Epseon glared at the rocks as they twirled around her head. For the past eight weeks, she had been trying to expand her mental faculties. In all that time, she had only managed to make brief connections with Bayleef, and even that hadn't been detected by the Leaf Pokémon. Whilst Espeon hadn't assumed that connecting with Ash would be easy, to have not made any breakthroughs at all in nearly two months was disheartening. She couldn't even reassure him that she was trying. And he needed it. The improvement in his mood of human contact after Ophelia had visited them had been marked. It had taken nearly a week to fade, but it made Espeon realize what she had never known before. Ash needed to talk to somebody. Anybody. He couldn't survive entirely alone.
Ever since she had vowed to find a way to make the connection, she had increased her training to an alarming degree. Whenever she was awake, her psychic powers were working at a constant level. From the moment she woke up, when she brought food for the team together, to the moment she curled up and went to sleep, her powers worked. She had taken to pushing plants out of the way when the team did their usual physical training. All the while, part of her mind focused on her trainer. She could feel her power growing rapidly, but the strain on her was also building. She needed a breakthrough sooner than later.
Said trainer had recognized the change in his Pokémon very quickly, the irony of which was not lost on Espeon. Her attempt to help him had initially resulted in him worrying more. She would sit with him when he was cooking, and for the first two days, he had questioned why. Espeon had tried to communicate by shaking her head that nothing was wrong when asked and nuzzled against his leg to try to convey that she was simply attempting to be closer to her. She could tell that she hadn't fully reassured Ash. However, he quickly got used to simply asking for ingredients and having them float towards him, powered by Espeon's Psychic. And Espeon enjoyed the time with her trainer, even if it had been dispiritingly short on success.
"Espeon," her head snapped around as she heard Ash's call. "Put those rocks down. It's time for you to have a real challenge. You've been training so hard, let's see what you're like defending the team."
Espeon let the rocks fall and turned, padding over towards Ash, her mind instinctively reaching for his but as ever with no success. He was stood between Snorlax and Sceptile, facing Charizard.
"'speon?" she queried. Sceptile glanced at her with a weary eye. He knew what was coming, and she could tell from his expression he wasn't sure he agreed with it.
"It's simple", Ash said enthusiastically. "We obviously need to get stronger individually, but we also need to get stronger as a team. When we go back, we have to be ready for anything."
Going back. The thing that had once been impossible was now coming up with increased frequency. Espeon knew why; Ophelia had shown him what he missed. He'd forgotten what it was like to have human contact and now he'd been reminded he needed it. If it wasn't for the connotations of why Ash needed to go back, Espeon would have valued the renewed focus it brought. However, it wasn't just the mental strain showing on Ash, suddenly physical signs of their isolation began to show. Although one of his eyes had no color whatsoever, and was a dark pit showing the darkness that still lived inside Ash, the other had returned to normal. Except it was slowly turning the way of his dark eye. They were slowly losing Ash to his desperation.
"We've learned a lot here, and testing ourselves against Pidgeot has gone a long way." Ash continued. "But when we are ever to move on, we need to be able to handle others. That means we may need to fight together. I get the feeling the rules aren't the same out here."
Espeon nodded her understanding. Ash was not wrong about the rules being different. Less than a week ago they had come across a turf war. Pidgeot hadn't appeared himself, but flocks of flying Pokémon had battled against a group of bug and ground Pokémon. The fighting had been brutal, and unlike normal battles, Pokémon weren't allowed to limp away. The birds had eventually taken the day, but even where they had knocked out their opponents, they had continued to attack. Eventually, the more resilient ground Pokémon had managed to drag the knocked-out Pokémon away. It had felt right to Espeon, the way battles were supposed to be, but Ash had been horrified. It was a far cry from the relatively controlled battles he had always fought.
"I've been thinking about that fight last week", Ash continued, confirming Espeon's belief. "And we've always assumed that fights are to a point. I think we're wrong. And we have to be ready for more fights like that one."
Espeon nodded again, a move matched by Sceptile, Snorlax, and Charizard.
"Therefore, we need to attack more powerfully, move faster, and fight as a team," Ash said. "We're here, so let's play by new rules."
"So, Charizard is going to attack Sceptile and Snorlax. Espeon, you're going to cover them, so they can attack back. Once Charizard gets tired, we'll swap." Charizard let out a snort of derision at the suggestion he couldn't take whatever was dished out at him.
