, in fact, a very strong-willed person, and it took a lot to scare her.
Whatever had been in her nightmare had been undoubtedly terrifying.
Jason was just as glad that he didn't experience it.
He wouldn't ask, either. She'd tell him when she was ready. She'd afforded him the same courtesy; now it was his turn.
Abruptly, this mix of thought and emotion began to click in his mind.
They were pieces of the puzzle he wanted to solve.
He was one step closer to discovering the answer to the question that would ultimately decide if he and Kelly stayed together.
What was more, he was heading towards "yes."
He felt better now. He was getting somewhere.
The horn of the Colossal blared once more, and Jason turned his right ear toward the window. He could hear people out there now. It sounded like a huge crowd; he could only assume that they were disembarking from the ship. He doubted if many people around here would be insane enough to board the ship now, at 5:00 in the morning.
A few moments later, Kelly's head rose from his shoulder. He turned back to her, to see that she was smiling. There was still a small amount of fear in her eyes, but even that was quickly fading, to be replaced by something akin to amusement.
"Even now, you're thinking of all the training you'll be able to do in this new league," she said, in a mockingly accusatory tone.
"Believe me, you're the one I'm more worried about right now," he responded. "Are you all right?"
She rose from the slightly compromising position she'd put herself into, and into a more comfortable sitting position. "Not really, but I'll live. Just as long as it was a dream."
"Okay." Jason swore to himself that he wasn't going to pry, though his curiosity was sailing through the roof.
Kelly sighed a heavy sigh, and looked around the room. "I see you've been at it, cleaning up around here." She playfully flicked her finger at the slight curl in Jason's still-wet brown hair, which had grown noticeably longer since the incident with Creight.
"Yup. After all, today's the day."
"So it is. I should probably grab a shower and get my stuff packed."
"Probably a good idea."
She got off the bed, rummaged through the drawers she'd used, got a clean change of clothes, and went into the bathroom to get started on her end. Before she closed the door, however, she poked her head back through it to look at Jason. "Think there's a barber shop aboad that ship?"
Jason chuckled and pulled out the guidebook he'd just packed. "They've got everything on the Colossal. Auditorium, exercise gym, dance hall... and yes, since you asked, a barber shop. Good thing the ship is steady enough for one."
"Well, good," she responded. She pointed at Jason's hair. "Might sound weird, but I was sort of wondering to myself how you'd look bald."
He raised an eyebrow. "Were you, now?"
"Yep." She ducked back into the bathroom and locked the door.
Jason scoffed. *Bald, indeed. Only time I was ever bald was when I was born. Even then, I had hair.*
But, despite that thought, he still looked himself in the mirror for a moment.
He returned to packing his backpack, eternally grateful for a laundromat within the motel. He could stand dirty clothes up to a point, but beyond that point, he almost went stir-crazy trying to find a way to get them adequately clean.
Being paralyzed from the waist down didn't help, either, not as far as his excretory system went; he was also grateful that he had been equipped with shunts for that particular problem. It wasn't as if he could exactly hold it, not when he couldn't use the muscles necessary.
Such were the thoughts that pervaded his mind as he continued to pack.
And this time, unlike others, he allowed them to take him.
After all, it wasn't like he had anything constructive to think about at that particular moment.
***
It was around 9:30 in the morning when Kelly and Jason got to the Colossal's dock, after eating a free continental breakfast at the motel, which was actually pretty good. Kelly ate two bowls of honey-covered Cheerios, while Jason ended up eating close to half a dozen cream-filled donuts.
Kelly had watched in disbelief as Jason wolfed down one donut after another. "Keep that up and you'll sooner get a twelve pack of soda than a six pack of muscle."
"*My* muscle isn't what I'm worried about right now," Jason responded.
Even though the Colossal was built to be wheelchair-accessible, Jason still felt awkward approaching the ticket counter, which stood right at the base of the docking bridge. After a couple of moments, he told himself to just do it, and with that thought in mind, he approached the ticket master.
As it turned out, Jason needn't have worried; the ticket master paid no attention to Jason's disability. He simply looked at Jason and asked, "May I help you, sir?"
"Yeah, I've got two tickets to board," Jason responded, sliding the pieces of paper under the bulletproof glass.
The ticket master nodded. "One moment while I authenticate these, please."
"No problem."
Actually, Jason did consider this a bit of a problem. He'd always hated waiting in lines for something or another, and he was afraid one would build up behind him even longer than it was now. Initially, he'd been surprised at how few people had been lined up to board, but apparently, some dense guy thought he could get in with fake tickets. Jason had considered the delay normal, so his hopes of getting aboard quickly had faded since then.
They were rekindled, though, when the ticket master returned to the counter only a moment later. "The tickets are authentic. I assume you have the necessary money, as well?"
"Right here." Jason handed the man his Pokedex, which he had changed to digital checkbook mode.
"Very well, one more moment, please."
Again, the ticket master was gone only as long as he'd requested, and he wore a polite smile as he handed the Pokedex back, along with two keycards; Jason's package had included a room. "Thank you very much, sir. We hope you enjoy your cruise."
"We will certainly do that," Jason responded, as the security gate was opened to let him and Kelly through.
As they moved across the docking bridge, Jason looked up at Kelly and mockingly glared at her. "Hope you're happy; you get to come aboard free of charge."
Kelly snorted. "You wound me. I guess with all that money you've got, you didn't notice the amount I uploaded to your checkbook."
Jason frowned. "You paid me the money for your ticket?"
"Sure did. You didn't really think I'd be that shallow, did you? And I'm not poor, either; I was well-paid for my time with Professor Oak, just like you were. I saved my money, too, just in case an opportunity like this might present itself."
"And now it has."
"Yep. And I intend to enjoy it."
"So do I."
"Good to know."
They made their way to the room, which turned out to be near the top of the ship. *No wonder it cost so much,* Jason thought, as he slipped his keycard into the slot and opened the door.
And as he entered, he saw that the room had been worth every credit.
The curtains had been thrown back, giving them a magnificent view of the entire marina, with the sun hovering above the horizon in all its blazing glory.
If Jason were a religious devotee, he would have fallen to his knees and thanked God for such a day.
Thus, he felt no surprise when he heard Kelly's gasp of awe and delight at the view. "Jason, this is beautiful!"
"That it is," he replied, as he looked from the window to see Kelly's expression. It was one of disbelieving joy.
He dared to make the leap, even without legs.
"But I can think of something even more so."
