43 Chapter 33
"Oh, why me..." Looking around the forest, Caleb looked uncertain.
Magby was already outside his pokeball. His presence somewhat made Caleb feel a tad more secure.
Magby's appearance didn't change after consuming the 'Ashstone Fire Lily'. Although Caleb noticed that Magby became quite fit, as all the muscles it accumulated over the years they trained became more toned.
Even though his round belly was still there, as Caleb carassed his hand through his pokemon's stomach earlier it felt strudy.
Clearly the flower has made his Magby's strength rise, and as he inspected he noticed that Magby's eyes seemed to held noticable intellectual light flashing from time to time.
Caleb suspected that this was because of his pokemon's improvement in his potential. The higher a pokemon's potential, the higher their intelligence would be.
"Mag."
Magby irritatedly scratched his left-forearm. There was a piece of cloth that made him uncontrollably have the desire to get rid of.
It was the armband that Noraima made, which has a rock embedded on it, the 'Everstone'. Clearly it made the fire-type uncomfortable wearing it.
"Don't rip that armband off, okay buddy?" Caleb knelt on one knee and patted the pokemon's head, trying to ease his urge. "You may or may not have yet met the criteria to evolve. If it's the former that won't be great for you, evolving would boost the capabilities of all your abilities, especially your control over your fire. However, we will only do that if you have reached the limit in your form."
"Doing so will make you much powerful than your species on the same level." Caleb adviced.
Through the connection that they had, Magby understood his trainer clearly as he nodded solemnly. As much as he wanted to rip the fabric off him, if it would help make him stronger then he could only endure. But that doesn't mean he should be happy about it as he kept glaring at the fabric.
Having settled Magby's irritation, Caleb turned around the place.
Taking a deep breath, which did little to actually ease his nerves, Caleb took his first step forward for a long time.
He had been outside Lumiose City before now.
Nevertheless, this all changed today.
"Let's go, we don't want to miss mother's breakfast do we?"
"Magby!"
"BZZZZ"
"BUZZZZZ"
The pair had only made a few steps through the dry land of dirt they were standing on when they heared light multiple buzzing sound reverberating around.
"What's that?"
Magby didn't know but it's fur were standing as his senses perceived danger. At the back of Magby's through, deep rumbling sounded out, his face was fierce as he stare fixated towards the trees and bushes at the side.
Caleb had a bad feeling. Like he had already heared this noise a few times before. He thought for a second. "Wait a minute... There are only a few bee pokemons, and judging by how loud the noise are... It could only mean..." He made a quick deduction before his eyes bulged in fear. "Beedrills!!"
Caleb didn't wait for his pokemon to respond before dragging him by the arm as they took off from their place at a deadsprint.
"Let's go Magby!"
Since they were at a clearing, Caleb chose a direction that was opposite to where the noise were coming from.
They quickly were able to enter the forest, not caring of the branches that slashed at their exposed skin.
Though Magby wasn't that bothered much.
The pair sprinted for a few minutes, however even though they run with all their might, the noise behind them were quickly catching up!
Caleb and Magby simultaneously glanced back just in time to see their pursuers emerge.
"Magby!!"
"YEAH FUCK IS RIGHT!!"
Caleb was so frightened out of his wits that he couldn't help curse his grandfather.
"That geezer clearly knew about the pokemons inhabiting this forest! Curse his ancestors, fuck his mother, damn his son!"
"Magby, Magby, Mag!" (Death for him, death for his pokemons, death for his grandchildren.)
The hive of beedrills without a doubt has made their brains muddled and jumbled upside down when their venting were poking at themselves, they were basically just cursing their own family.
"Run faster Magby!"
"Magby!" (I'm running as fast as I can!!)
"Then throw flamethrowers at them!" Caleb just has to throw a dumb command to his pokemon at that moment, which took him a while to quickly say. "Oh wait, don't!"
His reaction was to late though, as Magby already gathered compressed flames inside his mouth. Which he immediately exhaled with a powerful roar that charged towards the hive of beedrills.
*BOOM*
"Magby!"
Magby rejoiced in delight when his attack connected.
The attack has destroyed a few trees from the impact of the explosion, clearly this was a move trained to good mastery.
"Mag?" However, the look in the fire-type's eyes were quickly morphed into confusion when the buzzing noise was still continuing on buzzing on his ear.
As the cloud of smoke and dust settled, Caleb and Magby saw a few injured beedrills laying on the ground, evidently they have received the full brunt of the flamethrower.
