Pokemon: An Icy Path

Chapter 46

“So,” I start while looking at my two friends as we are currently standing in the meadow just south of Celadon City. “Which path should we take? We can take the short path and go through Saffron City and make it to Vermillion by tomorrow. Or we can take the path towards Lavender Town and trek through the wilds.” 

“Since we want to train, let’s head towards Lavender. Trekking through the woods is always good training as there are a number of wild pokemon around.” Bea says after thinking for a moment.

“I say we get to Vermillion first. That would give us access to a Pokecenter so we could rest comfortably at night and train extra hard during the day.” Flannery offers.

“Hmm.. Both options are good… I don’t mind sleeping in the woods but having the Pokecenter nearby would be a good idea. I want to try teaching some new moves to my pokemon which can be a little dangerous.” 

I gently chew on my bottom lip as I think. I can feel a hot gaze on me after a few moments and my eyes flick towards the source. Flannery is giving me a smoldering gaze for some reason, I raise an eyebrow at her slightly which she just smiles back at. The three of us are silent for a bit before Bea speaks up again.

“Let’s get there quickly. I like the idea of being able to train harder. When out in the woods for a long time, something could happen and we would need to rush to a Pokecenter anyways.”

“Sounds like we have a plan!” I give them a smile and start walking towards Saffron City. We have the option to hit the gym in Saffron first but traditionally everyone goes to Surge for the third badge. This is mainly due to their roster at this point. Very few trainers have a counter to Sabrina’s psychic type pokemon.

As the day wears on, the three of us just casually chat as we enjoy the nice summer weather. Since the battle at Bill’s house, I have noticed that the heat doesn’t have as much of a hold on me as it did. The sun doesn’t feel as hot so maybe I can try wearing some better clothes. Flannery was lucky, she just needed to change her pants to a pair of sexy shorts that show off her legs.

“So Frost, what is going on with you? First you dive right into a battle between pokemon. Next you get heavily wounded and then brush it off like it’s nothing. Finally you proceed to kick ass,” Bea asks.

“Not to mention you had wings of flame, a gorgeous dress and a crown to top it off. Now you have this glowing tattoo on your back.” Flannery adds as she traces her finger along my exposed back making me giggle slightly.

“You know Bea, that is a great question,” I sigh. “A little more than two years ago, I woke up one day suddenly feeling that the world was too hot. I used to wear all sorts of cute clothes that covered a lot of skin, but suddenly I couldn’t stand having anything on. After some testing, Grandpa informed me that I was experiencing the awakening of a bloodline.”

“You talked about your bloodline in the past, but what is that about exactly?” Bea asks while tilting her head.

“According to researchers and historians, nearly every human has the blood of a pokemon in them. I guess our ancestors were a little bit on the kinky side,” Flannery answers.

“You mean that humans and pokemon did… that and actually gave birth?” Bea asks with a shocked expression.

“They did, from what we can find from history it was rather common. Ancient humans were much weaker than us modern humans so they did everything they could to get stronger.” I continue off from where Flannery cut in. 

“In turn, everyone has a mix of pokemon blood in their veins. Some clans have tried to keep their pokemon blood as pure as possible, which we can see with the families with psychic powers, while most people didn’t bother. Every now and then, a trainer will be strongly attracted to a pokemon type which is their pokemon blood reacting. These are the specialist type trainers.

“Finally, we have the trainers that suddenly exhibit powers without warning. Through a combination of different factors, a bloodline can suddenly revert to its ancient roots and grant a trainer powers. This last part is what happened to me.

“No one in my family has shown anything more than an increased affinity with pokemon or higher than normal aura. For me, on the other hand, I experienced an avantism of a bloodline from an ice type pokemon. On top of this, I also unlocked my aura which seems to cause a resonance with my bloodline making it even more powerful.”

As I finish my story, the two of them look at me with a dumbfounded look that would put a Slowpoke to shame. Their faces make me break down into a fit of giggles. A few seconds later Bea snaps out of it and gives me an incredulous look.

“I wasn’t expecting a history lesson like that… does that mean that every specialist type trainer is influenced by their blood?” Bea asks with a hint of worry in her voice.

“Not at all. Some people just like the type, others just choose to be a certain type trainer because it is ‘cool’ and other reasons.” I can see Bea relax after my statement, I guess she does not like the idea of not choosing to be a fighting type trainer.

“What is this Aura you mentioned about?”

“Every living thing has Aura. Most pokemon moves are based on the pokemon’s aura which matches their typing. Whispers among the research community suggest that it’s not the type that influences the aura of a pokemon but that the aura influences the type. There are other whispers that suggest that Arceus granted the power to humans as well.

