Chapter 13: Trial by Fire

"So, you've chosen?"

I shook my head. 

"No, I- Ow. I mean, I talked to them all but- Ow!"

The fennekin was nibbling on my right earlobe, its sharp fangs almost giving me a piercing. 

"Hey, little- miss- please, let me talk for a second!"

"…Mykah, I think it's trying to tell you something."

I looked at Amanda, but her eyes looked half dead. She looked as if she saw an idiot. My mind connected the dots, and I felt absolutely stupid. 

"Wait, are you hungry? I don't have any food on me but- Ow!"

The Professor walked over and exchanged glances with Amanda for some reason. I stroked the fox, trying to placate its anger. It didn't seem to be working as she hopped around on my bulky scarf. 

"Fenne! Kin!"

Hot air gushed out of its ears, warming the back of my neck to an uncomfortable degree. It felt like opening an oven with your face right above it- though a bit more bearable. 

"Ugh… at least- let me see what you're trying to say."

Picking the fox off my shoulder, I placed it on the ground and sat down. I opened my bag and dumped out my stuff, trying to see what it was getting at. I noticed the old map was still there- thankfully it was in a laminated sleeve. Maybe I could sell it later, to speed up my journey out of here. 

"Point at what you were trying to get."

The fox tilted her head before walking forward and poking me with her tiny black nose. 

"Me? Sorry, but I can't pet you forev… wait, do you want to be my partner?"

"Kin!"

The black fox cried out, the air gushing out of its ears much more intensely. 

"I guess that's a yes. Well… heh, why not little guy."

"Chirp!"

"-Little girl."

"…yeah, I was about to say the same thing. Your starter is really important, but what's more important is your compatibility- and she definitely seems to have chosen you at least."

The professor walked over and patted the fox on the head. Its shiny black coat was smoothed out, the flickering bits of stardust made its coat look like the night sky. It reminded me of how Rusty looked. 

"This little girl is a fennekin. They're fairly rare in Aevium, even with our breeding efforts. The issue of there being too few females to the high number of males is… frustrating, for lack of a better word."

The professor sighed, standing back up. 

"And you were right about the issue of the littens. I didn't think about that when we began the program, but I'll make sure to take that into account for new trainers. Here's a token of thanks!"

He held out a small sticky note. 

|Could you put the room on my account?

-Professor Jenner|

"Like I said earlier, I heard what happened to you from Tesla. I-"

"About that! Yeah… sorry about rushing you man. I didn't even realize. Or think. Tend not to do that, but I'll try to make up for it in the future."

The professor's brow furrowed- probably in annoyance at being interrupted again. 

"…Anyway, bring this note to the blue apartments. They should have a room available for you- stay as long as you need, and I'll cover the bill."

He didn't mention how she was rude. 

'Nice guy points added.'

I looked at the note again, its value turning from a piece of junk to solid gold with the man's guarantee. If he wasn't lying then my worries were gone- at least housing wise. 

"...Thank you, Professor."

"Heh, no need to mention it. I have a daughter just a few years younger than you, and… well, I'd want others to do the same for her if I ever get whisked away."

I nodded along, remembering the girl who ran out and crashed into me. She had a lighter shade of hair, but she could definitely be his daughter. I can't believe I didn't connect the two together- though that just showed how tired I had gotten. 

"...Say, Mykah. Would you be up for a battle real quick? I know you're soaked and stuff, but…" 

The excitedly fidgeting Amanda moved, picking a pokeball off one of the nearby shelves. My experience in fighting the few trainers we had back in Unova told me she was one of the more battle-maniac types than a standard trainer. My fingers ran over my medallion absentmindedly, remembering the vicious spars I would do. 

"I can show you the basics and let you get a handle on it! This sort of falls under my job, after all."

"Amanda, you know that doesn't-"

"So? What'll it be Mykah!?"

She cut off Professor Jenner again, this time stepping toward me. 

"Kin!"

The fennekin jumped off of my shoulder without giving me a chance to say no, spouting hot air from its ears as its tail brushed my ear on its way down. It stumbled a bit as it landed, probably not used to such a long fall in the small facilities it lived in. I couldn't say no now, seeing how fired up my new partner had gotten. 

