Alola, everyone! I'm still in the writing business and ready to bring new chapters of stories I'm really looking forward to publish, especially this one! In the last chapter, we saw Calvin get an amulet and start off his journey, while Erika did not and is plotting to find Tapu Koko in order to get a Z-Ring like her brother's!
What will happen? Well, let's find out!
POKÉMON SUN & MOON
THE CHALLENGE OF A LIFETIME
"Hey, Hau!" Calvin cried out as he ran towards his cousin, who was standing in front of a building and smiling upon seeing him.
"What's up, cousin?!" he shouted as a greeting in response, gifting him with a fist bump as they met, "You ready to do this thing?" he inquired to him.
"Ready as I'll ever be," he responded with confidence in his tone, "Let's get this started!" he exclaimed as he pumped his right fist into the air.
"Hey…" the ponytailed boy began worriedly, catching his attention, "is Eri gonna come on the challenge with us soon?" he asked curiously.
"Uh… I don't know…" the lightning mage responded as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "She's been stuck in the room ever since what happened yesterday…" he explained, glancing back towards the beachfront, "Dad gave her a talk, but I don't know if that changed anything…" he noted, letting off a deep sigh.
"Well… I get the feelin' she'll be back at it soon," his relative confessed, making him perk up, "And who knows?" he kept going, folding his arms behind his head, "Maybe she'll catch up to us," he suggested. The Ketchum boy laughed, glad that he was being reassuring about his sister.
"So do you know where Ilima is?" he questioned, arching an eyebrow.
"He lives down at the end of the shopping district, but he normally spends most of his time by the marina," the Hughes boy replied, "So… do you wanna meet up with him there?" he inquired to him.
"Sure!" he responded happily, about to head off with him.
"WAIT!" a familiar voice suddenly shrieked, catching their attentions as they turned to see Lillie jogging towards them, breathing heavily.
"L-Lillie?" Calvin stuttered in confusion, seeing her come to a stop and place her hands on her knees, "Hey, are you all right?" he asked, going over to make sure that she was okay. She took a deep inhale to slow her breathing, wiping the sweat off of her forehead.
"I'm fine…" she reassured, standing up straight, "The professor wanted me to come along and help you with something," she explained as she held her duffel bag close, "Do you both have smartphones by chance?" she asked, causing the two boys to blink in confusion. Moments later, they had their devices out, staring at them in wonder.
"So it's a program?" the Ketchum boy inquired as his cousin smiled at his phone, receiving a nod from the blonde haired girl.
"That Pokédex application allows for you to identify any Pokémon, so long as it's been seen before database," she explained to him, showing him how it worked as she tapped the screen, making an image of a Litten appear with some text below it, "And when you spot a Pokémon you haven't seen…" she continued, taking the object and holding it up, "you can take a picture of it and it'll be identified through the app," she finished.
"Cool!" he exclaimed, taking his phone back, "That way, I don't have to worry about asking Hau about any of them…" he noted with a light chuckle.
"Hey, since we're all here," the ponytailed boy began, grabbing his relative and the girl beside him to pull them both close, "let's celebrate the start of our journey with a little picture!" he declared, holding his phone up as it was prepared to take a snapshot of the trio, which it did in a flash of light. Both Calvin and Lillie had surprised expressions in the image, while Hau smiled cheekily.
"Oh, my eyes…" the female of the trio groaned, rubbing them with her arm.
"Pew?" Nebby uttered from within her bag, poking its head out, which the lightning mage took notice of.
"Hey there, Nebby!" he greeted warmly, squatting down to meet its eye level, "How've you been?" he asked.
"Pewpew!" the gaseous creature squeaked happily. Curious, the capped boy activated his new app, hoping to discover information on the mysterious being with it. Instead, he was met with a mere question mark, indicating that there was no data.
"Is there anything you do know about Nebby?" he asked the sunhat wearing girl, who glanced up at the sky for a moment in thought.
"Other than that it's known as a Cosmog, no…" she responded, looking down at it, "Three months ago, I found Nebby and took him with me…" she mentioned, much to the boy's surprise, "Um… Calvin?" she uttered, making him snap away from his thoughts, "Do you usually pick out your own clothes?" she questioned. He blinked in immediate confusion, arching an eyebrow at how unordinary the question seemed to him.
"Well… uh… these were picked out by my mom…" he admitted, gesturing towards his outfit.
"So were my clothes…" she confessed in response, smiling a little, "I've always had to rely on others to help me, since I obviously don't have any other Pokémon on hand…" she pointed out, causing him to widen his eyes slightly in surprise.
"HEY!" Hau suddenly yelled, catching their attentions as they saw that he had already gotten very far into the shopping district, almost at the Pokémon Center, "You're gonna miss out on all the malasadas!" he shouted out to his relative, racing off.
"Malasadas?" Lillie uttered in confusion.
"Apparently they're a special delicacy in Alola," Calvin responded, making her perk up, "Anyways, I better go after him," he said, running off, "I'll catch you later!" he cried out in farewell.
"Bye…" the blonde haired girl uttered, sighing deeply in depression.
"Pew?" Nebby uttered, noticing her expression from within the bag.
Trial by Conflict
"Pika pi!" Pikachu squeaked in front of the door to the twins' bedroom, awaiting a response from the lone occupant as she had yet to even come out. Leslie then came over, sighing out of exasperation and frustration as she folded her arms over her chest, approaching the door.
"Erika, come on out," she requested, "I'm not gonna hit you," she mentioned, remembering the incident that occurred yesterday. However, she received no reply, much to her chagrin as her expression darkened. "Erika!" she yelled angrily.
"Calm down, Leslie," the voice of her mother advised, catching her attention as she looked to see her approach with Ash, who had a cap on his head and a backpack readied, "Erika's probably going through a lot right now," she pointed out seriously.
