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An Uncertain Future	By : Twill Category: Pokemon > General Views: 12846 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
Gardevoir couldn't help but smile. “I thought you wanted to get there before dark?”

Rob lay on the muddy, grassy bank of the lake. “We will.” He ruffled Quilava's fur, who had leaped on Rob's chest before he'd finished lying down. Small footprints lead from Quilava to where Sandslash examined the water from a short distance.

Not that she wanted to rush, but, well, maybe she'd gotten a little too used to human comforts. Lucario stood up to her shins in the lake, staring intently into the glassy surface, so Gardevoir went to her. “See something?” The muddy sand squished beneath her feet.

Lucario spoke softly. “Something bad is about to happen.”

Gardevoir let out a nervous laugh. “What are you talking about? We made it.”

“The aura here – something is wrong.” An almost pained expression softened the angular lines of Lucario's face, and she turned to face Gardevoir.

“What do you mean? Shouldn't you tell Rob?”

A sphere of light appeared in Lucario's hand. Gardevoir had seen her use the attack before, but instead of the pale, perfectly spherical ball of energy, a crackling misshapen blob hovered in Lucario's palm. With a light flick, Lucario sent the sphere hurtling out across the lake.

The sphere exploded in an enormous plume of water, and even Lucario jumped back.

“What did you do?” Gardevoir started back. The pillar of water crashed down in a mist to reveal a red-scaled monster. Droplets like blood ran down its crimson scales before it let out a scream that reverberated in Gardevoir's chest.

Rob sat up. “Guys?”

Gardevoir couldn't take her eyes from the beast, or move for that matter. She'd heard of Gyarados before, but no pokemon could be that large. It towered above the water, tall enough to match some of the shorter trees. Its powerful tail could extend endlessly below the water for all she knew.

“That poor thing, its aura, something must have done this to it.” Lucario stood wide-eyed, mouth slightly agape.

With another roar, the Gyarados thrashed, sending a spray of water toward the beach. Gardevoir threw her hands up to block the cascade, but a light, pure white, except where the haze of water fractured it into a fountain of colors, shone brighter than anything Gardevoir had seen in her life. Through squinted eyes, she forced herself to look.

Maw spread wide, the Gyarados could have swallowed the entire group, but instead it filled its mouth with light. A second sun, far brighter than the one in the sky, scoured any hint of shadow from the trees behind, and even Rob didn't cast a shadow where he sat with a growling Quilava in his lap.

Gyarados stared right at them. Sandslash, Quilava. Rob.

“No!” Gardevoir threw herself into a dive, then teleported. The momentum carried through, and her shoulder caught Rob square in the chest. Her small weight threw him to the ground. She felt Quilava beside her too, but she ignored him, ignored Rob, ignored Lucario's scream. Nothing mattered but the veil of pale light that she placed around them.

Even through eyes squeezed shut, face buried in Rob's chest, she could see the light. Blinding, consuming, pure, like a perfect white room, no escape. Blistering heat, not the heat of a fire, but the heat of annihilation. It didn't burn, it erased.

Gardevoir felt Quilava struggling against her and the barrier, heard him yelling, but she couldn't acknowledge him. Rob too spoke in a frantic tone, but only the thinnest thread of concentration stopped the beam of destruction from wiping all three of them from existence.

“Gardevoir!” Rob shook her.

The heat, the noise, she hadn't even noticed that the attack ended. “Rob are you okay?” She let the shield dissipate. The air felt hot and carried the sharp scent of ozone.

Quilava growled. “You just left him to die.” Steam rose from a wide trench of molten dirt and sand left by the monster's attack.

The skin on Gardevoir's back felt raw, as if burned. “I-” She turned. The red Gyarados screamed in a rage, mist rising from the waters around it. Air distorted above the superheated ground.

“He died. It killed him.” Abra stood on the other side of the melted ground from where Gardevoir lay atop Rob. He seemed solid, almost as real as in the dream. “You did leave him.”

Her head spun, Quilava growling accusations, jets of flame erupting from his back. Rob, talking, trying to untangle himself from beneath her to see what was happening. And Abra, that smile, look of expectation. Roaring, heat, Lucario, no Sandslash. “No,” she whispered. Power surged within her, but she rebuffed it, forced herself to control it.

Light began to collect once again in the creature's mouth. She couldn't hold it off again. For some reason she couldn't understand a word Rob said, his eyes searching hers, hands on her shoulders.

“You must.”

The hair on the back of her neck prickled in anticipation of the strike. She had no other options but to open her mind. The power to save, to protect, flooded her.

Save and protect. Gyarados struck. Space distorted around the immense shield Gardevoir threw between herself and the attack. Taller and wider than a human house. It didn't falter as the beam struck. Lightning arced from the surface, and a psychic wind emanated from Gardevoir, sending her gown fluttering about her.

