Chapter 4: New isn't Always Good

August 15, 2020, Alola Region

Chase opened his eyes to find nothing. A black void surrounding him. He yelled out for someone, but it didn't travel far. His voice didn't even leave an echo in the vast expanse. He stomped on the void below him and found that he was standing on something solid.

he was only accompanied by the white glow of his rings. But they would shortly be matched by a red glow moving towards him. He turned to look and recognized the figure all too well.

It was an umbreon who looked just like him, except his eyes were black pits with razor sharp gold pupils, and he had red rings.

His presence was surprising, but not unexpected. He looked at the figure and walked up to him until they were face to face.

"And here I thought that you were finally gone, a figment of my imagination, rendered to nothing." Chase spoke clearly and without a wavering breath. He had dealt with this apparition before.

"And here I thought that you were finally ready to talk. You've always been so drab." The phantom retorted.

"I can't listen if you don't tell me what you want. All you've done was be horribly vague while giving me cryptic passive-aggressive threats."

"Always so stubborn, even when the truth is staring you in the face. If I really can't get it into your thick skull the normal way, then I'm going to have to do it the hard way."

Before Chase could inquire, the figure disappeared, and Chase began falling into the abyss. He landed only moments later and he looked up to see the sylveon before him.

"The Sylveon? Rose, wasn't that her name? What do you want with her?" He was confused, but his confusion turned to fear when he saw a rose in her hand. It wasn't a red rose, but a white rose, stained with blood.

He quickly reached out the snatch the rose but only grasped smoke. "It's just not fair, is it?"

"You're spineless! Come out and fight me yourself! Or are you going to hide behind nightmares and memories?!" He whipped around trying to pinpoint where the phantom was coming from. He only received a laugh from the apparition as he was flung to a wall and held down with metaphysical chains.

"It's time that I drill it into your stubborn mind. What you have wrought, the people you've abandoned. They suffer because of you. Your friends will suffer because of you. The monsters you created in your wake, will bring suffering because of you."

He found the will to break the chains and tried to fight him. But the spirit knew Chase as much as he knew himself. With every punch and kick Chase would throw and lash out at him with, the shadow only dodged and weaved through his attacks. Only one landed, and it was null. When he realized that fighting was useless, he tried to run. As he ran, he found himself drudging through liquid and it slowly became harder to move as his legs began to sink down to the knees, making it feel like he was drudging through molasses. As he struggled he slowly sank into the black liquid that the void below him had become. All the while, the apparition came closer.

"fight, run, fight, run. It's always the same for you. Don't you want it to end? Don't you want to escape?"

Chase continued struggling, but was sinking deeper and deeper, his head was the only thing that wasn't submerged.

"Chase..."

He had begun choking on the substance as his vision went blurry and his hearing muffled.

"It's time to wake up..."

Everything faded away as he was taken by the dark.

Chase threw himself out of sleep and nearly fell off the bed. He whipped around from left to right in a daze to try and get his bearings. He calmed down when he realized that he was still in the Volt family home. He looked at the alarm clock next to his bed that read 6:35am. Chase sighed. He held his face in his hands and groaned as he began to develop a splitting headache.

I guess I'm not getting anymore sleep.

He didn't want to get more sleep anyway. Not after what just transpired. He looked around the room to see if there was a way to the roof. He needed to bask himself in the moonlight. He saw a window which lead to a lower part of the roof. He unlatched the window and climbed out, immediately being rejuvenated by the bright moonlight. The stars shown in the night sky and glistened like diamonds in the sun's reflected light. Chase looked up at the sky that was as black as ink and thought about everything that had happened the past few days. His fortune was immeasurable to say the least. A family willing to take him into their home, a new friend and confidant, and a new acquaintance. Not to mention a fresh start, or so he thought. It seemed that even his subconscious doesn't want him to find peace after a life of violence.

He continued looking at the moon, almost hypnotized by its beauty, He stayed up on that roof for a long time, disregarding the cold breeze of the night.

It was now 9:00 am and James was awoken from his sleep by the faint smell of meat. His eyes fluttered open as he tried to pinpoint what the smell was. His ears perked and his eyes lit up as he identified the smell.

Bacon! Please tell me we're having what I think we're having!

He jumped out of bed and ran downstairs in his pajamas. He entered the kitchen to see his mother and father cooking breakfast. Blueberry Buttermilk pancakes and bacon. James' favorite. Before he could be noticed, the Luxray rushed upstairs and went into Chase's room. He didn't bother knocking and barged in. The room was dark save for the light coming out through the cracks in the curtain and the desk lamp.