"Ready?" Ash asked. They nodded, and Espeon pushed her mind out, her Psychic building in the air, ready to adapt to whatever it came into contact with. "Begin."
Charizard instantly leaped into the air, letting Sceptile's rapid Bullet Seed pass underneath him. He launched a Flamethrower straight down at the Forest Pokémon. Espeon caught it with her Psychic and held it, letting it burn out. Charizard pivoted on a wing, letting attacks from Sceptile and Snorlax pass underneath him, and fired another Flamethrower. Espeon caught this one as well but felt the struggle of holding two powerful attacks. It rapidly grew as Charizard fired another series of Flamethrowers, still dodging around Sceptile and Snorlax as much as possible. A small part of Espeon's mind recognized how well Charizard was fighting; although he had the advantage of being airborne, he was battling two Pokémon who didn't have to move, and he was holding his own.
"Espeon, let them go. Redirect, don't hold."
Espeon heard Ash's command, but she ignored it. As Charizard fired his seventh Flamethrower down, she began to truly push herself to the limit. The various attacks were slowly combined into a growing ball of flame that she held over the heads of the battling Pokémon. Every attack that Charizard fired got added to the ball and continued to grow.
There was a growl of pain and frustration as Charizard was clipped by a powerful Ice Beam from Snorlax, before instantly being caught in the wing by a Bullet Seed from Sceptile, taking advantage of the momentary slowing of their opponent. The sudden breaks in attack gave Espeon her own opportunity and she pushed her Psychic out again, focusing it into an attack. Charizard felt himself start to slow as Espeon's attack took hold, and he roared in shock more than pain. Espeon's tail flicked with concentration as she turned the collected fire into a ferocious fireball that raced up at Charizard. As the combination of Charizard's own attacks connected with the Flame Pokémon, they heard Ash shout.
"Stop!"
Charizard crashed down to the ground, before clambering to his feet. He was eyeing Espeon with a new respect. None of the other Pokémon had tested themselves against Espeon properly in more than a month. Her training had done more for her than she had expected.
"Charizard, are you okay?" Ash called. Charizard nodded, his eyes never leaving Espeon. Ash turned back to her, an expression of awe on his face.
"Espeon, where did that come from?" he asked, almost disbelieving.
Espeon shrugged, the wriggle passing down her whole body.
"I know you've been training hard, but that was incredible." Ash turned back to Charizard. "You might not be the strongest anymore Charizard."
Charizard's roar let them all know what he thought of that before he looked down at Espeon again. She met his eyes with an open challenge; to be the most powerful Pokémon in this team would be an achievement. She had never even considered it before, but now the idea was floated, she wanted it. Even if she wasn't so desperate to connect with Ash, she still had a reason to keep her training going.
"Right, we'll go again. But we're changing it up. Snorlax, you're with Charizard. Espeon, let's see if you can even the odds. And if you want to join the attacks you can, provided Sceptile doesn't get touched. If it becomes too much, redirect attacks into the sky, okay?"
Espeon nodded as Snorlax stomped away across the clearing. He stood next to Charizard and looked back across at Espeon and Sceptile. There was a quick exchange between Snorlax and Charizard before Ash's voice rang out again.
"Begin."
Attacks instantly rang out, both aimed straight at Espeon. Her eyes flashed blue as she redirected Snorlax's Ice Beam into Charizard's Flamethrower. There was an explosion as the attacks collided, smoke spreading through the clearing. Sceptile took the opportunity to dart forward, blades already glowing.
"Can you sense them through the smoke?" Ash asked quietly as he knelt next to Espeon. She nodded, concentrating. Snorlax was thrashing around as Sceptile struck, a Leaf Blade hammering into the Sleeping Pokémon's side. "Good," Ash murmured. "Charizard is going to clear the smoke with his wings, but if you can work through it, do so. Can you direct Sceptile?"
The suggestion that Espeon should be able to connect with her teammates, broke her concentration at the wrong moment. Charizard's wings flapped powerfully, clearing the smoke, and leaving Sceptile exposed at the very moment Espeon glanced at her trainer. Sceptile dived backward to avoid Snorlax's Ice Punch, only to fall straight into a ferocious Flamethrower from Charizard that tossed him across the clearing. As Sceptile hit the ground, another Ice Beam shot out, straight at him.
"Espeon," Ash said warningly.
