Gyarados vs Dhelmise and the aftermath.

As a terrifying roar fills the cavern, you can feel the ground itself shake slightly. The entire room seems to vibrate, loose pebbles and dust falling from the ceiling. You’re briefly worried about the possibility of a cave-in, and about ending up in some sort of compromising position in the dark, but thankfully nothing that crazy happens. The shriek dies down after several seconds, and you all stop cowering long enough to look back up at the enraged water and flying type.

As it glowers down at Ed and his Dhelmise, the man’s two lackey’s wrap their arms around each other in fear and scream in terror. The big man himself however, remains composed. “Well now! Here is a surprise! You… You have been full of surprises, little girl. I cannot believe I am saying this, but I am actually impressed.”

“Save the praise for after I’ve beaten you! Now, uh…” Kayla is quickly scanning her Pokédex, looking through the Pokétracker app to figure out what her newly evolved Pokémon can do. “One new move… Oh!” Her face lights up in excitement. “Gyarados, use Bite!”

The floating sea serpent shrieks again as it slaps its tail against the earthen floor, propelling itself forward. “Use Shadow Claw!” Ed commands his partner. As the water type approaches, Dhelmise’s anchor becomes wreathed in purple and black energy. The two collide, Gyarados sinking its fangs into the ghost type while its foe slices its shadowy anchor across the furious Pokémon’s flank.

“Now, Gyarados-“ Before Kayla can finish her command, her partner begins to wildly slam its head back and forth, ramming the Alolan Pokémon into the ground on either side of it repeatedly. “Oh, uh… Yeah! That works, do that!”

“Dhelmise, Shadow Claw again!” The bearded man orders his ghost and grass type. The same dark energy gathers on its anchor, but it fails to connect as it gets flung about by the infuriated sea serpent. “Bah, use Rapid Spin to break free!” The brown-eyed man snaps. His partner complies, spinning in the water type’s mouth at incredible speed and damaging the inside of its mouth. Gyarados is far too angry to feel the pain however, and just clamps its jaws down harder, giving the ghost type another super-effective Bite.

As the seaweed-wrapped Pokémon lets out a strangled cry of pain, Kayla taunts the older man. “What’s the matter? I thought you were ‘looking forward to breaking that paper-thin veil of confidence I have’ or whatever. How’s that working out?”

The dark-skinned man glowers at her, fists clenched in rage. You and Daniel stare in awe, both at the intense battle and at the girl you both care about. She’s rebounded in a big way, and exudes confidence. She’s far from her frequently timid usual self, she’s a **** to be reckoned with.

Gyarados slams Dhelmise into the ground yet again, and the Alolan Pokémon cries out in pain, clearly at the end of its rope. Taking a deep breath, Ed closes his eyes for a moment… then opens them, full of purpose and belief in his own partner. “Dhelmise, Giga Drain!” The grass type shoots out red tendrils of energy that latch onto the sea serpent, ready to suck the life out of it.

The Vermillion girl is prepared though, and she responds immediately. “Throw it away, Gyarados! Chuck it at the wall!” She needs to get Dhelmise away from her Pokémon; even though the attack won’t be super-effective thanks to Gyarados’ flying type, the opponent’s Pokémon healing could well turn this battle back in Ed’s favor. Just as green life-**** starts to be sucked out of the water type, it whips its head around one last time, releasing Dhelmise and sending it careening towards the cave wall.

“Catch yourself Dhelmise!” The black-haired man orders, but it’s too late. His weakened ghost type collides with the stone, crashing into it breaking through nearly a foot of solid rock before collapsing and sliding to the ground. “Get back up!” The buff man shouts, waiting for his Pokémon to obey. The Alolan Pokémon simply lays there, however, unmoving. ****. The battle is over. “Dhelmise… you…” The male trainer looks genuinely shocked, and a look of concern passes over his face, as well as a bit of a grimacing smile. “How long has it been since you lost a battle, my oldest friend? This is…”

“Fuck yeah, Kay! Way to go!” Daniel runs up to his **** and tackles her into a hug.

Running up, you join in, wrapping your arms around both of them. “That was incredible Kayla! Absolutely amazing!”

Gyarados floats over to join you all, bringing its face down next to its trainers.

