Despacitoleo
Versed in the lewd.
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Haha fuck surge gang
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A Winkle in Reality
- Thread starter HankPankylol
- Start date
6NuttBuster9
Getting some practice in, huh?
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2023
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- 6
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- 14
Let eevee evolve into sylveon and learn drain kiss PLEASE 
Chapter 38.
HankPankylol
Making the rounds.
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Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
Happy holidays! Last chapter of the year, as I'm taking next week off.
I paused outside the door, leaning my back against the white-painted walls for a second to try and clear my head. I could hear faint murmurs from inside, nothing distinct enough to make out but the voices were recognizable.
The walk from the Gym to the PokéCenter had happened in somewhat of a blur, lost in my thoughts as I was, yet somehow it ended up taking as long as the Gym battle itself. I didn't register most of it until the doors slid open and I was nearly pushed over by an older girl rushing through with her PokéBall.
Apparently, my match with Surge didn't have the impact that I hoped.
The entire lobby of the healing establishment was filled, a line stretching from the door to the counter as people fought to be the first to get their Pokémon checked out by the professionals. Others crowded around coffee tables and clusters of chairs on either side of the foyer, both in front and behind the staircase that led up to the rentalable rooms. A fair number of people had been at the Pewter PokéCenter, but Vermillion blew it out of the water with what looked like 50 cramped together in enough space to hold little more than half that. The smell of unwashed humans completely overpowered the usual scent of disinfectant, and it was a symphony of screaming as everyone fought to be heard.
Several large screens hung high on the walls silently, either on mute or crushed under the auditory nightmare. A video played on it, displaying a very familiar-looking arena as an Electabuzz battled against a Graveller, hammering blows into the Ground-Type until it fell onto its back, unmoving.
I felt a surge of satisfaction when I noticed that Surge's victory laugh looked less boisterous than before our match.
Oh, and a lot of people were staring at me as I crossed the threshold and started shoving my way towards the stairs, instantly giving up on asking Nurse Joy for Ash's room number and scooping up Eevee after looking at her for permission. Most of the gazes were considerate and calculating, keeping their faces blank as they studied me. Another group nodded appreciatively my way when our eyes met, one guy in his mid-thirties getting his hand slapped away when he patted me on the back, having the gall to look offended that the 13-year-old didn't like it when a grown-ass man grabbed him from behind.
I guess the sentiment was nice, but that didn't mean strangers could randomly touch me as they pleased.
And then, there was the last group. Sneers and whispers followed me through the crowd, glares and upturned noses like the owners had smelled something terrible. Sore fucking losers.
Did the fuckers sit around all day, watching other people battle, and then getting pissy when they won? No wonder a simpleton like Surge kicked their asses.
Cursing exploded behind me as I lifted my foot extra high to avoid the outstretched leg attempting to trip me, and brought my heel down hard on their toes. The dude trying to trip me yelped and windmilled his arms, falling into the others around him, much to their annoyance, as I turned around 'to apologize' and kicked him right in his good ankle.
The rabble standing around like morons laughed at the interaction, but I couldn't find the humor myself as the attention had made them close ranks and block my path.
Fine. I could scream, too.
"FUCKING MOVE!"
An awkward silence replaced the hubbub, quiet spreading from my exclamation like the ripples of a stone thrown into a calm lake. Eevee pressed her face tightly against my chest, yet, while I would've liked to think it was affectionately, I was pretty sure it was mostly because everyone was now staring at me.
On the plus side, the way to the stairs parted like I was fucking Moses.
After that, it became much easier to find an assistant and get the correct room number.
I was drawn from my thoughts as the door opened and the pink hair of a Nurse Joy stepped out and started closing the door behind her, jumping a foot in the air when she spotted me, hand flying up to clutch her chest.
"OH! Mew, you scared me! I didn't see you." I gave my best smile at her breathless chuckles, tipping my head apologetically.
"Sorry, Nurse Joy, didn't mean to lie in wait for you like that."
"Oh, no, it's fine. Did you need me for anything?"
"No, no." I denied, pointing into the room. "I know the guy."
"Ah, well then, don't let me keep you!" She smiled brightly, patting me on the shoulder. I kept myself in check since it was Nurse Joy, and she didn't deserve my issues. Glancing up and down the hallway, the healer leaned in a little closer conspiratorially. "Congratulations on the Badge, by the way. Don't tell anyone this, but while I, of course, don't condone Pokémon ending up here for a prolonged period of time, I can't deny that there is a certain sense of satisfaction in seeing Surge getting a taste of his own medicine." Thanking her for the words, she departed and left me standing like an idiot outside the room.
Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door the rest of the way open and stepped in.
"Who-oh, Peri, you're done. How did it go?"
Throwing Brock a quick smile, I saw Ash sitting hunched over in a chair with a downtrodden look on his face. In front of him, lying in a human-sized medical bed with the sheets pulled up to his chest, Pikachu's ears briefly flickered at my entrance, though the Electric Mouse's eyes remained glued to the window. A couple of wires ran from under the bedding to a pair of beeping machines, yet seeing him awake and not obviously beaten to shit did a lot for my mental state.
And resting innocuously on the bedside table was a case with a big, yellow stone in it. The Thunder Stone almost had a tinge of green to it, with a darker, lightning-bolt-esque pattern in the very middle of the transparent rock. Or gem. I wasn't sure what Evolution Stones counted as. The surface gleamed in the sunlight pouring in through the large windows, almost seeming to spark as the incredible number of facets and sides constantly caught the light in new ways.
"I won."
That only got a deeper sigh from Ash. Shuffling uneasily, unsure of how to be… supportive or whatever, I moved closer to the bed. Collapsing into a free chair, I kept my hands in my pockets and jabbed my chin at the Thunder Stone. "Evolving Pikachu?"
Ash bit his lips while the Pokémon in question stared out the window. "...no, Pikachu doesn't want to. He wants to prove to Raichu and Surge that he doesn't need to evolve to win."
"I mean, it's possible," I tried to cheer him up, weirded out by the lack of an instant return to his usual, obnoxiously energetic self, "Pikachu to Raichu isn't the straight upgrade that most evolutions are, and especially not the Raichu you fought. That thing was slow as hell, and Pikachu is pretty fast, so…" I trailed off, put off by the lack of change in Ash's expression. It didn't usually take more than a couple of words for his mood to change.
"Yeah, Brock said the same," Ash sighed. Right, that made sense. We were silent for a moment while I searched for something to say.
"I did it with Hercules!" I blurted out, getting confused looks in return. "Beat Surge, I mean. I beat Surge with Hercules." I meant it as a 'ha, I've avenged you!' type thing; however, Ash simply slumped even deeper into his seat.
"Aw man, you've only had him for like two weeks and he's already stronger than Pikachu?"
I froze at the question, not knowing how to respond. My natural urge told me to say 'yes', but that didn't feel like the optimal way to cheer him up.
Thankfully, Brock was an actual human being with empathy and shit, so he quickly stepped in.
"Don't say that, Ash. First of all, it is not as simple as being stronger or weaker. Tactics and training matter just as much. Beyond that, while Hercules is an Electric-type, he's not of the Raichu line. There is a difference."
"Yeah, Ash." I did my best to support. "Listen to Brock." I shrugged at the look the Pebble Clan member gave me. I was fucking trying, give me a break.