She stared at the creature with a cold expression. “Abomination!” she called out to the thing. Gardevoir stepped forward onto the molten ground, but her powers shielded herself from the heat. She could fix things. The particles that made up Sandslash remained, she felt them, floating in the air, dispersed in the wind, but she could put them back. The world around her warped.

“Get out of my way,” Quilava snarled and ran past.

“Don't interfere, runt.” Her words halted the fire type, but flames roared across his back.

“Don't you dare speak to me. You might as well have killed him yourself.” Quilava turned back to face the thrashing Gyarados.

Gardevoir batted him aside with a flow of psychic energy and caged him in an ethereal prison. She should have destroyed the useless thing. Energy pulsed within her like a second heartbeat. Intoxicating energy that begged for release, and her mind expanded to understand how to use the limitless power.

She plucked the red Gyarados from the water and squeezed. Invisible hands crushed the enormous serpent, and she could see the fear in its violet eyes. It roared and squirmed, spraying water in every direction as she pulled it from the lake.

“Die.” Gardevoir smiled, and twisted the creature in half. A snap like a tree bursting in winter rent the air, and the beast screamed. It emptied into the lake, and Gardevoir dropped its thrashing tail, a red stain spreading from beneath the flailing creature.

The half-Gyarados screamed in her tightening psychic grip, but fell silent when she crushed the air from its lungs. Tighter. Emotion began to seep through the buffering coldness her power provided. Sweat beaded on her forehead. Sandslash. With a scream of fury, Gardevoir crushed the remains of the monster, its scales tearing apart, bones ripping through its ruined body. She fell to her knees panting.

“Do not rest.” Abra stood before her.

Her body shook. Red on white. Blood, droplets marred her gown from the creature's thrashing. Exhaustion and realization crashed into her.

Lucario struck the ground to her right, tumbling and skidding to a halt. She didn't rise.

“Hey! What are you doing?” Rob shouted.

“So I finally get to meet the one I've spent so much time worrying over.” The man had a confident voice and sure step.

Gardevoir tried to fight off the overwhelming fatigue that dragged at her. She swayed on her knees. “Who are you?” She didn't even notice Rob tied up in psychic bonds.

Abra hissed. “Destroy him. You must fight.”

“Can't-” Gardevoir fell forward, barely able to catch herself on her hands. The power drained just as suddenly as it had fueled her.

Abra brought his face right up to Gardevoir's. “He'll capture you.”

Her eyes fluttered.

“He'll kill Rob. You already let one of your friends die today.”

Tears filled her eyes. “I can't.”

“Then surrender. Surrender to me and I can help you.”

“How?”

“Open yourself to me.” Abra placed a hand to her head. She felt a pressure against her mind, something foreign and powerful.

“Let me help you.”

Gardevoir let her face strike the muddy ground. She clutched at her head. She had to. She had already failed. A shuddering gasp filled her chest and a presence gripped her mind. She no longer controlled her body, and she could no longer sense her psychic powers. The world around her faded as she felt her body rise.

----------------------------------------------------

“Wake up, Gardevoir.” The voice didn't come from anywhere in particular. It seemed almost a part of her. “There's a human who wishes to speak with you.”

A human scrambled away at her feet, not away from her, but towards a fallen Alakazam. Dirt covered his torn clothing,and blood leaked from the corner of his left eye. One of his arms hung uselessly at his side. “Alakazam, come on. Get up.” Blood ran from the unconscious pokemon's ears and mouth.

“Get up, dammit.” The man stroked his pokemon's head in an incongruously gentle manner.

Gardevoir advanced, or her body did. She tried to stop her feet from moving, but her body didn't falter. She tried to speak, and once again, her body didn't respond.

“Fine. Don't even speak to me, monster. Kill me, but let Alakazam go. I forced him to do this, and you've proven he's no threat to you. Just let him go.” He spat, more blood than spit.

Gardevoir saw the pain the man's injuries caused him, though she didn't have access to her psychic abilities. Why show me this?

“Well?” the man gasped, but he moved to shield his pokemon's body with his own.

“He asked. I can destroy them both. They won't bother you or your friends ever again.”

Gardevoir looked down at the human, already on the edge of death. He'd likely die out here, and she couldn't tell the Alakazam's condition, though it looked grave. But she looked at the human, despite the hatred burning in his eyes. Don't do it.

“You're still weak.” His voice rang like a mocking laugh in her own body. She could feel her powers being used, though in such a complex manner she could never emulate. Her powers dug into the man's mind, causing him to groan and crumple to the ground.

What are you doing? Before she could try to seize control of her body once more, a psychic signature blazed within her mind, that of a living creature.