"We can't just baby her though!" her daughter shouted somewhat worriedly.
"I know," the take-over wizard replied with a simple nod. Just then, the door opened, causing them to perk up and see the aspiring kunoichi standing there in her day clothes with an apparent look of guilt and shame in her eyes.
"I'm sorry for what happened yesterday…" she apologized instantly, surprising everyone slightly, "I shouldn't have hit balloon boobs and run off…" she added. Her comment brought a look of ire onto her sister's face, but she disregarded it as their father squatted down and placed his right hand onto the girl's shoulder.
"You're going to have to apologize to Miss Emily and the others for how you acted," he told her in a stern tone, causing her to immediately nod in understanding, "I know you're upset about how things turned out, but that's no reason to lash out at everyone," he mentioned, letting off a grin towards her.
"Okay, dad," she replied with another nod. He then stood up, allowing for Pikachu to jump up onto his shoulder. At that moment, there was a trio of knocks at the door, causing them to all perk up.
"That's Sunset," Ash realized, turning to his wife, "I'll be back as soon as I can be," he promised, making her smile before giving him a quick kiss on the lips. As he then headed off afterwards, Erika went back into her room, shutting the door behind her. She then reached down to her shorts and took out her two shrunken Poké Balls from her pocket, enlarging them by pressing their center buttons. She then dropped them onto the floor, letting them pop open as the light that spilled out formed and dissipated to reveal Popplio and Rockruff.
"Ar?" the former of the two released yipped in confusion, seeing her trainer go towards the window.
"We're goin' up to the ruins later," she told them as they both blinked in surprise, "That Tapu Koko gave Cal his Z-Ring, so I'm gonna go get mine from it," she declared earnestly with a grin.
"Rah, ruf ruff?" the Puppy Pokémon barked out in concern, causing her to perk up.
"Pua, poaup?" the Water type added in a questioning tone. Understanding that they were both unsure of her intentions, the aspiring kunoichi puffed out her cheeks in frustration, sitting down on her bed.
"Ever since Cal got that darn ring, he's been getting luckier and luckier…" she grumbled, sounding frustrated, "So if I get my own, we'll be back at it, right?" she inquired to her teammates. They glanced at each other unsurely, wondering if their master was still pent up with emotion from her utter failure yesterday. "I should've gotten one of those amulets…" she then muttered aloud, "We made it to the semifinals and everything!" she mentioned angrily, "If it wasn't for that stupid test…" she kept going, clenching her fists in frustration as they trembled.
"Arf!" the Sea Lion Pokémon barked, catching her attention as she looked to see the frustration expression she had, "Ar, arf ar!" she exclaimed, gesturing to both herself and her comrade, "Pua, pop!" she added. Knowing that she was in disagreement over her potential actions, the short haired girl scoffed and looked back out the window.
"Like it or not, we're going tonight…" she stated firmly, much to the dismay of the two creatures as they gave worried looks to each other. Unbeknownst to any of them, Leslie had heard the entire conversation from outside the room, sighing deeply before walking off.
X
It was around noon by the time Hau and Calvin left the local malasada shop, both having one of the delectable treats in their hands as the former of the pair chowed down on his instantaneously.
"Man, these are the best!" he exclaimed delightedly as his eyes sparkled, "I even hear that Pokémon like 'em!" he mentioned, finishing his as he took one last big bite.
"They're good, I guess…" his cousin concurred as he had a small bite of his malasada, "Anyways, do you wanna try and find a new Pokémon before we hit the marina?" he offered to him, gesturing back towards the grassier areas where some creatures were roaming about.
"Sure!" he replied with a wide grin. All of a sudden, a figure zoomed by and tore off a piece of the lightning mage's treat before he could take another bite, much to his surprise as he yelped and fell down onto his rear end.
"Hey, are you all right?!" the ponytailed boy asked, going over to help him back up. They glanced over to see what had come by, being an avian creature with black plumage. His gray beak was long with a pointed, black tip, and he has large blue eyes. There was a white, mask-like marking on his face. That marking extended down his neck before ending in a tuft of feathers on his chest. A large crest swept upward from the back of his head with a red stripe along the top that ended at his beak. The undersides of his wings were white, and he had thin gray legs and feet. With that, he had a flat tail.
"What is that Pokémon?" the capped boy asked, taking out his smartphone.
"It's a Pikipek!" Hau responded just as his relative activated the Pokédex app on his device, "I normally don't see them out in Hau'oli…" he noted, scratching his head in confusion. A picture was taken by the Ketchum boy, allowing him to see the notes on the bird-like being as he chewed on the malasada piece he had taken, standing on a lamppost.
"A Normal/Flying type, huh?" he uttered, grinning as he took out a Poké Ball from his belt and enlarged it by pressing its center button, "I guess this guy might just be what I get!" he declared, reeling his arm back, "Litten, go!" he cried out, throwing the container up into the air. It popped open, and the light that spilled out from it formed upon the ground, dissipating to reveal the Fire Cat Pokémon.
"Mraaahh!" she roared, catching the attention of the Woodpecker Pokémon as he glanced over to see her, having finished his food.
"Litten, use Ember!" her master commanded as he stuck out his left hand. Letting the red tufts on her back spike up, the Fire type unleashed a fireball from her mouth towards her target. He quickly dodged it though, flying off before turning around and zooming right for the kitten-like being, having a light red, bird-shaped aura shrouding its form as it dove down.
"That's Peck!" the ponytailed boy yelped in realization.
"Dodge and use Scratch!" his cousin called out, enticing his partner to leap above the Pikipek, drawing her claws as they glowed a bright white before swiping at him with her front right paw.
"Peek!" he screeched in agony, falling onto the ground.
