Into the inferno chapters 1-5 by Terraphage

Into the inferno chapters 1-5

Terraphage, Character Development, Fighting, M/F, No-Yiff, Plot Development, Pyromania, Transformation, lucario, pokemon, vulpix

I do not own Pokémon. Pokémon is a licensed trademark of Nintendo or something like that so just don't sue me. It's free publicity. Nintendo should be paying me.

I'm sorry if anybody is offended by anything I write. It's just a story.

Hey guys, how's shit going? I'm all right, but anyway, here's the deal. I want to write a big story (there will be Pokémon in it, not many at the start but there will be more soon). At least 100,000 (unrealistic goal probably, but I'll see where it goes) words I am aiming for, so I need motivation, and a hell of a lot. That's where you guys come in. You have no idea how much motivation I get just reading ONE review/comment (I'm putting this on SF and fanfic, so I have to say both) , so that's what you can do to help.

Reviews stoke my motivation, fuel the fires of imagination.

So here we go. Have fun searching for clues about my main character.

You guys dub me crazy. XD

And any ladies I guess... Straightens collar and smiles

Chapter one.

ALPHA

Because every legend has to begin somewhere...

I am Alex.

4% of the world wants me dead.

95% of the world would want me dead if they knew what I was.

The remaining 1% wants the rest dead.

Where do I stand?

Night. Night is a strange thing. This night was different from the norm. The usual day-to-day, night-to-night rush of passer-by cars and pedestrians ceased. There was no particular reason for this occurrence, they just did. It was a quiet night. Nobody was around, and the figure had all the time she required. A single light flashed on alarmingly, sensing movement approaching. The tiny figure reached the doorstep, stopping quietly. A hood hung over her head, hiding her eyes from view. She had moved in too fast and wasn't noticed by any nosy civilians who would be curious of such a tiny figure, and carrying such a fragile parcel in her arms.

Jarod Black. Explorer. Traveller. Successful treasure hunter, now retired, reclined peacefully in a lazyboy leather seat. His thin locks of brown hair hung down over one eye a little, falling free from their fixed position to their natural sitting. The hair lifted and fluttered back a little as he blew at the locks. Ever since receiving his first Pokémon at ten, Jarod had travelled the world in search of greatness and fame and fortune. Eleven years later, the greatness and fame had yet to come. Fortune was something which found its way to Jarod, as was adventure. If the world knew of all he had discovered and witnessed, he would have been hailed as a legend, but alas-

Knock, Knock.

Jarod reluctantly removed himself from his position, striking the mute button on the remote in his hand before effortlessly tossing it onto the seat behind him.

'Who is it?' His voice was rather rough. He strutted confidently, unopposed in his domicile. He bent over, lining himself up with the little peep-hole in the door. All he could see through the hole was the obscured image of a light depraved tree at the end of his walkway. Through a number of painfully memorable experiences, Jarod knew opening a door in this situation was not a good idea, so he wasn't going to. He gazed through the peep hole for a few last prying seconds, then withdrew and turned away to return to his night.

'Aaaabbabiibbiggiaaaa!' Jarod stopped on one foot, balancing precariously as a short high pitched joyful squeal sounded through the door. His head turned cautiously, his dark eyes stared as if willing himself to see through the solid oak. 'Aaaayyibbiaa!' He turned on his heel, pacing rapidly back towards the door his hand slid into the back of his trousers, re-emerging soon clutching a small handgun. Holding the pistol close to his body, pointing at the door, his free hand snapped open a deadbolt and twisted open a lock. He pulled the door open, stepping quickly out; his eyes darted back and forth before spotting something before him. He stepped aside quickly, landing on a bad angle. He collapsed with a loud curse, his shoulder hitting the wooden deck roughly as he winced at the impact.

'What the hell i-' Something warm rubbed against his cheek. Jarod opened his eyes, suddenly feeling a lot calmer, his teeth unclenched as he saw what it was.

'Iggibigaboooo!' The infant drabbled happily, his chubby hand prodding randomly at Jason as he stared in shock. Jarod sat upright quickly, curiously gazing down at the baby. His eyes were a deep shade of brown, and his hair, what hair he had, seemed a dark ginger brown hue. Tucked inside the collar of his sprightly white baby jumpsuit, was a scrap of paper, torn from somewhere. Jarod reached out unsurely, halting halfway, and picked up the baby. The baby made a little grunt noise as Jarod's hands lifted under his armpits and sat him in his lap.

'What's your name kid?' He asked, picking the scrap of paper from his collar and unfolding it.

'Awiesg!' the baby muttered.

'What? Was that... I?' Jarod queried, his head cocking as he unfolded the paper.

'Aaaaaaaa!' The baby cried with a huge grin, clapping his hands a bit.

'All right then I...' Jarod held the paper to his eyes, angling it to catch the light above his porch. 'Let's see...'

"Jarod. I know that's your name. I remember. I concede to a lapse of common sense myself, and I must ask for your forgiveness in doing this. Jarod, this is your son"

'Shit...' Jarod facepalmed with sudden annoyance and frustration with himself. It's that bitch from goldenrod isn't it! Bitch! Told me she was on the pill!

"I am in no position myself to raise a child, as you will fully understand when you realise who I am. This is why I have bestowed him upon you, to raise as your own. I shan't lie to you. it will be a great responsibility. This child is not like others, and I pray you may realise his potential and allow him to live under your wing. He has your eyes Jarod. Look into those beautiful eyes and tell him you won't look after him...

Eiyvanaa."

That name struck a chord with Jarod. No, it wasn't that girl in goldenrod. Jarod wrapped up his son in blankets he lay in and stood cradling him in his arms. The child took his sleeve in one baby paw and clung to it, leaning his head against it as his eyes shut slowly... All the while Jarod was lost in thought as he went back inside...

Eiyvanaa... Eiyvanaa... where did I hear that..? Jarod racked his brain as he replaced himself in his seat. Eiyvanaa... "You may call me Eiyvanaa-" Jarod lurched forwards in shock as his heart stopped briefly, his eyes wide open and staring with awe-filled confusion straight ahead, remembering where he had heard that name. 'Oh no... no no no no this is impossible...' But Jarod had no doubt about it. This was his son, and he knew who the mother was. "This child is not like others? Fucking understatement!"

'Hey you! hold on there!' The small black-clad figure paused unsurely, turning to see over her shoulder. At the end of the alleyway she had just run into, was a man. His tall frame was the opposite of her short round one, and his outline was illuminated by a dull street light.

'Chansey?' The Pokémon asked as she backed away fearfully, bumping into a dumpster as she did so. Another two men emerged from the street into the alleyway and the three advance as a wall, cutting off any escape. 'Chansey!' The Chansey cried as she turned and ran, but stopped short in her stride as she was faced with an inconvenient wall cutting her off. There were no doors she could find as she searched the area frantically, panicking as the dark men approached. She could see what they had in their hands. Guns. Assault rifles.

'Settle down you.' The leading man in the middle said, raising one hand to halt the chansey in what attempt she may make to escape. 'You have nothing to worry about, just give it to us and we will leave you.' Chansey looked down at the empty blanket she carried in her hands, and unfurled it, holding it up for the men to see it was empty. 'Shit!' The first man took a few steps forwards quickly, raising his rifle barrel. 'All right. Here's what you're going to do.' He hissed as he leant down to Chansey's height. 'You're going to take us to wherever you left it.'

'Chansey!' The Pokémon shouted defiantly, shaking her head. She cried out as the man suddenly sunk a boot into her stomach brutally, then froze as the man thrust the barrel of a desert eagle into her mouth, pointing up into her head.

'Where is it?' His voice exuded calm menace as he held the assault rifle in one hand.

'...Chansey...' The other two men turned away a bit and closed their eyes as a loud gunshot rang out, the sound of the discharge ringing in their ears as it echoed.

'We're done here.' The first man said ultimately as he replaced his handgun in its holster.

'But what about the-' The other man trailed off suddenly as the first man glared.

'There's nothing we can do. It's already gone.' The man looked upwards. He could see the moon in the gap between the rooftops above him. It was difficult to see tonight.

It was a new moon.

Chapter two

You're only young once

y-Y-Ÿ-¥

Ignorance is bliss; the real world is a hellish nightmare on the horizon.

This has to be my single most poetic chapter I have ever written. Don't expect too much of it, but I'm going to refer back to it time-to-time.

Open window... crap... I should have closed it earlier... damn... huh, so what am I going to do now? Should I close it? It's cold... fucking tired though... no, c'mon Alex. Get your lazy ass out of bed. The thing finally stirred, charcoal blankets rising as a sooty ghost from its slumber, his arms stretching out as muscles twinged. The floor thumped rather audibly. Alex wasn't always heavy on his feet, slamming the balls into the plush velvety carpet he simply knew as "his floor". He was when he was lazy. Tonight, he was in such a state. His toes scraped against the ground, lacking the will to wrench themselves from that dreaded "six inch" area from the ground. His arm hooked beneath the curtain falling before him and swept it aside, the dark blue material billowing back and holding over his head for a few mere seconds in the wind; its fuel suddenly cut off with a low resounding noise as window, frame and sill, touched, and it fell back down over Alex's head and neck. He lurched tiredly backwards, dragging the midnight veil from his body.

Walking slowly back, his prying hand met his bed finally. Yet he still stood, he could swear his ear twitched with the faintest touch of a foreign sound. And there it was again... a soft yet paced and rapid whimper from nearby, such an intriguingly curious sound masking a hideous beast of an event. Alex fell. His body collapsed lazily on his bed as fatigue clung to his head like that curtain, but heavy with the deceptive and painfully bleak aura which exuded through his wall from next door, a haze of lies, daring him to continue living with himself as he had for the last four years, ever since he found out what he was, his relationship to his family, and his relationship to the outside world. He had been tossed into a dark sect society tore its ignorant eyes from, and he couldn't get out, and he couldn't get away... He could barely live with himself, the monster he was being groomed into...

Am... I awake..? is it morning?

'Alex. Come join me.' Alex's eyes burst open, a light of sorts pertaining from somewhere... But he saw fire. The unmistakeable tongues of flames which licked at his dreams, so hot they burned... or perhaps they weren't hot... perhaps it was a lie, like the rest of his life... perhaps they weren't flames at all... no... they were like flames in his other dreams... they were so real... they had to be fire... they were fire... but now it had a voice... 'Alex.' It says. Alex's shoulder sunk back as he turned, barely peeping over his shoulder behind him. There was a man there. His shadowy blurry body seemed to be cloaked in darkness, yet the light of flames lit up his outline and his hair caught the colour of the fire...

'What is this?' His voice carried a subtle venom, its potency great, yet haste, none.

'It's a fire.' The man's opposite hand revealed itself, unmerging from his side; his hand hovered over the flame, swirling over it slowly as the flames angled and tilted to his skin hungrily. His cold thin fingers reached into the touch of the flame and stroked it. Stroked it like a pet. Grooming the spires of red trailing from the central body.

'No.' the voice almost was unnoticed by Alex, he wasn't even sure if his "dad" said anything, but in that instant he blinked in uncertainty, the fire was gone, replaced by an egg. Perfectly white, large, about eight inches high, yet the pure white shone with a fiery tinge. The fire didn't just touch it, it tainted it. The reflected fire rose, leaving a red of its visual duplicate, but as the reflection fell, the red remained, like a stain. The next time Alex blinked, it changed again. The front face was silvery. 'Look for yourself...' The haunting sound carried itself low like a vile melody rising from hell. Alex complied unsurely, bending over, he brought his face to the surface.

'It's just me.' His voice was uncertain. 'it's me...' Fire whipped through the air, slicing between Alex and the egg in a wave, washing away the image as the flames spiralled around in a column. Alex stumbled backwards, the fire of the wall spinning around him and enclosing him in an infernal twister column around his body. A thin beam of light cut down, jutting out of the darkness above down the centre of the twister and onto Alex's face as he gazed about himself, his white skin illuminated by the twisting red and white lights about him. The dancing blaze was reflected in his eyes, held set strongly in a gaze of dark fascination. The fire.... The heat he was feeling... the raw power of the flames, how they moved, live they lived... The fire closed in on him, the column dragging its orange and crimson body of energy across his skin in an intense feeling of inner warmth as it became one with him...

I am alpha, I am omega...

