Helix and Hooves: Trainers of the Future

by The Kelduo

Chapter 17: Burning Fury at the Third Gym!

I felt refreshed as usual the moment I awoke from my slumber. Tossing aside my blanket, I got out of bed and stretched to get myself ready to take on whatever the day threw at me. I donned my lab coat and checked the pockets to make sure nobody sneaked in and stole any of my stuff.

My Potions and status healers were all there... As were my Ethers and Elixirs... And my Berries... And Key Items... And all of my Poke Balls. Good, it looked like nothing had been taken.

After neatly tucking my blanket back into place, I walked out the door. However, something unusual for me was swirling around in the depths of my subconscious, and I couldn't quite understand why.

Frustration and worry.

But I shrugged it off for the moment, because I didn't need to get all worked up before the third Gym battle. I continued to the elevators and took the nearest one down to the lobby.

"Morning, Helix! Guess I'm more of an early bird than you are." The Doctor was waiting for me in the lobby. "Marnie went on ahead to challenge Kabu, but she lent me a couple copies of his League Card."

"A couple?" I asked. "Why not just one?"

"She told me to hand you one of them once you made it down here to the lobby after waking up. So, here you go!" He gave me a League Card. On it, Kabu was making a dramatic pose, his right hand making a finger-gun gesture towards the sky.

I read the description on the back. It caught my attention when it mentioned that he came from a different region. "The Hoenn region... I've been there before. There's much to see, but you need to be able to swim or have a Pokemon that can be ridden over water if you want to visit the eastern part of the region."

"As much as I would love to visit this Hoenn region, that'll have to wait until later, perhaps when this year's me returns to Galar... if that's the right way to put it. Blimey, it's hard to use the right grammar when you're from a different time! Anyway, we still need to accomplish our mission here in Galar. And speaking of, which of us do you think should challenge Kabu next?"

That upset, frustrated feeling came back from my subconscious. "I... I've been thinking about that, actually..." I expected the worried feeling to make me wait to take on Kabu, but it had the opposite effect. "Doctor, I'll go first. I want to get my Motostoke Stadium challenge out of the way quickly... because I don't want to keep an old acquaintance waiting."

I walked down the short flight of stairs, but the Doctor stopped me from heading out the door. "Don't rush off just yet! Marnie shared some advice with me, and I want to pass it on to you..." He balanced a Poke Ball on the tip of his hoof. "If you want to excel at Kabu's Gym Mission, you need to be good at catching Pokemon."

"Catching Pokemon..." I nodded. "Thanks for the info. I'd better make a quick trip before taking on this city's Gym, then." I made my way out the door.

---

After doing business with a Watt Trader, I returned to Motostoke to challenge the Gym. When I got there, Marnie exited the stadium and took off with a Flying Taxi, so she must've beaten Kabu. That meant I came just in time.

I spoke with the official at the front desk, who gladly registered me for the third leg of the Gym Challenge. I changed into my uniform before I was escorted to the Gym mission's site. I was told a very vague nugget of wisdom by the official, though: The Fire Gym's mission is somewhat different than the others I've faced so far.

---

The site of the Gym mission was quite unique. Instead of some kind of maze to the exit, I found myself in a circular area with three different patches of grass, a Gym Trainer in each of them. Furthermore, the area was surrounded by a concrete road like the ones athletes run on in track-and-field.

My vexation of unknown origin was starting to flare up again.

I met Dan in the center, on top of a red circle with the recurring samurai logo on it. Behind Dan was a scoreboard of some sort. "Welcome, Gym Challenger! The Gym mission for the Fire Gym is this!" He motioned towards the patches of grass. "You must catch Pokemon hiding in the grass..." Then he stepped aside to show me the scoreboard. "...in order to score points! When five points have been reached, you will clear the Gym mission! One point is earned when you defeat a Pokemon in the tall grass, and two are earned when you successfully catch one. But be careful, though. The Gym Trainers will be working to prevent you from catching Pokemon or landing the final blow; if they finish off a wild Pokemon, it doesn't count towards your point total."

"I see. So if I want to win..." I looked around at each of the three Gym Trainers, who all had a Poke Ball in their hand. "...I must anticipate their next move and act accordingly."

"That's right! Now that the rules are out of the way..." Dan exclaimed, "Gym mission, start!"

I began by observing the grass patches to see what Pokemon were in each one. In the southwest patch, there was a Vulpix. It evolves into a powerful Fire-type Pokemon, but I already caught a Ninetales in another region. In the southeast patch, there was a Sizzlipede. I had yet to catch one, so I prioritized Sizzlipede. But before attempting to catch it, I wanted to see what was in the north patch of grass.

As I approached the patch, an eerie glow instantly grabbed my attention. I stopped right where I was, watching the glow with extreme caution.

It moved north out of the grass. My mixture of anger and fear spiked when I saw what the glow really was.

A light blue flame belonging to a white candle Pokemon having two stubby arms and a small mouth. Both of its eyes were covered by melted wax.

"You...!" Seething with pure rage, I flung a Razor Leaf that barely missed the Litwick. Surprised, it turned around, at which point I landed in front of it. "Remember me, you cruel monster?"

"Uh... I don't think so. I don't remember running into a Shiny Decidueye before. Before I take you down, I'm gonna go ahead and ask..." The Litwick pointed at me. "Who're you?"

