The Warrior

[Sem]

Fourth in my fic series. This is a lot lighter and cheerier.


-Part 1-

The sun shone weakly through a slightly overcast sky that covered Cerulean City, though it was still very much warm. This was due to the fact that it was summer time, and one overcast day wouldn’t do a thing to the area after a solid month of sunshine.

Trainers were out in force this time of year, training and playing with their beloved partners in order to achieve their dreams. Gym Leaders were always busiest during the summer, and there was a battle going on in the Cerulean Gym at that very moment; echoes of large splashes could be heard from the main entrance.

Misty was in a two piece as usual, wearing only a pair of sneakers besides the bathing suit. The trainer was thoroughly wet; water dripped from her vibrant orange hair and covered her tomboyish figure.

Sem Aquais was in the presence of Misty, the Gym Leader. The same Misty who was currently looking at him with her heartbeat racing, passion alight in her eyes. The very same Misty who was world-famous. The Misty that had so many fan clubs she could establish her own country. The Misty that was on the cover of many magazines, always in a tight bathing suit or bikini to show off her form.

But Sem didn’t care about any of that.

Sem stood on one of the floating platforms in the large pool, wearing a pair of black trunks with broad blue bands running down the sides, and no shirt; simply his black hoodie. He faced the Gym Leader, who was on the opposite side of the tank, in-between them were two Starmie, firing attack after attack at the other. The young trainer had come to test his own Starmie against hers to see what he could still learn.

“Thunderbolt!” Sem ordered as his platform was rocked by a wave.

“That’s pretty risky!” Misty observed. “Light Screen!”

Sem’s starmie rotated both body segments in opposite directions, fast enough to generate sparks and to send them raining down on the water. The pool lit up as the electricity hit it, though Misty’s starmie was safe within its own shield of psychic energy. Luckily for the trainers, the platforms were rubber, allowing Sem to only feel a slight tingle in his toes.

A small girl watched on from a safe distance in the bleachers. She had her own suit on, a violet color that made her pale skin stand out, as well as her silvery-blond hair. Her feet swayed back and forth as she sat, eagerly watching the battle. A Pokémon sat next to her; a small purple creature with gems covering its body. There was a mischievous grin on its face.

“Time to make this more interesting,” Misty winked playfully. “Ice Beam, Starmie! Cover the whole pool!”

“Fine!” Sem nodded. “Help it out, Starmie!”

The temperature took a noticeable drop as both star-Pokémon worked to cover the arena in a decently thick layer of ice, which happened in a matter of seconds. The Starmie landed on opposite sides of the ice, each before its respective trainer. Without any cues both Pokémon skated across the ice at once another, unleashing various physical attacks from Rapid Spin to the simple Tackle.

“Hydro Pump!” Misty yelled finally with an extension of her arm.

“Twister!” Sem retorted, hoping to create an effective counter.

As Misty’s Water-type began spurting forth powerful jets of water, Sem’s water-type had hovered up into the air, rotating itself like a propeller and calling forth a vicious cyclone within the gym. The water hit the air currents and followed them instead of their intended target, creating a water spout on top of the ice heading straight towards Misty’s Starmie.

“No you don’t! Ice Beam again!” Her starmie launched the chilling attack at once, turning the spinning mass of liquid into a beautiful sculpture of ice that refracted the light coming in from the glass roof.

“Use it for a Blizzard!” Sem shot right back at her.

The frozen water spout shattered, throwing thousands upon thousands of shards up into the air to be used in Sem’s Starmie’s Blizzard attack, which flew at their enemy in full force.

“Throw up a Protect!” Misty sputtered quickly. Instantly her Pokémon was surrounded by another psychic energy shield that rippled and fluctuated with each hit.

“You’re pretty good,” Misty commented, allowing a moment for the Pokémon to rest.

“Thanks,” Sem nodded. “I’d say the same, but you don’t get to be world-famous by being bad.”

Misty giggled, putting her hand to her mouth, which turned to a devilish grin. “Psychic!”

“Psychic!” Sem copied.

There was absolute silence as the two Starmie’s minds clashed together, trying to break through or around the other in order to gain control. The quiet battle continued on for a surprisingly long time and the atmosphere was very tense. A loud crack sounded from the ice as a large break formed between the Starmie. More ice broke as the Psychic attacks continued, creating a web across the pool. Chunks of frozen water began to fly up into the air as the force of the attack increased, breaking the entire floor and rocking the many platforms.

Then in the blink of an eye each Starmie was launched backwards at the exact same moment, flying through the air until being stopped by walls. They both slid down the wall to the ground, gemstone cores flashing weakly.

“Recover!” both Sem and Misty said at once. The star-pokémon shone with pure-white brilliance, restoring their stamina.

“We could keep going all day,” Misty noted.

Sem nodded, wiping water from his brow. “Draw?”

“Totally,” she agreed.

And so both Pokémon were returned to their Pokéballs for much needed rest.