Wait. Desk lamp?

James turned towards the light to see Chase sitting at the desk with his watch in from of him. A small data chip was next to it, tucked into a corner and away from harm. The umbreon was fiddling with something using strange tools James had never seen before. One seemed to be some kind of screw driver while the other looked like a tiny lightning rod. The Luxray walked over to the desk and saw that the thing Chase was tinkering with was the power cell.

"Morning Chase. Whatcha working on?" James asked.

"Morning James. I'm just modifying the watch's power supply. VEGA noticed that it was giving off strange readings, so I'm making sure that it's stable." the umbreon responded, not looking away from his work.

He looked slightly worried but he trusted that it would be safe in Chase's hands. "Speaking of which, what is it that powers your watch?" The Luxray asked.

Chase showed him the power supply. "This, is an aether power cell. It's industrial grade and self sustaining. Infinite renewable energy. Think of it like an arc reactor. Aether cells were developed to power Kalos's cities. A miniature version for the cell was developed for homes in more isolated landscapes, like the countryside. You're looking at the only one that is no longer in Regime hands."

James then looked at the cell and he was mesmerized by the soft pulsating blue glow that it gave off. He wanted to touch it but he knew that it was sensitive equipment, that is possibly unstable.

"Well. I hope you figure out the problem. Anyways, my parents are making breakfast. It's gonna be good." He said as he walked towards the door. He looked back to see Chase nod and get back to work.

James went back to his room while waiting for breakfast to be ready and started rummaging around. He didn't seem to find what he was looking for and he started to panic, whispering profanities as he started looking harder and more frantically.

Oh man... Where could it be? Where could it be?

He eventually found a small box and opened it. He sighed in relief when he found what he was looking for: A ring with glowing yellow writing on it, hanging on a silver chain necklace. A beautiful gift.

Damn if I didn't find this then I would be screwed. I'd have nothing to give her.

He put the gift back in the box and put it in his jacket as he heard his mother calling him and Chase.

"Boys! It's time to eat!"

After Chase and the Volts had a delicious breakfast, the Umbreon and his friend decided to go to the city for anything Chase would need. They were only halfway to the square when Chase felt like someone was coming up to catch him off-guard. When they got close enough, he whipped around and grabbed the stranger; an anthro dusk form lycanroc, by the collar of her shirt, scowling in intimidation.

"H-Hey! What are you doing?! I wasn't on the prowl you little lunatic!" The stranger struggled.

He immediately loosened his grip and let her free. "I'm sorry miss. I don't do well with surprises.

"That much is obvious." The Lycanroc tore herself from Chase's grasp on her shirt collar and looked at James, which provoked a smile. She punched Chase on the arm playfully before attack hugging James, much to his surprise.

"Hey James! How are you?" she asked while hugging him tightly.

"O-Oh! L-Luna! I-I didn't expect you t-to be around here! I'm fine. How are you?" He hugged her back and looked at her in a way that Chase knew too well.

Chase looked at James in amusement. He already knew what his friend's deal was. He was the same way when he and- his once amused expression turned into a sorrowful one until he quickly put on his usual poker face.

"So. Who's your new friend?" Luna asked after letting go of him.

"Chase. Chase Gardner. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, even if the introduction was a bit lacking." the Umbreon formally greeted, using a twinge of his native accent.

Luna noticed Chase's light accent. "Wait. Speak again please."

"It is a pleasure-"

"Aha! You're from Kalos aren't you?" she asked abruptly.

He cocked an eyebrow. She was decisive, he'll give her that. "Yes, I am. You figured that out, which is surprising. Not everyone can identify that I'm from Kalos by my accent alone."

"So is it true? Is it as bad as it is on the news?"

Chase wasn't fazed by the barrage of questions though. "No. It's worse. The situation is much worse. The regime has kept an iron curtain around them which has kept most of their dealings from ever being seen on public broadcast."

Luna was satisfied with that answer. "Shit. That's a terrible situation." She turned to James and remembered something. "I'm glad I ran into you, because I was hoping we could get some stuff done today."

James's ears perked up. "O-Oh! That would be great! Where are you planning on getting done?"

"Just a few things. Getting clothes, groceries, Oh I'm also going to pick my classes for school." The Lycanroc said.

"Perfect! We were just thinking about getting clothes for Chase, and he would definitely need to be enrolled in school." James said. The three started walking to the square.

At the square, the three were walking on the path to the collage campus. Chase was lost in though, so he hadn't noticed that there was a certain Sylveon in the same state as the Umbreon walking towards him. He looked up and saw the Sylveon but was too late to react, and they bumped into each other, knocking each other over. Rose was about to get up when she saw a hand extended out to her. It was Chase's. She stared up and cursed herself for doing so, and now she was trying with all her mental capacity to not get lost in the dark type's golden eyes.

