Reflection was something Tynamo hated with a passion. He hated the feeling of hindsight, to look back and be unable to help but put yourself down for such obvious weakness and stupidity like that time he and his swarm nearly felled a Gyarados yet the slippery serpent gave them the slip. Their unified electric attacks were more than enough to tear through that leviathan's scales, yet even with their natural advantage they didn't give chase into the deep, black, abyss.
This was one such time, but he didn't have the benefit of being able to console himself with the idea that his failure was caused merely by an opponent's cowardice. No, he refused to delude himself, the only reason for his defeat was weakness.
Admitting such a statement out loud was beyond Tynamo, but in the safety of his own head he'd be honest with himself at least.
"We need to talk about our loss."
Tynamo very nearly flinched at the blunt statement, though he willed himself to stare right into the dark crimson eyes of his partner. They were the colour of the thickest blood, the kind a predator gave off when a lucky soul managed to gouge themselves off a chunk of flesh. The type that even the waters of the Fractured Sea couldn't dilute without trouble, that took it's time mellowing into pink before vanishing entirely like a Frillish faded into the abyss.
Those same eyes were glaring down at him. Then again, they always glared, whether Leo was enraged or delighted. Sometimes he swore that they weren't even the human's true eyes, since they didn't fit his personality even a bit.
Tynamo wasn't sure what to make of his recent loss. It wasn't as though he were new to failure, plenty of times he'd allowed foes to escape in the waters of the Fractured Sea, but back then he could always spread the blame on his entire pod. They failed together, it was a group effort and they each played a part in their lack of success!
But who could he blame now?
All that training he'd done, that his trainer had provided, what did it all amount to if he couldn't beat someone entirely inside his league? That was the real kicker for Tynamo, he knew that if he'd just played it a little bit smarter, had been one dash faster, or fought a shred harder, then it would have been him standing victorious!
It should have been him, and not that runt of a dragon!
Just thinking of it made his fury spike, but all he could do was send a seething glare at the ground in frustration, because what else was he going to do? Unlike from before- back when he wasn't bound to a trainer- he was alone on that field. There was absolutely nowhere else to aim that rage.
Who else could he blame?
"I'm not gonna lie, I'm extremely disappointed with our performance." Leo began, earning an indignant screech which he didn't react to.
Didn't that filthy human get that Tynamo understood that? That, even after he'd healed, that weeping wound to his pride remained and hadn't even scarred over? That he was just rubbing saltwater in a wound that was still fresh?!
"But it wasn't only you that fell short. It was me that failed too."
Tynamo's anger fell away slightly to confusion, and that wave only continued as Leo let out a deep sigh and explained himself. "This loss was purely because of me, I got cocky and threw caution to the wind. I should have kept to ranged attacks back there, hell it was working before, but I got wrapped up in the moment and we fucking lost because of it. The unfortunate reality is, being part of a team means that when one of us fails the other gets caught up in it. That sucks, but reality is often like that. Sometimes you lose, either because of your own mistakes or it was your partner who screwed the pooch. There's no changing the past, so we just have to keep going."
Tynamo pondered his trainer's words, his reasoning, and eventually gave an accepting squeak. He supposed it was true that the blame didn't fall entirely on one or the other, it was a partnership between them. In a way he'd never truly left his pod and comrades, he'd simply joined a new and much smaller one.
It was a cold comfort though, and certainly didn't piece together his broken pride.
"But, we can't simply stop at just picking back up where we left off." Leo put his arms behind his back, pacing back and forth. "We lost today because we fell short, be it from a lack of power or intellect. However, our failure today doesn't mean we failed." Tynamo gave an odd look, which made him throw his hands up in an open gesture.
"We didn't fail because we haven't given up yet, have we? We're still going to pick ourselves up and dive back into training. There will be another chance to fight Iris and get our payback, and when that time eventually comes we'll beat her down, but until that time comes we simply have to take this loss and move on. Moping does nothing good for you, believe me I'd know."
Tynamo would have raised an eyebrow if he could, because he could have sworn that last statement turned his trainer... melancholic? There was likely a story there, but he couldn't exactly push without having the capacity to speak to Leo.
"We can't waste time feeling sorry for ourselves. It's better that we use that frustration as energy to strengthen our resolve. That's the best thing you can do when you experience loss. Otherwise it just drags you down, and you're left as nothing but a pitiful weakling." Those last words were spoken with a bitter tinge that made Tynamo think that maybe this was more personal than he originally thought.
Pushing that last thought to the side, Tynamo mulled over his words. It was true, that he hadn't really lost anything in particular from that battle, but it still stung and rubbed him the wrong was that his winning streak had been cut short so soon after his overwhelming victory.
It was painful and bitter, but he had to agree with Leo that there was no time to waste and that the prospect of defeating that dragon in the future was certainly an attractive one. He was uncomfortably eager to get stronger now that he'd felt the bitter taste of defeat, it was like there was a violent itch on his brain that could only be scratched by the hand of power.
'You're right!' Tynamo exclaimed. 'Let's not waste another moment!'
Leo, though not able to understand the ear curling screech Tynamo let out, still agreed with the principle of the action and gave a double thumbs up alongside a slight grin. "Yeah, that's the spirit! Maybe we're weak now, but that just means it's all upwards from here! Always look upwards, that's my motto!"
Tynamo mulled over those words, and found himself nodding along with them. It sounded wise, to always strive to improve even when knocked down. It was a lot more difficult in practice than in words, but what else could he do now that he'd suffered his first defeat? Cry? Give up?!
No! The very idea made him shake and writhe with disgust!
Resilience wasn't easy, but nothing worth a damn in this world ever was. Tynamo knew this, it was the very reason he'd decided to say goodbye to his family and take the hand of a complete stranger with the eyes of the devil himself.
He who endures, prospers.
He who win, thrives.
He who dares, wins.
And Tynamo would be a winner. Even if he had to keep on taking painful loss after painful loss until that fateful day finally came.
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