Chapter 6

Cascade tossed back her long, flowing, bleach-blond hair. It poured down over her shoulders in a golden waterfall, shimmering in the mid-morning sunlight. The young woman wore a flowing gown with a black and orange bodice and a billowing white skirt that was dotted with blotches of black. A single horn extended from her forehead, marking her as a human Seaking.

She had just finished washing her delicate hair while Coraline, a human Banette watched her. She wore a black and grey dress with a curious cross-stitch pattern which extended from the waist up. Her skirt was rather short, which she compensated for with black nylon stockings. Her stubborn black hair billowed out from her head, giving the impression that it was made of smoke.

"Are you done, yet?" Coraline sighed impatiently, "You've been washing your hair for hours."

"I have not!" Cascade called back, offended by the accusation, "it's only been five minutes!"

"I've been counting," Coraline flopped onto her back, "and it's definitely been at least half an hour."

"See?" Cascade teased, "It's only been half an hour! You said so yourself, liar! Besides, Alex likes it when my hair's nice and clean."

"Not that it makes much of a difference," Coraline muttered, "you're way too stupid for him, anyway."

"You take that back!" Cascade snapped, stomping out of the lake towards Coraline.

"Prove me wrong," Coraline scoffed, waving her hand, "say something smart."

"Huh?" Cascade was so shocked that she stopped dead in her tracks, "like what?"

"I dunno," Coraline shook her head before thinking a minute, "well, you're a water human Pokémon, right? Why are electric attacks stronger against water Pokémon?"

"Umm…" Cascade thought about it for far too long, "because…because water's easier to move through than something solid."

"Case and point," Coraline smirked, "you're stupid."

"I am not!" Cascade stomped the ground, "that's the answer!"

"Sorry," Coraline shook her head, "but you're a moron."

"Maybe you're the one who's stupid," Cascade crossed her arms, determined to end the conversation.

"Whore," Coraline muttered.

"Bitch!" Cascade screeched.

"What…the hell…are you two…bitching…about…" Dozer yawned. Most would say that his tired voice sounded slightly agitated, which meant to Cascade and Coraline that he was downright furious. Would he do something about it? No. But that wasn't the point, as Dozer saw it.

Dozer was a human Snorlax. He wore a baggy sweatshirt and sweatpants that were a dull grey, except for the stomach, which was a cream colored off-white. The small, triangular ears of a Snorlax stuck out from his head. On his feet he was a hulking 6'4" and 362 lbs. a downgrade from a regular Snorlax. However, he was rarely on his feet. In fact, he was perfectly content to stay in his Pokéball and sleep, but Alex insisted that he spend some time outside every morning. He rarely fought, but when he did there was no mistaking the joy it gave him, despite the strenuous activity.

Alex was the trainer of all three human Pokémon. Although he was off on his own and away from camp, this morning, he looked after each of his human Pokémon with an equal amount of care and devotion. But that didn't stop them from fighting.

"She started it!" Cascade pointed at Coraline.

"Did not."

"Did to!"

"Did not."

"Oooo," Cascade stomped on the ground, "you're just jealous, 'cause Alex likes me best."

"As if I care," Coraline sighed as she stood up, "now, if you'll excuse me. I am going to go find him so he can tell you just how stupid you are."

"Whatever…" Dozer grumbled, "It's not like…he…loves…either of you…anyway." His remark sent the two girls into a fresh round of squawking and Dozer regretted saying anything. At this rate, it would be days before he could get back to sleep.

Alex could just make out the indignant screaming he heard coming from the camp. He smirked and rolled his eyes before turning back to the Pokéball he had in his hand.

He still couldn't decide if he would actually attend the tournament on Himitsu Island. He couldn't be sure if he was ready. Powerful trainers, much more powerful than he, waited for him. He had three very reliable and very trustworthy human Pokémon that would die for him, if necessary. Not that he would ever ask such a thing, nor was it necessary. The human part of these human Pokémon made them bleed, but it wouldn't kill them.

But it was neither Dozer nor Coraline nor Cascade that worried him. It was his fourth human Pokémon, the one sealed within the Pokéball in his hand.