She turned to him, and her smile became even more overwhelmed with happiness and contentment. "That's so sweet!" She bent down and wrapped her arms around his neck in an awkward but happy embrace, one which he gratefully returned. She even gave him a kiss on the cheek.
*This complementing thing is almost as nerve-wracking as lying to her,* he thought. *But the end result is infinitely more desirable. For both of us.*
She straightened up after a moment and smiled down at him. "How 'bout we retire? We probably need more sleep than we got last night."
Jason grunted softly. "Something tells me whatever it is you have in mind, it isn't sleep. Or even rest."
She sighed mockingly. "You're probably right. Well, since you've figured it out, it's useless to try and seduce you into having a good time with the girl you love. Guess you should go and challenge the gym leader."
Jason raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I've got you figured out, have I?"
"You must," she replied. "You're something, you know that? Figuring me out like that."
"So what, you want me to just leave right after I've figured out something so major as a person?"
*Deja vu,* he thought. He didn't say it.
"Not really," she responded, walking over to the window and shutting the blinds. She turned back to him. "The view's beautiful, from in here. I just don't want the view becoming the viewer."
Jason's other eyebrow went up, and his grin got wider. "Ooh! Lucky me!"
***
That evening, the room phone rang; the person on the other end was a member of the crew, calling to remind them that dinner was being served as they spoke. Jason thanked the crewman and he and Kelly went to the nearest dining hall. There were five dining halls aboard, once again giving testament to the enormity of the ship.
As it turned out, the crowd was yet to come; Jason and Kelly didn't have to wait more than four minutes to be waited on. The waiter was even kind enough to move a chair aside for Jason, joking that Jason had come prepared.
Jason tried to recall the last time he and Kelly had spent dinner in a fine restaurant such as this. Several memorable ones during their time as lab assistants for Professor Oak came to mind, when they'd had to go out to Johto and had the spare time.
But the first time he remembered going out with Kelly to a place like this was during the Indigo League championships. He'd long since forgotten what they'd ordered, and even most of what they'd said... yet, it seemed to be the one that was most important to him now.
Perhaps it was because it was their first time going to a fancy place.
Or maybe it was something else.
He didn't know.
The next thing he knew, a heaping platter of chicken alfredo, with the sauce laid on extra-thick, was being set in front of him, and Kelly was receiving a plate of spaghetti with extra meat sauce.
Jason chuckled. "Never let it be said that we were ever vegetarians."
Kelly smiled as she twirled her fork around in her spaghetti. "Hey, none of that. I'm eating."
"Whatever you say."
They enjoyed a bit of small talk, but it was somewhat false small talk; they really didn't have much to say to each other. They fished for subjects, and Jason finally came up with one. "Have you talked to your family lately?"
"Not since we left Pallet Town to come here," she replied. "But I did talk to them. Dad's in the Orange Islands, trying to make a deal that'd consolidate his and his rivals' businesses into one, and Mom's fretting over him and me, as usual. She's sort of lonely at home, but she seems to be dealing with it rather well. Besides, she's got all those grass Pokemon to hang out with. Even if they can't really speak, they provide a great crowd of listeners."
Her father was your average businessman, making good amounts of money and away from home most of the time. Her mother was a housewife, and helping her out with her chores were grass Pokemon she'd captured herself. She had never gone out on a Pokemon journey, per se, but grass Pokemon had been her favorites when she was young, and she'd wanted some.
*Well, she'll never have to mow her lawn,* Jason thought, as he chuckled at Kelly's last remark.
"Speaking of the Orange Islands," she continued, "I've been wondering something."
Jason wasn't really in the mood to talk about the Islands--*when am I?* he wondered--but he allowed her to continue.
"I've heard there's a Pokemon league there."
Jason nodded. "The Orange League. Four gyms, and one championship match."
Kelly squirmed, clearly as uncomfortable with bringing up the subject as Jason was of listening to it. "You think you might go there to battle the league sometime?"
Jason shook his head. "I can't go back there. You know that."
"I've just been thinking that it's been almost ten years since you left the Orange Islands. No one would recognize you if you just went back to battle."
"Kelly, it wasn't just my family working in that reserve we owned. We also had a lot of workers to help out, workers who were no doubt laid off after the incident at the marina. I was assumed dead... I still am. If I go back there, and *any*one recognizes me, questions will start to be raised about how I survived. It'd eventually lead to getting the authorities involved, and they'd try to set the record straight."
"Jason, it's been ten years. You look so much different now, and the wheelchair also helps your anonymity."
"Anonymity? People stare at this thing. And the person sitting in it."
"Last time anyone there saw you, you were on your feet. How likely do you think it is they'll be ready to believe that that little eleven-year- old boy running around with water Pokemon was paralyzed? Or survived at all?"
Jason sighed. "The fact remains that I don't want to go back there."
"Why? Because you're afraid of what might happen if you do?"
"Exactly."
"Well, then, I can say that the fact remains that there is a great likelihood you wouldn't be recognized. And I say you need to take the opportunity."
"Can't exactly do that now, can I?"
She paused. "No, I suppose not. But at least think about it."
"Fine, I'll think about it." Jason pointed the tines of his fork at her. "But don't get your hopes up."
"Have no fear." Silence reigned between them for a few moments as they chewed, and it was Kelly who broke it. "Where's this ship going?"
"No one knows," said Jason. "That's the whole point. But the ride has been complemented by everyone who's been on it. I'm content to leave it at that."
Kelly looked out the large plate glass window about ten meters away. "I see the sun hasn't quite set yet."
Jason turned to look briefly, then turned back to his food. "Guess not."
"I've got an idea," she said. "How about we go out to the deck and watch the sunset after we're finished here?"
"Sounds good to me." He glanced up and smiled. "It's been a while since I last watched a sunset, or took the time to appreciate one."
Seven minutes later, the deck was exactly where they were. A slight breeze permeated Kelly's long brown hair, forcing it just slightly. She seemed totally absorbed in watching the view, which was, quite simply put, beautiful. The most vibrant pinks, reds, and purples imaginable streaked the sky as if an artist had thrown his collection of paints at the heavens and asked the angels to create the road to paradise using them.
And, if that were the case, the angels most certainly had it pinned down.
"Excuse me."
Jason was broken from Kelly's infectious reverie, and turned to see who was addressing him. It was a boy in his teens, perhaps a years or two younger than Jason. His short, light blond hair contrasted with the tan of his skin, and his gray eyes maintained a sincere and serious gaze. He wore a gray T-shirt and a black-bordered gray vest, as well as a pair of dark blue jeans that somehow seemed too big for whatever legs he had under them.
