“Hey Evon, are you alright?”

I tilted my head up, my eyes meeting furry grey forelegs before my eyes met with a black-furred face as a pair of yellow and red eyes stared back at me. Those eyes were so pretty that I almost couldn’t force myself to look away from them.

“Yeah, I am,” I responded with uncertainty, looking away and trying to make my expression a bit more unreadable. “It’s just… are you sure we really should do this? You saw on the board, that this mission was Gold Rank and above and we’re still Silver Rank. Plus… something seemed off about that outlaw.”

I remember seeing the poster. It was a wanted poster about a grimmsnarl criminal with a hefty reward. However, something unnerved me about that poster, specifically his face. The way he looked, with all those scars on his face. Not even mentioning his smile… why was he smiling?

The female poochyena in front of me reassured me by pressing her face on mine and started nuzzling me. “I know you’re heavily cautious about this. But don’t worry, we’ve trained hard. We should practically be Gold Rank by this point based on how well we’re doing in our missions!” She took a step back and let out a toothy grin. “Come on, have you already forgotten our team's motto?”

I sighed and nodded, reciting the motto we had come up with before forming the team. “Be a wimp, rattata out of the way, be strong, dragonite the way in.” Evon allowed himself a smile. “Inspirational motto, I know, but we should know how to identify something beyond our control, right?”

“I know, I know, silly. But still, I know what we’re doing. Sure, I might be at a type disadvantage fighting this guy, but hey, that’s why you’re here with me!” The poochyena lifted her forepaw from the ground and placed it on my back. “Together, we can grow powerful and beat the most impossible foes! So come on, the world is gonna see us destroy the impossible!”

With those words, I smiled confidently. “Yeah, you’re right. Let’s do this, Ǎ̷̲l̴̪̊s̶͎̽ḯ̴̩a̸̬͋!”

. . .

I was bleeding. I felt a stream of warm blood pooling down from my left eye… or where it used to be. My voice felt hoarse and dry from screaming so much in pain. The pain was too much, I couldn’t move my body from sheer paralysis from what had happened.

And the cause of it was in front of me, ready to deliver the finishing blow.

“Pathetic little eevee. You shouldn’t have come here. You shouldn’t have come to me. You should have let me be…” The grimmsnarl with fully black sclera raised his arm, his black hair surrounding his limbs hardening into a sharp blade. “Now, you will suffer the consequences.”

How could I have been so foolish? Why didn’t I stop my partner? Just straight out refuse and just go on another mission? It would’ve been so easy and we wouldn’t have been in this dark hideout in a grottle to the brink of death. We were going to die because our ambition blinded us. We were going to die!

“EVON!!!” I managed to look away from the Pokémon that would end me and focused my blurred vision on someone else. A blur of black and grey approached us, however, I could not ponder for longer as the blur impacted me and I was launched away. I gritted my teeth as I landed on my underside.

SHK!

My ears flickered, and I tilted my head upwards slowly to find an agonizing and haunting sight once my vision became clear again. The sounds of blood drops were the only sound echoing around the room. My eye widened and my mouth went agape as I watched the scene in front of me. That same blade hair that would be the thing to kill me had pierced someone else on the side…

Ǎ̷̲l̴̪̊s̶͎̽ḯ̴̩a̸̬͋…

“No… NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!”

My eye opened again, however, I stood floating in a dark void. Pitch black surrounded my sides. Nothing was visible… except a mightyena who walked slowly to me. His eyes were missing.

“Why…?” He asked as he stopped in front of me. “Why did you kill her? Why did you lead her to her demise? Why did you leave my dear sister to die?”

