The prints of two feet and four paws left their mark on the thin blanket of snow. Alakazam floated ahead alongside Raymond, with Haunter bringing up the rear. Raymond was thin lipped. His expression had become serious. Neither had he spoken a word, nor had Sal asked him any questions. Although there were a lot she would have liked to know answered.

It didn't take long until they reached a small clearing. At the edge of it were several mounds of earth, weighed down with stones. They were arranged in a parallel fashion and unusually elongated. Like graves, Sal thought and swallowed hard. Her head grew hot. She frantically wondered what exactly Raymond wanted to 'show her'. Was he going to bury her? Then he could have saved himself from all the other trouble. So, he pursued another goal. But which one?

"Lesson number three." His dark gaze rested expectantly on Sal. The street girl thought about it. She remembered lesson one - the attack Raymond called Dark Aura. Lesson two was about hiding in crowds and lesson number three...

Sal breathed in deeply. She fought back the tears that welled up in her eyes. Her voice was shaking. With great effort, the words came out of her lips.

"Our actions have consequences."

Raymond nodded.

"The most important lesson of all. Each of our actions causes a subsequent action. I demonstrated my strength to you in the dumps and you have feared me ever since. Guillaume worked with the anti-government movement and got into trouble with the gendarmerie. You got involved in a dangerous game and lost someone close to you."

Bitterness tinged Raymond's voice. His gaze rested on the elongated mounds of earth as he spoke to her, and Sal couldn't shake the feeling his last remark wasn't just aimed at her.

We come here often when we reflect on our past actions and their consequences.

Sal had already tuned Alakazam out when his voice spoke up in her mind.

Can you hear me? Sal thought. She sensed Zorua's curiosity and was sure that Trix had also heard - and understood - the words. None of them received a response. It was Raymond who broke the silence.

"Before we get into the question of what options are available to you, I would like to tell you a story. It's a story about a man who believed in freedom. In a life without oppression by the crown. A life where every citizen has a voice – and a choice. Quite poetic, isn't it?" he added with a cynical chuckle.

"The man in our story is a little older, he has traveled the world and experienced its many wonders. He has seen everything there is to see. At least that's what he thinks, the stupid fool. From Johto through Alola to Unova; those are different regions, mind you. Each one free of monarchy. Where anyone who wants to can train a Pokémon; free from regulation by the Crown. In some, there is a council of smart people that citizens can freely elect. In others, positions are filled according to personal strength and ability in a system of checks and balances.

"All of this causes the man in our story to start dreaming. He asks himself why we don't establish a system in Kalos in which the weak are no longer exploited, but protected. A system that treats every person as equal – regardless of social background, bloodline or personal strength. It is a beautiful dream and it doesn't take long before he finds allies. Humans and Pokémon who share his dream. In their desire to bring about the break of a new dawn, they unite.

"Of course, this dream doesn't please everyone. For some, it is like a persistent virus that has infected the national community and is spreading like an unstoppable fever. Soon, new laws are passed to take away the people's dream, to bring them under control again. Until it becomes too much. Another law is passed and leads to the proverbial straw that breaks the camel’s back."

It's his story. Sal sensed what's going on - the graves in front of her, his open dislike of the crown; the presumably unregistered Pokémon by his side.

"You fought in the war, right?" she blurted out. To her surprise, the old man didn't reprimand her for interrupting. Instead, a faint, sad smile creeped onto his lips.

"Yes. I fought in the war. Four years, which to this day seems like an eternity. In the end, we waited in vain for the dawn. It was a fool's errand. We should have seen that the Crown would rather sell parts of Kalos to a galarian band of mercenaries than give up too much of their power."

"What happened next?" Sal wanted to know.

Raymond's gaze rested on the graves. Suddenly he no longer seemed so strong and invincible to Sal. For a brief moment she could see behind his facade: he was an old man, broken by life. She paused. Was was it an honest display of emotions or just another one of his tricks? Did he want her to see him that way?

"A two-front war that we could not possibly win. All we did was delaying the inevitable. After the tragedies and countless deaths in Coumarine, Camphrier and Péribonne, an agreement was reached. In order to restore peace to Kalos, the crown was forced to place a small amount of its power in the hands of the citizens. I do not think they consider themselves winner of the war, neither did we."

"I didn't mean the war. What happened to you and Alakazam?"

