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"Damion... hurry!" The riolu said amidst gasping and panting as he and his friend fled from their assailant. The rain poured heavily around them, the darkness of the clouds completely concealing the morning light and engulfing Avalon in an ominous darkness with only the fires of destruction to illuminate the land. Countless cries and grunts could be heard around them as the ongoing defense pressed on against Avalon and the rogues that attacked them. The military district was in ruin, structures reduced to rubble and bodies scattered on the floor.

Jason, the riolu, and Damion, a zigzagoon, had just recently turned thirteen and were finally given clearance for duty. Little did they know their first mission would forever change them. The thunder that rumbled in the distance sent shivers coursing through Jason's spine as he dared to take a glance back; nothing.

"Where are the others?" Damion asked as he tried his best to avoid tripping over the rubble in their path. "Don't tell me we've wander further away from the actual fighting!"

"This is bad... this is very bad..." Jason mumbled as he thought of their options. He could no longer sense the presence of the other soldiers, not his parents nor anyone else... it's as if they're all alone except for that Luxray who slowly pursued the two.

Time seemed to slow down as the two weaved between piles of rubble, remains of walls and houses, bodies on the ground and even the simple stop sign. "Look at them... so many innocent people killed..." Damion mumbled with a grim expression as reality took hold of him, this was no longer a simulation exercise. "Jason--"

Before Damion could even say anything, a large purple bolt of lightning struck down and blasted the two pokemon causing them to fly a considerable distance before smashing onto the ground. Jason's entire body began convulsing as the electricity coursed through his veins. He could feel himself slipping away, no way in hell was a child going to survive such a powerful attack.

"You know..." The luxray's cold voice echoed within Jason's mind. "I had hoped you would prove to be a challenge." Lucius stood beside the convulsing riolu, kneeling down and smacking Jason's face in disgust. "I guess I was wrong about you."

Jason felt like his brain turn to mush with the sudden impact. He was surprised that he was still alive at this point with all the damage he's taken. His body slowly relaxed, the convulsion began to subside and Jason's breathing returning to normal. Jason's gazed slowly went to the luxray that loomed over him, gazing at him as if he was garbage. He didn't know what to do, he was still unable to move and was defenceless. The next thing that came to mind was his friend Damion. How was he?

"Hm?" Lucius must've noticed that Jason began to get better as his convulsion stopped and his breathing steadied. "Perhaps you've got SOME fight in you." Regardless of his words, the luxrays was less than unimpressed with the pathetic display that the riolu was giving him. His hand clenched into a fist as ominous sparks began to gather. This shed an ominous light on his face making his already dark expression seem even more than it is.

Jason slowly looked at the Luxray's eyes and saw nothing but pure darkness within them, an evil that cannot be quenched. Suddenly, just like that, Jason felt his strength returning. As though a flame had ignited somewhere inside him, he felt himself ready and able to fight once more. "You won't get away with this." Jason coughed out, still unable to find his voice.

Lucius didn't even grace that statement with a rebuttal. He simply stared at the riolu with cold, unforgiving eyes as he unleashed another powerful blast of electricity.

Jason's eyes opened with a jolt as he awoke from the horrific nightmare. His heart was pounding, beads of sweat running down his face and his breathing was rapid. He felt as though every vein in his body was pulsating with every heartbeat. He felt his eyes throbbing, his vision blurring and clearing with every beat. He didn't even get a hold or even the slightest hint of his surroundings until he heard a noise.

"Dang, Jason, how do your parents handle your noises?" A man's voice could be heard from the other end of the room, which Jason soon realized was one of the rooms in the academy's dormitory.

It took Jason a few seconds to realize that Charlie, his new partner, was watching him sleep and was clearly annoyed by what he saw. Jason was aware that he did have horrible nightmares that he couldn't control. He was well aware that he'd make noises but he didn't think they'd be noisy or truly irritating in anyway (unless the person has anger issues or is really irritable). "Sorry... was I really that annoying?" Jason asked with a shaky breath as he rubbed his eyes and yawned.

"Hm... not really." Charlie shrugged as he stood up and moved towards the riolu with a slow pace. "Didn't think you were the type to sleep... horribly when you're always... brimming with joy whenever I see you."

Jason managed a chuckle as he slowly sat up to face the charmander. "When you and I met... what time is it?"

"Right now... it's only been about an hour since we arrived from our mission." The charmander sat next to the riolu, nudging Jason to make him move for space. "If you're wondering, this is my room in the academy's dorm. It's been a long while since I last used it but it somehow stays this clean." The charmander said as he gazed at his room once more, hoping the riolu would do the same.

"Yeah... with all the explosives out there you'd at least expect the place to be coated with gunpowder." Jason, with his drowsiness slowly ebbing away, managed to crack a joke with such a simple concept.

"Hmph, the slightest bit of gunpowder would be horrible for my case." Charlie chuckled, bringing his tail into view as he swung it from side to side in front of them. "Then again, both of us here are resistant to fire." He said with a shrug as he lowered his tail and sighed deeply.

"Yeah..." Jason sighed as well, letting his body relax as he breathed in the stale smell of Charlie's room. After a brief pause,"Welp, I gotta go." Jason said as he stood up and headed for the door.

"Go where?" the charmander asked seemingly worried at the realization that Jason would be leaving.

Jason stopped by the door with his hand already on the knob and turned to face the charmander. "Well, I'm gonna have to check in on my parents." Jason said, scratching the back of his head. "Apparently, my parents and your dad had an argument or something and I want to know what it was about."

"That's not good now is it?" Charlie added. "I mean, my dad's in charge here. He's the highest ranking officer in all of Avalon. To just get into an argument with him is... that's got to take some balls to do it."