I̸t̶’̸s̴ ̸a̷l̷l̶ ̷m̷y̷ ̸f̵a̵u̵l̸t̷.̶ ̴I̴t̶’̴s̵ ̴a̵l̴l̶ ̸m̶y̸ ̸f̷a̸u̶l̸t̴.̷ ̶I̸t̴’̸s̴ ̴a̴l̷l̴ ̶m̴y̷ ̸f̷a̸u̶l̷t̸.̷ ̸I̶t̸’̸s̵ ̶a̷l̶l̴ ̷m̴y̸ ̸f̸a̷u̴l̷t̵.̵ ̵I̵t̶’̶s̸ ̸a̸l̴l̵ ̸m̵y̷ ̶f̴a̶u̷l̴t̵.̵ ̶I̶t̵’̷s̵ ̸a̵l̴l̷ ̵m̵y̸ ̴f̷a̷u̶l̶t̵.̵ ̶I̴t̷’̷s̷ ̴a̴l̶l̴ ̸m̵y̸ ̶f̵a̷u̶l̷t̵.̶ ̸I̵t̸’̵s̴ ̵a̵l̵l̷ ̴m̶y̴ ̴f̶a̸u̶l̴t̶.̵ ̶I̶t̶’̶s̸ ̷a̷l̸l̴ ̸m̵y̶ ̷f̷a̶u̷l̴t̴.̶ ̶I̷t̸’̶s̷ ̵a̸l̴l̴ ̶m̸y̸ ̴f̷a̴u̷l̷t̵.̶ ̶I̸t̸’̶s̵ ̶a̶l̷l̷ ̶m̶y̷ ̸f̵a̵u̴l̸t̷.̴ ̵I̷t̷’̴s̵ ̶a̶l̶l̶ ̵m̴y̶ ̷f̴a̸u̷l̴t̷.̷ ̴I̸t̵’̴s̶ ̷a̷l̵l̵ ̸m̴y̷ ̴f̵a̸u̵l̶t̵.̴ ̶I̵t̵’̸s̶ ̶a̵l̴l̸ ̵m̴y̸ ̶f̷a̸u̵l̶t̴.̷ ̷I̵t̸’̶s̷ ̷a̷l̸l̵ ̴m̷y̶ ̵f̴a̵u̸l̴t̶.̴ ̷I̵t̶’̸s̸ ̸a̵l̷l̷ ̸m̶y̷ ̴f̸a̸u̶l̸t̸.̷ ̸I̷t̶’̴s̷ ̴a̵l̵l̷ ̶m̵y̷ ̵f̴a̵u̴l̶t̶.̶ ̷I̷t̴’̵s̴ ̸a̷l̸l̶ ̸m̸y̶ ̶f̷a̶u̶l̷t̴.̵ ̵I̶t̶’̷s̶ ̵a̴l̶l̵ ̶m̸y̴ ̵f̵a̸u̵l̵t̵.̵ ̸I̷t̴’̸s̶ ̶a̶l̴l̷ ̸m̷y̴ ̷f̵a̸u̷l̷t̶.̶ ̶I̷t̸’̵s̶ ̷a̸l̸l̷ ̴m̶y̶ ̴f̸a̸u̵l̵t̶.̶ ̵I̵t̶’̷s̴ ̸a̵l̴l̸ ̷m̸y̵ ̶f̸a̷u̴l̷t̵.̷ ̶I̸t̶’̸s̴ ̴a̶l̴l̵ ̴m̸y̸ ̸f̶a̵u̸l̷t̴.̵ ̸I̷t̶’̴s̸ ̸a̶l̴l̵ ̸m̷y̷ ̷f̸a̴u̵l̵t̷-̶

“She didn’t deserve to die. You do…” The mightyena snarled, baring his teeth at me as I tried to shy away, covering my head in my paws. “And that’s why I’ll bring you to justice… by ending your life myself, EVON!!!”

The mightyena jumped at me with his mouth wide open and claws ready to tear me apart-

I screamed wide awake, my fur bristling as I let out a Shadow Ball to the wall. I started breathing heavily as I tried to calm myself from the absolute terror I experienced. “Not… not again…”

I felt tears running down my right cheek. I passed a paw on it and wiped the tears off. I sniffled a bit and looked around a little disoriented, my ears flickering a bit. I put a paw on my head and sighed. “I thought they stopped… is my new motivation not enough?”

“EVON!”

The sound of the unexpected voice combined with the knocking on my room made me jump with my fur bristling, letting out a loud yip. I landed and looked at the door, wondering who the heck was inside my house at this very moment. Well, they knew my name so of course it had to be someone I knew.

I opened the door to find… someone I didn’t recognize. It was an abra, floating in the air, defying gravity with his eyes closed as usual. I tilted my head in confusion. “Uh… who are you…?”

The abra crossed his arms and asked. “Seriously, dude? Can’t you see my eyes to identify them? I know they’re squinted but it shouldn’t be that hard to see.”

I blinked and tried to process what he meant. What did he mean by squinted eyes, they were always closed. “They’re… not really squinted. At least, from perspective.”

“Huh… well, okay then, I believe you.” The abra adjusted his position in the air to make it look like he was lying down on his side. He smiled afterwards. “It’s me, the resident memer shapeshifter that you know and definitely love!”

My ears perked up as the realization hit. “Oh, it’s just you, Lucas.” I sighed and asked the shapeshifter. “What are you even doing inside my house? And uh… when did you learn how to levitate?”

“Long story short, Shadow Deity helped me do some stuff.” Lucas admitted before putting a finger on his forehead, blinking out of existence and appearing a few paces back then doing it again but appearing higher up then to the side then disappearing and reappearing again right where he was initially. “Some cool stuff.”

