A New Flame

Chapter one: Goodbye and farewell


Dear members of Team Flare,

With this letter, I want to announce my departure from Team Flare. I have decided that I no longer want to be involved in the criminal activities this organization holds. I can never walk in public without people pointing in my direction, or staring at me, wondering what evil things I will do next. Everyone tries to avoid me, because they are scared. I don't want to live like that for the rest of my life. I want to become someone people can look up to, someone who, after I die, will be remembered as a good person. Therefore, I will leave Team Flare, and start over from scratch. I want to thank you for the great years I could spend together with the other grunts. I have many great memories from the things we did together, and I will never forget them. But now is the time that I must choose for myself, and do what I think is right. Maybe I will see you guys again one day, but then I will be standing on the other side. Goodbye and farewell.

Grunt E. Zero




"I hope I never have to write anything like that again." The young grunt threw his pen in the corner of the room. He got up from his chair and looked at the beds behind him. The other grunts were still sleeping, even though one of them snored loud enough to wake up a deaf man. "At least I never have to deal with that again."

He walked to the sink, at looked at himself in the mirror. A young boy, seventeen years old looked back at him, without a trace of a smile on his face. He kept thinking about the last words he wrote in his letter. "As soon as I leave this building, I am no longer a grunt. How would the people call me? As long as they don't call me E-" He couldn't even get the word out of his mouth, so much did he hate his name. "As long as they don't call me by my real name."

He stood there for another minute, looking at his reflection, thinking about what he was about to do. He knew that there was no turning back now. His decision stands, and that's it. Every night again, he dreamt about himself as a successful man, standing at the center of attention. Everywhere he went, people recognized him. He had all the money he wanted, and every girl wanted to be with him. And he knew that one day, that dream would come true.

With that dream in his mind, he looked at the grunt a last time, before heading outside. He carefully closed the door behind him, ensuring that he wouldn't wake anyone up. A shiver went down his spine, as he walked through the halls of the Team Flare Headquarters. Usually, the rooms were lighted brightly with red lights, but now everything was shrouded in a dark shadow. He could hear his heart pounding in his chest, afraid that someone would notice him. He put one foot on the stairs, and looked back once more. "Farewell Team Flare. I hope we'll never meet again."

It was cold outside, but it didn't bother the ex-grunt. He looked across the streets of Lumiose City, and saw a few people walking around. No matter what time it is, there are always people on the streets of the Kalos capital. He decided to go left, straight to the Prism Tower. From there, he would decide what he would do, and where he would go.

As always, everyone immediately looked at him when he passed by. People abruptly paused their conversations, afraid that he might hear something. 'It's going to take some time to gain their trust', he thought to himself. An older woman hastily crossed the street, avoiding a confrontation with him. At first, these things really brought him down, but he got used to it. 'I'm just lucky that the Kalos Protection Law still exists, otherwise I would have to disguise myself.'

The Kalos Protection Law says that you cannot arrest someone, as long as they are not actively taking part in a criminal event. Before this law, members of Team Flare were arrested every day, for no other reason as simply existing. Luckily for them, Professor Sycamore had a lot more sympathy for the Team Flare grunts, and created a law to make them able to at least walk safely in public. However, it did not change people's perspective at all, and they still want to lock up a grunt when they see one.

That reminded him of something. 'Professor Sycamore has a Pokémon Lab here in Lumiose City. There must be a lot of Pokémon in there. If I can just get in there, and take a Pokémon, I can start my journey!' But the thought of stealing a Pokémon right at the start of his new life didn't appeal to him. 'I need to have a Pokémon if I want to do anything here, but I don't have one. I can't catch one either, and I'm pretty sure nobody is going to give my one for free either. Stealing a Pokémon seems to be the only thing I can do.'

He took a deep breath and started walking. He ignored the other pedestrians, who suspiciously looked at him as he passed by. After living in Lumiose City for seventeen years, he knew all the streets blindly, and he found Sycamore's Lab within a few minutes. This wasn't the first time he would break into the Pokémon Lab; he had been on a couple of mission with Team Flare to steal some valuable technology, so he knew exactly where to go. At the back of the building, behind the bushes, there was one window that was always slightly opened, which leads directly to the main hall. From there, you could go anywhere in the Pokémon Lab.

He walked up to the fence, and looked around. Luckily, there was nobody to see. He swiftly jumped over the fence and ran to the back. 'At least nobody can see me here.' As always, the window was ajar, and soon he was inside the Lab. Unlike the other times, he was here all alone, which made him feel very vulnerable. He walked across the hall, trying to figure out where he kept the Pokémon. He noticed a faint light coming from a large window, and he could vaguely see the shapes of three Pokéballs. He cautiously walked to the glass, and saw the light coming from the various machines in the room.

He looked around and decided to go for it. He ran into the room, as fast and quiet as he could, and looked at the three Pokéballs. 'There's no time to waste now. I'll just have to choose one at random and hope for the best.' He picked up one of the Pokéballs, and turned around, about to make his escape, when he saw that he was not alone. Right in front of him stood the Kalos Pokémon Professor himself, blocking the doorway. "What in the world do you think you are doing?"

 

Chapter two: Another chance


'Great, I already messed up before I could even leave the city. I couldn't even get a single Pokémon! Sycamore is probably going to send me back to Team Flare, but what happens then? How do I explain this to the other grunts? I can't go back, never. I have to convince him that I came here on my own, and not for Team Flare.'

Professor Sycamore flipped the light switch. "Since when does Team Flare organize solo missions? You always come in a group." The ex-Team Flare grunt looked at his feet, avoiding eye contact. He was too scared to face the Pokémon Professor directly. "I'm not part of Team Flare." Sycamore snickered, and turned around. "Yeah sure, your outfit really doesn't tell me otherwise. Follow me, please, and put that Pokéball back where you found it."

He decided that listening to what Sycamore said might be the only way to gain his trust. He placed the Pokéball back in its holder, and followed the Professor back to the hall. He saw that Sycamore walked upstairs, without looking behind a single time, to check if he was really coming after him. 'He's giving me a chance to escape. I could run away right now, and he would do nothing about it.'

He stopped in the center of the hall, and looked at the window. Then, he followed Sycamore up the stairs. He saw him going in one of the many rooms, but he left the door opened. He looked inside, and saw the Professor talking with a scientist. 'Why are they all awake so early? The sun isn't even up yet, and the citizens of Lumiose City are all still asleep, but the scientists in the Pokémon Lab are already active.' He took a deep breath and stepped inside the room.

Sycamore turned to the ex-grunt, and he could see a faint smile on his face. "I gave you the opportunity to get away, yet you didn't take it. That is very interesting for a Team Flare member." This time, he did look the Pokémon Professor right in the eyes: "As I said, I am no longer part of Team Flare. I left the organization to fulfil my dream of becoming a successful man. But I guess you won't believe that either?" Sycamore smiled at him. "Team Flare or not, you are certainly a unique young man. Tell me, what is your name?"

'My name...' The thought of his name made him shiver. "I don't have a name." Again, Sycamore smiled. He seemed to be enjoying the conversation a lot. "Clara, could you tell us the name of this boy?" The scientist started rapidly pushing buttons on her computer. "Of course I can! If I can trace the fingerprints on the Pokéball he touched, I will have his identity in no time!" She seemed way too enthusiastic about this, as if she had been waiting for this moment for years.

Sycamore got up from his chair, and walked to the printer on the other side of the room. He took the paper that was just printed, and looked at the information on it. "There we go. Elijah Zero, born and raised in Lumiose City. Parents, unknown. Other relatives, unknown. Well, at least we know your name now." He looked at Elijah, who was shaking heavily on his feet. His face had turned as red as his outfit. "Please... Never call me that again. I can't stand that name."

Professor Sycamore laughed as he sat back down. "Never mind that. You must know that I still cannot entrust you with a Pokémon quite yet, it is too dangerous. However, if you decide to stay here for the rest of the day, I might consider it. Clara could be your guide for today, and she will keep an eye out for anything suspicious. So, how does that sound to you?"

Elijah could not believe what he heard. 'I broke into the Pokémon Lab, attempting to steal a Pokémon. And still, after that, he will allow me to stay here?' The scientist looked at him hopefully. He suddenly realized that she didn't care if he was a Team Flare member or not. She didn't mind it at all, unlike everyone else. "That would be amazing." Sycamore clapped in his hands. "Then we have a deal. Clara, I will leave him with you for now, I have some other things to do."

