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Chp 44: Action

'Where u at?'

Seth looked at the message for a moment, blinking the sleep from his eyes, before realizing who it was from.

'Long Story.' He sent back. 'Call me?'

'Nope :p Meet me north of the resort area.'

Seth sighed and got out from under the covers. The clock said it was just past eight in the morning.

"Erghm..." Soul grumbled. She rolled over at the bed moving, but resumed snoring lightly. Sky was on his other side, like usual, so he went down and climbed off the foot of the bed to avoid waking either. With a stretch and a yawn, he stumbled over to the bathroom and closed the door once inside. It had been a late, but fun night. They ended up all sitting in the living room section and watching a few movies. He even made some popcorn, the noise of which excited Fluffy. He looked in the mirror, seeing dark marks under his eyes. He turned on the shower, waited for it to get hot, then climbed in for a quick rinse.

He got out and left the bathroom with a towel around his waist. Now in the main room, he could see all the others sleeping. Soul and Sky were on the bed, Fluffy next to his mom. Tiff and Daim were on opposite ends of the couch, Daim resting on a pillow and Tiff curled up. He let out another yawn as he began to quietly get dressed. He decided to let everybody sleep. If he needed a pokemon, Reginald was on his belt.

He left, still trying to be as quiet as possible until the door was closed. Once outside, he let out a sigh. Out the hotel, down the road, and-

"SETH!"

He turned to find Alex rushing towards him. "Morning." He greeted.

"Yeah. So what's up?"

"Well, my team and I decided that we're giving up battling."

"Ah. Well, if that floats your boat." She shrugged. "In the meantime, I thought we'd hang out."

"With me? Okay, it's an hon-

"Cut that shit. One of the best parts of the whole anonymous thing is that nobody treats me special. I'm just a normal person everywhere I go. So just treat me like a friend, not like a superior."

"I get it. Okay then, buddy, what were you thinking of doing?"

"Well... I think I got an idea." She walked past him, back the way he came. "Back to the resort area!"

"Why? What are we doing?"

"You ever been on tv?"

"Yeah, once or twice I think."

"Oh, that's good. Kinda hard to explain, so you'll see once we get there. It'll be fun, promise."

+++

"Seth?" Sky asked, knocking her paw on the bathroom door. "I don't think he's here. He probably went out early or something."

"That bastard!" Soul shouted, smacking the pillow. "In one of the best resorts in the world and he runs off all alone. Talk about selfish!"

"He'll be back."

"He'd better."

+++

"What is this place?" Seth asked.

"Ever wonder where all the pokemon on tv shows and commercials come from?"

"I always just assumed they were stars or something."

"Naw, that'd be too expensive. Any pokemon can act with a little practice. That's what this place does. And, like everything nowadays, they have a ranking system. I have quite a bit of clout here, so I can get bigger roles. My team has even been in a movie or two. Fun, chill, and its easy money."

"Huh. I would give it a try, but... I left my team behind today."

"You can borrow some of mine. They don't bite... mostly. Bonsai will if he's grumpy."

"Alright then." She led the way, checking in, signing up for a duo role, and back onto the set. "Alright..." She looked over the script. "Cereal commercial, pokemon steals food from son, pokemon mom steps in, everyone shares. Right, not too hard. You get to be the son, King... he's a guy, but he should do for the mom, and I guess Prince can be the thief." She handed Seth the script.

"Hmm, I might be a bit old looking." Seth said, rubbing a hand across his stubbly chin.

"Hope you aren't trying to grow that out."

"You two my actors?" A posh sounding man said. He was wearing some odd clothes, probably meant to be fashionable. "Great, you," he pointed at Seth. "Get to makeup. You... I think I have something for you. Same place."

Both of them went over to one wall, where there were chairs and mirrors. After a shave and some touch ups, Seth looked several years younger, almost like a teenager again. Allie on the other hand, got aged by about twenty years, with way too many wrinkles for her young body. The make-up artist left to go get something, leaving the two of them alone.

"Wow, that's pretty impressive." Seth said, looking himself over. From the neck up, he looked like he was fourteen. "Still a little tall."

"Don't worry about it. These guys can do magic." She got up from the chair and released a male kangaskhan. The gender of the kangaskhan was obvious from the difference in its body. While he had the signature young, riding on his shoulder, he had no pouch. His body was also darker in pigmentation than a female.

"Wow. I didn't even know kangaskhan could be male." Seth said.

"Well duh. How else would there be kangaskhan babies?"

