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Cal is fucking pissed.
Shelly had to see a body fall from Beryl Bridge and go from in tact to splatter, overhear the Grand Stairway get bombed, and get talked down to by two members of Team Meteor, one of who said something that very well could have outed Cal as one of them. Then, right after he had gotten her to calm down somewhat, some fucking jackass showed up for a Gym Battle and harassed her into shutting down.
It would be no exaggeration to call this the worst night of the poor girl’s life. So now, as another guy, Cain, watches over Shelly, Cal heads outside into the rain to make sure no other challengers show up… just in time to see two girls approach the building.
He recognizes the girl with the long, dark brown hair as the chump who was here earlier, when that Shade creep showed up and made the body disappear. Cal thinks her name was… Carly? She’s with a black haired girl he doesn’t recognize.
“NOPE, no fuckin’ way,” Cal barks, taking Torkoal’s Poké Ball in hand. “After that last shit-weasel? Gym’s fuckin’ closed, get outta here!”
Carly holds up her hands, bright green eyes widening a bit. “Wait, we’re not—!”
Cal doesn’t listen, sending out his Pokémon.
“Oh, uh, guess we’re doing this!” Carly says, taking a Poké Ball from her belt and sending out a Brionne.
Torkoal’s Drought activates, and the generated light combines with the rain to create a Rainbow Field Effect, colors shimmering in the air. Carly looks at the rainbows with what seems like awe, weirdly enough.
Cal, to his irritation, finds himself falling behind. By a shit ton. In fact, he’s nearly soloed, mainly because the Brionne evolves into Primarina after taking down Torkoal, and the field boosts Sparkling Aria. It only goes down from a burn after defeating four of Cal’s five Pokémon, and an Ampharos is sent out to take its place.
“What’s your FUCKING problem, huh?!” Cal demands as he sends out Charmeleon.
The two girls exchange an incredulous look at that.
Thanks to Thunder Wave and Electro Ball, Charmeleon goes down soon enough, too.
“Can’t you chumps take a goddamn hint?” Cal shouts as they recall their Pokémon. “I said before— the Gym is CLOSED.”
“We’re not here to battle!” Carly claims.
“Then what the fuck are you here for?!” Cal demands.
“We just want to check on Shelly!” Carly says.
Cal blinks. “What.”
“We were worried about how she was doing after seeing… that,” Carly says with a grimace.
“And Carly and I saw the last challenger on his way out. He was gloating about his sour win,” the black haired girl adds. “You mentioned he’s why you’re upset, right? I just about got as steamed as you are at him, but I’m a bit better at keeping calm. And then Carly gave him a walloping. So, in a way, justice is served.”
Carly nods. “Also, our friend Cain was supposed to come by here. Have you seen him?”
Oh. Now that Cal thinks about it, Cain had mentioned that a pair of his friends would be coming around, didn’t he? Cal had just gotten so swept up in defending Shelly that he…
…maybe these two will be good for her, though. He’s… aware, that a hothead like him isn’t the best comfort to a traumatized child…
“I see, and yeah, he’s here,” Cal ends up saying. “Come on in, I guess.”
He heads inside, and the two girls soon follow.
Cal waits downstairs for a bit as the duo heads up. Should he go up too? He wouldn’t want to upset Shelly, and he still feels a bit steamed, so maybe it would be best to wait.
He stands there for a minute or two, calming down somewhat— not entirely, but when does he ever?— before deciding to go upstairs, not only to comfort Shelly, but to keep an eye on the other three. As nice as they seem, he could be wrong, and he’d hate for Shelly to end up feeling even worse because of something he could stop from happening.
Seems he’s a bit too late, though, because he walks in just in time to hear Shelly make a choked squeaking noise as her eyes widen and her face pales.
“Oh no…” she says. “No, nonono—”
“What the fuck did you do?!” Cal questions.
The others all look panicked as Cain speaks. “I-I just asked if anyone had seen—”
He’s cut off by Shelly starting to hyperventilate. “That man, t-that was— that was Heather’s— I’m— I’m going to—”
She vomits right onto the floor.
After a moment of stunned silence, Cal goes and gets a rag and a bucket of water, then walks down to the building’s entrance while Carly and the black haired girl— Victoria, Carly calls her— clean the mess and comfort Shelly.
Cain is standing by the door, staring at the ground. He apologizes and leaves, which… is probably for the best.
God. Cal had no clue Shelly knew the dead guy. What are the fucking odds? This just makes things even worse than he thought. How is he supposed to help with this? He’s never been great with emotional stuff…
…isn’t there a psychiatrist or therapist or whatever the fuck the term is in the ward? He knows he saw a sign for one a few times. Maybe he can help Shelly? Certainly better than Cal can.
Eventually, Carly and Victoria come down the stairs.
“Shelly’s asleep. She conked out pretty quickly once she calmed down,” Carly says. “Poor girl… she definitely needs some sort of help, after that…”
“There’s a doctor nearby. Doctor Connor or whatever. Would you two mind asking if he’ll see Shelly tomorrow?” Cal requests. “I’d do it myself, but I’d prefer not to leave her alone.”
“We understand. We’ll be back first thing tomorrow, okay?” Victoria says.
Cal nods, and the two girls leave for the night.
He sighs, heading back up to Shelly’s room and getting ready for bed, then gets situated on the couch with a blanket and pillow.
But unfortunately, sleep doesn’t exactly come easy, the events of the last few hours running through his mind.
Fucking green haired prick. Who talks to a child that way, especially one that was so obviously just crying (she’d literally been so upset even before that challenger came around that she’d started to cry, god)? And Cal’s sure he’d only done it because Shelly had been winning in their battle. It’s not like it was her fault that that jerk had only brought along four Pokémon.
Cal’s also still admittedly a bit steamed about that one Meteor dropping his codename in front of Shelly. Are the others getting pissy because someone’s apparently been causing trouble for them, or is that chump just stupid?
If Shelly had found out he’s part of Team Meteor… he’s not sure what he’d do.