"Nice one!" Hau complimented as he pumped his fists excitedly.
"Scratch one more time!" Calvin ordered. Litten ran towards the fallen bird-like creature, who got up and turned around, opening his beak and unleashing a sound wave that struck his foe. All of a sudden, she began stumbling around crazily, much to the surprise of the two boys.
"That must've been Pikipek's Supersonic!" the kahuna's grandson realized, grimacing a little.
"Litten, hang in there!" the capped boy cried out, but to no avail as his teammate stumbled around still. The Woodpecker Pokémon then made his beak glow a bright white before opening it again, firing off a strong sound wave that struck the Fire type, sending her tumbling back.
"Mraw…" she groaned in agony, shaking her head as she appeared to have regained control of herself.
"And he's got Echoed Voice, too…" the ponytailed boy realized, giving off a worried look.
'That's a move that gets stronger each time if it's used over and over…' his cousin inwardly noted, trying to think, 'So maybe…' he started to think.
"Litten, come back for a sec!" he yelled, catching the attention of the Fire Cat Pokémon as she looked over at him, blinking in surprise.
"Li ten!" she concurred after a moment, going back behind him as he pulled out another enlarged Poké Ball.
"Yungoos, I choose you!" he bellowed, tossing the containment out. The light that popped out from it formed on the ground, dissipating to reveal the Normal type.
"Yung goo!" he growled. The bird-like creature he was pitted against readied his beak once more, firing off an even more powerful sound wave towards him.
"Dodge and use Sand Attack!" Calvin shouted, enticing the Loitering Pokémon to run off to the side to avoid the sound wave, followed by sweeping his tail against the ground, brushing dust into the eyes of the Normal/Flying type.
"Pee, pik pek!" he chirped in panic, failing about as he shut his eyes.
"Now Tackle!" the capped boy commanded. Getting into a ready stance, the mongoose-like creature lunged forward and slammed into the Pikipek head first, making him tumble across the pavement before coming to a stop, slowly trying to get back up.
"Nice one!" Hau complimented, while his relative readied an empty Poké Ball, enlarging it by pressing its center button.
"And… go!" he yelled, tossing it out. It connected with the head of the Woodpecker Pokémon, opening up and making him turn into a mass of red light that went into it. The containment then closed, hitting the ground and shaking as the button blinked red. Everyone watched on nervously, waiting to see if the capture was successful. A sound of a click then went off, making them all perk up and smile to see that the ball had stopped shaking and blinking.
"Mraw!" Litten exclaimed, jumping up onto her trainer's shoulder happily as he went over to pick up the Poké Ball, raising it into the air.
"We caught a Pikipek, little girl," he pointed out to her with a wide grin, making her smile as well.
"Way to go, Cal!" Hau complimented again as he approached, "Now you've got yourself half a team!" he mentioned to him.
"Hey… didn't you say Pokémon liked these malasadas?" he inquired, making him blink in confusion. He then tossed up the Poké Ball, allowing it pop open as the light that flew out formed and dissipated to reveal his new teammate.
"Pick!" he chirped, flying down and perching himself on his new owner's right shoulder.
"You want some more?" he offered to him, showing the remainder of his malasada to him. Blinking in surprise for a moment, the Normal/Flying type then pecked rapidly into the treat, gobbling it up the rest of it as Yungoos looked on in dismay, letting his stomach growl loudly.
"Yung…" he moaned sadly, lying upon the ground.
"Pikpik!" the bird-like creature chirped happily, flapping his wings to float just beside his master, who laughed. The ponytailed boy chuckled as well, but stopped as he realized something.
"Hey, where'd Lillie go off to?" he asked, glancing around as he caught the attentions of the others, "Wasn't she with you?" he questioned on.
"Uh, I think she's hanging around the city for now," his relative replied, "We can go looking for her after we find Ilima," he suggested as he looked out towards the marina.
"Did you hear about what's happening?" a voice suddenly asked, causing them to perk up as they saw two businessmen chatting on the sidewalk, "Those Team Skull are always skulking around like they own the place…" he muttered quietly to his colleague, making the kahuna's grandson widen his eyes in realization.
"Ilima should take care of them, so we don't need to worry," the other man there reassured as they walked off.
"What do you think that was about?" Calvin wondered aloud.
"We gotta get to the marina!" his cousin suddenly yelled out, running towards the docks to his surprise.
"H-Hey!" he stuttered, taking out his Poké Balls to return both Litten and Yungoos respectively in beams of red light. He was about to do the same for Pikipek, but he flew off after the ponytailed boy, enticing him to hurry as well.
X
"My… how terrifying…" the trial captain muttered from the marina, having been confronted by two blue haired individuals. They both adorned bandanas over their noses and mouths, giving off the appearance of skulls with their white caps on their heads. Their clothing consisted of black tank tops and shorts with white sneakers, and silver chain necklaces that dangled from their necks with their group's emblem.
"Yo Ilima!" one of them greeted rather angrily, "You gonna give up yer Pokémon today?!" he questioned threateningly.
"I don't remember ever having any intention of doing that," the well-dressed man responded, remaining stoic as he pulled out a Poké Ball with his left hand, enlarging it by pressing its center button, "You've caused enough trouble for people all throughout the Alola region," he pointed out, glaring at the two thugs, "I think it's time someone taught you a lesson…" he stated, reeling his arm back.
"Heh!" the other hooligan laughed as he and his partner took out their own Poké Balls, "You try it!" he challenged. Just then, something swooped by their heads, causing them to duck with yelps. It turned out to be the Woodpecker Pokémon, who landed before the pinkish haired boy.
"Peek, peek!" he screeched angrily at the pair of crooks.
"Hey, hey…" one of them grumbled as they stood up, "Where'd this fool come from?" he questioned, only to get a shrug from his comrade.
