What makes a person strong?
Is it their energy? The driving force behind their soul?
Is it their mind? The intelligence granted by the thoughtful psyche?
Or is it something else entirely, that transcends these lines of thought, rising into the heavens in a double helix?
A Mid-Sinnoh Night's Dream - XII - WILLPOWER
The first thing Hilbert did when he arose was wake up Shaymin and make an early morning break for the Safari Zone. Sure, he'd miss the inn's breakfast, but the sooner he got to work, the better.
There was a blasted heath in the Great Marsh. Trees were blackened and thrown from their roots a half-mile in all directions. Swampy grass had been reduced to ashes and dust, still kicking up in a lame wind. Magikarp were limply splashing on the ground, their scales covered in soot, if not burned themself. The Pokemon that weren't fortunate enough to be Water-type...
That was only on the outskirts of the blast. The center must have been the typical sphere of destruction, as there was a massive crater, pooling with sickly black water, almost the size of a pond itself. Light reflected off the surface with such intensity he wasn't sure if it was actually water or some twisted mirror.
Shaymin recoiled when they took a step on a burned and brittle stick. The size of the stick, as well as the general shape, made him suspect it was more… Alive, in origin, though he tried to keep his mind from wandering so far into despair.
The two slid down, avoiding the steeper inclines.
Hilbert stood at the edge of the pool, staring into the inky abyss.
And they say that when you gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.
A Pokemon of some kind lay in the twisted water, unable to be seen with the naked eye sight. Hilbert wished he wasn't able to blink, as every time he did, his vision was filled with weak flashes of aura, and sometimes, they blinked out. Permanently.
"...I'm sorry," he couldn't help but whisper. "I hope you don't hold what Team Galactic did against the rest of humanity."
The Grass-type Mythical took a step forward.
"Go ahead, Shaymin. Please do whatever you can." Hilbert pulled his hat down over his head, and kept his eyes open. He was tired of seeing lives flash out forever before him.
Shaymin inhaled, slowly gathering its energy.
A paw was placed on the surface of the water.
Rings cascaded outwards, silently rippling across the water. A dark fog floated upwards through the water, and into the air. Like soundwaves, Shaymin's power shuddered across the barren and scorched earth, and black ashes floated into the air, as if lifted by a gentle wind.
They all shuddered, stopping for a moment, before coalescing in front of Shaymin, at first as a loose sphere, but soon become a more cone-like shape.
When it came in contact with Shaymin, there was a brilliant, almost melodious whirring, and another blast.
Bells chimed in the wind, as flower petals fell upon the Great Marsh. The dark pond was wiped clean in a simple pulse, the Pokemon floating beneath becoming visible. Fish became whole, as their bones grew the new flesh on another lifetime, for they say when treated with Gratitude and returned to the water from which they came, many Water-types may be granted new life.
Weeds grew from cracks in the earth, quickly giving way to luscious wavy grass, blooming outwards in a double spiral from the pond.
The bones of murdered Pokemon were turned a brilliant marble, embedded in the dirt, even as the ash melted away.
Water swelled from the spring in the ground, carrying Hilbert upwards on his feet while Shaymin floated upwards alongside him. Magikarp quickly reintegrated into the new lake of the marsh, Water-types springing upwards through the petal-covered surface, singing with joy.
Hilbert removed his cap, gazing upon the nature restored before him. Water glistened nearly as far as he could see, and Pokemon hesitantly approached the water through the tree line. Water-types of all kinds, Carvanha, Barboach, Magikarp, you name it, they happily jumped from the lake, shooting through the air.
He didn't need to translate with aura to understand their meaning.
Shaymin floated next to his head, watching nature reclaim what had been taken from it.
"I think our work here is done," he said, with a pleasant grin. "Your work, I mean."
"Think nothing of it. It is simply my duty." Even as they denied it, he could hear the satisfaction in their voice.
"We should let the Rangers take care of the rest." He turned, the water barely rippling underneath his feet. He picked out his Marill's Pokeball, and released the Water-type.
It squeaked and looked at him in confusion as it fell into the lake.
Hilbert cracked the Pokeball. "Go be with your family. They've been given another chance, and I think… They'll want to spend it with you."
Marill nodded, and dove beneath the light waves.
"You certainly are an interesting human, aren't you?"
He looked back as Shaymin, slyly. "You haven't figured that out?"
They stared at the rising sun for a few moments, contemplating the scene.
"...Come on, let's head back."