The one feature for Jason that stuck out most prominently, though, was the full belt of Pokemon capture balls.
*Trainer.*
The boy was half-smiling, and even with that serious gaze trained on him, Jason somehow felt immediately at ease. "Yes?"
"Are you Jason Creight?"
Jason turned his wheelchair to face the boy, now in defense mode; everything from the Indigo League championships to trying to recall some of the kids he'd played with in the Orange Islands flashed thorugh his mind. He had a pretty good memory for faces, but this one looked unfamiliar to him.
He decided to chance it as he returned the boy's innocent, awkward grin. "Yes, I am. What can I do for you?"
"Well, if you're not too busy, I'd like a little bit of your time," the boy responded.
Jason nodded slowly. "I think I can spare some time. Have a seat." He indicated the lawn chairs set up on the deck, one of which Kelly had taken a seat in. She was, Jason noted, still enthralled with the sunset.
The boy seemed hesitant at first, but he nodded and took a seat. The way he sat down seemed rather strange to Jason, as his right knee silently and abruptly snapped forward during the maneuver.
The boy's knee drew Jason's attention to the leg of which it was a part, and Jason noticed that the leg seemed as anorexically thin as his own. When he glanced at the other leg, he saw no such anorexic proportions; that one seemed thick and muscular.
Jason tried to avert his stare by looking back into the boy's gray eyes. "What's your name?"
"Adam." He seemed accustomed to the once-over that Jason was giving his legs, as his grin grew wider. "The knee is what causes so many people to notice. I'm afraid it's something that's yet to be worked out; no matter how hard they try, they just can't seem to get the flexibility and lock factor that's needed for a knee."
Before Jason had a chance to ask what he meant, Adam waved his hand dismissively. "Anyway... I saw you aboard, but I wasn't quite sure if it was you for a while. You've changed a bit, but not too much. I've followed your career ever since I first heard about you."
"Oh?" Jason felt calmer now; if Adam had to have heard about him, that meant that he couldn't be anyone Jason had known previously. And thus, he couldn't be from the Orange Islands.
"Yeah." Adam shifted his left leg around, but curiously, his left foot stayed in place. "You might have heard this kind of stuff before, but I'm gonna say it again. I first heard about you when you showed up at the Indigo League championships. You were the different one, the one that the media seemed to set their sights on, and with that wheelchair, it isn't hard to see why. You were an inspiration to a lot of disabled people."
Jason nodded. "I remember. I saw the reports." The news reports putting him in the uncomfortable media spotlight were not ones he would forget for a very long time.
"Reports don't really do very much to show just how big an impact you had," Adam replied. "You've been more of an inspiration than you'll ever know. I hope you realize how truly wondrous that was."
Jason shrugged. "I went to battle, not make a political or moral statement. My intentions weren't really to inspire anyone."
"Well, whether you know and appreciate it or not, that's exactly what you did. And I'm a prime example."
And Adam reached down to the cuff of his right pants leg and pulled it all the way up to his hip.
Jason's jaw hung slack, his mouth agape and his eyes wide.
Where Adam's right leg should have been, there were two thin metal rods connected by an axle gear. The upper rod extended further back than he was able to reveal, presumably to the hip. Where the lower rod met his sneaker, the metal expanded outward to accomodate a shoe.
Adam then reached down to his other pants leg and pulled it up, as well, revealing another metal rod. This one was attached via suction cup assembly to a natural knee and upper leg, and like the other one, the metal formed a "foot" at the bottom for a shoe.
Jason stared at the prosthetics that Adam had just revealed to him.
And the weight of what the boy had said suddenly increased exponentially.
"When I saw you battling in those championships," Adam quietly continued, "I was sitting in a wheelchair a lot like the one you're in right now. I'd never once given any hopeful thought to being a Pokemon trainer because I thought a disability would prevent me from doing it. Oh, sure, I dreamed of it, but I'd never thought I'd be able to do it.
"And then I saw you battling. I watched as your Pokemon took out their opponents one by one with expert precision that could only be gained by effective training. I started asking myself, 'Why can't I?' Eventually, I got to training Pokemon from my wheelchair. Within two years of getting my Pokemon license, I had the money I needed to buy top-of-the- line, cutting edge prosthetics that could help me walk and even run, in my own strange way, and the physical therapy I needed to make those prosthetics work."
Jason felt overwhelmed by what Adam had just submitted: the implication that many, so many others had followed in his footsteps (or chair tracks), convinced that their disabilities didn't matter.
The implication that Jason was the sole cause of a revolution within the ranks of Pokemon trainers across the country.
"Are you beginning to see the impact you've made on people like me?" Adam asked.
Jason was still stunned, still staring at the rods that constituted legs for the boy. He looked up at Adam and locked gazes with those sincere gray eyes. "How...?"
"Mutation," Adam replied. "Sometimes it's a blessing, sometimes it's a curse. And sometimes it's mixed. It's what caused me to be born without them. I've got no right leg whatsoever. This one..." He patted the bar that passed for his right leg. "...is connected directly to my hip. Luckily I have *some* muscle there that I can use to move it in an almost normal manner. But not quite normal. I can never call having a pole for a leg normal."
He gave Jason a pointed look. "We've got something in common here. Both of us know what it's like to sit in a wheelchair. Both of us know the feelings of hopelessness that go with the chair. And both of us chose to go against society's expectations because we had something greater in mind than personal image."
Jason remained silent.
"You're wondering where I'm going with this, right?" Adam chuckled. "Well, I wouldn't worry too much about that. Because here's my proposition. I've brought with me my best team of Pokemon to battle the odd trainer, and I imagine you have, as well. That said, I'd like to challenge you to a Pokemon battle. Odd trainer to odd trainer."
Jason rested his elbows on the armrests of his wheelchair and steepled his fingers, intrigued. "What are the stakes?"
"A new traveling partner."
Jason's eyebrows shot up. "You want to go with me?"
"You and Kelly, yes."
Adam saw the look of surprise in Jason's expression. He chuckled again. "Yes, I know about Kelly. She accompanied you on your first journey, right? And she was there with you at the championships. I'm assuming you're boyfriend and girlfriend, since you've been engaging in a bit of mushy stuff since you boarded."
Jason scowled. "And how, precisely, would you know about such things?"
"How else am I supposed to interpret a kiss on the cheek?"
