FIRST MORNING LIGHT
Lopunny woke me with a gentle tap.
We had taken turns watching Ponyta through the night.
Now, dawn has come.
The morning light was soft and cold.
The fire had burned down to warm ashes.
Ponyta was already awake.
It had managed to stand up on its own, all four legs under it again.
The injured right front leg still trembled and it kept most of its weight on the other three, but it was standing, tall and shaky, like a newborn foal finding its balance for the first time.
The soft yellow-orange flames along its mane and tail flickered gently in the cold morning air, brighter than last night but still pale, as if the fire inside was only just waking up too.
It looked around in confusion.
Ears drooping low.
Head lowered, neck stretched out as it turned slowly, searching the empty grassland.
Lost and scared, completely alone.
Then its eyes found us.
For one long second, it froze.
Then something changed.
Its ears lifted slightly.
Its flames brightened, not strong, but warmer than before.
It took one careful, limping step toward us.
A small, soft "Pony…" escaped its throat,
quiet, gentle and uncertain.
Not scared.
Not angry.
Just… trusting.
It remembered the help.
Maybe not everything, but enough to know we weren't bad people.
It didn't run or pull back.
I stepped forward slowly, hand raised palm-up.
Ponyta flinched a little,
ears flicking back, head pulling away, still unsure.
Like it wanted to trust me…
but old fear still lingered.
Meowscarada and Lopunny moved up beside me, calm and steady.
I whispered,
"Can you ask it?
Where are its parents?
Its herd?
Why was it alone yesterday… and hurt so badly?"
They both nodded.
Meowscarada stepped forward and knelt neatly in front of Ponyta, tail curled loosely behind her, voice warm and gentle.
"Nyaa… nyaa…"
Lopunny moved beside her, crouching low so she was eye-level with the little fire pony, tone soft and comforting.
"Lopuu… lopuuu…"
Ponyta blinked.
Listened.
Then it answered in small, shaky sounds, soft foal-like cries and quiet, trembling voices, rising and falling like a sad little song.
They spoke for a while,
gentle voices, ear twitches, tiny nods.
I didn't understand the words.
But I saw it in Ponyta's eyes: fear, sadness, anger, then deep, heavy exhaustion.
Finally, ten minutes later, Meowscarada and Lopunny turned to me.
They had the full story now.
And they were ready to tell me everything Ponyta had said.
Meowscarada started first, as always.
She came close to me, paws moving slow and clear, gestures sharp but gentle, like she was drawing pictures in the air.
Lopunny joined right after, her fluffy paws adding softer motions, repeating some signs, filling in the gaps with patient circles and points.
I don't know why, but I understood them better, but I do for some reason.
Maybe I am getting good at reading them… or maybe they just knew me so well they could make anything clear.
Their eyes stayed on mine the whole time, making sure I followed every part.
When they finished, the story sank in cold and heavy.
Ponyta and its herd had been sleeping deep in the grass when someone came, more specifically, humans in dark clothes, more than one.
They attacked without warning, Poké Balls flashing, nets flying.
Ponyta's mother and other Rapidash, fought back to protect them (Ponyta), flames roaring high.
But they caught them.
Young Ponyta ran blindly in every direction, flames flaring in panic as red beams flashed behind them.
More Pokémon were sent after them, big, mean ones chasing through the grass, snarling and lunging in the dark.
In the chaos, this one stumbled and fell hard into a hidden ditch, tumbling down sharp rocks that scraped and bruised its sides.
That fall saved her, no pursuer saw where she went.
With Cut, bruised and alone, she crawled out hour later, legs shaking, and just kept limping through the night, too scared to stop until her strength finally gave out last night.
I looked at the little Ponyta resting by the ashes, flames soft and steady now.
"Does it know where this happened?" I asked quietly.
Meowscarada nodded once.
Lopunny pointed northwest.
I thought for a while, then took out a map and pointed my pen at one spot, trying to match the route.
I suddenly realized Pewter City was close, just over that way.
It would take at most one day to reach it.
If my guess was right, those thieves probably came from there.
Why catch a whole herd of Ponyta and Rapidash?
To sell them, most likely to the black market, underground battles… or worse…
I remembered reading about it.
Back then, Poké Balls wouldn't release a Pokémon unless the trainer truly wanted it to come out.
The League changed that design after too many cases:
trainers dying while their Pokémon were still trapped inside,
and poachers using Poké Balls to capture Pokémon and escape easily.
Now, modern Poké Balls allow Pokémon to come out on their own and escape.
Which meant one thing.
If someone caught a whole herd of Ponyta and Rapidash, they couldn't rely on Poké Balls anymore.
They must have used something bigger.
A large truck.
Cages.
Or some kind of transport strong enough to hold many Pokémon at once.
Now I had two choices.
First, I could run to Officer Jenny in Pewter City, but if the Poachers had already moved on, it might be too late.
Second, we could follow the trail ourselves and save those Pokémon, but it could be dangerous.
I looked at Meowscarada, Lopunny, then instinctively at the sad Ponyta.
Meowscarada's pink eyes were narrowed, Her usual playful smirk was gone, replaced by a tight, serious line of her mouth, like she was already planning the fight ahead.
Lopunny stood tall beside her, brown eyes burning with quiet anger. Her fluffy paws were clenched at her sides, cheeks slightly puffed, the gentle kindness replaced by a rare, protective fire.
Ponyta sat a little behind them, head low, and sad. Its big eyes were glassy with sadness, ears drooped completely, and every few seconds a small, shaky breath made its whole body tremble.
She looked small and lost, hoping someone would save her mother and her family, but still scared.
My heart was pounding with a mix of worry and resolve.
Or… we could do both.
But that would be far more dangerous.
If things went wrong, we could end up facing multiple Pokémon.
But I couldn't walk away.
I still remembered that warehouse years ago, rows of stolen eggs, so many I couldn't save.
I only managed to grab two.
Now I was older, stronger, with partners who trusted me completely.
I had to try.
I had to save as many Pokémon as I could.
I clenched my fist.
If the Poachers had stopped to rest for the night, we could still catch up.
Every hour we waited, they got farther away… and who knew what they'd do to a whole herd of Pokémon.
I looked at my girls, then at Ponyta.
"We're going to help them," I said.
"We're getting her family back."
Meowscarada's tail flicked sharp, pink eyes burning with determination.
Lopunny's ears stood straight, a fierce little nod.
Ponyta lifted her head higher, watching us.
She didn't understand the words… but she felt it, this human wanted to help her…
But…