FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The sun peeked over the horizon, signifying the start of a new day. We were away from the city, the true peaceful, tranquillity of the forest. This tranquillity would be interrupted however, in the form of a rough awakening from Tensa. He had apparently procured a pail of water which he then kindly proceeded to empty upon my head. This water wasn't just cold, it was freezing cold. Somehow, not only had he managed to find water, but had managed to find frigid cold water.

"Tensa! What the hell did you do that for?!" I yelled. I looked around to see that the landscape was still slightly dark. The sun was about two degrees above the horizon, and slowly starting to bathe the landscape in its glow. After trying to get a sense of what time it was, I checked my Xtransceiver and was utterly horrified at the time. Tensa had a serious look on his face.

"I wanted to talk to you about something important." He said quietly, not wanting to wake Cilan. My blatant disregard for noise level was mostly due to annoyance. I took notice of how quiet he was being after a while though.

"Tensa, what's so important that you woke me up a 5:30 in the morning?" I groaned, finally lowering my voice. It's too early to be thinking about important things.

"I wanted to discuss_that_." He said, and I could instantly tell what he meant.

"You woke me up for that? Why would you even think about bringing that up here? You have to understand that we're in a different region, and we have Cilan travelling with us. You'll just have to take care it without me for a bit." Tensa crossed his arms.

"Well since we're up, what do you want to do?" I asked, avoiding the other conversation entirely. I needed something to keep my mind off of the topic, because if I didn't I would probably be in the same situation as Tensa.

"If you're going to be that way, then fine. I want to train." Tensa grumbled, trying to figure out a way to get his mind off the situation as well.

"Tensa, you're already super fast and super strong, why would you think that you could improve more?" He had excellent speed as well as excellent strength.

"Look. You're going to train me, understand?" I was not expecting him to be this forceful, as forceful he usually was not.

"...and just who is supposed to be the trainer here? Fine?" I sighed and rolled my eyes. Tensa growled because apparently he had seen me roll my eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me. You know what happens when you do that."

"Oh come on. Be reasonable. We've got quite an adventure ahead with Team Plasma in this region. It seems that we just can't escape people with weird ideas. We fought the remnants of Team Magma and Team Aqua in our Hoenn adventures. Then we ran into Team Galactic, as well as a few of our friends." I was referring to a few of the Pokémon that I left behind so that I could start fresh on my journey here with Tensa.

In Sinnoh I had caught a Shinx, which I named Heji. He's a Luxray now. We also met an Aura Knight named Riley. Riley, who upon reading my Aura or something like that, said that I would be perfect for a Lucario. He gave me a Lucario egg for that very reason. I had already thought of a name for the future Lucario. His name is Liru, and I named him in honor of Riley, as well as a being letters from his final form Lucario. After hatching him from the egg, I worked hard in raising him not the way I wanted but the way he wanted. He wanted to become faster and stronger. We all helped him together. In order to keep him happy, as well as train him at the same time with what little knowledge I had of how Aura worked. I would hide and Liru would have to find me using Aura. Of course, I didn't make it easy for him.

"I see. You do have a point, but, I don't think they will be as dangerous as the other gangs where. Now, can we get to training?" Tensa was getting bored now, as evident by the tone in his voice.

"Well then, let's get started." I was about to get a few things out of my bag, but Saigo suddenly emerged from his Poké Ball by himself. That had never happened to me before.

"Snivy..." He said, lowly, aware that being quiet was necessary.

"'Hold it?' Just exactly what do you mean by that?"

Saigo took a while before responded. "Relax. I'm merely pointing out my... frustration with the situation. You can't just do some, secret training. If you're going to train Tensa you have to train me too. When we aren't asleep, we can hear everything you say, even in the Poké Balls." Tensa translated what he said for me and I was a little bit surprised.

"First, how was I supposed to know that all of you could hear me inside those? Second, I was planning on training you anyway. Third, I didn't even know that you all could come out of your Poké Balls like, without me. Alright, fine, just this once you two get private training, any other time and you have to share." I understood his point, but the overall tone of the conversation annoyed me. I started to go to my bag, when I heard movement inside of Cilan's tent. I went over to investigate to find Cilan, dressed in an identical suit to the last one he was wearing.