Alex stirred. Clutching his blanket and hugging it tightly to his body, his eyes opened to a new day. His curtains were lit with a little light filtering through the fabric. It was morning. Monday morning. Time to get up. Yawning he sat upright, scratching his head in thought. Monday. It was Monday he usually had the fire dream. The hell thing, fire everywhere, and his "dad" holding an egg. And every time would be the same. Alex would look at the egg and see his reflection, then the fire would close in on him. He had an unhealthy obsession with fire, he wouldn't admit it though.

'Alex! Get out here!' A voice thundered roughly from next door. After a brief minute of moaning to himself, Alex dragged himself from bed. He pulled on his school uniform in a drowsy daze, rubbing at his eyes occasionally. His school uniform consisted of a black T-shirt, a grey pair of shorts, black shoes, grey black and red socks and a black polar-fleece. Pretty colourless. Stumbling out into the kitchen, Alex spotted his dad sitting at the kitchen table. A cup of coffee and a newspaper in his hands. His medium length brown hair was a little tangled, no doubt from what he was doing last night.

'You slept in kid.' He said without looking at Alex, taking a sip from his coffee afterwards.

'I was tired.' Alex said with an uncaring shrug, taking a piece of bread from the breadbasket and heading for the toaster, dropping the two slices in and pressing down the lever.

'I need you to do something for me.' Alex's head snapped towards his dad with a sharp swivelling motion, staring dubiously at the paper as if he could see his dad through it.

'I know that tone Jarod.' Alex didn't call his dad "dad", he called him by his first name. 'I know that tone and I don't want any part of it.'

'You know Tracey Parker don't you?' Jarod put his paper down on the table. 'He's about to give you a very large sum of money at school today.'

'Jarod, I said-'

'You're going to take that money, and bring it back here.'

'Fuck you.' Alex turned away from his dad, leaning on the counter and facing the toaster, watching it impatiently. For a few seconds, nothing happened.

Alex's head suddenly stung slightly on the right, then he felt the world soar past, crying out in pain as he felt the pain of the impact hit him with full force on the temple. His jaw jarred as it hit the edge of the counter as he fell, causing him to bite down on his tongue. He hit the ground landing on his head. His sight was a blur, colours twisting and swaying above him as he lay on his back. Something came at him, grabbing him around the neck and hauling him back to his feet.

'I'm not giving you a choice...' Jarod's voice reeked with stench and cruelty. His eyes stabbed at Alex, piercing cruel eyes. 'Listen to me carefully. You're going to take that money from Tracey Parker, and bring it back to me, alright?' Alex nodded slightly, afraid to move his head too much as it spun. Pain still throbbed with those subtle movements. 'Good boy.' Jarod grinned a toothy mean grin, and leant in a bit closer. 'This is a big payday for me Alex, so do this right for me and I might be grateful enough to give you a reward, alright?' Alex nodded again to the same effect. He didn't want a reward, he just didn't want to get the crap beaten out of him, and whatever reward his dad had planned for him, it couldn't be good... 'Good.' Alex fell back to the ground as his dad released him, slumping back against the counter and leaning against it feeling sick. He could see out of the corner of his eye the chair his dad had hit him with, the entire top half cracked and broken off. He just felt lucky he had a thick skull, evidently...

'Alex? Are you going to do something?'

'Huh? Whuh?' Alex jerked upright all of a sudden, spinning around to find himself face to face with his science teacher, Mrs Maryland.

'Are you going to stare at that Bunsen all day or heat that magnesium?'

'Oh, yeah, right, sorry.' He muttered, slipping a pair of lab glasses on and placing a strip of magnesium in a pair of tongs.

'You seem to find that Bunsen quite fascinating.'

'Meh.' Alex shrugged, watching as he placed the silvery strip of metal over the dancing blue flame, and watching it engulf the metal. The metal burst into a flame, a burning white mass expelling light and smoking vigorously. It was like a little star... but he had seen it before a million times. He wanted to try with a bigger piece of magnesium, but Mrs Maryland wouldn't let him.

'So what do we have now?' The science teacher pressed him.

'Some powdery shit.' Alex observed with a shrug.

'Is that your expert opinion Shadey?' Alex turned over his shoulder to see a grinning blonde girl approach.

'Fine. It's some White powdery shit.' He corrected himself.

'Alex, please be sensible.' The teacher waved a disapproving finger as Alex grunted without care.

'What does it matter? It's burnt. It's dead.' He shrugged as he looked at the crumbling powdery thing held in his tongs.

'It has formed a new substance. It's not dead at all, you know what they say about Ho-oh?'

'Nup.' Alex shook his head, leaning back on his counter. He could see a student performing a test on the other side of the room with an Ampharos standing behind, looking over her shoulder.

'They say when Ho-oh dies, he comes back new from his ashes. That's like a reaction. From the ashes comes something new.' The teacher explained. Alex stared back with a little confusion.

'You could have found a much better analogy.' Alex suggested.

'How do you know Ho-oh's a male anyway?' The girl asked suddenly, as the teacher left.

'They say all legendaries are guys.' Alex replied as he turned back to his experiment.

'Who says?' Alex shrugged again.

'People.'

'You're so unhelpful.'

'Yeah probably.' The girl finally gave up on talking to him, and went back to her own experiment. Alex took no notice, instead just watching his own result crumble slowly. His attention was once again grabbed by the Bunsen burner though. He found himself entranced by the flickering blue flame, jumping and wiggling a little... his pyromania getting the better of him. He wasn't exactly good at hiding that he was a pyro. He wasn't the type of pyro who burned shit down everywhere, he just liked fire a little too much...

It was lunchtime before Alex was approached. A mopey looking kid which was Tracey Parker approached Alex as he sat alone on a bench, his schoolbag occupying the other side of the bench and leaving no room for anybody else to sit there.

'Alex.' Despite his small frail appearance, the young boy's voice carried a lot of feeling and maturity, and it was not a friendly tone.

'Tracey.' Alex muttered, standing tall as the boy approached. The young boy came closer, stopping right in front of Alex and staring up at him. Alex was almost a foot taller than him.

'You're disgusting.' The kid spat from nowhere, his face contorting into an angry scowl as he stared back at the year 11 (form 5). Alex didn't look away, instead stared back harder, challenging the kid's firm stance. The kid did not back away; he stood at his full yet inadequate height with his fists clenched at his sides.

'I am disgusting.' Alex sighed, defeated by the boy's resilience. His hand trailed up his body, the boy flinched at his sudden movement. Alex brushed away a little hair at the side of his head and turned it to show the boy. 'But I'd sooner be disgusting than a bloody cripple.' The boy made a face seeing the patch of dried blood around the bruised point of impact. 'So give me the cash and maybe I can get away without having my face smashed in.' The boy still stared, making up his mind. It was obviously a difficult choice. Giving into something disgusting and wrong, or causing a guy to get the crap beaten out of him.

'You should do something...' The boy sheepishly removed a plastic bag full of money from his bag and handed it to Alex. 'You should call the police.'

'I wish I could kid.' Alex shook his head with a deeper sigh and placed the bag in his backpack. 'Stay safe kid.' Alex slung his bag over one shoulder as he began to walk away, throwing back a quick wave to the boy over his shoulder. He continued towards the field of the school. Maybe the guys would let him play a bit of sport. Public opinion frowned upon his life, but some people gave him a chance. Like Haley, the girl in science.

The field was a popular place amongst the older members of the school. Sports games replaced playing on playgrounds gradually as kids grew up. There were a few games running. Alex noticed a Pokémon game on one field. No humans, just Pokémon playing soccer. On another field next to them was a group of black and grey figures that were students playing soccer. But it was the next field which took Alex's fancy. Ball under one arm, a large framed guy Alex's age charged along the side-line. His hand flew out and struck an incoming opposition in the face open palmed, pushing him away, but another came in after and crashed into him, tackling him and knocking him across the side-line. Alex grinned a bit, placing his bag in a place next to a wire fence where he could see it at all times and called out: 'Hey! Mahid!' The tackler climbed to his feet and turned to Alex, wiping his mouth with his wrist. He grinned as Alex approached.

'Shadey mate! You gonna play?'

'Hell am i.' Alex confirmed, flicking his polar fleece aside onto his bag.

'Well he's on your team.' The tackled boy shouted as he rolled the ball to Mahid.

'Fine then. Shadey's better than the lot of you!' Mahid threw Alex a wild smile, motioning for him to hurry over. 'You can do line-outs can't you? You've played hooker, right?' Alex grinned and nodded, his hands raising to catch the rugby ball passed to him.

'Only for the last ten years.'

'C'mon Jesse!' Alex jerked his neck right, making a cracking noise as he approached the burly year 12, rugby ball in one hand and his arms at his sides, inviting the boy to tackle as he approached at a walking pace. 'What are you waiting for?' He taunted, watching the opposition line approach very slowly, fanned out in case he passed wide. 'Run at me!' The boy charged, bending forwards so he could put his weight into the hit. Alex jogged out to meet him, stepping lightly on his feet as he cradled the ball under one arm and grinning teasingly. Just as the boy reached him, Alex sprinted. Right into the boy, but suddenly swung up an arm as he ducked under the boy's outstretched arm. Alex's hand slapped onto the boy's back as he passed him, kicking out with his foot and pushing down on his back and tripping the boy as he passed. He picked up his pace now, running up and across the field left as the fullback tracked him, matching his angle. Just as they came to meet, Alex sidestepped right with incredible speed. His hand shot out and caught the fullback by the shirt just under his neck. As he dodged right his arm swung around and down to the left, the combined movement pulling the fullback off the ground and flipping him through the air sideways, landing him on his neck as Alex shot past and for the try-line, diving and slamming the ball down, tumbling and landing on his back facing his distant pursuers.

'Just a fend next time Shadey.' The fullback called, rubbing his back with a painful grin.

'Nah. That'd be boring.' Alex replied with his own return grin. He rolled the ball away behind him as he began jogging back to halfway, but stopped as he saw something along the fence. Shit! He thought immediately, altering his course and sprinting. 'Hey!' He called loudly, racing towards his bag. 'HEY! What're you doing!?' A couple of boys turned looked over their shoulders, pausing in their searching of Alex's bag. 'What the fuck!?'

'What's all the cash for Shadey?' One boy sneered, standing and holding the bag in front of him, full of money.

'Give it.' Alex held out one hand to them with a warning leer, slowly walking towards them.

'Pretty suspicious having all this cash at school.' The second teased, joining his friend at his side, yet standing just behind his shoulder.

'We might tell the police about this eh Troy?' The first consulted the second.

'Unless you can do something to keep us quiet...' Troy suggested.

'How about if I break your jaws?' Alex suggested becoming suddenly defensive and aggressive. The two exchanged amused glances, unfazed by Alex's threat and shaking their heads pityingly.

'Acting tough won't get you anywhere Alex.' The first boy told him with a cruel grin as he approached. Alex stood tall with a calm look, staring at the boy as he stopped in front of him. 'You want your money? Fight me for it.' Alex was tough. He was unnaturally tough, nobody could understand it. Even being sure he could beat the crap out of both of these bozos, he made a stupid move. His hand slid down his leg quickly and into his sock. When it returned to view, it held a small switchblade. Alex performed a few fancy twists and flicky things with the blade before holding it with the blade out facing the boy.

'You sure you want to go there?' The boy dropped the bag immediately, leaping backwards away from Alex. The two simultaneously moved away from Alex's bags, looking scared. Alex grinned mockingly and slid the blade back in. He slipped the knife back into his sock as he replaced the cash bag in his backpack and slung it on. 'I didn't think so.' He turned away and began to head off to wherever his next class was. The guys behind him obviously took him for an idiot, anybody with half decent hearing could hear the heavy approaching footsteps from behind.

Alex spun, driving a massive right hook into the boy's jaw as he took him by surprise. He lashed out again with a left hook and caught the opposite side of his jaw as he was dazed by the first, before following up with another right hook. His next left hook landed solidly on the boy's nose and broke it instantly, then a final high kick to the face sent him toppling over backwards. Deciding this guy was out, Alex turned his attention to the second, rushing at him from a distance. This was the second guy, the wussy guy. Easily put off. Alex's hand dipped into his other sock, and pulled out a box of matches. He flipped it open and pulled out a match. He closed it up and positioned the match with the match head resting against the flint, ready to be flicked at the boy. The boy stopped short, staring at the match. Alex grinned at the fear he managed to create. Secretly he enjoyed this power over others, but there was one tiny part of him which imagined this was his dad... standing scared in front of him.