Despite the age difference, Shelly might be the closest friend Cal has ever had. She’s one of very few people who looks at him and sees “Cal” instead of “Blake’s younger brother.” But she probably wouldn’t want to see him ever again, if she knew he was with Meteor.
And then there’s a much pettier aspect of the encounter that upset him— hearing his codename. Does Meteor think they’re funny, sticking him with “Canis Minor” when his brother is “Canis Major?”
Blake sure does, at the very least, and has made his amusement at it clear to Cal on multiple occasions. Spouts something about “perks of seniority” whenever Cal complains. But while it’s true Blake’s been part of Team Meteor for much longer, sometimes Cal gets the feeling they still would’ve wound up with the same respective codenames even if they’d joined at the same time.
Maybe Cal could’ve gotten Canis Major if he’d joined first… but then, he knows he never would’ve joined if he hadn’t found out Blake had.
…Cal’s thoughts are drifting into places he’d rather they not. But stopping that from happening has never been a skill of his, so he’s awake for much longer than he’d like to be before he finally gets some sleep.
— — —
The next morning, Victoria comes back.
“Carly will be here soon. She’s asking that doctor to come see Shelly,” she says. “I decided to come ahead, see how she’s doing.”
Cal’s happy to know that Shelly has more people looking out for her. She’s a strong kid, moreso then she realizes, but she’s still a preteen on the other side of the world from her home, and freshly traumatized to boot. She still seems just as shaken as she was last night, so she needs all the help she can get. So he takes Victoria upstairs to wait together and soothe Shelly as she trembles on the couch.
Carly shows up soon enough, seeming strangely unnerved. “Um… the doctor said he’ll come by to see Shelly in a bit…”
“A d-doctor…? Am I sick…?” Shelly asks.
“Oh, honey— not sick, no,” Victoria says softly. “We just want to make sure you’re holding up okay.”
“Oh, um, that reminds me, there’s something I wanted to ask you, Shelly,” Carly says. “You’re friends with Heather, right? Is there any way you could get her to come here, or maybe you know where we could find her?”
Why the fuck is she asking Shelly that? Shouldn’t she focus on herself, for now?
But to Cal’s surprise, she sits up straighter, realization dawning on her face. “…that’s right. What am I even c-complaining about…? Heather’s the one who lost her dad… I know how to get her here, yes.”
She stands from the couch, but Victoria gently makes her sit down again. Tells her to keep resting. Shelly considers it, but then shakes her head. Says she’s already had a whole night to rest, and insists on finding Heather, and even having a Gym Battle with Carly after. And once they confirm that Shelly is sure, she leaves.
“…I’m glad that worked,” Carly says.
“Wait. Did you ask her to find Heather to make her feel better?” Victoria asks.
“Yeah, actually,” Carly says. “I mean, obviously I also want to find Heather for her own sake. But someone at the orphanage said something that made me think that helping her might make Shelly feel better. Distract her. I’m sure they’re both really upset about Corey, and… and… actually, Heather ran off before he… does she even know…?”
Cal, Carly, and Victoria stare at each other for a moment in wide eyed silence as the realization that they may have to inform a twelve year old her dad is dead sinks in.
“…Arceus. Is it too much to hope for that neither of them need that doctor?” Carly mutters.
“Probably… wait, why?” Cal asks.
“Um… the kids at the orphanage said some stuff about the doctor that… well, I’m not sure he’ll actually be able to help Shelly,” Carly confesses, fiddling with her hair a bit. “In fact, I was going to just leave without telling him about her, but… I-I dunno, he figured out I was there to ask for something a-and he just… I dunno, I just ended up telling him!”
“Why the fuck didn’t you just leave?” Cal asks, agitated.
Carly frowns apologetically. “I’m sorry, I just—”
“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Victoria interrupts. “Maybe what the kids said was an exaggeration, or you just misinterpreted it. But just in case it’s not, we can watch while the doctor talks to Shelly. If he just makes her feel worse, we can ask him to leave. Will that work?”
“…fine. I guess that’ll be okay,” Cal says.
“Yeah. I’m… going to go start the Gym puzzle, then,” Carly says, then leaves.
Cal and Victoria chat a bit, and he talks about how he met Shelly. A little after Carly has headed through to the arena, Victoria suggests they try meditating, which… well, why not? Honestly, it’s a skill he could probably use.
Though he’s predictably dogshit at it. Victoria says the goal is to clear one’s mind, but thoughts run through Cal’s head.
He’s worried about this doctor. What if Carly’s fears are right, and he just makes Shelly feel worse? Cal seriously considers just turning the man away once he shows up.
But then… there’s a chance talking to the doctor will make Shelly feel better. And wasn’t Cal thinking she needs all the help she can get right now just a little while ago?
He ends up deciding that Victoria’s plan is best just as Shelly and Carly come back. And the doctor, Sigmund Connal, arrives just after that.
Carly guides Shelly to sit down on the couch, then moves out of the way. She shares a look and subtle nod with Cal and Victoria. The second this man says something to make Shelly feel worse, he’s gone.
Except it doesn’t quite go as expected.
It’s fine for all of a few minutes, tops. Then Sigmund sets his sights on Cal. Seems oddly interested in his and Shelly’s friendship.
A mention of Cal’s reasons for joining the League has him looking away bitterly. And then Sigmund reveals that he’s heard the details of Cal leaving the League.
The memory makes Cal stiffen up. Look back to the old man and tell him to shut up.
That fight was… fuck, Cal tries his damndest to think about it as little as possible. Quite possibly the worst defeat he’s ever suffered, it makes his battle with Carly from last night look like a near win. And the way Blake acted afterwards…
But Sigmund seems determined to prod. Asks if Cal is in denial, or embarrassed. And it only makes him angrier.
Carly and Victoria both speak up, but Cal can hardly hear it, especially when Sigmund implies Shelly’s timidness may be Cal’s fault.
This is fucking stupid. What does Sigmund know about Cal? The chump is a doctor for children. But when Cal points this out, the man all but flat out calls him one.
Cal’s blood boils.