I took a step back and registered in my head what Lucas just did. So… not only did he learn how to levitate… but he also learned how to teleport in a single day…? I was finally putting into perspective something about Lucas that I really haven’t been putting that much thought into before. He was learning how to use his new body and powers fast. This Shadow Deity inside his head… I wondered who that was… ‘I may need to go to the library, I need to see what kind of deity is directing Lucas to the path of power…’ I looked aside. “I… I see.”

“But anyway, the reason I barged into your house like the normal New York burglar was because I heard you scream and shout so I got worried and barged inside.” He landed on the ground and tilted his head. “You okay or do I need to beat some ghost haunting ya?”

I sighed while a soft scowl entered my face. “It’s fine, it’s just… some stupid nightmare, that’s all.” My gaze darted back to him as I tilted my head. “Wait, why did you even come here? Already wanting to go on another mission?”

The abra waved his claw dismissively and spoke. “Nah, leave that to tomorrow or something. I already had my fill of a mission yesterday. I’ll tell you later what happened. For now, I came to ask you for something if you don’t mind it.”

My tail rose in curiosity. What did he want from me? “What is it?”

Lucas made a kicking movement while (supposedly) looking around. “So… I was thinking. Ya wanna get stronger right? Not just me who wants to feel prepared for the dangers lurking around the place, right?”

I blinked and processed what he was trying to say. Wait, because he was a psychic type at the moment, could he know my inner goal? Did he already discover it-

No, I shouldn’t panic. He might have learned teleportation and levitation in a single day, but that doesn’t mean he also mastered telepathy, or else he would’ve already shown it to me because it’s in his nature to be a showoff.

I subtly recomposed myself and asked with one of my ears flattening against my head. “Yes, I want to be stronger to tackle more difficult missions one day. But still, where are you getting at?”

“Oh, it’s simple really. I was thinking…” He started flying again, twirling in the air and pretending to lay in the air with his belly, holding his head in his hands. “How about you and I feel each other strength’s in a friendly lil’ spar slash training, hm?”

That made me curious. “Oh really? Spar with me? Where is this coming from?”

“Okay, hear me out.” Lucas began while adjusting his position and putting a hand on his side. “I was thinking that if we tried to fight one another, we might see our biggest weakness and learn how to coordinate better when we fight as a team next time! You really don’t want a repeat of the sunbloom incident where we almost died, right?”

I hummed in thought as I processed his words, no, not because I was thinking if we should do this or not, but because I was thinking about Lucas’ reasoning. There was something off about it, but I couldn’t really put my paw on it to be sure… not like he was lying, obviously there was some truth in it. But it felt like he was omitting something else from me.

Ah, who cared, it was likely for some dumb reason or something. As per usual with him.

I smirked. “Sure, Lucas, why not? After all, you could learn a thing or two if you’re not as reckless and rock-headed as I think you are.”

The abra leaned forward and smugly grinned. “Okay fur ball, let’s see if you can actually beat me first, ya know? Don’t go acting cocky now when I whoop your ass easily.”

My tail started wagging in anticipation as I stomped a paw onto the ground. “Oh, it’s on…” I then walked beside Lucas and started heading out the door. Who knew I’d be using that sparring court again, but oh well, better than leaving it gathering dust because no one else seemed to be using it. “Come with me, I know of a place we can fight on.”

----------------------------------------

It had been some minutes since we got out of my house and started walking to the training arena. Lucas had transformed into his human form again for some reason, however, he was without the cloth covering his torso but still wore the pendant that Raina gave to him. I still wore that pendant mostly every day because I thought it felt nice to wear. However, I got this strange feeling about it. I don’t know what it was but it felt like some otherworldly presence was watching me…

We had stopped by the bathhouse to drink some water as well before heading off to the arena. Of course, the rest of the way there was spent in silence because Lucas was using that strange multipurpose device of his that for some reason has the apparition of Giratina and even Arceus in it.

It may not seem like it but I’ll never get over that… why does a completely different species have our gods trapped inside this strange dimension inside that crazy device???

I snapped out of those thoughts when my eye caught sight of a familiar place after entering a path with no exit. The tunnel we were in expanded as we reached a wide area. It was like a large dome where someone could battle to their heart’s contents (as long as they knew how to control themselves and not cause a cave-in.)

The arena was a simple one. A wide area that extended in a circular manner, typical of a dome arena. The ground was also littered with a bit of rocks here and there to put some obstacles in the way of fighting to simulate a real fight too. It was simple but effective. It's too bad that a lot of explorers and the town populace don’t even use it. I had been using it when Alsia and I were in an exploration team but after her death, it was only gathering dust again.

