(Before we start this next chapter, just wanna give a shout out to those who already gave some faves and watch to this story. I truly appreciate it. Anyway, enjoy.)

Chapter 2: The Fateful Encounter

They're gone, Karthaniel. You'll never see them again.

"NO! THAT'S NOT TRUE!"

Oh, yes it is. Behemoth and Extonia no longer exists… and it's all your fault.

"NO, DAMN IT! LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!"

Now, you shall die, so you can reunite with them forever.

"GET AWAY FROM MEEEEEE! AAAAAHHHHHH!"

At that bloodcurdling scream, Karthaniel woke up with a harsh gasp and was soaked in immense sweat as he saw that the morning sun had risen outside his window. He had to take a moment to catch his breath after suffering his first near-realistic nightmare. That deep, devilish tone haunted him and his mental state was hit even harder afterwards. That scream even caught the attention of Master Mustard and a few of his fellow students, who were in a state of panic for just a few seconds. Even Klara was among the concerned crowd as the elderly master approached the young trainer, who was still hyperventilating with fear.

"Karthaniel, calm down." He commanded softly as he placed a wrinkled hand upon his bare shoulder. "What you heard within your head wasn't real. Try to repeat that to yourself every now and then."

"That seems impossible for me to believe." The young genius trainer admitted with no remorse. "Although this was my first nightmare, I fear the worst for me already. That evil voice… it called out to me at my most vulnerable and it was too real. If that keeps up, I'll never tell the difference between reality and my hallucinations."

"You have to fight this, young Davis. Don't let that demon take over your soul. Accept his presence and defeat him with your own subconscious. You will prevail."

"No, I can't. I can try, but I just know that no matter how much effort and determination I put into it, I'll never win. All of my hard work will go to waste."

"I see. You suffer from more than just depression, then. I hate to say these four letters that you have and I refuse to even try, but this disorder is much too strong for a sage like me to cure. If you repudiate to fight this yourself without someone to help you, you may suffer a fate that'll never tell you whether or not your parents truly survived. You have to spend this time trying to find out rather than capitulating to your inner demons." Karthaniel took in all those words with a grain of salt and mentally tried to let the burn knock him back to reality. At that feeling, he sighed with relief and was finally calm and breathing normally after about ten minutes of a pep speech from the master. Klara and the rest of the students watched and heard the entire thing with hope within their eyes. "Besides, your physical appearance doesn't match up with what you're suffering from. You're as buff in the muscles as Milo, but at your height of 7 feet even, you're much more intimidating, especially with these black steel tattoos you have upon your left and right pectorals and arms. Don't let this strength provide your downfall in the future."

"…yes, Master. I promise to try, but I still don't have the confidence to do so."

"That's why you try."

After that heartwarming speech and an embrace from Mustard and Klara only, Karthaniel finally got out of bed, took a half hour shower, got dressed in nothing but a silver leather vest, baggy black khakis, and white high top sneakers, and enjoyed a hearty breakfast with just Master Mustard alone. There was one more thing they had to discuss.

"First of all, let me start by saying that I truly do appreciate that small talk you gave me earlier." Karthaniel started with his regal smile of peace with his one brown eye and one blue eye glowing with hope as he ate a hefty bowl of Large Leek Curry. "I hated being stubborn within it, but my mind's just all over the place with this disorder that you've officially diagnosed me with. I remember a late uncle suffering from the same thing and it quickly took over him after spending five years in the military. I guess it varies among different people."

"Its symptoms are as unique as the people who have it." Mustard agreed. "Will you truly take my advice and seek out some help?"

"Yes, Master. You've convinced me to do so."

"How about your legs? I'm sure you won't be walking around in that exoskeleton forever."

"That I can manage. I am, at least, a certified genius, if not a doctor. No challenge is too big or small for me."

"That's good to hear. Now, since you'll be leaving this island for the main Galar region, may I suggest you stay at Hammerlocke? That's the most tight community I know and Raihan will be more than happy to help you out."

"Sounds good to me. Thank you once again, Master." The two shook hands after they had just finished eating and Karthaniel didn't waste a moment carefully getting up from his chair, tossing out his pokéball to release his trusty magnezone, and the two worked together to carry the heavy luggage towards the corviknight shuttle station.

Fifteen peaceful minutes of a shuttle flight later…

Karthaniel and magnezone had just made landfall at a nearby Pokémon Center and he already saw who he suspected to be Raihan not too far from his location. He was speaking to a young auburn-haired professor that had little heart decorations all over her famous side ponytail. At that sight, he smiled with utmost respect as he allowed his trusty Magnet Area Pokémon to carry his luggage alone with its powerful electromagnetic abilities and he approached the two as carefully as he could with his exoskeletons. The young female professor saw him and frowned with concern, which made Raihan turn towards him out of curiosity.

"Well, well, well! It's been a good long few years since we've had a newcomer here in Hammerlocke." The dragon-type expert greeted with all the kindness Karthaniel needed. He didn't struggle to smile this time. "Welcome to Galar! The name's Raihan."