The girl strokes the trident-like crest of her Pokémon affectionately. “Th-Thanks, guys. I just got lucky though, if it hadn’t been for-“ Kayla’s humbleness gets interrupted by a loud sound echoing through the cavern

“GRRRRAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!” Ed’s roar nearly matches that of Gyarados’ from earlier in terms of both volume and raw fury. All five other people in the room flinch, the two goons specifically holding each other in fear yet again. Kayla’s Gyarados spins to face the raging man, as if prepared to battle him. That’s just how powerful the large man’s cry of anger is, it’s setting off everyone’s warning bells.

Eventually the extended scream stops, and the bearded man starts taking deep breaths, both for air and to calm himself. After a tense minute where everyone just watches him breathe, too scared to do anything, he opens his eyes. Calmly recalling his Dhelmise, he begins to stride over toward your trio with purpose. Gyarados growls down at him, but the dark-skinned man ignores the sea serpent’s threat. You and Daniel both try to stand in front of Kayla, but the brunette pushes past you both, meeting her fallen opponent head on.

Wordlessly, the brown-eyed man pulls out his Pokédex, transferring his defeat fee over to the victor. He looks her up and down slowly, an unreadable expression on his face, before finally speaking. “You are the most skilled trainer of your little band here. I hope you know that, Kayla.”

Not even reacting to his first use of her name, the green-eyed girl shakes her head. “Wrong. You’re in no place to judge my friends’ skills. All of Daniel’s Pokémon are weak to either ground or dark, while you had a Krokorok, and you didn’t even battle Red. They’re both just as good as me, and I won’t take a compliment that insults them.”

Ed looks down at the tiny girl, who stares up at him defiantly. “Hmph. I see… We are done here. Move along.” There’s little trace of warmth to the man’s face, but an undeniable respect is in his eyes as he looks at the slim young woman he just lost to.

The less skilled trainers behind Ed look shocked and deflated, and one of them murmurs. “Can’t believe he lost…”

The black-haired man spins around and growls at his lackey. “Another word and you take her place on my cock tonight, Tim!” The redhead yipes, staring at the floor.

“Come on back, Gyarados. You did amazing, thank you so much.” Kayla gives her evolved Pokémon a kiss on the forehead, and it growls happily as she returns it to its ball. “Let’s go, guys.” She says, turning to you both.

“…Yeah.” Her master replies quietly, lacking his previous and usual enthusiasm.

“One second.” You respond, before quickly challenging that brown-haired guy who may not even have a name to a battle. He has no usable Pokémon, so he’s **** to pay you 120 PD.

The man grumbles, then turns to his boss. “Ed, can’t you knock this guy down a peg? Might be a good way to blow off some steam.”

Your eyes flick to Ed’s belt, where you see a total of six Pokéballs. Three fresh Pokémon, still ready to fight… “Not in the mood.” The big man says, sitting down on a rock and staring at Kayla.

Deciding to count your blessings and ignore the man, you turn back to your friends. “Time to go?” They both nod, though the golden-haired boy seems a bit… drained. The three of you leave, pushing forward through the cave. Kayla never meets Ed’s eyes, but the bearded man stares at her the entire time you’re all within view.

…

Several more hours pass, the rest of the day’s journey being without incident. The only living things you run into are more bats, which Daniel doesn’t even comment on. He’s seemed subdued ever since right after Kayla’s victory, and he just lets your Pikachu and the brunettes’s Gyarados deal with the wild Pokémon, since his are still fainted. Your trio is far more quiet than normal, even when you or the mousy girl try to get the blonde to talk. His replies are short and stilted, and he rarely makes eye contact. You and his **** share worried glances every so often, not being used to this dour Daniel.

The one good thing is that you all make it to the next campsite with ease, your map guiding you flawlessly. You all slump down, exhausted after a full day of hiking, and you have Charmeleon get a fire going. Daniel sets about unpacking his cooking equipment, but is stopped by Kayla’s grip on his wrist. “Huh? What-“ The muscular boy’s words are cut off by the slim girl sitting in his lap, straddling him.

Grabbing either side of her master’s face, the brunette asks “What’s wrong?” The young blonde man does not respond, he simply averts his gaze. “Daniel Surge, tell me what is wrong! You’ve been acting depressed ever since I beat Ed. I can… kinda guess what’s going on, but… Tell me.”