Carly and Victoria both attempt to speak up again, and soon Shelly does too, but Cal is too angry to care.
Until Shelly lightly touches his arm. “Cal, please, he was just trying to understand—”
“Understand WHAT, exactly?” Cal demands, whipping around to face her.
“That we both just want to be seen and loved by our brothers!”
“Like HELL I do!”
There’s a sound, and some gasps, and then everything goes silent. Shelly, having fallen back onto the couch, looks up at Cal with fear on her face.
“Wait,” he says, face going pale. He’s not even able to look straight at her for a moment. At the mark on her cheek. “No, I’m—”
He takes a step closer to her. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to—”
And Shelly flinches.
Cal feels a hand on his shoulder. Hears a stern “Step away from the girl, Mr. Whitaker.”
Cal looks back at Sigmund. “‘Mr. Whitaker?’ Last time I heard that was… was…”
“My condolences, but your father, Mr. Whitaker, has passed away.”
“I’m… going,” Cal says, before pushing past Sigmund and running away. Down the stairs and out of the building.
Cal can’t believe himself. He… he hurt Shelly. He hit her, just because she said something he didn’t like. He laid a hand on a child. His friend.
He swore to himself that he wouldn’t be like his father. Blake is already enough like that man, and the world doesn’t need two of him.
But that promise was a load of bullshit. Cal is too much like his father and he knows it. Has known it. He’s got all the same flaws, he just told himself he was better because he doesn’t hit children. And now he can’t even say that.
So when Victoria comes outside, Cal doesn’t make excuses. She lightly touches his arm, and he tries to push her away, though not literally this time.
And then she offers to take him to the school she attends. Says the sensei, Kiki, can help him learn to control his emotions.
He knows that’s exactly what he needs, so he agrees, and they leave.
Cal just hopes he can be better.
— — —
Apophyll Academy is nice.
Kiki welcomes Cal, as do the students. And he dives into the teachings.
It’s not always easy. Anger issues don’t just go away overnight.
But Kiki is an incredible teacher. Capable of both kindness and sternness. Always seems to know the right thing to say. Doesn’t coddle Cal, but doesn’t get angry at him, instead seeing each of his mistakes as a chance to learn a lesson.
A couple days into his stay, she recommends he stop gelling his hair.
“Why? Is focusing too much on my appearance bad, or something?” Cal asks.
Kiki shakes her head. Lightly touches Cal’s arm with a small smile. “Of course not. Self expression through one’s appearance is not inherently wrong, and can in fact be a valuable tool to understand oneself. I just believe that you might perhaps be happier if you stopped styling your hair this way.”
It’s an odd suggestion. But Cal tries it… and he actually finds that he has an easier time looking at his reflection.
Victoria is a big help, too. Always ready to help him with learning the lessons or understanding the instructions to whatever task he’s been given. Her encouragement and assistance are invaluable, really.
“Hey, it’s okay, just try again,” Victoria says after Cal gets distracted while trying to meditate for what must be the fifth time in a row.
“I don’t know, maybe I just can’t do this…” he mutters. “None of the others have this much trouble with it…”
“That’s not true at all, it’s just because they all have more experience with it. And lots of them have trouble with it even now, you just don’t realize because you don’t know what to look out for,” Victoria says. “Everyone had the same issues you’re having when they first started. I did, and even Kiki says she did. But the journey is just as important as the destination. So let’s try again…”
And Cal keeps trying, keeps putting in the work, day by day. He feels both incredibly different, and all too much the same. Others say he is doing amazingly, but he can’t help but wonder if it’s true. He still often finds himself starting to get angry, he just calms down more easily. But maybe that’s just the first step.
Now, he sits atop Pyrous Mountain, trying to meditate… although he still is not very good at it. He has a lot to think about, after all, since Team Meteor…
“Hey, Cal.”
“…Carly. What are you doing here?” Cal asks, looking up at her.
“Kiki wants me to battle you… but I also wanted to talk,” Carly says. “Can I sit with you?”
“All right,” Cal says.
He’s surprised. He would have expected her to be upset at him. The last time he saw her was when he hurt Shelly, and that wasn’t all too long ago. He hasn’t been keeping perfect track of time, but he’d guess it’s been around a couple weeks. But Carly seems just fine with him.
She sits down next to him. “So, how are you feeling?”
“Better than I was. I’ve been learning. Victoria was right; this program was exactly what I needed,” Cal says. “I understand now that anger is purposeless. It is a surrender of one’s control over themselves. And that is all we have.”
“Oh, I don’t know, I think it’s just another emotion,” Carly says. “It probably has some uses. But then, I couldn’t really tell you them. And I guess it’s not good to let it get out of control, so it’s good that that’s something you’ve been working on.”
“I have. Because that loss of control caused me to hurt Shelly,” Cal says. “That was the last thing I ever wanted to do.”
He had always thought of himself as Shelly’s protector. Whether it was from gruesome sights or awful challengers, Cal was supposed to be the one that kept her safe. And then he had hurt her.
He looks away from Carly, frowning. “Even now I want to blame that doctor. I want to blame my accursed brother. He always got the attention. He got all the praise for everything, and then anything I ever did was just a sloppy second. I want to say that now he took this from me too.”
There’s also his father, of course. But that seems a bit too heavy to discuss with a near stranger.
He looks back to Carly, who is staring right at him. He didn’t take note of it back in Lapis, too distracted by other things, but her eyes are quite striking.
“Of course, that’s just another way of running from my own responsibility,” he continues. “Victoria has helped me understand that those feelings are the real problem. The enemy isn’t him, but me.”
“It’s true that what you did was really bad, but… I don’t think you’re entirely to blame for what happened,” Carly says. “I can’t say anything about your brother, but Connal shouldn’t have been prodding at you like that. He should’ve stopped and deescalated once you got angry.”
“Maybe. But that doesn’t excuse me getting angry in the first place,” Cal says.
“…it was my fault, too,” Carly says with a frown.
“No, it wasn’t,” Cal says.