"Cilan, what are you doing up at this hour?" I asked. He didn't even yawn, which I guess was probably due to some sort of advanced super waiter powers or something.

"I usually get up around this hour to make breakfast, but today I started hearing voices. I thought I heard two people talking. Were you talking to someone?" I wondered about whether or not I should tell him. After all, there were two people in this region who already knew. I suppose that one more couldn't hurt, but he would be the last one.

"Cilan, what would you say if I told you that I could understand my Pokémon?" I suppose that when you think about it, most Pokémon are good at communicating with some sort of sign language as well as body language.

"Well, I think we all have a basic understanding of our Pokémon and as Pokémon Sommeliers, we learn to read body language even further. Such interesting flavours would be created if we could all bond with our Pokémon in such a way!" Cilan ended his sentence with a dramatic flair, spinning around once to accentuate his point.

"Cilan, can you keep a dire secret for the time being?" I was hoping that maybe as a Sommelier he would take our little secret better than most people would.

"What's so important that you want me to keep a secret?" He wondered.

"Well, I can completely understand Tensa and mostly understand the rest of my old Pokémon." I explained. The look on Clan's face immediately changed from excited to skeptical. Cilan began his thinking pose, with one arm crossed over his stomach, and his other arm's hand under his head, with his eyes closed. I could practically hear his own theme song in his head.

"It's thinking time! Now Kynexn... we all know how great it would be if we were able to truly understand Pokémon, but let's face it, scientists have been trying to understand Pokémon for years. For you to make a claim like that? well it's just highly unlikely." He mused.

"Oh man Tensa, this guy... he's a riot. I'm glad he came with us, aren't you?" I chuckled.

"Yes?" Tensa said, is his own language.

"I thought we would have trouble keeping our secret, but it's just the opposite!" I chuckled again, and Tensa chuckled with me.

"Imagine how he'll react when he finds out that I can speak in your language." Cilan was looking a little bit annoyed now.

"Exactly, we'll have trouble getting him to tell anyone since he doesn't seem to believe it himself." He said, again in his own language. At this point, I couldn't hold it back anymore and began to laugh wildly. We would definitely surprise him.

"Would you two please let me in on the joke that I am apparently missing here?" Cilan blurted out.

"We knew that you would be surprised that I could speak your language." Tensa said. As soon as Tensa spoke, Cilan reacted, making sure that he wasn't imaging what he heard.

"Um, Kynexn, I wasn't imagining that right? Did I just hear him speak?" He was confused, his mind trying to run through all logical scenarios. Maybe it was a form of ventriloquism, or possibly something that was pre-recorded, or maybe...

"No, it is not a trick, and yes, you did hear me speak. Your reaction is practically the same as everyone else." He grinned, finally revealing himself.

"That's amazing, what a delicious flavour! It's tasting time! I sense that there is something more... Something even more special than that... You two share a bond that goes beyond friends." Cilan said.

"Now that's interesting. That's quite a talent you got there." I praised. This makes me want to find out more about Pokémon Sommeliers.

"Thank you. I trained really hard to be where I am at today. So, are you ready to make breakfast?"

"You bet. It's... breakfast time!" I cried out, mimicking Cilan in a friendly tease. We both discussed possible options for breakfast. We had decided on start off breakfast rather simply, with Cilan's own batch of Pokémon food. I finished it all off with a batch of Poffins made with assistance from Cilan's burner. I made six spicy Poffins, three with a hint of sourness and three with a hint of sweetness for myself. I just loved Poffins when they were made the right way. Cilan helped me understand what the natures of my Pokémon were, and then I asked them what type of food they liked to see if I guessed correctly.

"Those Poffins are really interesting. I think I might even try one. I think they'd be a nice addition to our menu. How do you make them?" He asked. Making Poffins wasn't exactly difficult, once you got the hang of it.

