The first thing she noticed was that the user was anonymous, yet they claimed to be the original author. It seemed a little shady at first, but she wasn’t going to fall for some scam. They seemed much less prevalent in a world where most people were nice. Whether it was outside influence or something else, the general populace was incredibly friendly. Lilith pushed the thought aside and read on, becoming more defensive by the word. They were roundabout in their words, saying that it was wrong to kill Pokemon and how nice it was to meet a ‘true believer’. If that didn’t set off red flags, then the next sentence did.

‘We should meet up and talk about it.’

Lilith frowned before deleting the post. She tried her best to scrub the information from her castor while trying to think of her next move. Anyone with any experience on the internet knew that psycho’s and whack jobs could be just a turn around the digital corner. Rule number one was to never use any personal information.

Her entire body fell backwards onto the bed. The post had freaked her out more than she cared to admit. There seemed to be no one to turn to for a straight answer, before Lilith tapped her chin. She had wanted to stay far away from the League because of how shady her initial encounter had been. Being affiliated wasn’t an issue, but meeting up for Sunday brunch wasn't on the menu. The less people around who could destroy her with their pinky fingers the better. Her paranoia always kicked in when facing such foes, and she couldn’t bring herself to trust them. They could throw her in a dungeon and squeeze her for information for all she knew, and considering her circumstances, her knowledge was priceless.

“Hahh.” Lilith let out a sigh.

She scrolled down to her contacts, searching for a name. His was at the top of the list considering it was in alphabetical order. Even if it wasn't, the number of contacts she had was surprisingly few. Before she tapped his name, she checked for any new messages from Levy or Sam. Their silence was starting to bother her even if she would never admit it.

The line beeped for a moment before clicking together. Alder’s old face and wild hair appeared in a hologram above the device.

“Lilith, it's been some time. Everything alright?” If she wasn’t in the know, he would have seemed like a friendly old Grandpa.

Alder seemed like her best option. Professor Juniper freaked her out, considering there was something obviously off about the woman. It was just one of those feelings she couldn’t quite place. Melinda on the other hand was just a grumpy old lady, she would probably grouch about being interrupted and not even answer anything relevant. Bianca was around, but was incredibly clingy. If she asked for advice, Lilith had a feeling there would be no end to her incessant ramblings.

That left Alder. By process of elimination, he was the ‘best’ option.

“I’ve run into a problem.” Lilith phrased her issues into a mystery way to try and get Alder committed.

“Go on,” He seemed intrigued, hooked by her small trap.

“What is a Trainer? I know you gave that riveting speech when we first met, but I think it's just so much more than that.” She paused

“Much more you say…” Alder stroked his chin in thought. “Can I have an example?”

“Why do we kill?” Lilith let out, exasperated.

A look of understanding finally dawned on his face.

“Well, I must say it is an honor to pick me as your confidant in a time of need.” A slight smile formed on his face.

‘You were my last option… not my first, old man.’ She thought, better to not reveal the information.

“It is a valid question, one we do not ask enough. I must say, even considering most of my life I have been a follower. I understood Pokemon much more in my youth, not interacting with humans, so when my daughter was born, I was at a loss. I spent many years running from my problems, much to my shame.” Alder became overwhelmed by sadness.

‘Get to the point old man…’ She couldn’t help but frown.

“All in good time.” His face returned, noticing her scowl.

“You see, it is the journey, not the destination we seek. That is why we call it a Journey.” Alder put on his best wise face. “Back then, I never even wanted to be a Champion. I wasn’t even that strong if I’m being honest. It was a gradual process, one day I said ‘enough is enough’ and I returned home. I never married, as my daughter was a fling from the old days when I was young and stupid. She was the only thing I could return to. The constant wandering pained my weary bones. I was tired of it all, Tauros and I had missed so much…” Tears began to form around his eyes.

“We talked occasionally, but we had become estranged for years. I returned to find her happily married. I knocked on the door, and there she was, as big as a bun! I was going to be a Grandfather and not even know… Something inside me, call it a soul or what you like, ate away at me… How could I have been so foolish? She had made a whole new life for herself, one where I was a stranger.” Alder paused, reminiscing.

“I was not welcomed with open arms, the opposite in fact. She shut the door right in my face. It was then that my true path emerged. I would not fail a second time. I needed an outlet, something to channel myself into completely. I took up training like a vengeance. We battled until we bled, and continued on until we could no longer move.” His voice became much more powerful, the emotions raw.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

“And that’s when I got it. A call, and for the second time, my world changed. I had a Grandson, and his name was Benga. The very next thing I did was put my name in for the tournament of Champions. I finally had something to fight for, something to protect. I beat out the competition, becoming the strongest force in the Region. I petitioned her one last time, to give me a chance. It took years, but she lets me visit

from time to time. Benga’s taking a liking to Pokemon, much to his mother’s horror. That boy became my whole world.” A slight smile formed on his lips.