Her concentration restored after her lapse, Espeon's Psychic caught the Ice Beam and sent it straight at Charizard. The Flame Pokémon instinctively fired a Flamethrower at it but had left it too late. The two attacks collided in front of him, in another explosion that sent Charizard spinning away. Snorlax reared up and fired a Hyper Beam directly at Espeon in an attempt to break through. She caught it, her tail flicking once again as she concentrated. Snorlax continued to pour power into the attack as Sceptile clambered to his feet. Ash watched in pride as the Forest Pokémon instantly assessed the battle and began charging a Solar Beam, taking advantage of the momentary respite to get a stronger attack out. Alongside him, Espeon was losing the battle to catch the Hyper Beam, but Snorlax was extending himself dangerously with the power he was throwing into it.
"Above you," Ash warned but it wasn't needed. Charizard had recovered and was swooping in, an attack building in his throat. A larger attack than normal, if the flame on Charizard's tail was anything to go by. Espeon sensed rather than saw the Blast Burn erupt from Charizard, and gave up trying to catch Snorlax's Hyper Beam, instead redirecting it straight up into Charizard's attack. The explosion was much bigger this time, to be made even worse as Sceptile's Solar Beam poured straight through, hammering into Snorlax and sending the Sleeping Pokémon crashing down.
Ash took a few fast steps back, getting out of the way of any attacks as Charizard cleared the smoke with a further flap of his wings, landing next to Snorlax who was clambering back to his feet. The four Pokémon were glaring at each other with an intensity he hadn't seen for a while. As Espeon caught Snorlax's Ice Beam and Charizard's Flamethrower and fired them back at the two Pokémon, he felt a feeling of pride. His Pokémon were strong. This was evidence for it. He had made the right choice by coming out into the wilderness. It had cost him more than he had ever planned, but his plan had still been the right one.
He felt something nudge at his shoulder and turned to see Bayleef standing there next to Lairon, shock written onto both of their faces at the scene they were witnessing. Bayleef looked at him questioningly.
"We're trying something," Ash said as Charizard took to the skies again, dodging a redirected Ice Beam and several rocks that Espeon had started to fling at him. Bayleef met his gaze with an expression that asked what they could possibly be trying that was setting off so many explosions, something that was emphasized as they felt the heat of another huge fire attack shoot into the sky.
"They are working as a team," Ash said. "Double battles are a thing sure, but out here it's bigger. We need to learn to fight as a full team. And that means using everybody's abilities. Espeon's Psychic is a weapon we've not used properly before."
Bayleef nodded slowly before her head snapped around at a deafening, echoing thud. Ash blinked in surprise; there appeared to be two trees uprooted. As he watched, Snorlax ripped a third out of the ground, throwing it at Sceptile whilst Charizard dive-bombed straight at Espeon, as yet more flames poured down. The Sun Pokémon caught the tree and threw it up at Charizard whilst simultaneously redirecting the flames out of the way and toward Snorlax. Sceptile darted forwards, sliding underneath the redirected Flamethrower, his Leaf Blade hammering into Snorlax's leg once again. Charizard slowed slightly as he caught the tree and threw it back again, only for it to start spinning in the air back towards him. Charizard used his tail to bat it away, causing another crash as it landed. Charizard then landed and threw his head back, preparing another massive Blast Burn attack.
Ash opened his mouth to speak, but he felt something pass through the air. A wave of power erupted from Espeon, ending Charizard's attack before it even started, and nearly knocking him over. The wave of power sent Snorlax rolling backward into a tree that shook as Snorlax collided with it, whilst Charizard's claws dug into the earth to hold him in place. Sceptile leaped into the air twisting, as the attack powered him forward to slam into Snorlax, causing a grunt of pain from the usually stoic Pokémon. Ash felt something press against his mind as the attack ended as if the attack itself had a presence, and he stumbled from its power.
"Enough," he shouted as Snorlax and Charizard opened their mouths to attack again. His Pokémon ceased, before looking around them. The clearing was devasted, with three trees uprooted, marks of explosions on the ground, and claw marks dug out against the ground. Standing next to Ash, Bayleef shook her head in disbelief, her gaze focused intently on Espeon, unblinking. The team had come a long way.
"Enough," Ash said again as he fully took in the scene before the sheer power of his Pokémon started to dawn on him. "I'm… wow. Just wow." Ash continued, his excitement rising. "That was incredible!"
The four Pokémon came together, Sceptile offering a paw to Snorlax who took it without hesitation. Charizard touched his claw to it, whilst Espeon pushed against them with her mind. As the point of contact glowed blue, Ash turned to Espeon.