I guess that changed today.

I turned my head to Lucas and motioned with a paw. “Well, this is the field we will be sparring in. You might sneeze a bit, it IS quite abandoned since no one has been using it, as far as I know.”

The human took a few steps into the arena, his phone still in his hand as he took in his surroundings. He hummed in a bit before whining. “Aww man, this place doesn’t have a spectator booth for other Pokémon to watch the biggest ass whooping in the century.” I was about to retort with something but he continued while lifting a finger. “But that’s okay, ‘cause I have this lil’ thing!”

Lucas raised his phone in the air before starting to look around for something. At that moment, I decided to ask. “What are you even gonna do with that thing?”

The shapeshifter looked back at me with a smug grin. “Oh, it’s quite simple, my dear furball. Basically, this lil’ thing is gonna capture the moment. It will record our fight. And when our fight ends, I can show this fight to others who want to see it but are not here to see it at this moment.” He then turned away, his head turning around while searching for something. “I would’ve live-streamed it but since this place has no connection at all, video form is better.” He giggled to himself before muttering, even though I could still hear him. “Oh, I cannot fucking wait until I post this to Twitter, people are gonna lose their marbles!”

He stopped craning his head around, going to a certain part of the wall after saying “Aha!”. Meanwhile, I just went to a place in the arena and started wondering about what he said. Was he going to… capture the moment? Is it just like that photography thing but long-term…? Ugh… human technology is so confusing, why even bother understanding it? “Once you’re done over there, can we fight already?”

“Wait, hold on a moment…” Lucas was fidgeting with a certain part of the rocky and uneven wall with his device and eventually, he stopped and started backing away slowly. “Hehehe, recording and holding steady, good…” Lucas got a bit of distance from the phone and clapped his hands while looking at the phone. “Greeting future viewers!” He raised a finger. “What you’re about to watch is unedited in the slightest, after all, I don’t know CGI!” The shapeshifter then looked at me with a smirk. “Something to say for the people who are about to watch?”

“Uhh…” I stammered a bit before thinking. ‘Why does he want me to say something!? I thought he was just going to add context for those who watch this later! Wait, how many people are going to even watch this? Oh, Arceus… hopefully not a lot…’ I then looked at the camera. “Um, hi… we’re gonna fight and uh…” I pointed a paw at the human. “He’s gonna be a mop when I wipe his face on the ground.”

He looked at me in surprise before his expression morphed into mild annoyance. “Bro! Aight, that’s it, gonna go Super Saiyan style on your ass.” Lucas then got into a position a distance away from me, opposite from where I stood. I shifted my focus away from the human device and focused on the shapeshifter in front of me. He stretched a bit, almost like he was ready to fight in his human form. However, that outcome was shattered in my head once the pink light of transformation overtook his body.

I already got used to how bright his transformations were. However, every time Lucas transformed, I wondered how it felt to alter his entire cell structure and core to become another Pokémon in just a few seconds. It must feel… excruciating. If humans are as fragile as he said they were, how could he handle things of this tier?

Once his transformation ended, the pink mantle of glow faded from his body, and where a human stood, a dewott with blue irises was in his place crossing his arms while he looked at me with a smug grin on his face. “I thought that I’ve never used a water type for battle yet, so I wanna see how it would feel like for now. After all, I’m pretty sure a stinky furball like you needs a bath anyway.”

Already starting with the insults before the battle even started? The art of taunting… yeah, that seems in line with his fighting style. There weren’t any opponents he could use that on at least to my knowledge… and I was another one who wouldn’t fall for his taunts.

I spread my legs apart from each other, readying a defensive stance. “Your threats are hollow for someone like me who already has more experience dealing with your type.”

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Lucas huffed amusedly before speaking again, raising his hands up. “Let’s see about that in… 3… 2… 1, GO!” The dewott announced before suddenly covering himself in a veil of water. He then started rushing to me, however, the moment he jumped to headbutt me, he started flying at incredible speeds. Thankfully, I activated my Quick Attack just in time to dodge out of the way with a jump. “Woahhh!!!”

I looked back to see Lucas falling on the ground after his Aqua Jet ended, skidding along it with his underside before stopping. He groaned a bit as I fully turned around with a disapproving expression. “Hmph, seriously? All that shit talk just for that as your grand opener?”

Lucas quickly got up and dusted himself, the water he covered himself with earlier making a few specs of dust clinging to his fur easily. The water type looked at me again and pointed. “Shut up, you ain’t seen nothing yet! I was just, like… getting used to this body since it’s my first time I’m fighting in this body, that’s all!”

