♛ 𝔽𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕕 𝔹𝕪 𝔻𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕪 (𝔸𝕞𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕤𝕙𝕚𝕡𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘) ♛

Chapter 40: UNDER THE SAME SKY

Chapter 40: Under the Same Sky

Beautiful.

That was the first word that came to my mind when I saw them back when I was a child with Ducklett.

Those flocks of graceful Swannas.

Each one was like an animate piece of art. The graceful air they breathed out was gentle but powerful, enough to make my small heart pound harder by their sheer beauty.

But what took my breath away were those large wings of porcelain white. Each wingbeat was mighty enough to send shivers down my spine.

It was breath-taking. I felt like I was soaring alongside them.

"They're so beautiful…" I breathed a sigh of amazement.

I could tell Ducklett was just like me. She was admiring her evolutions with stars in her eyes.

"I wonder if you'll look like that one day too, Ducklett?"

After the Preliminaries.

"Skyla, what's gotten you into a hurry?" Lt. Surge asked.

The blonde man was sitting across his old friend's granddaughter with a concerned look.

"That was just the Preliminaries and yet, you went all out. It was like a kamikaze attack."

The lieutenant was about to light up a cigarette before stopping himself to not set an example to the impressionable teenage girl.

"Rushing is never the solution. I understand you wanna be a Gym Leader as soon as possible…"

"But this isn't the young girl I've known all those years ago. You've lost your smile."

The auburn-haired teen gripped her teacup's handle tighter upon hearing the man's insight.

"…Right now, I don't have the luxury to fight like usual, sir," Skyla simply replied.

Lt. Surge narrowed his eyes upon hearing the word 'fight' instead of 'battle'.

"Furthermore, from my perspective, the Grand League is the 'battlefield'. I don't see the problem in overwhelming my opponents with strength and aerial superiority, sir," Skyla explained calmly.

"…You're right, there's nothing wrong with that," Surge sighed despite finding no faults with the girl's statements

"And I do get where you're coming from by calling it a 'battlefield'."

"But take it from me. A Pokémon Battle is nothing like a real battlefield. Plus, if you're aiming to be a Gym Leader then there's something you can't forget."

"And what's that, sir?" Skyla asked inquisitively.

"To have fun," the man chuckled.

"Battling with all you've got while having the time of your life. Hell, that reminds me of that insane Pikachu kid back then."

Skyla was caught off guard by Surge's simple answer.

'Have fun?' she thought.

'I don't understand those words…'

"Archeops, [Stone Edge]!" Skyla commanded.

A muti-coloured raptor manifested a tower of stone unto Cleffy.

"Cleffy!" Blue cried out in worry.

{ HOW BRUTAL! }

{ SKYLA'S SECOND POKEMON IS ARCHEOPS! IT CLOSED THE DISTANCE AND DEFEATED CLEFABLE IN A BLINK OF AN EYE! }