The entrance to the Great Marsh was blocked off, though he was standing on the wrong side of the police tape.
A Jenny with (strangely enough) Croagunk earrings was herding back a crowd of reporters, saying the usual lines about confidentiality and all that jazz. Looker was standing off to the side, and when he noticed Hilbert walk into the gateway, he sighed and shook his head, before walking over.
"I'm not surprised in the least that you're here."
Hilbert simply shrugged. "You know how it goes."
By that time, some of the people in the crowd had noticed he was there, and saw the Shaymin perched on his shoulder.
Looker ignored that, handing him a cup of coffee, of which the surrounding officers were taking many. A small squad of Pokemon Rangers were allowed through the tape, walking past the two of them without a second thought, though with some sideways glances towards his Pokemon.
Hilbert took one sip before nearly spitting out his lungs. "Agh! You trying to kill me?"
Looker sighed again. "I forgot you're a child, somehow. So, what were you doing here so early in the morning? Trespassing for fun?"
He handed the cup to Shaymin before answering. "I mean, it's obvious, isn't it? And it wasn't trespassing yet, I just Teleported. How was I supposed to know?"
Looker pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sure, sure. I need to get you one of those agent passes before you get arrested… So, for the record, what were you doing?"
"Shaymin fixed the explosion, or whatever it was." He grabbed the emptied coffee cup and tossed it in the trash can.
"...I believe a lot of the things you do, but you'll have to forgive me for not believing you. That was a dirty bomb, and the blast was a mile wide in some places."
Hilbert did another one-armed shrug. "The truth is out there, Mulder."
"You can't reference more than one medium of entertainment, that's against regulation."
"...Huh?"
Looker shook his head. "Never mind that. I'll get a badge for you the next time we meet. Any relation I can speak to for further details?"
"I'm not sure I'm old enough to work for Interpol, sorry."
"Ah. I'm sure a visitor's badge would suffice, then."
"Oh, hold on now, I still want it, do I get anything cool with it?"
"You have the strangest priorities, kid. Sure, sure."
Hilbert pumped his fist. "Nice!"
It was a bit annoying when the media finally made the connection between the new lake in the Great Marsh (Some already calling it Lake Gratitude) and Hilbert's team, Shaymin in specific.
It made their time training a bit more difficult, as he couldn't get far enough out of the way without being followed, but he eventually figured out that Abra knew Teleport.
Figuring that Golett were known for having Iron Fists, they went to Maylene's gym to get stronger during the day.
It was hellish, to say the least, as she insisted he attempt to learn everything Golett did. Lucario as well, just because she was a Fighting-type. Most of those techniques didn't apply to Abra, so he went off and meditated somewhere. Shaymin was still sleeping off the absorption of the marsh, which had eerily similar effects to intoxication, so Marley was taking care of them.
Garchomp and Tyrantitar had gone off somewhere, and Hilbert at some point caught the word 'date' so didn't inquire further.
"Sir? There are two pseudo-legendaries waiting to be seated." A Kadabra in a butler's getup walked up to the host.
Chef Ramsay had had the brilliant idea to open up another chain of restaurants, with the gimmick of serving Pokemon just as they did people, and so employed multiple Psychic-types.
There were many humanoid Psychic-types, however, Kadabra were the most willing for the job. Mr. Mime tended to creep customers out, Metang was a bit too magnetic sometimes for its own good, and some distastefully got handsy around Gardevoir.
"Well? Seat them, then!"
"Right away, sir."
Garchomp and Tyranitar, his claw holding her arm, were led through the massive archway that was large enough to fit a Waillord (Don't ask), and travelled through the massive dining area. The locale was located in a flatter, more open sect of Eterna Forest, accessible by both humans and Pokemon via the short, yet romantic nature trails.
"I'll have a…" Garchomp struggled to read the menu without stabbing it, but managed. "Persim Alfredo?"
"Of course, sir." Kadabra held up a notepad, psychically writing down the order. "And you, fair madam?"
See, it's the weirdest thing- Pokemon pick up on gender differences easier than most people do- Not out of any sort of prejudice- Far too many species changed genders when necessary for that to be practical, but out of an instinctual sense of vision- Knowing if prey was a nesting mother or not was once the difference between eating well or being pecked for the rest of your life.
"I'll have the Smoked-tail, thanks."
The Kadabra nodded, before leaving their table and reporting to the larger-on-the-inside cooking stall at the open-air pavilion's center.