"I saw one of your crimes take place before my very eyes..." I took a step forward with my right talon, a tear rolling down my cheek. "You're the one who took the soul of the Pokemon I considered my closest friend!"

It shrugged. "...Do you have any idea how little that narrows things down? Be more specific."

"You want specific? Fine... I'll give you the straight facts!" I began to recount the tale of how I lost one of the Pokemon I loved most. "It was another fine day in the Unova region. I was scaling Celestial Tower to ring the bell on the roof, when at the second floor, you completely enraptured me with your Shiny sparkle. I had made it my goal to complete the Shiny Living Dex excluding Legendary Pokemon, so I intended to do everything I could to catch you. Having not come prepared with Quick Balls, I sent out my trusty intimidation Pokemon to weaken you enough for me to successfully capture you. But you..." A ghastly aura surrounded me as I reached anger levels that shouldn't even be possible. "You ripped his soul right out of his body! You turned him into nothing more than a lifeless husk! I ran away back then, Wikwik... but now that I'm a Pokemon, it's time to switch roles: I'll be the killer, and you'll be the victim."

"Wikwik...?" Litwick looked up in realization. "Oh! I remember now! You must be that Helix guy who fled from me after seeing my spectral might four years ago! ...But reincarnated as a Shiny Decidueye for some reason. Helix is the only guy I know who's ever called me Wikwik before. Must be because your then-human ears mistook my gratitude for saying 'wick wick'. I actually go by Frightlight." Her flame burned brighter, as if taunting me. "But yes, your Krookodile's soul fueled my fire quite a bit! Thanks a lot for generously handing over his soul back then!"

"Of all my Pokemon..." I grabbed Frightlight in my wings and shook her rapidly. "Why did you have to take K. Rock's soul?! No Pokemon could ever replace him!"

"Don't you know?" She giggled. "We Litwick get our flames fueled more from rare and powerful souls than weak, common ones. That sweet-looking Krookodile of yours that had flawless individual values was the perfect way to help my fire burn bright!"

"Stronger flames from stronger Pokemon? I can't believe I didn't think of that..." I let go of her. "By any chance... did you steal the soul of a Krabby yesterday?"

"Yep!" Frightlight shamelessly answered. "A Krabby with perfect IVs and the Sheer Force Hidden Ability."

"Huh, that's what I figured." I thought back to my meal at the Captain's Table. "No wonder that Krabby's legs didn't taste as good as I expected... Not that it matters." I carefully plucked a quill, making sure not to let her see it. "And what're you doing all the way out here in Motostoke Stadium, anyway?"

"Well, I overheard that the Fire Gym in the Galar region is super tough, so surely the challengers there would have some really strong Pokemon, and maybe even some rare ones. Since I'm part Fire type, I would blend in perfectly! So I hitched a ride on a migrating Braviary to get to Galar before sneaking my way into this stadium. This was the greatest plan!" She shook her head. "No luck yet, though. Earlier today some black-haired girl came in with some tough Pokemon, but they were too smart to give me a chance to steal their souls. At least I got to keep her from gaining a point by letting the Gym Trainer land the finishing blow. Hehehe!"

"Mother of Arceus... And I thought megalomaniac Pokemon didn't exist..." I had an idea. I decided to distract her with a story that would both surely catch her attention and be relevant to the situation. "Say, have you ever heard the story of the twenty-love killer?"

"Twenty-love killer? No, that doesn't sound familiar to me. I'd be happy to hear it!"

"And I would be happy to tell you." What Frightlight didn't know was that I was secretly setting up for an attack surprisingly related to the story. "One day, an unsuspecting human fell into a place known as the Underground, which was populated with creatures simply called monsters. He was guided on where to go and what to do by an entity who is called... The Player. Seeing the dangers of being among monsters, The Player gave the human a mission to become as strong as possible. How did they accomplish that mission? By slaying every monster in sight. The monsters tried to end his massacre, but every single one fell victim to his weapon, be it a shoe, a frying pan, or a knife. By the time the human had killed all the monsters in the Underground, his level of violence had reached twenty, hence the name 'twenty-love killer.'

"At the end of the Underground, the human thanked The Player. He had looted everything in every area, reached the highest level of violence, and ensured that nothing survived his murderous rampage. Now that the Underground was barren of things to do, the human suggested that he erase the pointless world so The Player can move on to the next."

Frightlight was bouncing up and down with excitement. "Did The Player agree to this?"

I paused for dramatic effect. "...No, The Player refused."

She gasped. "Really? What'd the human think of that?"

She was too into the story to notice me brandishing the quill with malicious intent. "The human was impressed. He said, 'No? That's interesting...' Then the next six words he said shook The Player to the core..."

"And those were--" Frightlight lifted up her melted wax to look at me with her green left eye, only to discover that I had a darkness-imbued quill in my right wing, a Ghost Gem in my left, and completely black eyes. "Oh, fizzle..."

Oh, fizzle, indeed...

"SINCE WHEN WERE YOU IN CONTROL?!"

I delivered a single vertical slash that cleaved the cruel candle in two. Having done its job, the Ghost Gem vanished, and my eyes returned to normal. For good measure, I crushed the vile wax in my talons.