“Find this,” the voice said, and her powers once again struck out at the human. “Now I will make sure this man doesn't interfere with you again.”

The man writhed on the ground, his good hand clutching at his head. Gardevoir tried to regain control, to stop this, but she could already feel herself slipping back into the darkness. Let the pokemon live. Please.

“Rest now. Sleep.”

----------------------------------------------------

No sign of Abra or the human and his pokemon remained when she woke on the ground of the forest. A pulsating pain clawed at her mind, but she didn't feel the fatigue she normally did after being overwhelmed by her powers. She felt as if she forgot something important, something major.

She sat up. Where were Rob and the others? Sandslash. Concentrating, Gardevoir searched with her mind. The pokeball wouldn't have let her gone far, unless it had been destroyed. Unless Rob had been killed.

Idiot. She could still feel the link to her pokeball, and a quick search located Rob and the other two not far to the east. The residual energy of her fight glowed like a beacon, and she teleported to the beach.

“Rob!” Gardevoir appeared just feet from him, and threw her arms around him.

He looked gaunt, but uninjured. “Gardevoir,” he said, returning the embrace. “I thought I-” Rob squeezed her tightly, and the pair of them held them embrace for a long time, the sun beginning to set behind them.

A cold, hard voice called across the quiet beach. “You.” Typhlosion bore down on her. No longer quick and lithe, muscle covered his new body, and large, powerful limbs smoldered with crackling fire.

Gardevoir stepped away from Rob. “Oh, um, congrat-”

Flames burst from Typhlosion's mouth, hot enough to force Gardevoir back despite the fire missing by more than a foot.

She gasped and created a barrier to protect herself. “What?”

“You killed Sandslash.” The barrier halted Typhlosion's advance, but he placed his snout right up against the translucent wall. Sparks of flame leapt between the fur that stood on end, making him appear even larger.

In her surprise, Gardevoir let the barrier fail. “No-”

Typhlosion's fist threw her to the coarse sand. “You let him die.” Loud cracks accompanied the sparks shooting from his fur, the heat his body radiated increasing to an uncomfortable blaze. He ignored Rob's shout of alarm.

Gardevoir coughed from the blow to her chest. The sand scraped her, but his words angered her far more than the pain. “Me?” she growled into his mind, her fists shaking with fury. I saved your pathetic life while you cowered on top of Rob.” She pushed herself back to her feet.

“Save me? You stopped me from trying to help!” He spat at her.

Emotion she'd been trying to bottle up escaped from her tenuous grasp. “And do what, die as well? You're too weak to help anyone!”

“Then at least I would have died trying to help the people who considered me a friend!” His shouts echoed off the calm water.

Gardevoir spoke with her true voice, anger clouding her psychic abilities. “I'm the only reason you're still alive.”

“Only because it was convenient to you. You didn't think of me or Sandslash.”

“I-”

Typhlosion spoke right over her. “You let Rob get attacked when he trusted you to protect him, but you made it out completely fine. You get us lost without food. Then you murder one of the few people you manage to trick into calling you a friend without a damn care!”

Gardevoir recoiled, but Typhlosion didn't relent, walking up so their faces almost touched. “I'd torch you right here if I didn't know how good you were at saving yourself.” With that, he spun and stalked back down the beach.

The tirade left Gardevoir stunned. A familiar voice echoed in her mind. “You could have saved him.”

She looked to Rob. While he wouldn't have been able to understand most of their yelling, he probably could have figured out the gist of it. “I did the best I could,” she whispered.

“I know.” It sounded forced. Rob didn't take his eyes off the ground.

It wasn't her fault, none of this was. It is. Tears stung her eyes, and she made her way to the large swath of beach that Gyarados had turned to glass. The surface had cooled since the fight, and Gardevoir stepped onto the smooth, slightly warm glass. She sat at the edge of the Rob-sized oval where her barrier had protected them. Typhlosion was wrong.

-------------------------------------------------------

A soft wind rustled Lucario's fur, and tiny waves reached for the large toes of her feet where she stood at the edge of the water. So much negative energy. Even watching Typhlosion walk towards the edge of the forest, the last of his fury seemingly drained from him, made her want to curl up and sleep until this all washed over. But it never would, not truly. Not this time.

They all hurt, but Typhlosion took Sandslash's death the hardest. His aura burned with fury and sorrow. She had to go to him. No one should be alone with that much grief. With an effort, she forced her features to a mask of gentle calm. After a few minutes to let him cool off a little, she chased after him.

The forest completely blocked any view of the beach and lake, even though they were only a minute's walk past the treeline. “Are you okay?” she asked.

Typhlosion sat against a tree, the bark beneath his back charred and blackened from the temperature of his body. She wasn't sure, but she thought she could see faint trails of steam rising from the corners of his eyes in the failing light. He didn't answer her.