Unfortunately, the hive seemed to have reproduced as the injured ones stayed, but a much plentiful of them appeared from Caleb and Magby's view, speeding towards their direction with unrestrained rage in their eyes.
"Great, you angered them! I told you to stop, there's a chance that your flames would produce forest fire!" Caleb yelled while madly dashing and dodging trees and logs from their path.
"Magby!?? MAGBY, MAG, MAGBY!" (Are you blaming me!?? Who was the one who ordered for a flamethrower, huh!??)
Caleb was sweating profusely, normally just a few minutes of madsprint wouldn't have made him sweat as much, but because of the situation they are in, he was feeling rattled and nervous.
"Okay, okay. It's really not the perfect time to argue about this."
"Hmph!" Magby harrumphed, but still complied as he felt the same.
"Shit!" Caleb glanced at his back again only to see the hive moving closer and closer towards them. If they continued on their pace and if they wouldn't think of something fast, the hive would surely catch up and be stab to shreds by their poisonous drills.
Suddenly, the sound of flowing water entered their ears that made Caleb and Magby look at each other and couldn't help the tips of their lips curving upwards, thrilled.
Obviously, they thought of something which held the same plan.
As they continued on their run, the more clear the noise was heard.
"It's a river!" Caleb exclaimed. Although they still haven't gotten a clear view towards the source of flowing water. He could already deduce by how loud the sound was.
Without even a minute of running, they exited the forest.
When they were now outside the forest however, they didn't feel any better as the view that greeted them made them pale.
They were on a cliff, in between was the river that they expected. The problem was, when they looked down the cliff, it was steep.
Caleb estimated that it was about two hundred meters down to the water. He bitterly laughed at themselves. "Our luck just gets shittier."
"...mag, magby, magby. Mag." (...keep me inside the pokeball, as much as I wanted to die with you. Dying in water is a great dishonor to me as a fire-type.)
Of course Caleb already had that plan in mind. But, hearing such cowardly words from his partner made him angry, clearly the duck wouldn't die from submerging in water but was just too arrogant to confess he was afraid to jump this high up.
Although it faded away as soon as they saw the Beedrills emerged behind them.
He gritted his teeth. "Get inside."
"...magby." (I wish you luck, my friend."
Caleb quickly returned his pokemon. Of course, he wouldn't die from this fall, but the thought of jumping down such a height was scary.
With gritted teeth and eyes solidifying in resolute, he jumped and screamed:
"I won't forget this, YOU SHITTY INSECTS!"
With a loud splat he disappeared, from where he stood the Beedrills watched as he submerged in the water.
Although unwilling that their hunt got away, they didn't dally on the place any longer and left.
...
Meanwhile, in the city of Lumiose, Coronation's household.
In a bright lit training room with acceptable training materials around, commands and loud shouts of exhaustion reverberated.
A single gorgeous girl and her pokemon, a tiny pokemon with green even bob cut hair was responsible for all this commotion: Diantha and her starter, Ralts.
Psychic energy emanated from the pokemon's eyes, and the pink energy outlined the pokemon's body. The pokemon was clearly training under the supervision of her trainer.
"Psychic and Double Team's proficiency is getting better, that's great! Just a little more and both will reach intermediate-level." Diantha's eyes were shining beautifully as she proudly said.
Of course this progress wouldn't have been very smooth if her pokemon wasn't that dedicated towards their training. Fortunately, her Ralts was very hard working.
"Good work, Raltsiee." Diantha scooped up her pokemon with her arms as she hugged her while laughing merrily.
"Coooo." Ralts cooed softly in happiness as she returned her trainer's embrace.
Ralts was now much more battle oriented and was now not as shy and timid on the first day Caleb met the psychic-type.
While with Ralts on her arms, she wondered. "I wonder how Caleb's training is doing..."
...
Similar situations were occuring in nearly every student from the fourth to sixth-years that would participate the selection process a few days from now. They were training gruely as hard as they could so that they would have the chance to participate in the rookie competition.
However, earning a slot wasn't easy but they wanted to try and earn it.
Some students even trained together, such as Eclairisse and Eusine, Caleb and Diantha's friends.
None of them wasted any time, clearly they were pushing themselves with determination of a same goal. Although they are kids and not yet teenagers, they trained like they are already trainers, although their training effectiveness wasn't up to par.
With the exception of a certain student...
Who was currently swimming in a river, trying his best not to drown from the raging currents.
Haa... youth...