'Back off you cunt.' Alex warned, staring down the guy. The boy looked at his unconscious friend, then back to Alex, then back and forth again. His hand ran down his shirt quickly and grabbed something from his belt. Alex was almost too slow to react. He spun suddenly on his heel, running for his life as he heard a cry of "Staravior!" from behind. There was one problem, his dad didn't let Alex have Pokémon of his own.

'Wing attack Staravior!' Came a command from behind as Alex ran. He just turned over his shoulder as the bird Pokémon came shooting towards at him with wings outspread. He dived forwards just as a wicked gust of wind whipped past with the Pokémon as it shot overhead, where he had just been standing. Alex landed in a roll and jumped to his feet again, running for the gym as he eyed the bird Pokémon circling around for another attack run. He spotted a familiar figure heading slowly along the fence towards him. A young Pacific Islander teacher with dreads.

'Mr Seili!' Alex roared at him, pointing up and stopping sharply as the Staravior came back around and dived. The teacher took an upwards glance short of a second before a pokéball was free from his belt, and a Flareon standing before him.

'Fire blast!' He called as the Staravior dived closer and closer.

'Shit!' Alex ran at full speed for the teacher as if he were a safe zone of sorts. This time the Pokémon came in lower, using aerial ace and darting back and forth on approach. Alex did his best to follow the movements of the Pokémon, heading straight for him head on. He sidestepped, but the Pokémon followed. In a last second reaction, he dived again, this time he soared over top of the Pokémon as it shot under him. He watched in almost slow motion as a scorching (and probably badly fired) fire star ripped across the ground underneath him, underneath his flying body and following up behind the Staravior. He watched in awe as the fire blast collided explosively with the Staravior. His world spun all of a sudden as the explosion behind him propelled him forwards and he landed roughly on his back, face up.

'Staravior! Return!' Alex heard the trademark sound of a pokéball recalling a Pokémon. He clambered quickly to his feet as Mr Seili ran to his side.

'Troy!' He shouted angrily at the boy. 'Come here!' The boy came, his head hanging low. The teacher now turned to face Alex with a little guilt of how close his attack had been to him. 'Oh shit that was too close... Are you alright?'

Alex nodded. 'Yeah. I'm good.' He answered gratefully. 'Thanks.'

'Troy what the hell are you thinking?' Mr Seili shouted as the boy approached. 'This is a serious offense, the police could get involved with this.' Alex cringed as he caught that last sentence.

'I really wouldn't like to waste the police's time Mr Seili.' He said quickly. One thing his dad did not like was police. He really didn't like getting involved with the police. 'I'm willing to forgive Troy, I provoked him by fighting his friend.' Mr Seili turned away to face back at Troy. Alex quickly nodded to Troy, encouraging him to play along. Troy was not a very independent guy. He was a follower, so he followed Alex's lead.

'I just got angry. I'm sorry Alex.' He apologised. Mr Seili bit his lip a bit, looking between the two.

'Well,' he sighed, 'if you're willing to accept his apology I suppose we could settle things here. It would make things a hell of a lot easier.'

'I accept his apology.' Alex confirmed with a sharp nod. The less I have to do with the police the better...

The rest of the day was less eventful. Just some maths work. No problem, and a five minute bus ride home. Trudging in through the front door, Alex found his dad sitting at his usual table, opposite another two men he was talking with.

'Dad.' All three of the men looked up to see who the newcomer was.

'Alex.' Jarod nodded slowly, watching to see what Alex would do.

'I got some homework I might need help with.' Alex held up his bag as he spoke in code.

'Cut the shit kid, we're green.' Alex grunted as he walked over to the table, dropping the code.

'I got your fucking cash Jarod.' Alex threw his backpack to his dad, who caught it out of the air and promptly unzipped it. A wide grin crossed his face as he observed the cash bag inside. The other two leant in too view the contents also.

'Good work kid.' He said with a satisfied grin as he stared greedily at the money.

'Whatever. Just leave me alone until dinner's here.'

'Hold up Alex.' Alex stopped. He resisted the urge to direct his "dad" a hateful glare, and remained facing away. 'I told you I'd give you a reward didn't i?' Jarod turned to the man on his right and nodded.

'Aww c'mon Jarod!' The man protested with a sudden frown, his eyes shut with a strange expression. 'I'm almost done!'

'Give the kid his reward.' Jarod said sternly. Alex watched with admitted curiosity, trying to make sense of what this was. The man reluctantly reached one hand down and under the table where Alex couldn't see. When it re-emerged, there was something red in it.

'Catch!' The man tossed the thing at Alex. His first reaction was to dodge whatever it was, but something about it made him step forwards quickly and catch the badly thrown thing. His eyes fell to the thing, observing it curiously. And it moved.

'Vul...' it murmured as it rolled over weakly in Alex's arms. He was absolutely horrified. It was a Vulpix.

'Bitch hasn't been making enough to cover the upkeep.' Jarod explained. 'Consider it as your birthday present.' In a sudden fit of panic, Alex spun around quickly, rushing into the hallway immediately and away from the men.

'Pix?' The Pokémon mewed weakly as it looked up with its almost shut eyes. Its entire body was a mess of patchy sticky white, brown and red. White surrounded its hindquarters and face, but what really worried Alex was the damage done.

'How could he do this to you..?' He murmured as he skidded into his room and locked the door behind him. He placed the little Pokémon on his bed carefully, as not to hurt it. He immediately fell to his knees beside his bed, trying to get to eye level with it. The thing had been fucked up. Fucked everywhere. Its anal and vaginal passages were cavernous and raw looking, full of white and bloody. It was disgusting. How can somebody do this to a Pokémon!? Alex thought as he frantically scrabbled through a drawer and took out a cloth and a small medicinal bottle. The things his dad did meant Alex often had to attend to the pokémons' "damages", but they usually weren't as small as a Vulpix. The types of damages done meant he often had to touch Pokémon in ways he didn't enjoy... this one was going to be especially tough.

The Vulpix saw him return, and tried to scurry away again. Alex went for it quickly, before she could escape. He quickly grabbed it lightly but quickly around the torso.

'VULPIIIIX!' It screeched, writhing about in his hands. Alex hated himself for doing so, but he held it there, preventing it from escaping. He held it down for about half a minute, until it ran out of energy and went limp. Alex removed one hand and wiped his brow with a sigh of relief.

'Are you finished?' He asked softly, still holding it lightly in one hand.

'Pix...' The Vulpix turned a little and swatted at his hand weakly in an attempt to defend itself. Alex shook his head sadly, and lowered himself to the Pokémon's eye level.

'Hey, can you stay still for me? I'll help you?' The Pokémon stared at him with suspicion over its shoulder. Alex picked it up carefully and turned it to face him. The whole while, the Pokémon stared him down. 'Keep still for a second...' He raised the cloth and brought it towards the Vulpix.

'Vulpix!' The Pokémon tried desperately to backpedal, but was still held in Alex's grip. He wiped quickly at the captive Pokémon's mouth, but to little avail. The cum wouldn't come off. As he removed the cloth, he saw the Vulpix staring at him. It was fear in her eyes. Pure, utter fear. He lightly raised his thumb on the hand holding the Vulpix and brought it back down on its back, causing it to flinch all of a sudden.

'Ssssshh... it's okay...' He cooed as he stroked it a little with one digit. 'I just want to help you... I'm not like them...'

'Vulpix...' The Pokémon cowered, trying to bury its head in the blankets. Alex finally let go, his hand hovered over the Vulpix briefly, then moved away.

'I just want to help you...' He assured the Pokémon once again, holding his hands up innocently. The Vulpix did not look at him. Its head was in the blankets in an attempt to hide. Alex swore to himself and began searching around quickly. After a few seconds, he noticed a colourful bag under his bed. He pulled the bag out and ripped the top open, pulling out a handful of lollies. 'Do you like these?' He asked, offering one of the lollies to the Vulpix in his hand. The Vulpix's head lifted up a bit, her eyes opening. She stuck her nose out a bit and sniffed the lolly. After a few careful seconds, she took it, tilting her head on an angle and taking it. She immediately turned her head back down as she ate, hiding her face from view. Alex frowned a little, and took another from the bag, offering it to the Pokémon. Quickly this time, she raised her head, took the lolly, and hid again in the folds of the blankets. Alex grinned a little. It would be a cute sight if this Pokémon hadn't just been gang fucked and injured. Alex took a third, but this time held it a little further out, daring the little Pokémon to take it. Vulpix looked up at him, her big blue eyes questioning his motivations. What is he doing? She thought. Is he... could he really be different from them? Alex wiggled the lolly a bit with a slight smile at seeing her face. 'It's okay. You can trust me...' The Vulpix suddenly shook her head, backing away whining. I'm not falling for that again! She thought sternly. Seeing her retreat, Alex frowned a bit, feeling disappointment arise once again. He tried reaching out once again towards her slowly.

'Vulpix!' She barked quietly, backing into where Alex's bed met the wall. She was unable to move any further back. As Alex's hand reached her she tried to shy away, but he placed one hand gently on her back and stroked her a little with his thumb.

'it's okay...' He told her once more, using the most convincing tone he could, fixating his eyes on hers. 'The bad men are gone. You're safe here. I won't hurt you.' He assured her. Vulpix just stared back, the boy's thumb stroking her back was interfering with her thought process. 'I would never hurt you.' Alex noticed something when he said that. He swore he could see a small glint in the Pokémon's eyes when he spoke. Vulpix raised her head a bit, somehow stirred by his words... they had moved so fluently and they felt almost warm... his promise carried tremendous sway somehow... it was just something in his voice. Something which said to her "I will not lie to you". Who is this? She asked herself once more, her eyes trying to pierce the boy's mind to discover his intentions. 'Will you let me help you?' Vulpix gazed into his eyes one last time as she fought with herself. She hurt. This boy said he wanted to help her... somehow... she believed him.

'Vulpix.' She answered softly with a nod, standing up and wobbling a little. Alex grinned somewhat at her trusting him, and sat on the bed beside her.

'I'm just going to pick you up now, okay?' Vulpix nodded a little as she looked up at him sadly. 'Alright. Here I go.' His right hand went over Vulpix's back and curled under her body, picking her up quickly and placing her in his lap. He observed her again, this time from a closer angle, and frowned. 'Arceus, how could they do this to you?' his head shook in disbelief, his hands parting matted sticky brown fur as he searched for any cuts she may have had.

'Vulpix Vulpix...' Vulpix agreed, wallowing in her own despair now. More importantly why..? She cringed only slightly as she felt a pair of fingers stroke the back of her head. They were warm and moved gently and lovingly, trying to comfort her. She didn't understand this boy... he wasn't like the men she serviced.

Alex swore under his breath now, his body bent sideways to see the damage done around her hindquarters. 'Your body still hurts, doesn't it?' He queried carefully. Vulpix nodded a little, not looking at Alex but rather towards the curtain covering his window. 'Does it hurt back here?' Vulpix cringed all of a sudden. Alex only stroked her head a bit more and leant into her ear. 'I'm not going to touch you there without your permission.' He assured her. 'But if you would let me, I think I could make the pain go away a bit.' Vulpix turned towards Alex now, searching his eyes for his motives. He just smiled back warmly. 'I want to help you...' There it was again. Vulpix heard that same tone, that same energy was carried in his voice. Do I really want him to touch me there? Even if it makes me better? She thought. She actually did trust him. As much of an untrusting independent Pokémon as she was, his voice swayed her.

'Pix.' She conceded with a nod. She flattened her head against Alex's lap and raised her rear, lifting her six tails as she did so, as she was forced to do for the men. Alex grinned inwardly at her trust of him, but outwardly frowned as he turned to get a better angle to see her. Her passages were spread significantly further than a Vulpix should be and looked definitely sore.

'All right, you tell me what hurts when I touch it...' He reached out slowly, dreading the pain vulpix would feel on contact. He gently placed one finger on the entrance of her vagina, causing her to suddenly yelp in pain, and him to recoil quickly. 'I'm sorry that hurt...' He apologised, taking the cloth and bottle beside him and removing the top of the bottle. He tipped the bottle onto the cloth, filling a patch in the middle with a cream coloured thick fluid. 'All right, this might be a bit cold...'

'Vulp!' She yelped again, not in pain but surprise at the sudden coldness on her privates. Alex continued undeterred, knowing this would help her. He gently rubbed the cool cream onto her, around and even just dipping into, her vagina. The whole while Vulpix was tensed up, unused to the feeling. He then removed the cloth from her body.