Sighing, she lowered herself against him, wincing slightly at the sheer heat of his body. She sat across his lap and placed her chin in the crook of his neck.

Typhlosion spoke quietly, his mouth inches from her sensitive ears. “We were supposed to fight. When I evolved, we were going to fight, so I could show him that he only won because he reached his final evolution first. I took too long.”

Lucario grabbed a fistful of fur in each hand and squeezed him tight. The words she'd planned to say died on her tongue. What could she say to that?

“And when we should have stood together, I watched him die.”

Lucario gave her friend a few short licks on his muzzle while speaking to him through aura. “I know this probably isn't the right time, but – I need to tell you something.” She felt Typhlosion stiffen slightly in her arms. “Don't worry,” she cooed.

“Before Rob found me, I'd grown up in captivity by humans. My mother belonged to a pokemon breeder, one that specialized in rare pokemon.” Her words sounded hollow, even to her. Talking about her past didn't bother her like it once did, when she'd told Kirlia.

“Lucario have very few female pups, so the humans consider us valuable, to breed as well as for trophies. They used my mother to breed.” Her voice grew colder.

“They caged my siblings in the same room, forced to watch as males fought over my mother for the first mount. My brothers were sold, but most humans only wanted females. They killed the ones who didn't sell. I watched my owners do it.”

“I'm-”

Lucario cut him off by placing a thick padded finger across his lips. “Just listen, please.” She stroked his cream-colored neck, getting lost in his warmth before closing her eyes and continuing. “I managed to escape because of a mistake my owner's daughter made. I ran, too scared to try to help any of the others, afraid of my mother, who resented me, and any of the males who might have been my father.”

Lucario breathed in the warm scent of her friend, and the char from the tree. She squirmed a little closer in his lap, and smiled as his arms slid along her back. “I swore that I'd get strong enough to go back there. And I swore that I'd never take a mate.”

Lucario whispered in his ear, “It took a lot to change my mind.” She moved more deliberately in his lap this time, pressing herself against the burning heat of Typhlosion's broad chest. “I'd be honored to have you take me as a mate.”

A liquid warmth of aura poured from Typhlosion, breaking through the twisting, jagged despair. A temporary surge before a thick layer of doubt, an oily slick, contaminated it. His fur cooled slightly. “I'm not strong enough to protect a family.”

“Insecurity isn't a desirable trait in a mate, you know.”

“But-”

Lucario quieted him with a lick at his angular jaw. “I bet you'd surprise yourself.” His hot, musky scent burned a heat of its own. “Now,” she whispered into Typhlosion's ear, “before you say something foolish.” A cool breeze curled through the trees, inconsequential compared to the haze Typhlosion surrounded her in.

She sank lower into his lap until she could feel him pressing against her. The fur atop his head parted smoothly beneath her fingertips, his muscles tensing with her every teasing movement. “I don't have to explain this too, do I?” Their eyes met, and despite his new body, she could still see the innocent little Quilava she'd met so long ago. He shook his head. A smile spread across her face, and she licked the tip of his nose before climbing off him.

Leaving Typhlosion's warm embrace, she turned and lowered herself to her hands, presenting her wide hips, tail thrown to the side. She gave him an inviting wiggle, and looked over her shoulder. She smiled as he got the idea, and gave him a playful growl.

Typhlosion's hot, broad chest lay across her back, their cream fur rubbing, Typhlosion lining his hips up with hers. Teeth sank into the back of her neck, and though her tough hide resisted breaking beneath Typhlosion's powerful grip, her body instinctively tensed.

If she though Typhlosion's body was hot, it paled in comparison to the fiery heat that filled her in one smooth motion. A hiss rasped between her parted lips, and sweat beaded beneath her fur.

She wanted to scream, but could barely whimper beneath her mate's fierce grip. Heat, bordering on painful threatened to scour away thought. Typhlosion's breath burned her neck, hotter than the pressure from his fangs.

Lucario panted lewdly in an attempt to cool the furious heat raging through her body. A sensation completely new to her began to build within her. Flames that didn't burn, but consumed everything but bliss. Each quick, rough stroke into her sent quivering pleasure rippling through her muscles.

Even her ability to communicate with aura fled her, leaving her quivering and unable to vocalize anything beyond a mewling satisfaction. She let go to bask in each touch of Typhlosion's body against hers, and let her new mate satisfy himself.

Or that's what she thought. The feeling that built within her grew, a pleasurable but gripping heat. Sweat tickled her arms, and wetness slid down her thighs. Another whimper, desperate, needful escaped her. She tried to profess her love, but her throat clenched along with the rest of her body. A mewling cry echoed through the trees.

