Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Infrared

Chapter 18 (Old): We have a problem.

Sada felt all alone in the world. The human contact she received so far was slipping away. How on earth could she get along with them if all she did was turn into a battle machine when they came too close to her? No, not a battle machine, but a straight-up murderer.

Sada clutched her twitching arm as hard as she could and examined the crystals covering her hand. In a matter of time, those crystals would expand across the rest of her weary body, and then she would officially lose her chance to be human. And it was all because she couldn't learn to be brave.

Her eyes caught Arven sneaking up on her. "Arven?" Sada feebly asked.

Arven kept his distance, but he did reach out and say, "I'm just here to help you, Mom."

"Gias." Miraidon, back in his low-power mode, approached Arven's side. "Yeah, yeah, I know," he added. "I keep coming back."

"Well done, Miraidon!" Celebi told him telepathically. It rose from the ground and flew in circles. "Bi! Bi! Bi!" the Pokémon cheered. Its plan was working!

Arven gestured for Miraidon to stay put. He took a deep breath and inched closer to Sada, slowly dropping to his hands and knees in the process. His whole body trembled, but he fought off the fear with a long inhale. If he and his friends could handle AI Sada in Area Zero, then he could handle her here.

"Don't come any closer," she begged. "Please."

Now halfway to her, Arven admitted, "Mom, I know you're scared, but we're going to meet back up with the others at your cabin. Penny is going to try to fix you again." He studied the crystals on Sada's cheek, hand, and forearm. "You're going to get better. You're going to be human."

"Why can you be brave, but I can't?" Sada asked.

"It's something you learn over time," was Arven's answer. Making it to Sada, he offered her his hand. "It's okay. I trust you." He waved Miraidon over.

Arven said he trusted her, but Sada still noticed his hand shaking.

"No, you're scared of me."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Inhaling for the second time, Arven shook out his wrist. "Let's try this another way."

Celebi plopped down on Miraidon's head. Intrigued, the two Pokémon's attention did not deviate from Arven and Sada.

Arven sat on his heels and lifted his right arm. "Lift your right hand."

Sada did, in a robotic-like way: choppy and twitchy.

"I'm gonna teach you how to move that hand like a human," Arven said, smiling. "When we get nervous, we stiffen up. It's called the flight and fight response. You've been stuck in it ever since you started with this Infrared guy, but I'm gonna help you break out of it. The key is to relax. He inhaled, "Inhale," and then exhaled, "and exhale. Inhale and exhale. Now, look at this." Arven waved his hand back and forth. "Do you see how relaxed my hand is?"

"I-I guess?" Sada really didn't.

"Okay, let's do a comparison." Arven tossed up his other arm. He stiffened it and tried to move his left hand, but his movements were slow, choppy, and felt forced. "Stiff," he said to Sada, and he moved over to his right hand.

Arven loosened his wrist and waved his limb around like a kite. "Relaxed." He switched between his two hands a few more times. "Stiff. Relaxed. Stiff. Relaxed."

"Oh, I see it now!" Sada blurted out. She yelled so loudly that both Miraidon and Celebi leaped out of their skin.

Miraidon growled, but Celebi calmed him by patting his head.