“Let’s see if that claim holds true.” I covered myself in the aura of Quick Attack again, and I felt myself getting faster than normal time could handle as I approached the dewott. I could see his eyes slowly widen before he crossed his arms in front of him. I headbutted him, however, he had successfully managed to defend himself as I felt the Quick Attack energy fade away. However, I didn’t let that stop me as I opened my mouth wide open and bit down on one of his arms with dark energy surrounding my teeth.

While I snarled with my teeth sinking into Lucas’ flesh, he grunted in pain before starting to shake me away, however, I persisted, inflicting more dark-type energy onto him. “Okay, puppy, chill for a bit, would ya!?” From the corner of my vision, I see his free hand grabbing one of the sea shells clinging to his leg. I already knew what was coming so I decided to release his arm and-

“Ngh!”

I grunted in pain before I was launched into the air by a swift kick in the gut. And the pain wasn’t done when Lucas jumped in the air and delivered a swift slice with his hard shell which sent me crashing onto the ground on my side. I felt a bit of pain, and the cut was shallow only cutting some of my fur. I regained awareness of my surroundings again and looked at Lucas who landed on the ground with a grin on his face. I asked after groaning a little and getting up. “How did you know…?”

Lucas stylishly threw the scalchop in his paw into the air and grabbed it without even looking. “Quite simple actually. Wanna know the easiest method of attacking an opponent? Let them attack a hard part of your body and that leaves them exposed for a counter-attack with another body part.” He fiddled with the sea shell weapon. “This little thing was a distraction because drawing any weapons is slower.”

I was a bit surprised by the insight that he shared with me, not expecting that coming from him in the slightest. “Where in distortion did you even learn about that?”

“Pieces of media from the internet and personal experience with bullies prepared me for stuff like this.” The dewott explained while getting into a battle pose again, pointing the scalchop in his paw forward. “Come on bro, this match ain’t ending until you give up and I claim victory over ya, proving I’m the strongest of-”

With a burst of speed from Quick Attack, I ignored what he was going to say and started dashing around the place, the water type becoming very slow to me. I started jumping onto the boulders strewn around the field, once I landed on them, I started whipping my tail in Lucas’ direction. I launched Swift to the dewott, shooting a single star whenever I landed on the rocks.

The first star hit on his back, causing a small explosion and staggering him forward. The second star almost hit him on the side, but he was fast and sidestepped out of the way. The last star, however, surprised me. I shot it in front of him, the projectile traveling at fast speeds to his face. However, instead of dodging it, he just stood there and sliced the star in half with his scalchop, the two halves flying past him and impacting a boulder and the wall.

I didn’t let that stun me for longer before I dashed at him from behind and prepared a Shadow Ball at the tip of my mouth. The ghost-type energy born from my life energy licked at my lips from how close it was to my mouth. I saw Lucas’ ears flicker as he turned around just in time I let the Shadow Ball go, the purplish black orb flying to the dewott quickly.

“Shit!” Lucas cursed before grabbing his other scalchop and crossing them together as a glow of energy emanated from them. The Shadow Ball impacted the scalchops which caused Lucas to get pushed back a bit as he started blocking the ball of ghostly energy. He eventually let out a cry and shifted position, redirecting the ball to the wall above. “Hah!”

I took this as an opportunity and dashed towards the dewott, my teeth enlarging a bit with dark energy. I reached him and sank my fangs into his flesh once again, biting his leg this time. Lucas moaned in pain before falling into his knee, even dropping one of his scalchops on the ground.

“A bit angy now, are we?” Lucas hissed between his grunts before twisting his head around, his chest swelling a bit before he launched a burst of water from his mouth onto my face. The force of the impact launched me away from him, dislodging my teeth from his skin and soaking my face as well. I landed on my feet and shook my head, the smell of wet fur already entering my nostrils. “Let me clean ya up a bit. Can tell you were on League a bit too much!”

I saw Lucas grab his fallen scalchop and get up again. He fully turned to me before starting to spit more of those water spits with his Water Gun. To conserve my energy, I dodged the projectiles without the assistance of Quick Attack, making me pay even more attention to the direction in which Lucas shot the water. I narrowingly dodged the projectiles, however, when one of them hit my tail, my momentum was thrown off. “Shit!”

Then came another water projectile, hitting my side and launching me backwards. I skidded across the floor, stopping myself with my claws pinned on the floor. Then Lucas came with the taunt. “Aw, there ya go! All washed! Both in a clean manner and being bad at stuff.” I looked at him growling. He struck a pose by putting his fist on his side and wagging a finger. “Seems like someone’s ready to take the L, eh?”

I felt my muscles twitch as I slowly got back up. “You’re foolish to think that I’d give up this easily when I can easily try harder to get stronger!”

