Author's Note:
Here it is, the first chapter of the year and also the final capture in Hoenn. If you've seen the title, you can probably guess which mon that is and who'll be the one to catch them. This was the first Pokémon I decided on for Max's team, and it's pretty heavily based on the episode by the same name. Being another Pokémon on Max's team, I am once again taking nickname suggestions. You'll see my own option in the chapter itself but I'm interested to see what you all can come up with. Onto the Pokémon introduced, this is one of those character arc driven mon which will be more heavily explored in the Battle Frontier arc and beyond. Just know it's one I am really looking forward to exploring. I know I said J wouldn't appear again until Sinnoh but that was in person. Her presence can still be felt in her absence, as this chapter will show. Oh yeah, in case your wondering about the gap for this chapter, I took some time to catch up on writing. Hopefully, it'll be the last break until we finish Hoenn. Expect next chapter on the first of Feb. Don't forget to vote in the poll, we have a new one up which focuses on Serena's Hoenn team and which members are your favourite. Not much else to say and with that, let's begin
Chapter Eighty-One: Do I hear a Ralts?
Max smiled as he sat at the kitchen table, scooping up a spoonful of cereal and inhaling it with a rush. May and his mum had already left to go shopping together and Brock could be seen in the living room, giving Electrike a check-up. Under the table was the family Linoone, rushing down his own bowl for breakfast. Ash and Serena could be heard from the outside, giving some instructions in a battle.
His eyes glanced up to his dad. He sat on the other side of the table, biting on some toast with a hot cup of coffee sat in front of him. Holding a newspaper up, he seemed to be reading away without a care in the world. Taking another spoonful, his eyes darted down when his father glanced in his direction.
"So Max, what's the plan for today?" he asked, putting the paper down to having a drink of his coffee.
"Well-" He covered his lips, quickly swallowing the food inside. "Ash and Serena are training so I was gonna try and get some battles in. Maybe see if Grovyle can give Geico some lessons... but I guess that depends on if he's participating-"
A bark from under the table cut him off. Looking down, he found Linoone jumping up with a
"I think he's saying he'd like to be your battling opponent." He smiled. "Right Linoone?"
The normal type gave a wide grin, enthusiastically nodding his head. Bouncing down, he ran out back and forth.
"So, I know Geico is your Treecko but I haven't really got to know the others," he replied, "tell me about them."
"Ozone is my Castform! She's really sweet actually but can get into issues with Shade!" He exclaimed. "I met her at the weather institute, and they wanted someone to help her grow. We kinda got close during the visit so she came with me, but the researchers have synced up my dex to keep up with their research on her. She specialises in weather with different forms for intense sun, rain and even snow. It's like training four Pokémon in own."
"It certainly sounds interesting." He nodded. "Once she's mastered each form, being able to switch between them would throw any opponent off."
"Then Shade is my Shuppet. We met him on mount Pyre!" He continued. "We even met Phoebe of the elite four there. She battled Serena but I really wanted to try and catch a ghost type. Since I got handed Ozone and Geico, I just wanted the chance to do it like a real trainer. He can be a bit of a handful with playing pranks and tends to get into arguments with Ozone but-"
"Ghost types tend to be on the mischievous side." He smiled. "But they all sound like great Pokémon. I'll tell you what."
"What?" he asked.
"What would you say to me letting you have open access to the greenhouse," he replied, "or at least, the Pokémon who are residing in there."
"You mean it?!" he asked, practically jumping off his chair.
"I've got three challengers scheduled today and all are going for their last badge so my lower badge team members will just be there anyway," he replied, "I will say we don't allow battling inside the green house because of damaging it. The structures been really affected from that whole magma earthquake but if you go and ask, I'm sure most of them will be happy to battle with you three."
A lone bark interrupted, curtsy of the pure normal type. He bounced back and forth in excitement, his tongue dangling out.
"I think you've already got your first opponent." He smiled. "And then, the gym is closed at the weekend so how about we have a battle then too. I'd really like to see what Ozone imparticular is capable off. I've faced opponents specialising in one weather but never one capable of multi-weather combat."
"That would be awesome!" He jumped up, throwing a fist into the air.
"Then it's a deal but you need to really need to prepare for it. Just because I'm your dad doesn't mean I'll let you off easy." He finished his coffee, glancing up to the clock. He nearly choked as he swallowed the drink. Standing up, he dusted the crumbs off himself. "I should really get going. Kenny will be really annoyed if I'm late again. Especially if the first challenger is already there."
"Hey dad-" he asked, as he watched him pocket the wallet, phone, and keys off the counter side. Brushing his hand over the Pokéballs decorating his belt. "I wanted to ask... how come you specialise in normal type?"
"Well, my starter was a Skitty, and we had it tough to begin with," he replied, "then we faced a gym leader. Wattson actually, from Mauville. He pointed out that every type has something special, hence why people pick to specialise. It's like seeing yourself or your style in the type itself."
"But normal doesn't have anything special." He frowned. "It's just... normal."
"Exactly, the lack of specialness is what makes them special," he replied, "normal types have some of the biggest move-sets of any Pokémon. I guess it was just my way to show the ordinary can achieve the extra-ordinary!"
"Huh." He followed his dad through the house to the front door. "I never thought of it that way."
"And that is my hope for both you and May too," he replied, "I know other people might have the perfect Pokémon bred for a starter or have professionals to train them in their specific area, but I truly believe you can forge your own adventure and having worked for it, it'll mean so much more."
"Oh-" He muttered standing as his dad bid goodbye once more. Standing at the edge off their front garden, he let the words sink in.
Waving to him, his dad as he ran off towards the gym, he shook his head and smiled widely returning the gesture. Glancing down beside him, he noticed Linoone bark a send-off himself. Smiling at the pure normal type, he kneeled down and scratched the top of his head. "What do you say to a battle?"