Her body seemed to shut down at her release. The world blurred, the glory building within her body overwhelming all but her basest thoughts. Typhlosion's frantic breath at her neck, hips slamming against her body, tensed arms barely keeping her and her mate's weight off the forest ground. Pleasure numbed every other feeling but her mate within her, and his brilliant aura. It overwhelmed her.

----------------------------------------------------

The warmth from the glass Gardevoir sat on made her shiver. Each time they counted on her, she hesitated. If she'd just used her powers to begin with, Sandslash might still be alive. Rob may have never been injured. Without her, they'd never have been put in this position.

Rob sat hunched over and cross-legged on the beach, rolling a pokeball around in his hands. He hadn't said anything to her since earlier, and she hadn't wanted to bother him.

Maybe Sandslash would return to taunt her. No, whatever that thing was, it already had a face to hide behind. It didn't need another. And the last few times it visited her, she felt a strange kinship to the creature, like they were somehow connected, like he belonged. What had caused the change?

In the distance, a surge of powerful emotion radiated from her friend and Typhlosion, but she tried to force her mind to ignore it. She would not intrude, even if Lucario did. And Typhlosion could be miserable for all she cared. She knew it was her fault, he didn't need to tell her.

A hollow voice broke her from her brooding. “We should probably head towards town. Even if we only get an hour or two of traveling.”

Gardevoir shook her head. “You might want to let the others be for now.”

He paused as if to argue, but sat down on the edge of the glass beside her. A finger's width separated the two of them, close enough she could feel the heat from his body.

“You don't regret anything, do you?”

“I didn't used to. I have plenty of regrets now, but-” Rob snuck an arm around her back and pulled her close. “Some things I wouldn't change.”

The strange silence from their surroundings seemed appropriate. Soft late-afternoon light shimmered off the slab of glass. Gardevoir wrapped her thin arms around Rob's middle. “Do you blame me?” She waited for him to answer, focusing on his emotions.

“No.” None of Rob's emotions indicated he lied.

“I could have saved him if I'd been faster.”

“Don't. Things have to change.” Rob pulled her tight in an unsteady grip. “Dammit, Gardevoir they have to.” His voice wavered. The pair of them sat for a long time.

Eventually, Rob broke the embrace. “I need to do something before we leave.” Rob stood and walked towards the forest, returning with a broken branch. He stepped down into the hole in the glass and began to dig out a small pit roughly the size of a pokeball.

Gardevoir spoke aloud from where she watched at the lip of the hole. “I'll fix this.” Rob wouldn't be able to understand her words, but it was a promise, whether he knew it or not. Those men who did this to her, to Rob, to Sandslash, she wouldn't allow them to continue. The creature that impersonated Abra helped her twice already, and she had a feeling he could help her do much more.

---------------------------------------------------

Lucario breathed deeply to slow her pounding heart. Typhlosion's tongue bathed her neck, and she gladly let him continue, his body covering her protectively. His release followed just moments after hers, and her body finally gave out. Now she rest in her mate's muscular arms. Nothing could ruin the indescribable happiness she felt at that moment.

“Are you okay?” Typhlosion asked, almost as breathless as she felt.

She whined quietly at the loss of his touch. The warmth he'd left in her seemed to burn within her belly. “It wasn't my time, but soon, if you want young-” She trailed off and nuzzled into his chest, acclimating to his intense heat. They'd have to sneak into the lake before returning to camp after the mess he'd made of her.

Typhlosion blanketed her with his body, wrapping around her tightly. “You know I would. I-I don't know what Rob will think though.”

“What happened to that insistence from a few minutes ago?”

An embarrassed burn rekindled in Typhlosion. “I didn't mean-”

She quieted him with a chuckle. “I can be very persuasive if he thinks anything different.”

“You shouldn’t be so hostile to him.”

“I'm just teasing. I know he – means well. Besides,” Lucario ran her hands down Typhlosion's body and nipped gently at his throat. “Could you really keep yourself off me?”

With a growl, Typhlosion rolled on top of her. “I don't think you'd let me.”

She wiggled her body against his. “You learn quickly.”

A weight seemed to return to Typhlosion, and he sagged against her. “I know what you're trying to do, and I just wanted to thank you. I don't deserve it.”

“No? Well then I guess I should be leaving then.” She gave a playful push against him, but the complete lack of fight made her change course. Maybe she'd gone too far. “Stop. You may be a fool at times, but you're not weak, and not an idiot. If it had been you to die, Sandslash would have made sure to comfort his friend's inconsolable would-be mate.” Lucario grabbed the fur on his chest. “He was my friend too,” she whispered.

Typhlosion let out a halfhearted chuckle. “Fine. I do deserve you then.”