The next hour, Clara showed him every corner of the Pokémon Lab, quite literally. Elijah tried to pretend he was interested, but that was really difficult. Eventually, she guided him to the final room. "This is our Pokémon Climate Resort. In here, we keep different species of Pokémon for research, while they stay here under the best conditions. Please be careful, as they might attack you. Some of them are really energetic, you know?" With a bright smile, she opened the doors, and Elijah saw the great environment inside.

It was as if they were in a beautiful park, the only difference being that there was a roof above their head. There were bushes and trees, a pond and even a tiny waterfall. And the best part was that there were Pokémon everywhere. Suddenly, he heard someone screaming from behind. "Clara, what are you thinking? You can't just bring a Team Flare member in the Resort, are you insane? Just wait until Sycamore hears about this!" Elijah looked over his shoulder, and saw a male scientist scolding Clara.

Clara's mood instantly turned from happy to angry. "Listen Brandon, Sycamore already knows about this boy. In fact, he was the one who told me to serve as a guide for today. So think before you start yelling like a child the next time, all right?" The scientist gave Elijah a sceptical look. "So that's how it is. Good guy Sycamore gives everyone a change, doesn't he? That will be his downfall one day, I'm calling it. Don't expect everyone to be like him, grunt. Sycamore is probably the most sympathetic man you will find in Kalos, the rest won't accept you that easily."

Clara punched his shoulder. "Don't talk like that! Can't you just go somewhere else, I'll take over from you." Brandon sniffed, got his stuff, and walked away. Elijah assumed that even scientists had problems with teamwork sometimes. When Clara turned around, she was once again happy and energetic. "Hey, it seems like you have some visitors!"

In front of Elijah, three Pokémon were staring at him, keeping a safe distance. He knelt down to tell them it was safe. Slowly, the middle one walked closer to him. Clara watched in amaze how good this former member of Team Flare could take care of Pokémon. "That is the only Fennekin we have been able to find. They seem to be a very rare species, so we are very proud of this one!" Elijah played a bit more with the Pokémon, and other Pokémon approached him shortly after. He spent the rest of the day playing with the various Pokémon, and before he knew it, it was already night again.

"I'm glad to see that you treat our Pokémon so well." Sycamore's voice startled him, as he hadn't seen him coming in. That was when Elijah noticed that it had turned dark outside, meaning that he spent many hours playing with the Pokémon. "Tomorrow, we will see what happens next, but first we must rest. We have an extra room where you can spend the night, so don't worry about that."

The Fennekin was sad that her new friend had to leave already. Elijah promised that he would come back tomorrow, which cheered her up a bit. However, when he laid in his bed, he couldn't fall asleep. He wanted to go back to the Pokémon, and play some more with them. 'Maybe I can just sneak in there, just for a short while. I'll be back before anyone notices I'm gone!'

 

Chapter three: Intruders


Even though this was only his second time ever, Elijah quickly navigated through the halls of the Pokémon Lab, trying not to wake anyone up. Soon enough, he had found the doors to the Pokémon Climate Resort. Part of him felt bad for sneaking in like that, but he really wanted to see the many Pokémon again. As fast as he could, Elijah entered the room, and closed the doors behind him.

When he looked up, he saw a projected moon, together with countless fake stars. 'So the Pokémon Climate Resort also has a built-in environment simulator. That is really impressive.' When he looked across the large room, he realized that most of the Pokémon must also be sleeping right now. 'How could I forget that the Pokémon would be asleep? I guess I should go back to my room before anyone notices me.'

Right at the moment Elijah laid his hand on the doorknob, one of the ceiling windows shattered into pieces. Three mysterious people jumped down through it, and landed on the ground. Elijah's heart started racing. They had landed behind some bushes, so he couldn't see what they were doing very well. He decided to stay at the door, and try to figure out what they were doing here.

"Here's a bag, go get as many Pokémon as you can. We don't have much time, so hurry up!" Elijah recognized the voice of a girl. She sounded very commanding, so she must have at least some power over the others. He heard one of the burglars walking through the grass, and for a moment he thought about turning on the lights, but then he realized that he wouldn't stand a chance against them. 'I'm just alone, without anything or anyone to protect me. They are three criminals, possibly very skilled. I have to make sure that they don't notice me.'

Suddenly, the cries of Pokémon broke the silence in the room. One of the criminals must have woken the sleeping Pokémon up, causing them to panic. Loud noises came from all directions, and within a few seconds, the entire Pokémon Resort was in chaos. "You idiot, I told you to keep everyone calm! Look at what you've done, everything was for nothing! Come on, let's just retreat before anyone sees us here!"

Before Elijah could get in action, the lights in the Climate Resort turned on, showing the chaos to everyone. Elijah looked behind, and saw Sycamore standing in the doorway, with his hand at the light switch. He didn't look like he was going to do something about them, and he would just let the criminals get away. 'But wait, their mission failed, so they don't have any Pokémon. There is no reason to take action.'

"Shauna, wait up! I got at least one of them!" One of the criminals ran back to the others, holding a Pokémon in his hands. Elijah's eyes shot wide open, and he started running towards them. His mind hadn't even had the chance to evaluate the situation, but his body already reacted to it. He had to save that Pokémon, no matter what. The criminal, who had a short and chubby posture, reached the other two burglars, and he attached a rope to his waist. 'They are going to use those ropes to get back out! They must be connected to something on the roof, and they'll use it to escape!'

Elijah ran faster as he knew he could, his mind only focused on the safety of the Pokémon. When he looked closer, he saw that the burglar was holding a Helioptile, an Electric type lizard Pokémon. The Helioptile struggled to escape from his arms, but it was no use. The burglar was already hanging above the ground, slowly approaching the hole in the ceiling.

He jumped, and clutched onto the legs of a different criminal. For a moment, Elijah feared that the rope would break, but it seemed to hold their weight. "Trevor, look down! You've got someone hanging under you!" For some reason, the female criminal noticed him earlier, but it didn't matter. They were already outside, and Elijah let go of his legs. He stood on the edge on the Pokémon Lab itself, at least ten meters above the ground. A fall from that height could easily be lethal, and with the strong wind blowing, that scenario was very vivid for Elijah.

The criminals stood together, on the other side of the large hole in the windowed ceiling. Below them was the Pokémon Climate Resort, where Professor Sycamore tried to calm down all the panicking Pokémon. There was no way Elijah could get to them without falling into the pit. They would get away with the poor Helioptile, and he would just be standing here, helpless, waiting for someone to get him off the roof. Elijah felt the anger rising inside of him.

'There is nothing I can do to help them, but maybe Helioptile can do something. I just have to hope that he will obey me, even though I'm not his trainer.' Elijah made eye contact with the Helioptile, and the Helioptile looked back at him, with scared and wide opened eyes. "Helioptile, use Thundershock on the burglars!" The Helioptile had to think about that order for a while. Then, he started glowing brightly, and tiny sparks came from his body. Elijah heard Shauna yelling at the other criminal: "You idiot! Let that Pokémon go before it shocks us all!"

The Pokémon jumped out of his arms, straight over the gap, and landed on Elijah's shoulder. The three criminals quickly made their escape, while Elijah concerned himself over the Helioptile. 'They didn't take any Pokémon with them, so I don't have a reason to follow them. However, if I ever see them again, I will get them back for this. Helioptile seems to be fine though, so I'm happy.'

A few meters ahead of him, Elijah saw Professor Sycamore standing on the roof. He quickly ran up to him, with the Helioptile still on his shoulder. Sycamore was smiling at him, despite all that had happened. "Well then, Eli- eh, sorry, I wouldn't use that name anymore. Anyway, I think we have found your perfect partner for on your Pokémon journey!" Elijah's mouth fell open. He couldn't believe that after all this, he would still receive a Pokémon to travel with.

"But Professor Sycamore, what about the damage? I mean the broken glass and all..." Sycamore waved it all away, as if it was nothing: "Don't you worry about that, that's all my personal problem. Go back to bed, and catch some more sleep. You'll need it, especially after all these crazy events. And don't forget, tomorrow is the day your Pokémon adventure really begins!"