With a playful growl, he gave an enthusiastic nod he took off around the side of the house. Smiling at the energetic normal type, he took off, feeling the three Pokéballs rattle on his belt. Making his way around to the back garden, he found none other than Ash and Serena in some sort of battle. Using Snorunt and Kirlia against each other. With the former firing out a widespread icy wind across the makeshift field.
A psychic outline surrounded the mini-chill, turning it into a closed cloud. Spinning around, it orbited around the psychic fairy type.
Some of the snowflakes sprinkled out, leaving a glitter effect. While most was sent up, erupting like a sort of icy-firework over the emotion Pokémon.
"No Kirlia, this isn't training for a performance!" Serena called out. "Let's try shockwave once more!"
Kicking off into a run, his feet sparked with electricity. Whips of voltage seemed to spark off as he bounced around the field in a sort of dance.
The lightning strikes swirled around, forming rings over his body but he just continued to dance. It was sort of like Ash's counter-shield technique but without trapping his opponent as a result. It was quite impressive, really, how he controlled the flow with the right steps in his routine.
Snorunt, however, didn't let the performance continue. With a loud cry, a ball of ice formed at his mouth. A beam shot out across the field.
Striking the electric field around Kirlia, an explosion occurred. A cool mist erupted, blowing both Pokémon back. As it faded, both were on their stomach's.
Pushing themselves up, it was clear neither were happy with the result. Shaking his head, the pure ice type took off into a run.
Dark type energy formed from his mouth as he dived to the feelings Pokémon. "Psybeam!" Serena gasped.
Pushing himself up, he held one hand out. A multicoloured beam of psychic energy shot out but was blocked by the incoming bite attack.
Leaping up, the energy took the shape of fangs. Snapping down over the emotion Pokémon, he fell back and Snorunt rolled behind.
Turning around, he shot out a second ice beam. A bright flash engulfed the middle-staged Pokémon as the attack struck.
"Moonblast!" Serena hollered.
Having teleported above the field, Kirlia fell down. Landing on the clear ice pillar, he tossed a pink sphere of fairy type energy. A green shield formed around the pure ice type, protecting him from the projectile. He smiled seeing the two opponents facing off, each ready for the next section of the battle.
"I guess Serena's really serious about getting better at battling," he muttered to himself.
Shaking his head, he turned towards the pure normal type. Linoone let out a happy bark, running ahead. Making their own makeshift battlefield, he narrowed his gaze, running his hand over his three Pokéballs. Shade would be most likely to leave some damage with his stall tricks and Geico is his strongest overall so to start off- "Your up first, Ozone!"
His weather Pokémon materialised in the sky, floating around with a happy cry. Entering the sunlight, her body began to transform into the sun form.
The now fire type lowered down to be more his height, facing the family Linoone. With a roar, she shot out a barrage of fire balls across the makeshift field.
Charging forward, he dodged the incoming embers, which lightly scorched the grass. In the blink of an eye, he jumped up and crashed into his first caught.
Being blown to the side, she shook her body. frowning in response. She didn't notice Linoone moving in for a second strike.
"Flash!" He shouted. "Then try that new move we've been working on!"
A bright light engulfed her body, causing the rushing Pokémon to crash to the side. Covering his face from the intense flash in front of them.
She turned and formed a green sphere in front of her body. It fired off and struck the normal types back.
Despite having a lot of moves within her move-pool, Ozone can only use certain ones during certain forms. While she could use moves like thunderbolt in her rain form, they figured a water counter in her sun form would work well. Hence working on energy ball. It's certainly interesting, like raising three-
"Help!"
"Huh?" He looked away from the pending battle. "Hello. Is anyone there?"
"What's the matter, Max?" he heard Ash ask as he turned back to the two older trainers. They seemed to have halted their own training session too.
"I thought I heard-"
"Help! Help me please?!"
His voice died in his throat at the panicked voice. Turning on a heel, he couldn't be sure how, but he seemed to instantly know where that voice was coming from. Charging off at his top speed, he heard the two older trainers call out, but he couldn't stop. It was as if his body was compelled to seek out the being.
Unsure how long he ran for, he soon fell upon an open grassy patch outside of the city limits. Lying down on a flower bed was a humanoid Pokémon with a pure white body, illuminated by the strong sun light. Thin arms were tucked neatly under the head which was mostly covered by green hair which resembled a bowl cut. Two flat, red horns were sticking out of the head. The larger one pointed forward with the smaller pointing back. There was a wispy extension trailing off the back of the feet, creating the impression of a nightgown or oversized dress.
"A Ralts?!" He gasped, causing the psychic fairy type to stir slightly.
Skidding down beside the Pokémon, he quickly looked them over. Sweat poured down the poor Pokémon's face as he heard each heavy breath. The small stomach seemed to raise and lower in uneven timings. He gently scooped the small one up, turning to see Ozone floating above him.
"I need you to go and find Ash and Serena," he explained, "lead them over here. Ralts isn't in a good shape."
Giving a nod, she turned and took off back in the way they approached. His head watched until she disappeared from sight. With a frown flickering across his lips, he turned down to the feelings Pokémon. It was difficult to swallow due to a lump in his throat. The same weak voice repeated the cries for help in his head. He would love nothing more than to give a potion or some berries but in his haste, he left his backpack at home.
"Max!" He heard Serena's voice.
"Over here?!" He called back.
As Ozone, Ash and Serena came into sight, the psychic fairy type flinched in response. A bright flash blinded him as the world around turned into a pure white box. His mind tried to think of some explanation or even just comprehend what was happening... only for no thoughts to really take place in the moment.