Fuck, being nice just wasn't my thing. But, I realized, gentle consolation wasn't Ash's, either.
"You know what, I don't have time for this. I got a date to get ready for and even if I didn't, I don't want to hang around such a crybaby bitch, anyway."
Brock frowned at my words, looking ready to speak up on Ash's behalf, yet the boy himself got there first.
"I'm not a crybaby."
"Sure you are," I snorted, hamming it up, "The fuck else would you call this? Pikachu's already told you that he wants to go again, and instead of making plans, here you are, whining like a Whismur!"
"Shut up, Peri! I'm not crying!" He growled as best he could with his high-pitched voice, Pikachu squeaking in agreement.
"You are bawling like a little bitch! It's fucking sad as well, one loss and you spiral into a depression?" I shook my head mockingly, using my unwilling smirk at the emotion in his eyes to appear even more like an asshole while turning to walk back out. "Man, I thought better of you. Guess you were never going to become a Pokémon Master."
"SHUT UP!" I was grinning from ear to ear when I heard the chair tip over and hit the ground, looking over my shoulder to see Ash on his feet and pointing at me, Pikachu doing his best to match it from the bed. "I'M NOT DEPRESSED AND I WILL BECOME A POKÉMON MASTER, YOU JUST WATCH! FIRST, I'M GOING TO BEAT SURGE, AND THEN I'M GOING TO BEAT YOU, AND GARY, AND THEN THE CHAMPION! YOU HEAR ME, PERI!? PEEEERIIIIIIIII!"
His voice trailed me down the hall, the scream doing a lot to lift my earlier mood.
When in doubt, just be an asshole. It worked for me fairly often.
Yes, that was definitely the lesson to be learned from that.
For now, though, I needed to shower and be prepared for when Misty was ready. It was still a little early for dinner, but I'd rather be prepared a little before than too late.
"Hoooooot!"
I stared in mute shock at the 'speaker', gazing into the enormous, spherical, red, unblinking eyes of the bird Pokémon perched on the table. 'Spherical' was the best way to describe the Pokémon in general; its brown-feathered body, with a cream-colored belly, was as round as a ball, with no neck or head – just a pair of crimson, fist-sized orbs set in the upper part of its frame, with black makeup-esque markings around them. The lower rims of each ring had three protrusions that resembled the teeth on a gear, while the upper rims had extensions that resembled the hands of a clock, with a small, pinkish beak underneath that twitched as I looked at it. The stubby wings and three-feathered, fan-like tail protruding from its ass were unremarkable in comparison. The only reason the five-clawed foot drew my notice was that I could've sworn the Normal/Flying-Type only had one leg, yet every time I wasn't looking at them, it seemed to switch whether it was the right or left one.
Oh, and it was wearing a tiny uniform: a white T-shirt with the restaurant's name on it and a pair of orange shorts.
"Hoohoooot!"
"Stop making this weird!"
Tearing my attention away from the staring match with the Hoothoot – which I was bound to lose anyway, on account of it being an owl – I directed my focus to my companion sitting on the other side of the small table with her arms crossed, seeming distinctly displeased by my behaviour.
"Uh, right, sorry. It's just…" I trailed off, not having a clue how to begin.
"What, you've never been served by a Pokémon before?" Misty asked, leaning over to grab the menu and piece of paper hanging around the Hoothoot's neck.
"That's the one, yep, that's absolutely the reason. There's none in Pallet, and don't get me started on Orre. You're so smart for picking up on that." I shamelessly took the out. No fucking way I was going to try and explain the real reason and the existential dread it instilled in me. As I did so, I couldn't help but once again take in her appearance. Some might say that she really hadn't dressed up for the occasion – unlike me, who'd found the dress shirt and pants the Waterflower sisters had snuck into my bag – however, those people didn't know Misty very well.
Well, I didn't either, to be fair, but I was getting there.
I definitely noticed that although the pants and a short-sleeved shirt weren't that far from her usual get-up, the black pants were as tight, or even tighter, than her regular shorts, and the cleavage was a lot more pronounced – though I would never tell her that there wasn't that much to display.
I was even fairly sure she'd put on makeup. It was subtle, but her eyelashes were more prominent than usual, and her blue eyes popped as well. Hell, she might've been wearing blush. It felt good, knowing that she'd at least looked forward to our date enough to do a little extra.
"Some people think it's unhygienic or weird and have similar reactions. It's good that you don't think like that. You're getting a Wingull's Feather, by the way." She said, then closed the menu and wrote down our orders without my input.
"Sure." I didn't know what that was, but I'd give it a shot. I'd glanced at the laminated list and hadn't recognized anything other than water and lemonade, so I might as well listen to the expert. "Surprised it's your kinda thing in the first place." I mused, watching as she handed the cord holding the papers together to the owl Pokémon. I felt extreme vindication when a second, thin, pink leg shot out from under the feathers and grabbed the string before taking off with another 'Hoot', flying through a big hole in the top part of the wall that I presumed led to the kitchens.
"And what the fuck is that supposed to mean!?" She asked sharply, glaring at me from where she'd been watching the Hoothoot fly with a slight smile that transformed into a snarl. I looked around, taking in the small booths with benches of brown, furry material, small Hoothoot-shaped lamps hanging over them. Feather patterns in more brown, but with blue, red, and pink mixed in, decorated the walls, while the flooring had pictures of – you guessed it – Hoothoot pasted everywhere.
There were a fair number of people besides just us, yet I couldn't help but notice that it was mostly younger children or couples on a date. I had left Eevee in Ash's room, as it was utterly impossible to get one myself with how many people there were. However, watching as other small Pokémon sat by the tables – or on them, in some cases – made it clear that I hadn't needed to bother.
It might be a nice bonding experience for the whole team, getting together for some good grub. However, I'd have to leave out Betty, which was probably for the best, as she was more likely to eat the servers than the food.
"Nothing, nothing at all."
"That's what I thought." She growled, looking away from me with a blush.
A silence fell over the table for a moment as Misty watched the Pokémon flying around, bringing orders to the tables, while I fidgeted with a napkin.
We'd spent time together before, even alone. Why was it suddenly so fucking awkward?
"Soooo, uh… how about that weather?"
I fought the urge to slam my head against the table as Misty turned to look at me incredulously.
"Seriously? How's the weather? That's the best you've got? Did you lose your balls in Cerulean?"
"Hey, I just want this to go well and shit. Fucking excuse me," I grumbled, pulling at the stupid shirt as it itched against my neck. She wasn't wrong, though. I really was doing a terrible job. It was a whole lot fucking easier to get a date than to do well on it. Turns out you needed to put in some effort.
"That shirt," I blinked, seeing Misty staring at said piece of clothing with a frown. "My sisters gave you that, didn't they? I'd recognise Giorgio's work anywhere."
It was readily apparent from her tone that she wasn't very pleased by that observation, but it was always going to happen. "Yeah, they insisted that I had something to wear for our date."
"Didn't take you long to fall in line. I'm not surprised. Everyone falls for them eventually." She refused to look at me as two Hoothoot came flying over, each carrying a tall glass filled with a light blue liquid balanced precariously onto their head. We gently relieved the Pokémon of the burden to soft, thankful hoots and Misty immediately chugged half the glass in agitation.