“Okay then, don’t say I didn’t warn ya!” The dewott coated himself in a mantle of water again. I had a feeling that this time he learned from the last attempt at Aqua Jet… dammit, what was I gonna do now-

Wait a minute… that’s it!

I took a deep breath as Lucas started approaching me again, running before he jumped and let the burst of speed he gained from the veil of water boost him forward. ‘Wait…’ He got closer and closer and I could feel the air almost moisturizing around me. ‘Now!’

I ducked under the Aqua Jet and I saw Lucas’ eyes widen in surprise. “What the-” I then delivered a headbutt right onto Lucas’ stomach. Even though the water around him softened the impact, it was enough to halt his momentum and throw him in the air. I copied what Lucas did to me at the beginning of the fight and decided to follow up with that, seeing as I was above him. I threw a Shadow Ball directly at him, the orb of ethereal force exploding in contact with his body and sending him straight to the ground.

He groaned a bit before I landed again back on the floor. However, I gave him no time to rest and jumped on top of him, asserting my dominance over him. I smirked with a grin. “It seems the victor has been decided-”

“Damn, you do wanna kiss me from how you get on top of me a lot.” Lucas suddenly spoke, which made me freeze and blush a little. I was ready to bite him again, however, I felt the cold and moist surface of something against my neck, catching me off guard. “Here’s another lesson for ya, don’t declare victory UNTIL the opponent is outta tricks. Dragon Ball taught me well that.” He put away his scalchop and giggled a bit. “Anyway, I yield, you won this fair and square.”

Those last words confused me as I got off from him a bit winded. “Wha- why? You could’ve gotten the hit and won. I was on the advantage sure, but you could’ve gotten the finishing strike!”

The dewott caught up and casually dusted himself off. “But would that feel good for you knowing that I stole your win with such a cheap trick?” He put his paws on his side, leaning his body close to me with a knowing smile. I couldn’t help but ponder what he said. Unfortunately, he was right that… I’d probably just bite him again for pulling that out of his rear just to catch me off guard… “Yep, that face tells me everything!” He then leaned back and put a paw on his chin. “Hmm, now to find my phone around here…”

The dewott walked to the walls of the cave, looking for his phone. I was just left staring at him while my head replayed the previous battle. It was clear that even with his reckless personality and his cocky demeanor, he was no pushover and it showed in the way he fought. By this point, he had already gotten used to the body type of some Pokémon and knew the right way to execute his moves in those bodies. Not to mention the techniques he used to get his advantages in the fight…

Was the human world really that bad for someone to learn how to fight harshly?

I got snapped out of my thoughts when I saw Lucas with his device in his paws, squealing like a little kid receiving a present. “Oh my goodness, hell yeah! Haha, everyone’s gonna fuckin’ flip once I post this baby on Twi-” The dewott looked up and froze, looking in my direction before flinching and taking a step back. “The fuck!?”

I got confused for a second about what had caused such a reaction from Lucas. However, my answers were given when I turned around as well. A certain white and green scaly canine Pokémon stood at the field entrance, casually sitting on the ground. Even I couldn’t help but flinch as well and take a defensive stance. “Zephaniel!?”

That… Pokémon again. What… was his species name? Acaniz? Yeah, something called an acaniz. I don’t have a strong enough opinion on this guy, other than the fact that I’m just on the edge when he’s around because of what Lucas said. There is just… no way that this Pokémon is the legendary Serpent of Balance and Order, right?

Zephaniel smiled before speaking. “What a wonderful battle, you two. I’m very impressed by the techniques you have shown.” He tilted his head after humming. “Why do you two look so tense? Is there something about-”

“Dawg, I’mma be for real here. Yes, there’s something about you.” Lucas suddenly spoke as he started walking and stopped beside me. “Listen, legit, you do a terrible job hiding your identity from other mortals who have an idea of who you are already.”

That caught me off guard, making me nervously turn to Lucas and make him stop with those baseless assumptions. “Lucas, could you drop it, please? You don’t need to cause useless problems.”

The acaniz flinched and looked aside. “What are you talking about…? I-I’m just-”

The dewott sighed and crossed his arms. “Dude, cut the crap, alright? Ain’t nobody here right now and I don’t think anyone would be if the furball’s claims are true about this place. So come on, Zygarde, we won’t judge.”

My fur bristled and I hissed angrily at him. “Lucas! Just stop already-”

Suddenly, a sigh interrupted me and I looked back at the scaly canine Pokémon. “Fine, I admit.” My eye widened a little once I heard the chipper tone in his voice get replaced with something more genuine. He craned his head up again and spoke something that made my heart skip a beat. “You are correct. I am Zygarde. Also known as the Serpent of Order and Balance.”