"Hey there. Rose, was it? Sorry about that. Sometimes I'm just not as sharp as I want to be." Chase said casually.

"O-Oh. It's quite a-alright. Chase right?" the fairy type asked as she took his hand and got up. Chase nodded in response. "It's nice to see you again." she said.

"Likewise." the Umbreon replied. There was a long silence before Rose decided to make her move.

"You know, I never got to thank you for saving my ass yesterday." she stated matter-of-factly. Chase looked at her, confused. "How bout this? I just invite you for some coffee. Just me expressing my thanks." the Sylveon offered.

"That would be nice. But we'd need a date and time. How does 8:30am on Saturday sound?"

"That sounds wonderful."

"Alright. I'll see you around then." Chase said before catching up with James and Luna.

Rose watched as the Umbreon faded from view. When he was gone, she celebrated under her breath and did a little dance with her feet before going to her day job with a new-found spring in her step.

The trio arrived at the campus and went through the big main doors. The building was made of red bricks on the outside, but had smooth white walls and tile floors on the inside. Normal schools have this, but this one somehow made it so you feel as if you have entered the future. Luna told her two friends that she'll be going to sign up for classes at counseling, which left Chase and James to go to the main office. Upon entry, they saw a bored looking Jigglypuff at the reception desk, the walls were the same as the hallways, but the floor was carpet instead of tiles.

"Hi. How may I help you boys?" The Jigglypuff greeted the two.

"Hi. I'm James Volt and I'm here to enroll my friend into the school." The Luxray replied

"Oh. Enroll huh? Let's see if we have anymore forms." the psychic pokemon said before walking to a back room. This left Chase and James to sit down and make small talk while the receptionist got the form. Chase spoke first.

"So..." he awkwardly began, "What's up with you and that Luna chick? You seem very... nervous when you're around her." he said. James paled when he heard "Luna".

"N-Nervous? No your nervous! It's not like I like her o-or anything. Well, I DO like her I just don't like-like her!" The electric type panicked.

"Hey hey, relax. I meant nothing by it. I know you like her and I support you. In fact I was the same way... with..." Chase trailed off as he froze. This left James concerned, but ultimately he knew to just snap his friend back to reality and drop the subject, which he did.

"Thanks..." Chase said after he was woken up.

"Dude. You gotta work on that trauma. My therapist taught me something that's pretty useful. When facing traumatic memories, focus on the good memories you've made after. It helps." James said supportively. "Please, continue."

Chase nodded and tried doing what he suggested. "As I was saying, I was once the same way. Nervous, reckless... careless..." He tried to look at any fond memories but there were none. Only memories of sorrow and mourning. Then the worst happened. The memory itself; the source of his trauma, began playing over and over again in his head. Flashes of a battlefield and a grenade exploding at the feet of an ally, sending them through the air. He was taken completely off-guard and began hyperventilating, and subsequently falling off his chair to try breathing faster. He didn't know what to do. He had a feeling of panic that he had never felt before. He was in a daze and it was James who slung Chase's arm over his and guided him outside, forgetting all about the enrollment papers.

When they were outside, Chase was still in a panic, breathing rapidly. James set him down against the wall and shook him to get his attention. "Stay with me Chase, breath. Take deep breaths. Breath in, then out. Do it with me." Chase got ready to follow suit.

"In through the nose..." They breathed in.

"Out through the mouth..." They breathed out.

They repeated the process multiple times while James gave Chase comfort without overstepping his bounds. Eventually, Chase calmed down but had a look of shame on his face. "I'm sorry..."

"For what?" James was genuinely confused by the apology.

"I lost my senses. I was trying to give you advice and I lost my grip..." He looked at James and he could see that Chase was still reeling from the experience.

James only pulled him up and gave him a hug. Chase was surprised, but calmed down quickly. He didn't hug back though. He wasn't entirely ready for that. Once the hug was broken off, Chase put a hand on his shoulder.

"About that advice, I'll just say that you have nothing to worry about and for you to trust me, okay?" James nodded and smiled before he put a hand on Chase's shoulder in return.

"Thanks man. Now I'm going to get those forms and be right back." He went inside, leaving Chase alone outside.

It didn't take long for James to come back with Luna in tow.

"We got what we need?" She asked as she walked down the steps. All of them nodded.

"Great. Now off to the mall!"

