Fifteen years old, Carrie felt strange. It was as though there was a fog that had come into her mind. Seeing her scarring, she couldn't fully remember how she had gotten them. Maybe a machine? She wasn't sure.
"Moonya," Carrie called out to her faithful partner. The Froslass appeared by her side. "We're battling a potential gym challenger today for Miss Candice. Think you can handle it?"
The ghost type eagerly nodded. They'd battled many wild Pokémon together. However, trainer battles were still new for her. The two trusted each other completely, and many thought she was a seasoned battler. They were in perfect sync: a true match.
"Carrie, I know this will be your first battle as a gym student of mine. Do you think you can handle it?" Candice, the gym leader of Snowpoint City, asked the teenager. Carrie looked down at her mentor: "Absolutely."
Candice smiled. "Good! I'll make sure it's a one on one. But be careful!"
"I will! Moonya and I can handle anything!" Carrie said with a grin as the Froslass gave a chirp in agreement.
Soon the battle field of Snowpoint Gym was illuminated. Carrie stood at one end, her short white hair curtaining the left side of her face. She hated that scar, the one from the corner of her mouth that went close to her eye. A grim reminder from a day she had seemed to have forgotten. In her battle box, she tightly gripped Moonya's Pokéball. On the other side stood a short teenaged boy, slightly overweight but carried himself with arrogance. He ran a hand through his slicked back jetblack hair.
A referee stood in the referees box connected to the field but in the middle. Since this was a challenge just on a gym trainer and not a gym leader, the field was simply dirt.
"This is a one on one battle between Carrie Price, gym trainer of Snowpoint City Gym and the challenger Killian Madison. Are both trainers ready?"
"As always!" Killian said, a grin on his face. Carrie simply nodded.
"Trainers call forth your Pokémon!"
"Moonya, let's go!" Carrie said as she released her faithful ice type. Moonya appeared on the field, calmly opening her eyes.
"Let's roll Royce," Killian stated firmly. From the Pokéball emerged a Swellow.
Carrie froze. The wings, the talons, her heart raced. She grabbed at her chest where her heart pounded. Moonya turned to her trainer and quickly went to her aid.
"What's the matter? Can't fight?" Killian goaded. A smirk on his face made Carrie fume.
She stood, albeit shaky still with a hand on her chest. "I'm gonna kick your ass." Moonya floated defensively in front of her trainer, ready to attack.
Candice watched from a trainers box. She was amused at the banter but worried. Trainers never used flying types around these parts. The ship usually brought guests in. Since it's snowy and ice types were abundant everywhere, the birds typically stayed away.
Yet, Carrie seemed…shaken. Afraid. Fearful. Candice watched her trainer.
"Battle begin!"
"Moonya, set up the hail," Carrie said icily. Moonya's eyes glowed white as the temperature dropped significantly. Hailstones dropped onto the field and arena. Bystanders and battle participants, including the referee, were shelved by the gym's human protection shielding.
Royce, however, was feeling the brunt of the hail storm.
"You picked the wrong day to mess with me, boy," Carrie said. Her heart beat steadied but she felt on edge. Not like in most battles, but as if fear had locked her limbs.
"Whatever, my Royce is the best there is! Use steel wing!"
Royce cawed it's name out and charged at Moonya, wings glowing silver. Carrie stood like a deer in headlights. As if Royce was going to hit her. Shaking her head she did her best to regain composure.
"Double team!" She ordered.
Moonya nodded and made scores of copies of herself. Royce stopped and looked around trying to find the real one.
"Royce use boomburst to blow away the copies!"
"Not a chance, hit him with an ice beam!" Carrie called over the raging hailstorm. Moonya launched a frigid beam of ice at the Swellow from the starboard side, clipping his wing.
"Royce!" Killian called out in worry. Carrie softened her gaze a bit. But she kept the intensity.
"Collect yourself! Use blizzard!" Moonya's most powerful attack, the Froslass summoned hail and snow around her and launched them at Royce who was shaking his head trying to get up.
"Protect!" A blue barrier sprung around Royce, which the blizzard covered quickly in a thick layer of ice.
Candice took a sharp breath. Carrie was already going for the win? Surprising, sure, but she could tell this challenger wasn't taking things too seriously.
"Royce, stay with me," Killian called out. "We got this! Go for a hurricane!"
Royce nodded and whipped up a vicious wind storm that mixed with the hail. Wings glowing and blades of wind energy, Moonya tried her best to evade. Despite having the snow cloak ability, Moonya was still hit by the attack.