"You, Allie." The director said as he returned. "You are the new role. You are his mother." He pointed to Seth. "You'll come in alongside the pokemon mother."

"Got it." She hopped out of the seat. "Let's do this."

Seth followed behind her, reading over the script again.

"Relax. It's not as hard as it seems."

+++

The camera zoomed in on Prince, the young kangaskhan, who was digging into a bowl of cereal, splashing milk everywhere.

"Hey!" Seth shouted, purposefully making his voice higher. He came running in from stage left, up to the table. "Those are my Pumpkabites!"

Prince raised his head, milk dripping from his chin, and stuck out his tongue. Seth lunged forward, grabbing the edge of the bowl and pretending to pull. Prince did the same.

The camera panned over to the kitchen door, where King, painted to look female, waited with crossed arms. Allie stepped up beside him and did the same.

The commercial then ended with all of them eating together.

"That's a wrap!" The director called. He came over and handed both Seth and Allie checks for several thousand poke.

"That was pretty fun." Seth said. "And not bad money for a few hours of work."

"See? Told ya." Allie said. "How about a lunch break? My treat."

"Sure. What about that bar you gave me the pass for?"

"That was my plan. Place is so underground that it doesn't even have a name. We often just call it the club."

They left the building back out into the daylight.

"THERE YOU ARE!"

Seth let out a cry as he was pounced and pinned to the ground.

"Soul, relax. It's only been two hours." Sky said.

"What have you been up to?!" Soul demanded.

"Nothing, nothing." Seth told her. "Seriously, we just recorded a breakfast commercial."

"One that is gonna be on tv I bet." Soul said angrily. "How could you leave us behind?!"

"You were sleeping. And you would have been pissed if I woke you up."

The facts coming from his mouth seemed to calm her down. "Fine. But you owe me." Before she could say anything else she let out a purr. Allie had reached down and was rubbing the base of her horn. "Oh shit, she's good with those hands." Soul nuzzled into the petting.

Seth just lied there, waiting for her to move. "Well, you did show up just in time for lunch."

+++

Seth reached down at the feeling of something buzzing in his pocket.

'Seth? This is Aien. I have a request. Tomorrow I will be exploring an area near Solaceon town. Would you please join me?'

'Sure.' He sent back. Seth put his dex away and returned to eating.

"This food is really fucking good." Soul said.

"I can see you enjoy it. If there's anything else..." The bartender offered.

"No, she's fine." Seth said.

"Speak for yourself. Another basket of fries for me, Reggie." Allie said.

"Right away ma'am." He turned and went into the kitchen.

"Is it really just him?" Sky asked.

"Yep, dude keeps it running all alone. Cool huh?" Allie responded.

Seth and Sky looked at her in astonishment. "Can you understand her?" Seth asked.

"Yep. Proud to say I'm special. One day, I just heard some new voice. Turns out it was Wave."

Seth looked back. They were all alone. No other patrons were in the bar and Reggie was cooking. "I can understand pokemon too. Though I don't have some fancy backstory. I just can."

"Nice. I guessed there was something more with how your pokemon act. You have good friends."

"Since you can understand me, that makes things easier." Soul said. "I want a fight. Me and you, let's go."

"Sure. After lunch."

+++

"Soul? You sure?" Sky asked.

"Hell yeah. You babies can sit this one out. I got this." She said. "And you," She turned to Allie. "No holding back."

"No promises. Don't want to hurt my new friends." They were underneath the bar, in a full standard arena.

"Are you sure about this?" King asked. "Surely you know who we are."

Soul whipped her horn, sending out a large night slash right past him.

With that, King stepped forward. "Very well. This is your last chance to surrender."

"Yeah, we'll beat you silly." Prince warned from atop his father's shoulder.

"Try it short stuff."

"Seth?" Allie asked.

"Soul is tough. If things get rough, I'll take care of it."

"Alright. King! Give her what she wants." Allie reached up and pulled her hair to the side, revealing a clip in it. On that clip was a glowing keystone. Another stone, embedded in King's ear, shined as well. The energy burst out as he mega evolved.

Soul moved first, appearing above him and delivering two slashes with her paws. The energy cut lines into the floor, through King, instead of around him. Prince launched an attack while King flinched, leaping up and punching Soul square in the muzzle. That sent her upwards, into the roof.

"Now we're talking." Soul said. She was still stuck in the cracked ceiling. "This is what I wanted." She flexed, breaking out of the rubble and falling to the floor. Her fur began to billow as tendrils of darkness danced around her body.

