Pokémon Chronicles 零 (ZERO)

Episode 14: The power of bestia versus anima

"Seriously... that stupid kid, what's he thinking?" Megan rambled, tugging at the fur on her head. "He's a big shot at the academy, but then he keeps it a secret that he knows healing magic? And all until we come up facing a pretty little Pikachu, I swear the guy's just a pervert playing us!"

"Should you really be talking?" Lucca groaned, covered in sweat.

"That's quite the wild assumption!" I remarked, widening my eyes, even though it wasn't exactly an unfounded claim. Shelly had been the quietest, most underperforming member of the team until now, where he suddenly ran off for a stranger after revealing wat he could do. Angel made the job of finding him easy by flying up into the sky to search. She had found him and was apparently leading us to him, floating forward at a steady pace for us to follow.

I was intrigued by where Angel was leading us though, back toward Fossil Hill or some similar angle. We were going in that direction but around the hill we went down to reach the village, staying within the plains and greenery that surrounded the area, well away from the sandy rockery of the mountains. Right now we were amongst a forest, this one fresher and more welcoming than Misgeriom Woods.

"It's so clean..." I couldn't help but mumble, gazing up at it all. The trees were all the same type, there was plentiful space between them to let light through, and everything was so bright and colourful that it filled me with life. "Megan, I know Shelly's a bit strange, but you've got to have some faith in him, right?"

"Why should I?" she squealed. I held my sword up.

"He made this for me, you know. If it wasn't for him doing that, I might not have even been brave enough to leave RBY," I informed. "The kid's pretty handy with tools and stuff. I think he likes that sort of thing."

"Oh really? Pretty shoddy job if you ask me. I thought it was just your silly attempt to try and one me up," she replied, calming down. "I'll see to that though. If he really is that good, I'll get 'im to build me a weapon too. How's that?"

"If he wants to, I guess," I sighed, looking away. "Does she have to make EVERYTHING a competition?"

"Might help to stop you just throwing Flamethrower everywhere too, actually," Lucca joined in.

"Whoa hey, I can't help that, okay?" Megan complained.

"Can't help that? Seriously?" he raised his voice. "You almost got us kicked out of the village yesterday when we were training!"

"I really mean it, I can't help it! I feel like my stomach's gonna explode if I don't shoot fire every now and then," she huffed, looking away. The rest of us slowed down to pay attention, even Angel.

"Wait... what?" I asked. Mimia whined in question, as if asking the same thing.

"My stomach's been like that for years, didn't I ever tell you?" she complained. I gave her a shocked shake of my head. "Yeah, no surprise no one wants to know. It hurts like crazy, but using Flamethrower or Ember makes me feel better for a good while. It's why a fire attack is always my first choice for fights."

"That's... um, whoa. That is weird," Lucca admitted, tilting his head. "You girls never stop being interesting, do you? I suppose, just try to keep it a secret while you're in a town or something, okay?"

"Yeah sure. But I should totally keep my eyes open too, huh? I should only look as normal as you guys want me to look, so that you guys don't look embarrassed in public. That's how it all works, doesn't it?" she complained. Lucca perked up and started playing with his hands.

"... You're right. Sorry Megan," he admitted, surprising her. She didn't reply though, choosing to pass it off and continue walking.

"Stop a second," I commanded, spotting something out of the ordinary. Amongst the tall grass and trees ahead was a Pokémon about my height, almost invisible thanks to the way its bright green body blended in with the scenery. But it wasn't attempting to hide, evidently surveying the surroundings with its huge red eyes. The four legged creature would have come off as cute to me, if not for the jagged leaf sprouting from its forehead. The moment it spotted us it approached, stopping us in our tracks.