… W H A T!?

No, no, absolutely not. In the name of Arceus’ great paradise, there was absolutely no way that this Pokémon was the Zygarde from legend. The serpent could cause entire nations to fall if they disturb the ecosystem's and nature's balance. The deity that could wipe a whole mountain with that enormous power over the earth in the blink of an eye.

Were you telling me that this Pokémon was that deity?

I nervously spoke with a fake laugh. “Hey, no need to, like, play into my partner’s delusional beliefs. After all, there is no way you can-”

Suddenly, Zephaniel spread his legs and started gaining a green glow as he braced for something to happen. I could feel my face growing pale as I stared at the aura covering the scaly Pokémon. Suddenly, hundreds upon hundreds of motes of green lights started pouring into the area they were just in, entering Zephaniel’s bubble of green sphere. The sphere enlarged itself, making way for a bigger being blossoming from what remained of the old scaly canine’s body.

I glanced at Lucas who took a few steps forward and spoke. “Aw hell yeah, now we’re talking!”

My eye darted back to see the green light dissipating, the big Pokémon in front of me making me feel the biggest chill running across my body. My breathing shallowed as I took fearful steps back, looking at the white and green serpentine behemoth in front of me. “N-no way… you… you’re actually…”

Zephani- no, Zygarde sighed as one of his frills vibrated. “See now why I don’t reveal my identity to anyone? Now this little eevee will devote his life to me just to protect himself. It’s repetitive and annoying.” The deity leaned his head close to us, their hexagonal scales making his expression unreadable. “Isn’t he?”

“I-I…”

Before I could stammer, Lucas interrupted me, putting a paw on his side. “Nah, he won’t. If ya wanna be treated less deity-like and more common Pokémon-like, we can do that easily.” He turned his head to me and asked. “Ain’t that right, Ev?”

I glanced at Lucas with the most bewildered stare I could muster, just to show the sheer shock I felt when he casually talked down with one of the most powerful deities on the planet. How in Giratina’s name could he so casually address Zygarde like he was just a normal Pokémon like the rest of us? And it’s not like he doesn’t know his power, after all, he has those… games of his on his device.

How can he keep his calm that well…?

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Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod-

WHAT AM I DOING!?!?!? Why I’m acting so buddy-buddy with the big danger noodle who has 4 signature ways to kill me in one blow!?!? I shouldn’t be doing this, why am I doing this!? I know the big guy just wanted to fit in, but like, what if he just playin’? What if it’s the biggest vibe check of all time? Well, I haven’t gotten impaled to death by green spears, buried to death by lil’ green blobs, exploded by the earth, or, who could forget, obliterated by a fucking laser beam (yet). So… that’s a good thing, right? Right?

Chat, I may be dead in a few seconds probably-

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Well, he probably had seen worse things in his world to not be afraid of the deity, so… maybe I’m just letting my expectations about Zygarde run wild. After all, he wouldn’t strike us down where we stand, right? “Y-yeah, right, we won’t…” I said with my ears flattened while looking aside.

“Hmm, that is good to know then. I hope that you two do not go back on your word.” He spoke with a big huff, and I could feel a warm breeze pass through my body after he exhaled.

Lucas hummed for a second before speaking. “For a ‘mon that likes to have their identity hidden, those lil’ cells that came to you would arouse a lot of suspicion around the village, wouldn’t it?”

Zygarde looked at Lucas. “Hmph, I’m not so foolish as you think. My cells are invisible at every moment. They just become energy once they’re a small distance from me. So, the chances of them getting seen by another Pokémon are minimal and non-existent at best. But anyway…” The serpent started glowing green again as hundreds of small lights started leaving the big glow. His form started shrinking and reverting back to what it was. Eventually, the light dissipated, revealing the scaly canine form of the deity again. “I am not here just to reveal my identity, as you now know. I came here for other business… specifically you.” He pointed a paw at Lucas.

The dewott tilted his head. “So you’re not satisfied with the answers I gave you at the restaurant?”

“Of course not, I left that place with more questions rather than answers. So I want you to be fully honest with me here. Who are you really, and what are you?” The deity of order asked while sitting on his haunches. “And of course, what is your end goal here?”

‘He’s still wary about Lucas? I mean… it does make sense given his strange powers and all. No wonder the deity of order would be afraid if an individual capable of even turning into rare and powerful Pokémon would emerge out of nowhere.’ I reasoned in my head, humming a bit nervously and thoughtfully.