'Can I go up a bit now and do that?' He asked as he ran a finger along one of her six upraised tails. Vulpix nodded a little, raising her tails a bit more as Alex proceeded, doing the same process with her anal passage, also spread painfully wide. After he finished, he threw the cloth aside and went back to petting her gently. 'The pain should disappear over the next hour or so, so just rest for the time being.' Vulpix looked up at Alex with those big, sad eyes, not sure of how she was feeling. One of the boy's hands rubbed at her back, and the other moved under her chin, and began scratching her neck lightly. Performing the natural reaction of Vulpix's everywhere; she moved her head down, leaning into his scratching hand involuntarily with a small murr. Alex grinned, seeing he was making a breakthrough. 'Do you like that girl?' Vulpix nodded a little, her eyes slowly closing as she was absorbed into the feeling of Alex's hand. 'So... do you have a name?' Vulpix looked up questioningly.

'Vulpix.' She said. Alex grinned and shook his head.

'You need a real name.' He told her. 'Not just Vulpix, something special.' Something special? She thought with interest. Alex thought to himself. I need a good name... I want to train her and evolve her... so I need a name which fits a Vulpix and a Ninetails. Something generic I guess. It hit him. At school most people wouldn't come near him, his dad being a Pokémon-sex-slave-dealer and all. This Vulpix was giving him a chance... 'Haley.' He said, scratching Vulpix's ear as he remembered the blond girl talking to him in science.

'Vulpix!' She shot back with what would pass for a pained smile. If he wants to give me a name, fine then. It'll be a nice change from "bitch" or "cumslut"...

'All right Haley, jump in.' The Vulpix threw Alex a dubious glare from the floor. She placed her forepaws on the edge of the bathtub and looked over the edge to see water in there. The water was at a low level so she didn't have to swim.

'Vulpix..?' She asked warily, eyeing the water with suspicion.

'Wait, you've never had a bath?' Alex bent down to pick her up with a smile. 'It's great fun. You'll enjoy it.'

'Vulpix!' She said defiantly, crossing her forelegs in a very humanesque way and looking to the side.

'Don't be like that.' Alex sighed a bit at her stubbornness. 'I told you I would never hurt you, don't worry.' Vulpix stared back at him, unsure whether he was going to put her in or not. But he didn't. 'If you want me to, I'll put you in.' He told her with a grin. 'I have baths all the time. It'll make you feel good, and it'll clean up your fur.' Vulpix looked back and forth between Alex and the bath as she tried to make up her mind. Well... he's been good to me so far... She thought as she turned back to the foreign device beside her.

'Vulpix.' She nodded unsurely. The water slowly approached Haley as she braced herself for the sudden cold. It never arrived. Warmth flooded around her legs and belly as Alex placed her in the tub.

'See? It ain't all that bad is it?' Alex splashed a little water onto her back as he reached for a brush.

'Vulpix.' Haley admitted as she waded around in the water, sort of liking the feeling of the warm water. She lay down in the water, submerging her body except her head with an inwards grin. Taking the brush from the edge of the bath, Alex brought it down on her back.

'Just keep still for a second...'

'Vulpix..?' Haley queried as she felt something scratch across her back. She looked over her shoulder to see Alex's hand scrubbing away at her fur with a brush. It was kind of tickly and it was bristly.

'Just tell me if I'm scrubbing too hard.' Alex said, moving onto her side with the brush. Haley shook her head, not minding the feeling as Alex tended to her fur, scrubbing out the matted parts and occasionally straightening out a tuft of fur. 'You really are a mess you know...' He really didn't think that comment through. Haley quickly fixed him a disapproving look as he went a bit red. You'd be a mess too if you were fucked over six times a week. She thought with a frown. 'Sorry... I forgot...' Alex apologized. 'But you aren't going back to that, alright?' Alex replaced the brush on the side of the bath and picked up Haley, turning her to face him and holding her in front of his face. 'Coz' your my partner now and I'm going to treat you right.' He told her with a sharp nod and a grin. Haley cocked her head, something new coming over her. She couldn't understand this boy. She hated humans. She hated them all, except this one... Your partner? She thought, intrigued by his wording. 'I'll get you a towel...' Alex placed Haley on the ground and headed for a cabinet. He removed a towel from the cabinet and turned around, only to be faced with a brown and red ball of fluff standing there. 'What the...' He grinned as he knelt down in front of Haley. He could see droplets of water everywhere around him, shaken off her coat. She looked up at him with a blank look, her big red eyes still visible through the fluffed up fur. 'I see...' Alex reached out one hand and smoothed down some fur on her back. 'No need for a towel then?'

'Vulpix.' Haley answered with a shake of her head, standing still and allowing Alex to smooth down her fur. She allowed him. She actually trusted him. Who could have known the son of the demon master was so different?

'So...' Alex began as he smoothed out a few more tufts of fur. 'You ever been to school before?'

Chapter 3

That fire on the horizon...

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Many battles must begin with one.

Journey of hundred thousand words must begin with single step.

Unless pushed out of plane...

'Pix...' Alex pried an eye open, briefly surprised by the sound. Seeing it was his Pokémon, a new sight to him for the morning, he lay at ease once again. Haley was simply a ball of red and brown fur, curled up on his blanket on his stomach. He felt happy she had found enough trust in him to keep next to him through the night. She had been abused for Arceus knows how long living as a sex slave in Alex's dad's basement, she was actually pretty strong. She wasn't as broken and hopeless as the other Pokémon Alex saw outside of the basement. She was fiery and strong, her spirit unbroken by her abuse. He really admired her for that. Here was him, this tough medium built human with a legend right hook being beaten over by his dad, and then there was this little tiny Vulpix, raped several times a week and no doubt beaten and insulted constantly, yet she still had more will than he. Alex remembered how she had swatted at his hand yesterday, out of energy and unable to escape, yet she still fought back in a way. She was fiery. He liked her for that. His hand extended slowly, hovering ominously over his blanket as it reached out to Haley. The ball of fluff exploded into a panicked frenzy as soon as he touched her. Haley leapt to her feet and scrambled away, backing into the corner of the bed and flattening her ears, growling as Alex sat petrified by sudden shock. Wait... you..? Haley ceased her growling, her ears sat upright again as she stood tall again, taking a less confrontational stance.

'It's just me.' Alex pointed out, crossing his legs and patting his lap. Haley glared at him uncertainly, but her stare softened a bit as she re-approached Alex. Alex moved his hand aside as Haley climbed over his legs and curled up in his lap, looking up at Alex with an indifferent expression. She secretly wanted to be petted, but hid that from everybody, including herself. She couldn't understand having such sudden carvings for a human's attention, and therefore the feeling didn't register with her and buried itself in her subconscious. Alex lowered his hand, dragging his fingers down from Haley's head, down her neck and back to where her tails met her body. 'So are you ready for your first day of school?'

'Vulpix?' Haley questioned dubiously. She had heard about this "school", and she didn't like the sound of it. A place where humans go to spread their ideals and meet with one another was not something good.

'It's not as bad as people say.' Alex assured her as he peeled back his blanket a bit, but stopping his hand and holding it in mid-air for the Vulpix to move aside. She climbed back to her feet and trotted around Alex's side as he pulled the blanket off, leaving him lying in his shirt and boxers. His legs swung over the edge and he came to his feet, dizzy slightly as he yawned and fell towards his desk, littered with clothing carelessly strewn across it. He remembered Haley behind him and was about to ask her to turn around, but then he realised she would most likely be unfazed, her having experienced what she had. He stripped off his boxers as Haley took another fascinated look around his room, looking up at the ceiling and wallpaper. She was still looking around the room when Alex slung his bag over his shoulder, dressed in his uniform. 'Alright... so...' Alex looked briefly over his shoulder to his desk. 'Have you got a pokéball anywhere?' Haley was upon him immediately, growling and backing away as she stared. 'Okay, okay, I'm sorry!' he said quickly, holding his hands up innocently in defence. 'If you don't like them I won't use one.' Haley shook her head, growling for a few seconds more to make a point before standing back upright. 'But for future reference, just tell me nicely. I won't do anything you don't want.'

'Vulpix.' Haley shot back slowly, staring at Alex with a look he had seen from some of his peers when he said something stupid. A look which he referred to as the "no shit" look. Tell you nicely? What do you think I was doing? You can't understand anything I say! Would you rather I bite you?

'Oh right.' Alex said feeling dumb. It was almost like he could understand her thoughts; Haley was just very good at using what little facial expression she had. 'Okay then. Growl equals you don't like something.'

'Vulpix.' Haley confirmed with a nod, sitting on the edge of Alex's bed and looking up at him.

'So how are you going to travel with me? Just walk?' To answer his question, Haley jumped down from his bed and stood at his feet. 'Okay then... I guess that's okay.'

Alex completely forgot about hid "dad" being in the kitchen. As he emerged around the corner into the kitchen, he stopped suddenly. Haley stopped also, seeing the demon master in front of her. Instead of her usual reaction upon seeing him and backing away, she barked at him.

'Vulpix-Vulpix!' She barked, baring her tiny fangs and growling, overcome by a strange feeling of courage. The Jarod looked up from his paper he was always reading and stared at Haley with his cold emotionless eyes.

'The slut's got an attitude.' He commented before going back to reading his paper. 'Fuck her harder and break her. Works wonders on the little bitches.'

'Vulpix!' Before Alex could react, Haley had moved, spewing a plume of fire into his dad. Jarod yelled and jumped out of his chair, the flames scorching across the table and torching the paper which was falling to the table top. The white cup full of coffee suddenly burst, cracking explosively under the sudden heat and showering the area in a hail of coffee. Alex at first was overtaken by everything which was happening, his main focus however being the burning table in the middle of the room. It crackled and burnt with leaping spires of black smoke and shimmering orange flames.

'YOU LITTLE BITCH!' Alex was ripped from his trance as his dad screamed furiously, wrenching his chair from the ground an upturning it in his hands as he rushed for the suddenly cowering Vulpix who had taken to hiding behind Alex. 'FUCKING MOVE IT!' his dad screamed, holding the chair over his shoulder and seething with anger as he stood with his son between him and his target.

'Vulpix!' The Pokémon cried, biting at the back of Alex's sock and tugging at it while whimpering, now overwhelmed with fear. Alex didn't know how, but something about the situation gave him strength. Maybe it was Haley, seeing her suddenly overwhelmed with fear after being so strong, he just felt that strength... Haley had suddenly lost it, and he had to take on her role. Alex set his shoulders back, stood up straight, and stared his dad back in the eyes.

'No.' He said, holding his dad in his stare, his voice resonated with authority.

'What?' is dad hissed, taking another step towards his son. 'Listen to me-'

'No! you listen to me!' Alex shouted suddenly, halting his dad. His voice lowered to a menacing tone as he looked down at Haley. 'This is my Pokémon Jarod. If anybody's teaching her a lesson, it's gonna be me. Gotta show her who's boss, and that's me. give me a few minutes outside.' Alex nodded knowingly to his dad as he stood facing him. What happened next was surprising. Jarod smiled a bit. A cruel, respectful smile.

'Look who's finally grown some balls.' He said, nodding back a little.

'Yeah, now get out of my face before I break that chair on yours.' His dad stepped forwards briefly, but stopped short, deciding to just leave it.

'Don't get smart boy.' Jarod warned, placing the chair back on the ground as he still watched Alex.

'I'm going out.' He turned away towards the front door and began walking. 'Come on bitch.' Haley froze on the spot, unsure of what had just happened. The boy, Alex, had turned on her. Shit! He is a bad guy! She thought in a panic. She backed away from Alex, staring up at him with fear as he opened the front door. 'Come on!' He barked commandingly. Haley looked over her shoulder and saw the hateful face of the demon master behind her, and ran for the front door, sprinting past Alex onto the porch. 'And Jarod...' Alex began again as he headed out the door after Haley. 'You might want to put that fire out.'

'SHIT!' Alex shut the door, and immediately fell to his knees.

'I'm sorry Haley, I had to! I had to trick him...' He broke out in a harsh whisper as Haley backed off whimpering. 'I said I wouldn't hurt you, I won't. I was lying! I had to lie to keep him from hitting you!' Haley did not look convinced. 'Haley, I know you've only known me for a day, but you have to trust me please! I meant what I said yesterday...' He pleaded desperately. 'I meant it, I will never hurt you ever...' He held one hand out to Haley, asking for forgiveness.