“Good. Now how about you prove it again.” Lucario nipped at his neck again, harder this time, enough to get a not so halfhearted growl out of him.

----------------------------------------------------

Gardevoir walked beside Lucario, a short distance behind Rob and Typhlosion. Another warm, cloudless sky reflected off the calm lake surface to their left. They hadn't made much progress last nigh, Lucario and Typhlosion not returning until almost full dark. Despite the delay, Rod said they'd make it to their destination before nightfall – Mahogany Town. The thought of being back in a human city put her on edge. This time she'd be more watchful.

Typhlosion now stood almost as tall as Rob, and a good measure taller than her. His shoulder slumped though, a mirror of Rob's. The pair of them seemed to be taking it the hardest. She didn't think Rob slept last night, not that she could either.

Lucario poked Gardevoir in the ribs, though her enthusiasm seemed forced. “I didn't inspire you last night, did I? If it's anything like aura, I'm sure you could feel us.”

“No., because I didn't spy on you.” Gardevoir didn't even have the energy for embarrassment. She had too many other things bothering her.

“Well, it's not really spying. It's just so hard to block out.” Lucario ran a finger along the small of Gardevoir's back, but she didn't give her friend the reaction Lucario wanted.

Lucario spoke through aura so only Gardevoir could hear. “I hid.” Her eyes fixed on the ground.

“Hmm?” She rarely saw her friend anything short of cheery, though a quick check on Lucario's emotions showed she might just be better at putting on a good face.

“When that monster attacked, I hid. I saw that it focused on you four, and I just- I ran and hid.”

“You couldn't have done anything. It would have killed you as well.” Arrogant or not, the others wouldn't have stood a chance against the monster.

Lucario continued as if she hadn't been interrupted. “Something corrupted its aura. Nothing should feel like that, wild anger, and something else, something unnatural, like something manipulated its aura, but that's impossible. It scared me, and I ran.”

Gardevoir had felt something off too, but nothing about that abomination felt right. Of course, others said that about her. “You have no blame in it. If I'd been faster, I could have saved him. I should have saved everyone. I could have done it.” It all rest on her. The others didn't have the strength she had access to. If she had never joined Rob, the others likely wouldn't have had to suffer through any of this.

Find this. The psychic signature blazed like a beacon in her mind. It didn't belong to any of her friends.

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Lights glimmered in the distance as they approached Mahogany Town. Few humans moved about in the late evening darkness, and keeping tabs on the people around them didn't strain her abilities. The passing smells of hot food on the other hand beckoned to her. She missed eating warm meals.

Mahogany Town didn't have the sky reaching buildings that some of the other cities had. Instead, it reminded her a little of Rob's hometown. Small but neat houses, a few stores with painted signs instead of the harsh neon lighting that larger cities favored.

One building always looked the same, its red and white sign illuminated high in the air so trainers could find the building easily. Rob led them into the pokemon center with Typhlosion silent at his side.

“Sir are you okay?” the woman at the front desk asked before Rob could say a word.

How long since they'd been well rested? After so long of traveling, her eyes looked past the minor details, the dirty snarls in Typhlosion's fur, Rob's gaunt face that still carried the fading yellow tinge of his black eye. Even Lucario looked bony with their food so heavily rationed. Gardevoir had no interest in seeing a mirror; the grime on her once pristine white gown told her enough.

“I'll be fine,” Rob said in a hollow tone. “We just need a room for a few days, and if there's any place that will deliver food this late.”

“Of course. Your room should have menus on the desk, and there's a phone. But are you sure you're all right? I don't mean to pry, but you don't look so good.”

Rob shook his head tiredly. “I'll be fine, we've just had a rough few days.”

The woman pursed her lips but handed Rob a key, almost reluctantly. “Your pokemon-”

“Yeah, I'll have them checked up, but for now we just need some food and rest.”

“You really should get them looked at. One of the nurses should be free if you just want to wait-”

Rob cut her off again, but it sounded more like another person spoke through his body, someone dead. “Thanks, but really, we'll be okay. I promise I'll get my team checked out tomorrow morning.”

The nurse nodded. “I'll have someone come by in a bit just to check if you need anything, and there will be someone at the desk all night.”

Rob forced a smile. “Thanks.”

Their room looked just like every other they'd stayed at. A single, small bed, desk, dresser with a beat-up looking TV. And though it smelled faintly of chemical cleaners, the sheets looked fresh and the bathroom was clean. Rob's pack slid off his back and to the floor against the dresser.

Rob sighed and looked to the desk where a small stack of papers rested. He flipped through a few of them. “You guys can clean yourselves up. I'm going to see if I can get us something to eat.”

While she watched Rob, the other two slipped into the bathroom. Lucario liked water, thought she probably had to drag Typhlosion in with her. Gardevoir sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed to wait. Getting some of the filth off of her would be a nice step towards normalcy.