"Oh, Master Mustard already told me who you are." Karthaniel replied casually. "You're the dragon-type expert feared by most newcomers."

"Eh… well, I don't like to toot my own horn, but yeah. Glad the master acknowledged me. What's your name, friend?"

"Karthaniel Davis. I transferred here from Kalos with my family to show how unstoppable we are as a team, but unfortunately, my family's cruise ship capsized in the middle of a dreadful storm and I somehow survived alone with my magnezone."

"Oh, no!" The professor exclaimed in a sweet tender voice with the same strong British accent he has. "Your parents didn't make it?!"

"That's what I'm most concerned about. I want to say they're missing, but my inner demons keep telling me otherwise. It's hard to fight them."

"Inner demons, huh?" Raihan repeated as he turned towards the young professor. "Sonia, you don't think he has…?"

"No doubt about it. That symptom alone tells me that you have PTSD." Sonia agreed, then shuttered. "I hate saying those four letters together like that, but it's the truth. This is very serious. I'm glad you already have that magnezone with ya. That's a good shock therapy pokémon to have if you ever experience those hallucinations again."

"I appreciate that tip, but I don't use him for that." Karthaniel admitted. "He's basically my most treasured companion and battle partner. Getting five more to help him out would be great, but since I'm very unfamiliar with this region…"

"Say no more, Karthaniel!" Raihan kindly interrupted, not making the young mentally disabled trainer smile with respect. "Ya came to the right place for your first outing. Looks like steel is your type."

"Yes. Do you have that duraludon I've heard so much about? I'd love to have one."

"Consider it done. Follow me." At that last word, the two gentlemen and magnezone went towards the arena, leaving Sonia alone to contemplate the perfect therapy for the physically and mentally injured Karthaniel.

Meanwhile, at the start of a bridge towards Hammerlocke…

The permanently pokémorphed hatterene had just stopped at that very beginning point of the bridge after she finally got out of the woods. She had to stand there and take a moment to make sure that all those humans she saw going about their day in town weren't going to get her into trouble. So far, her psychic senses told her that it was the truth. She never said a word nor made a sound as she continued her casually stroll into the city as her glowing black eyes were showing only one emotion, despite the peaceful atmosphere of it all:

Extreme trepidation

Back inside the resting area of the Hammerlocke Stadium…

"There ya go." Raihan concluded as he took a good look at his handiwork surrounding Karthaniel. "Now, that's a team fit for a future champion: your magnezone plus a duraludon, dragapult, corviknight, and a rillaboom as your starter. Glad you decided to give me a chance to give you four other types besides steel. Ya gotta be wide open for more types, ya know."

"I realize that now." Karthaniel admitted with a bow, making his long platinum blonde hair look majestic. "Thank you so much, but why only give me four?"

"I've been told from another fellow leader of mine named Melony that, if a leader is gonna give an aspiring trainer new pokémon to experience, I can only give you four if you already have one or five if you don't. Can't give ya full team of six regardless. Hope ya don't mind."

"As long I have a team somehow, no. I guess I have to find my sixth and final teammate on my own."

"You can do that in your mental state, can ya? Battling a pokémon in order to catch one can be frustrating, if they get stubborn at the first pokéball toss."

"I'll be fine. I've already got a bag full of master balls."

"Whoa! How many?!" This made the dragon leader jump back with shock. Karthaniel made a single nod of humor.

"That's for me to know and for you to find out."

"Damn! Talk about be very well prepared. I'm guessing you're a genius, despite your PTSD."

"IQ score of 150, yes."

"Sheesh! What ARE you?!"

"I'm 100 percent human, Raihan. I promise you." At that last word, he summoned all of his pokémon back into their ultra balls and strapped them onto his pokéball belt. "Now that I have a pretty good team to eventually go up against Leon, I'll be as unstoppable as my parents and I promised with or without them." The young trainer then left for his new home that was located just above the station. Raihan watched him leave with a flummoxed look as he scratched his head with just as much confusion as he concluded his verbal thoughts:

"What the hell is up with this guy? He's got a mental disease that could kill him in his sleep, but he's got the mind of a completely sane genius that talks smart to everyone. I have a bad feeling about that kind of combination. I better tell the other leaders about him and keep a sharp lookout for any unusual behavior from him." He didn't waste any time after that by going towards his vault to make those important calls.

Hours later, at approximately 7:30 PM in that new home…

Karthaniel had just finished eating another new curry dish that was made with ramen noodles this time and the good news is that he enjoyed it, but the bad news is that, by the time he finished cleaning up his mess in the kitchen, his occasional hallucinations started with seeing a horrifying black and red oni-like demon appear to be luring him somewhere, even with his growling bloodcurdling voice calling out to him. The young trainer was in a trance as he heard it:

Karthaniel! It's time, Karthaniel. Time to end this suffering and see your parents at last.

"I… do want to see them again." He said at first, but then frantically shook his head to try to whisk the imagination away, but it was no use. He still spoke to it, however. "…wait! No! They're not dead! They can't be!"