“If you want a concrete answer, fine, I’ll give it to ya.” The dewott put his phone on the ground in front of him before he started transforming. He had morphed back into his human form before grabbing his phone again, his pendant jiggling around his chest. “I am Lucas Robinson, and I’m a human from another world.” He looked at his hand before continuing to speak. “A deity of this world gifted me these powers. And with this power, I’ll continue to grow stronger and help every Pokémon in need along the way until I return home.” He clenched his fist and looked back at Zygarde with a smile. “This is who I am!”

I noticed the human subtly chuckling to himself. What was even funny about that?

Well, at least Zygarde didn’t notice it so he didn’t think that Lucas was objectively lying. He hummed before murmuring. “Interesting… and your aura does not lie either…” Since… when could he read auras? Dammit, I should probably catch up on my deities’ knowledge. Starting with both Lucas’ strange deity and Zygarde…

Maybe the guildmaster has some insight into both…

“However, I still do not feel satisfied.” The deity of order continued, getting closer to Lucas. He then started circling around him slowly. “Do you even fully know about the power you possess at your fingertips? You might not know by your clear use of weaker forms, but if you access more forms, your power grows to the level of not just any deity, a deity that could even rival Arceus themselves.”

My eyes widened at what the deity said. His power is that strong? All of this was starting to overwhelm me… why did I have to be the one to get between deity affairs!?

Lucas seemed to be caught a little off guard before he crossed his arms and spoke. “Well, I already knew that…” HE ALREADY KNEW!?!? “But what are you even getting at here? You’re scared I might go rogue if I suddenly transform into, like, Dialga or something?”

“Precisely.” He stopped in front of Lucas. “That power could prove to be a great disaster waiting to happen if it falls on the wrong paws. After all, what if you go feral when you’re in the body of one of the children of creation? What if you get captured by a group of evil Pokémon who use you for your power to do their evil deeds?”

The human held one of his arms and looked aside, a grimace finally entering his face. The worst part about that is that one of those things almost happened when it came to the Dark Rebellion. They wanted to take Lucas with them and force him to join their ranks… absolutely despicable, I couldn’t forgive them… but still, it was worrying that Lucas had to be extra careful with his powers because they could cause a lot of destruction.

Well… if he managed not to destroy this village in more than two weeks in this place, he at least knows what he’s doing, probably thanks to the deity inside his head. Although, Zygarde definitely wasn’t convinced based on his speech…

“That look on your faces… I guess you two are very aware of the situation.” The deity of order sighed and spoke again. “That is why I came here in the first place. As the Pokémon who oversees the order of this world, I shall offer a proposal to you if you fear both of those things from happening.”

I blinked a bit before tilting my head confusedly. “Um… what is that offer exactly?”

“The offer is not, like, killing me because I’m too strong, right?” The shapeshifted inquired a bit nervously.

“Hmph, of course not. You do not break the balance of the world, at least for now, so I have no intention of killing you. No, the offer is something simple, really.” Zygarde then lifted a paw before finally speaking. “I offer myself to join your exploration team, at least temporarily.”

“... WHAT!?!?” Lucas and I blurted out simultaneously. We definitely had the same thought going through our heads right now. What the FUCK!?.

“Like I had said before. I do not fully trust your word, Lucas Robinson. And would you think I let you go to your own devices after you know that I could be watching your every step from the shadows? After all, if you already knew about me, you definitely know how my cells work when they’re not inside my body, isn’t that right?” Zygarde asked while leaning his head forward and smirking.

“I-... well, yes. I do. So… for you not to be creepily stalking me with your lil’ friends, you’re gonna be observing me up close just to see if I go off the rails of what you consider balanced?” He did a finger quotation motion.

“Yes, that is my plan. And if you do step over to the wrong path…” His scarf-like appendage started fluttering a bit as his white eyes flashed green. “I will not hesitate to strike you down where you stand. Understood?”

I felt my heart skip a beat again and my legs started trembling hard. I thought myself gulping dry on the deity’s threat. Was he… was he really going to kill Lucas? “Lucas, should we really le-”

“Eh, sounds good to me. It's not like I’m planning to join the dark side or go feral anytime soon. I know my limits.” The human walked to the canine Pokémon and crouched down to his level. “And it's not like we can deny the offer too since it’ll result in the same situation. And it’s kinda nice having a powerhouse like ya on the team.”

“Hmph, keep in mind that I shall not be switching into my stronger forms in missions. My goal here is not to advance in guild ranks with you but rather to observe you. Do not disappoint me.” Zygarde spoke with a huff while looking away.

Ugh, and of course Lucas keeps reeling me into way more problems than before… what a trouble magnet. Although, it would be nice to have a third member on our team after that whole Sunbloom fiasco. I wonder how a deity would even fight in that form…