“Sure it was. I’d already heard that he was no good. And that only got confirmed after you left,” Carly says. “Some stuff happened, and… well, I think that man’s license should be revoked, and whoever gave it to him should have their license to give licenses revoked. But even before that, I knew enough to know that asking him to see Shelly was a bad idea. But I did it anyway.”
“But in the end, it wasn’t you or him who hurt her. It was me,” Cal says. “And if it didn’t happen then, it probably would’ve just happened later. Looking back, there were definitely times Shelly tip toed around things to avoid provoking me. But that only works for so long, for people with tempers like mine.”
He sighs. “I don’t know how I could possibly stand myself after that. But I have to learn to.”
“That’s good. I don’t think it would do anyone any good if you just hated yourself forever,” Carly says.
“My brother, maybe, but that’s beside the point,” Cal says. “You mentioned you wanted to battle me?”
“Yeah. I really need the Machine for Strength, but Kiki wanted me to battle either you or Victoria first,” Carly explains. “Victoria would’ve been faster, but I can’t really leave Apophyll until some stuff is taken care of— I think you know some of it— and I wanted to see how you were doing, and for some reason I got the feeling Kiki really wanted me to fight you, specifically? So here I am.”
“Kiki’s… just going to give you the Machine, just like that?” Cal asks. “I was under the impression only graduates got access to it.”
That’s why he’d had to steal it, after all.
“These are special circumstances,” Carly says. “It’s a long story, but after you left, me, Shelly, and Cain… well, we got Heather and some other kids out of a bad situation, then we spent a while hiding from some people, and I joined a gang…”
That sounds like several long stories.
“…and then when we tried to leave the city through the abandoned railnet… Team Meteor kidnapped the kids.”
They what?
“…kidnapped?” Cal asks. “Team Meteor… those imbeciles—”
He has to look away. Take a deep breath. “…no. I won’t let them take me from myself.”
But… how dare they? They know that Shelly is— was, Cal’s friend. He knows how much they see. They’ve probably known for a long time, and if they didn’t before, they definitely did after two of them saw her with him outside her Gym.
He looks back to Carly. “…you said you needed Strength?”
“That’s right. There’s some heavy boulders blocking the way to where they are,” Carly explains.
Cal really should tell her the truth. But instead, he nods. “All right, then. I don’t know where to take energy from anymore. Before, everything was simply fueled by my own rage. But let’s battle, for Shelly, and the other kids. Maybe that will fuel me, and if not, I can search for something else that will against you.”
“Great! Let’s do this!” Carly says.
They both stand up, and walk a bit in opposite directions before turning back to each other. Cal sends out his Barbacle, and Carly sends out her Ampharos. Their second battle begins.
Cal actually manages to do a lot better than before, knocking out half of Carly’s team. Maybe it is because he has improved. Or maybe it is just because this field is more suited to his team.
But it still feels oddly empty. Try as he might, Cal can’t really grasp onto something to fuel him. Like he said, he doesn’t want to be fueled by anger anymore, won’t let himself be. But he can’t say he’s doing it for Shelly, either, as while the fight might be for her sake, he’s not the one fighting for her— that’s what Carly is doing. Cal is just her roadblock, and for more reasons than she realizes.
He really should just give her the Machine. But he still hasn’t used it. Besides, she would ask why he has it, and that would lead to his exposure as a Meteor agent. She’d surely tell Victoria and Kiki, and then…
Thankfully he doesn’t have too much time to think about what would happen next, because Carly wins the battle.
“Hm… I seem to have lost my fire after all,” Cal says as they recall their Pokémon. He turns away. “Perhaps it’s for the best.”
Carly speaks as she walks back over to him. “Maybe you don’t need that fire, but something else. I’m sure that whatever it is, you can find it.”
“That’s a nice thought,” Cal says. “I only ever started training Fire Types to beat my brother’s Ice. How stupid of me.”
“…I… actually know what it’s like to feel stuck in a relative’s shadow,” Carly admits.
“Do you?” Cal asks, turning back to Carly with a surprised expression.
“Yeah. I mean… my situation is completely different from yours or Shelly’s, and even then it’s closer to Shelly’s than to yours. But my mom’s famous, back where I’m from,” Carly shares.
Victoria had mentioned that Carly was from out of region, actually. Sinnoh, specifically, if Cal recalls correctly. It certainly explains the way she’d seemed so surprised by the Rainbow Field during their first battle— Field Effects apparently aren’t really a thing, there. Cal had had no clue about the famous mom, though. Maybe it’s something she keeps private.
“I love her to bits, and she loves me too, but it gets tiring, having people look at me and see her,” Carly confesses.
“…I know how that feels,” Cal says.
“It doesn’t have to be like that forever, though. In fact, I’m sure it won’t,” Carly says with a smile. “I really should get going so I can get that Machine. But it was nice to talk to you, Cal. I hope you’re able to keep improving.”
“And I hope the same for you,” Cal says. “…I suppose, if you’d like, I can give you a ride down to the mountain base. Want me to?”
“That would be great!” Carly says.
“Right. Charizard should be able to make the trip still,” Cal says, calling the Pokémon in question out. “Get ready to hang tight.”
Carly nods, and they both climb on, her behind him. She wraps her arms around him.
“Er, this is what you meant by hang tight, right?” she asks.
“Yes,” Cal says.
“Oh thank fuck,” Carly says, relieved.
He guides Charizard down the mountain, and once they touch ground, Carly climbs off. “Thanks, Cal. And, uh, maybe don’t mention what I said about my mom to anyone else?”
“I figured. The secret’s safe with me,” Cal says.
“Awesome,” Carly says. “Well, thanks, Cal. See ya!”
She runs off, and Charizard flies Cal back up to the peak, but not so he can go back to meditating. Rather, so he can think, looking out over Apophyll.
Carly mentioned that she can’t leave until some stuff is taken care of, and like she said, he has a pretty good idea of what. Because she’s the one that’s been making trouble for Team Meteor, and they’ve instructed Cal to help set up a PULSE here.