"Well, since everyone else has already gotten theirs, I guess I could show you." I went over to my backpack and fetched the ingredients for making the dough.

"Alright! Now, for the first part, it is going to be very fluid, like liquid. You're going to want to stir it on very low heat." I demonstrated by showing him that the flame was down extremely low.

Cilan watched carefully, taking meticulous mental notes.

"After about five minutes, it should start to lighten up in colour and take on the appearance of whatever berries you put into it. At this point, you should turn the heat up to halfway. You're also going to want to stir it about this fast, for about two minutes." I demonstrated, stirring at medium speed. The Poffin mix was starting to lighten in color, and become firmer, which would make it a bit difficult for someone who wasn't very experienced. I trusted that since Cilan was a chef he wouldn't have too much difficulty. Two minutes passed and so I moved on to the next step.

"This next step is the easiest actually. You're going to want to go as fast as you possibly can without spilling it, and turning the heat up to maximum, for a final two minutes." The two minutes passed, and then I waited a few minutes for the mix to cool off, and then I used a spatula to take it out. After that, I placed it on a marble slab, and cut a floral design into it, to let the air escape and the giant Poffin cool down.

"So, if it's made perfectly, which I'm not sure it is right now, then you should have a semi-hard crust on the outside and a soft airy interior. That's just this particular one though. Some Pokémon have a personal preference as well as a natural preference. There are some who even like the burnt flavour. There are others who like it to be rock hard. It's just a matter of finding out which, which as you know is a bit easier for me."

"This is an amazing item! Thank you for show me how to make them! But um... can I taste it now?" He looked so excited at being able to taste an exotic food. We both leaned over the pan sized pink treat and inhaled the sweet aroma, reminiscent of both oranges and limes.

"Well, now you can. Be careful though, because it may still be hot. This is actually the biggest Poffin I've ever made." I cut the Poffin down the center, revealing its textured layers showcasing the shell around a soft core. We both ate the Poffin, and enjoyed it thoroughly. Since the Pokémon were finished eating, it was time to begin training.

"Alright Saigo... you wanted training, and you'll get it. First, you should put these on your ankles." I gave him a pair of weighted ankle bracelets that had a slight green color to them. He put them on and immediately began to notice its effects.

"They're going to slow you down considerably. You're already fast, but still not as fast as Tensa was when he was a Grovyle. Once you've overcome these, you'll find that you're faster than ever.

"Interesting." He thought out loud.

"There's more than just that, but focus on your speed for now. Why don't you use Leaf Tornado on Tensa, and see how it feels?" He tried out a Leaf Tornado and missed; the strain of the weights immediately obvious. After a few more tries, he was a bit more successful, but the attack didn't do much damage. Tensa was still faster.

"You're getting better, but you've still got a ways to go. It's going to be quite a challenge from here. Tensa, start moving around now." Cilan was watching me intently, observing my method.

"This is unacceptable! Why can't I do this?!" Saigo growled and pounded his fist into the dirt. I immediately saw the resemblance between him and Tensa's first time attempting this training. I immediately went over to him, and saw that upon closer inspection he was actually starting to tear up. I leaned down and embraced him lightly.

"Shhh... Saigo... don't cry... you just need more time... This training routine isn't easy. Tensa didn't become as fast as he is by himself. He went through the same training routine that you are going through now. You can do it..." I assured him. He looked up at me, with teary eyes, and I wiped the tears from his eyes. I then leaned over to him and brought my voice down to a low whisper.

"Believe in yourself, like I believe in you..." After that, I went back to my original position and asked him to repeat the process once more. He successfully landed a hit, and it was Super Effective, actually causing Tensa to be knocked back a little bit. Cilan and the rest of the other Pokémon clapped, while I gave a look of extreme approval.

"See, I knew you could do it! Your mind was holding you back, now just keep that up, and you'll see the result you want!" I encouraged him on several more times like this, and as promised, it paid off. After three solid days, with an addition of early morning training, Saigo had become as fast as he was before. It was time to take the weights off for now.