Haley wasn't sure. Everything was happening too quickly for her. first she distrusted him, then when she finally began to trust him, he goes back to that, losing her trust... But he was trying to help you Haley... Haley realised with shock she was referring to herself as Haley now. She had adopted the boy's name he gave her.

'I never meant anything I said in there, you have to believe me...' He started once more. Haley took a step forwards back towards Alex. When he told her yesterday he wouldn't hurt her, she believed him somehow. He hadn't hurt her yet. His reasons for saying those things made sense... could she look past that sudden fearful display? 'I will never hurt you Haley.' Alex's voice rung with that same thing she had felt yesterday. That same quality which Haley couldn't understand, but made her only sure he wasn't lying. Nobody could lie in a voice like that... Hayley stepped forwards a bit more. She stuck her tongue out and licked Alex's middle finger in forgiveness. Alex smiled in relief with a sigh. 'Thank you.' He breathed heavily. 'C'mon. Let's forget about this can we?'

'Vulpix.' Haley agreed with a little nod as Alex stood up again.

'Alright. Let's get going then. I can see the bus down the road.' A few seconds later, a white bus with a red, a yellow and a blue stripe down the side pulled up just outside Alex's place. As the doors opened with a hiss Alex leapt up the four steps in a single bound. Trailing behind him was Haley, who scarpered up the four steps quickly, just managing to get in as the doors almost closed on her tails.

'Got a new friend Alex?' Came a call from the back.

'Look out, Shadey's got a Pokémon!'

'Hey Shadey,' A boy sneered as he leant out from his seat, blocking Alex's path down the aisle, 'You gonna root that like your dad does?' The boy was on the floor in a second. Blood pissed from his nose as Alex stepped over him casually, shaking his fist off and wiping the blood off on a seat as he passed. Everybody suddenly shut up and they were back in their seats silent. Haley jumped over the boy as she passed, looking over her shoulder to watch him. She turned right and leapt up onto the seat with Alex, looking at the boy still.

'Vulpix?' She asked quietly as she watched the boy slowly drag himself back into his seat.

'I ain't like Jarod.' Alex told her softly as he stared straight ahead. 'No cunt's gonna tell me otherwise, and no cunt's gonna pick on you, or I'm gonna smash them.' Haley actually grinned a little hearing him say this. 'And by the way...' Haley turned her head up to look at Alex, twitching her ear a bit. 'That was cool what you did at home.' Haley was confused, and cocked her head in her special way to show she didn't understand. 'That ember. Lighting the table on fire? That was awesome!' Alex whispered excitedly as he petted her, stroking her back. Haley grinned up at him, happy he didn't disapprove of her move. She didn't know where it came from, but Alex's approval suddenly became important to her.

'Hey Alex!'

'Vulpix!' Haley barked, jumping away and backing into Alex as she saw a blonde haired human looking over the seat in front of Alex.

'Is that a Vulpix?' Human Haley asked with wide eyes, reaching her hand out.

'Vulpix!' Vulpix Haley barked back, growling and baring her teeth as human Haley recoiled.

'She's a bit shy.' Alex placed one hand on his Pokémon's back again and stroked her, causing her to calm down a bit. 'It's okay Haley... settle down...'

'Haley?' Human Haley asked with confusion.

'Haley,' Alex spoke to the human, 'I could give you a big emotional speech about how I came to that name, but in doing so I would of course show emotion and therefore be a girl, so just be flattered and don't ask further.' Haley looked back and forth between Alex and the Vulpix.

'Guys have feelings too.' She advised him with a sigh. Alex shrugged with a "meh" sound.

'Not really. Feelings are just things programmed into our memories by Nazi zombies hiding in our closets (been playing too much black-ops).' Haley stared blankly, trying to make sense of what Alex just said. She shook it from her head and turned away. That was something Alex went by. If you want a girl to stop talking to you, just mention Nazi zombies and she will leave you alone. If she doesn't and presses you on the subject of Nazi zombies she is awesome and you have to marry her because she's awesome.

'Vulpix?' Haley questioned with confusion.

'I'm just being weird. Don't worry.'

Haley was not comfortable at school. She practically clung to Alex's leg as he headed to class so she wouldn't be kicked by any other students. She was not happy at all. There were so many pairs of legs passing her and rubbish was everywhere. When it finally came to lunchtime she appeared a little calmer. Alex sat next to the fence where he had placed his bag yesterday, and was shortly joined by Haley. He removed the wrapper of a sandwich he had got at the school cafeteria and offered it to her, and she took it gratefully and dug into it. Alex was enjoying his time in lying in the sun, but it was suddenly obscured by something. He opened his eyes as he felt Haley back into him, growling.

'So you have your own Pokémon now?' Tracey asked as he observed Haley from a safe distance.

'Yeah.' Alex answered, placing one hand on Haley's back and stroking her. It was remarkable how hostile she was to others, yet she had come to trust him so quickly.

'I hope you're treating her right.' Tracey said with his arms crossed.

'Doing my best.' Alex answered, crossing his own arms as he returned a similar look.

'Want to battle then?' Alex recoiled a little with surprise.

'Battle?' He asked unsurely, looking across at Haley.

'A Pokémon battle.' Tracey turned around to a small Pokémon to his left. He cupped his hands around his mouth and called. 'Hey! Poochyena!' A small grey and black shape came bounding towards them from a distance. The canine Pokémon grinned a bit as it approached its trainer.

'Poochyena!' it cried as it sat next to his trainer. Alex wasn't sure.

'I don't know...' he said as he looked around at the Pokémon and people surrounding him. 'I haven't had her for long enough to train her.' Tracey snorted with annoyance.

'Fine then. Your call.' He turned around and began to walk away. 'You're probably too weak anyway.' Alex and Haley were both on their feet in a second, teeth gritted.

'No you don't!' Alex shouted after him, taking the bait.

'Vulpix!' Haley agreed, growling as she faced the Poochyena.

'It's on I take it?' Tracey asked as he turned back around.

'Hell yeah it is!' Alex shouted as Haley took a position in front of him, the Poochyena did so also.

'Alright then.' Tracey adjusted his glasses with one finger. 'Bite!' Alex cringed as the Poochyena came charging. Vulpix... moves... what moves?

'Tackle!' He called as the Poochyena attacked. Haley broke into a run, charging back into the Poochyena as he bit down on her shoulder as she hit him.

'Vulpix!' She cried as the Poochyena clung to his shoulder with his jaws, holding her into the ground. Shit! Wrong move! Alex though with a massive pang of guilt.

'C'mon Haley! Break out of it!' He pleaded her as the Poochyena shook her in his jaws.

'Pix!' Haley cried again as she tried to push the Poochyena off her.

'Haley, I know you can!' Alex called in encouragement. 'I know what you're like! You're strong! So show him!' Haley opened her eyes a bit, feeling her strength drain. She wanted to fight back... she wanted to do what Alex encouraged her to... but she couldn't...

'Piiix...' She moaned, suddenly going limp in the Poochyena's jaws. The Poochyena dropped her with a grunt, disappointed by such a weak effort against him.

'Shit! Haley!' Alex rushed into the battle as the Poochyena turned and trotted away, basking in his victory. Haley was not moving. Alex dived for her, landing on his knees beside her. His hands shot out to pick her up, but she was gone all of a sudden. She was on her feet again, and charging for the oblivious Poochyena with renewed fury.

'Poochyen-'

'Slam!' Alex cried as the Poochyena spun around. Haley jumped a foot into the air, spinning 180 degrees in mid-air and slamming all six of her tails into the Poochyena. The Pokémon went flying, bouncing off the grass a few times before landing on his feet, grimacing. 'All right Haley!' Alex whooped, jumping into the air in that way ten year olds do and punching into the air.

'Not over yet!' Tracey called back, taking a stance. 'Use bite again!'

'Ember!' As the Poochyena charged back at her, Haley drew back her head, and spewed a column of fire forth. Well... in all honesty, column was an overstatement. It was a small stream of fire. The Poochyena charged straight through the flame, gritting his teeth as he ran right through and leapt at Haley, biting her on the same shoulder as she cried out. He shook her a few times, hitting her against the ground, and threw her aside. Her body went limp for real this time, and she began whimpering.

'Not a bad first shot. Tracey observed as Alex leapt at his Pokémon, picking it up and cradling it in his arms. 'Use this on her.' Alex looked up and snatched the object out of the air as Tracey threw it. A potion. 'Keep training her though, and work on her special attack abilities.' Tracey turned away and began back towards the main building with his Poochyena in tow.

'Vulpix...' Haley whined apologetically as Alex sprayed the potion onto her shoulder wounds. That's it... she thought with sadness. Just like Tobias... I let him down too... I'm a terrible Pokémon...

'Are you alright?' Alex asked, tilting Haley's chin up so she faced him.

'Vulpix...' Haley apologised, looking away in shame.

'Don't be like that Haley.' Alex assured her, turning her back towards him. 'A loss just means we need to spend time training with one another. We just need to do some training.' Haley cocked her head, feeling pleasantly surprised. Tobias abandoned me after I lost... why isn't Alex? 'I reckon you need to get a bit of an understanding of yourself here.' Alex told her as he lifted her up in his arms.

'Vulpix?' She asked him as she tried craning her neck over her shoulder to see Alex's face, but her shoulder still hurt a bit.

'You need to know what fire is...' Alex began in a reflective tone. 'If anybody knows what fire is, it's me.'

Alex walked silently along the footpath. Haley was still confused, but followed him. Now school had finished, Alex could go where he wanted. In this particular instance, it was the park. The park had a special area reserved for trainers to practice with their Pokémon, and that was where he was heading. Inside the fenced off area were several training dummies. Wooden. They were all burnt and sliced and broken looking from many impacts and attacks.

'Alright Haley.' Alex stopped suddenly and Haley bumped into the back of his leg. Alex turned and sat facing Haley. He slipped a hand into his sock and withdrew a box of matches as Haley watched with intrigue. He took one match and struck it. The thing burst into a small flame as sparks hit it from the flint. Alex held the small wavering flame in between Haley and himself. 'This is a flame Haley.' He explained. Haley nodded. She was a fire Pokémon. She knew what a fire was. 'This fire is you.' He explained softly. 'See how small and insignificant it is?'

'Vulpix.' Haley nodded, looking down at herself. The match was her. Small and insignificant.

'This is you.' Alex continued. 'Now imagine this. Imagine we are in the forest.' Haley did. She imagined they were surrounded by foliage everywhere, green and lush. 'Now imagine if I dropped this match.' Haley's image burst into an explosion of red. Fire climbed up trunks of trees and scorched leaves and burned twigs lying on the ground... the sky was lit with a pale red glow. 'this is what you can do...' Alex told her, immersing himself in a similar vision as Haley as he looked into the sky. 'A single little match with the right fuel can become an inferno.' Alex lowered his head to face Haley. 'You. you're that inferno.' He said with a nod. 'We just need fuel for you.'

'Vulpix-Vulpix?' She asked. What fuel? I don't understand!

'I've researched how fire Pokémon work, and where the fire comes from.' Alex explained further. 'Fire comes from the spirit.' He reached out and placed a finger just under Haley's chin. 'Haley, you have the most spirit I've ever seen in a Pokémon.' Haley listened with fascination and amazement at how Alex could describe this. She felt warm as he complimented her. 'I saw you yesterday. No energy and tired but still fighting back against me.' Alex grinned at the image. 'That's spirit, and you've got a hell of a lot of it. You just need to believe in yourself as much as I do.' Alex stirred now, standing up from his sitting position. He turned and pointed to a target. 'Ember!' Haley leapt to her feet, filled with inspiration, and gave it her all. A stream of steady fire burst from her maw, scorching the bottom half of the dummy. She closed her mouth again, her confidence suddenly hitting a low again as she saw what little damage she did.

'Vulpix...' she apologised again.