It’s supposed to be his chance to finally prove himself, the first really huge thing he’s done for them. And he really is entrenched in every part of the plan. Cal provided the Camerupt that is to be used for it, and is supposed to both haul up the PULSE machine and help to guard it as it’s used.
There are some members of Team Meteor who would be thrilled for the opportunity. Cal just feels sick. Mass murder by volcanic eruption? That’s not what he thought he was signing up for when he joined.
But then, what did he think he was signing up for? Sunshine and rainbows and ice cream? Of course not— even if their methods have become notably more extreme as of late, they weren’t exactly the good guys when Cal joined up with them. And yet he did it anyway.
But Cal doesn’t want this. He’s a deeply flawed person, but he’s not a murderer, and he cares about Apophyll. There must be something he can do…
…and after some thinking, an idea comes to him. He knows some stuff about machines— one can’t really avoid becoming at least somewhat tech savvy, living in Ametrine City. And one of the things that everyone there knows is that it’s better for machines to be cold; getting too hot is bad for them.
This PULSE, though, seems like it’s destined to overheat. Using a Camerupt, stationed atop a volcano, and meant to cause an eruption. But obviously Team Meteor wouldn’t be doing it if they didn’t have some kind of work around. A cooling system. If Cal can find it…
It’s settled, then. He’ll sabotage the PULSE, and then everyone will be safe. Kiki, Victoria, Carly, and all of the others at Apophyll. Nobody has to die.
…Cal needs to actually get the machine up here first, though. Which he’s sure is going to take a while, even with Strength. So he heads off to do just that.
— — —
It was supposed to be okay.
After getting the PULSE machine to the peak, Cal had looked it over and found the cooling system. He had had his Pokémon— as it was much too cold for Cal himself to even touch— dump the coolant into the lava pool.
The machine was going to overheat long before it could be put to use. Nobody was going to die.
But now Kiki has, and her Medicham might follow very soon. The latter by the hands of Cal and his Magmortar, and the former by those of Solaris and his Garchomp.
Kiki’s body and head hit the ground separately, blood spurting out. There are screams from a few different sources as Cal stares in horror, and he realizes that one of them is him.
“Solaris! This was NOT part of the plan!” Cal yells.
“She would have died in the ensuing eruption regardless,” Solaris says, uncaring. “You have no reason to be upset. Did you not know this would happen?”
But she wouldn’t have. Cal thought he had done everything right, only for it all to go wrong all too quickly.
But he can’t say that. So instead, he says “No, I didn’t want this!”
“It seems you’re as weak as your brother cautioned,” Solaris says.
Cal’s blood boils. “Tch—”
…no. He looks away for a moment, both to calm down and out of shame. He can’t get angry. Not in this moment. He’s already failed Kiki and the others too many times. He can’t fail them again by losing control.
There’s a very real chance that Victoria, Carly, and Cain will be Garchomp’s next victims; Solaris had referred to this as a “massacre,” and after what he did to Kiki, Cal would have to be a fool not to take that at face value.
Carly took down Garchomp once, but in the state her team is in, they won’t be able to do it again. Victoria’s team is mostly okay, but Cal isn’t sure if they would be able to beat Garchomp, and Cain’s team has been completely taken out. Cal himself can’t do it, though, not when Garchomp has an advantage over his whole team. So he has to do something else.
“…yes, I am. I am weak. I’m pathetic.”
He looks back to Solaris, forcing a determined expression to stay level on his face.
The feeling pumping through Cal’s veins changes. Adrenaline? Fear? Both seem like they could be accurate. This is the most frightening moment of his life; one wrong move, and everyone is dead.
But he can do this.
“I always have been. Kiki helped me realize that. And she helped me accept it.”
He can do this.
“Accepting one’s flaws is a kind of strength on its own! Real weakness is standing by, not doing anything to protect what you care about!”
He can do this.
“I’ll stop that right now. Magmortar. The PULSE!”
He swears his Pokémon seems happy at the order.
As Margmortar shoots bright fire at the machine, Cal quickly takes Camerupt’s Poké Ball in hand and recalls the Pokémon.
With the damage to the PULSE and the seeming disappearance of Camerupt, Solaris becomes convinced that the operation is a failure. He and his son, Taka, leave.
But this is no victory. Kiki is still dead, Medicham is surely gravely injured, and Cal is now a traitor to all. Having stopped a plan that Team Meteor spent precious time and resources on, but having gone too far before he did to be accepted by Victoria and the others.
He tries to apologize, of course. But Victoria understandably isn’t having it. She snaps at him, eyes brimming with tears. Carly and Cain don’t say anything, just sharing a look. So with one last apology, Cal runs off.
Looking back once he’s a good distance away, he sees that the others are distracted, Victoria kneeling next to Kiki’s body while the other two try to comfort her.
Cal sends out Charizard, and points out at where he’s pretty certain Medicham sunk down. “Kiki’s Medicham is in the lava, but she might still be alive. Will you try to find her?”
Charizard nods, and flies out over the lava pool, diving in. A few moments later, he surfaces and flies back to Cal, Medicham in his arms.
She’s in awful shape, looking damn near close to a crisp… but she’s breathing.
“We’re going back to Reborn City— whichever Pokémon Center we can get to fastest,” Cal tells Charizard.
Charizard nods, and lets Cal climb on. With a cry, the Pokémon flies off.
Cal spends the whole flight internally pleading that it’s not too late.
— — —
Cal waits outside of the gates to the Byxbysion Wasteland the next day.
He’s heard that Byxbysion is where the Gym giving out the Badge that currently serves as the requirement to use Strength is. And he saw Carly and Cain enter the gates. So now he waits for them to come back out.
They probably aren’t very happy with Cal. But he needs to give them the Strength Machine, so that they can save Shelly and the other kids. And… he thinks he would like to try explaining himself to Carly. She probably won’t believe him, but he can at least make an attempt. So he waits.
It takes hours, but eventually Cain comes back out. He seems conflicted, not even noticing Cal standing nearby as he walks off. A few seconds after that, Carly walks out.
“Carly?” Cal calls.