But the flame was still there, separated from Frightlight's decimated body. "Dang... You have no idea how much that hurt..." It floated around me, teasing me. "To be honest, I really didn't expect my soul to live on even after my body perished. Guess I've absorbed the power of so many souls that my own soul can survive even without a body. Now if you'll excuse--" It suddenly charged into my body, only to quickly bounce out. "What the... Let's try this again." It rushed into me once more, with the same result. "This doesn't make any sense. I've been stealing souls for years now! Why can't I steal yours?"

I crossed my arms in defiance. "I've trained both my body and my soul to be strong and unyielding. I intended for the training to help me avoid mind control, but apparently it works for soul thieves as well."

"Huh, you really are stubborn. I got a feeling that you REALLY want to end me, but you'll have to figure out how to do that on your--"

I whipped up a whirlwind around the flame.

"...No, you idiot. You can't just blow out a spectral fire. It takes--"

"I know." Many thick vines burst out of the ground and encompassed Frightlight's soul, constricting it. "That was a diversion. This is the real attack." The vines drained her soul of all its life, and when they retracted back into the ground, the only things left were many smaller souls that were more like actual wisps than flames.

They seemed to call out to me in thanks.

"Hey, you've no need to thank me. I was just doing my job as a hero. And besides, the ultimate reason why I killed your kidnapper wasn't even all that heroic. I acted out of emotion, because a few years ago..." I looked at one of the souls in particular before frowning. "...Frightlight really pissed me off."

I threw a Quick Ball at the Vulpix and Sizzlipede from earlier, catching them to complete the Gym mission.

The Gym Trainers were completely still, afraid of how viciously I did away with Frightlight and her soul. Dan was too, but he managed to calm down enough to talk. "...Uh, congrats on completing the Gym mission! Y-you were positively on fire! ...Oh, right!" He shakily pointed towards a large door. "Head through there to reach the arena where you'll be battling the Fire Gym's leader, Kabu! I-if you don't mind, that is."

"Of course I don't mind. I feel much better now that I've rescued these souls from that soulthirsty Litwick. And speaking of..." I opened my wings to the souls. "I'll get you all back to your bodies if they're still intact. For now, just use my body as a vessel. You'll have a front-row seat for my battle against Kabu." The souls eagerly entered my body. I felt a tingly feeling as they got settled in. "Alright, now we're gonna have some fun."

I walked towards the door with my mind and heart at ease. With that soul thief out of the way, I could concentrate fully on the upcoming battle.

---

---

I slowly advanced through the hallway leading to the arena, sensing the energetic anticipation of the souls within me. Using that Ghost Gem, not to mention the Frenzy Plant-Giga Drain combo, had worn me out for a short while, but I'd recovered in a manner of seconds. Perhaps my stamina training paid off, or maybe it was because the souls were sharing their restored power with me.

When I reached the end of the hallway, I heard footsteps behind me. Looking to my right, I saw none other than the man of fire himself. I acknowledged his presence with a nod. Together, we walked to the center of the stadium.

Once there, Kabu spoke up. "So... Helix, was it? You're an impressive Trainer. Not only did you best both Milo's Grass-type Pokemon and Nessa's Water types, but you made my Gym mission look like child's play! Although... the way you ended that Litwick was overkill."

"Not to me..." I looked up at the audience. "Heed my words, fellow Pokemon Trainers! The Litwick I fatally attacked was no ordinary Litwick... Her name is Frightlight, and she has been stealing the souls of rare and powerful Pokemon for years. If I had not shown her what comes after the afterlife, she could have taken the souls of any of your Pokemon that you used to challenge the Fire Gym!"

They gasped. Some of them even held their Poke Balls close to their bodies in sadness.

"Relax, all of you whose Pokemon may have fallen victim to Frightlight. While there may not be a way to bring them back, all you need to know is that no more Pokemon will suffer Frightlight's wrath, and that justice has been served my way... cold."

Hearing this, most of the Trainers sighed in relief, while the rest hugged each other in sorrow.

"So, that Litwick has been stealing souls for a long time?" Kabu asked. "From how you described this Frightlight, she must be a much bigger threat than I had initially thought. In that case, thank you very much for making sure she was finished off for good!"

"I appreciate the gratitude, but I was mainly doing that for myself." I clenched my fist. "She took the soul of my closest Pokemon friend, so I reciprocated by bringing her soul-taking streak to a complete halt. My icy heart is hard to thaw, but when it does, it becomes a raging inferno."

"Good to know. Your frozen heart keeps you safe from emotions that may otherwise interfere with your ability to fight, but you hold nothing back against a true opponent who gets past that barrier and brings out your inner power." We took our places at each side of the battlefield. He sent out a Kantonian Ninetales. "Allow me to see if I can melt your cold heart!"

I responded by sending out Gyarados.

Dan, having recovered from his fear, scampered to the side of the arena to referee the match. "Let the Gym battle against Kabu begin!"

Kabu got the first move. "Use Incinerate!" Ninetales shot a fireball at Gyarados.

"Charge right through! Waterfall!" The fireball didn't faze Gyarados as he shot ahead, ramming into Ninetales with great force. "Now go for Crunch!" He threatened to chomp down on Ninetales with his massive maw.

"Here's your chance! Flamethrower!" Ninetales launched a stream of flame into Gyarados' gullet, making him close his mouth from the pain it brought his esophagus. "Follow through with Tail Whip!" Ninetales turned around and repeatedly lashed Gyarados with its many tails.