'No!' Alex called to her. 'Don't give up! Remember that fire in the forest! That match lighting the fire! You can do better than this!' Haley spun back, throwing another wave of fire out. It was similar in strength to the last though. 'See? look! It's a bit bigger now!' Alex exclaimed excitedly. 'Come on! You have more potential than this! I know you're better than this!' Haley drew her head back, feeling Alex's words touch something deep inside her, she threw another fire attack. The wave tore out as a larger stream now, greater in intensity and half bigger again than her last attempt. 'Again! Show it what you can do!' She went again, making a little more progress, but becoming suddenly more tired at her effort. 'Come on Haley, are you going to let a little thing like being tired stop you?' She went again, this time her attack was a little smaller. Alex didn't want to do it, but he had to while he was making progress. 'Remember my dad!' He called out. 'Remember what he did to you! All those things he did to you for years and years and he still didn't break you!' Alex was almost screaming by this point. 'That's because you're stronger than this! Are you going to let a little fatigue get you down after everything you've been through!? You're strong Haley! Show me!' Haley drew her head back once more, drawing upon that warm feeling she received from Alex's words and encouragement, and released it as a torrent. The flames landed dead in the centre of the dummy, exploding outwards and sweeping across it, cloaking it fully in what would have been classified an almighty ember, but Alex could see something in her. Something more. 'Feel the fire Haley!' He pressed on loudly. 'The forest is on fire! Feel the fire on you... surrounding you in it...' Haley stood still, panting heavily as Alex's voice took her away into his fantasy. 'Feel the tongues of flames lick at you... embracing you in it...' His voice trailed mystically into the distance. 'Become one with the fire Haley... You are the fire. The fire is you. Feel its power. The inferno touching you, a part of your soul, the swirling fireball washing over you and immersing itself in your inner being...' As Haley opened her mouth, Alex realised what he had done. He felt the heat before it came. He felt the energy. He had unleashed something incredible. The torrent of fire exploded from Haley's mouth. This was truly a column of fire; the fire was a churning twisting tornado of incredible heat and unstable energy. It totally covered the entire dummy in its circumference. It was not an ember. Somehow, through some unknown technique, Alex had coaxed a Vulpix into using flamethrower. An epic flamethrower. The infernal flood of heat incinerated three dummies in its area of effect, before dying out after a few seconds, leaving the ground scorched and alight with the intensity of the flames.

Alex finally turned towards Haley, an enormous look of awe spread across his face. Haley turned towards Alex. She smiled weakly as she teetered on her feet, and collapsed. Alex didn't rush. He knew something like that would have to take a lot out of her. He smiled a strange smile as he bent down and picked up Haley. She was unconscious. He shook his head, still ecstatic with joy. That inner pyro he held away was brought out once again, inspired by what he had just seen. His Pokémon did that. His partner... He grinned as he looked out to the west, seeing the clouds illuminated with a bloody fiery red on the horizon. The fire on the horizon. The events of today sinking away into history, and making room for the possibilities of tomorrow... he smiled back down at Haley, stroking her fur softly as she lay in his arms.

'Somebody's going to sleep well tonight...'

Little did Alex know, he had unleashed the pyro effect.

Chapter four

The pyro effect

????

Satan was once an archangel. Then he discovered the fire...

It was Wednesday. Bloody Wednesday. The midpoint in the week. Boring. No... Alex thought, feeling the weight on his chest. He opened one eye to see Haley asleep, curled up into a ball on his blanket on top of him. She looked so peaceful asleep... as did all Vulpixs.

'Haley...' He whispered, drawing one arm from his bed and sliding it across the covers to Haley. 'Haley... wakey wakey...'

'Mmm...' Haley swatted out lightly at Alex's hand as it came near her. 'Vulpix...' She could identify his scent now, and knew it was him. She felt Alex's hand on her back. It scratched her fur and shook her a bit.

'C'mon. Wake up girl.' Alex sat upright suddenly, causing Haley to fall of his stomach and into his lap with an "oof" sound, which seemed to be a grunt. 'Can't sleep in or we'll miss school.'

'Vulpiiiiiix...' She whined as she looked up at Alex with sad eyes. I don't want to... she thought as she remembered yesterday.

'Alright then. You can stay here with my dad.'

'Vulpix!' Haley shot upright. Nonono! Not him! She thought desperately. She didn't want to be stuck in here with the demon master. She would rather go with Alex. He's nice to me and he believes in me... he showed me the fire... She nodded, putting on a serious face.

'Ready to tackle the day then?' Alex asked enthusiastically as he gave her another quick scratch on the ear.

'Vulpix!' She exclaimed gleefully. She caught onto Alex's enthusiasm and blew a cone of fire into the air. Though she only made it small on purpose, she was ecstatic she could still maintain her intensity she received yesterday. She just loved watching it as the cone sizzled out into a rain of falling embers. Alex had given her a feel for the fire, so to speak. As she watched it die away she felt she could understand it... comprehend its power and its capability. In truth Alex had instilled a seed of pyromania in her from his own feelings. Alex was once again caught by the flames fluttering into the air over his bed, grinning as their light illuminated his eyes. My Pokémon can do this... my partner...

'Now that's the spirit.' Alex told her and ruffled the fur on her head playfully. 'Let's get out there and show them what we can do...' Alex tucked his legs in under his blankets and pulled them out from under the covers. He threw them over the side of his bed and jumped to his feet, grabbing his school uniform off the wardrobe beside him, and he got dressed in a hurry. Haley sat on his bed watching him with little regard for privacy, her six tails floating and wagging. When every male you ever met in your life dropped his pants and shoved his cock in you within minutes of meeting you, privacy was a pretty foreign policy. 'All right, come on then.' Alex called to her as he stood up, finished with tying his laces. He slung his bag over his shoulder as he pushed open his door into the kitchen. He ignored his dad at the table and went straight for the pantry, grabbing a few muesli bars and shoving them into his pockets. Haley wasn't bothered with looking at Jarod either, and just waited at the door for Alex.

'What's with all the food?' Jarod asked without much interest. Alex shrugged back as he headed for the front door.

'Breakfast. Some for me, some for Haley.'

'Haley?' Jarod put his paper down, looking at Alex now. 'You gave it a name?'

'Yeah Jarod, I gave her a name.'

'Why-?'

'Jarod,' Alex held up a hand to silence his dad with an excited grin, excited for what today would bring. For once in his life, he was excited about the day to come. 'I'm going to stop you right there before you make some gayass killjoy comment, coz you ain't screwing over my day, you dirty prick.'

'What?' Jarod stood slowly, pushing his seat away with one foot. 'WHAT!?'

'Later motherfucker!' The door smashed into the wall as Alex threw it open with full force, the handle breaking through the wall as Jarod furiously raced after his son and Haley, both of the two grinning madly and laughing crazily as they sprinted out onto the sidewalk and bolted away down it, leaving Jarod behind as he stood at the driveway swearing furiously at them. 'That was awesome!' Alex shouted as he ran, looking down at Haley to see her returned grin as she followed beside him.

'Vulpix-vul!' Haley cried in agreement, baring her teeth a bit as she smiled widely. That felt so good! She felt so alive now, and blew a small quantity of fire as she ran, just showing off a bit in her excited state. She could still feel it. She could still feel that power from yesterday. She knew what she could do, and now all she wanted to do was to make more fire. The way Alex reacted to it; he clearly enjoyed seeing her show. The two just continued running, completely forgetting about the school bus. They arrived at school shortly after the bus, still excited after their run to school and headed to class.

'Alright Haley, stay still there...' Alex instructed her as he held up his paper and pencil. Haley nodded, and sat still atop the stool Alex had placed her upon. Alex's art class was doing a unit of quick sketches. Something Alex was particularly good at it.

'Remember Alex, it's a quick sketch.' A man advised over his shoulder as he watched. A Smeargle stood at the teacher's feet, looking around Alex at his paper.

'Got it prof.' Alex answered with a sharp nod, looking up at Haley once more and thinking. He snapped his fingers as an idea popped into his head. 'Yo Haley, can we get a show here?'

'Vulpix!' Haley cried with a grin, then tilted her head back and she joyfully blew a jet of flames into the air, startling the entire class. Alex went to work like lightning. His pencil jumped and flicked across the page, sketching the flame in mere seconds and moving onto the body. His eyes moved back and forth quickly across the page as he went, then he stopped, dropping his pencil audibly on the table and spinning on his stool to face the teacher. 'Done.' The teacher shook his head, pulling himself from the brief surprise of the fire. He took the pad and held it up, sitting beside his view of real Haley.

'Remarkable...' He gasped, comparing the real Vulpix to the picture.

'(Amazing.)' Agreed his Pokémon, crossing his arms and nodding.

'(I'll take that as a compliment.)' Haley said as she hopped down from her stool and trotted towards Alex. 'Vulpix?' She asked as she looked up at Alex. Alex heard her and removed his hands from sitting in his lap. Haley jumped up, landing on his lap as his arms wrapped around her and held her. She turned and took a look at the picture for herself. '(Good.)' She said with a little grin, pawing at the pad. Alex had captured her likeness very well, and she was amazed at how much detail he had put into it, especially for a ten seconds sketch.

'Very good likeness.' Mr Merlin said, reaching his hand out to Haley. She spotted it out of the corner of her eye and immediately backed away, her grin upturning as she growled and bared her teeth at the hand. Mr Merlin took his hand away quickly in surprise, feeling stupid.

'She's a little wary of other people.' Alex told him, patting Haley's head as she sat back down, still glaring at Mr Merlin. 'It's okay Haley. Settle down.' Alex crooned as Haley continued to stare.

'It's weird how much she trusts you though.' Alex looked up from his Pokémon to see human Haley approach, Mr Merlin leaving them to see another student's work. 'You've only had her for how long?'

'This is around our forty eight hour mark.' Alex told her as he continued to pat Haley, whose tails were wagging a bit, but still watched her human namesake cautiously.

'Only forty eight hours?' Human Haley's jaw hung a bit. 'She won't let anybody else even come within two feet of her and look at her!' Alex looked back down at the Vulpix where Haley rested. 'She's all cuddled up to you in your lap.' Alex shrugged, still patting Haley. Haley didn't take that as a bad thing. She would have usually taken that as an insult to her independence, but Alex was a nice guy, and so she didn't mind showing a little affection for what he had done for her in the last two days.

'Maybe I have a wonderful friendly personality.' Alex suggested. Haley gagged a bit, laughing sort-of.

'You have a personality?'

Alex bit his lip a bit, his smile falling from his face as he stared at Haley coldly. 'I'll pretend you didn't just say that.' He suggested with a sort of hiss, sarcasm evident though.

'Well you're not usually this talkative. Or social.'

'I'm having a good day.' Alex said as his grin returned. 'I get all high and social.'

'Did you do something with your hair?' Alex shook his head slowly, unsure of where that came from. 'It looks different.'

'Nup.' Alex answered, holding a strand of hair in his fingers. 'Same ginger ninja as usual.'

'Vulpix?' Haley asked with a little confusion.

'I'm being silly again.' Alex told her as he redoubled his petting her. Human Haley just grunted, looking at his hair for a few more seconds and then returning to her own work.

'(She's weird.)' Haley said as she looked up at Alex, leaning back into his scratching hand and murring.

'She's weird.' Alex said. Haley mentally facepalmed.

'(Where are we going?)' Haley asked as she trotted behind Alex across the field.

'It's lunchtime.' Alex said, unable to understand her question. After all, he couldn't understand Pokémon. 'I don't have class for an hour.' Not my question... Haley thought with a sigh as Alex sat in his usual spot against the fence. She sat watching him as he unwrapped another sandwich he bought. He pulled the wrapping off and placed it in front of Haley, then went to unwrapping his own.

'Same place Alex?'

'Same place Tracey.' Haley spun around to see the boy from yesterday. She growled as she saw the Poochyena standing beside him, smirking at her.

'(What are you looking at?)' She snapped angrily, still holding a tremendous grudge. She felt something fire up in her seeing the Pokémon's mocking look.

'(Nothing much.)' He answered cockily, causing Hayley to growl louder.

'What are you doing here kid?' Alex asked as he stood up, placing his sandwich on his bag.

'Fire Pokémon don't like losing.' Tracey answered back. 'I thought I'd give you another shot.'

'Vulpix!' Haley called, accepting the challenge readily.

'Are you sure she's ready?' Tracey asked, observing the growling Vulpix.

'Hell yeah!' Alex called with a wild grin, holding a fist up. 'This time we're going to kick ass! Right Haley?'

'(Hell yeah!)' Haley called, imitating Alex's expression as she stepped forwards and blew another jet of fire.

'And Haley?' Haley ceased in her advancing on her opponent and looked at Alex over her shoulder. He nodded to her and shared a knowing grin. 'Feel the fire.'

'Vulpix!' She exclaimed with a nod, spinning back to the Poochyena as she felt that feeling in her build to a greater level.

