Emerald Espeon is a multi-part Pokémon fan-fiction short story. Read and enjoy.
Follow me on twitch and join me on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 pm – 10:30 pm EST / 5 pm – 8:30 pm PST. I play #FFXIV and promote my blog content among other things.
“Years of fighting with poison has taken its toll on my father. This version of him can’t fight you, so I’ll be your opponent. We’ll fight around the reservoir at the top of this cliff,” Janine says. “This will be a standard pokemon match. One of your pokemon against my Alpha Clefable. Who do you choose, Trainer?” Janine asks, graceful and stoic, in-keeping with the Shinobi Way. She observes the trainer.
Azelf hovers between them. It’s small white body looks like a sack of flour with tiny feet and delicate hands. Azelf’s large head looks like a blue volleyball with thin ponytails. Azelf stays upright as it floats. It presses its small hairy hands together. Glitter and tiny lights shimmer around Azelf, and a portal opens beside the trainers.
The portal expands on its horizontal axis like a sewer hole opening up in empty space, except its over the grey dirt surrounding the calm, waveless lake on top of the cliff.
Janine adjusts the red hair clip embedded within her black hair.
Blissey and Lucario drop from the open rift. Blissey lands on its feet, smiling at its trainer. Blissey’s large hazel eyes say victory, but its scuffs and bruises tell another epic story of effort, focus and failure. Blissey’s song of defeat is sang through the flicker in Blissey’s eyes: passion, admiration and sportsmanship that transcends gender, species, and the interwoven fabric of time and space. It smiles at Koga with pride and nods. Ripped feathers fall from Blissey’s mangled ears when it bows to a beaten and pummeled Lucario.
“Waaaaroooooo!” Azelf cries ascending and vanishing.
Koga recalls Blissey back to its pokeball. A blue beam shoots from the ball in Koga’s palm and highlights Blissey’s egg-shaped frame. Blissey shrinks in size then the beam returns to Koga’s pokeball.
The Tsunami Samurai extends his palm, recalling Lucario to its pokeball as well.
Both trainers’ pokeballs are standard for their respective time periods: a standard issue capsule ball with a red top and white on the bottom with a round latch in the center.
Janine hugs Koga. Their short black hair and matching purple outfits almost makes them look like siblings. Koga embraces Janine, firm yet compassionate. Janine hugs her father back. They smile and bow at each other. Koga tosses something at the ground and vanishes in a puff of smoke.
“That’s my dad,” Janine says, her hands at her hips as she looks at the trainer. “Clefable,” Janine commands, pointing at the space between her and the trainer. “Go!”
Clefable waddles on all fours, scrambling between the combatants. The alpha fairy pokemon stands 5′ ft 07″ inches / 1.69 meters tall. Clefable’s scowl juxtaposing its delicate features and majestic wings. “Fable,” it mutters, staring the trainer down alongside Janine.
“Well, Lucario was the only Steel type I brought with me, and that alpha Clefable looks like it wont go down easy,” the tsunami samurai says, glancing at Gible and Espeon, who reached the top of cliff without attention. Espeon sits several feet away against the edge of the water reservoir above the waterfall. It gazes at its own reflection over the water’s calm surface. Gible rests against Espeon’s hind leg, exhausted from cheering Lucario on during its battle with Blissey. “Raw… Heh…. Gra…” Gible snores, rhythmic and quiet. Gible’s tiny claws squirm and twitch as it dreams.
“Up for this one, Espeon?” the Tsunami Samurai asks his companion. He tugs at the string holding his straw hat upright against his upper back. The samurai’s gold gi shimmers in Espeon’s enormous, empty black eyes when Espeon glances over its violet shoulder. “Your Future Sight won’t work during these battles so we won’t be able to count on you predicting what’s going to happen next. And, Koga seemed to know a bit more about your trainer. Maybe when we defeat Janine, she’ll give us a bit more information, yeah?” the trainer says, encouraging Espeon to join the fray. He gestures with his hands while he speaks, though he stands firm and stoic with his arms crossed. His over-sized attire compliments his style.
Espeon looks at the trainer’s large rabbit ears and the deep scar in the right side of his face. It teleports in front of the trainer with Gible still sleeping by its side. Espeon tilts its head and Gible vanishes and re-appears behind the trainer. Its carefully positioned against a small boulder. Gible’s dry, fish-like body matches the pale purple color of the rock it sleeps against.
The trainer clenches his fist. “Ready, Espeon?”
Espeon’s eyes flash and the red gem in its forehead twinkles.
Espeon takes a few steps toward Clefable and howls, “Paiii-yu!”
Janine bows at the trainer. “As I mentioned, this is a traditional one-on-one match, trainer. You’ve made it through both the Abundant and Blissful Mediums’ challenges and you’ve, like, earned the right to summon the ‘A’ and ‘B’ Source Unown. It also allows you to understand when pokemon say their specific version of those sounds and letters,” Janine says, her slender face devoid of discernable emotion. She fidgets with a silver ring on her thumb. The ring has a purple gem affixed to the top with a white Crobat in the center. “So, you choose that Espeon as your pokemon for this match?” Janine asks.
The Tsunami Samurai nods.
Janine shrugs, “Are you sure?”