Jason calmed himself. Kelly *had* kissed him on the cheek, when they'd first gotten to the deck.
"Besides, I can tell by the way you look at each other. You're a lucky man, Jason, to have that girl by your side. I'm willing to bet she makes great company."
"That she does," Jason agreed. "But your company is what we're discussing here, isn't it?"
"It is," Adam acknowledged, getting back to the subject. "If I win, I go with you. If I lose, I'll leave you alone, or at least until a rematch is set. Either way, you win, in a manner of speaking. You lose and you get me, or you win and your Pokemon gain what I'm sure would be invaluable experience."
Jason hesitated, seeing a dilemma before him. If Adam were to join him and Kelly on whatever future journeys they would have, he'd provide more company that Jason was almost positive he and Kelly needed.
But, on the other hand, Jason remembered all too well what had happened to their last traveling partner.
And before he'd died, that last traveling partner had gotten a good taste of what Jason's life was like.
Jason recalled a conversation he'd once had with Tommy, in which the Shadow trainee had commented, "I can't say I envy you or your life, Jason. You venture across the bumpy roads in a wheelchair, your relationship with Kelly is shaded at best, and you carry these dark secrets that you can never forget. Your brother is determined to take ultimate revenge on you, you've exiled yourself from your home, and you don't want to expose your friends to the same dangers you've seen, so you don't tell them anything important, no matter how much it's tearing you up."
"I've told you and Sam, haven't I?" Jason has asked.
"Yes. But two isn't enough."
And now, here was Adam, asking to come along with Jason and Kelly. Asking to become part of their lives. Asking them to become part of his life.
Asking, whether knowingly or not, to let him accept the risks and dangers of traveling with them.
Jason didn't want to risk it. He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you do that."
"Oh? And why not?"
Jason sighed, afraid he was going to go into this loop. "Because we don't exactly do 'safe.' I don't want you to put yourself in danger."
"Too late. Danger is what a Pokemon trainer's life is all about. Taking risks. Making mistakes. Learning from them. Striving to be better."
"Still, it's even less safe with us."
"Since when has it ever been safe to do what we trainers do?" Adam's brow went up for emphasis. "And especially those of us who can't manage the way those with working legs do."
Jason was growing frustrated. "You don't understand..."
"Understand what? That you don't want me to go with you because you want me to be *safe*? I understand that perfectly. I'm just having trouble with the dynamics. What's more dangerous than doing everything you've done in a wheelchair?"
And before Jason even knew it was coming, it had already come out.
"You can't possibly begin to imagine what I've seen."
Adam wasn't fazed. "Then instead of hiding behind the veil of vagueness, give me a clue."
Jason paused, suddenly aware of what he would be doing if he imparted that information to Adam.
"You can't do it, can you?" Adam persisted.
Jason shook his head. "No. I can't."
"Then that means I'll have to experience it first hand. And that means I'd have to go with you to do it."
Jason locked eyes with Adam, showing how serious he was. "I can't tell you what you're getting into, Adam, because that would be impossible to describe in the space of one conversation. But I have to ask you... are you completely sure you want to do this?"
Jason saw his sincerity reflected in Adam's eyes.
"Absolutely."
The sounds of the ocean and the big ship's engines churning were drowned out by the heavy silence that engulfed the two disabled trainers.
And Jason gave his response.
"Then I accept your challenge."
He held up his finger. "But... I don't have a cohesive team with me. I wasn't expecting to battle tonight. I'll get a team together and we'll battle tomorrow morning. 5:30. Starboard battle deck."
Adam pursed his lips. He didn't want to wait, Jason knew, but they both knew that no one was going to leave or board the ship in that amount of time. In effect, neither of them was really going much of anywhere, except their next destination. And that one was mutual.
Finally, he nodded. "Agreed."
Jason offered his hand. Adam took it firmly.
Then Adam stood up and left.
Jason sat back in his wheelchair and returned to Kelly's side.
She looked at him. "What was all that about?"
He shook his head. "I don't want to trouble you in the middle of this..." He waved his arm dramatically, trying to adequately describe the sight they saw before them.
It was a shame that in a few minutes, it would all become dark.
She understood, and turned back to enjoy the sunset.
He glanced up at her, wondering how he could tell her what had happened in the space of that conversation.
No words could come to mind to encompass it all.
So, instead of worrying about it, he thought of the impending battle and what he could do to be ready for it.
Jason Creight considered on.
To Be Continued
He rolled over and looked at the radio clock, which read 4:30 A.M. Quite early, but once one woke up at that time with things to do during the day, it was very hard to get back to sleep at that point.
Jason didn't bother trying. He knew precisely which ship that was blowing its horn out there.
It was the Colossal.
The first ship for the Atlantis League.
The only ship that ever docked anywhere near land.
And it was here.
Jason propped himself up and threw the sheets of his bed aside. Today was the last day he and Kelly would be in this motel; he would have to get his things together, get a bath, get dressed, and get checked out. He figured it could take a while to do all this.
*Sooner I get started, the sooner we can board and be done with it,* he thought.
He started in.
***
Kelly knew she was dreaming.
That knowledge didn't let her take control of the dream.
She dreamt that she was back in the lab complex in Pallet Town. She was in her room, and there was a knock on the door.
"Who is it?"
"It's me."
She moved to answer the door.
And there was Jason. On his feet. With a mustache and goatee, and the most serious look on his face.
*No!* she thought, even as she continued to play out the events that had actually happened. *That's Creight! It's not Jason!*
But there was nothing she could do to stop it all from happening again.
Suddenly, the parameters of the dream changed. She found herself in a dark area, the borders of which weren't clear. In front of her were Creight on the left, and Jason on the right.
They spoke as one, the harmonics of their voices matching perfectly with the other's.
"Which one of us do you love more, Kelly?"
They both began to circle her. Creight leaned in. "You love me more, right? The tall, dark and handsome guy who's always keeping secrets, has some of the most powerful Pokemon in the world, and came back through time itself to save your life. Ruthless and efficient."
He pulled back, and then Jason leaned in. "You love me more, right? The wheelchair-bound guy who, despite the odds stacked against him, has managed to survive, cared enough to come back to you, and listened whenever you had something to say. Sympathetic and patient."
Creight. "I'm the one who said 'I love you.'"
Jason. "I'm the one you said 'I love you' to."
"I gave my life for you."
"I'd give anything for you."
Both of them. "I said the one thing you most wanted to hear."