'Ember!' Haley threw her mouth open and a stream of fire gushed forth. The Poochyena was taken off guard by the sudden increase of intensity from her attack yesterday, and jumped out of the way at the last second. 'Slam Haley!' The Poochyena had barely landed before the Vulpix was upon him, fuelled by some unknown energy as she moved like lightning. She leapt into the air and spun, hitting him across the face and sending him flying. He had greatly underestimated his opponent. 'Again Haley! Keep on the offense!' Haley leapt towards her fallen opponent full of energy.

'Bite Poochyena!' The Poochyena dodged sideways as Haley's tails swung through the air, then dived in from the behind.

'Vulpix!' Haley cried as the Poochyena bit her shoulder.

'Shake'm off Haley! Use that spirit!' Alex called with a grimace. Haley pried her eyes open, ignoring the pain, she threw her body sideways suddenly. She slammed herself and the Poochyena into the ground. The Poochyena released her upon impact, and the two jumped to their feet facing down, on opposite sides from their trainers.

'Hyper beam!'

'Ember!' The two Pokémon opened their mouths simultaneously. Tracey's dad was a rich guy, and had no doubt bought him a hyper beam TM to use on his Pokémon. A flash of white light exploded from the Poochyena's mouth as a jet of fire came from Haley's. The attacks met in the middle with a sudden burst of orange light, the Pokémon holding their attacks against each other. The hyper beam however was slowly burning through the ember attack. Haley clearly had more special attack ability than Poochyena, but hyper beam was significantly stronger than ember. Haley panicked seeing the hyper beam cut through her attack, and redoubled her efforts. 'Come on Haley! Give it all you have!' Alex cried out to her. 'You can do it! I know what you can do!' Haley opened her mouth more, inspired by Alex's comment. The flame grew larger, holding the hyper beam off a bit better, but it still cut through.

'That was a bad move.' Tracey commented as he watched the two battle, their wills pitted against each other. 'Your attack is too weak. You would have been better to dodge my attack.'

'Fuck you Tracey!' Alex yelled back. 'Don't listen to him Haley! You can win this! I know you can because you're better than this!' Haley heard that thing again. That strange thing which echoed in his voice, that inspiring touch, suddenly fuelling that fire she felt. 'Flamethrower!'

'Flamethrower?' Tracey laughed. 'She can't use-' Haley had finally had enough. All her life she had been told she was weak. Told her she was expected to be nothing more than a good little cock-sucking bitch. Told what she could and couldn't do. And now, finally, somebody had encouraged her. Showed her what she could do... and she had realised her potential. She couldn't let Alex down. Alex felt the heat again, before the attack emerged. As the massive inferno exploded from Haley's mouth, he realised he had overlooked something vital. As the massive wave of fire exploded forth, fuelled by Haley's burning spirit and consuming the terrified little Poochyena as he tried to dodge unsuccessfully, the tornado of fire continued.

Towards him.

'(ALEX!)' Haley screamed, releasing her flamethrower after realising what had happened and charging into the dying blaze. Fear mixed with horror and guilt clouded her head as she ran, tears streaming down he face. Tracey ran also, yelling something as he ran for Alex's previous position. Oh no oh no oh no I killed him!

just before flamethrower impact

Alex stepped back, but was paralyzed by the thing. That surging front of fire surging towards him, those sparkling flames lighting his view as a golden haze. The sheer beauty of the thing captivated him more than anything else he had seen in his life. The wave surging for him. As the massive vortex approached him, something happened. His hand extended, out in front of him to face the approaching attack. Then he spoke. The words just rolled over his lips from nowhere, of their own accord.

'I am alpha.' The blaze utterly consumed him. His eyes were filled with a dark fantasy-like world of fire, scorching and twisting like the vortex which had enclosed him in his dream. And he could feel nothing. He could feel the flames touch his body, licking at him and swooping over him, but he felt no pain. His clothes fluttered in the wave, but didn't even singe.

Haley stopped, her heart skipping a beat as she was confused by what she saw. Alex looked upwards slowly, looking up towards the sun in the sky, and smiled. He was intact. His clothes were intact. He had no burns at all.

'Alex what the hell!?' Tracey bawled, looking from Haley to him with disbelief. The grass where the flamethrower had hit was still alight, leaving a trail of fire from where Haley had stood to where Alex was, and past. Alex looked down to the trail of fire, then to Haley, still smiling.

'I felt it Haley...' He whispered just loudly enough for Haley to hear as she ran to him. 'I felt the fire...' Alex's voice drifted out. His eyes began closing, and his legs buckled all of a sudden. He fell to his knees, then onto his front. He lay there unconscious as Haley leapt to his side.

'Vulpix-Vulpix!' She cried into his ear, nudging him with her snout as Tracey knelt opposite. 'Vulpix!'

In a bush nearby, a arm was held straight and rigid towards Alex. Black energy hovered in the air around the hand, and fizzled out eventually and the arm was retracted. A single pair of eyes leered through the foliage at the boy as he fell to his knees, then onto the ground. The man smiled.

'Good boy. The fire is good...'

Chapter 5

To wake up as a monster.

???

Don't kid yourself.

We all have our demons.

'Vulpix!'

'Okay, okay! I won't touch him.'

'Vulpix.' First thing Alex saw was a tuft of brown fur. As his eyes opened further, he saw that tuft of fur was connected to a body. Haley. 'Vulpix!' She exclaimed, seeing him awake. She immediately began licking his face affectionately, and nuzzled against his cheek.

'Haley? What?'

'Mr Black, how are you feeling?' Alex turned his head a bit. He was lying down with his head propped up on a pillow. He was in a bed. A hospital bed from the looks of things. Haley was sitting on the blanket next to him. He saw a man in a doctor's coat standing over him holding a clipboard.

'Pretty alright actually.' He said, lifting his arm beneath the blanket and giving a thumbs up, although nobody could see it. 'Where am I and why am I here?'

'Seward street hospital.' The doctor replied as he checked something off on his clipboard. 'As for why you're here, I was hoping you'd be able to tell me that.'

'I just remember a flamethrower.' He said with a shrug and turned to Haley. 'I'm sorry. I really didn't think that through.'

'Vulpix...' Haley said apologetically, leaning her head against Alex's body and whining a little.

'Haley you couldn't have known.' Alex assured her with a little petting. 'You were busy battling. You didn't notice.'

'So this is Tracey Parker, who you were battling?' The doctor stepped aside, revealing the young boy sitting in a chair in the corner of the room. Tracey raised a hand and waved weakly without expression.

'Yeah. That's him.' Alex confirmed looking back at the doctor.

'And you were hit by a flamethrower?' The doctor sounded sceptical, and rightfully so.

'Yeah. It was pretty cool.' The doctor just stared blankly. 'Probably difficult to believe eh?' Alex smiled weakly.

'Mr Black, are you in any pain or suffering from any mental of physical illness?' Alex shook his head. 'Then could I ask you to remove yourself from this ward?'

'No problem.' Alex gently pushed Haley, prompting her to jump off the bed. He pulled the covers back and swung his legs over the edge, and stood up.

'I'm not entirely sure what's going on here...' The doctor started as he scratched his head, reading his clipboard. 'But you're perfectly healthy as far as I can see. Whether you were hit by a flamethrower attack, I am dubious, but I'm happy to just release you and put it to rest.'

'Sounds good.' Alex agreed as Tracey stood also. 'I'll just be leaving before anybody asks any questions.' The doctor sighed and sat in a chair against the wall, motioning for them to leave. Alex didn't wait for another sign, and walked quickly out the door of the room.

'Alex... your hair is red.' Alex stopped, cocking his head with confusion.

'No shit Sherlock.' Alex shot over his shoulder to Tracey. Tracey shook his head, and raised his hand to point at Alex's head.

'No, it's red-red. Like, actual red.'

'Huh?' Alex reached up and took a lock of hair and pulled it down to see it. It was actual red... a dark red. Not ginger, he had red hair. 'Friggin' Arceus! How the hell did this happen?'

'How the hell did you survive that attack?' Tracey demanded suddenly. 'That thing totally K.O'd my Poochyena, how did you come out without a scratch!?'

'Magic?' Alex suggested unhelpfully. 'Come on, you're a smart kid, you tell me. I have no idea.' Tracey stood staring, one eyebrow rose as he stared Alex in the eyes. A look of shock spread across his face just beneath his glasses. He seemed about to say something, but stopped himself, and shook his head making a "no more" guesture.

'No. I don't care.' He said sternly. 'You are fucking weird. You are just... I don't want anything to do with whatever this is.' Tracey turned hurriedly and marched away, bickering to himself. Alex threw Haley an innocent look and shrugged.

'What's his problem?'

The sun was setting on the horizon. The sun... one of many in the universe. The Pokémon sighed as she watched the sun disappear slowly. She turned back and headed into the waiting cave she called home for the moment. At the back of the cave was a pile of hay. In the hay, was a pile of fragments of something broken. She had never bothered to clean them up, even after all these years. Forever a reminder to her that even she suffered lapses in her composure and intelligence...

'Boy! Where the fuck have you been?' Alex stopped as he stepped inside, biting his lip angrily. He's a few hours late and his dad throws a bitching fit. Alex was not happy right now. He was feeling sick, dizzy and strange. His dad was kneeling behind a Lucario, grabbing her tail roughly in one hand and thrusting into her ass doggy style as another man held her muzzle on his cock, grabbing her ears roughly. Alex could see her crying.

'Fucking hospital.' Alex winced a bit hearing Haley beside him. He looked down at her as she snuggled in a bit closer to his leg and lowered her head so she wouldn't see the situation. Just seeing this, Alex became angry. Seeing her sadness, the reality suddenly hit him. A reality check. Alex had lived all his life with his dad doing this kind of shit and thought it normal, but now it suddenly hit him, and fuck it hit him hard.

'You get hurt you little pussy?'

'Jarod! Stand the FUCK UP you fucking prick!' Jarod froze in his fucking, glaring at Alex. He loved a prime piece of ass, but he wouldn't let shit fly past him.

'What you little mongrel?' The other man didn't cease, and continued thrusting into the Lucario's mouth as Jarod approached Alex.

'I am fucking sick of this shit!' Alex threw a hand towards the Lucario furiously and seething with anger.

'You've never tried it.' Jarod said with as much innocence as he could muster. 'Give it a try.' He pointed towards the Lucario behind him before turning to Haley. 'Or even your little bitch there could give you-'

'I swear to Arceus, if you finish that sentence I'm going to smash you.'

'-good fuck.' Jarod grinned cruelly as he approached Alex. 'What're you going to do about it?' Alex met his dad, stepping forwards and glaring at him. His dad smiled at first, but Alex could see a hint of something in his eyes. It looked like confusion, mixed with a bit of fear.

'I'm going to show you what happens when you aren't nice to girls.' One hand was on Jarod's throat, the second curled into a fist and connected with Jarod's temple in a split second attack. Alex watched in awe as blood streamed from his dad's head, falling with the rest of his body and landing with a thump on the ground. Haley grinned widely as she saw Jarod hit the ground. Alex stared at the unconscious body with disbelief at what he had just done. He felt uncertainty, a little fear, but fuck he felt good. That moment of impact with his fist and his dad's head just sparked a high of exhilaration. The man beside the Lucario had seen this, and was already on his feet, tucking his man parts away as he backed off fearfully. 'That's right motherfucker. Run home.' Alex called after him with a small nod as he turned and ran.

'Cario...' Alex had almost forgotten the Lucario lying on the ground in front of him. Her strength had deserted her and she was now lying on her stomach, naked, sore and a little bloody. Alex didn't understand where this came from, but he just moved towards her without meaning to. The Lucario gave him a fearful look as she saw him approach. 'Lucario...' She sniffed as she recognised Alex, tears still streaming from her eyes.

'Hey girl.' Alex crooned as he knelt beside her, placing one hand on the back of her head gently. He put one hand under her softly and rolled her onto her back. The Lucario knew Alex, and knew she could trust him to make her better, as he had done on numerous occasions. Alex's hands scooped her up, one arm wrapping under her torso and the other around her thighs. He lifted her up and began back to his room. The Lucario sniffed, watching his eyes with sadness and curiosity. She had never noticed Alex had red eyes. In an unexpected move, Alex leant a bit closer to her, moving into her neck. She allowed him to do whatever, trusting him. He moved in and gently kissed her neck, rubbing her thigh a bit with his hand, and kissed her neck again in a strange but comforting way. 'You're a good girl, don't listen to what they say.' Haley watched this with a strange feeling growing in her, especially when he leaned in and kissed the Lucario. She was feeling jealous...