King braced himself. With her far greater speed and the distance, he would have to survive until he could get in range. Without Soul even moving a muscles, a blade of darkness launched out of nowhere. This time, Seth saw the way her attack moved. Instead of simply smashing her energy into him, it cut, the edges carving along his skin until it reached the top, where it returned to its normal shape and hit the floor behind him. Even without intent to harm, it likely hurt. If Soul wanted to cause damage, it would likely resemble a knife and butter.

King grunted, but didn't flinch much. "Ready?"

"Yeah." Prince responded. He was grabbed by the legs, and King started to spin, before hurling the child at Soul. Soul ducked as he went flying over. She was forced to leap forward when Prince redirected himself midair, crashing into the ground with a rocket speed punch. "Nice dodge."

"Don't think you're safe." Soul said as she landed. An icy explosion burst out from where she had been, knocking Prince aside. She looked up at King who was charging forward. "Now, let's see if I can do it right this time." The darkness swirling around her intensified, almost completely covering her body. It almost looked like black paint mixed with water, a fluid, very real looking substance.

Just as King was in range, his arm raised and clutched into a fist, Soul swung her horn. Instead of the streak that happened last time, a single beam shot out like a lance, going straight through King and piercing the far wall. It left a trail in the air that faded after a few seconds.

King let out a pained grunt, stumbling as he swung, making his fist smash into the floor next to Soul.

"Enough!" Allie shouted. "If we continue, one of our pokemon might get hurt."

"Aww! Come on!" Soul complained.

Prince ran over and climbed up his father's body as both reverted to normal. They calmly walked back over to Allie.

"Damn, that was pretty impressive." Allie rushed over and began to pet Soul. "You gotta be pretty tough to manifest your power like that. You probably would have beat King. But he's a bruiser type, slow but tough. You counter that kind of thing." She rubbed under Soul's chin, bringing more purrs from the grumpy 'sol.

Seth walked past the both of them, over to the wall Soul had hit. There was an almost perfectly smooth and round hole, going far enough that he couldn't see the end. "Soul? Care to explain what all that was?"

"Nope. But that was just a tryout. I never said I would go all out either." She squirmed under Allie's insistent petting, hitting all her weak spots.

"Oh yeah? What if I spoil your trick?" Allie teased, pulling on her cheek. "Pokemon power is what we call it. The ability of pokemon to use their energy in forms we call moves. We've mapped out the very basics, moves like mega punch wrap the energy around the fist or flamethrower projects fire type energy out of the mouth. But beyond that, more powerful pokemon can bend their energy to their will in more versatile ways, doing almost anything they want with it. Psychic types show this very often, using their energy to manipulate things. You probably know all that by now."

"Yeah. My pokemon and I have been able to do that for a while now." He bit his lip a moment after, realizing his slip up.

"There's a level beyond even that. Their energy can take on a life of its own. Similar to the ability of aura that some beings possess. Aura, which is the user's life force, can be used to do nearly anything with enough training, even cause permanent effects. Pokemon energy can be used to do similar things, based on their type. A normal water type could smother a fire with their energy, but an incredibly strong one could create a permanent and completely real lake out of nothing. A grass type could make a flower bloom and grass grow, but a powerful one could make a tree appear in the desert, one that lives on long after the battle ends. A fire type can control heat with crazy accuracy. They begin to even control the idea of their-"

"UGH!" Soul shouted. "Fine, you killjoy. My power has two parts. Moves are like... puzzle pieces. You take a little future sight, mix in some razor wind, and an ice beam, then bam, you get a surprise ice storm. Or mix slash and night slash for a super slash. Throw in some flamethrower for a little extra burn. Then, my type. Darkness is..." She pouted. "I don't know how to explain it. It's... It's my world and only me or my power can be there. So anything else gets pushed out."

"Wow, you are pretty tough. Only half my main team can do stuff like that." Allie complemented.

"Half?" Seth asked. "Just how strong are you?"

"Very. Pokemon are such amazing creatures, aren't they?"

"Wait... so if it works off of a concept, wouldn't that mean there are an infinite number of ways a power could work? That it would be different for each pokemon?" Sky asked.

"I suspect. But it's a very rare gift. Only shown by the best pokemon at the peak of their power. And I think it's got a lot to do with the bond between trainer and pokemon. Never seen a wild do it. Or a sad pokemon."

Seth took out his dex and quickly pulled up the listings for his team. On the readout for Soul, her level had changed, going up to 88. And as he looked, it decreased to 87. A few seconds later, it dropped again, to 86. "Hey Allie? What level is your team?"