Ash panted as he ran along, slightly ahead of his girlfriend. Glancing up he noticed Castform flying at her top speed after finding them. He briefly considered picking out Swellow's ball, but it wouldn't really be worth it. According to the weather Pokémon, they're close by and in a straight shot.
Slowing his pace as the young boy came into sight, he waited for Serena to catch up. Crouching low, he watched him cradling a small Ralts in his arms. He pinched his lips together, curiosity getting the better of him. Slowly moving closer, he wanted to see how Max would handle the situation. Of course, they're on side to step in but being a trainer for a while and journeying even longer... it was hard to say but seeing the young boy learn from each of them raises the question of how he'll handle it, and which approach he'll take. Kind of an insight into who he seems to take the most after.
His mind thought back to the time Sandslash fell into the ocean... he spent the whole night, helping him recover and just talking.
Serena's Jumpluff was a little Hoppip who blew away in a storm... while not certain of their adventure, he could guess her never give up attitude helped.
Of course, Brock has Electrike who he's been caring for... he identified the problem and applied his medical knowledge to save the little guy.
As his mind run wild with anticipation, he slowly crept closer. Feeling the comforting hand on his shoulder, he turned and locked eyes with Serena. Sharing a singular solitary, they mentally agreed to watch from the side lines. He caught sight of the floating normal type, who didn't want to wait it seems.
Standing up to try and stop her, the noise drew both of Max's and Ralts' attention. A bright light engulfed them, and in a flash, both were gone.
"Did... Ralts just teleport them?" Serena asked, an air of uncertainty in her voice.
"Uh huh."
"Where too?" she asked.
"No idea..." He paused. His eyes widened as the situation settled in. Max had been teleported away by a wild Pokémon to an unknow location and no-one else with him. Jumping up, he turned to face Serena. "We need to find them!"
"Ya think?" she asked, a certain sass in her voice. While he wanted to smile at the side he rarely gets to see, he closed his eyes, tapping his foot.
"We need a plan..." He sighed. "Can you link up your mind with his?"
"I've been trying," she replied, "but I can only extend it so far and without knowing where he is, it's like finding a needle in a haystack. We need a better plan if we want to do this... and we can't do this on our own either."
"Right!" He nodded, pulling his brows together. "I just want to know what Ralts wants with Max?"
"You heard him, the voice was calling for help and Ralts looked weak," she replied, "better question, where would a weak and scared Ralts take them?"
"If Ralts is weak and acted on a panic then they mustn't have gone far," he reasoned. "I'mma get Swellow to start scouting."
"Good idea." Her voice continued as he turned to the side.
Pulling out his own Pokéball, he let the normal flying type out. Giving her a quick run-down of events, she wasted no time in kicking off the ground and shooting into the sky. He turned back and found Serena no-where to be seen before he could question it, however, her mind connected with his.
"I'm heading to the centre to call the lab!" Serena's mental voice echoed in his head. He looked up but she was already gone. "We need as many eyes looking as possible."
"Great idea!" he replied, taking off after her. "Can you ask them to get some others ready for me? I'll catch you up!"
He entered his own run back towards the town with his mind returning to the young boy. Scrunching his hands tight, he silently prayed that he was alright right now. He just wanted to see how he'd handle the situation but if he knew this would happen... he just hopes they're able to find him before something else happens. Max should be alright... right? He's learnt from them all, right? He's-
Rushing into the centre, he found Serena already on the phone to Professor Oak. Quickly giving him a list of his own Pokémon, they started sending back their team members to make room. As Gary and Leaf carried the devices back into the room, they quickly sent them over. Ending the call, they ran outside and let out the squad. Pidgeot, Charizard, Dragonite, Aerodactyl, Houndoom, Beedrill, Magneton, Jumpluff, Ledian, Murkrow, Dustox and Froslass lined up.
"Guys, we really need your help!" Ash exclaimed. "Our friend Max was teleported away by a Ralts. We need to spread out and find them! Ralts didn't look in the best shape and we don't know where he was taken?!"
"This is what he looks like," Serena added, sending a mental image into each of their heads. "Spread out and search from the air. Houndoom, you come with us. We're going back to the house to find something for you to use for tracking! Alright?"
Each gave a nod and took off. The larger flying types seemed to take more height, spreading out further whilst the smaller members took off closer to the ground. Turning on a heel, they charged down the street back to the Maple's home, with Houndoom right beside and Ozone overhead.
Bursting through the front doors, they seemed to startle Brock. Serena wasted no time in bolting upstairs to his room.
"What's all the commotion about?" Brock asked, holding Electrike in his arms.
"Max is missing... he found an injured Ralts, and it teleported them away!" He exclaimed. "We got some team changes and they're searching right now but we also got Houndoom to help with tracking his scent."
"It might help if I take that one." Houndoom gestured to the electric type in Brock's arms. "Even if not a trained tracker, being more use to Max's scent should give us more chance than not."
"Houndoom wants to use Electrike to help with tracking-" said Pokémon seemed to stir, as if trying to get closer to his dark Pokémon. Not need to translate his response, Brock wasted no time in placing him gently placing him on the fire dark types back. Footsteps revealed Serena with Max's backpack in hand.
"Here you go, Houndoom, this is his backpack." Taking it off his girlfriend, he kneeled down to let both canines sniff for Max's scent. He glanced up to see her running to the back door. "I'm gonna go to the green house. We should get everyone we can looking for him."
"Good idea," he nodded. His fully evolved Pokémon sniffing the ground, heading to the front door. "Remember to lock up before you leave. I think he's got it."
"I'm gonna go find May and Caroline." Brock announced. "I'll let Vibrava, Chimecho and Solrock out too. To help with the search!"
Nodding, they ran outside and the doctor in breeding sent out his three Pokémon. Each of them took off after the brief explanation, while Ash clutched onto the backpack, sticking close to the ace of his Johto team, they took off down the street.