This wasn't the first time I've seen an offensive Tail Whip, but I was still impressed to see the move utilized by a Ninetales. "You go for quantity... but we go for quality! Aqua Tail!" Gyarados slammed Ninetales with his large, water-covered tail, ending the first round surprisingly quickly.

"I should have seen this coming... Not many Trainers come ready to hit my Pokemon with their weaknesses, but you know better." Kabu returned his Ninetales to its Poke Ball. "I've been wondering how long it would be until such a challenger takes me on, and it pleases me to encounter a skilled Trainer like you." He sent out a large canine Pokemon with an orange and black pelt, and shaggy beige fur. "Go, Arcanine!"

So, the legendary Pokemon that isn't a Legendary Pokemon... The wide variety of moves that Arcanine could learn gave me the feeling that things were going to spiral downhill fast if Gyarados didn't do something about it. "Use Rain Dance!" Gyarados roared, summoning dark clouds from which rain fell. I then realized that it was raining on some of the audience. "Apologies to those of you who despise rain!"

"Trying to weaken our fire attacks?" Kabu's already serious face turned even more serious. "Good maneuver, but you'll have to do better. Wild Charge!" Arcanine covered itself in electricity and charged towards Gyarados with amazing speed.

"Dodge it!" Gyarados attempted to move its long serpentine body out of the way, but it still suffered a direct hit from Wild Charge, knocking it out. "You did exceptional, Gyarados. Return." I withdrew Gyarados before remarking, "Teaching that powerful Electric-type move to Arcanine was outstanding, Kabu! You're certainly ready for any Water types that come your way!"

"Water types were the very reason we trained in Galar Mine No. 2," Kabu replied. "I made sure to incorporate a physical Electric-type move into Arcanine's moveset to surprise challengers."

I saw Wild Charge coming, but I failed to acknowledge my Water and Flying type's long body. "Perhaps Drednaw would have been a better Water type to have in my team... Oh well, time for my next Pokemon!" I sent out Farfetch'd. "I choose you, Farfetch'd!"

"A Farfetch'd? Interesting choice. Arcanine, use Play Rough!" Arcanine charged straight ahead.

"Brutal Swing, and aim low!" Farfetch'd swung his huge leek horizontally along the ground, causing Arcanine to trip. "Now use Rock Smash!" He lifted his leek up in the air and prepared to bring it down on Arcanine's head.

"Intercept it with Bite!" Arcanine lifted its head up and sank its incisors into the leek, to our surprise. "Now shake it!" Arcanine rapidly tossed its head about, and Farfetch'd hung onto the leek like his life depended on it. But his grip slowly gave way, and he was eventually thrown to the side.

Farfetch'd pushed himself to his feet and saw Arcanine smugly holding his leek in its jaws. "Darn it... If that fiend bites down much harder, my leek will... No! There must be a way!"

I nodded. "There is. Use Knock--"

"Knock Off? That's a horrible idea! Think about the possible consequences! Knock Off could cause Arcanine to put even more force on my leek rather than release it. I won't risk that, not for my leek!" Farfetch'd held his smaller Leek angrily, then he repeatedly looked from his Leek to Arcanine and back. "Hmm... I've got it!"

He twirled his Leek rapidly like a baton, purple energy covering it, then he hurled it at Arcanine. It hit Arcanine square in the neck, and Arcanine released the big leek with a mere whimper escaping its mouth as well.

Farfetch'd learned Throat Chop.

"One down... Time to see if this bad dog can handle two more..." After retrieving his regular-sized Leek, Farfetch'd picked up his own leek and used Rock Smash to hammer Arcanine hard on the head with it.

"Two..." Having not yet quelled his anger, he bashed Arcanine twice more. The first hit was with Rock Smash, but the second one was a different move. I recognized it as Superpower by the orange aura that surrounded Farfetch'd, as well as the massive damage it dealt. Holding the leek over his right shoulder, he leered at the defeated opponent.

He started glowing light blue.

His body didn't seem to change one bit. But his leek, on the other hand... It became straight and sharpened at the end, and Farfetch'd held it upright as a shield of some sort formed in his left wing. When the glow went away, his down had changed from dark brown to pure white, and his frown had changed into a confident smile. The shield he had was a very sturdy leaf.

He had evolved into a Farfetch'd version of the White Knight.

"...Three."

I eagerly checked his Pokedex entry. "Sirfetch'd, the Wild Duck Pokemon, and the evolution of Farfetch'd. A Fighting type, this evolution can only be attained by Farfetch'd who have survived many battles. When a Sirfetch'd's leek withers, it will retire from combat for good."

"A noble swordsman..." I smiled. "I've made my choice. Your name will be Wing Arthur! ...Actually, that might not make sense for the people of Galar if there wasn't a legendary warrior in the past known as King Arthur." I facewinged while sighing. "This could very well make some people laugh... but I'll have to resort to calling you the next best thing, which could easily be taken the wrong way... Leeksalot."

As I expected, this elicited some giggles from the crowd.

