I̸ ̵ d̴o̶ ̵n̴o̸t̵ ̸n̸e̷e̷d̷ ̶t̸o̶ ̴b̷e̴ ̵c̷o̵d̵d̵l̴e̸d̸, Pausso thought at me crossly. I̷ ̴ a̶m̵ ̸n̷o̴t̶ ̵ a̴ ̶ c̴a̶l̷f̷.̸

“Oh, shush,” I told him as I wrapped a scrap of linen around yet another cut on his arm and pinned the bandage into place. “The last thing you need is to get an infection. No way they’d be able to treat it properly with the current state of medicine.”

He snorted and jerked his trunk to the side in what I was pretty sure was a rude gesture, but I ignored him as I picked up another piece of fabric. “Besides, we don’t want you getting seawater on your cuts. Or is salt water good for wounds? I can’t remember.”

We were back on the Relicanth and sitting belowdecks as I patched Pausso up. Pokemon healed from wounds a lot faster than humans, but I didn’t want to risk any long-term damage from the battle. At least Echo had been easy to treat since she hadn’t gotten cut up at all; she just ate a handful of berries and took off to doze in her favorite corner of the lower deck.

I finished pinning the next bandage in place and sat back on my heels as I looked my starter over. He was acting stoic, sure, but a little bit of the pain he felt leaked through our bond every time he sent a message my way. It made me feel vaguely guilty, but I tried to push the feeling away. Getting hurt sometimes was part of being a fighting Pokemon, right? It was worth it when it meant that you made a change for the better, like we just had.

Well. I hoped we had made a change. Jasper hadn’t said much after we’d beaten him and had made a short, non-committal sound when I’d reminded him about our deal. But what else was I supposed to do? I was just a kid, I couldn’t force a full-grown adult to do anything he didn’t want to.

I sighed and grabbed yet another piece of linen, but I was interrupted by Florence poking her head through the hatch. “The others have returned,” she informed me. “Captain Zuri is quite irritated.”

Pausso’s ears perked up and he immediately scrambled out of my reach so he could jog up the stairs. I yelled for him to wait as I grabbed the rest of the bandages, but he didn’t listen. It made me grumble under my breath as I ran up the stairs after him, which reminded me of how my mom used to grumble at me when I’d run off ahead of her on errands, and didn’t that feel weird to consider.

Then I got to the top and stopped, my eyes widening as I took in the scene. The group that had gone out to deal with the rogue Pokemon at the dock all looked like they’d been through their own personal war.

Pelipper was closest to me, standing on the deck and breathing shallowly with his beak slightly open. His body looked oddly pale, like he’d been drained of all color. He was in better shape than Aipom, though – the little monkey was just waking up from a faint and had mottled bruises all over her. Oddish had been released from her poke ball, and she too had fainted; her leaves looked oddly wilted and unhealthy, completely different from their usual vibrant green. Even the humans didn’t look great. Both Isaac and Zuri were drenched in water, there was blood running down Zuri’s arm, and Isaac was coughing continuously.

I shook my head briefly in an attempt to focus, then ran back down the stairs to grab one of the bags of mixed berries. The next few minutes were spent in a rush of treating the injured group while some of the crew members ran about to find towels and dry clothing for the two humans.

“Were you able to chase the majū off?” Florence asked quietly as she handed a towel to Zuri.

“Barely,” the captain said in a dry tone. She took off her wet hat and dropped it on the deck, dislodging a strand of seaweed in the process, then briskly ran the towel over her face and curls. If she was bothered by the bloody gashes on her arm she didn’t show it. “Damned thing was not like any majū I have ever seen.”

“It was fascinating!” Isaac added before he erupted in another coughing fit. Charity handed him a bottle and he took a minute to breathe through his nose and take tiny sips of water. “It seemed to be composed mostly of seaweed,” he continued in a hoarse voice, “but utilized some –“ and he was coughing again before he could even finish his thought.

“It shot big damn balls of shadows at us when we tried to talk to it,” Zuri finished for him. “And it broke the rowboat. Cleaved it right in two from underneath with some kind of appendage. Looked like an anchor, if you can believe that.”

Tanaji whistled a long, low note, clearly impressed. I just shook my head as I cut another berry in half for the now-revived Oddish to nibble on. It didn’t sound like any kind of Pokemon I wanted to deal with, that was for sure.

“But it is gone now,” Florence said as she accepted the damp towel back from Zuri. “So we can leave for Cianwood, yes?”

“Hypothetically,” Zuri grunted, though she didn’t sound particularly happy. “Except that there are still a thousand other little problems around the city left unsolved. And we have no guarantee that that fucking seaweed creature will not return.” She hissed sharply as Sizhen slapped some kind of salve on her wounded arm.