A loud roar of thunder echoed from the sky. Glancing up, he noticed Ozone floating in her normal form. A massive black cloud formed overhead.
"What're you're doing?" he asked.
"If Max see's this, then he'll know where I am!" She yelled. "This could help lead him home
"Right... sorry." He shook his head. "I didn't think. We need every chance we can get to find him."
"Just don't make it rain, alright." Houndoom growled. "That'll dampen all tracks and make our chances of finding him next to none. At least this way."
Giving a nod, they took off once more, keeping behind the fire dark type. Both him and Electrike seemed to crouching down to sniff the ground as they stopped every few feet. Biting down onto his lower lip, his mind started running with possibilities of where Max ended up. He could be lost in a forest, with no idea where to go or what to do, or on the side of a cliff! Maybe into the territory of some dangerous Pokémon who'll-
The sound of footsteps drew his attention. Turning back, he found Serena running up with a series of normal types slightly behind like: Aipom; Smeargle; Linoone; Loudred; Zangoose; Spinda; and some others which he didn't even reconsign.
"Any luck yet?" she panted slightly.
"No." He shook his head. "What about you? Can you connect to his mind yet?"
"No, like I said earlier, without knowing where to look for his mind, it'll be like looking for a needle in a haystack. But thinking it about it, hey Chimecho, Solrock, I need your help." The two psychic types turned and approached. "I want to link up everyone's minds. So, if one finds them then-"
Giving nods, they each closed their eyes. ESP radiated out of the three of them. He felt himself knocked back as the triple presence of all three of them entered his mind. As the world went dark, he felt the presence of his own team, then Serena's, Norman's Pokémon came in next, ending Brock. She would've added in May and Caroline, but it was easy to see her reasoning of not wanting to interrupt Brock before he contacted them himself.
"Guys let us all know if you get anything." Serena instructed. "We're with Houndoom, trying to track his scent."
"I've heard chatter that somethings going on in Petalburg woods." Pidgeot informed. "It looks like some sort of battle. But it's too far to see specifics."
A whimper came the pure electric type, causing him to return focus to the real world. The two canines shared a short conversation before the dark Pokémon stood up and took off in a sprint. Without hesitation, he followed, leading the way on foot.
"Houndoom and Electrike are heading in that direction!" Ash exclaimed through the link. "They say they've got his scent! But it's weak!"
"That's my old haunt!" Swellow interjected. "I'll handle whoever thinks they can run my old stomping ground!"
Max blinked. A numb tingle covered his body as he uncurl from his position. The Ralts fell down onto the grass beneath him as he gasped for breath. A thick scent of wet grass, bark and differing flowers filled his senses, with a tint of sea water breaking through. Looking up, his eyes bulged at the sight of a vary of trees. Feeling the blood drain from his face, he turned his head in different direction, but each view looked to be the same.
"R-Ralts?" he gasped. "D-did you teleport us?"
The psychic fairy type lay down on the ground, letting out a low, pain-filled whimper. Shivering slightly, he frowned. Even if they could connect minds to communicate, the feelings Pokémon is in no condition to answer... chances are they don't even know where they teleported them too.
Moving into a sitting position over the poor Pokémon, he placed a hand on their forehead. Despite shivering like in some sort of snowstorm, the forehead was burning hot. Floods of sweat washed over their face as more pained whimpers escaped. Squeezing his hands shut, he hit his head whilst trying to recall their previous journey's. The memories of his time with Brock, learning about the medical berries and such entered his mind.
"That's it!" He pulled out his Poke-nav and searched through for the image he was looking for. Pulling out the two Pokéballs off his belt, he let both Geico and Shade out. They stood in front of him and looked expectantly. "Ozone isn't here. You see, Ralts here got scared and teleported us. They're really ill."
"Tree." "Shup."
"Geico, these forests are usually full of berries. Can you go and try to find some of these-" He showed his Poke-nav with the image of blue berries. "These are called oran berries. They should help Ralts keep their energy up."
"Ecko!" He nodded. Taking off across the floor, he lept up into the tree branches. Disappearing from sight, he turned to the ghost type.
"Now Shade, a big forest like this should have some sort of water source nearby," he explained, "can you fly up to find it then lead us there. We need to keep the fever down and it'll be a lot easier with water then not."
"Shup-pet!" Giving a nod, the pure ghost type floated up into the air.
Looking back to the psychic fairy type, he frowned. While Brock taught him a lot, nothing specific about this species. Neither Ash's Gardevoir nor Serena's Kirlia really fell ill like this during their journey. They might've got hurt in battle, but Nurse Joy would just fix them up. Scooping the feelings Pokémon up, he stood up just in time for Shade's return. The puppet Pokémon pointed off in one direction. Giving a nod, he flew ahead, and Max took off after him.
It didn't take them long to reach the slow-flowing river. He noticed a few Surskit skating on top of the river but didn't pay them any mind. Skidding to a stop beside the water, he lay the ill Pokémon down beside him. Patting his body to try and find something, he frowned realising his backpack was back home.
"Aww man," he muttered, realising he didn't have anything to help with the current situation.
"Shuppet?" his ghost type asked.
"Huh?"
He turned to see Shade holding his glasses cleaner which he kept in one pocket. Freezing for a moment, he read the thoughts on his newest team members face. Hardening his expression, he gave a small nod. Picking it up the cloth, he dipped it into the water, letting it soak up. Pulling it back out, he folded it together and lay across Ralts' forehead. More whimpers escaped the psychic fairy type's mouth as he watched the events unfold.