Those last words echoed painfully throughout the limits of the area, only to bounce back twice as strong, then four times, then eight...
Kelly felt completely and utterly overwhelmed. She fell to her knees and curled into a ball and tried to shut the voices out. *Wake up! Wake up!*
The voices only got louder.
She screamed, and kept screaming.
Whether it was in agony of the sound or despair of the paradox, she didn't know.
*Wakeupwakeupwakeupwakeup*
She was suddenly and violently snapped out of her dream and into the light of morning by a pair of strong hands holding her shoulders.
"Kelly!"
The worried shout sounded almost far away, though it was right next to her. Her head whipped around, and her eyes focused on Jason.
The one in the wheelchair.
He had more concern in his expression than she had ever known him to have before. His mouth hung slightly open, the space between his eyebrows was split by two creases, and his dark eyes showed more worry than she'd ever seen.
More than she thought he had the capacity for.
She fell into his embrace, and he held her as closely and tightly as possible.
She felt a sense of safety that she'd not fully realized before.
"You're the one I love more," she whispered, so low that he couldn't hear it.
***
Jason had just gotten out of the shower and dressed when Kelly had started screaming. He'd immediately responded, moving his wheelchair as quickly as he could to her side and taking gentle hold of her shoulders.
"Kelly, wake up!" he called. Then, louder, "Kelly!"
Her eyes had snapped open then, and Jason saw unbridled terror in them.
And she'd almost thrown herself into his lap, hugging him so tightly that breathing became a near-impossibility.
"It's all right now," he muttered, as he gently rocked her back and forth. "It's all right."
For a moment, he recalled the night Daniel had first come to Pallet Town and tried to frame Jason for murdering Professor Oak.
Neither the framing nor the murder had succeeded, thankfully. But Daniel had attempted to salvage his revenge by kidnapping Kelly.
And when Jason had found and freed her, she'd thrown herself into his arms with the same aggression.
Jason hated to see her in a moment of weakness like this. He hated it because she had, as far as he could recall, only twice before seen him in a moment of weakness, while he'd seen more than that in her. He knew that she was, in fact, a very strong-willed person, and it took a lot to scare her.
Whatever had been in her nightmare had been undoubtedly terrifying.
Jason was just as glad that he didn't experience it.
He wouldn't ask, either. She'd tell him when she was ready. She'd afforded him the same courtesy; now it was his turn.
Abruptly, this mix of thought and emotion began to click in his mind.
They were pieces of the puzzle he wanted to solve.
He was one step closer to discovering the answer to the question that would ultimately decide if he and Kelly stayed together.
What was more, he was heading towards "yes."
He felt better now. He was getting somewhere.
The horn of the Colossal blared once more, and Jason turned his right ear toward the window. He could hear people out there now. It sounded like a huge crowd; he could only assume that they were disembarking from the ship. He doubted if many people around here would be insane enough to board the ship now, at 5:00 in the morning.
A few moments later, Kelly's head rose from his shoulder. He turned back to her, to see that she was smiling. There was still a small amount of fear in her eyes, but even that was quickly fading, to be replaced by something akin to amusement.
"Even now, you're thinking of all the training you'll be able to do in this new league," she said, in a mockingly accusatory tone.
"Believe me, you're the one I'm more worried about right now," he responded. "Are you all right?"
She rose from the slightly compromising position she'd put herself into, and into a more comfortable sitting position. "Not really, but I'll live. Just as long as it was a dream."
"Okay." Jason swore to himself that he wasn't going to pry, though his curiosity was sailing through the roof.
Kelly sighed a heavy sigh, and looked around the room. "I see you've been at it, cleaning up around here." She playfully flicked her finger at the slight curl in Jason's still-wet brown hair, which had grown noticeably longer since the incident with Creight.
"Yup. After all, today's the day."
"So it is. I should probably grab a shower and get my stuff packed."
"Probably a good idea."
She got off the bed, rummaged through the drawers she'd used, got a clean change of clothes, and went into the bathroom to get started on her end. Before she closed the door, however, she poked her head back through it to look at Jason. "Think there's a barber shop aboad that ship?"
Jason chuckled and pulled out the guidebook he'd just packed. "They've got everything on the Colossal. Auditorium, exercise gym, dance hall... and yes, since you asked, a barber shop. Good thing the ship is steady enough for one."
"Well, good," she responded. She pointed at Jason's hair. "Might sound weird, but I was sort of wondering to myself how you'd look bald."
He raised an eyebrow. "Were you, now?"
"Yep." She ducked back into the bathroom and locked the door.
Jason scoffed. *Bald, indeed. Only time I was ever bald was when I was born. Even then, I had hair.*
But, despite that thought, he still looked himself in the mirror for a moment.
He returned to packing his backpack, eternally grateful for a laundromat within the motel. He could stand dirty clothes up to a point, but beyond that point, he almost went stir-crazy trying to find a way to get them adequately clean.
Being paralyzed from the waist down didn't help, either, not as far as his excretory system went; he was also grateful that he had been equipped with shunts for that particular problem. It wasn't as if he could exactly hold it, not when he couldn't use the muscles necessary.
Such were the thoughts that pervaded his mind as he continued to pack.
And this time, unlike others, he allowed them to take him.
After all, it wasn't like he had anything constructive to think about at that particular moment.
***
It was around 9:30 in the morning when Kelly and Jason got to the Colossal's dock, after eating a free continental breakfast at the motel, which was actually pretty good. Kelly ate two bowls of honey-covered Cheerios, while Jason ended up eating close to half a dozen cream-filled donuts.
Kelly had watched in disbelief as Jason wolfed down one donut after another. "Keep that up and you'll sooner get a twelve pack of soda than a six pack of muscle."
"*My* muscle isn't what I'm worried about right now," Jason responded.
Even though the Colossal was built to be wheelchair-accessible, Jason still felt awkward approaching the ticket counter, which stood right at the base of the docking bridge. After a couple of moments, he told himself to just do it, and with that thought in mind, he approached the ticket master.
As it turned out, Jason needn't have worried; the ticket master paid no attention to Jason's disability. He simply looked at Jason and asked, "May I help you, sir?"
"Yeah, I've got two tickets to board," Jason responded, sliding the pieces of paper under the bulletproof glass.
The ticket master nodded. "One moment while I authenticate these, please."
"No problem."