"Fantastic! You're the only Gym Challenger I've had who's managed to have a Pokemon evolve while battling me!" Kabu watched as the rain began to peter out. "Ah, just in time. That Rain Dance greatly impeded my Fire types... but now that the rainfall has ceased, I can truly light my inner fire!" He withdrew Arcanine and sent out a long centipede Pokemon like Sizzlipede, but larger. The flames on its face reminded me of a samurai helmet... Wait... This Pokemon must have been the inspiration for the Motostoke logo! "Nothing stands between us and the opponent, Centiskorch! It's time for us to truly go all-out!"

I checked Centiskorch's Pokedex entry. "Centiskorch, the radiator Pokemon, and the evolution of Sizzlipede. A Fire- and Bug-type, Centiskorch's body temperature can reach about 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit. It lashes its body like a whip and launches itself at enemies to burn them with the heat-generating organs on its underside."

"A type that Fighting will be less effective against... Okay, then. You did very well, Leeksalot. Congrats on evolving." The wild duck Pokemon contently went into his Poke Ball, very happy over his success in landing enough critical hits. I sent out my Carkol, which caused Kabu to flinch. And he had a good reason to flinch, because Centiskorch has a severe type disadvantage. "Now it's your turn, Rev Rock!"

"Your nickname for Carkol is Rev Rock?" Kabu shook his head. "A rookie mistake. If you want it to reach its second evolution, then it would be a good idea to change its name."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Despite what you may think, Carkol's final evolution isn't a locomotive Pokemon. Its nickname should be that of a walking Pokemon, not a rolling one."

"Not a locomotive Pokemon?" I was very astonished. Before this discovery, I had thought that Carkol would almost certainly evolve into a train Pokemon. "In that case, I'll call you N. Jinn, as a reference to your Ability!"

"Your nicknaming skills leave nothing to be desired." Kabu withdrew Centiskorch and filled its Poke Ball with Dynamax Energy. "But now we must see if your Dynamax skills are good enough to take on the form-changing power of Gigantamax!" With a certain fire in his eyes, Kabu tossed the Dynamax Ball. When it opened, Centiskorch had a completely new form: Its number of segments and legs drastically increased, and its underside turned completely yellow to match the heat-generating organs. The flames from its head and "tail" grew larger and longer, resembling an X at the center.

The intense heat radiating off of Gigantamax Centiskorch caused me to sweat, and I wiped some off of my forehead before preparing N. Jinn for Dynamaxing. "As a Pokemon Trainer, I'll do everything in my power to put out your fire!" I chucked my Dynamax Ball and released Dynamax N. Jinn. "Time to frighten everyone on the naughty list! Coal usually fuels fire, but in the case of Carkol, fire fuels coal!"

"I was hoping to use Centiskorch's G-Max Move, but your clever quip revealed your plan to me. Instead, it's time to use Max Darkness!" I realized my blunder as Gigantamax Centiskorch sent dark energy at N. Jinn, causing an explosion of darkness that seemed to lower his defenses.

"Sorry about that, N. Jinn!" I apologetically exclaimed. "I often have a habit of making one-liners relevant to the situations I find myself in..." I quickly looked up the name of the Rock-type Max Move. "Anyway, strike back with Max Rockfall!" Suddenly, the very ground beneath me shook, and a massive pillar of stone rose up under my talons. "Whoa, I'd better move!" I jumped off of the pillar as it fell forward and pancaked the opposing Pokemon before bursting apart. This in turn caused a sandstorm to appear on the battlefield.

G-Max Centiskorch survived the attack despite having a double weakness to Rock-type moves. Seeing as Carkol didn't have very much attack power, I didn't expect Centiskorch to be taken out in one super-effective move, so it didn't come as a surprise to me.

"Finish it off with another Max Rockfall!" N. Jinn prepared another stone pillar, but as it fell, I was introduced to another kind of Max Move...

"Max Guard!"

A light blue barrier appeared in front of Centiskorch and completely no-sell'd the Max Rockfall, astounding me.

Kabu chuckled. "It's clear that you've never heard of the move Max Guard before. Simply put, it's a Max Move that works like Protect and Detect, but it also completely guards against other Max Moves." He gripped the towel around his neck tightly. "Now, Centiskorch! Use Max Darkness...?"

Following his confounded stare, I looked up and saw that G-Max Centiskorch's eyes had turned into swirls. It stood still for a few seconds before slowly falling to the ground and returning to its original state.

"Did... Did the sandstorm strip away the last of Centiskorch's health?!" Kabu asked, still in disbelief.

"...I think it did," I replied as the Dynamax Energy left N. Jinn and brought him back to his normal size. "That was... unprecedented. Unprecedented, but very welcome." I returned N. Jinn to his Poke Ball before walking up to Kabu, who looked crushed that he lost because of a sandstorm. "Hey, you're not alone. I may be a professional Trainer, but even I have lost a few matches to bad weather or stage hazards."

"I was so focused on your Pokemon that I forgot about the sandstorm..." Kabu rose from his knees with a smile before returning Centiskorch to its Poke Ball. "Thank you, Challenger Helix. You put up an exceptional fight, and that sandstorm your Carkol's Max Rockfall created taught me to take all things into account in Pokemon battles, including seemingly minor things such as weather. With this knowledge, I'll have an advantage if I ever have another battle with Raihan."

"Raihan?" The mention of Raihan perplexed me. "That's strange. If I recall correctly, he's a Dragon-type user. Why would you be concerned about sandstorms?"