At the Battle of Péribonne we faked Raymond's death. Apart from Victoria, not even a handful of people know that he is still alive.

Even though they hadn't really spoken to each other, Sal remembered Victoria. Sal remembered the older woman's words. She had said that it had been over 15 years since Raymond showed interest in another person. Did that make her special? What did he see in her? And why was he so willing to trust Sal with his secrets?

"Aren't you afraid they'll betray you? Trust no one but yourself. That's the first lesson of the streets. No matter how strong you are, at some point someone will betray you."

"I would find it hard to live by that conviction. Besides, the few who know about me would rather die than help the crown," Raymond chuckled but turned serious again.

"The only security risk is you."

Sal gulped as the meaning of his words dawned on her.

"Who's in the graves?" The question just burst out of Sal. She knew it wasn't proper, but she couldn't ignore the nagging uncertainty any longer. Raymond sighed. He walked up to one of the mounds of earth and looked down at the stones that adorned it.

"Most of them are empty. In a few lie the remains of friends who fought side by side with me when the Galarian Dragon Corps occupied Coumarine. You can build a mound for Salandit if you want. She too fell in a fight against the crown."

The mention of Corry made Sal's throat constrict. But she wasn't granted a break.

"Although I believe there are more pressing issues that we should address. First and foremost, what will happen to you now."

What will happen? How can things possibly continue? wondered Sal. The dumps weren't an option. So the only thing left for her was the city. Perhaps she could avoid the gendarmerie if she stayed in the outskirts? They rarely patrolled in the slums.

"The noose is already around your neck, and it threatens to tighten ever more. I do not think you would want to go back to Guillaume, let alone could. Since you are known to the gendarmerie, you are likely to pose a risk to him that he is not prepared to take. Likewise, Lumiose is not an option for you. It probably won't be long before the first wanted posters of you are hanging in police stations and poorhouses. You know better than I how fickle loyalties are out on the streets."

Raymond's assessment of her situation painted a similarly pessimistic picture. Sal's eyes rested on the old man, who was still standing in front of the graves. Perhaps he could…? Sal immediately buried the glimmer of hope that had briefly appeared. No, she couldn't simply dismiss that every human being had a hidden agenda. Whatever he offered her certainly came with strings attached.

"You have found yourself caught up in a very old conflict that is a few sizes too big for you. In doing so, you have made yourself an extremely powerful opponent." Raymond looked away from the tombs. His cold, blue eyes fixed on Sal.

"You have already experienced what this opponent is capable of. Salandit is dead. And you were awfully close to being killed by that ice beam."

How did he know about the ice beam? A terrible realization rose to the surface of Sal's fevered thoughts.

"You were there!"

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Sal looked at the old man in shock.

"You were there! You saw what happened!"

Raymond nodded briefly, turned his gaze to the sky and clasped his hands behind his back.

"It is to your great luck that I spent that very evening observing your foolish actions. Zorua and Haunter are still alive, only thanks to my intervention."

Sal felt a wave of guilt coming over her, supressing her sadness. With a pitiful gaze she turned to Trix. Fighting back the tears in her eyes, Sal crouched down on the cold, snow-covered forest floor and scratched her Pokémon behind the ears.

"Everything is fine, my girl. You're not to blame. You did the right thing. There's no shame in saving yourself."

Zorua's heart-wrenching scream echoed through the empty forest. A complicated web of conflicting emotions came over Sal. The desire to survive, the longing for freedom, responsibility and loyalty. Fear of losing her pack again and the guilt she had brought upon herself by leaving Sal and Salandit behind. The sensation of loss. A wound that gaped deeper than Sal had imagined.

"Let it out. You've done everything right. It's not your fault," Sal tried to calm her Pokémon.

A cold shiver ran down her spine as she sensed Haunter's proximity. Did he look sheepish? Sal attempted to caress Haunter's non-existent body. It was an odd feeling. Like there was an army of little insects crawling over her arms. But that didn't matter. Trix and Spooky had already been there for Sal for so long. Now it was her turn to take care of them.

"It's okay, you two. You did right," sobbed Sal.

Her whole body trembled and shook. In grief and despair, Sal buried her face in Zorua. Pokémon and trainer let their emotions run wild. Tears streamed from Sal's eyes like the wild waters of a raging river, while Zorua's wailing cries echoed through the forest like a desperate distress signal that seemed to say, 'Please come back to us!'