The Tsunami Samurai looks at Espeon and shrugs. He looks back at Janine. “Sure enough. Espe-“
“–Just making sure. That Espeon is, well… nevermind. If you’re sure and you’re sure that you’re sure, then you’re sure. So, like, are you–“
“Yes,” the trainer responds. “Espeon seems fine and I’m good, Janine, so let’s get started. Clefable also looks eager,” the Tsunami Samurai (often referred to as ‘the trainer’) says, shaking his head. He scratches his forehead. “You okay? You seem a little nervous.”
Janine’s eyes are blank. “Nope. Not me,” she says, scoffing. “I, Janine, of the Fuschia City Gym, Daughter of the Great Gym Leader Koga, have no such concern for any opponent…” Janine eyes the trainer down and glares at Espeon.
Espeon yawns.
“Eeeeeep!” Janine yelps, scurrying behind her alpha Clefable. Her hands shake as she peeks from behind her pokemon. Confused, she looks at Espeon, then at the trainer. She clears her throat. “That was a test of your reflexes,” Janine says, stoic and calm, casually sauntering from behind Clefable. She pretends not to notice Espeon, but her visible attempts at avoiding eye contact with the it arose Espeon’s curiosity. It senses Janine’s uneasiness and feels compelled by it.
Espeon teleports next to Janine.
“Waaaaaaaaaaaah!” Janine shrieks, abrupt and irrational. She flails her arms up and covers her mouth. Her knees rattle until she forces herself to maintain her bearing.
Espeon inches closer to Janine, while Janine inches back. It sticks its paw out, teasing and mocking. Espeon snickers when it realizes it can taunt Janine with no ramifications. “Esp..pe…on?” she utters, moving her paw back and forth.
“Do you know Espeon?” the trainer asks Janine, also intrigued.
Janine shrugs. “What gave you that impression?” she says, climbing over her alpha Clefable while avoiding Espeon’s face. “I do’t think we’ve met. Ever. I don’t know this Espeon. It’s just really spooky with its big black eyes. Also, whenever Saku– I mean, Espeon — I mean, eh, heh. Heh. Heh. Whoops,” Janine says, scratching her head and combing her short hair with her fingers. “Saku, saku — like the pokemon…”
“I know Nekotama’s name is Sakura. It told me that’s what its trainer calls her,” the Tsunami Samurai responds, breaking the awkward silence. “Nekotama and I have been traveling together for a long time. Several years now. We have nothing except the memories we brought with us. I forgot that pokemon other than the Nidoran species had genders for some reason. So, other than the recent discovery of Nekotama’s gender, I doubt you have to much to relay that I don’t already know,” he says.
Janine smirks. “Is that so? So, you know Espeon’s trainer is, like, M-I-A and has been for years. Almost a decade. Her disappearance is throwing off the chronological order of significance events in history because she’s the Medium that faces off against specific challengers. She faces them using Sakura,” Janine says, solemn and concerned. “This whole Emerald Dragon business has everyone concerned because the dragon can cross the cosmic ocean.”
“Cosmic ocean?” the trainer repeats, curious. “I am not sure what you mean, Janine,” he says.
Janine shrugs. “I don’t know that I full understand it myself, but the same way the Mediums work with Arceus to maintain order with the Source Unown, there are pokemon, and people, who can leave Earth and swim to other points in time and space without using Arceus’ power, or getting approval from divine pokemon. Those pokemon are few and far between, but have power beyond our comprehension. The Emerald Dragon, which we suspect is a Rayquaza, is linked to Espeon’s trainer’s disappearance. Espeon’s trainer was, like, one of four who could commune with all the Source Unown. The other two are also gone and one of them…,” Janine says, pausing and putitng her head down. She raises her red scarf over her mouth. “Forget it, trainer, or Tsunami Samurai, let’s just do this.”
“No,” the trainer shouts. “Say what you were going to say. It seemed important.”
Janine squirms. “Did anyone tell you exactly why you and that Espeon are here? And, why, specifically, it’s you and that Espeon?” she asks, sighing. After more awkward silence, she finally says, “A person can’t just commune with the Source Unown because they decide to. You don’t just get a Source Pokeball and whack Unown with it because it makes for a good story.” Janine pauses, pensively examining the trainer and suspiciously observing Espeon. “There are four Elite Trainers who have been given certain privileges by Arceus, Palkia and Dialga, and the 26 Source Unown. Two of those four trainers have special Eeveelutions: an Espeon that evolved at midnight and an Umbreon that evolved during sunrise as I’m sure you know. The mediums see everything that happens in this space because time converges in certain places across time and space: the three lakes and Mirage Island are among them.”
“I am not sure I’m following the relevance, Janine,” the Tsunami Samurai states, trying to understand. “What does this have to do with anything?”
“That Espeon scares me. That’s it, okay. That Espeon and it s amazing trainer both terrify me. I have her trainer’s posters on my wall. She’s a big deal. You’re both… I can’t say anything. This is a test and you are passing. You both have a long way to go, but you’re both passing. You and her. Umbreon and Espeon.”
“Um, okay?” the Tsunami Samurai says, uncertain what to make of that information. “Espeon, ready?”
“Paaaaaiiiiii-Yuuuurruuuu!”
PSN / Twitch / Twitter / Instagram: @beautifulmedium
Feedback is appreciated, but unnecessary. Tell people about it if it’s good. Tell me it sucks if it’s bad.
Watch my streams, or join them, if you would like. I like to have fun and keep it as casual as possible.
Mark or “bm” is cool. Meet me in-game if possible and let’s do stuff.
Thanks for reading.
Mark's Blog 