Pokémon : The Journey of Travis Tedford

Chapter 17: Power

When I opened my eyes, I was surrounded by darkness, just like the time I had woken up after being poisoned. "You really went and nearly got yourself killed again? You're probably the most reckless version of me," said Older Travis. I rolled my eyes. "Dude, I've seen all those multiverses where I had powers! Why the hell couldn't you have given me some too?!" I asked, annoyed.

"A human with powers in the Pokémon world would draw too much attention. It's not my fault you don't evolve your Pokémon quick enough! I mean, look at your friends! They have powerhouses! How do you plan on competing with them?!" snapped Older Travis.

"I would have been stronger than them by now if you didn't push me to tell Efren I was in love with him, only for him to run from me," I said.

"Yes, well, unfortunately, most of the Efren's are like that. Some are afraid of commitment or of the idea of happiness because they feel they don't deserve it, so they either flee or make locking them down harder than the average person. You're soulmates, so while he may struggle to build connections with others, he'll fall in love with you over and over again because he's genuinely drawn to your strong personality. However, eventually, his love for you will overpower his fear of commitment, and he'll eventually give in if you fight hard enough," said older me.

"Am I not dead yet?" I asked.

"No, but once again you were near death, and if you keep being so reckless, you will die. I can't interfere much with your world, so there's very little I could do in that regard," responded Older me.

"What about my Pokémon? Will they live?" I asked.

"Your youngest ones are in critical condition, but they won't die. Your other Pokémon should be fine," said Older me.

I dropped to my knees and began to cry and punch the ground. "Dammit! I'm so weak! Why the hell am I so weak?! I should have been strong enough to protect them! I should have done better at training them!" I cried. My fist was covered in blood and scars from punching the ground so hard. Before I could hit the ground again, my fist stopped in mid-air somehow.

"Enough. You'll get stronger as a trainer; you just have to work harder. Don't limit yourself to just eight Pokémon. Catch a bunch of them so you can have many to rotate between. If you don't want to force your Pokémon to evolve quicker, then simply catch stronger Pokémon," said Older me.

I wiped my tears and then nodded. "Have I missed the tournament yet?" I asked.

"No, but you probably won't be well enough to participate, and most of your Pokémon aren't well enough to battle yet," said Older me.

"No, I refuse to miss out on this tournament! I have to get stronger! I made a promise that I will become a champion so I can have my champion match with Efren! I won't lose!" I said angrily, feeling my fiery energy resurging. Suddenly, I began to glow.

"Looks like you're beginning to regain consciousness again. Though I shouldn't interfere in your universe, I'll see what I can do about your injured Pokémon. From this day forward, you must promise to train hard, no matter letting your emotions get in the way of you catching up to your rivals," said Older me.

"You got it," I said as I started vanishing. I glanced at one of the multiverse screens next to me and saw a me from another universe using his powers to fight. "Seriously? I couldn't have that too?!" I said sarcastically as I vanished. The last thing I saw before I woke up was older me laughing.

When I opened my eyes, I was in a hospital bed. I looked around and saw my friends passed out on the other side of the room. Adam and Anna lay side by side, leaning on each other, while Jay was at the corner of the room. The first one to notice that I was awake was Togetic, who quickly flew over to me, happy. I hugged it and smiled.