"Use aerial ace!" Royce kept up the pressure and slammed into Moonya.
"Quickly use ice punch! Follow it with a will-o-wisp!"
Moonya quickly regained composure and struck Royce with an ice punch attack which knocked Royce off course. She quickly fired a large orb of blue fire which struck the flying type.
"That was a mistake," Candice said watching.
"You shouldn't have done that," Killian said in a split of a taunt and warning.
Royce had a red aura appear around it as it's attack got raised by being burned. "We may be on a timer now, but Royce will hit harder than ever! He's all fired up now thanks to his guts ability!" Killian said happily.
Carrie saw the bird and fear shook her. "What the fuck?" She said this more to herself than anyone else.
"Royce, use brave bird!" Killian called out in the storm. Despite the hail and burn, Royce chirped and surrounded himself in a blue aura. He ascended in the building then descended, sharply uplifting and the aura turning to red.
"Use blizzard again!" Moonya launched a maelstrom of ice and snow at Royce to slow him down. He was taking massive damage, but he stayed on target. Carrie started to sweat. "Let's hope this works," she thought. They'd been working on a new trick and as good a time as any to try it now.
Royce was closing in, and Moonya kept the blizzard going. Right as he was about to make contact, it was as if Moonya slipped into the shadows and he completely missed her. He crashed into the wall, taking massive recoil damage.
"Finish him with ice beam!" Still in the wall, Moonya fired another beam of ice. Royce cried in agony as she froze him. Royce collapsed out, swirls for eyes and unconscious.
"Swellow is unable to battle, Froslass wins! Which means the winner of the battle is Carrie Price!"
She breathed a sigh of relief once Royce was recalled. Killian muttered words of encouragement and thanks. Carrie hugged her faithful companion who happily hugged her back.
"Thank you Moonya, we rocked!" She said happily.
"Hey, you were good out there." Killian sounded serious and sincere.
"Thank you. You were giving us a run for our money. You care for your Pokémon," she said as Moonya floated behind her.
"Yeah, they're my closest friends. Royce is actually the first Pokémon I ever caught in the wild. He's my best friend," Killian stated, smiling at the Pokéball in his hand.
Carrie smiled as she turned to face Moonya. "I understand that completely. Moonya has been my companion through thick and thin."
"I'll be back soon. I hope we meet again and battle again someday," Killian said with a smile.
They shook hands and parted ways. Killian left the facility as Carrie made her way to the locker room. Inside, she found Candice waiting for her.
"Come to my office, we need to talk. No, you did nothing wrong," Candice said. Carrie shrugged and followed, having returned Moonya to her Pokéball.
Closing the door, Carrie then sat down in one of three seats in front of Candice's desk. Usually a laid back environment, Candice's office was very formal. Carrie felt a little nervous as Candice sat in her chair.
"What happened?"
Carrie blinked. "What?"
Candice sighed. "You panicked when that Swellow came out. I saw it. You were afraid, anxious."
Carrie's scars burned at the question. She had to tell her hand not to move her bangs to keep her face hidden.
"I…I don't know. I was afraid, deathly afraid, but I don't know why."
Candice paused.
"How much have you explored outside of Snowpoint City?"
Carrie felt confused. "Excuse me?"
"Have you seen much outside of the city? Ever gotten to travel much?"
"Not really, no. I grew up in Eterna City but I've been here since I was ten."
Candice blinked and nodded. "Interesting. That's all for now, I'll keep in contact."
"Yes ma'am," Carrie said. She stood up, bowed, and left the office.
That night, she laid in bed staring at the ceiling. She wanted sleep to take her, but her mind was uncontrollable. Thoughts of her battle and what she talked about with Candice rang in her head.
Waking up the next morning, she felt groggier than ever. She slowly made her way downstairs, having barely gotten herself dressed. She only did one button on her overalls and haphazardly had a white beanie on to cover her hair.
"Goodmorning!" Her aunt Teresa said cheerily. Her uncle Adam was gone, presumably at work.
"Hey aunt T," Carrie mumbled. She sat down at the table and laid her head down. Teresa walked over and gently picked her head up. "You feeling okay? You don't look well." Concern dripped with every word.
"I didn't sleep well, that's all."
Teresa ran a hand through her pixie cut black hair. "Why don't you stay here for the day. Have you been keeping up with your appointments with Dr. Church?"