"Now... to show you just how much you've improved, I'll take off those weights." I removed the weights and placed them back into my bag.

"That part of your training is over, but there's still a bit more to go. I'm going to help you overcome a few type disadvantages." I grinned. Training with me is not exactly the easiest, but it is well worth it in the end, as many of them would find out.

"Tensa is going to attack with Energy Balls at around one-tenth strength, and will gradually build them up. This will further improve your speed. Attack training comes later. Are you ready Saigo?" He nodded and got into a battle ready position, with Tensa standing by in the attack position.

"Alright, go!" I ordered, and the result was there right away. Saigo noticed his increased speed when he easily dodged the slow blasts, but occasionally was getting hit.

"When attacks like that come at you, a good way to defend is by using Vine Whip or Leaf Tornado." He took to mind this new strategy and started using them after a while. After watching for two hours, I decided that it was time to move to the next difficulty level.

"Tensa, increase the strength to a quarter. You're doing good Saigo, keep it up!" After a few more hits, Saigo was exhausted, but then something amazing happened. After one final hit, Saigo froze, and began to glow.

"Alright! This is great!" I was excited. Watching Pokémon metamorphose was a very fulfilling experience. While Saigo was still glowing, his body started to become slightly larger, but his leaf-like arms became shorter. I suppose he was becoming more snake like. After all, he was a grass snake Pokémon. His yellow collar also grew. After his transformation was complete, he stopped glowing.

"Saigo... My Saigo evolved..." I was happy for him, as well as for myself because he had evolved quickly, and it would make taking on the next Gym easy. He did something that I didn't expect, but completely welcomed. He jumped into my arms, and for the second time, cried but unlike the first time, these were tears of joy. He spoke through sobs which made him a bit more difficult to understand.

"Yo-you're such a great trainer... an-and an even greater friend..." He managed to get out. I smiled. All I did was help him evolve, like we're supposed to do. I had no idea that it would have such an effect on him. Perhaps he just didn't expect that he would evolve so fast. Either way I was happy that he was happy.

"Thank you. Now, I hope you realise that because of the training I gave you, you're already faster than the average Servine. Do you want to be faster than that, or are you done training for now?" I asked, while lightly stroking his back.

"I... thought I was the best... but you showed me differently... Thank you for choosing me..." He started to calm down after a while, and decided that he had had enough training for now. We decided to continue heading out through Route 3, where we encountered Cheren, who proceeded to stop us.

Cheren said excitedly, "Kynexn wait! Let's see whose Pokémon are stronger!" We immediately sent out our best Pokémon first, mine being Saigo and his being hisTepig. He really tried to use his advantage to the fullest, using Ember three times, one of which was a critical hit. He succeeded in burning Saigo, which annoyed me. He finally did a defensive move, Defense Curl and so I applied a salve to cure the burn, and then we finished off his Tepig with a Leaf Tornado.

"I see. So that's how you battle." Cheren says, adjusting his glasses. We were about to begin a discussion regarding our battle styles but were interrupted.

A male Team Plasma grunt ran past us. "Out of the way!" He shouted, running at full speed.

Bianca ran up beside us, and tried to catch her breath. "Hey, where... were... those... people headed?"

Cheren pointed to the opposite direction in which he was standing, "That way, but...Why are you running now?"

Bianca groaned, "Argh! They run so fast!"

A small brown haired girl was visibly crying. "Miss... Oh... My Pokémon?"

Bianca tried to comfort the little girl. "Don't cry, it'll be alright. It'll be alright."

Cheren was still a bit confused. "Bianca, why were you running?"

Bianca looked down at the browned haired girl, and then back to Cheren. "They stole this young girl's Pokémon."

Cheren had an incredulous look on his face. "You should have spoken up sooner!"

I clenched my fists in anger. "They're going to regret this."

Cheren moved near the cave entrance, and then directed me to the location in which the two members of Team Plasma ran. "They ran through here! Come on!" He announced.

We entered the cave, which was known as Wellside Spring.