"You need to be strong, Ralts... Geico won't be long then-" He felt the tears sting his eyes as he the words stuck in his throat. His hands fell in front of him to keep him upright as the glasses fogged up. Clutching the grass between his fingers, the pained-cries echoed in his ear. "Ralts... don't quit... I-I don't know how to help you... why did you pick me of all of us?... why did I have to try and be the big hero and save you?... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I let you down."
His tears flowed freely as he crumbled in front of the two Pokémon. His body shook with each tremor, time seemed to stand still. As he heard each whimper in his ear, the fear it might be Ralts' last kept him in a paralyzed state.
A fuzzy green thing lifted up his glasses, gently wiping the tears from his eyes. "Tree." He turned to see his starter stood, using his tail to dry his eyes. He was holding three oran berries in his arms. Offering a small smile, he took one of the berries out his arms.
"Thank you," he muttered. Holding it up to Ralts lips, he watched and prayed for the little one to take a bite but to no-avail. Letting out a low sigh, he closed his eyes as he tried to think of something. The image of his own illness before heading out on journey entered his mind. His mum fed him some soup as he rested. "That's it! Shade, can you use some psychic energy to crush them and help feed Ralts?"
"Pet, Shuppet."
A light blue outline of ESP surrounded the berry. Lifting it up into the air, about eye-level, it crushed down into a pile of blue mush, but the juice remained within the berry remains. Hovering it over to the feelings Pokémon, Ralts slowly took a few bites, eating the energy source.
"That's good at least." He sighed. Standing up, he turned to look around with Geico climbing onto his shoulder. "That's not good. The treelines are making it impossible to see where the sun is or even anything in the distance which might help us find out where we are."
"Ecko."
"Right so... Ralts in this condition couldn't have moved us far. The closest forest like this would be Petalburg woods, right?" he asked, to which his starter nodded. "Assuming that's where we are... we should find a landmark which we know. We can work backwards from there."
"Tree Treecko."
"Yeah!" His eyes widened. "Treecko, Ash's Grovyle use to live here at a massive tree. His Meganium helped strength and revitalise it! Can you... I dunno, sense the grass type influence? And lead us too it?"
Jumping down in front of him, the grass type shrugged before closing his eyes. His head tilted down, as if meditating on the surrounding location. His breath stuck in his throat as he watched the wood gecko Pokémon. He dropped onto all fours as his tail stuck up into the air, like some sort of radar. He couldn't be sure how long they spent but after a cool breeze blew past them, his first Pokémon stood back up, staring at him.
"Have you got something, Geico?" he asked.
"Tree." He nodded.
Without hesitation, he turned and scooped Ralts back up. Only a small amount of the berry remained hovering in front of their mouth. Turning on a heel, he took off with his Treecko leading the charge and Shuppet floating right beside him. As they entered a thicker part of the woods, he noticed the psychic fairy type stirring in his arms. Offering a smile down to the small Pokémon he was cradling, he glanced towards his grass type to keep going the right way.
"Hey... Ralts..." he muttered. "How are you feeling."
"Awful." The meke mental voice echoed in his head.
"What happened to you?" he asked. "How did you get into this condition?"
A vision appeared in his head, as if reliving a memory. He found himself in a similar sort of area where he found the feelings Pokémon originally, but large grey trucks were parked around. Peeking out through some small leaves, he ended up watching some sort of duel between a Gardevoir and Salamence. A Drapion was off to the side, with massive claws clutched around a Kirlia. A beam of gold shot out, hitting the fully evolved Pokémon.
Gardevoir froze in place, with a golden coat covering their entire body. Someone dressed in a long purple trenchcoat walked over to the Drapion, placing some sort of bright blue stone against the Kirlia. As a bright light engulfed the emotions Pokémon, the memory faded.
"T-that... that was hunter J!" He gasped. "
"She took my mum and brother," Ralts whimpered through the mind-share.
"But she's not in Hoenn... she hasn't been for a few months," he replied, "Serena's been... watching the news. She was confirmed to be spotted passing back over Johto before May's Pacifidlog contest. This couldn't have been any time recently."
"I-it's the last thing... I remember-" Ralts' breathing grew heavier. "Then I saw memories... of yours... with a Gardevoir a-and Kirlia-"
"You thought it was your mum and brother-" He realised why he was picked out of everyone. The other day both Ash and Serena partook in a battle but those two weren't apart, so he borrowed them to help teach Shuppet psychic. "But how did you get this sick if its anything to do with an attack months ago?"
"I-I panicked when all of you showed up..." Tears leaked down the side of their cheek. "I'm sorry-"
"Save your strength... we don't need to worry about that now," he replied. Part of him thought of possibly getting teleported back but in this condition, it might just take the last of Ralts' energy or at the very least, put them in a worst position considering the less than stable condition. He'd rather go with the original plan with finding a landmark and working out a way home from there. "Just hold on and rest... we'll get you some help, I promise."
Running for a couple more minutes, they came up to the decent sized tree with an opening from the surrounded nature. It was a little surprising to see how quickly it grew from their first visit, but he figured it must've been Meganium's influence when reviving the plant. Shaking his head, he turned to the grass type who lead them here.
"Thank you, Geico." He paused, running through his journey in Hoenn so far. "Now can you climb to the top and look for some skyscrapers? That'll be easier to make out but will be Rustboro. If we get our bearings of that direction, which is north, we can work out which way Petalburg is located."
"Tree." Giving a nod, he jumped up onto the trunk of the tree. Scattering upwards, Max sighed and tried to regain his breath as his heart thumped against his chest. Closing his eyes, he tried to regain his composure as the fatigue hit all at once.
"Leaf-"
His eyes burst open and turned to one of the surrounding trees. A Pokémon stood on one of the branches, the shadow made it difficult to make out, but he recognized it regardless. Spinning their head around, a series of leaves shot down towards them.
"Shade!" He cried, stumbling back from the attack.