 

Chapter four: Rejected

"Get in the Pokémon Center and disable the machines" Lysandre's mission were never complicated. He would make sure that everyone would understand it, so that the plan could succeed. I will never forget that one mission, never in my life. I remember how we left from Lysandre Labs, straight to the back entrance of the Pokémon Center. I can still see how I looked through the window, as if it happened right before my eyes. There she was; the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. She stood at the counter, while her Pokémon were healed up by Nurse Joy. Her long blonde hair, her bright blue eyes, just everything about her was perfect. She was so astounding, that I completely forgot about the mission, until one of my roommates dragged me away from the window. From that day, every time I walked outside, I would look for her, hoping that I could see her again. But I never got to meet her after all...

"Why won't you accept my challenge?" Elijah stood right in front of Viola, the Bug type Gym Leader. He wanted to challenge her, and hopefully receive his very first gym badge, but Viola simply refused to battle him. "I don't trust anyone who is part of Team Flare. I'm sure that this is just a trick to distract me, while the rest of you steal my Pokémon. If you think I would fall for that, you were terribly mistaken." Elijah was furious. How many time did he have to explain that he is no longer a member of Team Flare?

At that moment, someone else joined the conversation: "Isn't it your job as a Gym Leader to accept any battle request you receive, no matter the challenger?" Elijah turned his head, and he immediately recognized the girl. This was the girl he saw during one of his many missions. The girl who he had been looking for all the time, yet he could never find her. And here she was, standing right next to him in the Santalune City Gym.

Viola was not very pleased with her sudden appearance: "Serena, what are you doing here? You left only five minutes ago, you have nothing to do here!" The beautiful girl calmly walked past Viola, and picked a hat from the table. "I forgot my hat, so I decided to come back for it, and then I saw you two arguing here. I just couldn't resist joining in." Elijah watched everything in awe. He still couldn't believe that the girl he had been dreaming of so many times, was standing right next to him. He felt like he could take on the world now.

Viola was focused on her camera, constantly trying to get the view right. It gave the impression that she couldn't be less interested. "Besides, battling you would only be a waste of time. Team Flare members never take good care of their Pokémon, so there's no way you could possibly defeat me!" At that point, Elijah snapped. He grabbed the camera and threw it on the ground, shattering it in countless pieces. Serena and Viola both looked at him, shocked by his sudden anger.

"All I want from you is to listen to what I have to say, but even that is too much for you! I am not part of Team Flare anymore, I left the group to follow my own dreams! I want to become a successful person, instead of a meaningless grunt! But I can't fulfill any of that if nobody gives me a chance! So please, allow me to fight you! I promise that it won't disappoint you!" Elijah breathed heavily, completely taken over by his own rage.

Viola was still shocked heavily by his rage. A hint of fear was even hearable in her voice: "Fine then, we will battle tomorrow. Right now, I need time to fix my camera, if that is even possible. Please leave the Gym via the back door." After that, she dropped on her knees and started to collect the pieces. Elijah felt guilty and wanted to help her, but Serena grabbed his hand and dragged him away from her. Once there were outside the Gym, she let go of his hand.

"You really have to change your attitude if you want to become successful. Destroying people's property is not a good way to introduce yourself to the world." Elijah vaguely heard Serena's words, but he was mostly caught up in her beauty. He knew that she was right, and he tried to focus on what she said. "I suppose you don't have any place to stay either? Come with me, you can stay at my house for the night." Once again, Elijah followed her.

'Serena is such a nice girl. I'm almost certain that she didn't even see me that time at the Pokémon Center, so I'm a total stranger to her. Yet, she is inviting me to her house, even providing me of a place to sleep!' Elijah's mind had turned into an unstoppable train of thoughts, rushing by at the speed of light. After a while, they reached Vaniville Town. Serena stopped at the main square and turned around. "Tell me, what Pokémon do you even have?"

Elijah grabbed his only Pokéball and threw it in the air. Helioptile was glad to be out again, and ran a few circles around Serena and Elijah before climbing on his shoulder. "This is my first and only Pokémon; Helioptile. I received him from Professor Sycamore after I saved him from a group of thieves." Serena looked at the Helioptile, who carefully reached his hand out for her. "Wow, you saved this little guy? I suppose you really are a good guy then. Anyway, I am sure that you can defeat Viola with him, but you need some training."

'Training. I haven't used Helioptile in a single battle yet, apart from the time on the Pokémon Lab. Serena is right, I really have to train a lot more if I want to win in battle.' Serena smiled at Helioptile. "Don't worry, I can help you. I have quite a few Pokémon myself, so I think I can find the perfect opponent for your little Helioptile. Let's do some training right now, before we head to my house!"

 

Chapter five: Energetic​

"She'll start off with her Surskit, which should be no match for your Helioptile. Make sure that you don't waste your energy then, that's what she wants you to do. She'll follow up with Vivillon, her ace, and by far her most powerful Pokémon. Go all-out on the Vivillon, that will be your only chance. Helioptile can maybe take one hit, but no more than that. I'm sure you can do it, just go for it and win!"

The night seemed to have lasted forever, but finally it was time for Eljiah to battle Viola for his first badge. Serena told him all her secrets, everything about her battle style and strategy. She also helped Helioptile get a bit better at fighting. Nothing could possibly go wrong now. Eljiah stepped inside the Pokémon Gym, where Viola was already awaiting him. She still wasn't happy with his challenge, but she had no other choice but to accept it.

"Couldn't you have chosen a different day to start your amazing journey?" Viola's voice had an annoyed tone to it. "As you know, the battle arena has no roof, and it has been raining all day. We'll fight at the side area instead." Eljiah nodded, and followed Viola to the smaller side area of the battle arena. They each stood on another side, and prepared for the battle. Eljiah remembered all the things Serena had told her. He wasn't going to lose his first important match.

"Let's get this over with as quickly as possible." Viola threw the first Pokéball, and the Surskit appeared on the field... At least, that was what Eljiah expected to happen. But instead, Viola had decided to start off with her ace, Vivillon. "I know that Serena told you my strategy, so I changed things up a little. Prepare to lose, team Flare grunt." Those words drilled straight into his mind. Once again, she had called him by his former name, a name he never wanted to be remembered of again. No matter what, he had to win this battle to prove himself. "Helioptile, go all-out! Thundershock!"

Helioptile began to glow, as an electric current appeared around his body. He sprinted toward Vivillon, and jumped up into the air. They both attacked each other at the same time as they collided in mid-air; Vivillon with Tackle, Helioptile with Thundershock. They both flew back, but Helioptile immediately got back up. Eljiah told him to continue by using Pound, but then he noticed he was stuck in place. Tiny bugs were crawling all of his body, making him incapable of movement.

"Enjoy my Infestation while I finish this battle!" Viola shouted, with the sound of victory clearly hearable in her voice. But Eljiah hadn't lost the battle quite yet: "Shake off the bugs with Tail Whip!" Helioptile did as he was ordered, and he was right in time to avoid Vivillon's Tackle. At this point, Helioptile was already getting a bit tired, but he wasn't going to give up quite yet. He put all his energy in a super powerful Thundershock, and struck the Vivillon. It flew back all the way to Viola, where it landed right in front of her.

"Fine then, you've beaten my ace. But that's okay. I still have one more Pokémon to deal with that Helioptile of yours." She didn't give Eljiah any time to think of a new strategy, and instantly sent out her Surskit. He realized that this had been her plan all along: confuse him with the change of Pokémon, then tire Helioptile out with Vivillon, so that Surskit could easily finish it. It was incredibly mean and unfair, but not against the rules. "I give you one last chance. Get your Pokémon, turn around and go back to team Flare. Maybe, if you're in luck, they will still accept you."

At that point, Eljiah lost his mind. The constant reminder that he used to be a part of team Flare infuriated him so much, that he simply couldn't take it anymore. But Serena warned him for this: "She'll try to drive you insane, but try to ignore it. If you let her get to you, you'll get reckless, which means you'll probably lose. Use your energy to think, to come up with a strategy that will help you and Helioptile win the battle!" Eljiah could hear her voice clear in his mind. He quickly glanced around, trying to find a way to escape this loss. Suddenly, he saw his way out.