"What was that at the end?" he asked. "Even I felt that attack. Was that Psychic?"
Espeon nodded, feeling the fatigue begin to hit her. She wanted to reach out to try to connect with her trainer's mind but found that she suddenly didn't have the energy.
"It was insane," Ash gushed. "It stopped Charizard's attack dead."
Charizard growled for a moment and Ash chuckled.
"Sure Charizard, I know it wasn't your first Blast Burn in the fight. I think it was your third." Charizard nodded. "But even if Espeon couldn't do that to your earlier attacks, and she couldn't do that to other very strong attacks, there's a lot of potential there."
Charizard seemed to consider it for a long moment, before nodding.
"Just think, we could beat Pidgeot with that," Ash said. "Even if it only disrupts him for a moment, that would be all we'd need for you to catch him. Even Pidgeot can't take a direct hit from our most powerful attacks. Espeon doesn't have to hold him for long, or even at all. Just slow him enough for us to hit him. And if we could beat Pidgeot, we could beat others. Even if it takes all of us, we can then hold our own."
The team nodded, beginning to surround their trainer, caught up in his enthusiasm. It died out a moment later as Ash surveyed the battlefield once again, the wreckage sobering their energy.
"That said, this might not be the best place to train like this," he admitted. "If we want to develop this, we may need to move soon."
Silence fell. The little hut was their home. None of them wanted to leave it.
"Not forever," Ash said. "Just long enough to train everything else. I'll think about it, but enough for now. We're done for the day, let's head home."
That evening Espeon was sat with her eyes closed, her mind reaching out. She felt the exhaustion building on her, but she refused to let herself stop. Today had given her the evidence that she was on the right path. Her power was levels far above what she had ever expected. She just needed to keep it up. It was her mind reaching out that helped her to feel rather than hear padding footsteps approach her. She didn't bother to open her eyes as Bayleef came to a stop next to her.
"What did you do?" Bayleef asked without preamble.
"What do you mean?" Espeon responded.
"Earlier. When you unleashed that last attack. I felt something."
"You felt my attack."
"No, it was more than that. I felt you. It was like you were pushing on me from the outside and from the inside."
Espeon opened her eyes as her head snapped around to look at Bayleef. "What do you mean? I wasn't attacking you."
"I know you weren't," Bayleef said, her voice confused. "I could sense that. You were deliberately not attacking me. Like you were working to exclude me from your attack. But I could feel that was your intent."
"How?" Espeon asked sharply.
"I don't know. I thought you would."
"I don't… unless…"
"Unless what?" Bayleef jumped straight on Espeon's hesitation.
"Unless… Some time ago, I think I connected to you."
"What do you mean connected?"
"I felt what you were feeling. With my mind."
Bayleef let the statement hang in the air between them for a long moment. "You saw inside my head?"
"I don't think it was that direct. It was more that I felt your strongest emotion."
"And you think you connected again?"
This time it was Espeon's turn to let the silence build before Bayleef spoke again.
"Espeon? Is that what you're thinking? What's wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong," Espeon said quietly. "But I think I need to tell you something. I've been trying to make that connection again ever since I did it the first time. I've briefly sensed your emotions in that time, but never anything more than that."
"Why?" Bayleef asked reasonably.
"Ash," Espeon said simply. "If I can connect to you, I can connect to him. I can give him what he needs. He can speak to me. And if he can speak to me, he can speak to us. He will no longer be all alone."
"I see," was all Bayleef said.
The silence grew again before Espeon finally broke the awkwardness.
"Isn't this what you'd want? Ash to have somebody to speak to?"
"I love Ash," Bayleef said, a surprising force in her voice. "I always have. It's why I stayed. I will never abandon him. I am not Pikachu. I am not a Pokémon that will lead him on and abandon him. If I was the first in his team, his partner, I would never betray him. I would give him what he deserved."
"But?"
"But if you succeed, I will never have the chance. You will be the one who replaces Pikachu. You'll be the one closest to him."
"Oh." There was nothing else for Espeon to say. Everything that Bayleef said made perfect sense. But she couldn't see an alternative.
"But if you succeed, Ash will be happier than I could ever make him. You'd deserve it. So, I hope you succeed Espeon. Ash needs you to." there was a long pause. "But although I hate myself for it, a little part of me hopes you don't."
