Pokemon Ascendance: Origins of Holon

9

'Alright, the way to the first trial is just down this road...just like Hau said.' Elsie told herself. 'It shouldn't be too hard to just go straight.'

At the moment she was by herself. Lillie said she had somewhere to go and Hau had to go do something for his grandpa.

"Vee."

Elsie snapped out of her thoughts when Prism pawed at her leg. She looked down to see her partner, who's eyes were filled with determination. Seeing that expression, Elsie couldn't help but smile.

"Right...there's no need to be afraid, we got this."

Taking a deep breath, she began walking down the road towards the first trial site. Once the ground beneath her became dirt rather than pavement, she heard barking. Alarmed, both Elsie and Prism looked around only to see a bundle of orange and tan fur from a distance. It seemed to be snarling at something while backing away. Getting a closer look, Elsie noticed that it was a Growlithe facing off against a bird-like pokemon she's never seen.

"Hey, Rotom. What's that pokemon that Growlithe is fighting?" Elsie asked.

"Pikipek, a normal and flying type." Rotom explained. "Pikipek can strike 16 times a second with its beak. These strikes are powerful enough to not only drill through hard wood but even shatter stone. Pikipek will attack distant opponents by zipping seeds at them. These shots have enough strength to embed the seeds in tree trunks."

It was then that Prism began growling and Elsie immediately saw why. Just a moment later, Evan appeared by the Pikipek's side. 

'I guess that he already caught his second pokemon...but it doesn't look like he's trying to catch that Growlithe... What's going on?'

Prism didn't waste any time running towards the commotion and in response, Elsie ran as well, trying to keep up with her partner.

"P-Prism! Wait up!"

As they got closer, it was pretty obvious that the Growlithe was injured. 'Why is he chasing down an injured pokemon?'

"Pikipek, use Echoed Voice!" Evan commanded.

Before she could think, Elsie shouted, "Prism, use Swift!"

Swift collided with the sound waves, shielding Growlithe from them. The Puppy Pokemon seemed a bit confused at the gesture while Evan glared at the girl and her Eevee.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"I could ask the same thing." Elsie countered. "This Growlithe is hurt and obviously you're not catching it so why don't you just leave it alone?"

"Are you really that dense?" Evan crossed his arms. "I'm training."

"J-Just because defeating wild pokemon to get stronger is in the games doesn't mean that you have to do it in real life. I-I mean.... you have a lot more options about how you wanna train your team. Have your team do a mock battle against each other, have them use moves against rocks...there's really no need to bring wild pokemon into your training sessions...e-especially if they don't wanna battle."

"Wow...you can't even make your point without stuttering or looking at me directly. You really are an incompetent trainer aren't you?" he then sighed before returning Pikipek. "You know what, fine. You can have your way this time. I don't need anyone thinking I did something to you when you burst out crying for a random pokemon."

He walked off and Elsie sighed in relief before turning to the Growlithe. "There...you shouldn't have to worry about him bothering you anymore."

She took a step forward but in response the Growlithe growled, taking a step back. Seeing this reaction made her stop.