"Oh, those? I don't even know. They aren't very accurate. It's just an estimate based on vitals."

"Hey, I'm still mad about you stopping the fight." Soul growled now that Allie had stopped touching her. "I barely got to fight."

"Well somebody has to pay for this damage. Walls don't fix themselves."

+++

"Happy now?" Sky asked.

"Are you?" Soul responded. "You all finally got me to spill the beans on my cool moves."

"It wasn't that hard..." Sky muttered. They were on their way back to the hotel.

"Oh yeah." Seth said. "Aien messaged me. He wants to go exploring back on the mainland tomorrow."

"Might be fun." Sky said.

"Might as well. Not like we have anything better to do. You know, being in this huge resort and all." Soul groaned. "And when are we going on that volcano adventure?"

"We have all the time in the world. Slow down and enjoy the ride." Seth said.

They arrived at the room, opening the door to an odd sight. Tiff was on the floor in the middle of the room, face down. Her fur was tousled and she was breathing hard.

"Oh thank arceus, you're back." She grumbled. "He's like a monster." Further back, Fluffy was running along the wall, horizontally making laps around the room without touching the ground. Daim was chasing right after him, urging him to stop before he got hurt.

"Mom!" He shouted. He stopped, lost an inch or two to gravity, then kicked off to launch halfway across the room. Then he closed the distance, bouncing giddily in front of Sky.

"Hey, aren't you just a bundle of energy!" She exclaimed giving him a few licks on the forehead.

"I've been training hard. I'm gonna be just as strong as you!"

"You sure will, if you keep training that hard." She said. "But you should slow down and enjoy being young."

"Hah!" He spat out a trio of swift stars. They faded halfway across the room, vanishing before hitting anything.

"Very impressive." Seth rubbed his head, drawing a happy vee noise. Seth walked over, laid his clothes out over the desk chair and laid down on the bed in his underwear, like usual. "Alright, day after tomorrow, we head for Stark Mountain."

"What's up with hanging out with this dude? Aien was it?" Soul asked.

"I dunno." Seth shrugged. "He seem's like an alright guy. Never hurts to have more friends. Especially if we're going to live here."

"Does that mean you made up your mind?" Sky asked.

"Kinda. I think we should stay in Sinnoh. There's a lot more here than back home. But we have to find a place."

"That town seems nice." Soul commented.

"Yeah, but it seems out of our price range."

"Oh? Is that right mr. league moneybags?" Soul teased.

"Big difference between a hotel and a house."

"Hey, gimme your dex." Soul said.

"In my pocket." Seth pointed to his pants across the room. Sky, with Fluffy riding on her head, climbed onto the bed and curled up next to Seth. With one hand he pet her and the other reached for the remote.

Soul moved things around and got his dex on the desk and herself in the chair. Seth knew by now that she could use it safely. She opened the history on his browser, finding a lot of porn links, all hers. But among them was another site: Trainerlookup. She opened it and went to search.

'Aien.' 'No results found.' She frowned. Either he was using a fake name, or he was basically unknown. This site was really popular and had millions of active profiles, so...

'Allie.' '136 results.' Soul went through, adding an exclusion for a kangaskhan and Sinnoh, narrowing it to only four. And none of them matched up.

'Alex.' Soul searched when she remembered. There were a lot of hits, but with the exclusion, there were only three. The top ranked one was her for sure. It had a picture, matching the girl she had seen today. She had every badge, even ones from outside Sinnoh, a completed Sinnoh pokedex, over 70% on her global dex, and had both contest and frontier accomplishments too.

"Damn. That Allie girl is a pro." She went down to her team listing. There were well over 50 pokemon, all with impressive statistics. Her best was Wave, an empoleon. Followed by Bonsai the torterra, Zerker the infernape, King and Prince the kangaskhan, Midnight the gengar and Einstein the alakazam. Those were her top six. "When are we meeting her again?"

"What are you doing over there?" Seth asked in response.

"Research." At that moment, an idea popped into her head. She went back and searched several new things. 'aien, aein, Aein, Neia, neia, neai, Neai.' She grimaced when none of them got any hits. 'Zy' She searched, hoping it would hit on his pokemon instead. It did get a hit. Hundreds in fact. Seemed to be a common nickname. But no sign of the little snot blob.

"Soul, Domefront is starting soon." Seth informed her of the contest reality show.

"Awesome." She turned the dex off and went to join them.