Teresa and Adam noticed their niece had slowly forgotten what happened. Alec and Lea called them non-stop for updates. Carrie hadn't noticed, but her life had been moving quickly in the past few years. Working at the gym had taken up the bulk of her free time and seemed to give her something to focus on.
But that meant her focus went from healing to working.
She hadn't been keeping with her appointments as much as she should. Carrie felt like he was always trying to get at something, insinuate an answer, talk about something as if she were there. Why didn't he just say it directly?
"Why don't you meet with him today?" Teresa floated out as she set down a glass of water.
Carrie mulled the decision as she hydrated. Maybe it'd be good to talk to him about what happened yesterday at the gym. She simply nodded.
Teresa made sure to let Candice know that Carrie wouldn't be at the gym. Carrie made her way back to her room and fell asleep. Teresa worried for her niece. It seemed like after all the effort she made to get better, it was gone as soon as she went through puberty. Hormones brought on certainly made things worse.
Carrie woke up in the afternoon, only asleep for a few hours. She felt miles better than she did in the morning. Yawning, her gaze suddenly fixed on the dusted Pokéball on her desk. It was given to her by her mom. The day she had to leave Eterna City. She rubbed her eyes, maybe trying to rub away the memory of the Type:Null inside the sphere.
She sat herself in a chair in front of a computer monitor. Carrie's desk was a foot away from her bed so moving wasn't the issue. She slid her beanie back on and scheduled an appointment with Dr. Church.
A few days rolled by, Carrie seemingly moved on from what happened in her battle with Killian. Unfortunately getting an appointment so soon meant it was at eight in the morning. Turning on her monitor, she suppressed a yawn as Dr. Church's face appeared on screen.
"Good to see you Carrie! It's been a while", he spoke in a friendly tone.
"Morning Dr. Church." That was all she could mutter.
"How are you doing? How's Moonya?"
"She's good!" She perked up. Moonya always made her feel better. "We actually battled a gym trainer the other day, and we totally kicked ass!"
Dr. Church laughed. "Good to hear! Who did you battle?"
"Some dude named Killian. Who names a baby that? He had a Swellow with him, but we totally won! Took it down and really impressed Miss Candice!"
Dr. Church almost seemed to freeze. His face grew tense but a smile nonetheless appeared.
"How did you react?
"Happy! It's always good to win."
"Carrie, I mean when you saw the Swellow."
Carrie paused. It took her a moment to collect her thoughts. Memories and emotions flooded back into her brain from her bought with Killian.
"Afraid. Anxious, like I was in danger. I knew he wouldn't attack me, but it felt like I was going to be hit."
Dr. Church simply nodded. "You don't see many flying types, do you?"
"No, not really. I've seen all sorts of Pokémon, but flying types just fill me with fear. Dread, even. Like something awful is going to happen."
Dr. Church just listened. He had seen her change. He thought she was getting better. Then all of a sudden she stopped appearing as much, and when she did she was either tired or moody.
"How much have you thought about traveling?"
"Traveling? Like, to home to see mom and dad?" She sounded hopeful.
"Bigger. Across the region? Do you remember Chien-Pao?"
Carrie froze. "I could never forget. No one believes me, but I remember him. He saved me…from something. He's the reason I'm alive today, and I need to find him."
"Do you really want to find him?"
Carrie paused for a minute. "More than you know."
After talking more, Carrie said her farewells and bounded down the staircase. Teresa and Adam were in the living room on the sofa. She was reading a fantasy novel about humans but instead of Pokémon they had beings that didn't fight or have mystical powers, but instead jsut assisted humans and lived in harmony with them. Adam was lightly napping.
"Aunt T, Uncle A, can I talk to you two?"
Adam jolted awake. His glasses stumbled a bit. "Yes! Of course!"
Teresa simply smiled. "Of course, you can talk to us about anything."
Carrie sat down on a chair opposite of her aunt and uncle. Taking a deep breath, she mustered up all the courage she could.
"Would it be okay if I explored the region?"
Adam froze. Teresa panicked internally but kept a brave face.
"Why?" Adam asked to cut the silence.
"To find Chien-Pao. If I find him, I'll find the answers I need."
Adam simply looked at Teresa. She always made the right decision and he trusted her. Adam wanted her to because he wanted to see her fully heal. The mental scarring was just as present as the physical scars, but Carrie wasn't aware of that. This would help her find herself.
"As long as you let us help you prepare, you talk to Candice about it, you take that Pokéball in your room with you, and you have to call us once a week. Not texts but call!"