Back at the square, the trio seemed to be having a rough time with directions. James and Luna were having an argument about which way the mall was and the gps apps on their phones were contradicting each other while Chase was silently conversing with VEGA on a way to get directions.

"My GPS is at least better than yours! What's with that third party app anyway?" Luna was making her points clear.

"My GPS is NOT a third party app! It's just not as popular as yours. You're not using memory either! I use this route all the time!" James argued back to her.

Chase got between them. "Guys, calm down. We don't need either of your GPS apps to get there. I got something better. Give me one of your phones and a charging cord." He reached out for one of them to relinquish their cellular device. James was the one to do it.

"Sorry in advance, James." He tore the chord in half and twisted the copper wire inside to be able to meld with another broken cord. He pulled a loose cord out of his watch and tore that as well. He weaved the cords together and felt the electric surge as it shocked his finger. He plugged the cord into James's phone and a small map of the area flicked up on the watch's holographic display. It flickered and pulsed as the connection was only being held together by loose wire. "And now it's a map."

James tried to protest while Chase was doing his work, but it was far too late. He only huffed as he and Luna watch Chase fiddle with the chords and create something new just with his hands. He was resourceful.

"Whoa! Where did you get a watch like that?" The Lycanroc of the group asked very curiously.

"I built it." Chase said blankly.

The Lycanroc only looked in amazement at the dark type's handiwork.

The map pointed straight in front of them, further down the city streets. "It's actually straight ahead. For people who've lived here for their entire lives, you bot have bad directional skills.

"Hey! I have GREAT directional skills!" They both said at the same time as they berated the Umbreon.

"Yeah. Right. Let's just head to the mall and get this taken care of." Chase said.

They walked into the mall and it was a war zone as most malls always are. People were bustling around, going into shops a completing different errands and buying different things. It was madness. Anarchy, controlled chaos, too many people.

And noise.

So much noise.

Chase clutched his head in pain and tried to cover his ears a best he could. He hadn't been anywhere as loud as this in years. His hearing was having a hard time adjusting to the new strain they were under. He fell to one knee for only a moment before getting back up, the ringing in his ears finally going away. He gave his head a shake as he looked at his friends. James was looking at him with a concerned expression.

"You alright?" James asked.

"I'm fine. My hearing is just adjusting to the volume of the place." James responded.

"Why does your hearing need to adjust?" Luna interjected.

"Well you see, back home, you need to develop certain natural skills in order to survive. One of those was my sense of sound. It naturally evolved to allow me to better hear what's happening in my immediate vicinity." the Umbreon explained. After this they continued onward. Chase's companions were making small talk while he himself was looking over the mall. The mall itself was just like any other. four Giant lanes going in the four cardinal directions with multiple shops lining the walls of said lanes. There was the ground level and then the second level for more stores. None of them were surprised to see the place so busy. They went to a set of stores located in a corner.

"Alright. I'm gonna get my clothes. Chase, make sure James behaves himself. We don't want a repeat of that incident." She said.

James scoffed and tried to argue with her. "That was ONE time! You know I couldn't stand by and do nothing! What would you have done if-"

He was interrupted by a slight smack to the back of the head by Luna. "I know, you couldn't help yourself. You have the mentality of a hero. But being a hero can be very dangerous. So, please, just behave yourself if you see something.

He tried to refuse. But after looking into her eyes, in which he saw genuine care, he sighed heavily and relented. "Fine..."

She gave him a hug in response to his relent and gave him a cheeky grin. "Besides, if you do, I might let you "critique" some of the things I pick out." She gave him a wink and a nudge on the shoulder, which flustered James on an intense level. When Luna went into the store, Chase made an audible chuckle, his shoulders jumping up and down with each chuckle. When James turned around, he was bright red under the fur and it was bleeding through.

"Well. You definitely know how to keep your cool around her." He said sarcastically with the same devilish grin James had the previous night, plastered on his face. "You also might want to keep in mind what happens down there." He gestured down.

James looked down and went red even more. Chase was actually surprised that the electric type's face could get any redder. The gold skin on his face was actually almost replaced with the crimson color. All he did was look down in defeat and a bit of shame. The Umbreon put a reassuring hand oh his friend's shoulder and they went into their store. "Don't worry about it. Let's just get our clothes and forget about this."

After around an hour of browsing Chase and James came out with only a couple things. James grabbed a new pair of shoes and a some black aviators with orangish red tinted lenses. Chase only came out with a few extra shirts and pairs of pants, as well as a chain adorning his current pair of pants. As much as it was outdated, Chase did like the punk aesthetic. They exited the shop to see that Luna was still in the store, or at least had gone to another one after the initial visit. This gave them time to talk. They walked along the long corridor of shops and had to speak a little louder in order to hear each other speak.