She looks over to him, clearly surprised. “Cal? What are you doing here?”
Cal walks over to stand in front of her, putting his hand up for a moment in an awkward greeting. “Hi. Look, I know you have every reason to hate me, but hear me out.”
“What? No, I don’t hate you,” Carly says, seeming surprised.
“You don’t?” Cal asks, equally if not more surprised.
“No, of course not,” Carly says, shaking her head. “You did the right thing in the end… even if everything leading up to it was… less right.”
That’s as much of a relief as it is a surprise. At least that’s one person that doesn’t hate him. Though he still wants to explain the truth.
“Please believe that I never meant for this to happen,” Cal pleads, before looking away for a moment. “Kiki never would have—”
He shakes his head. “I didn’t go to Apophyll to infiltrate it for Team Meteor. I really did want to change. And— I did. I think…”
“Of course you did. I saw it myself,” Carly says. “You’re a different person than you were before, Cal. I could tell that just from our conversation on Pyrous. Even after what happened last evening, I never got the impression that you were anything less than sincere.”
“That’s… incredibly kind of you to say. It means a lot to me that you think so. And yet, it feels like every time I finally get on track, something else happens to kick me off of it,” Cal says. “Team Meteor found out where I was, so they gave me orders to set up the PULSE. You all and Kiki tried so hard to stop it… but I had sabotaged the machine in the first place.”
Realization crosses Carly’s face. “So then… if we’d never gone up there…”
It’s silent for a moment before Cal nods. “I didn’t want anyone to get hurt. I liked that place. So I secretly broke the PULSE when I installed it. Ripped the entire cooling system. Kiki didn’t have to die. The Medicham—”
His first instinct is to explain that Medicham, and even Camerupt, are okay. But they… aren’t.
They’re both alive, being treated by multiple Pokémon nurses and doctors at this very moment, but Camerupt has a horrible fever, not to mention Medicham’s… everything. So maybe it’s best not to get Carly’s hopes up.
“It’s not what you think. But I’m so sorry that it happened this way,” Cal settles on saying.
“I am, too,” Carly says sadly.
“So then… you really believe me?” Cal asks.
“Of course I do. Why wouldn’t I?” Carly asks, tilting her head just a bit.
Cal thinks it would make more sense to ask why she would. Victoria hates him, and it’s his fault. Medicham and Camerupt might die, and it’s his fault. Kiki is dead, and it’s his fault.
But he doesn’t choose to say any of that. Instead he gives Carly a grateful smile. “I appreciate your mercy. It’s almost more than I deserve.”
Carly glances away, seeming bashful. “You make it sound like such a big deal…”
“It is. To me,” Cal says. “I think you’re the only one that would offer it. I don’t expect anyone from Apophyll will listen to me. Especially not Victoria.”
Carly grimaces at that. “Yeah… it’s probably best for both of you if you stay away from her for a while…”
Cal nods. “…and, there’s one more thing.”
He takes the Strength Machine out, and hands it over to Carly.
She looks it over. “…Strength?”
“Yeah. I… had to steal that in order to haul the machinery up there,” Cal confesses, glancing away. “I regretted it immediately. Even more when you told me—”
He has to take a deep breath. “Team Meteor is holding Shelly. I want to charge in there, break her out, and tear them a new one… but I won’t. I have to find a way to be better than my fears and impulses.”
“Yeah. Beating up Team Meteor is my job!” Carly jokes.
Cal cracks a small smile at that. “So I’ve heard. I’m going to make myself scarce. They’ll be after me, too, now that they know I betrayed them. I’m counting on you to save her in my place.”
“Of course! She’s my friend, too!” Carly says with a determined smile. “I’ll make sure that she and all the others are safe and sound, so don’t worry!”
“Good. I’m glad that Shelly has a friend like you,” Cal says. “I know it’s my fault that half of this happened, but I’m counting on you to help make it right.”
Carly nods. “Think we’ll see each other again?”
“Maybe,” Cal says. “But for now, this is goodbye.”
“Goodbye for now, then, Cal. And stay safe,” Carly says.
“You too, Carly,” Cal says.
He leaves, glad to have at least one person in his corner, even if he doesn’t deserve it.
— — —
Medicham and Camerupt have to be kept at the Pokémon Center for some time.
Cal checks up on them whenever he can. It’s not easy, when he’s too scared to stay in one place for too long, but he makes it work.
Every time Cal shows up, he’s deathly afraid to be greeted with a sad look from someone who will then inform him either or both Pokémon have died. But it never happens.
Medicham actually gets better first. Once she’s fully healed, he apologizes to her before even leaving the Pokémon Center.
“I can never apologize enough for what I’ve done to you and Kiki. And I understand if you can’t accept the apologies I can give. But I truly am sorry,” Cal says. “Whatever comes next is your choice. If you want to leave right now and never see me again, that’s fine. If you’d like to be taken somewhere else, just find a way to communicate it to me, and I’ll get you there. If you, for some reason, want to stay with me, I’ll take care of you the best I can.”
Medicham stares at him for a long few moments. Then she gives him a small smile and lightly touches his arm, and somehow he knows he is forgiven.
It actually makes Cal cry, the worry, guilt, and now, relief, that he’s been feeling combining in a way that breaks a dam. He doesn’t deserve the forgiveness, but he is enormously grateful for it. He’ll do his best to become worthy of it.
— — —
Cal continues to improve.
It’s not easy. He no longer has Kiki to teach him, or Victoria and the other students to support him. But he has Medicham, as well as his other Pokémon. So he keeps growing. For his own sake, and everyone else’s as well. He can’t help others without improving himself, after all.
He gets better at meditating, even though he has a lot of things to think about. He’s not perfect at it, but nobody becomes perfect at these things instantly. The journey is just as important as the destination.
Now, though, Cal arrives in Ametrine City.
It’s been a while since he’s been here, and even then, he typically tried not to be if he could help it. Everyone here at least knows of him and his brother, meaning the city is full of people who compare Cal to Blake.