"It wasn't quite like that," I protested, taking a sip of my own drink while sliding one of the menus the birds left behind over to myself. It was overly sweet, in my opinion, and the Oran flavor was extremely artificial, but it could've been worse. "Honestly, I didn't see them for days after you guys left, and when I did, I went right back to hurling shit at them. Verbally, I mean, not actual-whatever." Don't bring up throwing feces on the first date, bro, what the fuck was I doing? "And I think I was doing a pretty good job at getting to them. Daisy ended up getting so angry that she released your grandpa's Gyarados to scare me and-"
"WHAT!?" The entire clientele of the Hoothoot-themed restaurant looked our way at the loud shout, only to turn away again when met with both our glares. Neither Misty nor I was the shy type, though she did lower her voice as she leaned in and hissed. "What the fuck do you mean she sent out Leviathan!? Is she fucking crazy!? That thing can, and has, killed stronger Trainers than you for being in the general vicinity!"
"Yeah, Violet and Lily weren't super impressed either, though I was a little too fucked up to appreciate it. Not because I was hurt," I quickly explained as the wrath in her eyes intensified, "No, no, she recalled it before it could do anything. No, I-..." I hesitated before surging forward. It was getting easier each time, and I'd already told her sisters. It would be weird to keep it from Misty. "Has Ash told you where I'm from? Like, before Pallet."
"You mentioned Orre a few minutes ago, so I can make a guess, but no, he hasn't." I nodded, conceding the point.
"Right, well, I'm from Orre, kinda – long story. Anyway, when I was leaving that shithole with some others I'd met and… and my Vulpix. We got intercepted by some thugs on the ocean. Don't know if Walter's told you this, but the waters between Sevii and Orre are almost as fucked up as the desert itself. Anyway, they had a Gyarados, and I was the only one who made it. So I had a… moment." It was a significantly shortened version, but it was a heavy topic. I didn't want to trauma dump too much.
"That's…" She didn't seem sure what to say, which was fair. There really weren't good words.
"It's fine, I'm over it." No, the fuck I was not, which I was sure she knew from the look she sent me, but I persevered after quickly picking something random from the menu. Flaming Tauros had to be some kinda beef-esque dish, right?. "Anyway, they felt bad about it, and we talked for a bit, getting into why they don't like battling. They wanted to tell me about your parents, but I stopped them. The two of us started that conversation, so it only felt right for us to finish it."
Once more, she appeared lost for words, though for more positive reasons, based on the pleased smile and the way she wouldn't meet my eyes.
"Tell you what, some other day, we'll share those stories." Her voice was quiet, but she didn't refuse eye contact that time.
"Oh?" I waggled my eyebrows. "Does that mean we'll have a second date?"
"Don't push it, the first one is rocky as is."
Conversation flowed more easily after that, as I regaled her with the tale of Walter and me fighting the Eevee thieves, not embellishing at all, in any way, which she clearly believed. After a bit, our orders arrived, and I was relieved to see that the stir-fry-esque dish was made with tofu and what appeared to be Ditto meat. Hopefully, anyway. Still weird, but those thing were fucking freaky and have me the creeps. According to the Professor, 'pain' wasn't quite the same for them as it was for more natural organisms.
"Saw your fight with Surge, by the way," Misty said as we dug in.
"Oh yeah, impressed?"
"More like concerned that I agreed to a date with a psycho. What was that last bit?" I grimaced, knowing what she was referring to. I didn't regret it, but it also wasn't a great look.
"The guy was pissing me off, shit talking to people way younger and less experienced than him and sending them to the PokéCenter, yet he's a shit battler himself, who flinches when pushed. Pussy." I grumbled, stabbing at my food and shoveling in a mouthful. Okay, when they wrote 'flaming', they fucking meant it. Why the fuck was it that spicy?
"1. Surge is one of the stronger Gym Leaders. Not Giovanni, Blaine, or Koga level, or even Sabrina, perhaps, but still. He's just not interested in anything he considers 'teaching', though to be fair, he didn't want to be a Gym Leader in the first place." Misty pointed out, though she didn't sound fond of the guy herself. "And 2. When you say 'people', do you mean people in general, or Ash and Pikachu?" I kept my eyes locked on my plate, refusing to give her the satisfaction. I wasn't comfortable with it myself, much less pouring out my heart.
"Don't know what you're talking about."
"Careful, your tough guy image is slipping." She smirked, clearly enjoying my discomfort.
"Guess I'll have to threaten some more Gym Leaders, then." It was my turn to smirk as she rolled her eyes, picking at her noodles. Tempting Tentacruel Tentacles, if I'd read her order correctly.
Pokémon had some weird ass names. At least it was actual noodles, and not real Tentacruel. I still shivered sometimes, remembering Grant.
"I wouldn't. You'll get away with it this time, because it's Surge, and he's been even more insufferable than usual lately, due to the cruise ship." She sniffed. Something tingled in the back of my mind at the mention of a ship, and it wasn't just the PTSD.
"The cruise ship?" I asked.
"The S.S. Anne is in Kanto at the moment, down by the harbor. It's been years since she's been here, and people are excited. Though calling her a cruise ship is a bit of an understatement, she's more of an oversized, floating luxury hotel. They're having a tournament on board between every stop, and tons of Trainers are coming over, not to mention the Hoennese Trainers that stayed on after the ship left Sootopolis. Their prices are insane, both for winning and for joining. A single ticket is worth more than most Trainers make in a year, like, exuberant even by Clan standards."
Right, the ship with Cut and a shit load of battles in the games. "Well, good luck to them, but I'm-"
"-thanks, but I don't need luck since I've got actual skills and intelligence, rather than a bunch of freaks directed by an overhyped Orre thug."
I grinned despite the interruption as Misty's eyes narrowed at something over my shoulder. I didn't need to look. The smarmy voice and terrible insult gave it away.
"You sure? Don't think your grandpa's name is gonna pull the kinda weight you're used to with these people. You might be forced to rely on yourself, and that… well, at least I'll get to laugh." I smirked as a brown haired boy around my physical age walked up to the table, laughing sarcastically.
"Still with the schoolyard insults, eh? Then again, don't suppose I can expect everyone to keep up with me. Or, anyone, really." Gary-Motherfucking-Oak sneered down at me, though it lacked the heat it once had. These days, we were mostly going through the motions for the sake of fun.
Well, other than having to beat his ass for the shit he pulled outside Viridian, but it would be a semi-friendly ass kicking.
"That's true, it's hard for normal people to be that slow. They would have to put in effort."
"You wouldn't know effort. You take your fucking date to Hooters? Seriously, bro?" I twitched violently at the name I'd done my best to avoid thinking about since I saw the sign. It couldn't be a coincidence, right? Someone from my dimension must have come over before me and thought they were funny. Which they were, but fuck them.
"Uh, excuse me," Misty interjected, surprisingly politely. "Who are you and why should we care? I'm not signing autographs." Yep, thought so.
Predictably, Gary didn't miss a beat. "Who am I? I'm Gary-Fucking-Oak, that's who – future Champion in the making, genius extraordinaire. Much better question," he turned to me instead of addressing Misty directly, "is what fucking corner you picked up this street trash from? If you're strapped for cash, then call me; no need to risk every venereal disease at once."