The water-type trainer took up some towels when she was back on solid ground, handing one to Sem as she dried her face and hair. “Your Starmie’s pretty good, one of the strongest I’ve ever seen,” she commented, throwing her wiry hair back and putting the towel around her neck.

“Thanks,” Sem replied with a small smile, a bit embarrassed at the compliment, but proud all the same. “I’m just glad I had this chance to see where I could go with its training.”

“I get what you mean,” she nodded. “Right now you’re at the point where you just focus on how strong its attacks are, and how much it can dish out before it’s too tired,”

“Yeah, guess that’s right,” Sem agreed, putting his wet towel on a bar. “I’d like to test how strong it is with its psychic power.”

By now Fida had walked over to them along with Sableye, who took his place on Sem’s right shoulder. “Isn’t Sabrina a Psychic gym leader?” she asked. “Saffron’s not very far.”

Sem considered this.

“I’d hold off on that if I were you…” Misty met Fida with a serious glance. “Some weird stuff’s been going on down there.”

“Yeah, even we saw that red flash," the boy recalled gravely. "All the way in Pewter."

“I’ve battled Sabrina before anyway, and Starmie did ok, so I think you’re fine,” she winked. She reached into a pocket on her suit, pulling out a small blue object shaped into a drop of water. “You deserve to have this - it was one good battle.”

The teen looked at the Cascade Badge, bowing his head in appreciation. “Thank you.” Putting the badge away in a pocket he picked up his bag. “I’m gonna change, back in a sec.”

The young girl sat on the edge and dipped her feet into the water, releasing Calhoun as she did so. The Magikarp cut into the water effortlessly with a large splash. Fida laughed, throwing her arm up to stop the splash from hitting her in the face.

“Your Magikarp is big!” Misty said with surprise. Indeed, Calhoun had grown a lot since his capture almost a year prior. He was about as long as Fida was tall.

“Hey, there!” Misty cooed as she bent over the edge, hands on her knees. “What’s its name?”

“Calhoun,” Fida answered, calling him over with some underwater taps against the wall of the pool.

“He’s adorable!” the gym leader practically melted as Calhoun swam up to her, allowing her to touch him. The girls played with the carp Pokémon as Sem was off changing into some proper clothes.

“You gonna enter him in the ocean race?” The older girl asked.

“Race?” Fida questioned, having never heard of it. “No… you think I should?”

“Definitely. There’s a prize for the winner and if you're anything like your buddy you got what it takes to win,” she winked again.

“Where is it?” she wondered, suddenly interested. “And when?” she blushed slightly.

“It’s gonna be up in the Cerulean Cape,” Misty waved her arm in the direction of the cape. “It’s tomorrow; last day to sign up is today, so if you wanna enter you better get moving.”

“Hmm…” she pondered. “What do you think, Elvia?” she asked the invisible presence around her, closing her eyes and waiting for the emotional responses. She only received positive notions, meaning yes, she definitely should. “All right, I’ll tell Sem…” she explained as she got up. “Thanks for letting me know,” Fida bowed her head.

“Sure thing.” Misty stood as well. “Good luck!”

-------

“A race?” Sem shrugged. “Sounds fine, and we have no other plans.”

“We better get going then so I can sign up…” she urged, beginning to walk in the direction of the Cerulean Cape.

The walk did not take very long, as the cape was within walking distance, and was quite a popular spot during the summer. It was still morning when they arrived, though already it was bustling with people, natives and tourists mingling with each other as they went about their various activities.

It took only a few minutes to locate the sign-up station; the contest was so heavily advertised you would have to be blind to not find the stand, which had 'Water-type Ocean-race!' painted in large letters on a sign.

Sem went off to another stand, leaving Fida on her own to register for the race. The line was a bit long, but progress was quick and she was near the front by the time Sem had returned with a newspaper in hand.

“Trying to get into these things…” he muttered as he opened the paper, awkwardly holding the pages. “Good to stay informed, even if these are obsolete, as SIR would say.” Sableye cackled in response.

“I’d still like to meet SIR,” Fida commented as she moved up a space in line.

“No you don’t, trust me…” Sem mumbled as he gazed at the front page.

The person in front of Fida had walked away after another moment, making it her turn. As she approached the almost too-tall counter she felt Elvia’s presence shudder for a moment, causing the girl to look around briefly. Seeing no one, she returned her attention to the person in the stall.

“Signing up, little lady?” the man asked. He appeared to be in his 30s, though little else was discernable because of how dark it was inside the stand.

“Yes, please,” Fida nodded.

“What’s your name, miss?”

“Fida.”

“Fida…?” the man prodded.

“Just Fida,” she looked away.

“Gotta have a last name, missy.”

She sighed, thinking for a split second. “Fida Valens,” the girl told the man, pretending that she didn't notice Sem glance at her out of the corner of his eye before going back to reading whatever article had caught his interest.

“Who you entering?”

“My Magikarp, Calhoun,” she announced quite proudly.