“No harm in trying,” Henry said with a shrug. “I will send for the inspector.”

~

Half an hour later the group was mostly looking better, though Isaac was still coughing every few minutes and Pelipper still looked pale and drawn. Pausso had eventually put the bird to sleep with Hypnosis in an attempt to make him rest and recover, but he confided in me in a hushed mental voice that the bird wasn’t dreaming. Something strange must have hit him during the battle against the seaweed Pokemon, but I had no idea what it could be. Hopefully he’d get better with time.

Pausso and I were talking about Pelipper’s situation and trying to think of something we could do to help when I realized that the inspector had arrived on the ship, yet wasn’t doing any inspecting. It rapidly became clear that he was telling Zuri we would be required to stick around Olivine for the foreseeable future, until they could be sure the seaweed Pokemon had left for good. I sighed and ran over to join the conversation, cutting off Zuri before she could start cussing the man out.

“You don’t need us here anymore,” I told the inspector as confidently as I could manage. “We got Jasper to agree to pick up his old duties again. He can take care of the majū if it returns.”

The man clucked his tongue and shook his head briskly. “You say that now, but do you have assurances? I think not. We all know that man and his Skarmory cannot be drawn away from the lighthouse. There is no point expecting them to do anything.”

Zuri looked past the man’s shoulder, out over the docks that led towards said lighthouse, and raised her eyebrows. “You mean that Skarmory?”

“What do you –“ the man turned to look over his shoulder and yelped as the great metal bird dove down from the air to land right beside us. She still sported bruises on her chest and neck, but she looked much happier than she had when we saw her last; there was a new light in her eyes and her wings rustled with energy. She chirped something in greeting to Pausso and he grunted in reply, feeling surprised. He wasn’t the only one.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

“What are you doing here?” I asked Skarmory. “Are you even feeling well enough to fly this far? And where’s Jasper?”

Pausso nudged my shoulder and gestured back to the dock, and I turned in time to see Jasper stride over the plank and onto the ship with the ease of someone who’d been on and off ships all his life. I narrowed my eyes, not sure how to feel. Was he going to turn things around and act like a proper trainer again? Or was he going to cause more trouble?

Jasper walked up to us and folded his arms casually as he looked at the dock inspector. “I can handle things from here,” he told the man.

“Eh?” The man looked at him like he was crazy. “With all due respect, you do not have the proper authority to –“

“You have designated this group as trainers, correct?” he interrupted. “People are already talking in the streets about the trainers who took down the giant sea majū and the Pelipper that sent it swimming off in a blast of golden light.” He gestured to where Pelipper rested in the shelter of the main mast, sleeping while standing upright. “If these people are trainers, they fall under my jurisdiction. I will decide what to do with them.”

That sounded a little ominous, but whatever Jasper decided would probably be better than being stuck arguing with Olivine’s bureaucratic system forever. The inspector ground his teeth and made a few feeble protests, but eventually he made a curt sound of agreement and left the ship altogether. That left the rest of us to stand there awkwardly and stare at Jasper.

He opened his mouth twice, but nothing came out either time. Then Skarmory nudged his side lightly with a wing and he ran a hand through his hair. “I came here to thank you,” he finally said in a curt voice.

I blinked at him. That hadn’t been what I’d expected. “Um. Why?”

He looked down and grimaced, not meeting my eyes. “I… these last few months have been difficult,” he finally said, his voice gruff. “When Sam – my old mentor – when Sam died and Donphan went off to live by himself in the hills, I did not feel ready. I decided that we had to get stronger, as strong as they had been, no matter what it cost.” He looked even unhappier as he glanced over at Skarmory briefly, then back down towards the floor. “I did not realize just what my singlemindedness might cost me.”

I looked between man and Pokemon. They had seemed out of sync before, but now it was different. They looked like they belonged together, two halves of a whole, like the other trainer pairs I had met before. Something had changed… had I caused that change?

“So,” Jasper said as he looked up and squared his shoulders, finally meeting my eyes. “Thank you for forcing me to see sense.”

“Umm. You’re welcome, I guess,” I said, shrugging. “Does that mean you’re going to start doing all the usual trainer things again?”

“Yes,” he said, though his voice sounded strained. Skarmory chirped her happy agreement next to him. “And we will put more effort into finding an apprentice. I will see if I can find a few possible candidates around the city, give them some coaching before they go off to seek their partners.” His mouth twitched into something approaching a crooked grin. “Who knows? With all the majū that have apparently snuck into the city this summer, finding one willing to bond with a human may be easier than usual.”

I thought back to the Pidgey at the bakery and grinned. “It’s worth a shot, if you ask me.”

