"That's incredible, Era!" Nina said, "You saved Kaiba, saved the other captured Pokémon, blew up Team Xenon's base, Jet learned Flamethrower, and Charcoal and Jet finally got along! So much happened in such a short amount of time."

"Yeah, I can hardly believe it," I said, "And now, we get to explore this cool city without having to worry about Team Xenon messing up our day."

The others agreed with firm nods.

"So, do you guys wanna split up to cover more ground?" Kat suggested.

"Sure. We can split up into two groups," Eric said, "Kat and Nina, Era and me. It'll give us time to get to know each other better."

The other two and I nodded with smiles. With a small wave, we split up into our groups. Eric and I walked around a small part of town, admiring and taking pictures of the machinery around us.

"This is a cool city," Eric commented, "Have you ever been here, Eragona?"

"Never. This is my first time being here," Eragona said, "My grandmother would often visit this city for interviews or function as a judge or host in certain events. I could never go because I was too young, and it would've been a lot of weight on her shoulders to have to look out for me and officiate an event."

Eric nodded with a kind smile.

"Makes sense." he said.

I grinned at my friend before admiring the city once more. Once we turned down a corner, we saw an older man in a rocking chair with two similar-looking Pokémon lying in front of him. I took out my Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon.

"Axew, the Tusk Pokémon. They play with each other by knocking their large tusks together. Their tusks break sometimes, but they grow back so quickly that it isn't a concern."

I remember seeing this Pokémon back at the Dragonet Den. But why are they different colors...?

"Axew are native to Unova," Eric commented, "However, I've never seen an Axew with that color before..."

Eric then pointed to the Axew, which was dark beige. The older man soon looked at us and smiled.

"Why, hello there, children," he said kindly, "Are you from around these parts?"

"Not exactly, sir," I answered, "I'm a native of Ezonia, but my friend here is from Unova."

The man nodded as he stood up from his chair, clutching his cane. The two Axew let out similar cries before rubbing their tusks together.

"I'm Eragona, and this is Eric." I said.

"Name's Hamen, dear." the man said.

"Your Axew are adorable, sir," Eric said, "You must've taken good care of them."

Hamen smiled and nodded.

"I have, and I think it's high time that someone else took care of them," he said, "I want these little guys to go out and experience the world, but with my old bones, I can't do that. And you two look perfect for taking care of these guys."

Eric and I glanced at one another with confused looks.

"You want us to take care of your Axew?" I asked.

"It would mean a lot to me if you could." Hamen said.

Eric and I looked at one another and shared a nod.

"We'll do it." Eric said.

"Wonderful," Hamen said, "However, there's only one condition."

"What's that?" I asked.

Hamen gestured his hand for us to follow him, and Eric and I did just that. The two Axew let out their signature cries and followed behind us. Hamen had led us to the Pokémon Center and walked towards the battlefield.

"If you can best me in a double battle, my Axew are yours." Hamen said.

Eric and I grinned and nodded.

"We accept!" we said in unison.

Hamen smiled and took out his Pokéballs. When he tossed them, out came a Cryogonal and a Claydol. I took out my Pokédex and scanned the two Pokémon.

"Cryogonal, the Crystallizing Pokémon. They are composed of ice crystals. They capture prey with chains of ice, freezing the prey at -148° F."

"Claydol, the Clay Doll Pokémon. This mysterious Pokémon started life as an ancient clay figurine made over 20,000 years ago."

Whoa... They both look really strong...

"Cryogonal is native to Unova as well," Eric commented, "A friend of mine back home has one. Despite its high speed and attack stats, it's frail to special attacks."

I smiled and nodded. I took out a Pokéball and smiled.

"Jet, let's do this!" I cried, tossing up my Pokéball.

At my command, Jet came out with a bold cry. Eric smirked and tossed up his Pokéball.

"Samurott, show yourself!" Eric cried.

At Eric's command, the Formidable Pokémon came out.

"You can have the first move." Hamen said.

"Thanks," I said, "Jet, use Flamethrower on the Cryogonal!"

Jet growled and let loose a ribbon of fire.

"Dodge and use Ice Beam." Hamen said.

The Cryogonal let out a cry and dodged the Flamethrower. Like clockwork, it released an icy-cold beam.

"Deflect it with Razor Shell!" Eric cried.

The Samurott stepped in front of Jet and pulled out one of its seamitars. The seamitar soon started glowing a bright blue, blocking the incoming Ice Beam.

"Aqua Jet into the Claydol!" Eric cried.

His Samurott sheathed its seamitar and became cloaked in water. It then lunged itself at the Claydol with incredible speed.

It almost looked invisible...

"Dodge it, Claydol," Hamen said, "Cryogonal, use Freeze-Dry."

When the Claydol moved out of Samurott's attack, the Cryogonal revealed itself and let out a chilling breath.

Eric's in trouble! That move's super-effective on Water-types!

"Jet, go help Samurott! Quick!" I cried.

Jet let out a cry and sprinted towards the Cryogonal.