"Ilima!" a familiar voice cried out, catching their attentions as they all looked to see Hau and Calvin running towards them.
"Yo A, who are those kids?" the other grunt asked as they approached. He widened his eyes slightly at the sight of one.
"That Hala's grandkid!" he exclaimed in disbelief, taking a step back, "But… I don't know a thing about the brat next to him…" he mentioned, looking over at the capped boy.
"He's probably just some nobody from the boonies," his partner mocked, chuckling afterwards. Having overheard that, the lightning mage clenched his fists in anger.
"Hau, who are these guys?" he asked his cousin, who pulled out a Poké Ball.
"They're from Team Skull, like those guys talked about earlier," he replied in a whisper, enlarging the spherical container by pressing its center button, "They steal other people's Pokémon for themselves and take whatever else they want!" he added, much to his shock as he gasped lightly.
"Guess you kids wanna play with us, huh?" one of the goons inquired, prepared to throw his own Poké Ball. Suddenly, Pikipek dashed up and landed upon his head, making him perk up too late as he was pecked at rapidly by him. "OWOWOWOWOWOWOW!" he yelped loudly in agony before the Normal/Flying type stopped, soaring back over to his trainer.
"Pik, peek pek!" he chirped angrily, appearing to challenge the pair of crooked individuals.
"Oh, it's on!" A yelled, tossing up his containment, "Drowzee!" he cried out.
"Zubat!" his partner shouted, throwing his own ball as well. The two popped open, and the light that spilled out onto the ground from them formed and then dissipated into the Bat Pokémon and the Hypnosis Pokémon respectively.
"Rowlet, go!" the ponytailed boy bellowed as he threw his Poké Ball, letting it pop open as the light formed and dissipated to reveal the Grass/Flying type.
"Koo!" he chirped, landing beside the Woodpecker Pokémon.
"Knock 'em out, Zubat!" the Team Skull member shouted to his partner, "Use Bite!" he commanded. The Poison/Flying type flew out towards the long beaked bird-like creature of the two, having his teeth glow a bright white, about to chomp down on his target.
"Pikipek, dodge and use Peck!" Calvin cried out, enticing his new teammate to fly away from his oncoming opponent, followed by cloaking himself in a light red, bird-shaped aura as he dove down and rammed his beak right into him, sending him hurdling back in an instant.
"Ah, Zubat?!" his master exclaimed out of disbelief.
"Relax, B!" his fellow trainer advised to get his attention, "I got this!" he declared confidently as he threw his arm, "Drowzee, Pound!" he ordered. Making his right hand glow a bright white, the Psychic type took a step forward, prepared to attack.
"Rowlet, Astonish!" Hau yelled. The Grass Quill Pokémon lunged out, having an ominous aura shroud his entire body as he approached his adversary. It then became a ghastly apparition that had glowing pink eyes, a wicked grin, and a reddish energy shrouding it as it struck the bipedal, elephant-nosed creature.
"Drow…" he groaned, appearing to have flinched from the attack. In the meantime, Ilima watched on curiously at the multi battle, grinning at how the two boys were doing.
"Use Confusion and bring those birdies down!" A commanded angrily, enticing the Hypnosis Pokémon to snap out of his flinched state, making his eyes glow a bright pink.
"Pikipek, hit him with Supersonic!" Calvin called out.
"PEEEEEEKKKK!" the Normal/Flying screeched as he unleashed a sound wave that struck his target, causing him to suddenly stumble about in confusion. Just as Zubat was getting off of the ground, he was stomped down by his partner, causing the two grunts to yelp in surprise.
"Hey, that's on you!" B shouted to his comrade.
"Well shouldn't you be helpin' me?!" he yelled back. As the two argued, both boys turned to each other and nodded, prepared to finish the bout.
"Peck!" they cried out simultaneously, catching their opponents' attentions. Flying up together and cloaking themselves in a bird-shaped aura, the two bird-like creatures dove down and slammed their beaks into their foes, sending them flying before the struck their respective trainers, knocking them down as well.
"All right!" Hau exclaimed in excitement.
"Ugh…" the goons groaned simultaneously as they sat, seeing that both of their Pokémon were down for the count.
"Crap, we lost!" the former of the two yelped as he returned the Bat Pokémon to his Poké Ball in a beam of red light before standing up, "Ain't no way we gonna get any Pokémon like this!" he complained.
"Let's up and out of this port, B!" his friend advised after returning his Drowzee, "No one has to know we were even here!" he mentioned, racing off. His fellow grunt followed, running past the trial-goers they had lost to.
"See ya!" the ponytailed one of the two shouted with a playful wave, while Rowlet landed upon his head. Just then, the two heard the sound of clapping from afar, enticing them to look and see Ilima approach.
"That was a fine showing of battling skill," he complimented, "It's no surprise with how well both of you did at the Pokémon School," he mentioned with a grin.
"Th-Thank you, Ilima…" Calvin stuttered out of flattery as he blushed, evidently embarrassed by all the praise he had been receiving lately. His Pikipek landed upon his head just then, chirping happily.
"Incidentally…" he began, catching their attentions, "I don't remember you having a Pikipek as a member of your party…" he pointed out curiously.
"Oh, yeah," the Ketchum boy responded, glancing over at his new teammate as he then perched himself onto his right shoulder, "I actually caught him earlier today," he pointed out.
"Really?" the trial captain questioned rhetorically, sounding impressed, "Well then…" he continued, making the trial-goer perk up, "How about I see if you're really prepared to take on my trial?" he suggested, still holding his Poké Ball as he tossed it up and down in his hand.
"You mean… a battle?" the lightning mage guessed, receiving a nod in reply from the pinkish haired man.