"Wait, Amanda, is that the crip-"

"Sweet! Game on, Mykah!"

Amanda seems to have a vendetta against the professor, making sure he couldn't get a word in as she tossed out a… 

'What is that?'

"Alright- you should at least know… how to stomp!"

Amanda's pokemon moved- no, practically flopped forward, It was a giant pink party hat with blue hair and yellow polka dots. 

"Fenne?"

The fennekin just walked around it, sniffing the air to get an idea of what it was up against. My mind moved just as languidly, trying to think on how to battle from the few I had seen in person. 

'Give commands with a firm will… but do you just take turns? Will she even understand a strategy?'

"Ha!"

The hat sprung forward out of nowhere, twirling its body as it used the tip of its hat to latch onto the ground. It spun downward- 

"Fennekin!"

I called out half a step late, but the fennekin had already moved- barely enough to take half the damage it should have. This sort of stuff was typical of pokemon, since their survival instincts made fighting innate. My mind kicked into gear, memories of the basic information I learned from conversations and observations during hectic battles flitting through my mind. 

"Fe…nne!"

'It seems out of breath- probably had the wind knocked out of it.' 

"You've gotta take command, Mykah! Tell your fennekin what to do!"

'Agreed.'

I looked over the situation quickly- a fairly open space, with a tiled floor and the two pokemon. Fennekin took a bit of damage, but the hat was fine. It had used its 'hair' to jump up earlier- it seemed to be basically arms for it. It was still prone, recovering from its earlier stunt. 

"Fennekin, tackle it and then back away! Don't get grabbed!"

"...Kin!"

The black fennekin rushed forward, still out of breath. 

Duh

A clean hit to the tottering hat- but its hair didn't manage to snag the fennekin as it backed away in a rush. 

"Perfect! Wait for a second, catch your breath fennekin."

"...Fe!"

The hat slowly got back up, and Amanda chuckled.

"Wow, not bad. Now, how about…."

She muttered a command to the nearby hat, and it tilted its body before moving forward and holding its arms out to the fennekin. 

"...What?"

The fennekin looked back at me, confused, but slowly approached it. 

'...A trap? It's so… obvious?'

"Fennekin, circle around and attack it from behind! It can't catch up if you're quick!"

Ignoring its attempts, fennekin rushed around and tackled it again- but it was noticeably weaker this time. 

"Heh, newbies never take the mental game into account. Hattena, tackle 'em with a big 'ol hug!"

Amanda muttered something before giving out another command. 

"Fenne-!"

Fennekin took a hit, but managed to slip out before getting grabbed. 

"Fennekin, tackle again before it recovers!"

Bam!

"Amazing! Let's end this, hattena!"

Fennekin had been grabbed by the hattena finally. My world slowed down as my heart raced, but I took the split second to think. She was a fire type, and fennekin weren't physically strong. She needed an energy-based attack to win… She used hot air earlier. That would work. 

"Fiiirrree!"

"...Feeeeeennnnnnnnneeeeeeeeeee!"

Kastanna reacted almost immediately as she slowly moved into the air, opening her tiny mouth and flaring her ears. The headbutt from the small hattena was met by a mass of sparks and a gush of hot air, forcing the hat pokemon to let go in pain, falling backward. The clash of tiny titans ended- something only I was truly privy to in this small moment. It wasn't as slow as normal, but I felt… more interested than usual. 

'...Heh.'

It was a different rush than being in a fight myself. I wasn't at any major advantage- all I could do was see the outcomes more clearly, or rush out instructions like right now. I didn't need to feel my muscles strain or snap into place as I forced them to move either- other than the migraine, it was actually nice. 

'Now… You've got this, little one.'

I let the world speed up- a half second had turned into half a minute for me. I felt like my head was splitting, my ability to hasten my perception to superhuman levels taking its price and thensome from how much I had used it today. 

"Keeuuuu!"

The hatenna fell backward, and the black fennekin was standing on its feet still. Small embers fell down in the air around it- a remnant of its first battle. 

"Wow! That was amazing, Mykah!"

Amanda walked over and held out a purple spray bottle. 

'...A potion?'