"True, he does specialize in Dragon types. However, he strives to win in all environments, so he often uses weather such as harsh sunlight and sandstorms. You should consider that when you challenge Raihan at Hammerlocke Stadium. But before that, here's a Fire Badge as proof that you've defeated me!" The badge Kabu gave me had a design like a flame on it. I expected it to go along the ring between the Grass and Water Badges, but it actually went in the middle of the medallion, still bordered by said Badges. "Seeing as you're a long-time Pokemon Trainer, I assume you know that Pokemon battling is a major part of our culture, correct?"

"I do. Pokemon and humans have a mutual relationship; humans train Pokemon so they can bond and become stronger, and in turn Pokemon help humans with their everyday lives. Additionally, by working with Pokemon, humans can learn more about them." I spread my wings to the audience. "It's up to the passionate hearts of young Trainers to make sure it stays that way and potentially becomes even better, but that doesn't mean older Trainers can't get in on the action!"

"Such is the reason why I always keep my inner fire burning brightly. A true Trainer must never let their fiery passion die down, lest they be snuffed out by the demands of society." Kabu handed me a reddish-orange TM. "This is a gift from me. It's TM38, Will-O-Wisp. If it hits, the opposing Pokemon will be burned, slowly taking damage and dropping their attack power."

I gladly took the Technical Machine and put it away before shaking Kabu's hand. "Thank you for the battle. Now if you'll excuse me..." The souls anxiously trembled within my body. "...I need to take care of the souls that Frightlight stole."

After changing out of my uniform and picking up the Fire Uniform gift on my way out of Motostoke Stadium, I transformed into a Shiny Dragonite once more and took off.

---

Before even a minute had passed, the Galar region was dozens of miles behind me. Another landmass came into my line of sight, which meant that I was close to my destination. Putting even more effort into flying, I soared right over the Unova region.

I only slowed down when a snowy mountain appeared over the horizon. Rather, it looked less like a mountain and more like a frozen castle, for a recent incident that happened about seven years ago made the abandoned mineshaft unstable and forced the most important inhabitant to freeze a new foundation into place.

I landed at the entrance of the frozen mineshaft.

Full Court.

Returning to my Decidueye form, I sent out Hotshot. "If things haven't changed much since the Sword of Justice incident, the main room of this place must still be blocked by ice. Hotshot, have you been practicing your kicking skills?"

Hotshot nodded. "Did a lot of kicking in Galar Mine No. 2, where I punted some rocks at the local Water types as well as using normal moves on them. And back when you had me train while you helped the Doctor, I did some special training where I kicked Berries out of trees to work on my accuracy."

"Good." I used the Pokemon Box Link to switch out N. Jinn for the Sizzlipede I caught in the Fire Gym. "Follow me. We're gonna meet the fearsome Pokemon who calls this frozen castle his home."

Together, Hotshot and I entered the mineshaft. The place had worn down a lot over time, so it wasn't a simple jaunt. We had to vault over derailed minecarts, leap from wooden support to wooden support, and shimmy along walls to reach the center. The occasional Cryogonal, an ice crystal Pokemon, flying by didn't make things easier.

The journey got much easier towards the end, where we just had to run through the twists and turns of a corridor. At the end of the corridor was a wall of ice blocking the way to the main area.

I looked down at Hotshot. "It's time. Use Double Kick!"

"Got it." Hotshot raced towards the ice barrier and delivered some powerful kicks to it. However, it didn't even crack. "Dang, that's some pretty tough ice. Only a really strong Ice-type Pokemon could make this kind of ice!"

"I know. The Pokemon who lives here is a Legendary Pokemon, but this ice wall has been up for a long time. Surely it's gotten a little weaker as time went by. Try using Flame Charge!"

"Good idea. A Fire-type move ought to make it weak enough to break through." Hotshot cloaked himself in fire and charged at the wall. It still had no effect. "Seriously?! Just how good is this Legendary Pokemon at using Ice-type moves?"

"Well, he's fabled to be the most powerful Dragon-type Pokemon."

"No kidding..." Hotshot looked down at the ground and saw a lone pebble. I saw a smirk rise behind the red collar of fur covering his mouth. "Well, what do you know? Looks like it's time to do this my own way."

He kicked it up and began juggling it with his hind feet. I may not be a professional soccer player, but the way he kept it from touching the ground using only his feet reminded me of one. If you were to witness him juggling the pebble, you would think he was preparing for a major soccer league such as the Premier League.

His body gave off the evolution glow.

Finally, I thought. It's about time he caught up to the Doctor's starter enough to evolve.

Hotshot's body became taller in general, and his ears perked up again and became larger. His arms became longer and more slender, as did his legs. When the evolution glow dissipated, I saw that he had a red tuft of fur on his forehead like a flame, and he had red fur on his lower body like a pair of rolled-up pants. His black feet with red toes were continuing to juggle the pebble, which started to glow orange.

He wasn't just juggling it. He was turning it into a burning soccer ball.

"He shoots!" With a powerful sideways kick, Hotshot launched the fireball at the icy barrier. It completely shattered, and he performed a celebratory knee slide. "GOOOOOOOAAAALLLL!"

I checked his Pokedex entry as we proceeded. "Cinderace, the Striker Pokemon. A Fire type, it juggles pebbles with its feet to turn them into flaming soccer balls. Its shots strike hard and leave opponents scorched."