He nodded, then looked around at the rest of the crew. “You all are free to leave whenever you wish,” he told us. “I will make sure the dock master does not penalize you for it. You have done more than enough for this city already.”

Zuri grinned and cracked her knuckles. “Music to my ears,” she said happily. Then she raised her voice into a hearty bellow. “Time to head home, team! My partner is resting, so we get to do things the hard way! Take your positions and get ready for a slow exit!”

The crew rushed around us, taking care of a dozen little tasks as they prepped the ship to leave. I moved to the side to get out of their way and found that Jasper had followed me. “What?” I asked him.

He glanced to the side and muttered something, which was quickly followed by Skarmory butting her head against his shoulder. Then he sighed and spoke up more clearly. “I owe you an apology, apparently,” he said in a half-hearted tone.

I stared at him silently, not sure whether to feel flattered, annoyed, or just plain awkward. Maybe a little of each. “Okay. Why?”

Skarmory had to chirp at him a few more times before he would elaborate. “I was discourteous after our battle,” he finally said. “It is customary to acknowledge one’s opponent for their victory. At the very least I should have assured you I would fulfill my end of our wager.” He huffed and glanced at me briefly before looking away towards the other side. “I did not expect the loss and was upset, but that was childish of me. I apologize.”

It had been annoying that he’d gone into such a sulk after the battle, but at least he was making up for it now. “Well, thank you. I appreciate it,” I said, trying to be magnanimous.

“And,” he continued in a rush, making me blink in surprise, “Skarmory and I would not have had the conversation we needed to have if you had not challenged us. She thinks you should have this, as a token of her thanks. Mine too, I suppose.” He drew something that had been tied to his belt and offered it to me.

I stared. Skarmory wanted to give me – well, probably me and my Pokemon – one of her feathers? What in the world was I supposed to do with that?

S̵h̴e̵ ̸s̷a̷y̴s̴ ̴ t̴h̷e̸y̷ ̷ m̷a̸k̷e̸ ̵ g̶o̶o̷d̶ ̴ w̸e̶a̴p̷o̴n̶s̶, Pausso thought with a nudge at my mind. He felt intrigued. Y̴o̵u̸ ̷ s̷h̴o̶u̵l̷d̷ ̸a̶c̴c̷e̵p̷t̷.

I had no idea what I was going to do with a Skarmory-steel weapon, but maybe we’d figure it out eventually. “Thank you,” I told the pair in a serious tone, reaching out to accept the feather. I winced as the edge pricked my fingers and repositioned my hands to hold it more carefully. “I appreciate it.”

Jasper then took a few steps to the side so he could make his way over the plank bridge before Aipom finished untying the ropes that held the ship in place. “You put on a good show for the battle, by the way,” he called back to me casually as Skarmory leapt into the air and glided over to land next to him on the dock. “But you need to work on your defenses. Your Zubat was taken out too easily, and your Drowzee would have gone down quickly too if I had called Skarmory back sooner.”

Pausso snorted in annoyance at my side. S̵o̸ ̷ s̵a̶y̶s̷ ̸t̶h̷e̴ ̶ l̶o̶s̶e̵r̵, he thought to me acerbically.

I sent back a feeling of agreement and cocked an eyebrow at Jasper. “We won fair and square.”

“This time,” he agreed. Then he smiled, maybe for the first time since I’d met him. “But things would go differently if you challenged us now. Come back and find us again in a year or two. It would be interesting see how much you will have grown by then.”

For a moment I faltered. A year? I wouldn’t still be in this era in a year, Mew willing.

But Jasper had no way of knowing that. “Sure,” I said, trying to muster a confidence that I didn’t quite feel. “We’ll battle again someday.”

He nodded, then turned off to make his way back into the city. I watched as one of the sailors nearby came up to him and talked briefly, gesturing widely with his hands. Jasper’s hands twitched at his sides, like he was annoyed, but shortly afterwards he followed the sailor in the opposite direction from where he’d been heading before. So he was already starting to make things right. That was good.

Zuri called out instructions to the others and they began the long, fiddly task of coaxing the ship out of the harbor without Pelipper’s assistance. I tried to get Pausso to go back down to the lower level so he could rest, but he wasn’t interested; he wanted to stay out where he could watch the ocean. So I leaned over the side of the ship next to him and stared out at Olivine as it shrunk behind us, and I thought.

The captain had promised that there was practically no chance of surprise eddies forming on the route to the north of the Whirlpool Islands. It had been used for trade between the cities since Cianwood had first been founded, and no one had ever reported trouble. If everything went according to plan we would reach our destination that evening. We would find and confront the wild Pokemon that was killing people. And I would finally learn about the ancient device that could imprison a Pokemon.

Soon I would be one step closer to my goal.

END OF PART FOUR