“Aura is the lifepower of a living being that grows with time. The older a being is, the greater their lifeforce is and in turn, the greater their power. This only occurs if the creature's aura is unlocked though. Pokemon have theirs unlocked from the moment they hatch, but humans need to unlock their own aura.”

“How can someone unlock their own? How did you do it, Frost?” Bea asked, her eyes blazing with a passion I never saw before.

“I was able to unlock it because of the martial arts I practiced. Part of my training included a meditation technique. Doing the two separately did not unlock my aura, but when I started using the meditation techniques as I went through my stances I suddenly felt like there was ice flowing through my veins and one day it just burst out of me. You saw my tent right? That snow is a by-product of my aura unlocking.”

“Though I might be able to unlock yours…” I quickly add as I see her brows starting to furrow in frustration. “I was able to unlock Flannery’s just the other night.”

“She did! IT caused quite a reaction though… Maybe when we stop in Saffron tonight the two of us will help you.” Flannery adds with a smile that shows she is plotting something. 

Bea perks up at that and suddenly grabs our hands. “Well what are we waiting for! Let’s hurry!”

“We are only a few hours away. We will get there with more than enough time!”

“Boo~. I wanna be there now~.” Bea whines cutely.

“I would rather get there and not be tired out,” I add.

“Fine~.”

“Anyways, I talked about what bloodlines are and aura, but I didn’t say what was happening to me. Honestly, I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

“Well, I know a few things like my eyesight are due to my bloodline and aura, but what happened after I was injured? Not a clue. I don’t even remember it.”

“I thought you were someone else…” Bea responds with a thoughtful look. “The you at that time looked like you were ready to kill those Rockets until I stopped you. Once I did, you just collapsed.”

“Why did you stop me?” I ask with a perplexed look on my face. “Wouldn’t the world be better off without them?”

Bea and Flannery look at me like I said that aliens were real. Did I say something wrong? I mean, Team Rocket is known for getting what it wants, in any way possible. Killing one shouldn’t be an issue.

“Frost, if you killed one of them, even if justified, the Jennys would have labeled you as a criminal. A criminal cannot be a league trainer,” Flannery tells me with a serious expression on her face.

“Why would I be labeled as a criminal? I was just defending myself!” I say in protest. There is no way that is right! Granted, it might be excessive self-defense but it was self-defense!

“When dealing with a criminal group, you have the right to defend yourself and your pokemon, however you do not have the right to kill a trainer or their pokemon. Knocking them out and calling the Jennys is the proper way to handle it,” Bea says as she looks at me.

“But…”

“It is just how it is Frost. Didn’t you read the league rules?”

“I did… I don’t remember that section though,” I say while looking down. I still felt a little indignant about how it was handled, but the thought of getting my license taken away is a wake up call. I just started my journey, I don’t want it to end.

 “That’s why I stopped you.” Bea gives me a hug and so does Flannery, which lifts my mood again.

“Thanks guys, you are the best.”

The three of us continue through the gentle rolling hills between Celadon and Saffron. The journey is a pleasant one and the three of us have most of our pokemon out to play. The only one that isn’t out is Mags as he is a little slow moving for us. I smile as I watch Skadi, Night and our three Eevees running around us. After the fiasco with Team Rocket back at Bills and the other fight in Mount Moon, we needed this kind of break.

“So what did you decide to name your Eevee?” I ask the two of them. I didn’t know if Bea named any of her pokemon as she never uses a name.

“Tinder, because she will evolve into a Flareon for me.”

“For the moment, I don’t have a name for my Eevee. I have a hard time coming up with a fitting name.”

“That is a fitting name babe. Bea, coming up with a name can be challenging but if you and your pokemon both like the name they will be happier. At least that is what Grandpa used to tell me. As for me, I am calling her Aurora.”

“You always come with good names,” Bea says with a slight hint of envy. “Maybe we can come up with some names for my pokemon as well…”

“I’ll be happy to help!”

“No problem! I’m sure we can come up with some names for you and your pokemon to pick out!”

Bea gives us a radiant smile as we crest another hill. In the distance I can see the tall Silph Co. tower that shows we are near Saffron City. It should only be another hour or so before we arrive. At the top of my vision I spot some movement and see Zephyr playing in the wind, her beautiful white wings leaving a faint glittering trail behind her in the sinking sunlight.

With a quick glance to my two partners, who both nod at me, we pick up our pace towards Saffron City. Taking a nice shower and some evening window shopping sounds like a good plan to me.