Chapter 99; Deep talks
"Alright Torchic ember!"
Torchic fired ember. The attack was ordinarily powerful.
"Oh man. We're not getting anywhere" May sat down and hugged her legs, wondering how they could make such an attack a spectacle if it was so underwhelming.
Ash then approached.
"Hey. We're getting ready to leave".
He quickly noticed his friend was sad and troubled.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing" she said getting up and wiping a tear away.
"May you know you can trust me. What's wrong?"
May hesitated but relented.
"Remember that charmander from yesterday at that contest? How it was able to use ember so well, it became a spinning fire ribbon?"
"Yeah. It was rather impressive actually. Though I think the move was actually fire spin".
"She called out ember Ash. It had to be ember".
"Ok ok I don't doubt that. But what has that got to do with your troubled look?"
"I… I was trying to replicate it. You know, following your instructions when were in Rustboro city?"
"And?"
"It's just not working. The attack is not coming out as I want it".
"Maybe you just need more practice. Or maybe an entirely new approach".
"This is… something I've been considering actually. But… there is something I don't know about that approach".
"Tell me. We'll find out the way together".
"… alright here goes. How did… how do Sonic's pokemon grow so strong?"
Ash was annoyed at the question but due to not understanding the reason it was asked didn't show it.
"What does he got to do with this?"
"I was thinking… maybe if Torchic's ember's power grew… it could make it easier replicating that move from yesterday. But to do that I need to understand…"
"Forget it. We'll find another way".
"What other way though? I can't seem to see any other way…" she sighed "it's just so frustrating. All I want is for my Torchic to be able to use that move in this way".
"Then you keep trying. You will get it eventually".
May was not sold. Blaze's words from yesterday rang in her head.
"What if it doesn't? What if I'm just wasting my time? Just doing the same thing over and over again won't make ember a spectacle. And I don't just want to replicate it, I want to enhance it into a greater spectacle. Maybe if I had Squirtle act as Torchic's sparring partner to increase its ember power…"
"You're going to pit your pokemon against each other?!"
"What's wrong with that?"
"That is Sonic's method of training! And he got his two friends to adopt the same method! Having their pokemon strike at each other as hard as they could! He had them attack their own friends to gain power!"
May was taken aback at his outburst.
"I obviously won't do it Squirtle doesn't feel comfortable with it".
"Good. And don't mention that again. We need to be better than him. Now come on we'll miss the boat" Ash said and headed off to help Brock finish the packing.
May watched Torchic continue practicing ember on its own but no real result came out. She again played wit the thought of having Squirtle and Torchic spar and practice together.
If she was going to be a coordinator she had to learn to make her attacks look pretty and she was already far behind compared to others.
And even though they were training, it was not enough. Their moves were too ordinary to impress anyone.
May knew from the beginning she would need two things to become a real coordinator; One, she would need to work with her pokemon to make their moves look unique. The other would be that the moves would have to be as strong as they needed to be to create an unforgettable spectacle.
Ash had taught her about some moves but insisted she work with what she had and allow Torchic and Squirtle to grow at their own pace.
Only problem was, both had already agreed they wanted to follow her in that dream. They were willing to grow at a required pace to achieve that dream.
"How can we grow as much as required when my own mentor refuses to help us cover the half of the training required to succeed?"
Again Blaze's words echoed in her head. Ash did have a keen mind for improvising strategies but lacked power. Sonic lacked what Ash had but building power and endurance was a key to success for every champion.
Ash had the strategy. Sonic had the power.
Both had half of what May needed.
In that moment May came to that realization. But she paid it no further mind for now. She would have to extremely careful with how she conducted herself when it came to Sonic.
"All I need is a chance to talk to him. Ask him".
She sighed again.
It was very exhausting walking on eggshells because of Ash's anger towards Sonic.
Unknowingly, Brock's warning was coming true. May had already began being affected by Ash's attitude towards the hedgehog.