"Run to the main area, Helioptile! It's our only chance!" Helioptile avoided his opponent, and entered the open arena. The rain fell on his body, which gave him a weird feeling. Surskit increased his pace, making him too fast to follow with their own eyes. Viola laughed at him: "What good will that do for you? All you did is power up my Surskit! Its Swift Swim will only make your defeat even quicker, but if that is what you want, that's fine with me. Surskit, finish him with Bubble!" Eljiah showed a smile on his face, as he watched how his Pokémon got hit by the storm of bubbles.

As the bubbles disappeared, Viola's eyes shot wide open. Helioptile should've fainted after that direct hit, but instead he stood there, looking even better than before. Now it was Eljiah's time to smile. "Two words, Viola. Dry Skin." Helioptile charged up another Thundershock, and waited for the Surskit to hit. As soon as it came rushing in with a Quick Attack, Helioptile released his energy, knocking the Surskit all the way back to Viola. The sudden change in lead was a big shock for Viola, but Eljiah knew he had won definitely, and would now receive his first official badge.

"I don't know how, but you've done it... Maybe you aren't that bad of a person after all... Here, take this badge and go." She put the shining emblem in Eljiah's hand, which he greatly accepted. Not just the badge, but the fact that Viola acknowledged his skills as a trainer really made him proud. With new energy, he exited the Gym building, where Serena was already awaiting him. When he showed her the badge, she jumped a bit into the air from happiness. "I knew you could do it! Come on, we have to celebrate this!" She took his arm and dragged him to her house, where they stayed the rest of the day, and they had a great celebration meal.

 

Chapter six: Back to the start


"So eh, S-Serena, what are your plans for now?" He could hear his voice stutter, but Eljiah was determined to ask her this. It was his only chance. Serena shrugged, just like what he had expected. She never really had any concerns about the future, which Eljiah envied. He was always looking forward to something, but she could just live in the present without a thing to worry about. "W-Well, if you'd like to, you could of course come along with me! I'd like some company, and you're really nice and smart, so eh-" Even before he could finish his sentence, Serena gratefully accepted his offer. Something told him that she was secretly already hoping for it, and he was proud of himself for daring to ask it.

The weather was amazing. A bright sun shined on their heads, with not a single cloud in the sky. Helioptile also really seemed to enjoy the sunny weather, as he was more energetic than ever before. He kept jumping from Eljiah's to Serena's shoulders and back, like he couldn't remain motionless for more than five seconds. Eljiah thought about how much they looked like a couple right now. The only thing that could've completed the picture even more was if they were holding hands.

"What are you blushed for?" Serena's question made him snap back into reality. "Eh, nothing, really! I was just lost in my thoughts." Serena chuckled. "You sure were, you haven't said a word in a long time! Come on, let's hurry, Lumiose City should be around the corner!" She increased her pace, and Eljiah followed right behind her. They were going back to Lumiose City, to tell professor Sycamore about the great news. Well, that was why Eljiah wanted to go back, at least. Serena probably just wanted to go shopping there, which was fine with him.

As soon as they entered the city, Serena's eyes widened, going from left to right, checking out all the possible shops to go. "Hey, I really want to go shopping, I hope you don't mind it. Let's meet up at Sycamore's Lab, okay?" Eljiah nodded, already knowing that would be her plan. Serena left, and within seconds she was lost in the crowd of people. He walked onwards to the Pokémon Lab, wanting to prove Sycamore that he didn't make a mistake when he entrusted him with Helioptile.

As soon as the doors closed behind him, a wave of peaceful silence came over him. Finally, he was freed from the loud and noisy crowd on the streets of Lumiose. Immediately, he was noticed by Brandon, the male scientist from the Lab. "Oh ho, look who's back! It's the team Flare boy! And, tell me, how did your little adventure go?" Eljiah flashed his shiny new badge, and Brandon's mouth literally fell open. "H-How did you... You actually got a... A badge?" Eljiah just smiled, and walked past him, satisfied with his reaction.

Elijah wasn't egoistic or anything like that, not at all. He was one of the most humble persons you'd ever see. The only thing he couldn't handle was when people wouldn't trust or believe him. Then, he'd do anything and everything he could, just so he could prove them wrong. And most of the times, he succeeded in it too, which made him happier than anything else. The satisfaction he got from seeing Brandon's mouth fall open, was impossibly compared with anything else. It was just amazing to see.

No matter where he looked, professor Sycamore was nowhere to be found, and nor was Clara. Eventually, Eljiah decided to go to the Pokémon Climate Resort. As soon as he walked inside of the grassy field, a Fennekin ran up to him and jumped into his arms, pushing Helioptile away. He didn't mind it though, as he went back to his old friends in the Resort. Eljiah petted the Fennekin a little more, before hearing Sycamore's loud voice somewhere on the other side of the Resort: "Clara, watch out!", followed by a the sound of something metal falling on the ground.

Eljiah immediately hurried in the direction the sound came from, while still holding Fennekin in his arms. Professor Sycamore climbed down from a huge ladder that reached all the way up to the ceiling. "Hey, you're back already? I didn't expect you to return this soon! What happened?" Eljiah proudly showed him the Bug Badge he received from Viola. Unlike Brandon, professor Sycamore just smiled at him. "I knew you could do it, there was no way you'd fail. Me and Clara just finished repairing the hole in the ceiling, that´s what you probably heard. Listen, why don't you come with me to the room across the hall, there's something I'd like to discuss with you."

Eljiah followed the Pokémon professor, and they sat down in one of the many couches the room had. "That Fennekin you're holding, she really seems to like you, doesn't she?" He had already forgotten he was still holding the rare Pokémon, but Fennekin didn't seem to mind it. "Eh, yes, I'm sorry about that. Should I put her back in the Resort?" Sycamore shook his head. "No, that's not what I was getting at. I've been concerned about Fennekin's health for a few days. She has been very sick, and didn't want to play with any of the other Pokémon in the Resort anymore. Now that I see you with here, it all suddenly makes sense. Eljiah, would you like to take Fennekin with you on your journey?"

The Fennekin looked at Eljiah with a smile on her face. He wondered if she'd understood what professor Sycamore had said, because it seemed like she did. Eljiah nodded at the professor: "Yes, I'd love it! And I'm sure Fennekin would like to come with me as well." Again, the Pokémon professor smiled at him. It seemed like, no matter what he asked, he really already knew the answer. That smile was his satisfaction of correctly predicting the outcome of the situation. "Fine, then that's setled. Now that you have your first official starter Pokémon, you can truly begin your journey. There will still be a lot of people who don't trust you, but I know you can change their minds, Eljiah. You can do that, I'm sure of it."

 

Sorry that this one took me so long guys; I couldn't access LV for a while, and then this chapter turned out to be incredibly difficult to write. I know this one is a lot longer as normally, I hope that doesn't matter too much. If it does, please reply to this thread, I really need your feedback!

Chapter seven: Parfume Palace peril

"Can someone please tell me why everyone is panicking?" Eljiah tried to figure out what was going on, but all the citizens of Camphrier Town were too busy to talk. Serena pointed at the Pokémon Center: "Maybe Nurse Joy will know what is happening, she's always calm and friendly." Eljiah nodded, and followed her. Inside was nobody, except for Nurse Joy herself. It was weird seeing a Pokémon Center almost abandoned, as there usually were at least ten people at all times. Lucky for them, she could explain where the massive panic attack came from: "You see, the Parfume Palace is nearby, where Pokémon Champion Diantha resides. Today, she will be coming back from her trip to Unova, but a Snorlax suddenly appeared on the bridge, blocking the road. On top of that, the Pokéflute suddenly disappeared too, which is said to be the only thing capable of awakening Snorlax. If they find out who has the Pokéflute, they can get rid of the Snorlax, and the thief will be punished severely."

Eljiah immediately had an idea of who could be behind this. The trio of criminals who had attempted to steal Pokémon from Sycamore's Lab wouldn't be afraid of messing with the schedule of the Pokémon Champion either. They had absolutely no sense of respect whatsoever. Although he'd rather just turn around and walk away safely, Eljiah knew that he had to do something. He tried to think like them, and figured out where they were. There must be a reason why they wanted Diantha to arrive later. Suddenly, everything made sense to him. "Serena, let's go to the Parfume Palace, maybe we can find out more there." Serena nodded, but deep inside she was worried that something would happen to her friend.