"Stop it with Shadow Ball, Claydol." Hamen said.

The Claydol came out of nowhere and fired a large shadowy blob at Jet.

"Dragon Rage!" I cried.

Jet opened his mouth and let out a shock wave of pure rage that canceled out the Shadow Ball.

"Flamethrower!" I called out.

Jet roared and let out a ribbon of fire at the Cryogonal.

Yes! A critical hit!

"Sacred Sword!" Eric cried.

When his Samurott drew its seamitar, it grew and started glowing. That's when it slammed its seamitar against the Cryogonal, causing it to crash into the ground.

"Are you okay, Cryogonal?" Hamen asked.

The Cryogonal let out a strained cry, and it picked itself up.

"Keep up the pressure!" I cried, "Flamethrower, once more!"

"Sacred Sword!" Eric cried.

"Shadow Ball and Ice Beam!" Hamen called out.

Samurott and Jet were the first to move as they sprinted up to the opposing Pokémon. Both opposing Pokémon unleashed their attacks that our Pokémon dodged. Jet then let loose another ribbon of fire that made contact with the Cryogonal, causing it to fall.

One down, one more to go...

"Psywave, Claydol!" Hamen called out.

The Claydol let out a cry before releasing a psychic wave.

"Dodge it!" Eric and I cried.

Samurott and Jet quickly escaped the attack before running up on the Claydol.

"Razor Shell!" Eric cried.

"Dragon Claw!" I cried.

The Samurott drew its seamitar, and Jet's claw started glowing a bright green. That's when they slammed their attacks on the Claydol and knocked it to the ground.

"Psywave!" Hamen cried.

The Claydol got up and let out a cry before releasing a psychic wave.

"Dodge!" Eric and I cried.

Our Pokémon quickly evaded the attack and sprinted up to the Claydol.

"Ice Beam!" Eric cried.

"Dragon Rage!" I cried.

Both our Pokémon gaped their mouths and released their attacks at the Claydol. The Claydol couldn't dodge fast enough and was hit with both attacks, soon falling to the ground beside Cryogonal.

"We won!" Eric and I cried happily as we high-fived one another.

Hamen returned his Pokémon and walked over to us with the two Axew behind him.

"You won fair and square," Hamen said, "Congratulations."

"Thank you, Hamen." we said, bowing our heads.

Samurott, Jet, and Libby bowed their heads as well. After Eric and I returned our Pokémon, the two Axew let out similar cries. Hamen smiled and handed us their Pokéballs.

"Oh, and if you were wondering about the discoloration of this little one, it is that he's a shiny Axew." Hamen said.

"A shiny!?" Eric and I asked in surprise.

Shiny Pokémon are extremely rare. If a Pokémon is shiny, it doesn't change the Pokémon's strength; it's just cool to have, and having a shiny one would be really cool!

"Alright, little guys, go on to your new trainers." Hamen said.

The two Axew let out similar cries and shuffled up to us. A wide smile spread across my face when the shiny Axew came up to me. I crouched in front of it and smiled.

"Hey there, little one." I said sweetly as I placed my hand on the Axew's head.

The Axew let out an adorable cry as it smiled. Libby smiled and returned the cry.

"Now, what should I call you?" I wondered aloud.

I hummed in thought as I gently glided my fingers on the Axew's tusks.

"I know! It's a stretch, but what about... Jawbreaker," I said, "What do you think?"

The Axew let out a happy cry as it hopped around.

"Jawbreaker it is!" I chuckled.

I stood up and returned Jawbreaker to his Pokéball.

"Thank you once again, Hamen." Eric said.

"No, thank you," Hamen said, "You are fulfilling a dream I've had for a very long time. I wish nothing but the best for both of you."

"Thank you." I said with a bow.

Waving goodbye, Eric and I walked inside the Pokémon Center to heal our Pokémon. That's when we saw Nina and Kat.

"Hey, girls!" I said.

The two turned around and smiled.

"Hey, you two," Kat said, "How'd it go?"

"Great, actually," Eric said, "Check this out."

Eric and I drew our Pokéballs and aimed them at the ground.

"Come on out!" we cried.

At our command, our Axew appeared.

"Oh, my gosh! They're so cute!" Nina cried.

"Why is that one a different color?" Kat asked.

"Jawbreaker here is a shiny Axew." I said.

Nina and Kat looked up at me with surprised looks.

"A shiny!? Where did you find a shiny?" Nina asked.

"Well, we didn't find them; they were given to us by a kind, old man," I said, "He said that he was getting too old to show these two the world, so he asked us if we could take care of them in his stead."

"We had to battle him, of course," Eric said, "But we won, and we'll take great care of these little guys."

The Axew let out similar happy cries. The four of us couldn't help but laugh.

I have a full team now. Libby, Jet, Charcoal, Kaiba, Zora, and Jawbreaker. As my grandmother said, a trainer who trains and aims to become closer to their Pokémon is far stronger than any trainer who only trains to become stronger, and that's what I aim to achieve...