His pure ghost type charged forward, blue fire balls orbiting around his body. Launching the will-o-wisps up, then smashed into the oncoming razor leaves.
Crisp-burnt ash remained from the combination as the two sides evened out. His eyes widened, seeing the wild Pokémon disappear among the burnt remains.
"Screech!" He shouted.
An ear-bursting high-pitched scream echoed out of his puppet Pokémon. Cringing, he felt Ralts do the same in his arms. Doing his best to cover their ears, he glanced up to see two discs of air slice through the ash-leaves. Knocking his pure ghost type back, cancelling his high-pitched screech.
Diving down from the branches, Nuzleaf was curled up into a ball. Crashing into Shade, both Pokémon hurled into the ground.
His newest team member wasted no-time in diving into the ground. Popping up behind their opponent, he crashed another fire ball into their back.
Nuzleaf uncurled and landed flat on their stomach, covered by flames. Surrounded by ghost type energy, Shade unleashed his hex upon the wild Pokémon.
Crying out in pain, it became difficult to make out amongst the purple energy. Squinting through the moves, he saw a wall of dark type energy form between them. The wily Pokémon lept up and used the energy to infuse his fist. Punching Shade in the head, the payback hurled him up into the air.
Landing back down on one knee, the grass dark type seemed to enter a sort of meditation. Green orbs of energy flew out of his ghost type.
His eyes widened at the mystic healing glow covering his body. Looking up, Shade struggled as more energy got drained from his body.
"Treeeeeee-ecko!"
Geico came flying down and burst through the ghost type harmlessly. Spinning in his fall, an outline of normal type energy surrounded his body.
Swinging his tail around just before impact, the pound struck with great force. Knocking Nuzleaf back, his starter landed on both legs in a battle stance.
With Shade hovering just overhead, both Pokémon stared down the grass dark type. Pushing themselves up from the blow, the wily Pokémon grunted as flames engulfed their body. Rolling over, they took off into the forest, disappearing from sight. Letting out a breath of relief, he figured the wild Pokémon knew he couldn't take both of them on at once. He walked up and faced Geico. "Did you see the city?"
"Tree." He nodded, pointing in a direction. Turning to face it, Max closed his eyes.
"Right and if that's where Rustboro is then Petalburg would be-" He turned in the general direction to find a large black rain cloud in the distance, his eyes widened with a smile to match. "Th-Those clouds... I bet its Ozone! She could be using the weather to signal their location to us!"
Without another moment's hesitation, he took off in the direction. Either one of the points could've proved the direction of Petalburg but both of them just confirmed his suspicion. As they ran through the forest, he glance down to the psychic fairy type in his arms.
"Just hold on a little longer, Ralts!"
Max panted as he travelled across the floor. His eyes locked on the green blur of his starter as he lead the path forward. Fog gathered on his glasses, making it difficult to see but as long as Geico was in sight, he couldn't stop to worry about it right now. His felt an aching pain spread over his body as his breathing turned rigid. Feeling the small psychic fairy type in his arms allowed him to push this all away.
"Shup!"
Shade's warning came too late as a series of sharp leaves crashed into the floor in front of him. Stumbling from the surprise attack, he turned to roll onto his back, holding the feelings Pokémon close to his chest. Grunting from the blow, he moved up into a sitting position.
None other than the Nuzleaf from before jumped down. With narrowed eyes and a twitching nose, his eyes widened at the aggressive anger.
His voice stuck in his throat as a green blur shot past. His pure grass type slammed into the wily Pokémon's stomach with great force.
Clutching his feet into the dirt, scrapping back from the blow. He raised a fist up as dark type energy radiated off him.
Smashing it down onto Geico's back, the double powered payback sent him flying. Struggling to his feet, he noticed several pairs of eyes from the surrounding shrubbery. Walking out into the light, Shroomish, Lotad, Seedot, Taillow and even Wurmple lined up, as if creating an army of Pokémon
"This isn't good," he muttered, backing up as far as he could. He tried to wonder where this army came from but then he remembered, Ash's Swellow use to rule this forest with her flock. Presumably Nuzleaf evolved since then and took their place in the power vacuum created in her absence.
Shade floated down, blue balls of fire orbiting around him. A few flew off, they erupted on the ground near the grass and bug types.
Numerous strings shot out, wrapping around the ghost type. Struggling against the restraints, he was helpless as Nuzleaf lept up.
Smacking his hands together into his face, ghost type energy knocked him back. The wily Pokémon spun overhead, sending down a barrage of razor leaves.
Geico pushed himself up and entered a run towards the grass dark type. Leaping down from the tree branches, the Seedot rained down in the path.
Glowing bright white, each exploded. Smoke covered his starter from view for a few seconds as he cried out. Being blown to the side.
His eyes widened at the sight of his two Pokémon down for the count. Feeling Ralts breathing against his chest, reminded him of what little time they had to help. Locking eyes with his newest team member, Shade pushed himself up. Shooting two-night shades, one out of each eye.
The blow crashed into Nuzleaf's chest, throwing him into a tree. Pushing himself up, he dived into the ground, creating a shadow on the floor.
Zooming over the ground, the shadow sneak crashed through several Pokémon. Leaping out of the ground, he shot into the tree. Taking out some Seedot.
Multiple Taillow took off as he bounced off the tree. The tiny swallow birds wings glew and they started bashing into his pure ghost type.
Barrages of small yellow seeds shot out, curtsy of his starter. Hitting some of the birds, they broke off, turning their attention to him instead.
Shade tried to form some balls of fire, but his eyes widened. "No don't! It'll just activate guts!"
Flames flickered out but the efforts was lost. His puppet Pokémon fell down, crashing into the ground, grunting in pain.
Geico charged at his incoming opponents, taking a dive through the flock. Undeterred, the Taillow turned to give chase, keeping them on his tail.