Her poor mate. What would she have wanted someone to say to her after Abra died? She couldn't think of anything. Words seemed so useless. And she hadn't even wanted Rob near her when they'd first met, though so much had changed since then.

Rob placed the phone down, and Gardevoir went to him. His shirt felt stiff from dried sweat and dirt. She didn't care, the dirt would wash off. He froze as her arms wrapped around him, not saying anything.

She lay the side of her face against his back. “Are you okay?”

“I don't know.” The lack of anything in his voice haunted her.

Gardevoir closed her eyes. His emotions felt just as empty. For now, this was the best she could do. None of the humans or pokemon in the building matched the signature Abra gave her.

“If you don't want me around,” she sent quietly to his mind, “I'll understand. But if I can help, I'll do anything I can for you.”

“No, thank you.” Rob placed a hand over hers. “I just don't know what I'm doing.” A sentiment that rang true , delivered in a cold, distant voice.

She couldn't offer him anything more, so she clung to him tightly and became lost in the disparate rhythm of their heartbeats. What should have been a quick journey after discovering the lake had turned into an eternity.

The cease of water flowing from the bathroom snapped Rob back into motion, and he gently pulled her arms away. “I'm going to clean up real quick. I won't take long.” After grabbing a few items from his pack, Rob stepped into the bathroom as his other two pokemon exited, followed by a large cloud of steam.

A shower made an incredible difference to the two. Their coats gleamed once again, no longer matted and dull. The quick drying, likely thanks to Typhlosion's natural heat, gave the two a puffed up look to cover up the lack of a decent meal in – she couldn't even remember how long it had been.

“Not joining him?” Lucario teased, though it sounded forced. Her warm, soft fur brushed against Gardevoir's arm, and both joined her on the bed, Typhlosion laying down as far away from Gardevoir as he could manage.

Gardevoir shook her head. “Sometimes it's nice to be alone, even if it's just a few minutes.” She contained her telepathy so only Lucario would hear it. Her friend looked pensive before nodding and falling silent.

After a time, the shower ceased, and Rob called out from the bathroom. “I'm done, Gardevoir.”

She rose and opened the bathroom door, steam rushing out to cover her in a damp sheen. Rob stood before the small sink, a towel around his waist and a razor in his hand to remove the scraggly hairs that had begun to take over his face while they'd been lost. A large discoloration on his side caught her eye, a fading bruise that covered his left ribs. She paused and ran finger gently across the marked skin, feeling Rob shiver slightly at her touch. He watched her in the mirror.

The shower had a different type of lever, but she figured it out quickly, and after the others, didn't have to wait for the water to warm. She stepped into the stream of hot water and watched as days of dirt and grime washed from her body. Tiny bottles of scented soap sat on an indent, and despite how much she hated the overpowering smell that humans found easy to ignore, they did help scrub the filth from her hair and skin.

By the time she finished her quick wash, Rob had already exited, and she grabbed a towel to dry herself, the air humid. Her hair didn't quite sit right, but the relaxing heat fogged her mind and muscles to the point that she didn't really care. She felt clean, and that was enough.

Outside in the small room, Rob placed two large bags of food. “Good timing.” He sat down and waved Gardevoir over, the other two already sitting in a rough circle on the floor, fur still fluffed up.

For the first time since this whole thing started, Gardevoir didn't have to force a smile, and it seemed the others didn't either, each too busy opening plastic containers and devouring the contents. Sweet, salty, spicy, Gardevoir barely even tasted the food, her hunger outweighing the thought of savoring the meal. She felt energy restored to her weary body.

A knock at the door made Gardevoir to jump. She mentally scolded herself, so much for being extra vigilant, though a quick check with her mind indicated a single human, no inherently malicious intent that she could feel. They knocked again.

“Probably the nurse to check on you guys.” Rob stood with a sigh and checked the door. It swung open to reveal a young man in a navy long-sleeved shirt and dark khakis. “Yes?”

“Rob, from Azalea correct? The Gardevoir trainer?” the stranger asked.

Rob froze. “Who are you?”

“I'm just here to deliver a message.” The stranger handed a thick envelope to Rob. “The person who sent this seemed rather eager for a reply, so I wouldn't keep him waiting. Enjoy your night.” The man tipped an imaginary hat and left.

Rob stood in the doorway, transfixed by the envelope. Realizing he stood half in the hallway, he closed the door and carefully opened the message. It contained a single sheet of paper and something else Rob didn't remove.

As Rob read the letter, the despair that she'd seen during their trek to the city crept back across his features. The paper shook slightly in a grip that crinkled the edge Rob held. Minutes passed in silence until Rob finally folded the letter back up and slipped it into the torn envelope. He set it on the desk and sat back down with his food but didn't touch it.