Those events replayed in her mind as she observed the contest Hall in Slateport city and knowing she was going to compete there soon, wondering just how her pokemon could be as magnificent as that.
She also wondered where Sonic was and if he was going to catch up to them so she could look for a chance to ask him for advice as well.
And the answer was fairly soon as two days later, Sonic was awaiting at the pier with Wally for the S.S. Wingull to pick them up.
Wally, in an attempt to kill the time had taken to fishing, having visited the fishing club Mr Britney suggested and even gotten a free retractable rod. He had tried fishing in the last few days as they tied their last loose ends in Dewford town but had gotten nothing.
"So. We're leaving at last" Sonic commented as he observed the distance with the binoculars "excited to move onward?"
"Yeah. I have barely gone anywhere besides Petalburg town so it's all new. So many new experiences for me and Ralts to have and…"
The float sank.
"I GOT SOMETHING!"
Sonic looked at Wally quickly pulling up the rod but whatever had caught started putting up a fight.
Wally struggled a lot but his flimsy body was making it hard to pull up the pokemon.
"Help me!"
"I got you!" Sonic rushed to his side grabbing the rod as well and pulling as hard as he could. Whatever Wally had caught had to be huge.
Harnessing his bond with Raichu, Sonic attempted to increase his strength and he succeeded. Way too much.
A Magikarp was ejected out of the water. A huge Magikarp.
"Woah" Wally was amazed.
"Look at that" Sonic managed to say, just as amazed before realizing he was in the landing zone.
And by the time he did realize it, it was too late. The smile was wiped from his face.
"Ah shi…" was all Sonic managed to say before the Magikarp fell on top of him, squashing him down. And to make it worse, it started splashing around, stomping him down more.
"You ok?!" Wally dropped the rod and tried to get to Sonic's side.
"My backpack!" Sonic called out in between flailing "get a pokeball and catch it!"
Wally quickly rushed to Sonic's backpack, took out a pokeball and threw it at Magikarp.
The ball missed the mark, landing in the water instead.
"I missed!"
"Try again then!" Sonic shouted back, as he fought to get out of underneath the huge Magikarp.
Wally took out another pokeball and threw it. He missed again.
"No, no, no" Wally whispered as he started panicking. Sonic was being turned to mush and he couldn't help him.
There was one final pokeball left.
He took it out and hesitated.
A hand gripped his shoulder.
It was Blaze.
"Inhale, exhale, throw" she tersely said.
Wally, calming down to avoid an asthma attack, threw the pokeball, finally hitting the Magikarp.
The pokeball absorbed Magikarp, releasing Sonic from the splashing torture. Quickly hopping back up to get away from the pokeball, he joined Blaze and Wally as they observed the pokeball shake three times before securing the catch.
"Whew" Sonic exhaled relieved "that was one big Magikarp. Great catch" he complimented Wally.
Only then did Wally register he had not just freed Sonic from becoming one with the pier.
He had actually caught his second pokemon.
He picked up the pokeball, processing the feeling. It was a mix of satisfaction and question.
"Big Magikarp tend to grow into big Gyarados when they evolve" Blaze brought up a fact about the species "meaning this is going to be a rather powerful ally in the future. A most excellent catch".
Wally smiled faintly but was still visibly perplexed.
"Hey look it's Mr Briney!" Sonic pointed at the S.S. Wingull approaching from the distance.
"Off to Slateport?" Blaze asked them.
"Yeah. It is time to move on. In hindsight, I should have maybe commuted there once to deliver the parts your uncle asked I deliver".
"It is ok. Uncle thought you would think that and requested Steven tell me to tell you to get there at your own pace as long as the parts get there safely".
"Oh good to know i'm not late then".
As the S.S. wingull approached, Blaze seized her chance.
"If you do not mind, I would like to join you in this voyage to Slateport".
Sonic and Wally were quick to accept her request though Sonic couldn't help but wonder if Blaze had an agenda. She just seemed to appear far too often and interject herself in their affairs quite a lot for it to be a coincidence.
The S.S. Wingull docked and Mr Briney greeted the group awaiting.