"This," I quickly spoke up before Mt. Misty could erupt, based on the almost literal steam I could see shooting from her ears. How the fuck did I end up playing peacemaker? I was the one who fucked shit up! "Is Misty Waterflower."
I don't know why I thought that would help.
"Oh, ew, dude! A fucking Waterflower? This one doesn't even have tits like the rest!"
"THE FUCK YOU SAY!?" Misty jumped out of her chair, sending it crashing to the floor, again drawing all eyes onto us. That time, I felt a little more self-conscious about it, as I didn't want that shit either.
"OKAY! Gary, we're in the middle of something, so what do you want to fuck off?" I tried to simply cut it off there, before Gary could fire whatever nuke he'd cooked up under the pleased look on his face.
"Weren't you listening? The S.S. Anne, dipshit!" He answered his own question instantly.
Oh. That made sense.
"Nope."
"What do you mean, 'no'?" He genuinely seemed confused at my refusal. "You can't say no! Do you have any idea how much money Gra-I mean, that I spent on the tickets!? Exposure therapy time, bitch, no way out of it!"
"Oh yeah?" I looked him dead in the eyes, and whatever he saw made a hint of uncertainty flash across his face.
"Watch me."
Stones crunched against concrete under his hiking boots, the sturdy soles crushing the pebbles without issue as Brock Pebble walked down an outer street of Vermillion. The sun was setting over Sunset Port, its dying rays of red and orange bouncing off the many windows of the skyscrapers that dominated the city, coating the settlement in a fiery glow. A fresh breeze drifted in from the sea, salty and cool after a particularly hot spring day, not a trace of the trash stench that plagued even Pewter.
Say what you would about Surge – and many did – but he took Vermillion seriously, if not the Gym Leader part.
It was a wonderful evening.
Unfortunately, Brock didn't have time to enjoy it. No, he had to console the children.
Again.
As much as he'd been enjoying the last few weeks – when he wasn't worrying himself sick about the kids back home – he sometimes wished that his companions were a little older. Part of finally being able to leave for his own Trainer journey was to escape being a parent.
Instead, he'd somehow picked up three strays.
He entered an out-of-the-way training field, the type of place you wouldn't know about unless you were a native. Or was looking for a place to hide.
Or was a former Gym Leader who could ask the local authorities.
In the back of the vast plain of grass surrounded by trees and a small wall, a rapid pitterpatter of thuds rang out as a series of compressed balls of water struck several targets set up for such a purpose. Siren the Feebas was easily visible, levitating front and center as she relaunched her attack. Brock still remembered the Water-Type taking down his team with surprising competence. He'd been impressed with both Siren, for the determination, and Peri, for training such an unpopular Pokémon to a decent level in a short amount of time. It spoke well for him that he was willing to put in the time and effort.
Especially when Brock met the rest of his team.
A wide cone of small fireballs sprayed over the targets and everything in between as Betty the Titan Bagon spewed a large Ember all over the field, not caring how much she destroyed as long as her targets were among it. Knowing the almost cliché Dragon-Type, she probably enjoyed it more that way.
The second most normal member of the team, the Elekid – Hercules, if he remembered correctly – was sitting in front of a large battery that Brock recognized as rechargeable by Electric-Type Pokémon. The small humanoid was glaring at the box, clutching the two protruding prongs in its hands, before it lit up with electricity. The small frame tensed as it tried to hold it, but Hercules was eventually forced to return it to the battery when it grew too much for it, much to its whirring disappointment.
Brock didn't know much about Electric-Types, other than to throw a Ground-Type at them, but he knew Fighting-Types. His eyes lingered on the broad shoulders, the slightly longer than average legs, and the evenly distributed musculature. While it wasn't quite the monster some of Peri's others were, it was still very well suited for battling, especially the close-quarters combat Peri seemed to be grooming it for.
Sol, the genetic freak of nature Growlithe that Peri – lucky bastard – had stumbled into was on his belly in the grass, tail wagging furiously behind him. He kept himself pressed flat while ever so slowly shuffling forward, nose sniffing and mouth panting. In front of the Fire-Type was Peri's newly acquired Eevee, like the boy needed another rare Pokémon for his collection. The Normal-Type was keeping its eyes firmly locked on the canine, looking distinctly unimpressed by his efforts to slide closer. Eevee waited until Sol was almost upon it before getting up and starting to move away, leaving the Growlithe to whine pitefully at his new playmate's escape.
Mew, what Brock wouldn't give for an hour of examining Peri's team. The sheer amount he could learn about deviation within a species, and the alternate coloration – casually known as a 'shiny' Pokémon– that sometimes appeared, beggared belief. He'd been on the verge of asking so many times, but the red-haired youth was extremely defensive about his team, and understandably so. Part of being a parent was knowing when not to take a losing fight. It would just make the future harder for no improvement.
Still, even from a distance, it was evident that they were well taken care of. Their fur was smooth and even – other than Elekid's scars – Betty's and Siren's scales glistened, and if Brock wasn't mistaken from the brief glimpse he caught, Peri had picked up something for their teeth, too, as Brock didn't see any plaque buildup.
The chewable sticks, if the boy had been smart and done his research. If not, Brock would advise him to switch, at least for Sol and Betty.
And near the center of it all, sat the boy himself, trying desperately to look like he hadn't seen Brock enter. Unfortunately for him, Brock was an old hand at that game and simply walked up close and crossed his arms. He didn't fail to notice the wounded knuckles clutching a brush, or the blood staining the bark-stripped, half-ruined and deformed wood of a nearby tree, but didn't comment.
A little scary, he would admit.
Ignoring him wouldn't make him go away, though. Peri may be a master of pissing people off, but Brock had learned from Rock-Types in many ways, and his patience was legendary.
It had to be when Billy and Tilly started screaming, Timmy and Tommy were fighting, and Salvadore had somehow lit the couch on fire.
At the same time.
Peri held out his brush to Eevee in a silent offering, their gazes locking for a moment while Brock stood silently and watched. The two of them weren't familiar with each other yet, and it was an essential time in a Pokémon-Trainer relationship.
Eventually, though, Eevee cautiously moved closer. It hesitated again, just out of reach, looking back up at Peri – and even glanced at Brock, who kept himself neutral – before finally lying down in front of the boy stiffly and letting him get to work.
He truly felt bad for interrupting what was clearly a step forward for the pair, and as such, gave them a few minutes to continue. But he was there for a reason.
"You know, when Misty came back with that… polite friend of Ash and you, and said that you bailed on your date, I thought that you would be back within a couple of hours, and we could talk about it. Didn't think you would disappear for a whole day."
Peri sighed, keeping his eyes on Eevee as he slowly ran the brush through the brown fur. "Guess Misty's pissed at me, huh? Kinda just left her. With Gary, of all fucking people."
"Not as much as I'd thought. Not the greatest date of all time." Just because Brock was there to cheer the guy up didn't mean that they should completely abandon their previous rhythm. Kids got angsty if you switched up on them too much.
"Oh, sorry. I forgot I was talking to a god of charming women. Let me guess, I should scream my eternal love at her on first sight and try to propose to all the Waterflowers at once, right?"
Brock coughed awkwardly, quickly moving on. He was fully aware that he wasn't the smoothest with women, but damnit, he was trying! He'd been stuck taking care of 12 kids since puberty hit. How was he supposed to learn!? And who was going to teach him, after Flint just vanished? Grant? That's who Brock learned it from in the first place! All the old fossil could say when questioned was that 'women were less bothersome in his age' and that screaming at women used to work!