Whisper was a double-edged sword. He was incredibly powerful, but also almost totally wild. Whisper loved fighting more than Dozer loved sleeping.

But that was what terrified Alex. He had seen what Whisper was capable of and he had promised himself that he would never let it happen, again. He had promised himself to never again allow Whisper to get a taste of battle.

Alex had promised him that he would find an opponent worthy to fight him. That worked for a while, but Whisper was growing impatient. Alex's lies could only last so much longer before Whisper decided that he had had enough. Then Alex would lose him.

The young man sighed and rubbed his forehead. Once, Whisper had been his best, his favorite. He had been Alex's first human Pokémon. Now…he was afraid to let him around even his own Pokémon.

Alex was carrying around a true monster. How much longer before it turned on him? The tournament might be the only way for him to buy some time, even if it meant letting the monster roam free.

Rubbing his aching temples again, he put the Pokéball away. He turned towards the sound of his bickering human Pokémon. He already felt sorry for the person that would face Whisper.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Mark's legs ached and his lungs were on fire, but he didn't show it as he examined Maple, "you're shaking."

Maple pushed away from him, her lower lip was quivering. Far away she could hear the man with the Gyarados tattoo mount his motorcycle. The tires squealed on the road as he drove away as quickly as he could.

What the hell are you?

"Maple…" Mark stared at her, uncomprehending, "what happened to you?"

Maple couldn't speak, but instead she tugged Mark along back to the spot where she had fought and decimated her kidnappers. Without speaking, she pointed at the wreckage. Aside from the destroyed motorcycle and the remnants of the leader's chain, half a dozen other weapons were also in pieces, including a shotgun split right down the barrel.

"Holy," Mark whispered as he knelt on the ground, not sure what to think, as he surveyed the area, "Did you do this?"

Maple nodded and hung her head. She was fidgeting and shaking, uncontrollably.

"Wow," Mark sighed, "I'm glad you're okay." He didn't say anything else, but just thought about what must have happened.

It was obvious that Maple had gotten away from them. Otherwise they wouldn't have stopped this close to the city. After that, they had tried to discipline her and Maple had fought back. He could hardly believe what she had done. She had been able to take on a group of armed men completely alone without even a scratch. Even the full group working together was defenseless.

"Hey," Mark walked over to Maple, "it's okay. They can't hurt you anymore."

Maple didn't respond and kept quivering, staring at her feet.

"You know," Mark smiled, "I'm proud of you."

At this remark, Maple stopped shaking and her ears and tail stood straight up.

"Really?" she said meekly.

"Yeah," Mark nodded, "you took them all on by yourself. That's incredible."

Maple blushed and began to fidget in an entirely different manner.

"Come on, let's get out of here," Mark suggested and Maple was all too happy to comply.

Alfred Silph gazed out at the vast, towering expanse of Saffron City beneath him as a small flock of Pidgey flapped by the window. He had lived in Saffron City his entire life and never once did he think that he could live out his life anywhere else. It was a beautiful city filled with towering buildings, reaching closer and closer towards the heavens. Amidst all of them, the Silph Co. building towered over everything.

One day the company would be his and then this beautiful city would be his. Saffron City was his home. It was the place where he had gone to school, where he had run around the streets during his childhood. It was the place where he and his wife would raise their own daughter. Alfred's only wish was that he wouldn't ruin it.

As he gazed down at it, he couldn't help but wonder something. How many human Pokémon lived in Saffron City? A dozen? Two, at most? The number was miniscule, to say the least. A bustling city with nearly a million citizens and there might not even be a dozen.

Needless to say, he supported a very small community. The tournament on the secluded Himitsu Island was a pet project that, in all likelihood wasn't even going to generate a profit. It wouldn't exist at all without his influence and had died twice before just because only a dozen or so trainers expressed interest in competing.

The real problem was; most people that had human Pokémon, at all, kept them hidden. It even seemed like a natural reaction, to them. What would the world do if they knew of the existence of such powerful Pokémon?

