章 27: Chapter 27: Exploring the Unknown
"Thank you for saving me."
The orange-haired girl said for the nth time as the group set camp by a small lake within the Viridian Forest.
"Don't worry about it. Why were you being chased in the first place?" Nessa asked as she prepared dinner while Misty helped.
"Ash...a boy I met last month destroyed my bike. He promised to repay me after he won some trainer battles; however, he lost every fight." Misty sighed as she recalled the last month. "Since we were both going in the same direction, we decided to travel together until we got lost in the forest. One thing led to another, and a swarm of Beedrill chased us. In a panic, we separated, and you know the rest."
"And why were you unconscious?"
The two girls looked toward Aeron, who was walking toward them with the firewood he had gathered. Axew and Growlithe were closely following behind him.
Misty sighed as she explained. "I am scared of Bug-type Pokémon...they just freak me out for no reason, and I was taken off-guard by a Weedle...and...and..."
"Entomophobia?" Nessa asked, and the orange-haired girl embarrassingly nodded her head.
Aeron sighed and shook his head. The battle with Beedrill had exhausted him and his Pokémon. He experienced firsthand why no one dared to provoke Beedrill within the Viridian Forest.
Nessa and Misty served dinner, and the group ate it while conversing.
"Did you catch any Pokémon?"
"I caught a Pidgey." Nessa pointed at her fourth Pokemon in the roster, who was eating dinner with the rest of her Pokémon, Aeron's Axew, Growlithe and Misty's Wartortle. "You?"
Misty gave a wry smile. "I just hope to leave this stupid forest as soon as possible." She turned toward Aeron before giving him a stink-eye. "You did not send me pictures of your Axew, Mr." The boy had promised to send her photos of the Pokémon that would hatch from the egg. "And when did you get a Growlithe? I don't think you can find them within the wild areas."
"I forgot to be honest," said Aeron with a shrug. "Many things happened after I started my journey, and one thing led to another before I got my second Pokémon."
Aeron did not talk about the events of Viridian Forest, and Misty did not ask, knowing the boy did not want to talk about where he got the Growlithe.
"How did you guys save us?" Misty asked. "There were so many Beedrill..." Her cheeks turned red in embarrassment when she remembered how she was unconscious the whole time.
"I distracted them while Nessa's Horsea used [Smokescreen]," Aeron explained. "I had to carry you all the way here."
Nessa chuckled toward the end of Aeron's explanation. "He said you were quite heavy."
"You!" Misty's cheeks puffed in anger before she saw Nessa laughing her ass off. "Stop teasing me."
"You are easy to rile up." Aeron shook his head before he stood up and walked toward the lake. "I will do the dishes. Can you two set the tent?"
The girls nodded and happily agreed. After learning they were both Water-type Trainers, they immediately became best friends.
"How did you guys meet each other?" asked Misty.
"You should have heard about the kidnappings in Viridian City Forest?" Nessa spoke, and Misty nodded her head before she immediately understood.
"Don't tell me..."
"Aeron and I met in a prison cell." Nessa chuckled as she thought about that day. "We were lucky enough to make it out alive."
"I am surprised you both came to the forest nonetheless."
"The kidnappers were caught, and The League assured the forest was safe of...Team Rocket."
"But still." Misty looked toward Aeron, who was cleaning the dishes while the rest of the Pokémon played in the river. Pidgey and Growlithe were sitting atop Wartortle's shell while Horsea was constantly firing [Bubble Beam] at Axew, who was struggling to stay afloat. 'I noticed it the first day we met, but he is really handsome.'
"How do you know Aeron?" Nessa noticed the gleam in Misty's eyes as the orange-haired girl looked toward the boy.
"Hmm?" Misty absentmindedly turned back toward Nessa before answering. "We met..."
The two Water-type trainers kept the conversation going while setting up the tents. Once done, the group gathered around the campfire before they all went to sleep. They were all exhausted after today's event and needed their rest. Who knew what awaited them the next day?
-0-
An eerie silence took over the whole forest. One could occasionally hear the sound of a few Pokémon fighting each other, but none approached the camp.
Aeron and Nessa were surprised when Misty released a huge Gyarados into the lake to protect them and wondered why the girl had not used to it to fight off the Beedrill swarm. Was she so scared that she forgot to call out her strongest Pokémon?
The sea-serpent peacefully slept within the lake, but its aura scared away any Pokémon that wanted to approach them.
As the residents of the three tents slept peacefully, a pair of eyes opened in one before a figure walked out, going deep into the forest.
"This should be far enough," Aeron whispered calmly as he looked around. A thick forest surrounded him, and it looked even scarier during the night.
It was not the first time he had left the camp at midnight since they had entered the Viridian Forest. Something within him had changed after the Viridian City incident, and he could not show it in front of anyone else...not even Nessa.
Aeron closed his eyes, took a deep breath, opened his eyes and simultaneously let out the air he was holding in. His eyes...they were no longer black. There was a slit in his eyes. They had changed from black to a shade of purple and blue.
The once-dark forest lit up, and he could see everything around him. He looked at his two hands before pointing them toward a rock some distance from him.
'Up.'
As if the inanimate object, like a rock, could hear his words, it started floating in the air as unknown energy surrounded it. Aeron moved his hand, and the rock followed wherever he pointed.
Aeron let the rock fall before he closed his eyes once again. He imagined the unknown energy coming out of his body before it spread around him.