"Anyway," He hurried on, "I'm not here to lecture you, or anything. Just thought you might want to know that Ash beat Surge on his second try, with Pikachu. Took a page out of your book and outsped him. Dumb of Surge to fall for it twice, but it still happened." Peri seemed pleased at the news about Ash, though he tried to hide it, and surprised at Brock not scolding him for his admittedly immature actions.
It was a fault of his; Brock could admit that. He'd spent so much time playing parent that he sometimes looked down on those younger than him as if they were children – and Peri was a child, he would stand firm on that point, no matter how many explicit curses the boy knew or how much violence he could inflict.
But that didn't mean that he was an infant, or that Brock needed to babysit him constantly. The boy could be surprisingly mature.
"Lil' bitch stopped whining? Good, I could hear it from here. Mew damned loser, wait until I tell Gary."
Sometimes. Occasionally.
"Well, if you want to tell Gary, then you will probably need to be on the ship." He could almost smell Peri's brain frying from how hard he was trying to think of an excuse.
"We've just met back up, though! It would be a shame to part ways so soon-"
"-acutally, the rest of us got tickets as well," Brock smirked at the look of panic on Peri's face, like a Stantler in a Noctowls sight. "We ran into a couple of fans of Misty's, who had an emergency and couldn't make it, so they gave the tickets to us. They're not first class or anything, but we'll be on board. So if you really don't want to be separated…" He trailed off meaningfully, hiding his own excitement at going on the cruise. He'd heard about it as a child and had always dreamed of going on it to learn about all the foreign Pokémon there, but life had kicked him in the groin and said no. Better late than never, though.
"... thought you weren't here to lecture me."
"And I'm not," Brock assured him, taking a seat next to the boy and Pokémon, with enough distance that he didn't spook Eevee too much. "I'm not going to try to force you on the ship if you truly don't want to. You're a licensed Trainer, you can make your own decisions."
"Don't wanna."
"Okay," Brock held up his hands in surrender, "if that's all it is, then that's your choice." And with that, he let silence consume them once more, leaning back and watching the target practice. The Pokémon were doing well with the stationary goals, but they would be better served with moving ones. Brock made a mental note to suggest that Peri had them attack each other's moves.
After the boy finally cracked, of course.
"It's fucking stupid." When the words finally came, they were so quiet that Brock almost didn't hear them.
Almost.
"It's the farthest thing from stupid," he disagreed. "You experienced something terrible, and that leaves its scars."
"Yeah, almost four years ago!" The Pebble Clan member wasn't surprised at he heat behind the words. It wasn't directed at him. "It's been four fucking years since then, and I've tried to put it behind me, I've tried therapy, fuck, I've tried beating the shit out of criminals, and nothing works! I still lose my shit when I see a Gyarados or fucking run away when thinking about going out to sea! It's fucking pathetic!"
There were many ways to handle that kind of breakdown. Most were gentle and slow, coaching the person to realise the problem and potential solution themselves. It was the way Brock preferred. Things tended to stick better when you learned them yourself.
That said, the approach had to be tailored to the individual in question. And Peri was an aggressive brat that didn't really do gentle.
"It's not the most adult thing I've ever seen. Even by your low standards." He cringed internally at the offended look he got from both Peri and Eevee. He hated playing the bad guy, but necessity compelled him. "I'm mostly confused about how you think this is going to help." He gestured to the training field.
"The fuck you mean?" The older teen knew he deserved the anger behind the words, and quickly continued. He wouldn't put it past Peri to start swinging and seeing the damage he was doing to trees, Brock had a bad feeling about his chances.
"What I mean is that, what do you think staying here while we head off is going to accomplish? Do you think it's going to make you feel better? Is hiding from your problems going to make them disappear?"
"Fuck you." The boy threw the brush away in disgust after Eevee flinched a little from the increasingly forceful tugging. "I don't know, okay! I-... I don't know." Brock's heart went out to the kid, hating the uncharacteristic weakness in his voice. He'd never bought the bravado, but it was jarring to hear the absence nonetheless.
Yet he persevered.
"Of course you don't. If you knew the solution, then you wouldn't have a problem in the first place. You want to know my thoughts?" He waited for the confirmation, not wanting to push too hard either. "I think that your words to Ash apply to yourself as well. You had one bad experience – a truly terrible one – but then you stopped trying. While I wouldn't phrase it the same way as the young Oak," or say anything at all in the same way as Gary, "There is something to his words. You listed all the things you've tried, but nowhere on that list is slowly exposing yourself to build up a resistance."
The purple-eyed teenager didn't say anything in response, staring into the distance blankly while his Eevee pressed against him a little closer, despite the rough treatment. Brock suppressed a smile. Peri really had a way with Pokémon that might rival even Ash's. He would love to know what they fed the kids in Pallet.
"There are Teleporters on the ship. World-class security, literally. There are usually top notch Trainers, or even bona-fide Masters who spend years on board that ship. Chances are, you will never get as safe an opportunity again. So, it would be a shame to let it pass you by. Still, as I said, it's your choice."
"...if I go, will you promise that you'll never try to console someone with tough love ever again? Seriously, that was so fucking sad. You were as transparent as fucking glass."
"I promise." Brock chuckled, letting him have that one unopposed. He wasn't wrong anyway.
"... then fine. I'll go on the dumb ship. It's not that big of a deal." The Rock-type Trainer wasn't sure who Peri was trying to convince – though he had a fair guess – but once more let it go.
Brock smiled, reaching over and squeezing the younger boy's shoulder in support.
"It will be okay, you'll see. I promise you that nothing bad is going to happen on board the S.S. Anne."
AN: Such a nice guy, Brock, convincing Peri to face his demons head-on.
Nobody seemed to notice that when Peri was listing the Team Rocket events he remembered, the S.S. Anne wasn't on it. That's because I didn't remember that the S.S. Anne being attacked was an actual canon event and not a fanfic trope. For some reason, it just doesn't stick out in my memory.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
Happy holidays! Last chapter of the year, as I'm taking next week off.
I paused outside the door, leaning my back against the white-painted walls for a second to try and clear my head. I could hear faint murmurs from inside, nothing distinct enough to make out but the voices were recognizable.
The walk from the Gym to the PokéCenter had happened in somewhat of a blur, lost in my thoughts as I was, yet somehow it ended up taking as long as the Gym battle itself. I didn't register most of it until the doors slid open and I was nearly pushed over by an older girl rushing through with her PokéBall.
Apparently, my match with Surge didn't have the impact that I hoped.
The entire lobby of the healing establishment was filled, a line stretching from the door to the counter as people fought to be the first to get their Pokémon checked out by the professionals. Others crowded around coffee tables and clusters of chairs on either side of the foyer, both in front and behind the staircase that led up to the rentalable rooms. A fair number of people had been at the Pewter PokéCenter, but Vermillion blew it out of the water with what looked like 50 cramped together in enough space to hold little more than half that. The smell of unwashed humans completely overpowered the usual scent of disinfectant, and it was a symphony of screaming as everyone fought to be heard.
Several large screens hung high on the walls silently, either on mute or crushed under the auditory nightmare. A video played on it, displaying a very familiar-looking arena as an Electabuzz battled against a Graveller, hammering blows into the Ground-Type until it fell onto its back, unmoving.