The Parfume Palace was in one word humongous. Although it was already getting quite dark outside, two giant lanterns showed the gigantic building off in a bright light. Only a true Pokémon Champion could live in a castle like this. Despite the chaos in the town, guards were standing at the gate, ready to attack any intruders. But something told Eljiah that the Kalos Trio wouldn't let themselves be thrown off by something as simple as a few guards. They would find their way around it, and so would he. "Listen Serena, I know who stole the Pokéflute. As a matter of fact, I'm almost completely certain they are inside the palace right now. We have to find a way to sneak inside." Serena looked around, trying to help her friend out. No matter from what side she looked at the situation, the guards would surely notice them. There was no way they'd get around them...

"Unless if we make sure they can't see anything at all!" Eljiah gave her a questioning look. "Oh, sorry, I'm thinking out loud again." He noticed that Serena blushed, though that could've been just the lights playing with his view. "Anyway, I think there's a way we can get around those guards, but we need both Helioptile and Fennekin for that." Eljiah didn't know her plan, but he trusted her fully. Helioptile jumped over to her shoulder, and she received Fennekin's Pokéball as well. "Okay, Helioptile, can you turn one of the big lanterns off from here?" Helioptile nodded, and did exactly that. The light slowly went out, which distracted the guards from their work. They were both staring at the lantern, trying to find out why it suddenly went off. And that's exactly what Serena wanted: "Helioptile, now, full power on both lanterns!"

Her plan was genius. Both guards were staring at the seemingly broken lantern, when suddenly it turned on again at full power. They were looking straight into the brightest point of the light, blinding them temporarily. Because of the emount of energy Helioptile had put in the lanterns, they both bursted, leaving them in complete darkness. Now, with the guards still blinded, they had a free entrance to the gates, but only for a very short time. Eljiah and Serena quickly ran up to the gate, but there was still something keeping them away from the entrance. A huge lock was preventing the gate from opening, but even that was taken care of: "Fennekin, use Ember on the lock so it melts off!" Fennekin obeyed, and the heavy lock fell on the ground. "Come on El, let's go!" Eljiah paused for a moment. She had called him El, a special nickname she came up with. To other people it probably wouldn't mean much, but it made him feel warm inside. "No Serena, you should go back to the Pokémon Center. If something goes wrong, and they find us here, they'll throw us both in jail. I don't care about myself, but I don't want anything to happen to you."

Eljiah quickly ran up the massive stairs, heading for the upper floor of the Parfume Palace. While he was running through the hallway, he realized that to be fair, he had no idea where he was going. He'd swear that he passed the exact same hallway for the third time now. He decided to take a different approach, and stood silent, listening around. This tactic had much more succes, because he immediately heard familiar voices a while further. There was no doubt that these voices were indeed the same criminals he had encountered at Sycamore's lab. Eljiah ran up tot the room where the voices were the loudest, and opened the door. There, next to a big opened window, were the Kalos Trio, filling up a bag with golden properties and other valuable items. "Dang it, it's the Flare grunt again! Seriously dude, what's wrong with you? Stay out of our way, will you?" The girl in charge was clearly annoyed, but she didn't even attempt to attack Eljiah at all. "Come on guys, we have better things to do then this." She gestured the others to follow. "But Shauna, what about all the stuff?" Shauna grinned: "The guards are coming. Leave it be for our amazing Flare friend to solve." After that, they each jumped out of the window, descending using a rope.

As soon as they had left, Eljiah started searching through the bag, until he had found the Pokéflute. As he got back up, the door opened again, but this time it were the two guards from before. Only now, Eljiah realized what Shauna had meant. From the guards' perspective, Eljiah had sneaked inside the Parfume Palace, stolen the Pokéflute, and filled up a bag of valuable stuff, hoping to escape with it. He cursed to himself for getting into trouble again, but this wasn't the time for self-pity. He only needed the Pokéflute, the rest of the items could stay here. He jumped out of the window, just like the Kalos Trio had done, and realized his next big mistake. Of course they had removed the rope, and now there was nothing to grab on to. He landed painfully, and he clearly heard something break. He tried to get up, but his left arm wasn't moving at all. The fall had broken his arm, and was now nothing but dead weight to his body. But that was something to take care of later, now he had to do something about the situation he was in. He couldn't end up in jail, not now.

He could hear the guards yelling behind him as he ran away from the palace, carefully holding on to the Pokéflute with his still functioning arm. He didn't feel his left arm at all anymore, but that was probably due to the adrenaline that was pumping through his vains right then. He reached the junction that lead him back to Camphrier Town, but he decided to take the other route. Soon enough, he found a huge crowd of people, standing in a circle around the huge sleeping Snorlax. He made his way through the crowd, and, heavily breathing with every few words, shouted: "I found the Pokéflute! A trio of criminals had attempted to steal it from the Parfume Palace, and I managed to retrienve it!" He held the flute up high, and a tall man immediately took it out of his hand and started playing. The Snorlax woke up almost instantly, and slowly walked away from the road. Eljiah was seen as a hero, but only until the guards had caught up with him.

"This young boy is the one who stole the Pokéflute! We've seen him trying to steal even more properties as well, but luckily we were fast enough to stop him." The crowd was shocked, and they all looked at Eljiah. He didn't know what to say, but someone spoke up for him. It was Serena, who had came back for him is just the right time: "So you claim that this guy, who just solved all of our problems by finding the Pokéflute, broke straight into the Parfume Palace, all by himself, and nearly got away with a lot of stolen goods? What were you two doing then, weren't you supposed to prevent that from happening?" Eljiah couldn't believe his ears. Serena was able to talk so skillfully, she could achieve pretty much anything just with words. Now, everyone's attention was turned back to the guards, who stuttered and tried to make up excuses for their bad performances. Serena winked at Eljiah, but then noticed how much pain he was having. The adrenaline boost was over, and now he got the full pain of his broken arm. "El, what happened? We have to get you treated immediately!"

 

Chapter eight: Encounter in Connection Cave

"Camphrier Town doesn't have any kind of hospital. You'll find your best bet in Ambrette Town, there's a route leading you there, through a cave." Eljiah's arm was starting to hurt very badly, but there was simply nobody here who could help him. The only healthcare center was the Pokécenter, and Nurse Joy had absolutely no experience with healing other people. He decided that moving on was their only realistic option, much to Serena's dislike: "No way, you're going to keep walking with that arm? I can see by the look on your face how much it hurts, don't try to hide it from me!" Eventually, she realized there wasn't any reasoning with Eljiah once he had decided something, so she just went with it. Together, they left Camphrier Town behind, and set foot to their next destination.

As they were walking towards the Connection Cave, Serena remembered something she wanted to tell her friend. "Hey, Eljiah? While you were inside the Parfume Palace, I wanted to go back to Camphrier Town and wait for you. However, the guards had called reinforcements, so I had to flee into the bushes." Eljiah looked at her again. He hadn't noticed it before, but there were small scratches all over her face, probably from running through the bushes. The thought of a girl like Serena being forced to harm herself to escape getting caught made him angry. Someone like her shouldn't have to go through that, and it was his fault that she had to. "But while I was running," Serena continued, "I suddenly heard three people coming closer quickly. I hid deep in the grass, my heart was pounding in my chest all the time. I heard them saying something about a kid ruining their plans again, forcing them to leave. Were they talking about you, Eljiah?"

Eljiah looked up to the sky. The clouds were getting darker, meaning that it was going to rain soon. They would have to hurry if they wanted to reach Ambrette Town dry. "Yes, that was about me. I encountered them for the first time in Sycamore's Lab, they were trying to steal Pokémon." Suddenly, he realized that at that moment, he was nothing better than them. He also broke into his lab with the intention of stealing a Pokémon. It's just a case of lucky coincidence that they were at the same place at the same time. "In a weird way, I have to thank them. If it wasn't for their evil intentions, I wouldn't have received my first Pokémon. All of the things I've experienced so far, and the things I will see in the future, they are all responsible for it, even though they won't have a clue about that." The cave was just about five minutes walking distance away when the first raindrops started to come down. They increased their pace, and right as they got inside, the rain got heavier.