“Your Magikarp?” the man chuckled. “You’re cute, missy,” he commented, handing her a bag. “Anyway, you’re all set up. Race starts tomorrow at noon; so be ready and good luck!”

“Thank you,” Fida thanked the man, stepping away from the line and walking towards the water. Sem followed behind her as well as he could, trying to read and walk at the same time without bumping into anything, though Sableye did a fine job of keeping anyone away from his trainer.

As they neared the water they noticed a course marked by yellow buoys. It was fairly long and several obstacles were involved. No one was allowed on the course, but there were plenty of people practicing in the water nearby.

“Hey… someone blew up a Steelix in Hoenn…” Sem informed as Fida walked towards a section of beach that was less crowded, hoping to get some good practice with Calhoun and get him excited.

“Almost as weird as falling engine cars…” He had slowed down considerably, standing in the sand as he read.

The pony-tailed blonde pulled out a Lure ball and tossed it over the water as she waded in to about her knees. Calhoun appeared with a rather large splash and immediately swam over to her, rubbing up against her and almost causing her to lose her balance.

“Hey, stop!” she giggled. “We gotta practice, I entered you in a race; I know you’re going to win,” she smiled, patting the space between the fish’s eyes. “Go!” she pointed off into the waves.

Calhoun went off as soon as he was told, cutting through the water with ease thanks to all his training. His fins were powerful and were well developed; enough so that the fish could almost turn on a dime.

Fida watched, filled with excitement. Elvia took pleasure in Fida’s emotion, happy that the girl was happy, and glad that Fida had been so the past few months. This almost overshadowed the urgent and surprising news that the ghost had received only moments prior when Fida was signing up. It was a strange tale, but she would play her part in it by keeping her trainer out of it.

Fida was alive and breathing and happy, which meant all was right with Elvia’s world. The Mismagius expanded her consciousness, finding some children making their way towards Fida - Elvia informed her of their approach.

Fida turned, watching as a group of children walked over to her, lead by boy who looked to be the oldest of them, a bit older than Fida herself. The boy had sandy brown hair and a band of freckles going across his tanned face. Clad in only a blue pair of swimming trunks, he put his hands on his hips and stared at Fida.

“Hey,” he lifted his chin in a greeting, his lower lip protruded out from under his upper lip.

“Hi,” Fida smiled, though she already knew this wasn’t going to be a pleasant talk. She turned back to check on Calhoun, who had just cut neatly through an incoming wave.

“I’m Tom,” he introduced himself.

Fida noticed that he was flexing his arms, showing whatever muscle they had. This made her smile, knowing that the other kids in the group probably admired him for it. “I’m Fida,” she didn’t nod or bow, simply looked back at her pokémon.

“That your Magikarp?” Tom asked, a hint of a sneer on his speckled face.

“Yep,” she nodded. “His name’s Calhoun.” Fida waved him over.

The group laughed, Tom looked back at them with eyebrows raised and an are-you-serious?-smile spread across his face. “How old are you Fida?”

“Almost nine…” Fida murmured as she lifted her arm to shield her eyes from the sun, looking for her Magikarp.

“I’m ten,” he said too proudly.

Fida lowered her arm, looking over at him with her eyebrows raised this time. “Cool?” she replied.

“Thanks! I think I'm cool too,” he confessed in a snarky manner, holding a thumb to his chest. The rest of the group fell back into giggles.

Fida rolled her eyes and looked away once more, catching glimpse of Calhoun only a few meters away.

“You entering tomorrow’s race?” he inquired. “Because if you are, I’ll tell you right now you’re gonna lose.”

“Yes I am going to race tomorrow, but I think I’ll win,” Tom’s prey answered.

“Win with what? Kalhon?” he laughed, the rest of the group echoed him.

“Calhoun.”

“Whatever.”

“And yes, I’m entering with him,” Fida glanced at Tom, touching Calhoun as she did so. Since he had come so close this allowed the children to see how big he actually was.

Tom blinked in slight surprised before lowering his brow in contemplation.

“He’s a Magikarp! They’re all weak!”

“Not Calhoun,” she shook her head. “He’s special,”

“Did your mom tell you that?” More laughter. “Did she help you catch him too?”

Fida frowned. “No, my friend helped…”

“Both of you must be pretty weak if it took two of you to catch him!” Tom took a step back and clutched his stomach as he and the rest of his gang laughed.

The ground rumbled and the temperature plummeted. Calhoun looked agitated as he stared at the group. Fida breathed in deeply, letting go of her clenched fists. “Leave me alone,” she stated flatly without looking at them. "I need to train for tomorrow."

Tom looked weirdly at her, rubbing his goose-fleshed arms. “Yeah, let’s go guys; this girl’s a freak.” And with that the group went off down the beach in search of new prey.

The girl sighed, standing silently for a moment. Calhoun swam over and gently nudged her. Fida smiled, having been cheered up.

“Let’s go again, Calhoun!” she giggled as he swam away, splashing her.