Sal knew Haunter's tears had dried up that night as he turned into what he was now. Driven by dark emotions, it was not his sadness that he expressed in his inhuman, guttural and chuppy voice, but anger. His eyes turned red and his entire body seemed to swell like a balloon that was about to burst.

Together they mourned Corry and the future they had envisioned together, each in their own way. Haunter mourned the playmate who was taken away from him. A part of his life that he had attached himself to and that he had now lost. His resentment ran deep. Zorua lamented the pain of having abandoned a pack member, about the loss of a friendship that had meant the world to her. She was at fault. It was her own weakness and her inability to protect everyone.

Sal cried because Corry would never crawl over her shoulders again. She could never again blame her Pokémon for the mischief she had done. Sal cried for herself. For Vivienne. For the fact that even Paul and Henri had abandoned her. All she had was Trix and Spooky. Only thanks to them could she push aside an idea that had seemed so simple, so tempting. An idea that, in its inevitability, would take all the pain away. An idea that would end all her suffering if she managed to follow through with it.

It was a thought that terrified Sal. A thought she didn't want to entertain. She was a fighter! Giving up wasn't an option. Raymond's wrinkled hand rested comfortingly on her shoulder. Sal’s breathing was shallow and rapid. She became aware of the soft fur with which Trix cuddled up to her.

"Take a deep breath. In and out. In and out."

Sal did as told. He was right. Breathing was good. It helped her to regulate the superfluous emotions. Sal had to be strong now! She had to fight! Put her team back on their feet and then get their bearings.

Why had he been there?

A seemingly harmless question had fought its way through the jungle of Sal's confused thoughts and now filled her entire being.

Why had he been there and done nothing?!

She looked up at Raymond with bloodshot, reddened eyes. A fire burned inside her. It gave her the strength to hold his gaze.

"You'd better explain yourself. Else we're leaving."

Raymond's eyebrows lifted in surprise.

"Given your circumstances, I will refrain from chastising you for your rude behavior. However, don't expect this leniency again. Since - as you can probably guess - I already have an idea of how things might develop for you, I would like to answer your unasked question. Alakazam has been keeping an eye on your aura signature for the past few days.

"When he discovered that you were running toward a number of unusually strong auras, we immediately went to the scene out of concern for your well-being. When we arrived, however, it was already too late. Fortunately, Zorua and Haunter were still undetected and Alakazam could prevent them from intervening in a losing battle."

Alakazam could teleport - and he had discovered Zorua despite her illusions. So that part of Raymond's story sounded plausible. Despite this, Sal remained suspicious. Some of her questions were still unanswered.

"Why didn't you simply warn me?"

"Oh, you were already in the eyes of the investigators, which put us at risk of being discovered in a hostile environment. A bad idea given my history with the authorities, as I'm sure you'll agree."

"You could've fought them!"

Raymond's derisive snort brought anger to Sal's face.

"It is flattering that you think so highly of us. But about fifty Pokémon that I estimated were on site - all well-trained and specizialized in high-risk situations - present even Alakazam and me with an insurmountable hurdle. We are strong. But not invincible."

Raymond pointed to the elongated mounds of earth and the angry flush on Sal's face gave way to a feeling of guilt and shame.

"Lesson Number Four: There are fights you can't win, Sal. No matter how good you are. The graves you see here are proof of that. Each of them was an outstanding trainer."

The old man lingered a little longer in front of one grave in the middle and mumbled a few words that Sal didn't quite understand. Unsure but also uncaring whether what was being said was meant for her ears or not, her curiosity got the better of her and she stepped a little closer to Raymond.

"...blessed with a brilliance I have rarely seen."

Who might have been buried there that Raymond paid special attention to this grave? Conflicting emotions stirred in Sal's chest. Curiosity. Distrust. Suspicion. Worry. Hope. Fear. How could someone as small as her endure holding so many emotions?

"Pardon me. We have digressed from our actual topic. Let's recap: you are a legally wanted criminal with no refuge. In addition, you have to take care of two Pokémon that you cannot correctly assess in terms of their abilities or potential. It would be almost ironic if it weren't so sad for you to have such huge potential without the slightest clue of what to do with it."

