CHAPTER FIVE: Dawn of the flame
I didn't understand. But of course, the answer was obvious. It was the collar. As Blake shouted a command, some aggressive capability that had been hiding in the darkest depths of my neurological instincts revealed itself. Suddenly, I could feel my options, my capabilities so easily. A small wisp of fire sprouted from the Zigzagoon's breast, and quickly disappeared. The Zigzagoon yelped in pain and recoiled. Its hind legs collapsed and it started licking the spot where the fire had burnt it.
"Ace, the Pokémon's weak! Finish him now, with a tackle!"
I leaned forward, focusing on the Zigzagoon, and then ran towards it speedily. Before the Zigzagoon could even react, I smashed into its side with a forceful impetus and watched it slide across the damp earth. I jumped into the air and flew to the place where the Zigzagoon lay, unconscious. All of a sudden, The Zigzagoon's hind legs sprung upwards and it leapt at me, sailing into the air with its paws outstretched. I had no time to react, and the Zigzagoon slashed its claws at me while it was sailing through the air. An unbearable pain travelled up my spine, and I fell to the dirt ground, the air knocked out of my lungs. I stood up, the soil below me wet with blood dripping from my skin. I tried to stand upright again, only to be knocked down by another tackle from the Zigzagoon.
"Ace, use Ember!"
It was a voice echoing through a world that was falling apart, and was being conquered by darkness. All the pain that were burning my wounds faded away, and I couldn't feel my body's own physical presence anymore. I felt myself plummeting to the bottom of a dark abyss...as I fell, the world vanished, and only a Pokémon still stayed in my vision. It was a beautiful deer, a spectrum of light forming as bright light passed through its horns. They entered my eyes, illuminating the walls of the abyss, and suddenly, the light became too bright for my eyes to handle, and when they darkened, I felt a cold liquid rushing down my throat. My eyes snapped open, and my vision was blurry and fuzzy. A moment later, I came back to my senses, and my vision had recovered. I stood up, and realized I was in some kind of mini-bed. Blake was looking at me, his face taking short glances at me, and his hand holding some miniature bottle, and from it, some sweet medicine was dripping and falling into my mouth.
"I'm sorry, Ace," he said, his face suddenly turning blue.
I didn't like to see him sad, so I said, "It wasn't your fault. Don't worry."
And that was the truth. It was my fault. I was horrible at combat. Everyone knew that. Being born as a stupid flying type, and worse- as a stupid Fletchling, was no use, except for picking berries. Out of all the flying types or dragon types, I had to be born as a stupid Fletchling. Why not a Charizard, or a Staraptor, or a Garchomp?
I collected all these thoughts and disposed them with a miserable sigh.
"Don't worry, I'm sure that you'll improve. Come on, I need to serve you your dinner. "
I flew to his shoulder and perched myself on top of it. Blake silently trotted to the kitchen, and after he entered it, he approached the berry grinder. I watched him grind some Oran berries, then mix some Charcoal powder with it, and then he grinded a few Rawst berries and added them to the Charcoal-Oran mixture. Then he dropped them into a bowl, added some chocolate essence, and then placed it on a small table.
"That's a Burnberry mixture. It's very good for fire types. Try it, you'll love it. I'll be waiting for you near the grass route!" I hopped off his shoulder and he walked away, exiting my vision. I lowered my head and took a bite of the Burnberry mixture. As it entered my mouth, my mind was filled with a feeling of grace and bliss. It was delicious, better than anything I had ever ingested in my life. It had a sweet, soft and smooth taste to it. I then started wolfing it down, my taste-buds relishing the flavor.
After I had eaten it, I sprung into the air and flew through the house, until I found an open window. I glided gently out of the house, cold air brushing against my feathers. Moonlight poured onto the silhouette of Blake, standing near the entrance to the route. I settled on the ground once again, and then Blake crouched, and whispered something in my ear.
"Maybe, being defensive is not your strongest point. But maybe, agility is. Let's try to attack our foe, with a mix of offense and surprise with speed. Come on, follow me."
The idea sounded pretty good to me, so I played along with him. I stayed behind his leg, and he signaled me to wait and watch. I stuck my head out, because Blake's leg was blocking my path of vision. I watched a Hoothoot, walking casually with a Caterpie flailing in its mouth. Blake spun around, and shouted,
"Attack him, now!"
I leapt into the air, flapping my wings wildly. I started flying, and pressing my wings close to my body, gaining speed and momentum as I shot towards the unsuspecting Hoothoot like a bullet.
"Ace, use Peck!"Blake said, even though he knew that I already knew what to do.
I collided with the Hoothoot with great power, and with my beak stretched out at a special angle. The Hoothoot flew back, rolling on its back, and it dropped the Caterpie, which was crawling away from the scene.
"Use an Ember!"
Before the Hoothoot could stand up again, a small flame exploded from underneath it, burning it severely.
"Ace, use Quick attack!"
The Hoothoot now stood up, and it's eyes were filled with fury. But there was nothing it could do, as I vanished in a flash of light and attacked him from the back. It was sent sailing through the air.
"Finish him off with another Ember!"
Even before the Hoothoot could land, another weak fire exploded from underneath it. The Hoothoot then fell to the ground, unconscious.
"Excellent work, Ace!" Blake said, rushing to my side. I smiled a little, and my heart was pounding with pride. I hopped on to Blake's palm as he stretched it out. He dropped me on his shoulder, and we walked back home. Blake immediately walked to his bedroom and fell asleep, while I didn't feel like sleeping. I flew to the top of the house, and perched myself there, looking at the stars. A few minutes later, I fell asleep out of tiredness.