CHAPTER TWELVE:
FULL POTENTIAL
-Udon-
There wasn't much I could do at this point other than stare at Aura. Was what he just said true, that I could change the world? I already knew I was different from the other Pokémon, I mean, I used to be a human after all.
But now knowing I had some kind of power no one else had, it felt strange.
"I…I…don't even remember how I did it," I stammered. "It was kinda just an impulse thing."
"Well, if you can do it once, you can most likely do it again," Aura stated.
I mean, I guess I could if I tried hard enough. But the idea of it felt almost impossible to me.
"I don't know," I said. "I don't know if I'm able to."
"I believe you can," Ruffles chimed in. "I've always known, since we first became friends, that you had some kind of gift. I mean, when has anything stopped you? You got us all the way here, I believe you can do anything you put your mind to."
Ruffles' inspirational speech did fill me with confidence, but I still didn't know for sure whether I could do this or not.
"Thanks, buddy," I said.
"Yeah, what he said," Amp said. "Now can we get some food?"
I knew Amp believed in me, too. He just didn't know how to say it.
"Yeah, we can go now," Aura said.
We made our way to the dining hall and started eating. Over food, we barely talked about anything. I was still sort of in shock over learning I had performed an ancient power, and I could tell everyone else was too. We also hadn't eaten a good meal in what seemed like forever, so most of our energy went into eating.
Afterwards, I walked around by myself for a little while, exploring the village grounds. Again, it was small and rustic, but it had a charm to it. Like everything here was built by hand, or paw, I guess.
As the sun started to set, I stopped for a minute by the edge of the village. I thought about what Ruffles and Aura had said, about believing in me. It made me feel special. Maybe I was strong.
"Hey," I heard from behind me. Ruffles was standing there. "Whatcha doin' out here?" he asked.
"I was just taking a walk," I answered. "Checking out the village, you know."
"Yeah, it's nice to have somewhere to stay for a while," he replied.
"It is," I said, after a moment of silence. I didn't exactly know what to say next. "Thanks a lot for earlier. For what you said. It inspired me a lot."
"Anytime," he responded. "You know, you inspired me too. Remember, back at the inn, when you said I was brave."
I had almost forgotten about that. I'm surprised it slipped my mind.
"Yeah," I said, looking down at my feet. "I guess I did."
A minute or two went by with just us standing there. Neither of us knew exactly what to say.
"You should try using Thunder Punch again," Ruffles finally said. "Maybe you can figure out how to control it."
I looked at him, a troubled expression on my face.
"I don't know," I said back. "I just don't think it's possible."
"Nothing's impossible if you believe," he said.
It was a little corny, but he was right.
"Now, try punching that tree over there," he said, pointing to a large oak. "And really concentrate on what you're doing."
I walked over to the tree, and took a deep breath. This was gonna need a lot of energy. As I concentrated, I tried to imagine lightning bolts through my claws, but, for some reason, I wasn't able to feel anything.
I tried punching the tree anyways, but only ended up with a hurt paw.
"You okay?" Ruffles asked, running towards me.
"Yeah, I guess," I answered, clutching my paw.
As far as I knew, I didn't have any broken bones. But it still hurt bad.
"Let's try that again," he said. "I bet this time you'll be able to do it."
I didn't think so, but I agreed anyway.
I got my paw ready, and thought again about the bolts of lightning, but nothing was happening. I was starting to lose faith in myself.
"I don't think it's working," I said.
"You're not concentrating hard enough," Ruffles stated. "Think of energy flowing through you."
I was trying to, but it just wasn't happening.
"I give up," I said, sitting down on the ground.
Maybe I was right before. Maybe I wasn't as powerful as everyone thought I was. I couldn't do this.
"Okay, was there anything you were doing last time differently?" Ruffles asked.
I thought about it for a second, then realized something.
"Last time, you were hurt, and I was trying to save you," I said. "Maybe it was some kind of an instinctive thing."
Ruffles' eyes lit up. "That's it!" he exclaimed. "Try one more time, but this time, think of us in danger."
That sounded absolutely crazy. But maybe it could work.
I got up off the ground, and, this time as I concentrated, I did what Ruffles told me to do. I thought of him and Amp in peril. I thought of failing them, and suddenly, I felt something.
I looked down at my paw, and realized it was beginning to light up and spark. It was happening. I was in the zone.
Then, with one swift motion, I punched the tree, and a loud blast of thunder came with it. The shockwave of it was enough to push Ruffles and I backwards, and the tree came tumbling down.
"Wow!" Ruffles exclaimed, getting up. "You…you did it!"
I stared at him in shock. I did do it!
"That felt amazing! To let off all that energy like that!" I said. "We gotta tell Aura and Amp about this!"
So, the two of us ran back to the village to meet up with our friends.
Now that I learned how to control my power, nothing could stop us.
