Pokémon Legendary: An Adult Pokémon Story

“Hello,” a soft male voice finally answered. “May I help you?”

Mikaela recognized the voice as James, Lucy’s butler.

“James, it’s Mikaela. Open up!” she spoke loudly, leaning out of the window of her car. “I know Lucy’s there. I need to talk to her.”

“I’m sorry, Madam Faye, but Madam Simon is not accepting vis—”

“JAMES,” Mikaela interrupted sharply, “how long have I been friends with Lucy?”

There was a pause on the other end before James finally spoke. “Six years, madam.”

“And who would you say has been there for her the most in those six years?” Mikaela asked pointedly.

Another pause. “That would be you, Madam Faye.”

“You know what just happened with her,” Mikaela said more calmly now. “I know she told you not to allow any visitors, but can you honestly say that she doesn’t need me with her right now?”

There was silence for about five seconds. Then suddenly, the gate opened.

Mikaela gave a soft smile to the call box and then proceeded to drive up the driveway. She parked near the front door and hopped out of her car not even bothering to lock it.

When she knocked on the double front doors, James opened it.

“Good evening, Madam Faye, I must advise that Madam Simon has specifically instructed me not to allow anyone in. So, she may not take kindly to your presence.”

“I need to talk to her,” Mikaela said, pushing past James.

Mikaela navigated her way through the mansion and eventually made her way to the large pool in the back of the property where she found Lucy sitting in a robe and sweatpants.

Lucy’s female Meowstic was curled up next to her purring as Lucy petted her with one hand. Lucy’s eyes were red and puffy, and there was a mounted television on nearby with pundits talking about her match with Ace.

“Mikaela, I want to be alone,” she said somberly as Mikaela walked up and sat on the pool chair next to her.

Mikaela glanced at the TV. The headline underneath the pundits that were talking said, “Ace Tomlinson upsets Lucy Simon in Divine Challenge match. Simon blows 4-2 lead in loss.”

Mikaela turned back to Lucy.

“Luce, I understand how you feel,” she said softly.

“Do you?” Lucy replied bitterly. “It’s not just losing, Mikaela. All everyone’s talking about is that stupid 4-2 lead I blew, and now suddenly my whole career and legacy are being questioned.”

She turned away and started sniffling. “All these years I’ve been an elite, calculated, master-level trainer. I’ve won at least a thousand battles in my career with minimal losses. I have careers outside of my gym leader duties. Great careers. I’m a legend in more ways than one, and now after this one loss, people seem to have forgotten all of that.”

Mikaela’s heart ached for her. She leaned back in the chair, folding her arms as she studied her friend.

“They haven’t forgotten, Lucy. They just ... smell blood in the water. That’s how the media works. One slip and suddenly you’re not brilliant anymore, you’re ‘exposed.’ Believe me, I’ve lived it.”

Lucy laughed bitterly again, her voice sounding hoarse. “Yeah. I guess you and I have matching scars now, don’t we? They’re going to say I cracked. That I can’t handle pressure.”

Mikaela shook her head firmly. “No. What happened out there wasn’t you cracking. It was him.”

Lucy turned her red-rimmed eyes toward her, doubtful. “Ace?”

“Yes, Ace,” Mikaela said, her tone steady. “That man isn’t like the others. He doesn’t play our game. You had him dead to rights. Four to two, and he still found a way. Do you realize what that means? It doesn’t mean you collapsed. He forced you out of your comfort zone and then punished you for it. The same way he did me.”

Lucy stared at her for a long moment, her lip trembling. “But I was supposed to be the one exposing him. I was supposed to show the island that his match with you was a fluke, and instead...” she paused as tears began to form at the corner of her eyes, “ ... look at me. Sitting here in sweatpants, crying by the pool like some washed-up has-been.”

Mikaela leaned forward and spoke in a quiet but sharp voice. “Luce. Stop. You’re not washed-up. You’re Lucy fucking Simon. You’re still one of the most brilliant trainers this island—no, this world has ever seen. Don’t let one loss erase all that in your own head.”

Lucy swallowed hard, blinking back tears. She wiped at them with the sleeve of her robe. “Then why does it feel like everything I built just collapsed in one night?”

“Because it was Ace Tomlinson,” Mikaela said simply. “And whether you want to admit it or not ... we might be looking at the guy who’s going to run this entire gauntlet.”

Lucy blinked, startled by the seriousness in Mikaela’s tone. “You really think he will?”

Mikaela gave a faint, almost rueful smile. “I don’t know if he will, but I think he has the best shot out of anyone before him.”

For the first time that night, Lucy didn’t argue. She just stared into the glowing reflection of the pool, the sound of the pundits still echoing from the mounted TV, her hands clasped tightly together.

“I want to tell you something,” Lucy said quietly.

“What?”

Lucy exhaled deeply before answering. “Ever since I began exclusively training Psychic Pokémon, I’ve developed very subtle ... psychic abilities.”

“Psychic abilities?” Mikaela repeated.

Lucy nodded. “I think some of my Psychic Pokémon are rubbing off on me or something because I spend so much time around them. Especially Cayce. Anyway, I spoke with Ace the day he officially challenged me, and I felt like I could like ... feel his intent somehow.”

Mikaela raised an eyebrow. “You’re saying you could read his mind?”

“Not exactly. I couldn’t hear his thoughts, but I felt like I heard echoes in my head. Ace has no reservations about doing this even if it kills him. He believes he has to do this. I’ve never seen conviction like that before.”

Mikaela didn’t respond. She stared off into the middle distance seemingly pondering about something.

“Then I had a dream that night.”

Mikaela snapped out of her trance and looked at Lucy. “What dream?”

Lucy rubbed her arms. “I don’t know but, like ... I saw Cayce in his mega form and Ace’s Dragonite. We were locked in battle. I was caught up in the dream, so I wasn’t thinking about why we were there. Ace still thought he could win, but I ordered Cayce to finish his Dragonite off ... And then I woke up.”

Mikaela stared at Lucy. “Luce ... are you saying that you foresaw what would happen in your battle before it happened?”

“It’s not the first time,” Lucy explained. “It usually happens before a high stakes battle or a tough opponent. I’ve sort of just come to accept that this is something that’s a part of me. But the one with Ace ... I’ve never had one that vivid before.”

“Jeez, Luce. No wonder your opponents get so psyched out by you,” Mikaela said, chuckling while shaking her head.

“Maybe,” Lucy replied, shrugging. “But here’s the thing. I told you I could feel echoes coming from Ace. I felt more before our match began, even from across the field. I think Ace had the same dream too, which would explain why he struggled in the beginning of our match.” Lucy turned away for a moment. “I thought the dream meant that I would win ... that I had to win. That’s why I felt so confident going in.”

Mikaela looked at Lucy, but now her eyes had softened. “One thing I’ve learned about Ace is that he has a way of defying plans and expectations even when that seems impossible.”

“Is that why you slept with him?” Lucy asked, turning back to her.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Sure.” And the slightest of smirks flashed on Lucy’s face for the first time that day.