"Ahoy there young lads and lady".
"Good morning Mr Briney. We are ready to leave. Blaze here will be joining us if you are ok with it" Sonic greeted in return.
"But of course. All aboard then".
Sonic, Wally and Blaze boarded the wingull shaped vessel.
"Anchors aweigh!" Mr Briney joyfully shouted as they set sail for Slateport city.
After so many days spent in Dewford town, Sonic felt a sense of excitement traveling to someplace new.
Quickly reading through his guide, he saw the third gym was going to be at Mauville city which was quite the distance from Slateport.
Since that was the case, he decided to suggest taking it easy with Wally for the next few days. Not skipping training of course but he felt there was no need to rush the journey right now.
"You know" Sonic thought to himself "after delivering the parts I should contact Mr Stone, let him know it's done. Maybe ask if he has any news for me".
Returning to the present he looked around. Mr Briney and Blaze were talking, Blaze probably explaining how she was Steven's cousin and how she had come to know Sonic.
But to his surprise, Wally wasn't part of the conversation. He seemed to be in deep thought, staring at his two pokeballs.
"You ok?" Sonic asked him with a hint of a smile as he looked at Magikarp's pokeball, remembering just how heavy it was.
"I am".
"Yet you looked troubled by something. What is it?"
Wally seemed to get saddened by the question.
"It's… complicated but… I kinda feel like missing the warmth of my room in Petalburg".
Sonic didn't anticipate this.
"You feel homesick? Why didn't you say so?"
"I don't feel homesick. Getting to experience all I have experienced… I would do it all over again. I felt trapped at Petalburg. But… it's been almost three weeks and… I feel like I have made so little progress as a trainer for Ralts".
"Don't say that" Sonic tried to comfort him "when I met you you were an enthusiastic yet shy asthmatic kid. Now look at you. Your second pokemon already".
"Yeah but… a Magikarp. And Ralts hasn't grown much stronger since I first met it… doubt is creeping up on me. Maybe my parents were right maybe I'm not ready".
"Not ready?" Blaze's voice scared them "who knows that but you?"
"Will you stop doing that?" Sonic protested, tired of Blaze sneaking up on them.
"No" she bluntly replied.
Sonic sighed.
"I think what you feel right now is discomfort for the unknown. In your hometown you were in familiar environment, feeling safe. Out here, on your own, with the responsibility of two pokemon upon you, you begin to doubt yourself. It's natural. But one can never truly know if they are ready to face the world".
Sonic nodded.
"Blaze makes a valid point Wally. I didn't know I was ready to walk the pokemon path until I got my Blastoise as a Squirtle. And I'm sure Steven Stone didn't know whether he was ready before his grand match that made him champion".
"He didn't doubt himself but yes, he did not know whether he was truly ready. He just went for it" Blaze confirmed.
"So cut yourself some slack already. Your Ralts already knows confusion. For a first form psychic type, this is a big milestone".
"But your Alakazam…"
"Don't do that" Blaze cut him out "Do not compare yourself to others. It is a one-way road to unhappiness".
Sonic was taken aback at how fast Blaze had uttered this phrase. Sure he had told something like that to Tails in Johto when the fox began building his power with his pokemon to be of assistance to his friends but the way Blaze spoke indicated something deeper.
That maybe she had gone down that path before.
"She's right. You are you. And I believe you are ready, just a late bloomer. Your pokemon also mirror that. Psychic types are late bloomers by nature. And I'll tell you that I know from personal experience Gyarados is a very powerful species. The potential of your Magikarp will be insane".
Wally smiled.
"You think so?"
"I know so" Sonic patted him on the shoulder "my friend Tails was a late bloomer. When he started catching pokemon to help in our cause against team rocket he had no idea how to handle it and now look at him. Acknowledged by the legendary Raikou. So yeah. I believe there is a bright future as a trainer for you".
Wally's smile turned into a gleam.
"Thanks".