Fire whipped through the air, slicing between Alex and the egg in a wave, washing away the image as the flames spiralled around in a column. Alex stumbled backwards, the fire of the wall spinning around him and enclosing him in an infernal twister column around his body. A thin beam of light cut down, jutting out of the darkness above down the centre of the twister and onto Alex's face as he gazed about himself, his white skin illuminated by the twisting red and white lights about him. The dancing blaze was reflected in his eyes, held set strongly in a gaze of dark fascination. The fire.... The heat he was feeling... the raw power of the flames, how they moved, live they lived... The fire closed in on him, the column dragging its orange and crimson body of energy across his skin in an intense feeling of inner warmth as it became one with him...

I am alpha, I am omega...

I am Alex.

Alex raised one hand. The column burst. The column exploded into a shockwave, flames and blazes disappearing into the surrounding darkness. There were no fires now. There was just Alex and Jarod and the darkness.

'Looks like you found your true self.' Jarod said in a level tone, staring strongly at Alex.

'I did.' Alex moved one hand to point at his dad, alight with a white blaze. 'And my true self does not like you.' Alex threw the fireball.

'Mmmuuurrr...' Alex heard from beside him. He saw Haley to his right, lying under his blanket snuggled right up to him with her little head resting on the bottom of his pillow. He now turned left, feeling something there. There was the Lucario. She was also lying in his bed with him, her head resting on his left shoulder and holding his left arm with her paws. She had been pretty screwed up, and she was tired after Alex tended to her last night, and so she had evidently fallen asleep beside him. Or moved into his bed with him. Alex laid back with a grin, enjoying the feel of the two Pokémon, one on either side of him with their furry bodies against him. He was still surprised with himself for last night. Seriously? Kissing her on the neck? WTF? What am I trying to do? He sighed, looking across at Haley. He reached his right hand down and stroked her back softly. Slowly and gently, he pulled his left hand from Lucario's grip, careful not to wake her, and moved his shoulder out from under her, lowering her head onto his pillow. He pulled himself out from under his blankets without throwing them back, leaving the blanket on the Pokémon.

It was early. Jarod would be asleep, whether he had woken up from that punch or not. Alex rubbed his eyes tiredly as he dragged himself out of his room, not bothering to change. He walked into the bathroom and twisted the shower knob, then closed the door behind him. Before unchanging for a shower, he moved to the basin. He drew some cold water in the basin and scooped it up, throwing it onto his face and rubbing it in. he wiped his wet hair out of the way as he looked up and saw himself in the mirror. He leaned closer, unsure of what he just saw.

'What the hell?' He pressed his face into the glass, looking at his eyes. They were red. They were actually red. And so was his hair. He had gone from brown eyes and ginger-brown hair to red and red. Even his skin had a slightly darker tint to it. His hair stuck up also, it was spikey and wavy and... Alex swung his hand, hitting himself in the face painfully. It hurt. Not a dream... He thought as he turned his head to get some different angles on himself. Cool... He smiled a bit seeing his new face. This week was going to be interesting.

'Hey people!' The students on the bus looked up as Alex leapt up the steps, a huge smile spread across his face. He strode down the aisle with an air of confidence he had never felt before. After him came a Lucario (Dubbed Teri, by Alex) and Haley. Haley was the first to leap up onto the seat and onto Alex's lap to leave the other side of the seat free for Teri. Alex had decided it best to bring Teri along with him. He didn't want her to be left at home. Alex's dad wasn't awake still, and he wouldn't be very happy when he woke up.

'What did you do with your hair?' Human Haley asked as she leaned over the seat in front of him with a smile.

'S'red.' He ran his fingers through his hair while maintaining his smile. 'Fiery eh?'

'Sort of.' Haley said as she looked across at Teri.

'Teri.' Alex answered before Human Haley asked. Teri gave a weak wave.

'Why are your Pokémon so shy?' Haley asked suddenly. Most Pokémon were a little friendlier. Alex's smile dropped, and he stared at human Haley with a serious look.

'Haley, where do you think I got these two from?' Haley did her best to pretend to think about that, but all the while she had suspicions.

'I don't know.'

'Haley.' Alex said with a quick shake of his head. 'I know you know. And you're right.' Haley just nodded slowly, a few uncomfortable thoughts entering her head. 'I can't blame them for not liking a lot of people.' With that he gave both Pokémon a scratch on the ear. 'But let's not talk like that. There's heaps to look forwards to today.' Alex's smile returned with human Haley's.

'You've really changed.' She commented before lowering herself back into her seat. Damn right I have. Alex thought with a sense of inner peace. His life was finally becoming his own now. And today was going to be awesome.

'This is not cool.' Alex muttered into his desk as he sat with his face down on it. At the front of the room Mr Hanson drabbled about some quadratic theory or something like that. This is so boring... Haley and Teri seemed to be effected similarly, sitting on chairs either side of Alex and looking rather bored. 'Haley, do you understand any of this shit?'

'Vulpix.' Haley shook her head a little.

'Teri?'

'Cario.' No.

'Aaww... this is so lame...' Alex lifted his head to look out the window briefly, wishing he could be outside playing sport or something. He lowered his head again, falling into a daydream of a happier place...

'Who are you?' Alex's already crackly voice managed, keeping calm despite the multitude of confused queries flooding his head. The man turned. His outstretched hand held a flame. A small, blood red flame contained in the palm of his hand, a flame which yielded no light to give the figure a face. 'You?' The figure nodded. 'You're... you're me?' Alex's head fell, locating the flame in his own hands now. He blinked quickly as he tried to come to terms with what was happening, but in that instant he blinked in uncertainty, the fire was gone, replaced by an egg. Perfectly white, large, about eight inches high, yet the pure white shone with a fiery tinge. The fire didn't just touch it, it tainted it. The reflected fire rose, leaving a red of its visual duplicate, but as the reflection fell, the red remained, like a stain. It was warm in his hands. It was alive. It was living. It was getting hotter in his hands, he could feel energy building inside of it. It shook, a crack appearing on top. The crack spread with the next shake, Alex leant closer to see it, curious to see what would emerge.

It exploded.

'Alex!'

'Whah!?' Alex's eyes burst open, and he was immediately confronted with a wall of flames. 'What the hell?' Alex leapt out of his chair, looking around the burning maths class in shock and disbelief. He looked down and saw Haley tugging on his sock with her teeth. He spun and saw human Haley behind him.

'The place just burst into flames! Come on!' Haley made a run for the door, motioning for Alex to follow. Alex did a quick head count, seeing Teri and Haley and followed. Flames crawled up walls everywhere; everything was on fire, save the floor. The corridor screamed with noise and panic as students pushed and shoved their way to fire exits. Alex quickly scooped Haley up in his arms and made a dash, rushing into the crowd with Teri in tow.

'How did this happen?' He demanded as he ducked under a plume of smoke and chased human Haley.

'The walls just burst into flames!' She cried over her shoulder as she pushed through the fire exit and went outside. Alex barged his way through after her. 'It started in our room, and then everything else caught!' Human Haley spun around to face the school, almost falling over backwards as she saw it. 'Arceus...' Alex stood beside her, staring in shock and awe. The place was just one massive blaze.

'Rather suspicious fire.' Alex turned left quickly to see who had spoken. It was Mr Merlin, the art teacher. His Smeargle stood at his side, watching the fire. 'Wouldn't you agree?' Mr Merlin finally looked at Alex, raising an eyebrow as he stared. Alex opened his mouth, but there was something in that look, and he shut it.

'What do you know?' Alex demanded as he stepped towards the teacher with a curious look. His two Pokémon noticed his move and followed after him.

'I know a lot Alex.' Mr Merlin said with a serious tone. 'I know all about you. I know what you are.' He turned around, looking towards a SUV in the school car park. 'Come with me.'

'No thanks.' Alex stepped back and shook his head, glaring at the teacher suspiciously. 'Why would i?' Mr Merlin didn't respond for a few seconds, and then finally reached into his pocket. Alex flinched as he took something out, but he realised it was just a piece of paper. He held it towards Alex. Alex looked from the paper to the teacher, then took it and observed it closely. It was a small square piece of paper, and drawn on it was a stool. A stool lying on its side. 'What's this?'

'It's your picture.'

'It's not my picture.' Alex said as he shook his head. 'I drew a Vulpix sitting on a stool. That stool isn't standing up and there's no Vulpix.'

'That's because she knocked it over.' Alex raised an eyebrow as he stared at his teacher. 'As for the Vulpix. She's hiding.'

'She's hiding?' Alex said with accusing disbelief. Mr Merlin reached out for the paper and took it back, then removed a pencil.

'Watch.' He put the pencil to the paper and quickly sketched something. A bunch of Razz berries by the looks of it, lying on the ground. There was suddenly something black at the side of the page. It took its time, but soon entered the picture as Alex gaped, still in disbelief. A sketched Vulpix, not rendered or coloured, walked into the picture from the side, and began eating the berries. 'She's rather shy actually.' Mr Merlin explained as he held the pad lower so Haley could see it.

'How did you do that?' Alex's voice shook as he spoke. There was just too much going through his head now. Surviving a direct flamethrower, his hair and eyes turning red, his dream burning the school and now pictures coming to life.

'I didn't do anything.' Mr Merlin put the pad away in his pocket, and then began walking away towards his SUV. 'You did that.' Alex stood and stared as the teacher made a hasty exit, shooting away in his vehicle suddenly.

'(What the heck?)' Haley said with a disbelieving shake of her head.

'(What did Alex do?)' Haley looked up at Teri beside her.

'(What do you mean?)'

'(In the classroom.)'

'(What?)'

'(His aura fired up when he was asleep.)' Teri explained as she gazed at Alex, who had his back turned to the two. '(His aura fire set the room on fire.)'

'(What?)' Teri nodded.

'(Do you know something about this?)'

'(He likes fire.)' Haley said simply. '(That's it. He really likes fire.)'

Alex sighed, finally having reached home. He pushed open the front door and threw his bag inside the door. Teri came in last and closed the door.

'Your school's on fire.' Alex stopped in mid-pace, hearing Jarod's voice.

'I know dad. I was there.'

'Watch this.' Alex looked at the TV screen as his the news report detailed the incident.

'... no damage at all, baffling even the fire department.' The woman on the TV stood in front of the school, which now was no longer on fire. 'In fact, most reports detail a distinct "freshness" of the place. This situation already has the world asking questions. "How does fire leave no damage?" and "Is this a miracle?" being among them. Nobody as of yet can shed light on the situation, but one thing is set in concrete. Veilstone south-central high was set ablaze at 2:25 PM today, the blaze raged for five hours and was reported to have "completely engulfed the building". And the entire school is completely unscathed. No damage. No textbooks burnt. Not even a scorch mark.'

'There was no damage at all.' Jarod explained as he continued to stare at the screen. 'The news bitch said the paint even looks fresh now. Everything looks better somehow.'

'What the fuck?' Alex shook his head, walking towards the screen slowly.

'This was you wasn't it?' Jarod asked softly.

'I didn't do anything!' Alex shot back defensively, causing his Pokémon to jump at his outburst.

'Don't bullshit me kid! You're the only one who could do it!' Came his dad's response as he leapt to his feet and pointed accusingly. 'It's all your bitch mum Eiyvanaa!' Alex was about to shout back, but his dad's last comment left him silent.

'... My mum?'

'Fuck it!' Jarod smacked the wall heavily with his fist, breathing heavily and now slightly oblivious to the outside world in his rage. 'How the fuck could I have known I'd knock up a fucking Pokémon!?'

'A what!?'

Ah. Fun.

You know, I got so much stuff I've done since I last posted... more specifically I've got heaps of stuff almost done. I got this one with a Zoroark, this one with some Lucarios (oh wait, they all have Lucarios. I LOVE LUCARIOS!)... I'm working on some halo and fallout things again, still working on my sequels, so on.

I love comments. Just saying. No reason.

Comment= 5 seconds.

Writing = hours and hours.

So yep. Don't post your conspiracy theories in the comments, (hell, if you're making conspiracy theories, I FEEL SO HAPPY!). but seriously.

Did you read my two-liner poem at the start? If you want this to continue, gimme the good stuff.

Hooah.

Ajay. AKA Shadey.

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