Seems like I made the right choice in calling him Hotshot.

We continued into a clearing, where several Cryogonal swarmed the area. At the center was a circular platform similar to a railroad turntable. Above the main floor was a balcony of some sort.

I walked a few steps forward, the cold not even making me shiver. "Kyurem!" I exclaimed, causing an echo to resonate. "My name is Helix, and I've come to make a request!"

Loud stomping sounded from afar, and its source slowly marched into view near the center platform: a frozen dragon with glowing yellow eyes, strange protrusions like wings, and a large tail that appeared to be some kind of energy container or propulsion device. "Helix..." He gave me a menacing stare. "I do not accept requests. Now leave." A ball of cyan energy formed in front of his mouth. "Or will I have to make you leave?"

"No, I'm not here for that kind of request." I allowed the souls to leave my body so Kyurem could see them, then they returned to my body after a few seconds. "Is it true that the victims of a certain Litwick have been brought here to be left under your supervision?"

"...!" The cyan ball of energy vanished. "Those souls you have... Could it be? Did you manage to rescue them from the notorious Litwick criminal known as Frightlight?"

I nodded. "I did. Why do you ask? You know that Litwick?"

Kyurem's eyes narrowed. "She took the soul of my most powerful Cryogonal servant... That unsympathetic bastard!" He looked at his Cryogonal. "Go and bring the bodies. Now that this Pokemon has retrieved their souls, there is no need for them to be preserved."

The ice crystal Pokemon immediately flew off into a dark corridor. Some time passed, and they returned carrying many large blocks of ice. The blocks were dropped in front of me, allowing me to see that there were Pokemon in each one. The souls instantly escaped my body and entered their own bodies, except for one soul, which was left without a body.

"I assume you have a means of thawing them out?"

"Certainly." I sent out Sizzlipede and fed it Experience Candies to evolve it into Centiskorch. "Use Wrap on the frozen Pokemon. And if you will... start with the crocodile Pokemon."

Centiskorch coiled its body around the ice block containing a bipedal, brown crocodile Pokemon with yellow stripes on its back and tail, and a yellow membrane surrounding its eyes. Centiskorch's heat organs glowed yellow, causing steam to rise from the ice.

Once it was weakened enough, the block of ice shattered, freeing the Pokemon within... My Shiny Krookodile. He opened his eyes after a few seconds, to my relief. "Ugh, my back..." He got up and stretched, a few bones popping. "Hey, where am I? And how long have I been out?"

"You are in my lair," Kyurem answered. "I froze your body using Ice Burn to preserve it for three years, but this Pokemon named Helix killed the Litwick who stole your soul, so he was able to bring you back to life."

"Helix?" Krookodile crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "You can't be Helix. My Trainer Helix is a human, and you're a Pokemon of some sort! You ain't fooling me!"

"Who said I was fooling you? I can prove I'm your Trainer." I took out a pink Poke Ball, a Heal Ball. I used the return beam to withdraw Krookodile before sending him out again. He still didn't look convinced. "And before you say I could've just stolen your Poke Ball..." I cleared my throat and began to sing the chorus of a certain shanty, but with a special twist...

"Hail to the croc, to the Pokemon who sure rocks!
Hail to the croc, to the Pokemon who sure rocks!
Hail to K. Rock, the Ground- and Dark-type who rocks my world!"

K. Rock gasped. "It... It really is you! C'mere!" With a big smile, he ran towards me and gave me a hug, which I returned. "Sounds like I missed out on a lot, but for right now..." We did a stereotypical tough-guy handshake. "K. Rock is back and ready to help kick some tail, baby!"

I joyously returned K. Rock to his Heal Ball. "I'd sure love to have you battle with me once again, but right now I'm exploring a new region, so I want to use a full team of Pokemon from that region. For now, just stay in here." I sent him to the Pokemon Box, where I would make sure not to forget him when I returned a year older.

The next thawed-out Pokemon was a Cryogonal with orange eyes and ice chains. A Shiny Cryogonal.

"Kelvin... It's been so long..." Kyurem watched in delight as the Shiny Cryogonal known as Kelvin floated to him. "Welcome back, my most bone-chilling follower. May your powers stay true to your name."

After Kelvin, Centiskorch melted an ice block containing two Pokemon that looked remarkably similar to each other.

They had the body shape of ponies, although leaning more towards princess ponies and real horses. Both Pokemon had a cream-colored body and horn, blue fur covering their back and chest, a blue tail, and a red mane, but there were some differences.

The first of them to wake up and rise to its hooves was female. Her long mane rested on her back, partially hiding the blue fur. Her horn was short and straight with a rounded end. The other Pokemon, a male, got up soon after. He had a fairly short mane and a long, curved horn with a pointed end.

Like with several Legendary Pokemon, they proved to be able to speak through telepathy. "I don't recognize this place one bit..." The female nervously looked around. "Nowhere to be seen... We shouldn't be here! We've got to find them! They could be in serious danger!"

"If that fire's still raging on, there's no time to lose. Nothing's going to stop us from reuniting with them..." The male saw the corridor from which I came, and he glared at me. "...including you! Out of our way!"

I nimbly avoided a diagonal slash from his horn. "Seriously? I literally save your lives from serving as sustenance for a local Ghost type, and this is how you repay me?"