Actually, Jason did consider this a bit of a problem. He'd always hated waiting in lines for something or another, and he was afraid one would build up behind him even longer than it was now. Initially, he'd been surprised at how few people had been lined up to board, but apparently, some dense guy thought he could get in with fake tickets. Jason had considered the delay normal, so his hopes of getting aboard quickly had faded since then.
They were rekindled, though, when the ticket master returned to the counter only a moment later. "The tickets are authentic. I assume you have the necessary money, as well?"
"Right here." Jason handed the man his Pokedex, which he had changed to digital checkbook mode.
"Very well, one more moment, please."
Again, the ticket master was gone only as long as he'd requested, and he wore a polite smile as he handed the Pokedex back, along with two keycards; Jason's package had included a room. "Thank you very much, sir. We hope you enjoy your cruise."
"We will certainly do that," Jason responded, as the security gate was opened to let him and Kelly through.
As they moved across the docking bridge, Jason looked up at Kelly and mockingly glared at her. "Hope you're happy; you get to come aboard free of charge."
Kelly snorted. "You wound me. I guess with all that money you've got, you didn't notice the amount I uploaded to your checkbook."
Jason frowned. "You paid me the money for your ticket?"
"Sure did. You didn't really think I'd be that shallow, did you? And I'm not poor, either; I was well-paid for my time with Professor Oak, just like you were. I saved my money, too, just in case an opportunity like this might present itself."
"And now it has."
"Yep. And I intend to enjoy it."
"So do I."
"Good to know."
They made their way to the room, which turned out to be near the top of the ship. *No wonder it cost so much,* Jason thought, as he slipped his keycard into the slot and opened the door.
And as he entered, he saw that the room had been worth every credit.
The curtains had been thrown back, giving them a magnificent view of the entire marina, with the sun hovering above the horizon in all its blazing glory.
If Jason were a religious devotee, he would have fallen to his knees and thanked God for such a day.
Thus, he felt no surprise when he heard Kelly's gasp of awe and delight at the view. "Jason, this is beautiful!"
"That it is," he replied, as he looked from the window to see Kelly's expression. It was one of disbelieving joy.
He dared to make the leap, even without legs.
"But I can think of something even more so."
She turned to him, and her smile became even more overwhelmed with happiness and contentment. "That's so sweet!" She bent down and wrapped her arms around his neck in an awkward but happy embrace, one which he gratefully returned. She even gave him a kiss on the cheek.
*This complementing thing is almost as nerve-wracking as lying to her,* he thought. *But the end result is infinitely more desirable. For both of us.*
She straightened up after a moment and smiled down at him. "How 'bout we retire? We probably need more sleep than we got last night."
Jason grunted softly. "Something tells me whatever it is you have in mind, it isn't sleep. Or even rest."
She sighed mockingly. "You're probably right. Well, since you've figured it out, it's useless to try and seduce you into having a good time with the girl you love. Guess you should go and challenge the gym leader."
Jason raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I've got you figured out, have I?"
"You must," she replied. "You're something, you know that? Figuring me out like that."
"So what, you want me to just leave right after I've figured out something so major as a person?"
*Deja vu,* he thought. He didn't say it.
"Not really," she responded, walking over to the window and shutting the blinds. She turned back to him. "The view's beautiful, from in here. I just don't want the view becoming the viewer."
Jason's other eyebrow went up, and his grin got wider. "Ooh! Lucky me!"
***
That evening, the room phone rang; the person on the other end was a member of the crew, calling to remind them that dinner was being served as they spoke. Jason thanked the crewman and he and Kelly went to the nearest dining hall. There were five dining halls aboard, once again giving testament to the enormity of the ship.
As it turned out, the crowd was yet to come; Jason and Kelly didn't have to wait more than four minutes to be waited on. The waiter was even kind enough to move a chair aside for Jason, joking that Jason had come prepared.
Jason tried to recall the last time he and Kelly had spent dinner in a fine restaurant such as this. Several memorable ones during their time as lab assistants for Professor Oak came to mind, when they'd had to go out to Johto and had the spare time.
But the first time he remembered going out with Kelly to a place like this was during the Indigo League championships. He'd long since forgotten what they'd ordered, and even most of what they'd said... yet, it seemed to be the one that was most important to him now.
Perhaps it was because it was their first time going to a fancy place.
Or maybe it was something else.
He didn't know.
The next thing he knew, a heaping platter of chicken alfredo, with the sauce laid on extra-thick, was being set in front of him, and Kelly was receiving a plate of spaghetti with extra meat sauce.
Jason chuckled. "Never let it be said that we were ever vegetarians."
Kelly smiled as she twirled her fork around in her spaghetti. "Hey, none of that. I'm eating."
"Whatever you say."
They enjoyed a bit of small talk, but it was somewhat false small talk; they really didn't have much to say to each other. They fished for subjects, and Jason finally came up with one. "Have you talked to your family lately?"
"Not since we left Pallet Town to come here," she replied. "But I did talk to them. Dad's in the Orange Islands, trying to make a deal that'd consolidate his and his rivals' businesses into one, and Mom's fretting over him and me, as usual. She's sort of lonely at home, but she seems to be dealing with it rather well. Besides, she's got all those grass Pokemon to hang out with. Even if they can't really speak, they provide a great crowd of listeners."
Her father was your average businessman, making good amounts of money and away from home most of the time. Her mother was a housewife, and helping her out with her chores were grass Pokemon she'd captured herself. She had never gone out on a Pokemon journey, per se, but grass Pokemon had been her favorites when she was young, and she'd wanted some.
*Well, she'll never have to mow her lawn,* Jason thought, as he chuckled at Kelly's last remark.
"Speaking of the Orange Islands," she continued, "I've been wondering something."
Jason wasn't really in the mood to talk about the Islands--*when am I?* he wondered--but he allowed her to continue.
"I've heard there's a Pokemon league there."
Jason nodded. "The Orange League. Four gyms, and one championship match."
Kelly squirmed, clearly as uncomfortable with bringing up the subject as Jason was of listening to it. "You think you might go there to battle the league sometime?"
Jason shook his head. "I can't go back there. You know that."
"I've just been thinking that it's been almost ten years since you left the Orange Islands. No one would recognize you if you just went back to battle."
"Kelly, it wasn't just my family working in that reserve we owned. We also had a lot of workers to help out, workers who were no doubt laid off after the incident at the marina. I was assumed dead... I still am. If I go back there, and *any*one recognizes me, questions will start to be raised about how I survived. It'd eventually lead to getting the authorities involved, and they'd try to set the record straight."