"Comet Punch is a Normal-type punching attack," lectured Maylene in her usual nasally voice while pacing in front of the three students. "Now, I'm only mentioning this because I value my punching bags well, but Golett is a Ghost-type."
"...Yes?"
"Now, everyone will expect the elemental punches. Fire, Thunder, Ice. Just as much, they'll expect he knows Fighting-type moves. But, they'll forget the power of a Normal-type move, because Ghost-types rarely learn them. This power comes not from high effectiveness, but rather, the lack of ineffectiveness."
"Oh, I think I get it. Covering all the bases."
"Yep. But, the real lesson is using it as a base for your other punches. Comet Punch can hit multiple times, if utilized right."
"...Right…"
"So, imagine if you could apply that to a Mach Punch."
"Oh. Ohhhh. OHHH-"
"Pay attention!" Lucario shouted, because the art of hitting people really hard was sacred to the aura user. She also wanted to replicate White Claw's technique without the Trick Room fatigue.
"So, what are your hobbies, Tyranitar?" Garchomp lifted his bowl of pasta before taking a bite and lowering it back down.
"Hm… Eating rocks, sculpture, battling the enemies of mankind and Pokemon alike…" She somehow shrugged.
"Sculpture? Do tell."
"Do you know how Dizzy Punch works?" Maylene stopped their sparring match, letting him catch a breather.
"Let me guess… It makes the opponent dizzy?"
"Obviously. But do you know how that happens?"
"Uh… no?"
She responded with a right hook into his temple.
Luckily, his aura shield made him about as durable as a Pokemon, so it only threw him twenty feet to the side and it certainly made him dizzy.
"By attacking the vulnerable points of your opponent, you can induce a state of confusion nearly every time, even if you don't hit incredibly hard."
"First off, ow, second, you could have just said that!"
She shook her head. "This is a gym, you learn from experience, not from a lecture."
"...It's a simple process, really. Stone Edge evens itself out, so if I use it repeatedly, I can get a decent block of stone to work with. From there, I just carve out the rocks."
Garchomp, ever the gentleman, nodded. "I see, that's very interesting."
"Well, that's enough from me, tell me more about yourself. I feel like I've been going on and on…"
"It's fine, really. I enjoy long flights on the beach, picking flowers, and farming."
"Farming? Really?"
"Well, when I was a wee Gabite, I used my claws to scythe through the fields when the Scyther weren't feeling up to it. It was a tiny farm run by Pokemon, but it dissolved after that studio caught most of us."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"How do you expect a Ground-type to learn Sky Uppercut? He can levitate, sure, but that seems like a reach."
"Who the hell do you think I am?"
"Yeah, sorry, Golett, should've figured. Couldn't hurt to be prepared, I guess."
Before the end of June, Hilbert and his Pokemon had trained, and trained hard. Maylene, ahem, didn't pull any punches.
...Alright, who wrote this script?!
But the contents of the training aren't important yet, so we'll skip them.
Hilbert moved from one gym to another, his teammates having already entered the stands.
He felt the manly urge to kick in the door to the gym, and so he did- With a bang.
Crasher Wake stood at the opposite end of the building, on his podium, arms crossed and filled with his usual bravado.
"I was expecting you'd be back!"
Hilbert smirked. "Of course I'd come back, just who the hell do you think I am?"
"Ha! You know the drill, then."
He chuckled, grabbing his first Pokeball.
Wake's Gyarados appeared, intimidating him with their ferocity. He managed to ignore it long enough to send out Lucario.
"Let's get started! Agility!"
Lucario blurred, mirages splitting off of her body, before dissolving back into her. Her body was shuddering from the speed boost like a trick of the light.
"A Fighting-type, eh? Gyarados, Bounce!"
The dragon-like Pokemon slapped its tail against the water and shot into the air.
"You know what to do, Lucario!"
She nodded, bending her canine knees before exploding into the air.
"SKYYYYY UPPERCUTTTTAAAAAAAA!"
Gyarados didn't see the punch in the jaw coming, and smacked against the ceiling's skylight, making it shudder, before falling back to the water.
Lucario landed in a defensive stance, back on a disc.
"Payback, Gyarados!"
The Water-type crackled with dark energy, before rushing forward.
Lucario stopped it with her arms, though was still pushed over the water. Using her aura, she stayed on her feet.
"COUNTER!"
She grabbed the Gyarados by its lips, before jumping in the air, flipping it below her, and throwing it back down onto the water.
The water soaked Hilbert instantly, the splash reaching as high as the ceiling. The audience was thankfully protected, though their view was partly obscured.
