I walk into the Poke Mart. There's a guy in a lab coat waiting in the corner.
"Are you Ashley?"
"Why yes, Yes I am..."
He hands me the egg. "From the professor. Keep it in the party. Keep it warm."
I hold it carefully and feel warm inside. Fingering it, I put it securely in my bag.
"Cool egg." Bronze says.
A young girls runs up to me, dressed in a ceremonial kimono.
She smiles. "So you're the one, then..."
I look at her, and to my surprise, she's not a human, but an Umbreon. Startled, I blink, and all I can see is a girl smiling at me, somewhat confused. "Are you okay?"
I nod, and she runs away.
The team walks together to the next route, Ferro holding Khrys and Bronze struggling to hold Gaia on his back.
Finally, he rolls over, panting.
"Can't... phew..."
Gaia rolls of his back and punches a nearby Rattata in the face. "It's training. Soon you can boast you carry Geodudes on your back like it's nothing."
"Well, I do feel a bit tougher..."
He seems so much more adult, so much more confident. Evolution has profound effects on him, I guess. But I can't help but want my little Bronze back, the one who curled up in my arms for the past week and a half and ran away from fights.
"You okay?"
He's looking at me, shining eyes and a big smile.
"Yeah. Fine." I try to shake off the longing that clings to me like static.
We go back to our training. Below the light of the lanterns, Mareeps fall like cottonballs blown away by wind to Ferro's scratches. Bronze is chucking Khrys at Rattatas, and Gaia is just watching with a benevolent smile, carefully waiting for her turn. Chompers sits at the back of it all, his eyes wide in terror. He's not a fighter.
I hear a crack as Khrys's cocoon splits in two. "I BROKE IT!"
Bronze runs over to him. "NO NO NO! NO!" His fires putter out and he hangs his head. "I'm sorry."
The crack widens and out flies a purple butterfly, a Butterfree.
"Cool, you evolved!" Bronze's fires flare back up. "Ashley-sama, come look at Khrys!"
Khrys smiles at me with the tiny fangs on his new mouth. His eyes glow and Gaia levitates. The unamused female rock punches him in his new face, and he lets go of his psychic grasp and she falls to the ground.
"Yay, Confusion!" I say, recognizing the psychic move.
Khrys smiles again, and attempts to open his mouth. "Huii."
"What?"
He opens his mouth again but no sound comes out.
So we move on.
Gone are the dull but elegant lanterns, leaving us with the wild. Bronze leads, going at a remarkably slow pace due to the rock on his back.
I set up camp besides a lake and go to bed. The next morning, I end up on rockholding duty while Bronze demolishes some Magikarp. For the first time, Khrys joins the melee, fighting as if he's done it his whole life. There's a nearby Pokemon center, so we heal up. A bird tamer runs past us, carrying the dead body of a mangled Pidgey.
"T-th-the monster... watch out!"
Before me is a huge, gaping cave. The only way to the next city... I'm going to have to go through it.
"We're ready." Bronze says, getting onto his hindlegs and letting Gaia slide off his back.
Together, we take our first steps into what seems to be endless darkness.