"I wish I had brought a flashlight or something, it's pitch black in here." Serena rolled her eyes: "Come on El, haven't you learned anything? You have a Fire type Pokémon, and you're complaining because it's too dark? You'll never be a Pokémon Master like that!" He realized that he was still not entirely used to living with Pokémon. Back in Team Flare, Pokémon were only used as fighting tools. For everything else, they had their own equipment. Luckily for him, he had a smart girl by his side to help him with everything he needed. He got the Pokéball out of his pocket, and threw it in the dark. "Fennekin, can you light this cave a bit for me?" A small flame was enough to at least see where they were going. Eljiah looked at Serena. Her face looked beautiful in the light of the fire. He couldn't keep his eyes away from her, which caused him to miss a big rock right in front of him. He tripped, and fell right on his broken arm. He screamed loudly, which woke up a horde of nearby Zubats. They started flying all around Serena, making her run around while swinging with her arms in the air. She tripped over the same rock that Eljiah had hit, and she fell on him.

"What is going on he-" A female doctor had heard their screams, and immediately rushed to the source. What she encountered was two teenagers laying straight on top of each other in a barely lit cave. Serena got off Eljiah as quickly as she could. Even in the light of the small flame Fennekin was producing, it was very obvious how hard she was blushing. "Y-You see, we just got here, and then my friend fell, and the Zubats, and then-" The doctor burst out in laughter. "Spare me your excuses, I don't need my medical degree to figure out what was going on here!" Serena contained her anger. It wasn't worth raging right now. "Wait, did you say you have a medical degree? Can you help my friend, his arm is broken. We were trying to get to Ambrette Town to get it healed, but we decided to hide here until the rain was over." The doctor smiled, and kneeled down next to Eljiah. "Sure, you were just 'hiding' here, I get it. Anyway, let me see that arm."

After she had put a splint around Eljiah's arm, they walked together to the end of the cave. The rain had stopped, and Ambrette Town was already in sight below them, right next to a long beach. Before they left, Serena asked the doctor something she had been wondering from the moment they met: "Once again, thanks for all your help, but what brought you here in the first place?" The doctor smiled again, which she did pretty much all the time. "I was just doing some research about my favorite Pokémon, Zubat!" Eljiah looked at her confused. "Your favorite Pokémon is Zubat?" She nodded. "They're so cute, how can you not love them?" He had nothing to reply with. This woman was too crazy for words. He and Serena left the cave and the crazy doctor behind, and left for Ambrette Town.

 

Chapter nine: A painful reunion

The view on the sea was amazing. Eljiah could look at it forever. Back in Team Flare, they never took time to enjoy anything. It was always mission after mission, working towards Lysandre's great goal, whatever that may be. He couldn't stop himself from thinking back of his days as a grunt, but not even once did he regret his decision. "Whenever I see my former roommates again, they'll be looking up to me. I'll make that sure." He smiled, and heared footsteps behind him. Serena put a hand on his shoulder, and admired the view with him for a while. He enjoyed these silent moments with her, it really was something special. After a while, Serena broke the silence: "There is a very skilled doctor here, who could easily heal your arm in a matter of hours. However, he is currently off to the Glittering Cave for something. There is someone who is willing to help us get there, but he says he won't go in the cave with us." She sounded disappointed that he still couldn't be healed. Eljiah waited a few more moments before he replied: "What is it with doctors and caves in this region?"

When they arrived at the route leading to the Glittering Cave, they saw what kind of lift was awaiting them. A Rhyhorn stood next to a hiker, who was waving at them enthusiastically. They ran over to him, although Serena suddenly had gotten a lot less excited about their trip. "I was wondering how much longer me and Rhyhorn here had to keep waiting for you two!" The hiker spoke with an incredibly loud voice, almost blowing them away. "Okay, so, here's the deal. You can take my Rhyhorn and ride to the Glittering Cave, as long as you bring it back. I'm a real friendly guy, but if my Pokémon isn't back before sunset, I'm afraid I'll have to become a lot less nice." The hiker looked Eljiah right in the eyes, as if he assumed that that was his plan all along. "Don't take him inside the cave, or he might get lost." Finally, he turned to Serena: "And I don't know how hardcore your boyfriend is, but if I were you I'd hold on tight, because it can get rough around here." Eljiah looked at Serena. She blushed, but said nothing about the hiker calling him her boyfriend. They got on the back of the Rhyhorn, and left the hiker behind.

Eljiah wished the road were a million times longer. The feeling of Serena's arms around his waist made him feel warm inside. Unfortunately for him, the road was short, and soon they were standing in front of Glittering Cave. Serena's face was still a bit red from having to hold her friend so tightly, but she tried to hide it as much as she could. "Come on, let's go. The sooner we get through the cave, the sooner we're out. Together, they walked inside. Eljiah already had his hand on Fennekin's Pokéball, expecting another pitch-black cave, but that wasn't the case. Strange, crystal-like balls were sticking out of the walls, emitting a blue light. It wasn't exactly easy to navigate, but it was definitely above his expectations. A few times they stopped, because they thought they heard voices. They quickly realized it was just their minds playing with them, so they just ignored it.

"Is it just me, or have we taken every possibly wrong turn so far?" Serena's feet were starting to hurt from walking, which they had been doing for hours. Every turn looks the same, so Serena got the idea to leave a mark on the ground every time they went left or right. They often had to walk back because of a dead end, but they hadn't encountered any of their previously made marks, meaning that they were still making progress. After what seemed to be an eternity, they finally reached an open room. As they walked into the more open area, Eljiah heard something. "Serena, do you hear that too? It sounds like...a crying child!" As soon as he had said that, he ran to the source of the sound. What he encountered was not a child, but a Pokémon, crying in a corner. Eljiah kneeled down next to it, and put his hand on its shoulder.

Immediately, a warm feeling shot through his body, something he had never experienced before. He suddenly felt scared, for reasons he couldn't explain. He felt like someone was chasing him, driving him in a corner. With a shock, he realized that these weren't his own, but those of the Pokémon! "Hey El, that Pokémon... I'm sure I've heard its name before, why can't I think of it now? Why is my memory so bad?" Eljiah was too busy with the Pokémon to even hear Serena talking. The Pokémon turned its face, and he saw its red eyes staring at him. "Serena, this Pokémon, it- no, she, is scared of something. I know it, because I can feel it too. There must be something, or perhaps even someone, who must have sc-" A powerful force in his back ended his sentence, and smacked him on the rock-hard floor.

"Hey Vapor, look what I found!" Eljiah heard footsteps coming closer, until they were right next to his head. A hand grabbed his hair and pulled his head up. He looked right into the hideous face of someone he couldn't ever forget, not in his entire life. A wide grin appeared on his face, all the way from one end to the other. "Zero! Hahaha, long time no see buddy!" He pulled his hair even harder, so he was sitting on his knees. "We were in for quite the surprise when we woke up! A simple letter, that was all? I expected more from you, you worthless being!" Eljiah received a kick in his stomach, making him bend over. "Hey Brute, how about we just take that lovely lady over there and get out of here, eh?" Eljiah immediately knew they were talking about Serena. He couldn't allow anything bad to happen to her, no matter what. He tried to get up, but instantly dropped down again. He was hurt so badly that he couldn't even do that much. His former roommates, the ones who he swore would look up to him, were going to take off with her, and he didn't do anything about it.

Suddenly, he felt a small hand touching him. He lifted his face, and the Pokémon from before looked into his eyes. She placed her hand on his cheek, and another warm feeling travelled through his body. He still didn't know exactly what it was that he felt, but somehow they were able to share emotions just by touching. The Pokémon slowly walked towards Vapor, who was holding Serena. As soon as he noticed her, he let go of Serena and quickly stepped backwards. "B-Brute, that Pokémon is out to kill me, I can see it in its eyes!" The cave was to dark to see anything clearly, but by the sounds of it, the Pokémon was dealing some real damage to Vapor. When the fighting sounds stopped, he heard the deep voice of Brute: "Vapor, I got it! Boss is going to be so pleased with us when we show them this Mawile! Maybe we'll even get..." That was the last thing Eljiah could hear. His injuries finally got the upper hand, and he fainted.