"It's only fair that I'd want to see how far any challenger's progressed when they have yet to clear a trial," he explained, walking off, "So shall we?" he offered, throwing the ball with his left hand. It popped open, and the light that poured out from it went onto the ground, forming and then dissipating to reveal a Smeargle.
"Gul!" he greeted, holding his paintbrush-like tail in his right hand.
"Oh, a Smeargle!" Hau exclaimed in surprise.
"Now who will you choose to battle?" Ilima wondered aloud, catching his future opponent's attention.
"Hm…" he hummed in thought, placing his hand onto his chin.
"Pik!" Pikipek suddenly chirped, making him perk up as he saw his newest teammate land down in front of him, prepared to battle.
"You sure, Pikipek?" he questioned out of mild concern.
"Pik pek!" he responded with a simple nod, ready to battle.
"Okay then," his trainer replied. After a moment of preparation, Hau and Rowlet were seated off to the side, prepared to watch the match unfold.
"The first move is yours," the trial captain said rather nicely.
"All right, use Supersonic!" Calvin commanded as he swung his left arm out. Flying up, the Woodpecker Pokémon unleashed a strong sound wave headed for the Normal type ahead of him.
"Quick Attack!" the pinkish haired man shouted, enticing his partner to cloak himself in a white outline before dashing forwards in an instant, avoiding getting struck by the sound wave before slamming into his enemy head on.
"Pikee!" he screeched as he was flung back, managing to regain his midair balance as he shook his head.
"Using Supersonic to confuse my Pokémon to give yourself the early advantage, hm?" Ilima inquired, placing his hand onto his chin, "Quite the great strategy you had, but it won't faze my Smeargle," he mentioned.
"Smear…" the Painter Pokémon challenged, gesturing for his opponent to attack him, much to his ire as a tick mark appeared upon his head.
"Stay cool, Pikipek!" his master advised, "Use Peck!" he called out as he clenched his fist. Cloaking himself in a bird-shaped, light red aura, the Normal/Flying type dove down towards his opponent with his beak aimed for his chest.
"Vine Whip!" the trial captain commanded.
"Smeer… gul!" the paintbrush-tailed creature yelled as his shoulders shined a bright yellow before two dark green vines appeared from his back, extending out to strike the bird-like being coming towards him. However, he narrowly evaded them, striking him fiercely in the chest.
"Yeah!" Calvin exclaimed excitedly, glad that his comrade had landed a hit as his adversary fell down, only to get back up in mere moments.
"My, my…" the pinkish haired man repeated, sounding impressed, "Smeargle, Ember!" he called out. Reeling his head back, the Normal type unleashed a large fireball, aimed for his foe.
"Counter it with Echoed Voice!" the Ketchum boy commanded quickly, making his teammate have his beak glow a bright white before opening it to fire off another sound wave that connected with the fireball, creating a large explosion of black smoke, "One more time!" his master yelled. The black veil was instantly swept away by another sound wave from the Woodpecker Pokémon, heading for his adversary as it seemed more powerful than before.
"Use Water Gun!" the well-dressed man shouted. As he reeled his head back once again, Smeargle fired off a blast of water to try and counteract the oncoming sound wave, only for it to break apart instantaneously as the attack was too powerful, striking him as he yelped.
"Great work, cuz!" Hau cheered from afar while clapping.
"Koo!" Rowlet chirped excitedly.
"That's some impressive power you've got!" the trial captain admitted with a grin, while his partner was slow to get up, "But we're not done yet!" he declared confidently, "Smeargle, Quick Attack!" he ordered.
"Gul!" the Painter Pokémon responded, dashing out in an instant as a white outline shrouded his body.
"Use Peck!" the lightning mage bellowed. The Normal/Flying type shrouded himself within a light red, bird-shaped aura once more, flying out at his enemy. They came into contact, having intercepted their attacks as they came to a stalemate. However, the smaller of the two was blown back in an instant, hitting the ground and tumbling across it back to his trainer. "Pikipek!" he cried out, seeing him struggle to get onto his feet.
"All right then…" Ilima uttered, sticking out his right hand, "Ember!" he commanded, enticing his partner to shoot off another fireball from his mouth towards his foe.
"Quick, dodge it!" Calvin yelped. The Woodpecker Pokémon narrowly managed to fly up and avoid the fireball as it struck the ground in a fiery explosion. All of a sudden, his beak glowed a bright reddish-orange as he flew down and slammed it into the torso of his enemy, sending him hurdling back in an instant.
"Whoa!" Hau exclaimed, evidently shocked.
"Rohw…" Rowlet uttered in disbelief. The Ketchum boy was just as stunned, taking out his phone to discover just what move his teammate had used.
"Rock Smash…" he read, smiling brightly, "That's a Fighting type move!" he noted with a pump of his fist.
"So that's how it is…" the trial captain muttered as Smeargle got back on his feet, "All right, Quick Attack!" he cried out. The Painter Pokémon dashed out once more, cloaking himself in a white outline as he sped towards his foe.
"Pikipek, Rock Smash!" the capped boy commanded. Making his beak glow reddish-orange again, the bird-like creature flew in and rammed it into the head of his oncoming opponent, not backing down an inch as they reached another deadlock. This time though, the Normal type was the first to falter as he suddenly was flung to the ground, hitting it hard in a flurry of dust. When it cleared after a moment, it revealed that he was lying upon the ground with swirls in his eyes, unable to continue battling.
"And that's it!" the ponytailed boy exclaimed excitedly as he jumped up.
"Roooh!" the Grass Quill Pokémon cheered as he flew around happily. Letting off a grin, the pinkish haired man returned his partner to his Poké Ball in a beam of red light.
"Thank you for your effort," he said to it in gratitude, shrinking the container before placing it back on his belt, "That was a fine display!" he complimented as he approached the trial-goer and his dirtied, bird-like creature, "I'm even more impressed that the Pikipek you only recently met had won that battle," he added, placing his hands at his hips, "I think you're more than ready to take on my trial," he stated, causing the lightning mage to smile gleefully.