Carrie hugged her aunt and uncle. Tears pricked at her eyes. She slowly pulled away with a big smile on her face, her hair out of the way.
"Thank you, both of you. I love you both."
Teresa and Adam kept their tears in check to be strong for their niece. As her guardians they could allow her to do this. Alec and Lea had already given them permission to make decisions on their behalf. It was a tough moment.
Time marches forward, just like healing does.
Carrie showered and properly got dressed. She grabbed Moonya's Pokéball and the Pokéball on her desk. She felt horrible for neglecting Type:Null. Together they would overcome their past to a path of victory. She released the normal type. It stretched and looked around.
"I'm so sorry," Carrie said as she hugged the beast. Type:Null felt confused. Surely Carrie kept it away for a good reason.
"I'm sorry for neglecting you. I'm sorry for never using you. I'm sorry for moving forward without you," she blubbered out as she began to cry.
Type:Null felt tears in its eyes behind the mask. It nuzzled her to show it was all okay.
Everything was going to be okay.
"I'm going on a journey. To help me heal. Will you come with me?"
Type:Null didn't hesitate to affirm it wanted to go.
"We'll solve your story too. Together, I believe in us." She pet the normal type and it seemed to thoroughly enjoy it.
"Can I give you a nickname?"
Type:Null blinked. It was never given choices really before. It was made to follow orders. It couldn't remember who at first, but once Lea caught it he followed her orders to the letter. Her instructions were to follow Carrie's orders. Going on a journey was a necessity to protect her.
But a name? It wasn't sure.
"What about…Null? No, too oppressive." Type:Null simply tilted its head.
"Boreas?"
Type:Null thought about it. That name sounded…powerful, fast, cool. It liked it. Type:Null nodded its head to affirm it liked the name Boreas.
Carrie smiled. "Boreas it is! I'm going to return you to your Pokéball. I'm going to my job to talk with my boss. Then we can hit the road!" Boreas liked that and made a happy chirp.
Getting herself composed, she gave it one last pet and returned them to their Pokéball. Getting on a backpack, she took one last good look at herself in the mirror.
"This is it," she said. It felt rather bittersweet.
Gathering courage she walked downstairs. She told her guardians she'd be back and she made her way to the gym. Feeling herself waver as she walked in, she tried to regain herself.
Being outside of Candice's door was always stressful, especially for something like this. She knocked gingerly and a few seconds later the gym leader opened the door.
"Carrie! How are you?"
"I'm good, boss. Can I come in?"
Candice nodded. "Of course! I was just doing some paperwork. Boring league things. Please, have a seat!"
Carrie sat in the brown chair that faced diagonal from Candice. The leader sat down and leaned forward.
"What's on your mind?"
Carrie took a deep breath. "I want to go on a journey. Across the region. My therapist and my aunt and uncle both said I could and that it'd be good for me."
Candice smiled. "Absolutely! I think that would be great. Do you remember what we talked about a few days ago here?"
Carrie nodded.
"Find it. Find the answer. Find yourself. I'll always support you. If you ever need anything, even money, please just call me. I'll make your last paycheck a bit padded so you'll be comfortable starting your journey."
Carrie felt tears at the edges of her eyes. She got up and went around the desk. She hugged Candice tightly.
"Thank you for supporting me."
Candice returned the hug and took a step back. "Call me a friend. You have my number so you can always talk when you're in trouble or need a friend."
Carrie nodded as tears silently fell. She felt grateful for the chance she was getting. Not everyone got one, let alone with two Pokémon right at the start. She also felt grateful for her two Pokémon. Very few were lucky to start with such powerful and lovable Pokémon.
"I'll keep in touch, I promise."
They bid farewell to each other. Carrie looked back at the gym as she left. She'd be back, and she'd be better than ever.
She went home, and had her last dinner with her aunt and uncle. Teresa and Adam had gone out while she was at the gym to gather things she needed for her journey. Clothes weren't an issue, but she did get: new boots, a sleeping bag (one that also was built for the cold too), a heavy duty backpack, a blanket, cooking supplies, a few survival items, a tent, pokemon food, human food, as well as a medical kit for both people and Pokémon. They even gave her some Pokeballs!
A tearful evening. She fell asleep with a smile on her face. Tomorrow was a new day.
A chance for a better life.
AN: Well, here's chapter two! Tomorrow we begin our journey! Carrie is beginning the hunt for Chien-Pao, a mythical beast that no one believes but her. Heck, she even named it! I hope you all enjoyed, read and review! I'll see y'all next time!