The blue-eyed boy flinches slightly at her tone, but shifts his gaze back to meet hers. “I couldn’t protect you. I couldn’t do a damn thing. And you heard that guy, I was nothing compared to him. Compared to you.”

You can sympathize with the blonde on that point. You failed to do anything to help Kayla as well, really, and this isn’t the first time. You weren't there to help Blue on Route 3 either, not that you could have done anything, but it weighs on you. It must be even harder for Daniel though. He’s used to being the one… in charge, essentially. He always speaks up first, always takes the lead for your troop, always throws himself into things first. He’s also always been the one to stand up for Kayla, ever since they were children. Today may very well be the first time he’s… failed at that.

The green-eyed girl takes a deep breath, staring into her lover’s eyes. “Daniel, Red; thank you both very much for wanting to protect me. And honestly? I hope you keep doing so. A girl needs all the help she can get out here. But…” She pulls the blonde’s handsome face even closer to hers. “You won’t always succeed. We’ve gotten very lucky so far, and I’ve only had to have sex when I’ve wanted to, with people I’ve wanted to. That will not last. There will be times where no one can protect me, not even myself, and I’ll have to deal with the consequences. And so will you. I accepted that before I even became a trainer and I need you to accept that as well. Please?”

You nod, not feeling the need to say anything. You’ve had this own mental struggle about Blue after her gangbang, and you’ve come to terms with it. Not that you and Blue’s relationship is anything like Daniel and Kayla’s, but still. You’re prepared for the eventualities.

“What if I don’t want to accept it?” Daniel says quietly. “What if I don’t want to think about that? What if I don’t want to deal with that!?” His voice picks up in volume. “What if I want to never have to see you go through that kinda thing!? What if I want to be able to keep protecting you!? What do I do!?”

“That’s easy. I’ll quit being a trainer.”

The girl’s words send shocks up both of your spines. The Vermillion boy sputters. “Wh-Wha- Fucking what!?”

“I’ll resign as a trainer and turn in my badges. Then we won’t need to worry about any forfeits.” Kayla responds calmly. “I’ll still travel with you, still be your ****. I’ll just be safe from forfeits. I’ll be yours, and only have to have sex with you and people you tell me to. Simple, right?”

The steadiness to her voice and calmness in her eyes tell you both that she is one hundred percent serious here. She isn’t kidding around… and yet Daniel starts laughing, as if she is telling a joke. “Ehehehe… I’m a fucking idiot, aren’t I Kay?” His pained expression flips into a wry smile, and the mousy girl matches it.

“Yup. But we’re all idiots sometimes, don’t beat yourself up over it. So?”

The blonde boy chuckles, shaking his head. “You got me. I’ll… I’ll learn to live with it. I’ll find a way to manage. No way in hell I’m letting you quit being a trainer. I’ll just… have to be strong for you in another way… Sorry for being dumb, Kay.”

“No apology necessary. Thank you, Daniel. I… Thank you.” Kayla locks lips with her master, small tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

You sigh in relief, both at Daniel’s quick rebound and at Kayla’s continued trainerhood. Scooting over to join the pair, you wrap them both up in a hug. “Don’t scare me like that, guys. And Daniel, never act so damned gloomy ever again. Even just this short while was hard to bear.”

The brunette switches from his lips and goes to yours, and Daniel replies. “My bad. I’ll stick to being in your face and optimistic from now on… Thanks for that, you guys.”

Pulling off of Kayla’s lips, you say “I barely did anything. Our girl here did all the work.” Said girl giggles, squeezing up against both of you.

“Still, thanks… Now, much as I would love to continue cuddling with you two, I do need to actually make dinner. Any requests?”

“Spaghetti!” Kayla demands.

“I can do spaghetti. Sound good, Casanova?”

“Sure thing.” You reply with a smile. The three of you disentangle, letting Daniel get to work on dinner. You and the green-eyed girl help as best you can, all laughing and joking together again as you cook. The darker second half of your day already feels like a distant memory as you all settle back into your usual dynamic, and you marvel at just how nice it is to have a norm with people like these two. The best friends you’ve ever had.