Cheren spoke up, "Kynexn this bothersome bunch doesn't really listen to reason."

The first male grunt, believing to be doing what he was doing for the right reason asked us, a question to which could not really be answered. "That child cannot use a Pokémon to its full potential. Doesn't that make the Pokémon Sad?"

I glared at them angrily and say, "You're not the one who decides that!"

The first grunt didn't get the message. I was angry, and that is a bad thing. "It's the same thing all with all your Pokémon so hand them over to us now! Better yet... We'll just take them!

I sighed, calming down a little bit. "You all really do ask for more pain, don't you?"

I sent out Saigo, who easily dominated the grunt's Pokémon with Vine Whip.

The male grunt had a look of horror on his face, as well as surprise. "What? Beaten by a kid? Wha...? How can we lose when we have right on our side?!"

Kynexn grinned sadistically. "Technically I'm not a kid."

Cheren cheered after I won the battle. "Nice moves you two! Now go return the Pokémon to that girl."

Another male grunt came in from the distance, making him the third male grunt to cross paths with me. "You don't need to return it! How troublesome. Not only do you fail to understand, but you actually got in our way, to boot."

Team Plasma had a lot more male grunts than female ones it seemed; which I deduced from the pattern in which I had fought them so far. This one maked the fourth male grunt in a row. "There's two of you and two of us. We'll show you our combined power and teach you that we are right!"

I shook my head in annoyance. "You call forcing your ideals on innocent children right? No wonder you all lose to me so easily!"

Cheren groaned, "These guys crawl outta the walls like... Still, why are Pokémon robbers acting so self-righteous? Let's show them how it's done!"

I sent out Tensa, who, being the experienced 'mon that he was, defeated the third grunt's Pokémon easily with Energy Ball. Cheren decided to once again utilise his Tepig's Fire-type abilities, by constantly ordering Ember. The two Team Plasma members were easily defeated.

The second grunt began to spit out ideals that were just pasted from his superiors. "In order to liberate Pokémon from foolish people we will take their Pokémon."

The third grunt did the same, only he was a bit more personal in his approach. "Pokémon trainers like you are making Pokémon suffer..."

Cheren adjusted his glasses, which probably meant he was thinking again. "What do you mean?"

The first grunt decided to speak up this time. "We'll give it back... But be aware of how this Pokémon suffers from being used by people. Someday, open your eyes to your own complicity."

Bianca smiled and thanked us. "Kynexn! Thank you so much! The two of you got her Pokémon back! I'm so lucky to have friends like you two!"

The brown haired little girl also thanked me, overriding Cheren. "Thank you, mister!"

Bianca held the little girl's hand and then walked away with her. "I'm gonna see this girl on her way. Bye Kynexn!" Once again, it seemed that the two completely ignored Cheren's part in this rescue.

Cheren goes ahead to Nacrene City, unphased by the fact that he was ignored. I met back up with Cilan, and we headed towards the city too. After we arrived, about fifteen minutes later, Cheren greeted us, rather me, again.

Cheren, pointed towards the Gym, which also doubled as a museum. "Come with me a sec. I've done some research and, Nacrene City's Gym Leader uses Normal types."

I appreciated the heads up, and prepared my strategy according to the Gym typing, as well as my own improvised strategy, which I was probably going to use anyway. I headed towards the Gym building, but right as I get to the door, N steps out of it.

N sounded different than the last time I had seen him, and he began the conversation as if he was already talking to me and that I wasn't listening. "I... want to see things no one can see. The ideals of Pokémon inside Poke Balls. The truths of how trainers should be, and a future where Pokémon have become perfect..."

N continued by asking a question and awaiting my response. "Do you feel the same?

I nodded. "Yes. Not even I understand the motives of selfish humans N, but you're still not seeing the bigger picture."

