Pokemon: Skybound

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While lost in thought, Kai eventually drifted off without even realizing when he fell asleep.

When he woke again, daylight had already broken. Glancing to the side, he saw that Erika's bedding had already been neatly folded, but she was nowhere in the room.

Just as he finished rubbing his eyes and changing clothes, Erika pushed open the sliding door and walked in.

Her white socks made soft tap-tap sounds on the tatami floor as she approached. Looking at Kai, she said gently, "You're awake? The breakfast is ready. Mr Kurt asked me to come and get you."

Kai looked at Erika. Her face still carried the same radiant charm.

"Did you sleep well last night?" he asked.

Erika's cheeks turned a little pink. Like Kai, she had also tossed and turned throughout the night, her heart caught between shyness and unease. It wasn't until she heard Kai's steady breathing that she finally relaxed and, without realizing it, also drifted off.

"It was pretty good. Much better than sleeping outside."

And that was the truth. Compared to staying in a Pokémon Center, inn, hotel, or camping out, nothing quite matched the warmth and comfort of a home even if it wasn't their own. This night had done wonders to ease their exhaustion.

After Kai freshened up, the two of them sat down in the dining room for breakfast. Interestingly, Professor Elm was still passed out from the previous night, likely due to overindulging in drink.

At the table, Kai chatted casually with Kurt as they ate, discussing all manner of things. After a cup of morning tea and seeing the sun already high in the sky with no signs of Professor Elm waking up Kai asked Kurt to pass along his goodbyes. With farewells from both Kurt and Maizie, they left the house.

Once they were out of the neighborhood and the house was no longer in view, Kai sighed and shook his head.

Noticing the change in his expression, Erika asked, "Something wrong?"

Kai sighed. "Meeting Professor Elm in Azalea Town was already a stroke of luck. But then to be entrusted with such a rare Poké Ball... I'm happy, of course, but I also feel like I now owe him a huge favor."

"Don't think too much about it," Erika replied with a smile. "Just like Mr kurt said, that Poké Ball was like a ticking time bomb in his hands. Anyone could've come to cause trouble over it. Giving it to you actually brought him peace of mind he should be thanking you!"

Kai laughed softly. "That's why you're amazing. You always know how to put my mind at ease."

"It's not that," Erika said, a little embarrassed. "I'm just being honest."

As they spoke, they arrived at the Azalea Town Gym. Situated on a flat field just outside town and surrounded by green grass, the gym itself was massive and dome-shaped less like a gym, more like a botanical garden.

The Gym Leader here was Bugsy, who specialized in Bug-type Pokémon. Defeating him would earn Kai the Insect Badge.

He had already worked out his strategy and chosen the Pokémon he planned to use, but just as he was about to enter the gym full of anticipation, he saw that the door was tightly shut and a notice was posted on it.

"Huh?"

Feeling a little uneasy, Kai quickly read the notice and was caught off guard.

As it turned out, Bugsy was currently out in a nearby forest capturing Pokémon. He had left a message saying he wouldn't be back for several days and asked trainers, hoping to challenge him, to wait patiently.

"This is… unexpected," Erika muttered after reading it, furrowing her brows. She turned to Kai. "What should we do? Looks like Bugsy won't be back for a while."

Kai frowned. Their expressions at that moment looked surprisingly in sync almost like a married couple.

"Sigh… If only we'd come to challenge the gym yesterday."

Erika hesitated. "Should we try to go find him?"

Kai shook his head. "Who knows where exactly he went? There are so many forests around here it'd be like looking for a needle in a haystack."

He pulled out his Pokégear and opened the map, studying it carefully.

Erika leaned in to look at him. The two were silent for a while.

To be fair, while this was an unexpected turn of events, it made sense. Gym Leaders also needed time to grow and catch new Pokémon, or else they'd fall behind the times.

Still…

This turn of events was going to delay his progress.

His eyes scanned the map. Although Azalea Town and Goldenrod City weren't that far apart, the round trip would take several days. He figured it might be better to stay local.

But if not Goldenrod, then where?

As he scanned the map, his gaze fell on a marked location nestled in the mountains. His eyes slowly lit up.

"Let's go here!"

Erika looked at where his finger was pointing a mountainous canyon between Azalea Town and Violet City. Her eyes widened as she read the name:

"Charizard Valley?"

Kai nodded with a smile. "I've heard that it's home to some really powerful Charizard. I'm curious how mine stacks up against them. This'll be a good experience."

Erika, of course, had no objections. In fact, no matter where Kai decided to go, she was determined to follow him. The difficulty of the journey didn't matter to her.

With their new destination decided, they adjusted their course and set off for Charizard Valley.

Charizard Valley was a natural park nestled between towering peaks. Due to the treacherous terrain and the presence of an aggressive Charizard, it was off-limits to the general public for safety reasons.

But for Pokémon Trainers, no place was truly off-limits.

They left Azalea Town and headed north. As they walked, the altitude rose, the vegetation thinned, and mountains appeared on the horizon.

The saying goes, "The eye can reach where the feet cannot." What looked like a short distance was, in fact, quite the trek.

Fortunately, they had time to spare. They strolled at a relaxed pace, enjoying the scenery along the way.

By the time the sky darkened, they had finally arrived at the base of the mountain. But with night falling, entering the valley then would've been reckless.

After a brief discussion, they decided to pitch a tent and camp at the mountain's base. They would enter the valley first thing in the morning.

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