Something moved in a blur of black and red. Patrick stopped his fist inches away from slamming into the heavy metal body of Pawniard.

  “Stop, boy. Don’t let your emotions take control of your actions.” He stifled a yawn. “Could’ve been dead, right here, right now.”

  Pawniard nodded. It used the blade on its hand to chop a part of the log. The cut was clean, perpendicular, down to the last bit of wood and into the dirt. It swept its arm backwards, throwing off the splinters left behind by the log.

  Patrick felt the color draining from his face. He stuck his fist to his side, not allowing it to even sway a bit towards Rose.

  “Then, why am I still alive? You could’ve killed me ages ago, no?” Patrick ground his foot into the dirt.

  Rose raised his head and sighed. “You’re a no one. Someone unshackled by society, by family, friends. You’ve got nothing to protect. Only things to avenge. An expendable pawn.” He shrugged.

  He stopped there. Letting the words linger in the air.

  “And so what?” Patrick clenched his jaw. “What if I’ve got no family or friends?”

  “You want to topple the entire system?” Rose let out a humorless, dry chuckle. “You won’t be able to even topple this campfire if you tried. But you caved Oleana’s son’s nose in. You can be my little thorn. My persistent toxin left behind in the ranks of Macro Cosmos. If you survive, I’ll teach you how to hold a knife.”

  Zigzagoon slowly tapped forward, it got close to Pawniard and examined its metal body. Pawniard smiled with its eyes, its lack of mouth uncanny, and puffed its chest. Nickit jumped onto the log beside Rose, curling up and sleeping for the sixth time today. Patrick felt the palpable ease that covered their party since this encounter. He flipped the proposal around in his head, searching for the catch but found none. The way Rose belittled him still stung, but that’s the way nature should always be—the strong belittling the weak.

  Patrick curled his fingers into a fist. “I’ll do it. But I won’t stop at Macro Cosmos.”

  “Sure, sure.” Rose waved him away with his hand. He glanced around him, his eyes landing on the raccoon and fox. “But you’re useless now. A pile of dead weight. Till you get these rodents evolved, you’re nothing, both to me and to society. You either return to this campsite with two evolved Pokemon. Or return dead, whichever comes first. Now off with you.”

  Patrick looked into Rose’s eyes with spite. Even if he didn’t want to cooperate with the man, one thing was certain. He needed to evolve his Pokemon.

  ***

  The warmth of Rose’s campfire faded away as cold breeze slapped the party’s face. Zigzagoon and Nickit stood more on edge, the ease fading away as they left the protection of the two monsters back there. Lusher grass led the party to the sound of cascading water. Patrick squinted his eyes while walking trying to see in the darkness of the deep night. A river cut through the trees with no space for a clearing. It headed to South Lake Miloch to the East. Trees were cluttered all around the shallow river as Pokemon drank rapidly and escaped into the depths of the forest. He spotted Skwovet, Rookidee, Bunnelby, but he ignored them, too little gain for too much effort at this point.

  One silhouette stood a head above the rest—about the size of Patrick, its head covered with a large green sombrero. The Pokedex flew from Patrick’s pockets into his hands as he scanned it.

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  “Lombre, the jolly Pokemon. Old folklore in Kitakami tells of a mischievous child who was reborn as a Pokemon. Lombre prefers waterfronts with plentiful food. It became nocturnal so it wouldn’t have to compete for food with bird Pokemon.”

  A Water/Grass Pokemon. Evolved at level 14 but next evolution was through a water stone. So it could be anywhere from 14 to 100. Patrick’s body shuddered with excitement. This encounter could evolve both his Pokemon straight away, and Lombre just seemed like a…dunce. Its placid eyes and round beak added humor to its appearance tying in the sombrero’s silliness.

  It drooped its head into the river, filling the sombrero with water as it drank. Once upright, it steadied itself and wobbled the other direction, carrying the water with it.

  Going back to some of its herd’s young ones, bringing them water in the middle of the night. We can get the entire herd, more EXP.

  Zigzagoon ran in place as it frothed for the fight while Nickit stood idle, awaiting orders.

  “Follow it, we need to reach its herd,” Patrick whispered as he inched closer to the Lombre, wading through the shallow stream silently.

  The Lombre walked through the forest, illuminated by the moonlight that pierced the canopies. Its sombrero’s water was painted with a fragmented picture of the full moon above. Zigzagoon ached to attack but Patrick held it back by its scruff the entire walk from the river to the lake’s bay.

  The lake’s shore was littered with green lily pads that walked around on four small blue legs. Underneath the lily pads a wide yellow beak stood out. Patrick pointed the Pokedex and lowered the volume to a minimum, pushing the Pokedex’s speakers into his ears.

  “Lotad, the water weed Pokemon. The leaf on its head is naturally dirt repellent and will stay clean after transporting Pokemon that are covered in mud. They will gather in lakes that have good water quality. The surfaces of such lakes sometimes become covered in Lotad leaves.”

  Patrick tilted his head as he realized that Lombre was delivering water to Pokemon right beside a lake. Water flew in the air in a pillar as it rained over the shore. A large blue and white serpent flew in the air before it slammed back onto the river’s surface with a slap. No Pokedex entry was needed. Everyone knew the creature from a glance. And it explained everything. Gyarados.

  “We’re gonna try something different this time. Zigzagoon, you’re on support duty. Nickit, you’re our brawn,” Patrick whispered. “Use Hone Claws. Zigzagoon, use Leer and attack the Lombre, I’ll help damage it as well.”

  Red circles rose up Nickit’s body as its claws were covered in a black shadow. Zigzagoon’s eyes glowed white as blue circles drooped around Lombre’s body. Water splashed on the ground in a splatter as Lombre turned around in a hurry.

  Wind whizzed as fog spread from around Lombre’s pale cyan glowing body. Mist. No stat reductions were possible on Lombre now. It rendered Zigzagoon’s Leer useless from now on. Not to mention the lack of vision it caused. Feet tapped on the ground softly from every direction as the Lotad scattered under the threat of the attack, whimpers escaping as they rushed away from the battle. Something squishy and wet slammed into Patrick’s bare foot as he jerked it out in fear. A Lotad let out a long whine as it flew into the lake with a splash.

  A roar shook Patrick to the core as Gyarados leaped out of the lake, its silhouette present through the mist, the Lotad Patrick kicked in its mouth.

  A cold spider crawled down Patrick’s spine as he shivered at the sight of the serpent. No red in vision as the Lotad got gulped whole. The mist surrounding Patrick was colored blue as a spot in the middle glowed deep ocean blue. Lombre took advantage of its folk’s death and fired. Sounds of bubbles popping emerged as a beam shot through the mist towards Patrick—Bubble Beam. He ducked instantly and the beam's trajectory shifted to the side. Nickit growled while pushing Lombre on the floor after its Quick Attack.

  The mist dissipated slightly and Patrick’s eyes acclimated, seeing Lombre’s hands glowing grassy green as it held Nickit. Nickit thrashed as it lost its energy while Lombre glowed a faint green light, signifying its healing—Mega Drain. Nickit kept screaming, yelping as its energy seeped slowly but surely into the Lombre.

  Patrick scrambled, his heart lodged in his throat. He flicked his head around searching for Zigzagoon but as he watched his fox’s life seeping out of it and into the Lombre a brutal realization hit him: he had underestimated the large gap between his two Pokemon and evolved ones.

  Who is your pick out of the Gen 10 starters? Or are you waiting for the final evolutions (because that's 100% valid if so)?