 

Chapter ten: Gone Missing​

​

"W-Who are you?" Eljiah stared at the beautiful Pokémon standing in front of him. It was bright white, with a scythe-shaped horn on top of its head. Everywhere he looked was just plain white, nothing else. This place, it just couldn't be real. Eljiah looked down, but there was nothing there either, not even his own legs. He tried moving, and realized that he was completely immobile. He had no body to move. He was merely able to look at this Pokémon, whose horn started emitting a golden light. It got brighter and brighter, until he couldn't see the Pokémon anymore. Suddenly, he saw scenes flashing in front of his eyes. A giant tower, a cave, some other things he couldn't quite make out. Then, he heard a gunshot, and everything went black.

Elijah opened his eyes, and was immediately greeted by a blinding white light. He blinked a few times before he was able to properly look around, although it didn't take him long to realize what had happened. He dropped his head back onto the pillow. "Viper and Brute knocked me right into the hospital. That's not how I planned our encounter to go at all. And they got away with that Pokémon too, I think they called it a Mawile. I wonder what happened to-" he quickly jumped up from his bed, causing a blinding headache. "Serena..." He tried to get out of his bed, but he lost his balance and fell on the floor. A Pokémon ran up to him and helped him back on his feet. Slowly, Eljiah turned his head and looked at his formerly broken right arm, and with a huge shock, he realized that it wasn't broken anymore. In fact, his right arm was entirely gone.

Nurse Joy came running in through the door. "Oh my, I'm so so sorry! Are you all right?" Eljiah's headache hadn't lifted yet, and Joy's loud voice didn't help that. "You really have to lay back down again, you can't go out yet!" She grabbed his shoulder and pushed him back into the bed, but Eljiah slapped her arm away and stood back up. "I don't care what I can and can't do, just tell me what you did to my arm!" Nurse Joy was clearly shocked by his angry reaction, as she hastily took a step backwards. "L-Look, I tried everything I could, really! It's just that, when you were carried inside, I sincerely thought you had already died. It took an entire day and night of nonstop working to get you back in the state you are now. Your arm was crushed so badly, I really couldn't do anything about it anymore. I'm so sorry..." Tears appeared in her eyes, and Eljiah realized his reaction had been much too harsh. If what she said was true, then she hadn't slept all night, just to keep him alive. Getting angry at her for not being able to save his arm wasn't justified.

"Thank you for saving my life. Without all of your effort, I most likely wouldn't have made it out alive. Tell me, who brought me here in the first place?" He figured that it had to be the doctor who they were searching in the cave, but he couldn't be sure. Nurse Joy smiled, happy that her patient wasn't angry anymore. "I was really surprised with what I saw too, but the one who carried you all the way over here is this little one here." She pointed at the Pokémon that helped him get up earlier. It was a Mienfoo, Eljiah recognized. Apparently, Lysandre used to have one of these, before it evolved of course. While he was also very confused about how a Pokémon not taller as one meter could carry him all the way to the hospital, he was more worried about Serena. The Mienfoo jumped on the bed, and pointed at a piece of paper that had been laying there all the time. Eljiah grabbed it and started reading. Each word he read hit him deeply with anger and rage.

What's up Zero? How does it feel to be left behind with nothing but a note when you wake up? Doesn't feel good, eh? In fact, I doubt if you'll even survive your injuries, but I couldn't care any less. The world is better off without you anyway, so do us all a favor and die. Anyway, we took that Mawile, and we got your girlfriend too. She's really nice, isn't she? I'm sure she'll have a great time with us! I'm glad we got rid of you, now we will surely get our promotion from the big boss. Well, we'll be off now. See ya.

Eljiah threw the piece of paper aside, got up, and walked away, leaving Nurse Joy behind. He walked outside, but something pulled him back. It was the Mienfoo, who had followed behind to stop him. The look in its eyes calmed Eljiah down. He realized that randomly raging wouldn't help anyone, and it wasn't worth the time. The Mienfoo pointed up a hill, where he could see a statue that marked a Pokémon Gym. Beating the Gym was currently their only chance of moving forward, so he didn't have much of a choice. He started walking the long road that lead up the hill. By the time he reached the entrance to the Gym, he was already quite tired, even though the challenge hadn't even begun yet.

The room inside was nothing like what he expected. There were waterfalls on each side of the cave-like area, and a huge stone pillar in the center. A man was descending from the wall closest to him, presumably the Gym Leader. Eljiah walked near the wall, and waited for the man to come all the way down. Once he hit the ground with his feet, Grant unbuckled his safety belt dropped it on the ground. "So, you must be the Eljiah that Viola told me so much about. I have to say, I'm glad to finally be able to meet you! She got me curious about you." He reached out to shake his hand, before realizing that one of Eljiah's arms was missing. "I... I'm sorry, Viola told me nothing about that-" Before he could finish his sentence, Eljiah interrupted him. "It's a recent accident. Let's just say I met up with some old friends, and this was their welcoming present." Grant's mouth fell open. "You've got to be kidding me... You know what, Viola told me to not go easy on you, but this is ridiculous. I'll help you get up the pillar, we'll have the battle there." He pointed at a path that looked visibly easier to ascend as the path Grant took to get down. As they walked, Eljiah could hear him mumble a few words. "...Only at the second Gym, and already gone through so much... Some people just get all the bad luck..."

 

Chapter eleven: New powers​

A soft wind blew through Eljiah's hair as he stood on top of the tall pillar, in the center of the Cyllage City Pokémon Gym. Gym Leader Grant walked to one end of the platform, while Eljiah stood on the other end. Grant was holding two Pokéballs, containing his opponents for the battle. "As a fan of hiking and climbing, I feel sorry for you and the loss of your right arm. I wish you the best of luck with everything you will encounter on your path. However..." Eljiah felt how the wind got a bit stronger. "As a Gym Leader, I can't give you any advantages. If you want to win this, you'll have to give it everything you've got. In this battle, we both will use two Pokémon, meaning that one of your partners is not allowed to participate. Now, without any further ado, let's begin this battle!" Grant threw his two Pokéballs high into the air, and from it emerged a Tyrunt and an Amaura, two fossil Pokémon. With his remaining left hand, Eljiah took two Pokéballs and threw them toward the center of the field. Fennekin and Mienfoo appeared from them.

Eljiah didn't come to this battle unprepared. He knew that Grant would use two Rock type Pokémon, so Mienfoo's sudden appearance came as a great help. One of his Pokémon would also be part Ice type, so Fennekin could deal with that. Unfortunately, Helioptile would have to stand back for this battle. Mienfoo seemed to be frozen in place, with its eyes closed, but that was part of Eljiah's plan. It was using Calm Mind, so its next attacks would be even more powerful, while Fennekin would protect it from the others. Amaura used Aurora Beam, which Fennekin instinctively dodged, and the move struck Mienfoo behind her. She used Fire Spin on the Tyrunt, who in return used Bite on her. Eljiah was trying to follow everything that was happening on the field, but it was difficult. Mienfoo came back into action, and used Swift. Both opposing Pokémon were hit by it, but it didn't do much. Fennekin used Flame Charge on Amaura, which did a little more damage, but still nothing much. Eljiah slowly realized that his Pokémon were getting weaker more quickly than Grant's. If nothing happened, they would lose the battle.

Amaura used Thunder Wave on Mienfoo, making it fall to the ground. It tried to get back up, but Tyrunt jumped into the air and landed right on it. There was no way Mienfoo was going to fight anymore, so Fennekin would have to do it all. She used Psybeam on Amaura, but again it didn't do much. Amaura and Tyrunt looked at each other, and at the exact same time, they used Rock Tomb on Fennekin. A storm rocks rushed at her, burying her under the heavy rocks. Eljiah jumped up and immediately ran toward the pile of rocks. With one hand, he hastily started removing the rocks, until he could pick up his Pokémon. Grant noticed that his opponent had tears in his eyes, and he felt bad for going all-out on him. Eljiah dropped to the ground, still holding Fennekin close to him. "I'm so sorry... I shouldn't have let you do this battle. I should've known that it was too much. I only just found Mienfoo too, he wasn't even ready to battle at all. I was being overconfident, and now this happened..." He slowly put his Pokémon on the floor and stood up. "Grant. You've won this battle, and I know the rules, but please give me another chance. I can't stop here, I need to go on. My friend was kidnapped by Team Flare, I at least have to save her! Please, I'm begging you, don't let me fail this!"