“You meet all kinds of people when you’re traveling,” Fida heard Sem say from behind her as he approached. He had discarded the paper, having read all that interested him. “But I don’t believe I’ll meet anyone who’s meaner or more vicious than a kid.”

Fida shook her head. “I’m not gonna worry about it,” she looked down affectionately at Sableye, who had jumped down from his trainer’s shoulder into the sand in search of some rare morsel of rock.

A light wind swam down the length of the beach as a wave crashed.

“It’s almost been a year,” Sem noted, taking a few steps closer.

“I know…” Fida nodded; her eyes were half-squinted and her lips bitten down as she looked over the sea. “I’m getting better.”

“I know, but I still expected to see that kid laid out flat on the beach,” Sem chuckled lightly. “Even if that’s what he deserved.”

“He’ll get laid out flat tomorrow at the race,” Fida remarked wittingly.

“He better.”

-------

Fida trained with Calhoun on and off throughout the day, taking enough breaks to ensure he wouldn’t be completely out by the time the race started the next day. Calhoun was about as ready as he would ever be; his speed was remarkable and he could adjust it on a whim. He could take turns very well and, most important of all, was determined and willing to show himself, Fida, and the rest of the competitors what he could do.

Fida returned him when it was time to eat dinner, which was at a restaurant in town, courtesy of Sem. As they ate they talked about the race and what their plans were for after the race. The older trainer had the idea of simply heading straight down to Vermillion, catching a boat to Sinnoh in order to spend some time up at his home, and to introduce his parents to Fida, who already adored the girl.

Fida realized it would be a decent idea, and that for the amount of time she would be there she could get some schooling in; her education having taken a halt after leaving home.

Their planning continued on their way back to the center, where Fida gave Calhoun to the nurse for the night in order for him to be fully energized by morning. In her room as she lay in bed, Fida thought about her friend, as she did every night. Wondering what she would say if she were there now, and knowing that she would be proud.

Whether it was because Fida herself, or Elvia; the girl dreamt of Tara that night.

 

[Sem]

-Part 2-

Fida awoke energized the following morning, hurrying to ready herself so that she could run up to the cape a bit early. The girl put on a single-piece suit with a pair of short shorts. After putting sufficient sunscreen on her body she tied her hair into a single ponytail and stepped into some flip-flops. Eyeing herself in the mirror to ensure she was ready she walked eagerly down to the lobby to pick up her Pokémon.

“Here he is!” the pink-haired nurse chimed as she handed Fida a Lure ball. “Good luck in the race,” Joy bowed her head.

“Thank you,” the young trainer bowed her head in return. She left the center and made her way towards the Nugget Bridge; which would take her to the cape.

The day was brighter than the last, hardly any clouds where in the sky and the sun shone warmly upon the region. It was a great day for the beach.

When Fida arrived at the beach she located a spot with a good view of the race to lay out her towel and set up her umbrella, which would beacon Sem to where she was when he eventually came. Taking out a dusk ball, she released Kieran, her Murkrow.

“This is a busy place, so there’s going to be lot’s of shiny stuff,” Fida informed the dark bird, who had his back to her. His head was cocked arrogantly to the side, though he still listened to his trainer’s words. “Don’t steal anything please,” she urged. “Or get in to trouble,” she jabbed her finger at the bird. “Just have fun.”

Kieran’s eyes narrowed, as if saying “we’ll see...” Then with a caw he took flight, away from the girl. Fida smiled, though it was a worried smile as she set out a plastic bag which sparkled with the reflective objects inside. Kieran had acquired a stash since his capture, and the girl figured she might as well allow him to keep whatever he found. She felt it kept him in line when he returned from a venture, able to watch his collection grow as he added more to it.

After putting the plastic baggy out she took out a plain Pokéball, releasing the Pokémon inside it as well. Rin, her Vileplume, nodded awkwardly at the girl before looking around and realizing where she was. Her eyes flashed with annoyance.

“Sorry…” Fida blushed. “I figured you’ve never been to a beach before and wondered if you wanted to look around…” She grabbed the Pokéball. “You can go ba-”

But before she could offer to return the large flower-Pokémon, Rin had settled beside the towel, being too big to fit anywhere under the umbrella, and was careful not to knock anything over with her large petals. She sat on the sand, disdainfully exploring the strange earth with her roots as she let her body absorb the warm and lush rays of sun.

“Oh… you can do that too…” Fida nodded. Rin was still the newest edition to her team, and Fida was still getting used to her cold nature, though she had warmed up slightly in the past few months. “I brought plenty of water…” Fida explained as she dug through the bag she had brought, producing several bottles. “So you don’t get dehydrated…” she grinned sheepishly.

Rin’s eyes softened at the gesture, nodding a thank you and accepting one of the bottles with a root, undoing the cap and pouring half of the container on her legs.

By now Sem had arrived, having located Fida’s purple umbrella. Fida still had not gotten used to Sem’s summer attire, which consisted of trunks and a t-shirt instead of his long pants, jacket, and scarf. His skin looked healthy and vibrant in the sunlight as he sat upon his own towel.