Max smiled seeing the plan in action. Entering a swift quick attack, he stopped right in front of Nuzleaf. Jumping up, he soared high over the grass dark type.
The flock screeched past, whacking the wily Pokémon with their wings due to the sudden change of target. Grunting from the multiple hits, Nuzleaf fell.
Kneeling on one knee, he was unable to defend. His starter brought his tail down in a powerful pound onto Nuzleaf's head. Knocking him back into a tree.
"Nuz Nuzleaf!"
Several strings shot down, hitting different parts of Geico's body. Lifting him up into the air as the grass dark type pushed himself back up.
A loud squawk drew his attention to the sky. Several shadowed hovered overhead with one shooting straight down. His eyes widened as the familiar sight of Ash's Swellow who charged straight into his starter. Her metal wings slashed the strings apart and he fell down beside the young trainer.
Feeling some immense presence from behind, he turned to see a large Pidgeot and Aerodactyl. Gasping at their size, he shook his head. Remembering Ash talk about both made him realise the boy must've brought out a team of fliers to help search for them.
A whimper from his arms reminded him of the dire situation. Not waiting another minute, he took off with both Geico and Shade beside. The sounds of battle from the normal flying type became a distant thought as he noticed the edge of his home city. Along the path, he noticed Ash, Serena, May, and Brock running towards him with Houndoom leading the charge. Not able to stop, he bolted past them despite the calls of his name.
"Ralts needs help now!" He cried out, hoping to somewhat explain his behaviour.
He couldn't even worry about his ever-present fatigue from the day's events. Despite the difficult in breathing from the long run, he just kept pushing further.
Rushing through the centre doors, he bolted up to the front desk. Nurse Joy started asking what happened as one of the Chansey brought a stretcher around for him to lie the psychic fairy type down. He followed as the normal type rushed the bed down to the emergency care section, at least according to the signs on the walls. Stopping at the double doors by said Chansey, he figured this was as far as he could go.
Standing middle of the aisle, he watched the bright red box with a medical plus sign above the doors. His heart thumped harder as the entire world seemed to sit still. The moment from finding Ralts to bringing them into the centre replayed in his head.
Only the sound of one of the doors behind drew his attention. Turning to the source, he found his dad stood there with a sad smile and his half closed eyes looking straight into his. The brows pulled together, leaving a sea of wrinkles over his forehead. Without a single word, he bent down onto one knee, with his arms wide open. Unable to hold back his tears any longer, he ran in. Colliding into his dad's embrace, he felt both arms wrap around in a comforting manner.
"Daddy-" He sobbed into his chest, squeezing his own arms around his side.
"There, there Max... it's going to be okay." His hand rubbed up and down his back. "You did everything you could for Ralts. I'm so proud of you. And I'm sure Nurse Joy and the entire team is going to do they can!"
"Y-you're not mad?" he tried to ask but the sobs made it difficult.
"I'm not happy about the teleportation and getting lost but I know it wasn't your fault," he replied, "and from what I've heard, you did so well. Keeping Ralts safe and getting him the help, he needs. You have really grown up since you left with May and the others. This proves we we're right to give you a starter earlier than usual. You've gone above and beyond even my greatest dreams of what you'd achieve."
"B-but what about Ralts?" he asked, "wh-what if-"
"Believe me, you'll run yourself crazy asking what if's in this place." He pulled back to look Max in the eyes. "When you was born, your mum spent nearly twenty hours in labour when you was born, and the wait drove me crazy then. Just trust that they know what they're doing. It's all we can do."
Biting down on his bottom lip, he let dad's words sink in. A glance up showed him holding his travelling backpack. Ozone was floating beside him, accepting the bag, they took a seat on one of the benches on the side of the corridor. His normal type floated down and he gently embraced her in a hug. He couldn't be sure how long they waited and honestly, he really didn't want to know. He looked up as the red light turned off, with Nurse Joy walking out to them.
"How is Ralts?" Max asked, running up to the nurse as she took her face mask off.
"Ralts is extremely weak. It seems they got badly wounded a while back but without proper treatment the wound became infected," she explained, "I believe the psychic powers kept it at bay but the strain on their powers just wore out. Making it hit all at once."
"How will they be?" he asked.
"Ralts is in recover, I was able to sterilise the wound and properly seal it." She continued. "Given time to rest and recuperate there's no reason to doubt they'll make a full recovery. It's a good job you got here when you did, a couple more hours and we might've been too late."
"Thank you, Nurse Joy," he offered a smiled.
"Now we'll keep them in overnight for observation. It's standard procedure following a serious operation," she added, "my Chansey will escort you all to the recovery ward but your more than welcome to see the patient. Just don't exhaust or excite them too much. Stability will make for smoother healing. I'll be around in a little while to check how Ralts is settling in."
Giving a nod, he watched as the pink haired nurse walked away. The bed was wheeled out of the operating theatre by a large Machoke, with a Chansey leading the way. Walking slightly behind them, he frowned, not being used to seeing the fighting type in such a setting.
"It's not uncommon for centres to have fighting types to help with physical therapy. Also, to help with moving the larger patients," his dad whispered, "can you imagine how many Chansey's it'll take to move something like a Snorlax or even Slaking?"
"Heh, I guess you're right." He chuckled.
Continuing along, they came to one of the wards of six beds. Some curtains were wrapped around, clearly to give the patience some privacy as they took the first spot on the left-hand side. Kneeling beside the bed, he watched the first stage Pokémon lying down with closed eyes.
Light breathing in time with the movements of the stomach showed how much more peace the psychic fairy type was now. He couldn't be sure how long they spent waiting in mostly silence, a comforting one but silence regardless until Ralts stirred slightly.
"Hey sleepy, how are you feeling?" he asked, offering a small smile.