I had been taught basic care for pokemon by Dad, but he usually shied away from man made products like this. Drayden and Cheren took care of most of the responsibility for teaching our rangers how to heal their pokemon, and the few trainers and gym leaders we had in our forces never needed the help to begin with. 

"It can't heal major wounds, but this will keep your little guy-"

"Chirp!"

"... Big-"

"Chirp!"

The fennekin's excited chirping cut off Amanda again. She would need some help. 

"She's a girl- and an amazing battler, at that!"

I knelt down, putting the tablet into the potion bottle with my left hand and mixing it with the measured water already inside, copying the motions I remembered seeing. There was good reason most pokemon couldn't use man-made products- they don't last long when mixed, so they required human knowledge and dexterity to operate. Dad didn't like using them because of that- well, aside from being super frugal. I gingerly used my right hand to help screw the bottle shut, feeling the pain from it as I did so. 

"Here, we don't want those scrapes and bruises to get worse, right?"

The fennekin walked over, eyeing the purple bottle like it was a treat. 

"...It's not to eat, but I'll get you something before we rest. Sit?"

She limped over to me, nugging my upright thighs with her small nose. I smiled, sitting down so it could hop on my lap. She seemed to be unbothered by the fact my pants were soaked with water. 

'What a princess… Hopefully she doesn't go on strike when she realizes I'm broke.'

"Well done, Mykah. You're a full-fledged trainer now! Here- your turn too, hatenna. You did wonderfully!"

"Ha~tena!"

Amanda healed the hatenna with expert movements as I carefully applied the solution to the fennekin. Her fur was too puffed up in some places, so I had to split it to get it in place. The fennekin kept licking the areas too, so it took longer than I thought it would- nothing like treating Rusty was. 

'Well, aside from licking the areas. He loved oran berries. Didn't we have a tree he kept picking clean?'

"Well, that was quite the match Mykah!"

Professor Jenner walked over as soon as I was done. 

"Yeah… Sorry for battling in the middle of your lab, professor. I should have said no, but-"

"Heh, no, it's fine. Amanda does it every time, but usually she's giving out harsh lessons on how difficult being a trainer is. You did incredibly well, Mykah."

A guy walked out from the door behind Professor Jenner, waving as he approached. 

"Yep. So well, I heard the whole thing. Good job, man! Ah- The name's Ren. You are?"

I stood up, setting the fennekin on my shoulder. Both of them were a bit shorter than me, but the guy who entered was almost my height- maybe an inch shorter, if that. A quick glance over him told me a lot- dark clothes, with a dull blue jacket over a muted ivory longsleeve. He had a small red scarf folded around his neck, probably more ornamental than functional. This was fashion. 

'...Except the gloves. Why do so many people wear gloves here? Half the trainers did too...'

I absentmindedly extended my hand after the short silence, not wanting me overthinking to cause problems again. 

"I'm Mykah, pleasure to meet you."

He shook my hand, but it was weak. 

'Bad thumb placement can ruin it- gotta kick the habit before I go insane.'

"Say, are you up for another battle with me sometime? I just got my own pokemon, and since I'm so used to borrowing the Professor's for missions I'd love to get the training in."

"Sure, but I… need to rest. It's been a long day, if you can't tell by how soaked I am. How does tomorrow sound?" 

"Oh… dang, I didn't even notice the puddle. Hmm… actually, it looks like I'm free until the afternoon tomorrow if you want a tour of the city. You just got here, right?"

I nodded. A few hours had already passed, but it was probably still raining outside. 

"Sweet! I'll meet you outside of the lab- there's plenty of open space there." 

Ren walked away, moving to probably do more lab work somewhere. 

"Heh, always taking the initiative. Well Mykah, I'll be sure to catch your battle tomorrow- I think you might be able to help me with something important, but I don't want to bother you until you get some rest. I'll pay in advance if you win, so rest hard and battle harder!"

Professor Jenner walked away, moving behind the desk in the center of the room to finish the paperwork he was fiddling with when he noticed we walked in. 

'...A nice man, but something is off about that video call when I walked in. Is it human trafficking…?'

I walked out, head full of thoughts. 

"Achoo!"

Fennekin's ears puffed, warming my cold body. 

…Oh yeah. I was still wet. 

"Ugh, hopefully the battle money is enough to cover cold medicine."