The next morning, after I cleaned and bandaged my back, I took my keychain from its drawer, having a Tyrantrum and Ian's final form in a ft silicone rubber format on it as my two favorite Pokémon.

  I knew there was no way I was going to ever capture a Tyrunt but a boy could dream can't he? Fossil Pokémon were only rarely found outside the Jurassic and it was fgged only for trainers who qualified for the conference with 8 out of the 10 badges possible as it was a really dangerous pce.

  "One day" I told myself as I attached it to my backpack as the lone accessory of the grey bag.

  I had slept well and taken some supplies from basement, oil for rust and cleaning steel with a couple soft rags. I cleaned Ian before leaving my room to cover up the oath I made with my starter, my new brother. My mom brought out an old camera and took a couple pictures of us next to a tree before grandpa had enough "Come on, let the kid go on and start heading towards Blossom. If he waits too long he won't make it in time for circuit start day."

  Mom sighed "But he's my st kid going off, can't I get just a few more?"

  Grandpa smirked "No." Good going grandpa, she's already almost filled out the film in that camera and even a steel type like Ian is starting to give her looks of impatience.

  "Ok then, sweetie? Don't do anything you will regret" she said in the same tone. She only used sweetie when she threatened punishment, but in this case it was only a warning and gave me a tight hug one st time. "Your father would be proud of you dear, don't waste this chance."

  Grandpa gave me a firm handshake and nodded "You'll do well."

  Finally I moved onto grandmother. In her hands were 5 envelopes which she turned me around to put in my bag "Read the one marked with an X first, good luck on your first gym battle, and be sure to teach Ian his egg moves before he starts getting too old." She gave me a short bow which I returned.

  "What are the envelopes for?" I asked.

  "Just read the X marked one when your ready, they’re letters" she responded.

  I went over to give Sawk a bow, Dude the Graveler four fist bumps, and Skitty a pet that she leaned into with her fluffy ears. I turned and walked down the path towards the first gym and Blossom city which was a couple of vilges and a town over. I looked back and waved as Ian floated beside me. They all waved back, my mom crying until I got out of eyesight.

  "It has begun Ian, the start of our journey" I told my Pokémon. He sheathed his sword once in response. I'd keep him out if I could, something about him made me feel safer.

  "Let me just read the first letter real quick and then I can start teaching you some egg moves. Can you keep a lookout for me?" he sheathed once before floating with his ribbon holding his sheathe while his bde pointed at the surroundings.

  I turned my bag around and grabbed the letters. They were all unmarked except for the Xed one and I couldn't see much in them even holding them up to the rare patch of light scattered around the forest.

  Putting the others away and opening the one I was told I saw a letter.

  It read

  Letters of Advice

  Rules:

  -Only ever open in a time when you are safe and in need of help, be it with advancing in your training or making hard decisions

  -Only ever open one at a time

  -Commit each letter to memory to the best of your ability

  -Burn them once you have read them and committed them to your memory to the best of your ability

  -Try to keep them safe and absolutely don't lose them

  "Huh, I wonder what they say" I was tempted to open one and find out but the first rule was highlighted "in need of help". It seemed like something grandmother would do so I decided to follow the instructions, she knew what she was doing with things like this.

  Supposedly in about a week we would form a deep enough connection for me to understand him better and be able to feel TE. It had something to do with the pokeball he was kept in but it wasn't expined in much detail in css as our teacher instead focused on what we could do with the abilities we would gain. Advancements in technological soul bonding had nothing on personal super powers.

  "So you have three egg moves that you can learn and I want you to learn at least two of them. They are destiny bond, wide guard, and block and block is the one I'm not sure about." He seemed to know about them already but sheathed once in acknowledgment.

  "Do you want to learn block?" he pondered it before sheathing once.

  "Alright, but let's start with wide guard first since its easy to practice without an opponent. It will be tough but it will help you dabble in another of the type energies. Do you know what a castle wall looks like?" One sheathe "Good, well the main idea is that you make a wall of rocks like that. It will start off on the smaller scale but I'm sure you can make a big one, one day. Try to first feel the rocks around you without touching them."

  He does so, and for a while, we walk in silence, the only sounds being the faint rustle of leaves and Ian’s occasional metallic hum as he drifts beside me. (Author Music Recommendation: Survivor by 2WEI) Then, without warning, Ian unsheathes his bde and darts toward our right, faster than I’ve ever seen him move. My heart lurches as I catch sight of the enemy he’s charging at. The charm scum’s (scientifically known as Ralts) horn glowing as small pink loops streak through the air—straight at me.

  Ian intercepts them, taking the hits like a true shield. Three bursts of psychic energy ripple against his bde, but he presses on, sshing twice with scratch as he reaches the Ralts.

  "Use fury cutter instead!" I yell, panic creeping into my voice as I try to recall his move set. Ian adjusts, slicing through one of the shimmering copies of a double team illusion. Two more Ralts flicker into view, both closing in on me.

  My breath catches as I fumble for my hunting knife, the handle slipping slightly in my sweaty palm. My bag thuds to the ground as the real Ralts charges me head-on. It’s small, barely coming up to my knee, but it has psychic moves, and I don’t. A close-range confusion erupts from its horn, and I feel the energy sm into my knife arm. Pain blooms across my shoulder, radiating into a deep ache as the loops of light dissipate.

  Ian is still floating back, but he’s slower than I’d hoped, and my muscles are locking up. I stagger back, trying to put distance between me and the illusions while aiming for Ian. In a desperate attempt to buy time, I grab an empty Pokéball from my pocket and hurl it at the Ralts.

  It turns into a red blur and vanishes into the ball, which shakes violently on the ground before splitting open. The Ralts reappears, visibly angrier, its focus turning to Ian.

  “Ian!” I shout, grabbing his hilt as he floats past me. His ribbon wraps tightly around my arm as I haul him forward, abandoning his sheathe in the dirt. His ghostly energy courses through me, making my arm tingle as I swing him toward the Ralts.

  The Ralts fires another confusion, but Ian absorbs the brunt of it as I lunge forward. I feel his frustration as I deflect another attack, his bde vibrating faintly. He starts charging fury cutter again, the green energy flickering unsteadily along his edge.

  The Ralts tries to flee, its short legs scrambling over the uneven forest floor. My arm is still numb, but I grit my teeth and push through the pain. I tighten my grip on Ian, both hands steadying his weight as I swipe at the Ralts. The hit connects, sending it tumbling. It disappears, and I reactively lower my stance and turn around.

  I see Ian falter in the corner of my eye—his ribbon drooping, a hole burned into his jeweled eye. He’s done, and I feel him drop in hands from the miniscule charge beam Ralts shot from its new position.

  I run. The charm scum cries out in outrage, the voice childish.

  I grab my bag from the ground, slinging it over my shoulder with a grunt. Ian’s light but unwieldy as I hold him, his fading energy making him heavier with every step. The forest around me feels more oppressive now, every shadow a potential threat.

  “Not worth it, buddy,” I mutter, stumbling down the path. Ian’s ribbon twitches faintly in response, wrapping weakly around my wrist. I don’t look back.