I felt a surge of satisfaction when I noticed that Surge's victory laugh looked less boisterous than before our match.
Oh, and a lot of people were staring at me as I crossed the threshold and started shoving my way towards the stairs, instantly giving up on asking Nurse Joy for Ash's room number and scooping up Eevee after looking at her for permission. Most of the gazes were considerate and calculating, keeping their faces blank as they studied me. Another group nodded appreciatively my way when our eyes met, one guy in his mid-thirties getting his hand slapped away when he patted me on the back, having the gall to look offended that the 13-year-old didn't like it when a grown-ass man grabbed him from behind.
I guess the sentiment was nice, but that didn't mean strangers could randomly touch me as they pleased.
And then, there was the last group. Sneers and whispers followed me through the crowd, glares and upturned noses like the owners had smelled something terrible. Sore fucking losers.
Did the fuckers sit around all day, watching other people battle, and then getting pissy when they won? No wonder a simpleton like Surge kicked their asses.
Cursing exploded behind me as I lifted my foot extra high to avoid the outstretched leg attempting to trip me, and brought my heel down hard on their toes. The dude trying to trip me yelped and windmilled his arms, falling into the others around him, much to their annoyance, as I turned around 'to apologize' and kicked him right in his good ankle.
The rabble standing around like morons laughed at the interaction, but I couldn't find the humor myself as the attention had made them close ranks and block my path.
Fine. I could scream, too.
"FUCKING MOVE!"
An awkward silence replaced the hubbub, quiet spreading from my exclamation like the ripples of a stone thrown into a calm lake. Eevee pressed her face tightly against my chest, yet, while I would've liked to think it was affectionately, I was pretty sure it was mostly because everyone was now staring at me.
On the plus side, the way to the stairs parted like I was fucking Moses.
After that, it became much easier to find an assistant and get the correct room number.
I was drawn from my thoughts as the door opened and the pink hair of a Nurse Joy stepped out and started closing the door behind her, jumping a foot in the air when she spotted me, hand flying up to clutch her chest.
"OH! Mew, you scared me! I didn't see you." I gave my best smile at her breathless chuckles, tipping my head apologetically.
"Sorry, Nurse Joy, didn't mean to lie in wait for you like that."
"Oh, no, it's fine. Did you need me for anything?"
"No, no." I denied, pointing into the room. "I know the guy."
"Ah, well then, don't let me keep you!" She smiled brightly, patting me on the shoulder. I kept myself in check since it was Nurse Joy, and she didn't deserve my issues. Glancing up and down the hallway, the healer leaned in a little closer conspiratorially. "Congratulations on the Badge, by the way. Don't tell anyone this, but while I, of course, don't condone Pokémon ending up here for a prolonged period of time, I can't deny that there is a certain sense of satisfaction in seeing Surge getting a taste of his own medicine." Thanking her for the words, she departed and left me standing like an idiot outside the room.
Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door the rest of the way open and stepped in.
"Who-oh, Peri, you're done. How did it go?"
Throwing Brock a quick smile, I saw Ash sitting hunched over in a chair with a downtrodden look on his face. In front of him, lying in a human-sized medical bed with the sheets pulled up to his chest, Pikachu's ears briefly flickered at my entrance, though the Electric Mouse's eyes remained glued to the window. A couple of wires ran from under the bedding to a pair of beeping machines, yet seeing him awake and not obviously beaten to shit did a lot for my mental state.
And resting innocuously on the bedside table was a case with a big, yellow stone in it. The Thunder Stone almost had a tinge of green to it, with a darker, lightning-bolt-esque pattern in the very middle of the transparent rock. Or gem. I wasn't sure what Evolution Stones counted as. The surface gleamed in the sunlight pouring in through the large windows, almost seeming to spark as the incredible number of facets and sides constantly caught the light in new ways.
"I won."
That only got a deeper sigh from Ash. Shuffling uneasily, unsure of how to be… supportive or whatever, I moved closer to the bed. Collapsing into a free chair, I kept my hands in my pockets and jabbed my chin at the Thunder Stone. "Evolving Pikachu?"
Ash bit his lips while the Pokémon in question stared out the window. "...no, Pikachu doesn't want to. He wants to prove to Raichu and Surge that he doesn't need to evolve to win."
"I mean, it's possible," I tried to cheer him up, weirded out by the lack of an instant return to his usual, obnoxiously energetic self, "Pikachu to Raichu isn't the straight upgrade that most evolutions are, and especially not the Raichu you fought. That thing was slow as hell, and Pikachu is pretty fast, so…" I trailed off, put off by the lack of change in Ash's expression. It didn't usually take more than a couple of words for his mood to change.
"Yeah, Brock said the same," Ash sighed. Right, that made sense. We were silent for a moment while I searched for something to say.
"I did it with Hercules!" I blurted out, getting confused looks in return. "Beat Surge, I mean. I beat Surge with Hercules." I meant it as a 'ha, I've avenged you!' type thing; however, Ash simply slumped even deeper into his seat.
"Aw man, you've only had him for like two weeks and he's already stronger than Pikachu?"
I froze at the question, not knowing how to respond. My natural urge told me to say 'yes', but that didn't feel like the optimal way to cheer him up.
Thankfully, Brock was an actual human being with empathy and shit, so he quickly stepped in.
"Don't say that, Ash. First of all, it is not as simple as being stronger or weaker. Tactics and training matter just as much. Beyond that, while Hercules is an Electric-type, he's not of the Raichu line. There is a difference."
"Yeah, Ash." I did my best to support. "Listen to Brock." I shrugged at the look the Pebble Clan member gave me. I was fucking trying, give me a break.
Fuck, being nice just wasn't my thing. But, I realized, gentle consolation wasn't Ash's, either.
"You know what, I don't have time for this. I got a date to get ready for and even if I didn't, I don't want to hang around such a crybaby bitch, anyway."
Brock frowned at my words, looking ready to speak up on Ash's behalf, yet the boy himself got there first.
"I'm not a crybaby."
"Sure you are," I snorted, hamming it up, "The fuck else would you call this? Pikachu's already told you that he wants to go again, and instead of making plans, here you are, whining like a Whismur!"
"Shut up, Peri! I'm not crying!" He growled as best he could with his high-pitched voice, Pikachu squeaking in agreement.
"You are bawling like a little bitch! It's fucking sad as well, one loss and you spiral into a depression?" I shook my head mockingly, using my unwilling smirk at the emotion in his eyes to appear even more like an asshole while turning to walk back out. "Man, I thought better of you. Guess you were never going to become a Pokémon Master."
"SHUT UP!" I was grinning from ear to ear when I heard the chair tip over and hit the ground, looking over my shoulder to see Ash on his feet and pointing at me, Pikachu doing his best to match it from the bed. "I'M NOT DEPRESSED AND I WILL BECOME A POKÉMON MASTER, YOU JUST WATCH! FIRST, I'M GOING TO BEAT SURGE, AND THEN I'M GOING TO BEAT YOU, AND GARY, AND THEN THE CHAMPION! YOU HEAR ME, PERI!? PEEEERIIIIIIIII!"
His voice trailed me down the hall, the scream doing a lot to lift my earlier mood.