“We’re up early aren’t we?” he asked, setting up an umbrella of his own. “Hello, Rin,” He greeted the Grass-type. The Vileplume nodded before closing her eyes and resting, her body no doubt photosynthesizing.

“I wanted to get here a little early so we could watch the first race,” Fida explained, taking out the bag she had been given yesterday. “I would be in the first race, which is for smaller pokémon, but Calhoun’s so big I’m going to be in the second race.”

Sem nodded. “Makes sense: can’t have a bigger Water-type taking the gold from a bunch of little Water-types.”

“The last race is for the really big Pokémon,” Fida said as she read the informative flyer. “Gyarados, Dragonair, Dragonite, Milotic, and Wailord are the only ones listed for really big.”

“Wailord would only have to flap its fins once to win…” Sem jested, accompanied by a cackle from Sableye, who had dug himself a hole and was in the process of burying all of himself save for his head.

-------

The first race was uneventful; there was an early on collision between a Tentacool and an Octillery, causing most of the competitors to be caught up in a jam. This allowed a trainer to claim first place easily with her Goldeen. Before long the horn was sounded, a signal for the second set of competitors to get up to the starting line.

Fida turned to Sem, clutching Calhoun’s Pokéball in her hand. “Wish us luck!” she said excitedly, looking positively radiant in the glowing light.

The trainer nodded his head. “Good luck.” He put on a tiny smile, or the closest he could come to.

The younger trainer looked at Sableye, who at this point had gotten a hold of a packet of ketchup and had it smeared around his neck to complete his severed-head-in-the-sand look. She decided to leave him be. With a nod of her head to Rin, she rushed off towards the group of people already gathering at the starting line.

Her running slowed as she neared. She placed her sandals in a place she would remember and pulled out the plastic bag she had been given the day before. Both items inside were white squares of fabric with bold numbers in black and white straps. One was for Calhoun, the other for herself, since for the second and third races the trainers were required to participate alongside their Pokémon.

Fida stepped off the sand onto the wooden platform that was being used as a launch point. The girl noticed a sign that asked that no other Pokémon aside from the racer themselves be brought past this point. She looked ahead, noticing an Alakazam, its skeletal-like frame an intimidation to all others around it. Obviously, it was making sure that there was indeed only one Pokémon with each participant. Fida flinched away from it - Alakazam was looking straight at her.

“I’ll be ok, Elvia,” Fida murmured, sensing her friend’s immediate reluctance to leave. “There’s lots of safety rules and p-precautions,” she stuttered, using a word not common in her vocabulary, which had expanded greatly in the past year. “Plus Calhoun’s with me; I’m perfectly safe,” she added.

Begrudgingly, Elvia gave in and left, her invisible presence no longer surrounding the girl. Fida felt strangely alone with Elvia gone, she hadn’t really felt that way since…

Fida shuddered.

Wrinkling her brow she shook away the feeling and walked to her spot, the one labeled by a number twenty-seven, her and Calhoun’s number. She sat on the edge of the platform, her feet dangling over the edge into the water that lapped the shore. Releasing Calhoun, she tied the number onto him, and then herself. The silver-haired blonde then wondered how she would hold on to Calhoun. Wrapping her arms around his body would restrict the movement of his fins, especially his caudal fin. Two of the straps that trailed off of Calhoun’s contestant number were thicker, obviously meant to be used by the trainer, as they were on either side.

“Hmm…” she mused, looking around she noticed some of the contestants had knee-boards of varying neon colors, already waiting in the water. Looking around further, she found out that they were being passed out to those who needed them.

Fida considered this option, mentally kicking herself for not thinking of this yesterday. She had been kneeboarding once before, only a few months prior with Sem. The girl was decent at it by the end of three days spent doing it, and hoped that it would all come back to her today.

Sighing, she got up and walked to the racks which held the boards. She reached out for the bright blue board at the top of the nearest stack, only to have it snatched from her just as her fingers grasped the foam.

“Excuse me, freak,” Fida heard the snide voice of Tom, the kid from the day before. He stood in the exact same attire as he was yesterday, except for the number fourteen across his chest, holding the board at his side with his free hand on his hip. Tom’s posse of other kids was nowhere to be seen, though they were no doubt anxiously waiting to watch him win from somewhere on the beach.

Fida didn’t answer as she took the next kneeboard in the stack, a neon purple board. “This color suits me better anyway,” Fida teased.

Tom frowned before looking down at her once more with an arrogant smile. “Ready to lose, Ferda?”

“Fida,” Ferda corrected.

“Whatever.”

“Not ready to lose, though; because we plan to win,” Fida waved her hand as she walked away, back towards her position.

“We’ll see about that!” Tom called out to her before rushing back to his position.

Putting the board on the water, she lowered herself onto it, grabbing the edge of the wooden platform until confident in her balance, only to have to find it again after putting on a lifejacket that had just been given to her. Taking the reigns extending from Calhoun, she waited patiently. “Get ready to win,” she smiled.