Oh, but they are… and you know you believe it to be true, young Davis. Come with me and we'll see them together.

"No-no-NO! You can't make me! I REFUSE TO LET YOU KILL ME!"

You can't escape it. Don't even try to fight it. At that last word, glowing red eyes flashed before Karthaniel's very own anomalous ones and his black pupils inflated to the point where the one brown iris and one blue iris were nearly gone as he started walking like a mindless zombie towards a flight of stairs that lead to the roof.

Another ten slow minutes later…

That's it, Karthaniel. Be a good boy and face your permanent fate.

The demon continued to taunt and hypnotize the very fragile Karthaniel with all of his might and control over his own actions were completely cut off. Not even his team of pokémon could knock him out of it. They tried by the time the young trainer was halfway up the stairs. They realized there was nothing they could do, but watch in horror as their new owner was soon about to die at the hands of his own opposing mind.

By the time he did finally reach the rooftop, many human bystanders saw this and panicked at how mindless he appeared. Even Raihan was among the crowd and was wide eyed with extreme terror as he tried to call out to him as he stood at the very front of the crowd:

"KARTHANIEL! KARTHANIEL! SNAP OUT OF IT! IT'S NOT REAL! DON'T DO THIS!"

It was all to no avail. The young trainer was completely blocked off from reality and he was just fifteen steady steps away from the roof's edge. The fall was due to be a fifty foot one and it was a guarantee that he wouldn't survive the landing.

In the distance from the crowd, the pokémorphed hatterene saw this with an expectant glare in her black eyes before they turned blue and she telekinetically flew up towards that same gathering, pushed through them without a care, which stunned them all, and as soon as Karthaniel took that final step of the roof that made him fall fast towards the brick road, the hatterene used her Psychic to keep him from making the fatal landing at just a shocking single millimeter away from even his nose touching the ground. Seeing this made everyone gasp with astonishment as she walked towards the floating muscular body of Karthaniel, used her power to lift him up and into her slender arms in order to carry him, and she took a good long look at the demon that controlled him.

With her eyes still glowing blue and a determined look of bravery on her noseless face, the two stared down at each other for approximately thirty seconds before the three-fingered claw upon her signature hat took another thirty seconds to summon up her Dazzling Gleam and the bright pink fairy sparks immediately burned and frightened the monster away. Of course, the humans didn't see that demon since it was invisible towards them, but just seeing that bright pink flash was the universal indication that whatever was making Karthaniel do what he did was defeated for now and they cheered by means of a light applause, even though they had no idea who stopped it all.

Raihan was the only one who didn't join in the applause as he slowly approached the beautiful hatterene heroine as she was still carrying the now sleeping Karthaniel within her arms with utmost care. He didn't appear heavy to her at all.

"Are you a hatterene?" He dared to ask her, which silenced the applause and made that crowd pay very close attention. She nodded twice in response as the blue glow disappeared and her eyes were black with the white pupils again. "You look… very human for a pokémon. What happened to you and why did you save Karthaniel?"

What happened to me doesn't concern you, but I only saved this young man because his life is just too precious to waste towards a demonic entity. A sultry female voice of an angel replied in echoing telepathy, stunning the dragon leader once more. You humans are very easy to manipulate and only I can save him. No mere amount of verbal advice from even the wisest sage will never be suffice. Confess that truth to these humans. You'll thank me later. Have a good night. After that was said from the mind of the Silent Pokémon, she headed inside Karthaniel's house to put him to bed for the night, which was the crowd's cue to do the same. Raihan eventually went back to his living quarters within the vault after standing there for a full minute after the crowd dispersed and after that hatterene closed the front door, locking it on the way. He just couldn't believe what he's already witnessed from a new trainer and it was a first for him.

It will surely be a first for the other leaders of Galar as well.

Inside Karthaniel's bedroom…

Hatterene had just placed the snoozing muscular man down onto his king sized memory foam bed, tucked him underneath violet colored comforter and sheets with the assistance of the hat claw, and turned out the lamp upon his nightstand. It wasn't completely dark because of the lavender scented candles burning upon a dresser nearby and she was able to just stand there and admire him for a moment. Of course, she was relieved to see that all of those humans weren't going to report her back to that mysterious facility she had escaped from, but her curiosity about Karthaniel was much more important. Using the psychic half of her powers, she was able to truly splice through his brain and see that his PTSD wasn't exactly that specific disorder at all. It was much more severe and she saw the primary cause of it as the literal back and forth belief and disbelief argument about whether or not his parents survived the cruise ship accident.

With that in mind, she gently placed a slender hand upon his shoulder without waking him and she spiritually made herself his official sixth and final member of his team in order to not only stay with him, but to keep herself safe from her captors. In fact, she had this to semi-whisper to him verbally in that same angelic voice, but without the echo:

"If there's one human I believe in, it's you, Karthaniel Harrison Davis."

She said this…

…with a compassionate smile.

To be continued…