When in doubt, just be an asshole. It worked for me fairly often.
Yes, that was definitely the lesson to be learned from that.
For now, though, I needed to shower and be prepared for when Misty was ready. It was still a little early for dinner, but I'd rather be prepared a little before than too late.
"Hoooooot!"
I stared in mute shock at the 'speaker', gazing into the enormous, spherical, red, unblinking eyes of the bird Pokémon perched on the table. 'Spherical' was the best way to describe the Pokémon in general; its brown-feathered body, with a cream-colored belly, was as round as a ball, with no neck or head – just a pair of crimson, fist-sized orbs set in the upper part of its frame, with black makeup-esque markings around them. The lower rims of each ring had three protrusions that resembled the teeth on a gear, while the upper rims had extensions that resembled the hands of a clock, with a small, pinkish beak underneath that twitched as I looked at it. The stubby wings and three-feathered, fan-like tail protruding from its ass were unremarkable in comparison. The only reason the five-clawed foot drew my notice was that I could've sworn the Normal/Flying-Type only had one leg, yet every time I wasn't looking at them, it seemed to switch whether it was the right or left one.
Oh, and it was wearing a tiny uniform: a white T-shirt with the restaurant's name on it and a pair of orange shorts.
"Hoohoooot!"
"Stop making this weird!"
Tearing my attention away from the staring match with the Hoothoot – which I was bound to lose anyway, on account of it being an owl – I directed my focus to my companion sitting on the other side of the small table with her arms crossed, seeming distinctly displeased by my behaviour.
"Uh, right, sorry. It's just…" I trailed off, not having a clue how to begin.
"What, you've never been served by a Pokémon before?" Misty asked, leaning over to grab the menu and piece of paper hanging around the Hoothoot's neck.
"That's the one, yep, that's absolutely the reason. There's none in Pallet, and don't get me started on Orre. You're so smart for picking up on that." I shamelessly took the out. No fucking way I was going to try and explain the real reason and the existential dread it instilled in me. As I did so, I couldn't help but once again take in her appearance. Some might say that she really hadn't dressed up for the occasion – unlike me, who'd found the dress shirt and pants the Waterflower sisters had snuck into my bag – however, those people didn't know Misty very well.
Well, I didn't either, to be fair, but I was getting there.
I definitely noticed that although the pants and a short-sleeved shirt weren't that far from her usual get-up, the black pants were as tight, or even tighter, than her regular shorts, and the cleavage was a lot more pronounced – though I would never tell her that there wasn't that much to display.
I was even fairly sure she'd put on makeup. It was subtle, but her eyelashes were more prominent than usual, and her blue eyes popped as well. Hell, she might've been wearing blush. It felt good, knowing that she'd at least looked forward to our date enough to do a little extra.
"Some people think it's unhygienic or weird and have similar reactions. It's good that you don't think like that. You're getting a Wingull's Feather, by the way." She said, then closed the menu and wrote down our orders without my input.
"Sure." I didn't know what that was, but I'd give it a shot. I'd glanced at the laminated list and hadn't recognized anything other than water and lemonade, so I might as well listen to the expert. "Surprised it's your kinda thing in the first place." I mused, watching as she handed the cord holding the papers together to the owl Pokémon. I felt extreme vindication when a second, thin, pink leg shot out from under the feathers and grabbed the string before taking off with another 'Hoot', flying through a big hole in the top part of the wall that I presumed led to the kitchens.
"And what the fuck is that supposed to mean!?" She asked sharply, glaring at me from where she'd been watching the Hoothoot fly with a slight smile that transformed into a snarl. I looked around, taking in the small booths with benches of brown, furry material, small Hoothoot-shaped lamps hanging over them. Feather patterns in more brown, but with blue, red, and pink mixed in, decorated the walls, while the flooring had pictures of – you guessed it – Hoothoot pasted everywhere.
There were a fair number of people besides just us, yet I couldn't help but notice that it was mostly younger children or couples on a date. I had left Eevee in Ash's room, as it was utterly impossible to get one myself with how many people there were. However, watching as other small Pokémon sat by the tables – or on them, in some cases – made it clear that I hadn't needed to bother.
It might be a nice bonding experience for the whole team, getting together for some good grub. However, I'd have to leave out Betty, which was probably for the best, as she was more likely to eat the servers than the food.
"Nothing, nothing at all."
"That's what I thought." She growled, looking away from me with a blush.
A silence fell over the table for a moment as Misty watched the Pokémon flying around, bringing orders to the tables, while I fidgeted with a napkin.
We'd spent time together before, even alone. Why was it suddenly so fucking awkward?
"Soooo, uh… how about that weather?"
I fought the urge to slam my head against the table as Misty turned to look at me incredulously.
"Seriously? How's the weather? That's the best you've got? Did you lose your balls in Cerulean?"
"Hey, I just want this to go well and shit. Fucking excuse me," I grumbled, pulling at the stupid shirt as it itched against my neck. She wasn't wrong, though. I really was doing a terrible job. It was a whole lot fucking easier to get a date than to do well on it. Turns out you needed to put in some effort.
"That shirt," I blinked, seeing Misty staring at said piece of clothing with a frown. "My sisters gave you that, didn't they? I'd recognise Giorgio's work anywhere."
It was readily apparent from her tone that she wasn't very pleased by that observation, but it was always going to happen. "Yeah, they insisted that I had something to wear for our date."
"Didn't take you long to fall in line. I'm not surprised. Everyone falls for them eventually." She refused to look at me as two Hoothoot came flying over, each carrying a tall glass filled with a light blue liquid balanced precariously onto their head. We gently relieved the Pokémon of the burden to soft, thankful hoots and Misty immediately chugged half the glass in agitation.
"It wasn't quite like that," I protested, taking a sip of my own drink while sliding one of the menus the birds left behind over to myself. It was overly sweet, in my opinion, and the Oran flavor was extremely artificial, but it could've been worse. "Honestly, I didn't see them for days after you guys left, and when I did, I went right back to hurling shit at them. Verbally, I mean, not actual-whatever." Don't bring up throwing feces on the first date, bro, what the fuck was I doing? "And I think I was doing a pretty good job at getting to them. Daisy ended up getting so angry that she released your grandpa's Gyarados to scare me and-"
"WHAT!?" The entire clientele of the Hoothoot-themed restaurant looked our way at the loud shout, only to turn away again when met with both our glares. Neither Misty nor I was the shy type, though she did lower her voice as she leaned in and hissed. "What the fuck do you mean she sent out Leviathan!? Is she fucking crazy!? That thing can, and has, killed stronger Trainers than you for being in the general vicinity!"
"Yeah, Violet and Lily weren't super impressed either, though I was a little too fucked up to appreciate it. Not because I was hurt," I quickly explained as the wrath in her eyes intensified, "No, no, she recalled it before it could do anything. No, I-..." I hesitated before surging forward. It was getting easier each time, and I'd already told her sisters. It would be weird to keep it from Misty. "Has Ash told you where I'm from? Like, before Pallet."
"You mentioned Orre a few minutes ago, so I can make a guess, but no, he hasn't." I nodded, conceding the point.