"Thanks!" he responded graciously.
"Pik pek!" Pikipek added happily.
"By the way…" Ilima continued, catching his attention as Hau trotted over with Rowlet, "how is your sister doing?" he asked out of concern, "I know that Professor Kukui was planning on getting something to help her with her studies and training…" he noted, tapping his chin in thought.
"I… don't know actually…" the Ketchum boy responded, remembering his twin sister yelling at him yesterday, "I just hope she's not too down about everything," he stated.
"Well, she'll be back!" his cousin chimed in, folding his arms behind his head, "In the meantime, let's get to that trial!" he declared with a pump of his fist, causing the other two with him to grin in agreement before leaving the marina.
X
As the sunset came by, the remaining three of the Ketchum family in the household had a hearty dinner without much discussion at the table. Erika and Leslie shared looks a couple of times, as the latter was concerned for her sibling's well-being. Even so, she ignored her as she made her usual jabs to her chest again and again, almost giving up any hope she had that she would change.
"All righty…" the aspiring kunoichi uttered as she slid open the window of her room later that evening. Before she snuck out, she had grabbed her holster and a few scrolls, setting it on her left thigh as she landed upon the grass, racing off towards Iki Town. Catching sight of her from her own room's window, the Unova Champion Master sighed deeply, grabbing her belt and a fleece jacket. Once she arrived in the town, her sister snuck around the buildings, heading over to Mahalo Trail: the hill she and her brother trekked up before when they first met Lillie and where Tapu Koko had saved her twin.
'I was there to help my brother, too!' she noted inwardly, 'So there's gotta be a Z-Ring waiting for me!' she exclaimed through thought, excitedly running up the path. A few moments later, she arrived at the broken bridge, looking out to see the deep drop into the river below with the sharp rocks. She cracked a smirk though, opening her holster and pulling out one of the scrolls she had taken. She laid it onto the ground and unrolled it, revealing the Japanese character printed upon it. Putting her hands together in the form of a tiger seal, she closed her eyes and then placed her left palm against the paper. A puff of smoke emitted from it afterwards, clearing away thanks to the breeze to reveal a large hook attached to a firm rope. After she successfully tied the end with the hook to a tree, she slowly began lowering herself from the cliff towards the river below.
"If I can't jump across, then this is the next best thing!" she told herself, getting closer to the water, which actually seemed rather calm despite the breeze blowing by. The only danger was apparently the sharp rocks, and those were easily avoidable. By the time she reached the water, she closed her eyes again, making another tiger seal with her right hand while holding onto the rope with her left. She then stepped onto the water with her feet, standing upon it as she let go.
'Perfect,' she said through thought with a grin, 'My chakra control's a bit wonky, but I can at least walk on water,' she noted to herself, turning and slowly trotting over to the other side of the river. The light breeze did not affect her at all as she remained concentrated, not worried in the slightest as ripples appeared with each step she took. Suddenly though, something splashed out from the water, making her perk up to see that a Corsola had leapt out, coming right towards her.
"K-K-KOR?!" she yelped, not expecting a person to be in her path. Reacting quickly, Erika stepped forward to try and get out of the Water/Rock type's way. However, one of the coral pieces upon her body snagged her holster, ripping it off as she went by so quickly.
"NO!" she screamed, seeing it fly off and land in the water, floating away with the current as the Coral Pokémon swam away. She was about to give chase to her long treasured item until she felt her feet start to sink into the water, realizing that her time upon it was almost up. She carefully stepped over to the other side of the river, jumping up onto the cliff and holding on as she breathed out a sigh of relief. "Perfect…" she muttered, realizing that her goal to get to the ruins was now a lot more daunting.
'What would Cal do now?' she wondered, blinking in surprise for even thinking of him before shaking her head, 'No, I gotta do this as best I can!' she proclaimed inwardly, grunting as she climbed up the cliff, sweating madly. Though she had to take frequent breaks, she never quit as she finally made her way to the top, getting over and setting herself down upon the ground.
"Huh… Huh…" she breathed heavily, lying upon the ground as she looked to see the stars in the sky with the bright moon overhead, "Ergh…" she grunted, getting back onto her feet and looking out at the remainder of the path before trekking it. She arrived at the entrance to the ruins moments later, gulping a little.
'What the heck do I have to be nervous about?' she asked herself, regaining her composure, 'Thanks to that stupid thing, I don't have a flashlight…' she grumbled through thought as she took out her Poké Balls and enlarged them, 'but I still have these guys!' she noted inwardly, opening them up to have the light from them pour out and form. It dissipated, revealing her two teammates.
"Ar?" Popplio barked in confusion, wondering where they were.
"Rah, rok ruf!" Rockruff pointed out in complete shock, catching her attention as they looked to see the opening into the ruins in front of them.
"I need you guys to help me get through these ruins before we reach Tapu Koko," their trainer chimed in, causing them to perk up, "Please?" she pleaded, clapping her hands together. The two creatures shared a worried look with each other before nodding, making her smile. A little bit later, the three of them were walking through the dark tunnel towards the end of the ruins, only seeing some light illumination from both the moon and the stars through the vines that acted as a roof. The Puppy Pokémon sniffed ahead as his master and the Water type followed, right until they reached the end of the ruins, where it was bright enough for them to all see. The aspiring kunoichi smiled as she saw the shrine there, adorned with floral decorations as it was atop a perfectly made stack of stones, with wooden steps on each for people to go up and honor the guardian deity of Melemele. However, her plans were far from honoring the sacred shrine. She hurried up the steps and knelt down before the stone totem, prepared to do what she needed to.