After a few seconds she heard a voice on a megaphone from somewhere behind the line.

“Geeeeet ready, all for the second race!” he sounded towards the beach. “During the intermission the course has been adjusted, now slightly longer and with more traps,” he added a gasp and an ‘ooooooh.’ “Rules are the same; no attacks or moves from the Pokémon! I will remind the contestants that the race is perfectly safe, and should you be caught in any traps; don’t panic. We have trained people and Pokémon ready to assist you.” He let a mere second for that to sink in, giving certain contestants and audience members peace of mind.

“Are we ready!?” he boomed.

“Yes!” sounded the audience with enthusiasm.

“Then on your maaaark…”

Fida snapped her pair of goggles over her eyes.

“Geeet seeeeet…”

She tightened her grip on the reigns, growing anxious. Her heart beat faster and adrenaline escaped into her blood stream.

“Go!”

All at once the contestants left their spots and sped out onto the track. Fida found herself in the middle of the pack and she kept herself calm, making sure her balance on the board was secure. To her surprise and great relief, her previous experience on a kneeboard was returning to her and she easily cut through a small wave, already weakened by Calhoun crashing through it.

This continued for another couple of minutes as racers pulled ahead while others fell back. The track was long and took many turns, some sharp, and some soft. It was littered with large rocks that reached up from the ocean floor and the farther they got from the enclosure the starting line was in, the bigger the waves were.

A jet up water shot up from the surface near Fida, the geyser taking out four competitors at once. Her heart jumped and she immediately began looking around, not wanting to meet the same fate so early on. Clusters of bubbles were visible ahead and Fida knew those were danger-zones.

“Stay away from the bubbles, Calhoun!” Fida urged, gripping the ropes tighter as they rounded a turn. More spires of water shot up into the air, taking out only a few more people, everyone else had done like Fida and steered clear of bubbles. Of course, the designers of the race would realize this, so now the geysers shot up randomly with no warning, leaving their survival almost entirely on chance.

“Be careful!” Fida cautioned as another jet of water barely missed them. Several more people fell victim to the jets, which practically shattered their chance at winning as the survivors raced on without them.

Fida sighed as the first set of traps seemed to end, meaning they had survived. There was much more space around her with about three fourths of the contestants left. As if reading her mind, Calhoun sped up, making he and Fida one of the leaders of the pack.

“Still here, freak?” she heard Tom sneer.

“Definitely,” Fida answered through pursed lips as she took a wave while they were turning. Looking over she saw that Tom was being pulled along by a buff-looking Wartortle. Furrowing her brow she returned her attention to the water, knowing that traps would resume their assault on the racers soon enough.

“Your Magicrap looks tired,” Tom smiled crookedly, wrinkling his freckled nose. “I hope he doesn’t give up on you!”

“Calhoun’s a fighter; we’re not loosing!” Fida countered, again returning her attention to the track.

Fida focused on pulling out ahead of the other competition, directing Calhoun as needed, but he seemed to fair well on his own. Tom had the same idea and wasn’t about to let Fida get too far in front, not without him right there as well.

After rounding a left corner around a large rock-formation they found themselves on the course’s extensively long straightaway. Fida frowned, knowing a good deal of the race was decided here. Already she heard the sound of ice forming, the next trap.

“Faster!” Fida pleaded, to which Calhoun responded with a burst of speed. The board she was on bounced off the water rhythmically, sharp sprays of water stung her skin as Calhoun swam at full speed now.

Tom pulled in as close as he could; Wartortle looked like it was working harder than it ever had in its life. He got just close enough to tap Fida’s board, immediately causing her to lose balance.

She gasped, and before she knew it her board flew out from under her. Fida immediately reached out for it as it flew, miraculously catching the purple board before it spiraled too far away.

Fida met the water somewhat painfully due to the speed at which Calhoun swam, though the sudden change in weight and resistance also caused Calhoun to lose control and they both went under the water.

The world under the water was much calmer, though now the sound of the ocean water freezing was more audible and pronounced. Fida opened her eyes, viewing her surroundings through her goggles. Calhoun had steadied himself and floated next to her, checking to see that she was all right. Both of them began to swim back up, watching as the contestants zoomed past them overhead.

The blonde girl gasped for air as she broke the surface, sighing in relief as she spotted her board floating nearby. She swam for it and then looked around, noticing that whatever was left of the pack was already nearing the end of the straightaway. Narrowing her eyes, she spotted a long strip of ice that went along the length of this part of the track. Grinning, she got on the board, resting on it with her stomach.

“Come on, Calhoun, we’ll use the ice,” she instructed, nodding over to the stripe of white against the ocean blue.

The Magikarp began swimming, gradually picking up speed until he was as fast as he was before. Then, moving across the track towards it, he jumped; landing on the ice he immediately began sliding down the ice at an increased speed, propelled by all of his momentum. The board slid up onto the ice, the girl on top took advantage of the upward curve that stopped her from simply slipping across the ice and into the water on the other side.