"Sore... but good." A meke voice echoed in his head. It was difficult to registrar before, but he couldn't really tell if it was male or female. It seemed very much child-like with a lot less identifiable but that hardly mattered now. "Thank you... Max? I think that's what the Treecko and Shuppet called you before."
"Ye-yeah." He nodded. "I'm... really glad you're okay. What do you remember?"
"It's all really a blur... I just remember the day those people attacked." They paused. "Then searching for help. I saw you with them... or rather another Gardevoir and Kirlia. In the moment I was so certain it was them but-"
"I'm sorry to say but they're my friends Pokémon... and are brother and sister so no way they could also be your brother and mother respectively," he replied with a frown. "Hey Ralts... I- wanna show you something. A memory. If you feel up to it, it's to do with the people who attacked you."
Giving a small nod, he felt the presence of the feelings Pokémon in his head once more. Closing his own eyes, he focused back to the ship and the night J attacked. The image of the henchmen in metal armor running around with a Salamence flying in the night sky. Flashes broke up each seen as the night played out for both of them to see once more. As the power became too much, he felt himself blow back to the real world, stumbling onto his behind.
"That happened a few months back... and like I said, she left Hoenn shortly afterwards." He frowned, pulling himself to his feet. "I'm really sorry Ralts but I think your mother and brother are long gone at this point. Even if she hasn't sold them on yet, we don't even know for sure which region she's in."
"I...know." Tears leaked down their cheek as Max reached out. Pulling the feelings Pokémon into a gentle hug, he felt the tears stain his shirt.
"I... also think the illness messed with your memories. Your mind travelled back to that memory, but you couldn't focus probably." He continued. "Then seeing another Gardevoir and Kirlia with myself... it was just the perfect mix to raise your emotions during your time of need."
"I'm sorry about the trouble I caused you," Ralts whimpered, as they continued to bury themselves into his shirt.
"It's fine! You didn't do it with malice or anything... Hey Ralts, how would you feel about-" He paused, biting down on his inner cheek. His eyes glanced over to his dad who took a seat a little bit away. Rolling his quivering lip into his mouth, he turned back. "-about becoming one of my Pokémon?"
"Huh?"
"I know I can't replace your family b-but after what happened, I don't like the idea of leaving you all alone again," he replied, "I'd understand if-"
"I'd... like that." The meke voice whispered in his head. "Thank you, Max."
Smiling, he pulled out an empty Pokéball and placed it on the bed. With a little hesitation, the psychic fairy type reached out and tapped the centre. A red light engulfed their body. It didn't even shake before dinging, bursting back open to let Ralts back onto the bed. Turning to his backpack which his dad brought to the centre, he pulled out his Pokédex to scan his newest team-member:
Ralts, The Feelings Pokémon. Ralts senses the emotions of people using the horns on its head. This Pokémon rarely appears before people. But when it does, it draws closer if it senses that the person has a positive disposition
Type: Psychic / Fairy
Ability: Trace
Hidden Ability: Telepathy (Note: This hidden ability is currently locked)
Gender: Unknown
Nature: Bashful (Note: This nature could change when this Pokémon evolves)
Move(s): Growl, Disarming Voice, Double Team, Teleport, Confusion, Hypnosis, Draining Kiss
He frowned as he stared at the screen. "Huh, that's weird."
"What is it?" his dad asked.
"The dex doesn't know what gender Ralts is." He shrugged, putting the device down.
"I believe the term is gender-fluid," Nurse Joy explained, "I discovered it whilst treating them. It's when a being who'd normally be one gender shows characteristics of both... in a genetic sense."
"Oh... cool." He shrugged, letting the psychic fairy type back onto the bed. "Your gender-fluid then?"
"Yeah." Ralts nodded. "Mum always said it made me special."
"Do you... have a preference?" he asked. "Like do you prefer to be male or female?"
"Depends on the day," they shrugged. "Will I still get a nickname? I noticed you gave one to Geico and Shade..."
"Of course." He nodded. "I was thinking Wells... but maybe H. G. would work better."
"H. G?" they asked.
"H. G. Wells was an old-writer who became known for predicting the future with his works," he replied, "which kinda matches your psychic typing. He was also very ill as a child but overcame the illness despite the limitations of the time."
"Sorta like me." Ralts beamed. "But... I don't love the name. Does it have to be either of them?"
"No. No, we can keep brain storming," he replied, "it has to be one your happy with."
"You did a good job, Max." His dad crouched down beside the bed. "I'm sure you're going to be a great team."
"Thanks dad..." He turned back to the feelings Pokémon and closed his eyes. "Hey, erm. Tomorrow, could you take us back out to Petalburg woods?"
"How come?" he asked.
"I kinda feel sorry for Nuzleaf, I'm pretty sure he only attacked because we went to Grovyle's tree which seemed to be his new home." He turned to face him with a frown. "So, I kinda want to clear the air with him. I got a leaf stone from our visit to the trick masters house so I thought it'll make a nice offering. But I also know that going back out there without some sort of plan in case he doesn't take the peace offering would be kind of silly-"
"Sure." He smiled. "As soon Ralts is discharged, both myself and Swellow will be happy to accompany you both."
Smiling at his dad, he turned back to his newest team member. It was a weird feeling, he knew how strong this species could be because of both Serena's Kirlia and Ash's Gardevoir. Having first-hand experience with the full line is already filling him with more ideas. It's almost like his own chance to prove what he's learnt from both of them by helping his own member of the same family. He already proved his lessons from Brock with today's activities.
Thanks for reading... Please Favourite, Follow and Review. Also, feel free to ask any questions through PM, I will answer them all, although don't expect too big of spoilers. Don't forget to vote in the polls. I really appreciate the support. Thank you and see ya next time...