“Who was that?” Gardevoir asked.

Rob picked up a bowl and faked interest in it. “It was nothing,” he said, the most unconvincing lie Gardevoir had ever heard, but Rob looked on the verge of tears. A moment later, in a hoarse voice, he added, “just some paperwork for my trainer's license.” A weak embellishment.

Gardevoir stared but couldn't bring herself to push Rob further. She'd seen him sad, hurt, but she couldn't remember ever seeing her mate cry. The thought of what that letter contained truly frightened her.

Rob cleared his throat, but managed to speak in a calm if emotionless voice. “I know the past weeks haven't gone smoothly.” He stared into his bowl as he spoke. “I don't know where we're going from here, or what I plan to do. All this time I've just been trying to collect badges for the league challenge while I try and figure that out, but it may no longer be an option.

“Whatever happens though, I want you guys to know that you mean everything to me. Even you Lucario, no matter how often you spend glaring at me.” A ghost of a smile crossed his face. “So no matter what happens in the next few days, I love you all.”

Gardevoir felt cold, her body hesitant to move or even continue breathing. What was in that letter? Bother Typhlosion and Lucario had their mouths open as if about to speak, but Rob silenced them by pulling two pokeballs from his belt.

“I hate to do this to you guys after everything, but I need to speak with Gardevoir for a bit. Sleep well.” In a flash of red light, Rob returned the others before they had the chance to protest.

Gardevoir waited, but Rob remained silent, staring at the two pokeballs in his hand. The question left her mouth before she could think. “What was in the letter?”

Rob stood as if dazed, leaving the food on the floor and flopping onto the bed. He covered his face with his hands. “I'm so fucked.” It sounded like a whimper.

“Please, what's going on?” Gardevoir climbed onto the bed and laid a hand on Rob's chest.

“Team Rocket, they know everything about me.” Rob quivered beneath her touch.

“What do you mean?”

“I don't know. They want to meet with me, and they – fuck, they threatened my family.”

Gardevoir sank against Rob, laying atop hip. She tried to wrap her arms around him, to comfort him somehow. She'd never seen him this distraught. He'd always seemed invincible, a source of stability even after she'd let him down back in Ecruteak. Now he clung to her as if she were the last hold on a sheer cliff.

Gardevoir squeezed him in return. “Maybe they're just trying to scare you.”

“No. I believe them.” His fingers dug into her back painfully. “They killed Sandslash. That monster belonged to them. And they want me to meet them tomorrow, with you.”

Something primal welled up within her, a feeling beyond anger or hatred. It felt cold, made her cold, but offered strength. “Remember when you asked me if I'd kill a human?”

No,” Rob whispered. “I won't let you do that to yourself, not for me.”

Anger filled her telepathy, her mind unable to contain it. “I will not let these people keep hurting you, my mate.”

“No. There's too many. They're too strong.”

Psychic energy sparked from Gardevoir's skin. “You think I'm weak? I won't fail you again.”

Wincing from the psychic energy striking his skin, Rob placed a hand against her cheek. “You're the strongest pokemon I've ever seen, but they're too many, and it would hurt you too much. I know you don't want to do this.”

“I do. I will, for you.”

Rob shook his head. “They could still kill my family, and if they could create a Gyarados like that, who knows what kind of pokemon they have. I won't let you risk yourself.”

Gardevoir let the energy drain from her. “Then what?”

“I don't know,” Rob whispered, gently stroking the back of her head. “But tomorrow, I'm going to go to them.”

“No you can't-”

Rob hushed her. “You can come if you wish, but only if you promise me that you'll leave, without me, if I give you the order.”

“This is my fault. I won't let them lay a hand on you.”

“Promise me, or you'll stay in your pokeball somewhere safe, and I'll go there alone.”

“But-”

“Promise me.”

Gardevoir lay against his chest and let Rob feel her claws. “I promise.” She would never let Rob give those commands if it came down to it. If he thought he could stop her, then he was a bigger fool than those who thought they could hurt her mate.

Rob pulled Gardevoir closer and placed a light kiss on her neck. “This could be it,” he said, running a hand along the base of her back fin.

Gardevoir sighed contentedly at the simple touch. “Pessimism doesn't suit you.”

A mirthless chuckle rumbled in his chest, but he didn't push the point. Instead, he let his hands roam across her sensitive ribs, down her back, across her hips.

Gardevoir squirmed against him in encouragement. How long had it been? If only humans didn't wear so much clothing. She slid her hands beneath his shirt, careful of his bruised ribs. The heat from his body sent a calming warmth through her, hot breath against her neck. Maybe, this time, things would work out. It couldn't be so bad as it seemed.
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An Uncertain Future