Calhoun glided across the ice, using his fins only keep up the speed. The slickness of the frozen ocean propelled them past the stragglers of the race. Still gaining speed they closed the distance between them and the remainder of the pack, who were now near the first turn.

Blazing past the rear racers, they were in the middle of the race when the ice ended, which was conveniently a ramp. Fida smiled - obviously the ice was designed to be taken advantage of. Calhoun took the ramp and flew off of the ice high into the air. Fida gasped as she was pulled along with him, watching the racers below in slow motion as they arched through the sky.

Calhoun cut into the water, though not sharply, knowing that would put them back in their previous predicament as soon as Fida hit the water. Instead it was a smooth curve, only a slight dip into the water before breaching the choppy surface. Fida steadied herself, still on her stomach, and followed Calhoun’s path into the water. Water and bubbles rushed past her face as she submerged, only to reappear a short second later.

Fida’s heart was thumping loudly and she seemed to struggle for air. She had no idea how they had been able to do that, but they did, and now they were back with the leaders of the pack.

“Still here!?” Fida heard Tom exasperate, frustration taking hold of his features.

Fida nodded, not bothering to answer him verbally before speeding on ahead.

The course was devoid of traps for the moment, allowing the girl and her fish to focus on maintaining their lead, though Tom was always right behind them.

All the while Fida was encouraging Calhoun, proud of him for doing so well so far and excited at the prospect of winning. Calhoun swelled with pride and swam all the fiercer.

They found themselves on a very short straightaway; ahead of them was a large circular part of the course. It didn’t look very tough, besides the fact that it was teaming with whirlpools.

“Be careful here!” Fida cautioned as they entered the circle. “Slow down!” Calhoun did so and they took safe routes through the pools. As they snaked their way through Fida noted that only a few racers were left at this point, including Tom, who was on the other side. The flurry of whirlpools was left behind them, leaving only two enormous ones ahead, with only a narrow passage in between.

Fida thought for a moment. The narrow strip of water between the whirlpools was treacherous, though easily big enough for one person. It was that or going completely around one of the maelstroms, which would only be wise for someone with a big enough lead it didn’t matter, and wanted to be better safe than sorry.

It was a big chance to take, but Fida knew going through was the only option; going around would cost her the race. “C’mon, Calhoun!” she tugged the reigns. “Straight through!” The Magikarp responded and made for the thin path.

“No you don’t!” came Tom’s voice from behind. He too had resorted to being on his stomach, which in effect allowed him better balance as he pushed at Fida’s board again.

“No!” she yelped as the kneeboard flew away for good this time. As soon as her legs touch the water she was ripped off to the side by a powerful current - she had been forced into a whirlpool. The girl’s grip on the reigns pulled Calhoun in with her and they spun around and around, closer and closer to the eye which emitted a spine chilling sucking sound, as if it were some massive ocean-beast eager to devour her.

Despite being assured of here safety prior to the start of the race, Fida was rather frightened, and she knew Elvia would be going wild right now and was probably rushing across the water at that very moment.

Calhoun had used the speedy current to get close to Fida, allowing her to hang on to him as their revolutions continued faster and faster until they were sucked down the black hole in the center. Her Pokémon was ripped out of her arms as they fell in.

“Calhoun!” Fida screamed before being submerged. She felt herself still spiraling, though slowing as she drifted farther from the currents. Opening her eyes only slightly, she saw an incredibly bright flash of white light, illuminating figures swimming towards her. In her dazed state she managed to recognize two Kingdra, accompanied by two divers. Fida was glad somewhere in the back of her mind, though she was more conscious of her lungs, which were begging for oxygen, and her mind had only Calhoun in mind.

As the rescuers neared she felt something incredibly large swim behind her, the mere wake of the large creature’s swimming caused her to spin. A terrific rumble shook the water and the rescuers had stopped advancing, looking positively terrified.

Fida’s need for air was now dangerously frantic, and as if an answer for her silent plea she felt herself being raised up to the surface. Her lungs sucked for air automatically as soon as she felt the wind on her face. Fida sat on her knees, resting her hands on them as she inhaled deeply. Her heart beat incredibly fast and loud, loud enough that she thought the audience on the beach could hear it. Taking one last swig breath through her nose she threw her hair back, no longer held by her goggles that had been stripped away from her person.

Fida opened her eyes, squinting at first as she noticed the shore. She was moving, yes, but she was also very high up. Looking down she found herself on the back of a large beast, wet blue scales glistened underneath her as the sun shone on them from above. Frightened at first, she gasped, falling back. She gasped again looking behind her as she fell, grasping onto a large white fin to stop her from rolling down the length of the beast.

Whimpering, her eyes darted around and she pulled herself up. Carefully she crawled forward, grasping onto one of three horns ahead of her. Making sure her grip was tight she looked down at the face of the Gyarados she rode. Its purple eyes darted up to meet her gaze for a moment, before returning to its swimming.

“C-Calhoun?” Fida stuttered.