Espeon didn't know what to say as Bayleef tuned and moved away, feet heavy on the ground, head bowed. Espeon heard a final statement.
"You won't succeed out here. I know he felt you today as well. You're close. Go to him."
Espeon used her Psychic to open the door to the hut, where Ash was lying in his sleeping bag. He was still awake, sitting up in reaction to the door opening.
"Espeon?" he asked in surprise.
Espeon nudged the door shut again with her Psychic and padded in. She sat in front of Ash, Bayleef's words running through her head. The Leaf Pokémon had made it sound so simple when they were outside. Now she was in front of Ash, she didn't know what to do.
"Is everything okay?" Ash asked.
Espeon tilted her head slightly, eyes focused on her trainer. She probed with her mind but couldn't sense anything. She let out a sigh of frustration forgetting for a moment that Ash was sitting in front of her.
"Espeon, what's wrong?" Ash said quietly, hand reaching out to stroke her fur. She purred and nuzzled into his hand.
"I know I won't understand you," Ash said, lying back down as his hand continued to pet Espeon, who lay down on her paws beside him. "And don't think I'm not still worried about you. You've been training so hard, for so long, I'm worried."
"'peon, Espeon", Espeon said, trying to convey that her trainer didn't have to worry about her. If anything, it was meant to be the other way around.
"And I know that what I said earlier will make you nervous," Ash continued. "About us leaving. We are safe here, Pidgeot protects us. But today you showed you could do it instead. However, asking you to take that role is a huge ask. If you don't think you're ready, we won't leave. We can't stay here forever, but we won't leave until we're ready. And if you're going to be defending us, that means we don't leave until you're ready. You have as long as you need, I promise."
Espeon nodded, her tail flicking as she lost herself in the pleasure of Ash's petting, her Psychic still reaching out to try and make contact.
"And that doesn't mean I expect you to up your training even more," Ash said. "I know you're committed but please don't overdo it. I don't want to lose anybody else. We're family now Espeon. And I can't… I can't lose anymore."
Espeon felt her heart go out to her trainer as his voice cracked.
"And yes, I miss having somebody who can talk back. When Lia was here, it was short, but it was… nice. But that doesn't mean I can't wait. You are all more important than that. And if that means we spend years out here, then that's what we do."
Espeon's eyes started to water. She tried to blink back the tears as she raised her head to look into Ash's eyes. She made a vow to herself, adding to the vows she'd made before. No matter what, she'd never be separated from this human. Whatever happened, she'd be at his side, no matter what it cost her. Even as a young Pokémon, she wasn't sure she'd known this much kindness. The completely unrestricted love that Ash had for her, for all of them. For his family.
"Don't cry Espeon," Ash said sadly. "I'm just not worth it."
It was the final words that did it. As she looked into his eyes, and realized that his light eye was almost the same as his dark one. Ash was suffering, but he still put them first. Espeon felt a swell of warmth, of love for her trainer, to try to push back the darkness. And as her eyes flashed blue, she finally felt something. Closing her eyes in concentration she pushed harder than she had ever pushed before, throwing everything she had, everything she was against the wall her power was hitting. And finally, it gave way, shattering as a connection was made. She felt a swell of emotions wash over her. They weren't hers.
She opened her eyes to see Ash staring at her, eyes wide in shock.
"Espeon? What did you do?"
Bayleef looked up as the door to the hut swung open and Ash stumbled out. He had clearly been in bed, but he was wide awake, eyes wild. As she looked at him, she saw his light eye had returned to how it was when Espeon had first evolved. Espeon had done it.
"Guys, gather around," Ash said, his voice almost disbelieving. As the team gathered, Espeon padded out from behind him and sat next to him.
"We're leaving tomorrow," Ash said. "And we're going to find another place to train. Somewhere less built up, more open. And we're going to get even stronger. And if that means beating the equivalent of Pidgeot there, then that's what we'll do."
Charizard let out a questioning growl, and Ash looked up into the face of his powerhouse, a look of hope on his features.
"Because soon everything is going to change. If we don't have to go back, we can form a life for ourselves out here. And we can't spend the rest of our lives living here. We can travel, explore, have lives again. We can get our own area, a home that's just for us. So rest up. Tomorrow we leave. And tomorrow our future begins."
Ash disappeared into the hut again, leaving the team staring at Espeon, waiting for answers that she herself barely knew how to give.
"Okay," Espeon eventually said. "Get comfortable. This might take a while."