The Gym Leader closed his eyes and turned his head. He couldn't look him in the eyes, it was too painful to watch. "I'm sorry, Eljiah, but a loss is a loss. I can't make an exception for anyone, not even you. I'm so very sorry for you..." He looked at his two Pokémon, and then at Eljiah's. "But has the battle ended yet? Is this already a loss? Sure, it may seem like that final attack finished your Fennekin off, but look at her now. I don't think she's willing to give up yet!" Eljiah looked down, and saw that Fennekin had gotten back on her feet. She slowly walked forward, and the air around her started vibrating. Eljiah stepped aside as Fennekin started glowing, and a bright white light made him cover his eyes with his arm. He felt a wave of heat coming over him, and when he lowered his arm, he saw that his Pokémon was no longer standing there. Instead, she had transformed into Braixen, Fennekin's evolution. Braixen was much taller than her previous form, and she now stood on two legs. With her hands, she was holding two wooden sticks, with the tip of them being on fire. She threw both sticks at the two opposing Pokémon, leaving a trail of fire behind them. They both made a full circle around Amaura and Tyrunt before returning right into her hands. Then, a giant flame emerged from where Braixen was standing, and it shot towards Amaura, who was sent flying by the effect. Tyrunt managed to break free from the ring of fire, and jumped at Braixen, ready to bite her. But right before he reached her, she pointed her stick at him, and a pink beam shot out of it. Tyrunt flew backwards and landed on Amaura.

Grant called back his two Pokémon, and turned to Eljiah. "Well, I have to say, I didn't expect that! I was pretty concerned that you weren't going to make it, but I wanted to give you that last chance anyway. To think that your Pokémon still had enough energy to evolve and defeat both my partners, that was amazing! You definitely deserve my Gym badge, so take it!" He handed a small badge to Eljiah, which he gladly accepted. "Now, Eljiah, I have something very important to tell you." He came closer to Eljiah, and continued to whisper, as if he was scared that someone could hear them all the way up here. "Not far from here, there's a cave with walls like mirrors. There are rumors that there is one wall that is unlike the others, in that it holds a special secret of some kind. Now, I'm usually a pretty down-to-earth kind of guy, but for some reason I believe there is truth to this myth. So please, if you go through that cave, take some time to search for it. Again, I don't know why, but I feel like whatever you might find there can only be beneficial to you." With that being said, Grant lead Eljiah to the exit of the Gym.

 

Chapter twelve: Reflected visions​

"These stones... They are the graves of Pokémon sacrificed in a war over 3,000 years ago. A man took their lives in order to create a certain weapon that would end everything." Eljiah looked up into the sky. He had learned a lot of things about the history of Kalos back in Team Flare, however that couldn't have been without a reason. Perhaps Lysandre was planning something based on the story of the so-called ultimate weapon, he could try to reuse it or something like that. Eljiah tried not to think about it too much. His only concerns should be for Serena, saving her was his top priority. He was about to walk into the next area, when Helioptile made a hissing noise. Eljiah looked ahead, and saw two very familiar faces walking very close to him. He quickly hid behind one of the giant stones, hoping they wouldn't notice him.

"You think he's still alive?" It sounded like they stopped right on the other side of the rock Eljiah was hiding behind. "Of course not, didn't you see how he was laying there? His arm was trash, no way he could've gotten back up. Besides, that whole cave was a mess of dead ends, he would've bled to death long before he reached the exit. That guy will no longer be a bother to us." Eljiah heard them walking closer. He had to get away, or else they'd find him for sure, and who knows what they might do to him this time. He silently crawled away from the rock, carefully staying out of sight. There were rocks to hide at everywhere, but since he had no idea where they were going, no place was safe. He hid behind another rock, and saw how Viper and Brute walked exactly to where he had been standing only a moment ago. He heard Viper lighting a cigarette. "Besides, even if he survived, he'd better not show his face again, or I'll make sure he'll never move again." From where he was sitting, he could just see a glimpse of his two enemies. Brute had the same face as always, but Viper sure seemed happy with himself. "So Viper, what did you do with the cute girl we caught?" Viper looked up to him. "I tested her, but she's got no potential. Just a pretty face, that's all. I gave her off to the others, they can have her. Put her in labor in the power plant or something they said. Good riddance if you ask me." Brute was very disappointed with that answer. Suddenly, he looked straight at Eljiah. His eyes shot wide open, and he pushed Viper's shoulder. "I- T-There is- I swear I just- He's- I'm- Over there- You have to- I mean-" Viper clearly didn't understand his intentions, as he annoyingly shook Brute's hand from his shoulder and started walking back. "Come on, you idiot, before boss yells at us again. You don't want that, do you?" For a moment, Brute was trying to decide between following him or checking behind the rock, but he eventually chose for his friend. For the first time in what seemed to be an eternity, Eljiah breathed again.

After waiting until the coast was absolutely clear, Eljiah resumed his travels. He reached Geosenge Town, where he healed his Pokémon, but quickly left again. "Put to labor in the power plant... That's horrible... I have to save her as soon as I can." Not far from Geosenge Town was the entrance to Reflection Cave, through which he had to pass in order to get to the next city. He didn't really know what to expect from the cave, but he kept thinking about what Grant said. Something about a strange mystery hidden inside the cave, that he believed was true. Eljiah was determined to find it, wherever it was. As he stood in front of the entrance, he noticed nothing special. It seemed like a regular cave like any other, and without giving it a second thought, he walked inside. Immediately after he did so, everything turned dark. It wasn't like anyone was covering his eyes, or if he had gone blind. He could still see, but all the sources of light had suddenly disappeared. He looked behind, but even the entrance to the cave he had just passed through had disappeared. When he turned his head back, he noticed a white Pokémon in front of him. This wasn't the first time he had seen it, but he couldn't recall a prior meeting either. The Pokémon bent its legs, kneeling before him, and with the blink of an eye, it was gone again. Suddenly, the glass walls in the cave lighted up. As if he were in a room full of mirrors, Eljiah started walking again, amazed by the beauty of this cave. It felt as if time had stopped passing while he was inside here. He walked for a very long time, and started to wonder how far it was to the end. Suddenly, he saw someone ahead of him. Someone he had been longing for more than anyone else.

"Serena!" He rushed towards her, but when he was almost there, he hit the wall and fell on his back. He was both shocked and confused as to what had just happened, but he quickly realized it had just been his imagination playing tricks on him. He turned around to walk back, but instead of the road he had come from, there was now another mirroring wall. This one showed himself, but with Lysandre standing behind him, with his hand resting on Eljiah's shoulder. Why would he imagine that, he thought to himself. To his left was another wall, showing him being held by the three criminals he had met before. Finally, the wall on his right was completely empty. He thought about the things he saw, and a wave of emotions hit him. "These visions... These are my choices. Any of these walls show a possible outcome of my future. I could go back to Team Flare and be praised by Lysandre. I could be surprised and caught be the criminals. I could fail to save Serena, and leave her alone. Or..." He looked at the empty wall on his right, "I could die, and lose everything."

Eljiah stood up, and as a tear dropped to the floor, he picked up a rock. "But I refuse to accept any of it!" He ran towards the first wall, and broke the mirror with the stone. "I'm not going back to Team Flare!" He ran to the next wall. "I'm not going to let myself be caught!" Another glass wall shattered. "I won't fail to rescue Serena, and most of all... I won't die!" He broke the third and fourth wall, and suddenly everything was dark again. And there it was again, that white Pokémon, just like before. But this time, he wasn't alone. Another Pokémon was floating next to him, one that strongly reminded Eljiah of Alakazam, yet still different. Alakazam never had a beard, and it wasn't floating above the ground either. Besides, this version of Alakazam had way more than two spoons. Then, the Alakazam spoke to Eljiah.

"You have a remarkably strong desire, young one." This was the only time Eljiah ever heard a Pokémon talk human language, and he didn't know what to reply. "You refused to accept any of the futures I had layed out for you. I didn't even think of that as a possibility." A silence fell again. Eljiah had been correct, the visions he saw weren't just mind tricks. They were actual possible futures, which he could've chosen to follow. "Now, young one, close your eyes. Because of your decision to not pass on with your predicted futures, you will undergo an unknown path. Nobody, not even myself, knows what your future will hold. Therefore, I will grant you the wish that lays deepest in your heart. Then, you may pass."