"Pua, pop?" Popplio asked as she and Rockruff went over to her, wondering what she would say as she put her hands together in prayer.
"Oh great, powerful, awesome Tapu Koko…" she began with closed eyes, "please, please, please give me a Z-Ring!" she begged rather bluntly, much to the dismay of her teammates as they both sighed with drops of sweat rolling down from their heads. After a few moments, nothing happened. The Ketchum girl kept her eyes closed, but her ire was building with each passing second of silence, which the creatures beside her took notice of.
"R-Rah?" the Rock type stammered in concern.
"AAAAGGGHH!" his trainer suddenly screamed angrily as she stood up in a huff, evidently impatient, "Come on already!" she yelled, kicking the stone totem in front of her. It was about to fall over, much to her shock as she realized that she had made a mistake.
"Arf!" the Sea Lion Pokémon barked as she and her comrade went behind the totem, pushing it back to keep it upright. Their master quickly over and grabbed it to make sure it stayed in place, letting it go once it stopped shaking.
"Huh…" she breathed out in relief, "Sorry about that…" she apologized to her teammates, who glared at her.
"Kohhh…" a familiar voice echoed, catching their attentions as they widened their eyes.
"That voice…" Erika started to realize, smiling a little.
"Kokohhhh…!" it sounded off, even louder than before.
"Pua…" Popplio whimpered, nervously backing away from the shrine with Rockruff, while their owner watched on in anticipation. A flash of yellow lightning engulfed the room, blinding the three of them as they shut their eyes. After a moment to open them back up, they all gasped to see the Land Spirit Pokémon right there in front of his shrine, staring out at the trespassers.
"You're really here…!" the Ketchum girl exclaimed, seemingly about to cry tears of joy, "Now can you please make with the-?" Without warning, Tapu Koko lunged forward and slammed into her, sending her flying off of the shrine before landing hard on the wood floor below, tumbling across it before coming to a stop as she lied on her right hip. "Ow…" she uttered out in agony, having tears in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around her hurt torso. Stunned by what they had just witnessed, her teammates glared and growled at the guardian deity, prepared to attack it. However, it readied its arms, forming a sparking orb of electricity upon each one that he subsequently fired at them. They narrowly dodged the attacks, landing on the ground in front of their trainer.
"Rah, rah!" Rockruff barked angrily, making the stones around his neck glow white before a multicolored orb of energy formed upon his tail, firing off several shards of rock towards the Electric/Fairy type. It avoided them with ease however, landing down in front of its foes as electricity began sparking wildly around it.
"KOKOHHHHH!" it screeched, suddenly unleashing an electrical discharge that spread throughout the room, creating practically a dome of energy that surrounded it and its enemies.
"Wh-What's happening?" Erika stuttered out in confusion and fright, grimacing worriedly. Popplio went ahead and fired off a spray of water from her nostrils after jumping up, while her teammate performed the same attack as before. With electricity sparking even more wildly around it, Tapu Koko then unleashed multiple bolts of yellow lightning, as two struck its opponents simultaneously as they easily cut through their attacks without issue. "POPPLIO! ROCKRUFF!" their master screamed in dismay, seeing them both fall to the ground in heaps, evidently unable to continue as they groaned in agony.
"Koh…" the Land Spirit Pokémon growled, catching the girl's attention as she grimaced to see the menacing glare from it. She realized that she desecrated it shrine and was now seen as an enemy to be finished off by it.
"I'm sorry!" she apologized immediately, getting onto her hands and knees, "I didn't mean to ruin your home or whatever, but I just-!" Her words were only met with more bolts of electricity being shot out from the island guardian out of anger, followed by him forming yet another orb of electrical energy upon the tips of its appendages. It threw the sphere of energy down at her, causing her to flinch as she folded her arms over her face to defend herself, followed by an explosion that engulfed the area. When the smoke cleared after a moment amidst the crackling of electricity in the air, she looked to see that she had been unharmed, much to her disbelief. She then glanced out and gasped to see her older sister there alongside her Serperior, glaring down the guardian deity as it got into a ready stance.
"Erika, stay behind me," she advised seriously, about to engage in an epic clash.
X
A few moments passed within the shrine room before Tapu Koko prepared another orb of electricity upon its hands.
"Serpence, Coil!" Leslie called out, enticing the Regal Pokémon to curl himself up, having a purple aura shroud his body before disappearing, followed by a reddish energy flowing up his form. The sphere of electrical energy was then fired towards him, zooming in rapidly. "Now Leaf Blade!" his trainer commanded as she swung her left arm out.
"Sir!" he responded quickly, making his tail glow a bright green as the leaves upon it sharpened. He swung his appendage out, slicing clean through the ball and creating to separate implosions behind him.
"Whoa…" the aspiring kunoichi uttered in amazement as her eyes shook.
"Koh kohhh!" the Electric/Fairy type screeched as it zoomed down, slamming its right hand on the ground and a pink shockwave comes out of the ground, with wisps of blue aura appearing above the ground, causing his opponent to move back slightly.
"Coil again!" the Unova Champion Master yelled quickly, enticing her partner to shroud himself in the purple aura once more. All of a sudden, multiple pink, yellow, and blue bolts shot out from the ground he was upon, striking him as he cried out in agony.
"Ah!" Erika gasped with her teammates, thinking that the Grass type had just been defeated. However, the smoke cleared to reveal that he was still up despite a few noticeable scrapes.
"Use Leech Seed!" Leslie ordered, enticing her partner to arch his head back before spitting out what appeared to be a large seed, striking the Land Spirit Pokémon and suddenly growing into several vines that wrapped around its body. They appeared to drain it of its energy, while his foe began glowing in a bright green aura from afar.
