Pokémon: Chronicles of Freedom-Chapter 648 - 647: The Epitome of Weakness

Cain felt a flicker of excitement in his heart and advanced quickly, saying, "Full power! Finish them off quickly!"

Then, without worrying about the Lunatone that hadn't yet been defeated, he picked up his pace.

Upon hearing his command, his Pokémon seemed to synchronize automatically and immediately took down the remaining Lunatone.

The sound of his footsteps matched perfectly with the thud of the Lunatone falling to the ground.

Once the battle was over, Cain's Pokémon quickly followed him. They knew well what their true goal in this place was: that future companion!

The small eyes that had been watching Cain with curiosity now showed panic and suddenly disappeared from sight.

Cain quickened his pace even more.

Even if he startled the Pokémon a little, Cain was no longer the same as in his past life. That little Pokémon had only recently been born, and the hostile personality it would develop hadn't yet formed.

Turning a corner, Cain saw what he had been searching for.

It was the same place where, in his past life, he had encountered this Pokémon.

In the cluttered interior of the rocky cave, a few glowing particles of stardust provided some light, but aside from the rocks, there was nothing else. Not even a pile of dry grass where one might rest comfortably.

It was hard to imagine how uncomfortable it must be for a Pokémon that wasn't a Rock or Ground type to live in a place like this.

Without a steady food supply, it had to be malnourished.

With a complex expression, Cain slowly advanced into the narrow passage.

In his past life, when he had captured this Pokémon, he never stopped to think about the environment it lived in. But now, seeing it brought an inexplicable sadness to his heart.

There, huddled in a corner, was that Pokémon. Its small eyes watched Cain cautiously, its body trembling slightly, with scars from different times marking its skin.

Living in a rocky cave surrounded by emotionless Pokémon like Lunatone and Solrock had to be extremely difficult.

As Cain drew closer, the little Pokémon's trembling intensified.

Compassion filled Cain's eyes.

He should have come sooner.

If he had arrived earlier, this little one wouldn't have had to suffer so much.

While he couldn't predict exactly when it was born, at least he could have spared it from enduring so much pain.

Finally, the Pokémon's full form came into view.

It hadn't changed much from his past life.

With a light blue body and a grayish-white helmet-like structure on its head, Bagon was curled up in the corner. Its small arms wrapped around its legs, and its head was tucked into its body as though it believed that hiding this way would make it invisible.

Its tiny hands were tense, and its body visibly trembled.

"Does it already have psychological trauma? I thought arriving at this moment would be enough, but it seems the trauma has already begun to develop," Cain thought as he stopped his hand mid-reach.

In his past life, Cain had believed that Bagon's hostile attitude was due to spending so much time in this place. But now, he realized the trauma had started shortly after its birth.

A newly hatched Pokémon, in its baby stage, left in such a dark place with no source of food or water. The broken shell of its egg had been its only meal and the sole thing it remembered as something good.

In his past life, this Bagon's bitter and hostile personality had seemed excessive, but now Cain completely understood.

Any being that grew up in such conditions would turn out the same.

Surrounded by emotionless Pokémon like Solrock and Lunatone, even trying to search for food and getting too close to them might result in being attacked.

And let's not forget, this Bagon was still just a baby.

Surviving in such conditions was almost a miracle!

"I'm so sorry. I should have come sooner, Bagon," Cain's voice trembled slightly.

In his past life, Bagon had fought by his side until the very last moment before choosing to flee. That had been its way of showing gratitude.

Cain had never considered how Bagon must have felt.

Hearing Cain's voice, Bagon's body began to tremble even more.

It didn't understand what Cain was saying but believed it was probably about to be hurt.

Yes, this timid and frightened Pokémon was, in fact, a Bagon.

The Hoenn region has two pseudo-legendary Pokémon. One is Steven's Metagross, which has already reached its final evolutionary stage, and the other is Salamence.

The Bagon before Cain would one day evolve into Salamence.

That Salamence, whose trainer earned the title of "The Blood-Red Moon."

But at this moment, this Bagon showed no trace of the aura a Salamence should possess. In fact, it was the epitome of weakness.

In his past life, when Cain had found Bagon, it already had a fairly high level, with scars all over its body and a deep knowledge of the cave's geography.

Cain had cornered it in a dead-end and captured it by force.

After obtaining Bagon, Cain had poured all his resources into training it. Although he hadn't managed to unlock its full potential, when Bagon evolved into Salamence, Cain had felt superior to many trainers.

It was then that Cain started to grow arrogant.

He thought that with his system and a fully evolved Salamence, no one could stop him on his path to becoming a champion.

But reality was cruel. Cain's enemies in Team Rocket couldn't tolerate him owning a pseudo-legendary Pokémon like Salamence.

Not only them, but other Team Rocket members also envied Cain for having Salamence.

That's when his enemies within the team informed the Pokémon League about the location of his base.

Cain was ambushed by two Elite-level trainers.

Although both were powerful, they underestimated Cain and didn't use their strongest Pokémon, allowing Salamence to defeat two of their Pokémon.

When they finally brought out their best, Salamence chose to retreat, leaving Cain behind.

Salamence had done everything it could, but its bond with Cain was never strong enough for it to sacrifice itself for him.

Before closing his eyes, Cain had seen his Salamence flying in the sky under a blood-red moon and finally understood why it had earned that title.

He never knew what became of Salamence after that.

But now, here he was, standing before this young Bagon.

Cain would no longer make the same mistakes.

To have a perfect connection with a Pokémon, you must open your heart and truly communicate with them.

(End of Chapter)