"Jason, it's been ten years. You look so much different now, and the wheelchair also helps your anonymity."
"Anonymity? People stare at this thing. And the person sitting in it."
"Last time anyone there saw you, you were on your feet. How likely do you think it is they'll be ready to believe that that little eleven-year- old boy running around with water Pokemon was paralyzed? Or survived at all?"
Jason sighed. "The fact remains that I don't want to go back there."
"Why? Because you're afraid of what might happen if you do?"
"Exactly."
"Well, then, I can say that the fact remains that there is a great likelihood you wouldn't be recognized. And I say you need to take the opportunity."
"Can't exactly do that now, can I?"
She paused. "No, I suppose not. But at least think about it."
"Fine, I'll think about it." Jason pointed the tines of his fork at her. "But don't get your hopes up."
"Have no fear." Silence reigned between them for a few moments as they chewed, and it was Kelly who broke it. "Where's this ship going?"
"No one knows," said Jason. "That's the whole point. But the ride has been complemented by everyone who's been on it. I'm content to leave it at that."
Kelly looked out the large plate glass window about ten meters away. "I see the sun hasn't quite set yet."
Jason turned to look briefly, then turned back to his food. "Guess not."
"I've got an idea," she said. "How about we go out to the deck and watch the sunset after we're finished here?"
"Sounds good to me." He glanced up and smiled. "It's been a while since I last watched a sunset, or took the time to appreciate one."
Seven minutes later, the deck was exactly where they were. A slight breeze permeated Kelly's long brown hair, forcing it just slightly. She seemed totally absorbed in watching the view, which was, quite simply put, beautiful. The most vibrant pinks, reds, and purples imaginable streaked the sky as if an artist had thrown his collection of paints at the heavens and asked the angels to create the road to paradise using them.
And, if that were the case, the angels most certainly had it pinned down.
"Excuse me."
Jason was broken from Kelly's infectious reverie, and turned to see who was addressing him. It was a boy in his teens, perhaps a years or two younger than Jason. His short, light blond hair contrasted with the tan of his skin, and his gray eyes maintained a sincere and serious gaze. He wore a gray T-shirt and a black-bordered gray vest, as well as a pair of dark blue jeans that somehow seemed too big for whatever legs he had under them.
The one feature for Jason that stuck out most prominently, though, was the full belt of Pokemon capture balls.
*Trainer.*
The boy was half-smiling, and even with that serious gaze trained on him, Jason somehow felt immediately at ease. "Yes?"
"Are you Jason Creight?"
Jason turned his wheelchair to face the boy, now in defense mode; everything from the Indigo League championships to trying to recall some of the kids he'd played with in the Orange Islands flashed thorugh his mind. He had a pretty good memory for faces, but this one looked unfamiliar to him.
He decided to chance it as he returned the boy's innocent, awkward grin. "Yes, I am. What can I do for you?"
"Well, if you're not too busy, I'd like a little bit of your time," the boy responded.
Jason nodded slowly. "I think I can spare some time. Have a seat." He indicated the lawn chairs set up on the deck, one of which Kelly had taken a seat in. She was, Jason noted, still enthralled with the sunset.
The boy seemed hesitant at first, but he nodded and took a seat. The way he sat down seemed rather strange to Jason, as his right knee silently and abruptly snapped forward during the maneuver.
The boy's knee drew Jason's attention to the leg of which it was a part, and Jason noticed that the leg seemed as anorexically thin as his own. When he glanced at the other leg, he saw no such anorexic proportions; that one seemed thick and muscular.
Jason tried to avert his stare by looking back into the boy's gray eyes. "What's your name?"
"Adam." He seemed accustomed to the once-over that Jason was giving his legs, as his grin grew wider. "The knee is what causes so many people to notice. I'm afraid it's something that's yet to be worked out; no matter how hard they try, they just can't seem to get the flexibility and lock factor that's needed for a knee."
Before Jason had a chance to ask what he meant, Adam waved his hand dismissively. "Anyway... I saw you aboard, but I wasn't quite sure if it was you for a while. You've changed a bit, but not too much. I've followed your career ever since I first heard about you."
"Oh?" Jason felt calmer now; if Adam had to have heard about him, that meant that he couldn't be anyone Jason had known previously. And thus, he couldn't be from the Orange Islands.
"Yeah." Adam shifted his left leg around, but curiously, his left foot stayed in place. "You might have heard this kind of stuff before, but I'm gonna say it again. I first heard about you when you showed up at the Indigo League championships. You were the different one, the one that the media seemed to set their sights on, and with that wheelchair, it isn't hard to see why. You were an inspiration to a lot of disabled people."
Jason nodded. "I remember. I saw the reports." The news reports putting him in the uncomfortable media spotlight were not ones he would forget for a very long time.
"Reports don't really do very much to show just how big an impact you had," Adam replied. "You've been more of an inspiration than you'll ever know. I hope you realize how truly wondrous that was."
Jason shrugged. "I went to battle, not make a political or moral statement. My intentions weren't really to inspire anyone."
"Well, whether you know and appreciate it or not, that's exactly what you did. And I'm a prime example."
And Adam reached down to the cuff of his right pants leg and pulled it all the way up to his hip.
Jason's jaw hung slack, his mouth agape and his eyes wide.
Where Adam's right leg should have been, there were two thin metal rods connected by an axle gear. The upper rod extended further back than he was able to reveal, presumably to the hip. Where the lower rod met his sneaker, the metal expanded outward to accomodate a shoe.
Adam then reached down to his other pants leg and pulled it up, as well, revealing another metal rod. This one was attached via suction cup assembly to a natural knee and upper leg, and like the other one, the metal formed a "foot" at the bottom for a shoe.
Jason stared at the prosthetics that Adam had just revealed to him.
And the weight of what the boy had said suddenly increased exponentially.
"When I saw you battling in those championships," Adam quietly continued, "I was sitting in a wheelchair a lot like the one you're in right now. I'd never once given any hopeful thought to being a Pokemon trainer because I thought a disability would prevent me from doing it. Oh, sure, I dreamed of it, but I'd never thought I'd be able to do it.
"And then I saw you battling. I watched as your Pokemon took out their opponents one by one with expert precision that could only be gained by effective training. I started asking myself, 'Why can't I?' Eventually, I got to training Pokemon from my wheelchair. Within two years of getting my Pokemon license, I had the money I needed to buy top-of-the- line, cutting edge prosthetics that could help me walk and even run, in my own strange way, and the physical therapy I needed to make those prosthetics work."