"Koh… KOH!" it shrieked angrily, unleashing several bolts of yellow electricity from its body towards its foe. Rather than dodge, the Serperior leapt out and took the lightning head on, becoming enveloped in an explosion of black smoke afterwards.
"Serrr…" he hissed as he landed down with electricity sparking all around his body, grimacing in pain.
"Serpence, here!" his master called out, catching his attention as she saw her chuck a red berry towards him, which he caught in his mouth and ate. Chewing and swallowing the fruit, the sparks emanating around him disappeared as he glared back at his adversary.
"Koh…" it muttered in realization, firing off more bolts of yellow electricity towards him.
"Dodge and use Leaf Blade!" the white haired woman commanded, enticing her teammate to narrowly evade each oncoming lightning bolt, making his tail glow a bright green again as its leaves sharpened.
"Ser… PEEER!" he screeched as he lunged out, slashing by the Electric/Fairy type over and over with his tail. It managed to defend itself with the shells on its arms, but was evidently growing weary as it began to sweat. However, the vines surrounding it were sliced off, enabling him to move as he prepared yet another orb of electricity upon its hands, firing it off to strike his foe head on.
"Serpence!" his trainer shouted out worriedly, hoping he was all right. He shook his head in agony, glaring ahead at his foe as a greenish aura overtook his form.
"Huh?" Erika uttered in confusion as she blinked, recognizing that it was the same kind of aura that was around her Popplio and her brother's Litten when they were in tight pinches.
"Serpence, Leaf Storm!" Leslie ordered as she pumped out her right fist. Becoming outlined in a turquoise light, the Serperior leapt up and suddenly was surrounded by a large amount of green, glowing leaves. Realizing what was about to happen, Tapu Koko closed its shell in an effort to protect itself. The leaves were fired towards it rapidly, striking it fiercely as it was blown back towards its shrine. A blue aura flowed down the body of the Grass type afterwards as he landed down before his trainer, prepared to continue fighting if necessary. His opponent opened his shell, looking to see the frightened expression on the face of the aspiring kunoichi as she stood up.
"Koh," he concurred with a nod, making the Regal Pokémon blink in confusion. Just then, another flash of lightning burst out, blinding the group as they shut their eyes instantly. They looked out to see that the Land Spirit Pokémon had disappeared, having apparently calmed down from being disturbed.
"Huh…" the short haired girl breathed out in relief, falling onto her knees, "That was scary…" she admitted as she was slightly shaking. She then heard the footsteps of her sister drawing near with her partner, making her perk up. "Th-Thanks-" Her stuttering attempt at gratitude was only met with a powerful slap to her left cheek from the right hand of her sibling, who looked even angrier than the guardian deity was.
"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!" she screamed in question, "You could've gotten really hurt, heck even killed!" she pointed out to her, sounding very frustrated, "I didn't tell mom about what you were doing because I hoped you'd get some sense knocked into that brain of yours for once…" she admitted, glancing off to the side, "but I guess I was just kidding myself," she realized, "You deserve everything you've gotten thus far in Alola, and that includes this," she stated as Erika slowly stood up. She then blinked in surprise to see the tears rolling down from her eyes profusely, with snot coming out of her nostrils as she then bawled into her sibling's chest.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she apologized repeatedly, "I should've listened to you and everyone!" she exclaimed, still in tears as she moved her head to look into her sister's eyes, "Calvin… he was making all these friends and learning everything…" she blurted out, "and I… I… didn't even try…" she stuttered, ashamed of herself.
"Ar…" Popplio barked quietly with tears in her eyes, while Rockruff was the same. Though it could all have been just an act, Leslie knew that there was sincerity in her sister's voice, embracing her warmly in reassurance.
"Let's get you back home," she advised as just above the ruins, Tapu Koko watched on curiously.
X
After being properly scolded by her mother and sent to bed, Erika awoke the next morning in her room, dressed for the day as she held her floral hat in her hands. Despite its ridiculous appearance, she had grown attached to it, not once leaving it behind when she went to the festival, the school, or even the ruins. She put it on, setting it upright. Just then, she heard a knock at the front door to the household, getting her attention.
'That must be him…' she inwardly realized, letting out an exhale.
"Pua?" a familiar voice barked, causing her to perk up as she saw Popplio and Rockruff there in front of her, smiling as she approached them, squatting down.
"I'm sorry for last night," she apologized sincerely, "I dragged you two into something I shouldn't have even done," she noted with shame in her voice.
"Rah, ruff!" the Puppy Pokémon barked, leaping into her arms and licking her cheek playfully. She grinned, picking up the Water as well before exiting the room.
"Mornin', Erika!" the voice of Professor Kukui greeted, catching her attention as she saw him there with her mother and her sister.
"Good morning," she responded, going up to him.
"So are you ready to get to it?" he inquired to her, placing his hands at his hips while arching an eyebrow.
"Yeah," she replied with a simple nod, heading out the front door with him moments later. Elsewhere on the island, Calvin clenched his fists tightly from within a Pokémon Center room, already dressed as he was prepared to take on his first trial.
END
I'm back, baby! It feels so good to be consistently updating again! But in all seriousness, it will be a while before the next chapter comes out since there's other stories I wanna get to, such as "Evolution", "Traitor", and of course, "Omni Force: WAR". But in the meantime, here's a summary to tide you over!
SUMMARY
Episode Eight: Two Trials! One Winner!
In an effort to help her succeed and obtain an Island Challenge amulet, Professor Kukui gives Erika a special Rotom-Pokédex! However, she has to train and study for just a day in order to get an 100% required score on her exam! Will she do it?!
And Calvin begins his first trial! But as it goes swimmingly, Team Skull suddenly barges in with reinforcements! Will Calvin be able to make it through?!
END SUMMARY
To know what's next in the schedule, please check the forum for updates! See you guys later!