"Deficient." The words he spoke to her when they first met came as a quiet murmur from Sal's lips. The anger at Raymond's way of dealing with her disappeared. It gave way to shame and nausea. Sal wondered if the old man was right. Whether she was inadequate as a trainer. Whether she was unable to assess the consequences of her actions. Whether it was her fault that Salandit had to die. Once again she fought against the tears that wanted to rush back into her eyes. But she didn't think she could cry anymore. In the last few hours, Sal shed enough tears to last a lifetime. A heavy lump lodged in her throat.

"But not entirely without hope," Raymond interjected.

Those were probably the first positive words he ever said to her. And they achieved the desired effect.

"What do you mean?"

"You managed to bind Zorua and Haunter to yourself. The last time I met a trainer with a Zoroark was over forty years ago. Trix is an extremely rare Pokémon with unique abilities. Had our government become aware of Zorua, she would likely have suffered a worse fate than Salandit."

Raymond's gaze became so icy that it sent a shiver down Sal's spine.

"You have two options available to you as you move forward. Either you run away from the crown and your pain, or you allow it to burn itself deep into your heart. Should you choose the latter, I offer you my guidance on a path to true strength. A balance between passion and reason while pursuing our dream of freedom. To achieve this you will have to put yourself in great danger, time and time again. Should you be willing to accept me as mentor, I will bestow you with the legacy of Kalos' strongest trainers, passed down through four generations. To put it bluntly: I offer you to become my successor."

Sal was at a loss for words. He was actually serious - he wasn't just interested in Trix or Spooky, but in her! Raymond was the golden ticket out of the dumps. Her way out of a life of dependency and poverty!

"Why me? Why now?"

There had to be a catch!

Raymond's breath formed little clouds as he considered her question.

"Like the seasons, I too will fade away. My life is coming to an end and I don't have much time left. Too little to achieve my dreams; but enough to train someone who will carry on my will. I chose you because you possess survival instincts that I have only seen in few trainers - coupled with an intuitive fighting style; not particularly sophisticated, although we can work on it. Unlike most trainers, you have true grit and an idea of what is necessary to achieve the goals you are pursuing. Now, if we add me into the equation, you have a halfway decent potential."

And I seem to hate the crown as much as you do, thought Sal. She didn't say the words out loud, however obvious they were. What Raymond offered her was a deal. By now, she was sure he wasn't really interested in her. His plan was to turn Sal into a weapon against the crown. Nothing more, nothing less. Whatever his reasons were, it led both of them down the same path: making Sal stronger. She could live with that.

"What do you think?" she asked her Pokémon. Haunter's malicious, cackling laughter broke the silence of the wintry forest. His eyes began to glow red again. They reflected the same desire for revenge that slowly but steadily took possession of Sal's heart. To hell with the crown and their rules! No one could dictate her to live a life of poverty. No one could dictate her whether or not she could train Pokémon. The day would come when she found the crown's henchmen, starting with Kaito Wallace.

She would be strong that day. And she would chase them down, with cruelness, with deceit and trickery, with every option available to her, no matter the cost. There was nothing that would keep them save from her vengeance. They would pay for what they had done. Every single one of them. And she would feast on their fear before she ended their pitiful and meaningless lives. Startled, Sal looked at Haunter. For a moment, the contours of his body seemed to change. But the phenomenon was over faster than it arrived.

Sal shook off the sudden rush of revenge and focused on Trix. Her companion looked uncertain. She was caught in a conflict of hope and anxiety, of anger and sadness as well as a growing desire for strength. But then... how much was the promised strength worth if she had to endanger her pack to get it?

"Aren't we already in danger? The gendarmerie is after me, one way or another," Sal whispered to her Pokémon.

"If we accept his offer, we can become strong enough to finally live free. No Guillaume, no orphanage, no gendarmerie to keep us down."

For a moment, Sal and Zorua's eyes met. A silent agreement was made, supported by a bond stronger than words could ever be. They would learn from Raymond. They would figure out how he had managed to grows his Pokémon to their absurd level. And they would coax all of his knowledge in regard to Trix and her abilities. All they had to do was to become his weapon. She could do that. They could do that. It was a transactional deal that gave everyone something they craved.

Raymond extended his open hand to her.

"I expect nothing less than full commitment from you and your Pokémon. After all, your life will depend on how well you follow along. Every day I will push you to your limits and beyond. We have a lot of catching up to do."

For a fleeting moment, a tentative grin crossed Sal’s lips. She grabbed his hand and she agreed.