"Save our lives? The heck are you talking about? We had the situation completely under control. A Litwick even gave us a helping hand and led us out of the fire!" I started to make a counterargument, but he put a hoof to my mouth. "And before you bother with saying Litwick are Ghost types and like to steal souls, even Ghost-type Pokemon can be hurt by fires! She was as desperate to escape the forest fire as we were!"

I shoved the hoof down. "Litwick's secondary type is Fire. It could've survived just fine."

He raised his hoof again as he attempted to challenge my knowledge, but found himself speechless out of realization. "...They can have Flash Fire, making them immune to it... That Litwick really was just trying to thieve us of our souls!" He stomped his hoof in frustration. "How could I let myself fall for a Ghost type's sneaky trick?! It was so obvious!"

"It wasn't your fault that we fell for it," the female replied. "Creatures don't always think well under pressure. Not only were our lives on the line, but the fire separated us from our young." She looked at me with a hopeful smile. "You said you saved our lives from that Litwick... Was that true?"

"Yeah, I ran into her all the way over in the Galar region." I held my clenched hand/wing in front of me. "I personally held a grudge against her, for she stole the soul of my dear friend K. Rock while I explored this region. By making her discover what comes after the afterlife, I freed all the souls trapped within her spectral flame." I pointed out the Pokemon that were frozen in ice, as well as my Centiskorch, who was still working at melting ice blocks. "The bodies of her victims were taken here to Kyurem's lair so he could preserve them in ice. Centiskorch here is thawing them out now that I've brought their souls back to them."

"That's really kind of you, sir! I wish I could repay you, but we don't really have much to offer except our thanks... Oh! We forgot to introduce ourselves!" The female fixed up her hair by splashing it with water then tossing her head, thus making her hairstyle look similar to that of Princess Cadance. "My name is Azure Lakefront, and this is my husband, Stormchaser."

"Pleasure to meet you. My name is Helix. I used to be a human, but a special potion gave me the ability to transform into any Pokemon I have registered in my Pokedex." Their color and body shape looked familiar to me, so I deduced that they might be related to a friend of mine. "Excuse me for making such a personal assumption, but might your species happen to be Keldeo? If so, I can confirm that your son is in good hands."

"You're serious?!" Stormchaser galloped up to me. "Which one? We've got two sons, so you'd better give us a name!"

"Two sons? Keldeo never told me he had a brother..." I took out my Rotom Phone and scrolled through the pictures I had taken. I showed them one featuring Keldeo with his Trainer. "You might not recognize him because he's in his Resolute Form, but this Keldeo is now best friends with the person who caught and trained him, Pummel Fist, a Trainer who also got the ability to become any Pokemon in his Pokedex due to a special potion."

"...Pummel Fist is his identity?" Kyurem's eyes narrowed. "Then... was that Trainer lying to me when he said his name... was Dalton?"

"Oh, no. Not at all. It's a force of habit." I sheepishly scratched my head before showing Kyurem a picture where Pummel Fist was giving a thumbs-up next to Spike and Twilight Sparkle. "Yeah, his real name's Dalton. He just adopted the alias of Pummel Fist in order to fit in with the locals in Equestria. Since then, it's become second nature for all his friends to call him that. I still can't help but call him Pummel Fist, even when we're not around ponies."

"Interesting..."

Stormchaser poked me with his horn to gain my attention. "That Keldeo you showed us... Yeah, he's one of our sons. His name's Splash Hoof. Kinda reckless, but he always manages to get out of tight situations somehow. Good thing he's got a Trainer to guide him."

"Yeah," Azure said. "But I wonder if his big brother is going to be alright..."

"Of course he will. He's got both the brains and the brawn to survive the fire in the Moor of Icirrus."

"Actually, that fire was taken care of a long time ago," I replied. "It's been over a decade since the Swords of Justice rescued the innocent Pokemon who were trapped in the forest fire, but I don't doubt that Keldeo's--er, Splash Hoof's--elder brother may have survived it all on his own."

"Over a decade?!" Azure gasped. "Little Splash Hoof must be worried sick, thinking that we're dead! Helix, if at all possible, can you please help us find him?!"

"Absolutely!" I brought up the Town Map on my Rotom Phone and zoomed out, showing the entire Galar region. "Splash Hoof and Dalton are training here in the Galar region, and right now they should be about ready to take on the Gym in Motostoke, which is here." Then I scrolled left until the map showed Unova instead. "As you can see, Galar is a straight shot east of the Unova region, so you shouldn't have many problems getting there with your natural ability to cross water by shooting water out of your hooves."

Centiskorch finished melting the last ice block, which held a Shiny Beldum. "Okay, that's all of 'em, Helix." He looked up at the lone soul floating around. "But there's still a soul left. You gonna do anything about that one?"

"Hmm... That must be the soul of the Krabby who was killed to make one of the meals at the seafood restaurant, the Captain's Table..." I took the soul and put it back inside my body. "I'll figure out what to do with you later. For now..." I motioned towards Azure and Stormchaser. "...follow me, and I'll take you to the Galar region."

Author's Note:

Yep... Dalton's my name. I used the alias Pummel Fist in my stories in order to stay private (and as any person on social media should know, privacy is important), but I realized I would have to spill the beans eventually, especially because Kyurem knew my actual name and would bring it up when Helix refers to me as Pummel Fist.