'Ten meters.' He calculated the rough radius to which he could send the energy out of his body. Within a radius of ten meters, Aeron could 'see' everything. Not even a speck of dust was hidden away from his vision. 'Time for the next test.'
Aeron sat down in a lotus position and looked for small rocks within his 'vision.'
'There are about twenty...'
Then, he willed for those pebbles to rise, and they did so, albeit very slowly. The ones closer to him were already up in the air, while the ones toward the edges of his 'vision' were wobbling as they sometimes fell to the ground and then rose once again.
It took him about five mins till every pebble floated five meters in the air. A deep frown appeared on his face, and his forehead was sweaty. It was taking immense concentration to keep these pebbles afloat.
After half an hour, the pebbles fell to the ground, and Aeron let out the breath he was unconsciously holding back for the last two minutes.
'I think this proves that...I am a Psychic.'
Aeron remembered an online article he heard read on Pokeddit. It was more of a conspiracy theory about some humans controlling the world in the shadows. These humans were said to have supernatural powers similar to Psychic-type or Fighting-type Pokémon.
'I once thought the person who wrote it was talking bullshit, but...' Aeron raised his hand, and a small rock started floating in the air. 'Knowingly or unknowingly, the person who wrote that article was speaking the truth. Does that mean more people have these powers?'
Aeron walked toward a nearby tree and punched it with everything he had. His fist tore through the tree's bark and made a hole in its body.
'This strength should not be possible for a normal human being.'
It did not take a genius to connect the dots that he was unique from the first day he was born. Although not awakened before, these powers he had displayed themselves in different forms throughout his life. However, they finally came out and manifested during the Viridian City incident.
'I have the powers of both Psychic-type and Fighting-type Pokémon.' His lips curved into a pleasant smile before a frown appeared on his face. 'Does Mom and Dad have these powers as well? Were they hiding it from me, or am I the only one to awaken them?' Aeron thought about it a bit more before dismissing it. 'I will ask them myself.'
Aeron had always been the quiet kid, but it did not mean he showed no emotions. He loved listening to music, singing, and playing with his parents and their Pokémon. He showed his true self only before those he cared about.
However, ever since these powers awakened within him, Aeron felt himself losing control. There was a weird itch within him that wanted to control everything. Pokemon, people, the way he moved or thought, everything had to be in control. There was always a voice in his head telling him to control all things and rule over them. To throw away his emotions and become cold, just like that energy.
But then, on the other hand, there was another voice in his head, whispering to him to be free and unfettered. It told him to express his emotions to their fullest, and it heightened everything he felt. If he was happy, the energy made him happier; if he was sad, the energy made him sadder. Unlike the cold Psychic Energy that dulled his emotions, it heightened them all.
It had been less than three weeks since he learned of these powers, and his emotional balance had been a mess. With his sheer will, he kept them in control, and thankfully, he had also found a solution to his problem...at least for now.
Since these two energies were opposite, why not keep them in balance so they could cancel each other out? And it worked...to some extent. And over the last ten days in Viridian Forest, he had come to learn of another fact. His Psychic-type Powers were more potent than his Fighting-type Powers.
Therefore, although he could keep his Psychic Energy in check with his Fighting-type Energy, he was always calm and controlled.
'I should start training.'
Aeron wordlessly closed his eyes once again and sent out the energy out of his body. Once again, the pebbles rose into the air.
Holding these pebbles in the air significantly increased his control over Psychic Energy. Moreover, he could notice the increase in time for which he could keep the stones afloat after each try. His limit was thirty minutes, and it would increase slightly each time he tried again. Once he was done with that, his mind needed rest, so he would start training his body the next moment.
Aeron took out four bracelets he had bought in Viridian City. He wore them on each of his limbs, and the gravity around him suddenly increased.
These devices were made especially for humans who wanted to train, and their inspiration came from a rare [Move] called [Gravity]. Even though the increase in gravity was so little that Pokémon could ignore it, for humans, it was perfect for strength training, and many trainers used them to exercise when they were on their journey and had no access to a gym.
'[Gravity] is a Psychic-type [Move], and I have Psychic-type Power...what if I learn [Gravity] and use it to train my Pokemon?' Aeron thought to himself while doing pushups. The more he exercised, the stronger his body became, thanks to the Fighting-type Energy. And once physically exhausted, he would start meditating on his Psychic Powers.
Thanks to these powers, he could skip sleep and still be refreshed. It was as if the Psychic Energy and the Fighting-type Energy were bringing unforeseen changes to his body.
So, for the rest of the night, Aeron kept meditating and training. He lost track of time, and the sun rose from the horizon before long. Then...someone or something entered his field of 'vision.'
A frown appeared on Aeron's face as he opened his eyes and looked ahead. It disappeared when he saw the one who had come, and his lips curved into a smile.
"Hey, little guy."
The little bug with white hair and red horns crawled toward Aeron before nudging its head into his leg.
"Here, have some berries."
Aeron took a berry from his bag before scanning the Pokemon with his Pokedex.
"..."
He was left speechless.
クリエイターの想い 
astraldragon
astraldragon I know it's called Aura not Fighting-type Energy but Aeron does not know this. He is new to it and exploring the unknonw by himself. He will eventually learn everything about it, but till then, he will call it Fighting-type Energy!
Also, the training he is doing is very basic but this was the best he could come up with so far. He is on his own in learning about these powers and the methods to train Psychic Energy and Aura will get better as the story progresses.
Thank you for reading the book! I appreciate all the Power Stones you have sent my way.
Peace!
週次パワーステータス
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