Jason knew Charlie's words to be true and he was glad that Charlie took the news quite well. He half expected Charlie to side with his dad and start ranting about how wrong Jason's parents were, he didn't expect the charmander to be this calm about it. "Well, you know us Alexanders..."

There was a brief pause that came after that, the charmander waiting for Jason to continue his statement. "Um... what about you Alexanders?" Charlie asked, the suspense intensifying in the atmosphere.

"Uh... I don't know..." Jason answered to Charlie's surprise. "I just... well... those were the words that came out of my mouth. Maybe we Alexanders are... hm... stubborn or something. Look, I don't know my family history okay!" Jason said frantically though Charlie knows his overreaction is just another form of his affection.

Charlie couldn't help but chuckle at Jason's childish display. "Well, my dad seems to know an awful lot about your parents."

"That shouldn't be a surprise." Jason answered. "Every citizen, especially one applying for the military, should submit full records to the head. Which in this case is your father."

"That or reviewing the archive." Charlie added. "You don't know much about your parents?"

Jason shrugged, pocketing both hands and leaning against the door. "Not really. I don't really ask much questions about them nor do they just gossip about their experiences." Jason then made his way towards the window and eyed to dark silhouettes of the buildings and the bright lights the made them from the distance. "Besides, I don't blame them. If their experience is as horrible as mine then I'd understand that they'd not share about it."

"Do those 'experiences' have anything to do with your nightmares?" Charlie asked.

Charlie's question took Jason by surprise. Charlie looked genuinely concerned for Jason right now, no hidden motive of anything negative, just pure-ish concern. He felt awkward about it all, and so did the charmander. "Some other time... it's a story too long for one night."

"Is it really?" Charlie asked with a wry chuckle, an attempt to lighten the mood. "As far as I know, your life went upside down just after the attack."

"True..." Jason answered softly. "Then you pretty much know why it's horrible already. It's because I lost a friend."

Charlie tried to sympathize with the grieving riolu, but it just felt childish and unnecessary. "Jason, it's natural to grieve but you must learn not to take it like this. We're in the military. Dying is a natural occupation hazard that we must all live with."

"I know, I know..." Jason mumbled and sighed, pressing his forehead against the glass of the window. As if sensing the sadness in the room's atmosphere, droplets of rain began to pour down from the dark night sky. It formed marvellous droplets of reflective beads on the exterior of the window, which immediately caught Jason's interest. He stared at it for a while, trying to ignore the sadness that he felt.

Charlie felt that Jason was still in mourning. He truly didn't know how to react to this situation. All his life he's acted all tough and dominating, seeing to it that the people around him respected and admired him, this was the first time where he was put in the same level as the rest. Jason was quite the soldier, seemingly perfect when it comes to the situations that they faced, managing to maintain that childish smile and attitude even when faced against two armed men. "Hey, Jason... I sometimes overhear some therapists when treating some of the soldiers... if you're willing, maybe... you could share with me your story..." every word that escaped Charlie's mouth was drenched with awkwardness and discomfort.

"Hm?" Jason asked, too immersed in the shimmering lights of the beads of rain that slowly trickled down the window. "You mean... like... a therapy session with you?"

Charlie's face lit up with a red hue as he raised his head. Though he was flustered about it, his face still managed to show some irritation or anger. "Jason, don't make this anymore awkward than it has to be!" how Jason responded caught Charlie by surprise.

Jason simply replied with a soft chuckle and a compassionate smile. Seeing Charlie like this was indeed a rare sight, one that some would find worth gloating, but not Jason. Jason doesn't need enemies in his life, he needs friends, he's already lost one. "Well, I'd be glad to have a 'therapy session' with you. Just let me know when you feel like it."

Charlie simply sat back with his back against the wall and pouted. "Shouldn't the therapist be the one to say that?"

"Ha, between the two of us, you're the one who isn't ready for a therapy session." Jason said with a sneer as he slowly made his way towards the door once more. "You've been good to me Charlie... and I'm glad that for once, you and I became friends." He said with wet eyes. Still far from tearing but they were moistening with joy. "Hope you and I can become good friends."

"Don't get in over your head." Charlie answered quite smugly, though Jason could feel that Charlie felt the same way.

"Anyway, good night you oaf." Jason gleefully said as he opened the door and left the room, leaving the charmander alone with his thoughts.

Charlie just sat there on his bed pondering. What just happened? Why was he suddenly friends with the person he swore would be his rival until the end of days? Lightning flashed from the distance followed almost immediately by its thunder. Now that Charlie was alone to his thoughts, he could think clearly and his senses keen. He felt each patter of the rain as it hit the walls, the roofs and the windows, he could almost see the world in a time slower than normal. The scene replayed in his head repeatedly: Jason just standing by the window, his soft, gentle red eyes staring deep into his, a small, refreshing smile on his face...

"Argh, goddammit!" Charlie exclaimed as he slammed his fist against the wall, the reinforced concrete cracking under the impact.

Everything just felt wrong to Charlie. He shouldn't even like Jason in any way, Jason was his rival. If anything, he should hate Jason, hate how good he is, how strong he is... almost everything about him. He has great parents who love and support him, crazy friends that stay by his side, special fire powers... why was Jason so much better than he is? Those thoughts just ravaged through the charmander's mind, almost at the verge of tears of rage.

Charlie, after calming down, sighed and took several deep breaths as he walked over to the window pressed his face against the cold glass surface. He stared at the view through the curtain of rain. He could just barely make out the image of his new friend Jason strolling through the rain. "Just what are you, Jason?" Charlie mumbled as he stared at the riolu. "Why does my dad hate you?"