Alfred shuddered to think what would become of them. Would they be recruited as soldiers for war? Perhaps slaughtered and used as raw material for medical research? Or would they simply be chained and imprisoned? Maybe it was better that they stayed hidden.

The downside was that it kept them scattered. To call the under three hundred known human Pokémon in the world a community was laughable. They were like all Pokémon and Pokémon trainers. They were drifters that were almost impossible to track down. A tournament was the only thing that got their attention.

But, sometimes, even that wasn't enough to draw them out, to bring them together. It would be better this year. It would be bigger, grander, the best tournament that Alfred Silph, heir to the Silph Co. was capable of putting on. He had everything he needed to make it so. Just one thing remained.

The intercom buzzed, letting Alfred know that his agent, Frederic Pole, was here to see him. Alfred welcomed him in and graciously motioned for the man to sit.

"So, how is everything shaping up?" Alfred wasted no time in moving to business as he prepared Frederic's favorite drink, himself.

"Everything's going surprisingly well," Frederic nodded enthusiastically, "we managed to find quite a few new trainers this year. It's as if more and more are popping up all the time."

"Sounds like good news," Alfred handed him his drink before jumping up on top of his own desk, "How many do you think will compete?"

"A good number, I'd say," Frederic nodded in between sips, "at least enough for five rounds."

"Five rounds?" Alfred made no effort to hide his delight, "That's excellent! We're really looking at something fantastic!" he paused long enough to take a sip of his own drink before continuing, "Any word on the Four?"

"The Four…yes…" Frederic took a moment to gather his thoughts, "well, a lot of what goes on with them seems to be…interdependent."

"Meaning…?" Alfred raised an eyebrow. He had personally met all of them and he knew them better than most people, but he still knew almost nothing. The only thing he knew for certain was that they were by far the most powerful human Pokémon trainers in the world, and therefore the most powerful Pokémon trainers in the world.

More than that, they were the epitome of what a typical human Pokémon trainer acted like. They were highly close-knit and secretive. They were almost always on the move, periodically disappearing entirely. They even used codenames instead of real ones, as if they were fugitives. Of course, no one besides them knew why.

"Well, I first spoke with EdgeoftheEarth," Alfred nodded as if he had heard it a thousand times and motioned for Frederic to continue, "he said that he would attend only if PureBlueSky attended. PureBlueSky said he would attend only if RiverofTears attended. Then, RiverofTears informed me that she would only attend if Aurum attended…"

"Okay," Alfred nodded, "what did Aurum say?"

"That…he's retired…sir," Frederic sighed and hung his head.

"What?" Alfred roared, slamming his fist down on the desk, "are you telling me that one, just one, miserable old man is the only thing keeping them all from coming?"

"Yes, sir," Frederic muttered. He sounded like he wanted to do every menial task he could think of if it meant being somewhere else, "he was very adamant about it."

"Unbelievable," Alfred sighed, leaning his head back, "well, we're just going to have to convince him that he must come."

"Sir, even without the Four, it will still be a wonderful tournament," Frederic tried, knowing it wouldn't work.

"Don't be stupid," Alfred sighed, standing up to gaze out at his city, again, "if word gets out that the Four aren't coming, the whole tournament will fall apart. Those were the best matches of the first two tournaments. Everyone in the stands wanted to see those four fight each other. I will not have the third year in a row ruined because of three twenty-year-old kids and an old man!" He hung his head and put his hand on the window.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I don't think there's anything we can do," Frederic admitted.

"Yes, there is. There always is," Alfred downed the rest of his drink before standing up straight. He regained his composure as an idea struck him, "where is Aurum enjoying his retirement, anyway? I'll pay him a visit myself."

"Olivine City, sir," Frederic informed him, "in the Johto region."

AN: expanding the world in this chapter and mentioning my own version of the elite four.

anyway, i've been writing ahead for a while now, but i think i will upload as i'm writing. i'll do a minimum of one a week, but i'll go faster if i can keep ahead. that way i know where i want the story to go, but can still edit before it's too late to fix any major problems that arise.

so, once again, thanks for reading!