"Remember never stop trying" Blaze also encouraged Wally "others give up after a few days of training because of lack of quick success. And that with pokemon that are known to grow quickly. Yours will require a lot more training. But the payoff will be all the more rewarding. Steven's Metagross is a living example of this".
"Metagross is hard to raise?" Sonic asked intrigued.
"Extremely. As a Beldum, its first form, it only knows take down. You can probably tell how much training a Beldum would require to evolve into Metang, the second stage of the evolution line".
"Heh. I guess you could say I can and can't tell. Steven has probably trained with his Metagross more than I and Raichu will in a lifetime".
Blaze doubted that but before she could voice her doubt, Mr Briney called out to them.
"Anyone hungry? I got some snacks".
The three trainers accepted and continued discussing next to Mr Briney at the helm as the ss Wingull was now officially halfway to Slateporr city.
Some time later, Wally asked Sonic to tell them a story of his and his friends' adventures in Johto. Sonic chose to narrate the story of the team's rescue of Molly Hale in Greenfield.
He started with how they had arrived to find the place as a crystal dystopia, later discovering Molly had accidentally unleashed the power of the unown species.
When he got to the part that his and Ash's had joined forces to go in and rescue Molly and Ash's mother Delia, Blaze asked for more details, more specifically what happened when Ash was forced to confront the illusion Entei.
Sonic told her how Ash's pokemon were no match for it and even the arrival of his Charizard had failed to turn the tide. Wally chimed in and asked how they had managed to defeat Entei.
Sonic after a little bit of hesitation revealed how his Moltres had come all the way from Kanto to save him and they had bested Entei together, choosing to omit the part where he had had Moltres wound Entei when it refused to obey and end that illusion even though it could not.
Both Wally and Blaze were moved by the happy ending where Molly got both her parents back and Knuckles was able to save her because he could relate.
Seeing how Sonic's friends both had had their own challenges, tackled them and emerged stronger than before, Wally too was inspired to continue training. He told Sonic as such.
"You had quite the adventure in Johto young lad" Briney commented "you left no stone unturned in the region".
"In and out of the region" Sonic commented himself "we visited the town of Alto Mare a bit before the league".
Blaze was rather intrigued but refrained from bringing it up in the moment.
After the story everyone just naturally returned to their own business with Wally petting Ralts, Blaze and Mr Briney conversing and Sonic just aimlessly looking at the distance.
Having grown so accustomed to Blaze appearing out of nowhere, he wasn't surprised when she joined him in staring.
"Why the long face?"
Sonic looked at her in question.
"What? Just because I belong to the stone family doesn't mean I'm out touch with common folk. Hope this didn't sound offensive".
Sonic shrugged.
Blaze decided to be more direct.
"What did you hide from the kid in that story?"
Sonic again looked at her, this time in silent shock.
"Growing up in a wealthy family in the proper way" she said with a clear indication that she didn't approve of the term proper "you grow to read people. So. What did you not say?"
Sonic sighed.
"After I beat Entei with Moltres… I… tsk… I had my Moltres hurt it with its talons because I thought it could reverse the illusion".
"But it couldn't".
Sonic nodded.
"You couldn't have known that".
"But I tortured it. I had a choice in the moment and I chose violence".
He looked at Wally in sadness.
"Wally keeps saying he is my biggest fan. It's cowardly of me but… after finally being free to experience the world... I don't want to hurt him more".
Blaze didn't speak or change her expression. Sonic was truly impressed at her ability to control her emotions to this extent. A person like that was one whose anger you didn't want to he at the receiving end of.
"I see" she said as she too looked at the horizon "you feel bad for choosing to hurt that fake Entei".
"Yes".
"Ash may be inadequate but you are blind".
"Wha…?" Sonic was flabbergasted but not upset. Just taken aback.
"Allow me be more clear and utilize facts. That Entei was an agent of the unown. It kidnapped Ash's mother against everyone's will and then proceeded to fight you off again and again. Combined with the lack of knowledge and inability to have anticipated Molly was the one in control and the fact that Entei would not stop…"
"Don't say it" Sonic stopped her "don't you dare say it's not really my fault. We had won. I didn't need to hurt it".