A soft growl was her answer. It wasn’t threatening or angry, only a growl, as if confirming Fida’s inquiry.

“Calhoun!” Fida exclaimed. Her emotions were all jumbled now as she rode atop her previously much smaller friend. “You saved me!”

Another soft rumble.

“T-thank you…” Fida looked down into Calhoun’s eyes to convey the full extent of her appreciation, and also her nervousness. The girl had always known that Calhoun could evolve into a Gyarados, though she had never given much thought into how she would feel if it were to happen. She couldn’t tell if he was any different personality-wise, but he seemed well mannered at the moment as he swam.

“The race!” Fida remembered. Looking around she saw that the whirlpools were far behind them. They were still in on the track and they were blazingly fast, though Calhoun didn’t even seem to be breaking a sweat as his powerful and long tail beat the water. Waves were created by Calhoun’s massive bulk as he swam, taking out any other racers they passed, which were too dumbstruck to do anything about it anyway.

Fida looked ahead, seeing two dots that were Tom and his wartortle. They had almost completed the circuit and the starting line lay up ahead. The wooden platform had been removed in order for the racers to actually be able to pass the line, though one last obstacle was in store.

A wave.

It was incredibly large, towering over many of the rock formations and going over the buoys. The wave grew larger as it rushed down the final straightaway towards the racers.

Tom seemed too enveloped in winning to notice Calhoun and Fida behind him. He and Wartortle reached the towering wave first, the turtle swimming hard up the face of the wave in order the go over the crest. To their dismay however, the wave had begun to curve forward, causing Wartortle to fall back, dragging Tom with him as the wave passed over towards Calhoun.

The monstrous wall of water was relentless as it sped towards Gyarados and Fida, still growing in size. Fida braced herself against one of Calhoun’s horns and looked on, the wave only meters away.

Calhoun broke through the wave effortlessly, the crest of the wave only reaching half-way up his neck. After only a few more seconds they were across the finish line.

-------

“But she was riding a gyarados!” Tom whined, standing with arms crossed on the beach.

“There’s no rule against evolution during the race…” the man with the megaphone from before mused to the boy and everyone else that surrounded him and Fida. “She didn’t break any rules; she’s the winner.”

Fida blushed as the announcer repeated his last statement through the megaphone for the rest of the people to hear. The people shrugged, congratulating her on her win and on Calhoun’s evolution as they left.

Sem snaked through the crowd towards Fida, congratulating her himself. “Good job,” he commented. “You had some close calls, but hey, Calhoun pulled through for you.”

Fida smiled affectionately. “Yeah.” She felt a familiar presence surround her, shooing away the lonely sensation. “Elvia!” Fida said excitedly as her friend reunited with her. “Sorry for worrying you…”

“Elvia was about to move the ocean to save you, I swear,” Sem chuckled as Sableye joined him on his right shoulder.

“Here’s your prize money, little lady,” the announcer butt-in, handing Fida a decently large wad of cash.

“Thank you,” Fida smiled in a petite way, holding the money in her hand.

“And your trophy too!” he added, handing her a decently large gold trophy, freshly labeled with her name and Calhoun’s names.

“Awarded to Fida Valens and Calhoun for first place!” it read, listing the date and which race it was she had won.

“Mail it to this address, please,” Sem instructed, handing the announcer a slip of paper.

“Will do, sir,” he bowed his head, taking the paper and trophy and walking away.

People were returning to their spots on the beach, eager to watch the last race of Water-type titans. Fida looked around, seeing that Tom had vanished. She realized it must have been embarrassing for him, as he most likely told everyone he knew he was taking home the first prize. Fida realized he would have had it not been for her last minute sign-up and Calhoun evolving.

Calhoun evolving…

Fida was still unsure what to feel. He didn’t seem to different other than that he was much larger. She realized later through Sem that Calhoun was big even when compared to other Gyarados. This certainly made her unique; the girl with the ghost for a best friend and the Gyarados that towered over other Gyarados, along with the strangest Murkrow ever to walk the earth and the Vileplume that might as well be part Ice-type. She was happy though, and excited now at the prospect of training with Calhoun.

Sighing, Fida began to walk back to their spot on the beach, exhausted from the race.

“Let’s not stick around,” Sem offered. “Let’s pack up and head back; we can order some pizza.”

“Sounds great,” Fida agreed.

-------

Back at the center Fida and Sem were in his room, eating slices of pizza and going over their plans again. They made sure they agreed on what was suggested the night before; going down to Vermillion to catch a boat to Sinnoh.

They packed that night, leaving the next day and traveling south, taking only a few days to reach Saffron. During those days Fida spent time with Calhoun, bonding and gauging how he was the same and how he had changed. Overall he seemed simply more protective of her, and no longer preoccupied with proving his worth.

It was when they had passed through Saffron that Sem received a call from his parents. He looked grave as he closed the flip phone.

“What’s the matter?” Fida wondered.

Turning to her, Sem said, “You’re getting your wish; you’re going to meet SIR.”
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That's it XD Short story ftw~