“My point is, Lilith... We kill to protect. It took me my entire adult life to figure that out. I’m not saying take as long as me, because no one really should… But you're young! You can afford some mistakes, some setbacks! Your Journey has only just begun, take some time to figure out what you want to do! If you don’t like killing Pokemon, then don’t. Arceus knows, this world could do with a little less…”

Lilith let the feeling sink in.

‘We kill to protect.’ Tingles flashed down her spine as she let the words sink in.

‘But what am I protecting?’ She thought.

A quick glance to the side and she had her answer.

“An answer…” She mumbled.

The bond she shared with her team was unlike anything she had previously encountered. They fought together, laughed and cried together. The duo turned trio was slowly but surely becoming a family.

‘I’ll protect my family.’

Considering all her hesitation, she was glad to have sought his counsel. On one hand, it wasn’t the question she had asked, but on the other, it was what she had needed to hear. She had no idea what she was doing in such a world. The brief encounters with Mythical and Legendary Pokemon had only toppled the questions higher.

‘Why was she here?’

‘Was it an accident?’

‘On purpose?’

‘If so, was she meant to do something?’

‘If so, then what?’

The questions piled up until she couldn’t think straight.

“Ahh, actually I just wanted to talk about population control on wild Pokemon, and both impacts that they have on the environment. If we do let Pokemon populate as they please, what are the consequences? I watched a Magnezone massacre a small population of Krabby. It felt a lot different than the natural order of fighting for survival,”

Lilith thought it would be better to deflect for the time being, as Alder’s speech was really deep and wasn’t something someone could process in a few seconds.

“Ahh, right…” Alder’s face turned a little apologetic, understanding her thoughts all too well.

“Wild Pokemon have never been known for holding back. Every day is a fight for survival, as you pointed out. But if left unchecked, they can sometimes destroy their own ecosystem. One strong Pokemon could appear and drive away all of their competition. They understand winning, but not how to best utilize it. Constant fighting keeps them in check, allowing weaker Pokemon a chance to grow.” He paused.

“The same could be said for swarms of weaker Pokemon. They eat away at the natural carrying capacity of the ecosystem, forcing out all others. Let’s take the Krabby for example. If they were left unchecked, then the entire Complex would probably be overrun with them by now. We seek diversity and Balance.”

The knowledge put her a little more at ease. Knowing her initial hypothesis was correct had settled her nerves tremendously.

“Is that all? I think I have some other business to attend to, unless you have something else to talk about?” Alder asked.

“No, thank you. You have given me much to think about.”

Alder smiled before hanging up the call. It had been an interesting few minutes. Her Pokemon had woken near the start of their call and listened intently through the stories.

“I think it’s time to take that break we have been pushing off for so long.” Lilith finally spoke after a moment of silence.

“Sol!” Absol jumped up, ready for the day.

It was still a little early for them, but sitting around doing nothing was just as bad. Sableye elected to stay inside his ball, still not liking the cursed Sun. Lilith and Absol left their room, heading outside.

The main floor was bustling with the evening crowd. They slipped right by, getting some looks. Absol was still an anomaly when considered against other Pokemon in the Region. She assumed other foreign Pokemon received the same treatment.

They walked the streets, the sidewalks nice and wide. The streets themselves were much smaller, only having two lanes each side. Cars and Pokemon sat in rush hour traffic, everyone trying to get home for the night. Ride Pokemon had to be ridden on the main roads, as they were forbidden from the sidewalks. Too many people walked by, creating a hazard.

Lilith and Absol hummed as the chaos passed them by. They walked along the railings, looking down at the water below.

“Let’s go check out down there!” Lilith shouted with glee.

Absol gave a bark, as the two raced down to the water. They circled the concrete hole, looking for the stairs before heading right up to sea level. It must have been low tide, as the water slid all the way to the bottom of the concrete slope. There wasn’t an initial drop-off, but a line where the gray turned a different shade.

It was the high tide line, indicating the ebb and flow of the waves. It was a location for water types. Battles could take place, just for the challenge, or also catching them. Some species never left the water, being unable to fight outside of it. Fish like Magicarp could only Splash outside of it.

Pointy holes poked through the lower concrete as they splashed around in the water. She had read up on the water types in the area, having figured out Quilfish were the most common. Purple poison stained the ground, painting small blotches across the ground.

Dark shadows swam through the water right off shore. They couldn’t make out their forms, but it was interesting watching them swim through the depths.

“Ding!”

Before they could get any closer a surprise noise drew their attention.