Jason felt overwhelmed by what Adam had just submitted: the implication that many, so many others had followed in his footsteps (or chair tracks), convinced that their disabilities didn't matter.
The implication that Jason was the sole cause of a revolution within the ranks of Pokemon trainers across the country.
"Are you beginning to see the impact you've made on people like me?" Adam asked.
Jason was still stunned, still staring at the rods that constituted legs for the boy. He looked up at Adam and locked gazes with those sincere gray eyes. "How...?"
"Mutation," Adam replied. "Sometimes it's a blessing, sometimes it's a curse. And sometimes it's mixed. It's what caused me to be born without them. I've got no right leg whatsoever. This one..." He patted the bar that passed for his right leg. "...is connected directly to my hip. Luckily I have *some* muscle there that I can use to move it in an almost normal manner. But not quite normal. I can never call having a pole for a leg normal."
He gave Jason a pointed look. "We've got something in common here. Both of us know what it's like to sit in a wheelchair. Both of us know the feelings of hopelessness that go with the chair. And both of us chose to go against society's expectations because we had something greater in mind than personal image."
Jason remained silent.
"You're wondering where I'm going with this, right?" Adam chuckled. "Well, I wouldn't worry too much about that. Because here's my proposition. I've brought with me my best team of Pokemon to battle the odd trainer, and I imagine you have, as well. That said, I'd like to challenge you to a Pokemon battle. Odd trainer to odd trainer."
Jason rested his elbows on the armrests of his wheelchair and steepled his fingers, intrigued. "What are the stakes?"
"A new traveling partner."
Jason's eyebrows shot up. "You want to go with me?"
"You and Kelly, yes."
Adam saw the look of surprise in Jason's expression. He chuckled again. "Yes, I know about Kelly. She accompanied you on your first journey, right? And she was there with you at the championships. I'm assuming you're boyfriend and girlfriend, since you've been engaging in a bit of mushy stuff since you boarded."
Jason scowled. "And how, precisely, would you know about such things?"
"How else am I supposed to interpret a kiss on the cheek?"
Jason calmed himself. Kelly *had* kissed him on the cheek, when they'd first gotten to the deck.
"Besides, I can tell by the way you look at each other. You're a lucky man, Jason, to have that girl by your side. I'm willing to bet she makes great company."
"That she does," Jason agreed. "But your company is what we're discussing here, isn't it?"
"It is," Adam acknowledged, getting back to the subject. "If I win, I go with you. If I lose, I'll leave you alone, or at least until a rematch is set. Either way, you win, in a manner of speaking. You lose and you get me, or you win and your Pokemon gain what I'm sure would be invaluable experience."
Jason hesitated, seeing a dilemma before him. If Adam were to join him and Kelly on whatever future journeys they would have, he'd provide more company that Jason was almost positive he and Kelly needed.
But, on the other hand, Jason remembered all too well what had happened to their last traveling partner.
And before he'd died, that last traveling partner had gotten a good taste of what Jason's life was like.
Jason recalled a conversation he'd once had with Tommy, in which the Shadow trainee had commented, "I can't say I envy you or your life, Jason. You venture across the bumpy roads in a wheelchair, your relationship with Kelly is shaded at best, and you carry these dark secrets that you can never forget. Your brother is determined to take ultimate revenge on you, you've exiled yourself from your home, and you don't want to expose your friends to the same dangers you've seen, so you don't tell them anything important, no matter how much it's tearing you up."
"I've told you and Sam, haven't I?" Jason has asked.
"Yes. But two isn't enough."
And now, here was Adam, asking to come along with Jason and Kelly. Asking to become part of their lives. Asking them to become part of his life.
Asking, whether knowingly or not, to let him accept the risks and dangers of traveling with them.
Jason didn't want to risk it. He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you do that."
"Oh? And why not?"
Jason sighed, afraid he was going to go into this loop. "Because we don't exactly do 'safe.' I don't want you to put yourself in danger."
"Too late. Danger is what a Pokemon trainer's life is all about. Taking risks. Making mistakes. Learning from them. Striving to be better."
"Still, it's even less safe with us."
"Since when has it ever been safe to do what we trainers do?" Adam's brow went up for emphasis. "And especially those of us who can't manage the way those with working legs do."
Jason was growing frustrated. "You don't understand..."
"Understand what? That you don't want me to go with you because you want me to be *safe*? I understand that perfectly. I'm just having trouble with the dynamics. What's more dangerous than doing everything you've done in a wheelchair?"
And before Jason even knew it was coming, it had already come out.
"You can't possibly begin to imagine what I've seen."
Adam wasn't fazed. "Then instead of hiding behind the veil of vagueness, give me a clue."
Jason paused, suddenly aware of what he would be doing if he imparted that information to Adam.
"You can't do it, can you?" Adam persisted.
Jason shook his head. "No. I can't."
"Then that means I'll have to experience it first hand. And that means I'd have to go with you to do it."
Jason locked eyes with Adam, showing how serious he was. "I can't tell you what you're getting into, Adam, because that would be impossible to describe in the space of one conversation. But I have to ask you... are you completely sure you want to do this?"
Jason saw his sincerity reflected in Adam's eyes.
"Absolutely."
The sounds of the ocean and the big ship's engines churning were drowned out by the heavy silence that engulfed the two disabled trainers.
And Jason gave his response.
"Then I accept your challenge."
He held up his finger. "But... I don't have a cohesive team with me. I wasn't expecting to battle tonight. I'll get a team together and we'll battle tomorrow morning. 5:30. Starboard battle deck."
Adam pursed his lips. He didn't want to wait, Jason knew, but they both knew that no one was going to leave or board the ship in that amount of time. In effect, neither of them was really going much of anywhere, except their next destination. And that one was mutual.
Finally, he nodded. "Agreed."
Jason offered his hand. Adam took it firmly.
Then Adam stood up and left.
Jason sat back in his wheelchair and returned to Kelly's side.
She looked at him. "What was all that about?"
He shook his head. "I don't want to trouble you in the middle of this..." He waved his arm dramatically, trying to adequately describe the sight they saw before them.
It was a shame that in a few minutes, it would all become dark.
She understood, and turned back to enjoy the sunset.
He glanced up at her, wondering how he could tell her what had happened in the space of that conversation.
No words could come to mind to encompass it all.
So, instead of worrying about it, he thought of the impending battle and what he could do to be ready for it.
Jason Creight considered on.
To Be Continued