But Cal’s heard about what’s happening here. A giant blockade appears in the mountain overnight, rendering the city nearly totally inaccessible? Sounds like a Meteor operation, and if that’s the case, it’s probably being enacted, at least in part, by Blake.
Cal feels a certain level of responsibility for it. Maybe that’s not entirely logical; he’s no longer part of Team Meteor, and his brother’s choices aren’t his own.
But then, Cal was part of Meteor for a long time. Even if he never went as far as killing for them, he did help do multiple bad things. And for all he knows, one of those things could’ve somehow helped lead to this.
And aside from that… on as bad of terms as they may be, Blake is still Cal’s brother, and they’re both the only biological family each has left. Their father is dead, and their mom has been dead for even longer. And they were both from out of region, and not particularly close to their own families, so that means it’s functionally just Cal and Blake. So it feels like, if there’s a Meteor operation Cal should be trying to stop head on, it’s this one.
And it turns out, there’s more going on than he thought. As he approaches the building where Blake lives, said brother walks out of it. Cal overhears him talking into a radio about an air unit and… having the Ruby Ring?
That’s not good. Cal knows that that’s the name of one of four pieces of jewelry Team Meteor both desperately wants and shouldn’t be allowed to have.
…and given how important it is to them, Solaris himself will probably even come to retrieve it.
Cal really should give chase. But he’s not sure if he should do it on foot, or try to get ahead on Charizard, so he’s left considering it for a moment.
He ends up deciding it’s best to try and chase after Blake on foot first. But just as Cal starts to do that, he hears a pair of familiar voices behind him.
“Okay, let’s think. There has to be some way to find her, right?”
“Right. There’s only so many places she can be.”
…is that?
Cal turns around to see two familiar faces to match the voices, both in winter clothes. “…Shelly? Carly?”
Shelly immediately backs away, squeaking. “It’s Blake, he’s s-still here!”
If she had said that the last time they saw each other, Cal would’ve flipped out. Even now, there’s a sting. But he can’t really blame her. He and Blake have always looked similar, and he doesn’t even think Shelly ever knew red wasn’t his natural hair color.
Carly, on the other hand, squints at him. “…Cal?”
“Yeah, it’s me,” Cal says as he walks closer to the two.
Unfortunately, this doesn’t calm Shelly down. She backs up even more. “C-Cal? Oh n-no, no, no… I’m sorry, I’m—”
That stings even more than being mistaken for Blake. But it’s completely deserved, too.
Carly moves next to Shelly, placing a hand on her shoulder and speaking gently. “Hey, it’s okay. He’s not upset at you.”
“H-he’s not?” Shelly asks.
“Of course not. And I’m sorry for what happened before,” Cal says. “I let my anger get the better of me and hurt you.”
But Shelly shakes her head, unable to even look at him. “N-no, I was really stu-stupid… I should’ve known th-that it wasn’t, um, exactly the same…”
That’s heartbreaking to Cal, that she would blame herself for his own faults. It’s all too much like himself, when he was younger.
So he shakes his head. “There’s no use in telling yourself things like you ‘should’ve known.’ That would just give me an excuse where I don’t deserve one. I hurt you; you should be upset with me. Nothing I do will change the past, and I don’t expect your forgiveness. So I’m just going to focus on what I can fix: the future.”
It feels good to finally be able to say that; it’s something he’s thought long and hard about. He hopes it makes her feel better, too.
“So, I’m assuming you’re here because of Blake and Team Meteor?” Carly asks.
“That’s right. And I would greatly appreciate your help. Both of you, if you can stand me, Shelly,” Cal says.
“Um— of course…” Shelly says. “But… um, j-just one question?”
“What is it?” Cal asks, bracing himself.
He expects something heavy. “Why were you in Team Meteor?” or “Did you really help kill someone?”
But instead, she asks “…why is your hair blue?”
Cal actually has to stifle a small laugh. “Here I thought it was a serious question.”
“I was serious… but it’s— um, it just looks—” Shelly stammers.
“Wait. Wait wait wait,” Carly says. “I thought— during our talk on Pyrous, I could’ve sworn I saw some purple bits in your hair. Don’t tell me this is your natural hair color?”
“Something close to this, yes,” Cal says.
Shelly looks surprised, and Carly laughs lightly. “What, leaning into that type aesthetic?”
“To be fair, I feel like using hair dye definitely isn’t the craziest way a type specialist has leaned into it, but… that was only sort of why I chose the specific color,” Cal admits.
He turns away from them. “The big reason was to stand out from my brother. So I decided to have it dyed back. I spent most of my life trying to do everything in response to him. Dyed my hair to be different from his, tried to join both the Reborn League and Team Meteor to one-up him…”
“Wait, you what?!” Shelly asks in shock.
Cal turns back to her, surprised. She didn’t know? He… honestly thought Carly or Cain would’ve told her.
“He was a part of Meteor for a while, but he left. Helped stop one of the PULSEs and everything!” Carly says.
“It’s true. I’ve left that behind,” Cal says. “I was a walking mistake. I was trying to be someone better than my brother, when I should’ve just been trying to be myself. So I’m fixing that. Going back to myself.”
He reaches up, and runs a strand of his hair between his fingers. “Having my natural hair color is weird, but it’s fine. After all, blue flame burns even hotter.”
When Cal had first had it dyed back, he had actually been scared it was the wrong choice. That it would make it harder to look at his reflection. But strangely enough, it made it easier instead.
He guesses, in the end, that making choices for the sake of being different from Blake just gives his brother an equal but opposite kind of control over Cal to making choices specifically because Blake was also making them.
“That’s right!” Carly says with a bright smile. “So are we gonna stop Team Meteor together, or what?”
“We are. So don’t be afraid, all right Shelly?” Cal asks.
She looks a bit unsure, but she nods. “Al-all right… if you say so…”
He’s just relieved that she’s willing to give him a chance. She has every reason not to, really.
“Thanks. I’m glad we had the chance to meet again like this. And that goes for you as well, Carly,” Cal says.