"And if you had let it go? Wouldn't it have continued attacking?"
"I don't know".
"Well there's the answer. You don't know. And you needn't find out. You could have been more gentle but you are not entirely in the wrong".
Sonic looked at her in question again.
"Why are you nice to me?"
Blaze looked back in question as well.
"You know what I did to Ash, what I did to team rocket and now know what I did to illusion Entei. Yet you continue to take my side".
"You are mistaken. I never took your side".
"You called Ash inadequate".
"Because it is the truth. The kid is not ready to claim such a dream. Same reason why I stated you're blind. You don't see the big picture of yourself".
"But… how can I? What does the big picture even matter? All my mistakes…"
She snapped her fingers in front of him to break him out of his ranting.
"You can't judge yourself fairly because of your guilt, in other words your bias".
"And you can?"
"Not entirely. I don't know you well enough. But for that reason I am unbiased and can see more clearly what your bias distorts".
Sonic's eyes widened. He remembered Briney's words from when he was arriving in Dewford.
"A truly neutral individual will see the whole you, the real you. And if they end up becoming your friend, you will know to trust their opinion on you".
"Hey" Blaze again snapped her fingers in front of Sonic's face, bringing him back to reality.
"Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"… yes".
"Good. Keep it in mind then. Stay the course and keep being yourself. The entirety of your actions will reveal who you really are, not a specific one or ones" she encouraged him.
"But hasn't my true self already been revealed by my actions?"
"No. Because a single bad choice does not erase a hundred good ones. Just as a good choice doesn't erase a hundred bad ones. The world is complicated like that".
Sonic nodded in understanding after a few seconds of contemplation and thanked her with a sincere smile as she turned to talk to Mr Briney again.
"Could Blaze… be the one I need to befriend as Mr Briney suggested?" he wondered silently.
The S. S. Wingull docked at long last at Slateport.
"Ahoy! We have made land in Slateport!" Briney announced.
Sonic, Blaze and Wally disembarked.
"I appreciate the commute here Mr Briney. You have my sincerest thanks" Blaze thanked him with a slight bow.
"Thank you sir".
"I thank you for the great company during the ride lads and lady. Safe travels".
The three trainers left the port and entered the busy town.
"Want to join us in delivering the parts to captain Stern?" Wally asked Blaze.
"I appreciate the invitation but I need to respectfully decline. I'm here on Devon business".
"Oh pity. It was nice these last few days hanging out" Wally genuinely said.
"Maybe we could have skipped the unexpected appearance part but I agree with Wally" Sonic jokingly added.
Blaze smiled faintly for a moment.
"Take care both of you".
She then motioned to leave. Sonic and Wally also were ready to leave before Sonic remembered something.
"Stay here" he said and rushed after Blaze.
"Hey" Sonic called out to her.
"What is it?" she asked perplexed.
"There was something bugging me on the ship. When I mentioned Alto Mare. You seemed… a bit too interested but didn't bring it up".
Blaze's eyes widened for a moment.
"I too can read others somewhat" Sonic explained.
Blaze composed herself.
"The present time is not the best time for this talk. However… I would like to ask you about it one day".
"May I ask why?" Sonic asked her.
Blaze hesitated.
"You may but I cannot reply to it".
"No worries then. I understand. As you said you don't know me well yet. It's natural not to trust me".
Blaze contemplated for a moment.
"You are right. I don't know you. I request that I do get to know you better then".
Sonic was confused by the reply.
"Let us exchange numbers" Blaze clarified.
"Oh. I see. Sure why not?" he smiled.
Blaze remained stoic but her aura radiated positivity for this.
The two quickly exchanged numbers and promised to keep in touch. Blaze then left to attend to her business as Sonic went back to Wally.
The two then started chatting about what to do after delivering the parts, unaware they were being stalked by a black and white pokemon.
An Absol.