"So, what's your relationship with Luna? You two seem close." Chase asked curiously. They seemed to have a very connected relationship despite that they're not dating. At least, Chase deduced it that way.

"Oh, me and her? It's a long story, if you're willing to hear it." He responded while scrolling through his phone.

"I'll listen."

James took a deep breath. "Okay. I've known Luna for almost my entire life. We were childhood friends even before we were in third grade. We've done a lot of things with each other over the course of our lives: We've gotten into trouble, we've been bullied, laughed at, we've gone just about anywhere around the place. We've been watching each other's backs for as far back as I can remember. She's my best friend. And she's also my crush..."

"Well I figured that much." He gave James an elbow to the side while lightly chuckling.

"Hey! I- that's a good point. Whichever way it seemed, I always liked her. She's a beacon..." It was almost as if he said this while he was in a daydream. He looked at Chase and felt a bit embarrassed. "Shit, here I am going on about love like I'm in a fairy tale..."

He received a supportive hand on his shoulder. "Keep that mentality. That's a healthy start. Just make sure to keep in mind what it will take to earn and maintain it. But I feel like you already have the "earn" part down. Even if I knew better, I'd say that she's into you too."

James didn't seem to register that in his mind. "No, no, she just likes to be a tease. There's nothing more to that." As he said that, he got a text from her. He opened his phone and went bright red again and his nose began to run red. Before Chase could see what she sent him, he his it quickly.

He laughed. It was a hearty laugh. The first real laugh he had in a while. "Are you sure about that?" He said between giggles.

"Sh-shut up!" He was flustered beyond belief. He managed to calm himself down. Chase had already come down from his little laughing fit.

"I'm sorry, but the irony was rich!" He put a hand on his shoulder after he calmed down. "But seriously, I don't think you have anything to worry about."

James let out a heavy sigh. "Thanks Chase. When do you think I should ask her out?"

"Next time you see her. After a text like that, you're on a clock before she takes action herself. And trust me, it'll get UGLY if you're not prepared." He responded almost as soon as the question came up.

"... I'm not going to ask how you know that." It was probably a smart move.

"Smart move." It was a smart move.

As they continued perusing through the lines of shops, they came across a store that caught the Luxray's interest. He went into the store and Chase followed. It was just a hardware store. There weren't any special qualities that made it different from the rest. But it did seem to light some sparks in the electric type's brain.

Chase stood next to him. "What's going on in that head of yours? I can almost see the gears turning."

James turned towards him. "Nothing. It's just that this shop is where a nice cafe used to be. I used to work at that cafe. It's the place that Luna referred to when she talked about the "incident" earlier."

"Huh. Was the place getting robbed?" Chase asked. Luna mentioned being a hero when talking to him about it. He could only assume that James tried to apprehend a crime in progress.

"Yeah. I was working the front counter when some guy and his buddy held my coworker at gunpoint. I don't know what came over me, but I just lunged. Of course, I was taken down. Mall security arrived before anything else could happen. That's what Luna was talking about. I tried to be a hero and I could've died because of it. I didn't feel like a hero though. I just... felt useless." They walked outside of the hardware store and sat down on a bench.

"You just weren't able to fight. It seems to both of us that you have an innate will to fight for others. You just don't know how." Chase thought for a moment before coming up with an idea for how to proceed. "Tell you what: I'll give you combat training. I'll teach you to fight so that you can handle it next time."

James lit up at his friend's offer. "Really?! You'd train me?!" He was about to give Chase a big hug until Chase interrupted him.

"Ah ah ah. I'll train you not only to fight but to express restraint. Like I said, you have an innate will to fight for others. Leaving that unchecked can put you in some very dangerous situations. You need to learn when you can fight, and when you should. So it will be on this principle that I will train you. If you start running head-first into danger, I'm cutting it off." He had a stern tone, but he needed his friend to understand the limitations that he will have.

"I understand. You and Luna are singing the same song. I know you guys are just looking out for me and I thank you for that. When do we start?" James asked.

"Tomorrow, if you're up for it. We're gonna want to start as quickly as possible." Chase said.

"Done." James held out his hand to shake, and Chase shook it back. James then got another text from Luna. "Well, guess it's our queue to meet back up."

Chase stood up and followed James. "Don't lose your head like last time." He teased.

"Don't talk about that!" Chase chuckled at his friend's response.

But the day wasn't completely without flaw. For a figure was watching them from the shadows and the crowds of the crowded mall. A man with a fresh scar on his face.