It was almost like rain, the water dripping from the ceiling.
Wake took that as a good sign. "Hurricane!"
Lucario took the hit, wind whipping through her fur, and pushing her out of the pool, next to Hilbert.
"You alright?"
She wiped her mouth, but managed a thumbs up. "Are you doubting me?"
Hilbert laughed. "I wouldn't dream of it."
She jumped back, standing on the water as all the discs had shattered across the room.
"Laser Focus!"
Aura sharpened around her eyes, giving them a blue piercing glow.
Gyarados attempted to use Hurricane again, but the rain effect had been blown away, and the wind missed completely.
"THUNDER PUNCH!"
Electricity moved almost as fast as Lucario did, leaving a trail behind as she shot forward with an enormous wave behind her, and punching Gyarados between the eyes.
The Water-type shot back, recoiling, and embedded itself in the wall behind Wake.
It flopped out, limply, and created the last splash of the round.
"Good job, Lucario!" He high-fived the Fighting-type, only stinging his hand a little, before she returned to her Pokeball.
"Alright, then, Quagsire!"
The Water-Ground-type appeared, dopey as ever, but he could see past the surface.
"Shaymin, you know what they can do, so be careful!"
The Grass-type appeared. "Alright!"
"Quagsire, Hail!"
"Keep them at a distance! Sunny Day!"
Hailstones briefly clacked against the new discs, before being melted away by blazing sunlight.
"Ergh… Ice Punch!"
Shaymin was thrown into the air, but managed to jump at the last second and avoid most of the damage.
"Double Team!"
Shaymin's body blurred into three copies, landing on different discs. Quagsire punched through one, before stopping in confusion when it simply shimmered.
"Energy Ball!"
Three balls of energy slammed into the Quagsire, the only true attack hitting from behind, where Shaymin's actual body was.
Quagsire was confused, not because of any status condition, but because it couldn't tell where the attack came from.
The shadow clones doubled again and again, as Shaymin started making odd gestures with their paws.
Quagsire was surrounded quickly, and confused by the dozen opponents it now had.
"Try this on for size! BULLET HELL!"
Hundreds of seeds shot across the room, and Quagsire didn't know which to dodge. It was hit dead on by the true attack, hitting its body with a 'Ratata'- Er, 'ratatatat' sound.
It fell over moments later, in a daze.
"Nice one, Shaymin!"
The hedgehog nodded, levitating and running back through the air, perching on his shoulder.
He chose Golett as Floatzel appeared.
"Are you using a Ground-type because you've already won?" Wake shook his head. "That's not the point of-"
He was interrupted by Hilbert laughing.
"No, that's not why. See, Wake, I've realized something. It's not about aura, or psychic energy, or Gratitude…"
He and Golett held up their fists in an identical pose, fingers clenched.
"IT'S ABOUT WILLPOWER!"
Golett crackled with blue lightning, turning a bright red.
"Floatzel, Aqua Jet!"
"Mach Punch!"
Golett slammed his fist into the Water-type, meeting them in the middle and stopping the spray.
He was still splashed, but not as severely.
"Ice Punch!"
"Imprison!"
Psychic chains held back Floatzel's fist, ice refusing to form around it.
"Thunder Punch!"
Floatzel flew back, body, crackling with electricity, but managed to land on their feet, panting.
"Hail!"
Ice began falling, the ceiling sliding open to allow it through. All for nothing, as the stones sizzled and dissolved before reaching Golett.
"The magma of our souls burns with a mighty flame! Do you think a little ice can get us down?"
"Blizzard!"
The icy wind blew through the arena, kicking up bits of snow in Hilbert's face, but he barely noticed. His eyes were bloodshot from his enthusiasm.
"Golett, Earthquake! Let's show 'em a real water attack!"
The gym's floor cracked from sheer pressure, like it was being weighed down by Magnitude. Brilliant white light shone out of the cracks, reaching down into the pool.
The water started whipping around, waves crashing over them to no effect. Steam started pouring off of Golett, a sphere of pure heat escaping from him.
"You see this? This is our power! This is our soul!"
Water whipped around Floatzel, like a Whirlpool.
"This shouldn't be possible!" Wake cried, not in fear, but in excitement and shock. Earthquakes caused tsunamis; He was Japanese, everyone knew that. But such control was shocking, especially from a Ground-type.
"Possible? Ha! Who cares about what's possible or probable or any of that crap! Go beyond the impossible and kick reason to the curb! That's how we roll!"