N blinked his eyes, or what I perceived as a blink. It was hard to tell under that cap of his. "You... You confuse me. You both agree with me on some and disagree with me on other beliefs, yet you are so firm on your beliefs. When the time comes, will you be ready? Right now, my friends aren't strong enough to save all Pokémon. Maybe I can't solve the equation that will change the world. So, I need power... Power enough to make anyone agree with me. Now I know what power I need. Zekrom! The legendary Pokémon that, along with the hero, created the Unova region. It's my turn to become that hero--and you and I will be friends!"

I smiled at N, understanding where he was going with this. "N, you can't just force your ideals upon people like that. Someday you'll see..."

Lenora, with her apron throw over her shoulder, instead of how I had heard that she wore it sometimes, greeted me. "Welcome! The director of the Nacrene Museum and the Nacrene Gym's Leader is me! Lenora! Well then, challenger, I'm going to research how you battle with the Pokémon you've so lovingly raised!"

We began with normal types. I sent out my Herdier, and she sent out hers. During the battle she used Take Down twice, which caused me to have the advantage right away. She tried to even it out with Leer but that didn't work. I had Lord James use Crunch and Leer, and the Crunch was a critical hit, made even more effective by the Leer, causing her Herdier to faint. She sent out a Watchog next.

"Great job James, you were really great! Come back and rest now!" I returned him to his Poké Ball and sent out Saigo.

"Saigo, start out with Growth, and then use Leaf Tornado!" He quickly complied, and was dead-on accurate. I had also trained him in accuracy a little bit, shortly before the trip to the city. Her Watchog used Retaliate, and then Leer twice. I had anticipated that, so I had Saigo take a Retaliate after the two hits. He endured them well. We bided our time well, and caught her off guard with a finishing Leaf Tornado Vine Whip combo.

She congratulated me shortly afterward. "My theory about you was correct. You're more than just talented... You're motivated! I salute you!"

She further congratulated me. "Your fighting style is so enchanting. It is charming. You are a Pokémon Trainer worthy of receiving this Basic Badge! I have the feeling you're not exactly what you appear to be. Perhaps we'll battle again someday, on different terms than a Gym Battle."

After going upstairs, we found that Team Plasma was here. They claimed that they would take a 'dragon Skull' or something, from under our noses, but I had Tensa use Leaf Storm to clear the smokescreen, as well as trap them so he could knock them out, which was fun for me again. I think that Tensa enjoyed knocking out the Team Plasma members too. When I decide to leave, Bianca and Cheren arrived.

"And these two are...?" Lenora asked.

"They're my friends." I clarified for her.

"Your friends?" She asked.

"The one with the glasses is Cheren, and the blond haired girl is Bianca." I said, being more specific.

"Bianca and Cheren," She said, before she noticed the Poké Balls on their belt, "oh, I see. They're Trainers." She concluded.

Bianca remembered something that she forgot to do. "Oh! Oh, Kynexn! Take this with you! Fennel gave me this dowsing machine to give to you."

After a few minutes, a cloaked man arrived, apparently not realizing that Tensa had defeated the Team Plasma members. Lenora saw his exotic dress, and wondered who he was.

The man answered very elegantly, and before he even spoke, I knew he would be giving another long speech, that I would have to listen to. "I am one of the Seven Sages of Team Plasma. Ghetsis, another of the Seven Sages, will liberate Pokémon with words alone! The remainder of the Seven Sages have ordered their compatriots to take Pokémon with full force! But the odds are a little against us now. To you, the Normal Pokémon user Lenora, I say... Know your enemies, know yourself, and know you need not fear the result of a hundred battles... This time, we shall retreat quietly. To secure the liberation of Pokémon we will steal from Trainers! Even though you are Gym Leaders, we will not tolerate any further obstruction from you. In any case, we will settle this someday. I hope you are looking forward to that time as much as I..."

Lenora was a bit stunned, but shook it off for now, and turned back to me. "Kynexn... Thank you so much for stopping team Plasma from taking that Dragon Skull! With a kind Trainer like you taking care of them, the Pokémon with you must be happy. Here is a token of my gratitude. Please use it carefully! This is a Moon Stone! Now, I must take that Dragon Skull back to the museum." I gladly accepted the stone and headed on my way to the next city with Cilan.