“Aw, shucks, good to see you too, man!” Carly says. “Good thing we came out of that building when we did! So now…”
There’s a bit more discussion. Shelly and Carly tell Cal that Blake has locked up— and adopted??? Well there’s probably a reason for it, but still— Shelly’s friend Heather so that she won’t interfere in the operation. Cal tells them about what he overheard from Blake, and where Heather is most likely hidden. Then they split up, Cal chasing after Blake while the other two head back to the apartment.
Cal finds Blake just as he’s beginning the climb to the peak.
He turns at the sound of the snow crunching. “Oh, damn, that you little bro? With your old hair color too, you trying to match your big bro? But wait, I heard you quit the team, so… why the fuck are you here?”
“You really want to know?” Cal asks.
“No, I just asked for fun— no shit I want to know!” Blake says.
So Cal tells him.
It’s certainly a much longer answer than Blake was expecting. Cal talks about how anger hurts people, and why he had to learn to let go of it. About some of the things he learned at Apophyll. About his decision to stand up for what’s right, and be his own person.
It’s not really for Blake. Cal doesn’t expect him to care about a single word of it, honestly, though if he defies expectations and it gets through to him, great. It’s mostly for Cal’s own sake… and also because he’s hoping to stall until the others show up.
Blake eventually cuts Cal off because, in his own words, a tree “cares almost as much as I do.” And then he sics a pair of Meteor aces on Cal and leaves.
Cal sends out his Magmortar as the two aces send out an Alolan Raticate and an Arcanine. As they do, footsteps can be heard rapidly approaching, and soon a familiar Primarina is sent out next to Cal’s Pokémon.
“I’ve got your back!” Carly says, running up beside him.
“I appreciate it,” Cal says.
The two of them manage to soundly win together, only suffering a pair of faintings between them. The aces then flee.
Carly recalls her Pokémon, and Cal moves to do the same, only for her voice to stop him. “You have a Medicham…”
Ah. He had sent her out after Magmortar fainted without even thinking Carly might react.
“…actually, it’s hers,” Cal reveals.
Carly seems confused for only a moment before shock dawns on her face. “No way. You mean… it’s Kiki’s? That’s…”
She looks at Medicham closely for a few moments before speaking again. “Oh Arceus, it is! But how!?”
“The PULSE machine had a coolant powerful enough that it lowered the lava’s temperature when it was dumped in, and Pokémon are capable of taking lava attacks on the regular,” Cal explains. “Because of that, I was able to have Charizard fish her out after I ran off, while you all were distracted.
“I actually recalled the Camerupt during Magmortar’s attack on the PULSE, too. He’s still being treated for a really bad fever, but by this point the doctors say they think he’ll be okay. Sorry I didn’t tell you before, but it was really touch and go for a while, so I didn’t want to get your hopes up.”
“You don’t have to apologize, that’s amazing!” Carly says, eyes sparkling as she grins. “I’m glad you turned out okay, Medicham!”
Medicham nods. Cal recalls her.
“Shelly and Heather are together in the air, so let’s get going!” Carly says.
Cal nods. “Right. Blake’s heading to the peak to rendezvous. There’s no way I’m letting him get there!”
The two of them start the climb. It’s silent for a few moments before Cal speaks again. “I’m glad that Shelly seems to be doing all right.”
“Yeah! She’s come a long way. She’s doing things even when they scare her, and was determined to help Heather,” Carly says. “This all can’t be easy on her, but she’s really grown from the girl that she used to be.”
“I’m glad for it,” Cal says. “She’s always been stronger than she’s realized, really. Back when she and I first met, she was even shyer than she was when you first came around. But she slowly started to get more used to people as she settled into being a Gym Leader.”
“Yeah, I thought that was the case. Her and I actually met once, years ago,” Carly shares.
“You did?” Cal asks, surprised.
Carly nods. “Before I came to Reborn, my mom would often take me traveling for work with her, and at one point we went to Shelly’s hometown. She and I met by chance and talked for a while.”
“Wow. What are the odds?” Cal asks.
“I’ll say! I don’t think she remembers it; I actually didn’t recognize her at first, myself,” Carly says. “But from what I remember, she really has come a long way from how she was back then, and I’m proud of her.”
“So am I. And I know I said this before, but I’m really glad she has a friend like you, Carly,” Cal says.
“And I’m glad she’s got a friend like you!” Carly says. “I won’t tell you all that was said, but… well, I think she won’t be so nervous around you, once we all meet up.”
That makes Cal happy to hear.
“And of course, I’m glad we’re friends, too!” Carly adds.
…she considers Cal a friend? That’s a surprise; they’ve only met a few times, now, and he knows he didn’t exactly leave a stellar impression. But… he likes the idea of being Carly’s friend.
“…so am I,” Cal says.
Soon they catch up to Blake and another pair of aces. He predictably does not care about Cal and Carly’s demands to stop, though they manage to defeat the aces quickly enough.
A pink haired girl— Heather— then flies down on a Salamence, and Cal ends up deciding to join her attack on the air unit— and specifically Solaris— with Charizard.
As he prepares to take off, Carly lightly touches his arm. “Be safe, yeah? And that goes for both of you.”
Cal nods. “Of course. You be safe as well.”
“You don’t gotta worry about us! Oh, but yeah, you too!” Heather says.
Carly nods, and Cal flies off, Heather following shortly after.
— — —
Cal doesn’t defeat, or even see, Solaris. He doesn’t beat Blake in battle either— that accomplishment goes to Carly. But Cal does manage to nab the Ruby Ring from his brother, and return it to Heather. The day is won. Blake and Team Meteor lose.
And as Cal and Carly fly back down to Ametrine City— the sky too dark and Charizard too tired to get all the way down the mountain, meaning they both have to at least stay the night— it occurs to Cal that the things he long expected to feel after finally outdoing Blake in some way… aren’t there.
Or maybe that’s not quite right. Because it’s not like Cal doesn’t feel good. In fact, he feels better than he has in a long time. It’s just that it feels… different, than he expected it to. Like he’s happy, but not because of the reasons he thought he’d be.
And then he realizes that it’s because he finally did something right.