A wave of energy exploded outwards in all directions, Golett at its source. His body was melting into pure energy, like his sync ratio had reached 400%.
"THAT'S HOW TEAM BLACK ROLLS!"
He doubled, no- Tripled in height!
"JUST WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK WE ARE?"
Energy slowly seeped out of the air, funneling into the glowing mass. It swirled and spiraled, changing into Golett's new form.
Golurk stood, defiant, water whipping around him, and floating above the surface of the pool. His hands were outstretched, as he let loose a guttural battle cry.
His body faded into a red, almost metallic sheen, spiral power pulsing from the sealed crack in his chest.
"GOLURK, YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO!" He pointed forward at the paralyzed Floatzel.
A drill shot outwards from the massive golem's right arm, more than matching him in length.
"GIGA…"
With a heavy clunk, he hefted the drill upwards, shifting slightly to aim it directly at the Water-type wall in his way
"DRILLLLLL…"
The remaining water dissolved into steam, wrapping around the shining drill. Wake had the good sense to get out of the way, before he was drilled through the wall.
A brilliant screech echoed throughout Pastoria, not quite human, but many could swear that it was two voices speaking as one.
"BREAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!"
Suffice to say, Pastoria was in need of a lot of repaving. And roofing. And-
Well, you get the point.
Floatzel was thoroughly unconscious, at the very least, still flying through the air, later landing in the Great Marsh.
Hilbert stood on the remaining wall, slightly crouched, shielding his eyes while looking out the hole.
"Oh. Yep. Uhuh. Yeah, sorry about that."
Golurk landed far off with a massive crash. Flying-type scattered into the air, minuscule in his sight.
"...My bad?"
Wake laughed, slapping him on the back. "I was waiting for something like that! I've seen your other matches, I have to say, I'm impressed!"
That was the understatement of the century.
"Ah, yeah." Hilbert absentmindedly rubbed his shoulder, smiling up at the gym leader. "It's a habit."
He heard Golurk clank in the distance. The golem was flying through the air with blue energy jetting behind him, and orange shape on one of his arms.
"Oh, that'll be Floatzel." He looked out again, only hearing Barry's whoops in his periphery.
Golurk landed, carefully laying the Water-type in front of Wake. He turned to Hilbert, saluting, and his color shifting back to normal in a near instant.
"Don't mock me!" Hilbert laughed. "Whatever! Good job! We're gonna kick so much ass now!"
GAINAX employees across Japan were frothing at the mouth watching Golurk's finishing attack on TV, having a special channel just to keep an eye on Hilbert's team. A bike shop owner was glad he managed to invest in Team Black before anyone else.
Roark was Roarking- Ahem, roaring with laughter while pouring him and Gardenia a drink.
The gym-goers in Hearthome looked up from their various exercises to watch the recording of the battle in Pastoria. The leader nodded with pride in her student and punching bag.
Not long after their gym battle, they left Pastoria.
Not via a route, but through the air.
Amazingly, Golurk could actually fly when they retracted their legs.
At mach speeds.
Luckily though, he didn't, so Hilbert could actually ride on his back, loosely holding on with his aura.
Dawn was behind him, holding on for dear life.
Garchomp rose in the cutting winds, Lucas and Marley riding on its back in much the same way. Cheryl was borrowing Lucas's Staraptor, while Barry used his own. It evolved back during the beach trip.
"This is really something, huh?" He yelled, glancing behind him.
Dawn didn't look up, her hair whipping around her as she used him as a shield from the wind. "Yeah, sure, are we there yet?"
He looked back over towards the horizon, seeing Hearthome's outskirts just barely come into view.
"Whaddya mean it's still closed?" Barry yelled, tugging at his hair. Fantina, the gym leader, still wasn't accepting challenges.
Hilbert remembered what that woman, Cynthia, had told him. "You know, maybe we ought to just head up to Snowpoint."
Dawn looked pointedly at him then towards the contest hall.
"Well, after Dawn's contest."
She did pretty good.
Because the network has a limited airtime this week, you'll have to settle for that brief description.
Sorry about that, folks.
AN:
My AC unit broke, so my mind has stopped allowing me to think coherently. That or the leftover chocolate from easter. I am not a smart man. So, this chapter is a bit short, but functions like a pt. 2 to the last chapter.
Read X and Y: The Kalos Chronicles, even if it's old and unfinished, it's one of the best rom coms I've ever read. Well, considering the genre, the bar isn't that high, but that's neither here nor there.