"Right, well, I'm from Orre, kinda – long story. Anyway, when I was leaving that shithole with some others I'd met and… and my Vulpix. We got intercepted by some thugs on the ocean. Don't know if Walter's told you this, but the waters between Sevii and Orre are almost as fucked up as the desert itself. Anyway, they had a Gyarados, and I was the only one who made it. So I had a… moment." It was a significantly shortened version, but it was a heavy topic. I didn't want to trauma dump too much.
"That's…" She didn't seem sure what to say, which was fair. There really weren't good words.
"It's fine, I'm over it." No, the fuck I was not, which I was sure she knew from the look she sent me, but I persevered after quickly picking something random from the menu. Flaming Tauros had to be some kinda beef-esque dish, right?. "Anyway, they felt bad about it, and we talked for a bit, getting into why they don't like battling. They wanted to tell me about your parents, but I stopped them. The two of us started that conversation, so it only felt right for us to finish it."
Once more, she appeared lost for words, though for more positive reasons, based on the pleased smile and the way she wouldn't meet my eyes.
"Tell you what, some other day, we'll share those stories." Her voice was quiet, but she didn't refuse eye contact that time.
"Oh?" I waggled my eyebrows. "Does that mean we'll have a second date?"
"Don't push it, the first one is rocky as is."
Conversation flowed more easily after that, as I regaled her with the tale of Walter and me fighting the Eevee thieves, not embellishing at all, in any way, which she clearly believed. After a bit, our orders arrived, and I was relieved to see that the stir-fry-esque dish was made with tofu and what appeared to be Ditto meat. Hopefully, anyway. Still weird, but those thing were fucking freaky and have me the creeps. According to the Professor, 'pain' wasn't quite the same for them as it was for more natural organisms.
"Saw your fight with Surge, by the way," Misty said as we dug in.
"Oh yeah, impressed?"
"More like concerned that I agreed to a date with a psycho. What was that last bit?" I grimaced, knowing what she was referring to. I didn't regret it, but it also wasn't a great look.
"The guy was pissing me off, shit talking to people way younger and less experienced than him and sending them to the PokéCenter, yet he's a shit battler himself, who flinches when pushed. Pussy." I grumbled, stabbing at my food and shoveling in a mouthful. Okay, when they wrote 'flaming', they fucking meant it. Why the fuck was it that spicy?
"1. Surge is one of the stronger Gym Leaders. Not Giovanni, Blaine, or Koga level, or even Sabrina, perhaps, but still. He's just not interested in anything he considers 'teaching', though to be fair, he didn't want to be a Gym Leader in the first place." Misty pointed out, though she didn't sound fond of the guy herself. "And 2. When you say 'people', do you mean people in general, or Ash and Pikachu?" I kept my eyes locked on my plate, refusing to give her the satisfaction. I wasn't comfortable with it myself, much less pouring out my heart.
"Don't know what you're talking about."
"Careful, your tough guy image is slipping." She smirked, clearly enjoying my discomfort.
"Guess I'll have to threaten some more Gym Leaders, then." It was my turn to smirk as she rolled her eyes, picking at her noodles. Tempting Tentacruel Tentacles, if I'd read her order correctly.
Pokémon had some weird ass names. At least it was actual noodles, and not real Tentacruel. I still shivered sometimes, remembering Grant.
"I wouldn't. You'll get away with it this time, because it's Surge, and he's been even more insufferable than usual lately, due to the cruise ship." She sniffed. Something tingled in the back of my mind at the mention of a ship, and it wasn't just the PTSD.
"The cruise ship?" I asked.
"The S.S. Anne is in Kanto at the moment, down by the harbor. It's been years since she's been here, and people are excited. Though calling her a cruise ship is a bit of an understatement, she's more of an oversized, floating luxury hotel. They're having a tournament on board between every stop, and tons of Trainers are coming over, not to mention the Hoennese Trainers that stayed on after the ship left Sootopolis. Their prices are insane, both for winning and for joining. A single ticket is worth more than most Trainers make in a year, like, exuberant even by Clan standards."
Right, the ship with Cut and a shit load of battles in the games. "Well, good luck to them, but I'm-"
"-thanks, but I don't need luck since I've got actual skills and intelligence, rather than a bunch of freaks directed by an overhyped Orre thug."
I grinned despite the interruption as Misty's eyes narrowed at something over my shoulder. I didn't need to look. The smarmy voice and terrible insult gave it away.
"You sure? Don't think your grandpa's name is gonna pull the kinda weight you're used to with these people. You might be forced to rely on yourself, and that… well, at least I'll get to laugh." I smirked as a brown haired boy around my physical age walked up to the table, laughing sarcastically.
"Still with the schoolyard insults, eh? Then again, don't suppose I can expect everyone to keep up with me. Or, anyone, really." Gary-Motherfucking-Oak sneered down at me, though it lacked the heat it once had. These days, we were mostly going through the motions for the sake of fun.
Well, other than having to beat his ass for the shit he pulled outside Viridian, but it would be a semi-friendly ass kicking.
"That's true, it's hard for normal people to be that slow. They would have to put in effort."
"You wouldn't know effort. You take your fucking date to Hooters? Seriously, bro?" I twitched violently at the name I'd done my best to avoid thinking about since I saw the sign. It couldn't be a coincidence, right? Someone from my dimension must have come over before me and thought they were funny. Which they were, but fuck them.
"Uh, excuse me," Misty interjected, surprisingly politely. "Who are you and why should we care? I'm not signing autographs." Yep, thought so.
Predictably, Gary didn't miss a beat. "Who am I? I'm Gary-Fucking-Oak, that's who – future Champion in the making, genius extraordinaire. Much better question," he turned to me instead of addressing Misty directly, "is what fucking corner you picked up this street trash from? If you're strapped for cash, then call me; no need to risk every venereal disease at once."
"This," I quickly spoke up before Mt. Misty could erupt, based on the almost literal steam I could see shooting from her ears. How the fuck did I end up playing peacemaker? I was the one who fucked shit up! "Is Misty Waterflower."
I don't know why I thought that would help.
"Oh, ew, dude! A fucking Waterflower? This one doesn't even have tits like the rest!"
"THE FUCK YOU SAY!?" Misty jumped out of her chair, sending it crashing to the floor, again drawing all eyes onto us. That time, I felt a little more self-conscious about it, as I didn't want that shit either.
"OKAY! Gary, we're in the middle of something, so what do you want to fuck off?" I tried to simply cut it off there, before Gary could fire whatever nuke he'd cooked up under the pleased look on his face.
"Weren't you listening? The S.S. Anne, dipshit!" He answered his own question instantly.
Oh. That made sense.
"Nope."
"What do you mean, 'no'?" He genuinely seemed confused at my refusal. "You can't say no! Do you have any idea how much money Gra-I mean, that I spent on the tickets!? Exposure therapy time, bitch, no way out of it!"
"Oh yeah?" I looked him dead in the eyes, and whatever he saw made a hint of uncertainty flash across his face.
"Watch me."
Stones crunched against concrete under his hiking boots, the sturdy soles crushing the pebbles without issue as Brock Pebble walked down an outer street of Vermillion. The sun was setting over Sunset Port, its dying rays of red and orange bouncing off the many windows of the skyscrapers that dominated the city, coating the settlement in a fiery glow. A fresh breeze drifted in from the sea, salty and cool after a particularly hot spring day, not a trace of the trash stench that plagued even Pewter.
Say what you would about Surge – and many did – but he took Vermillion seriously, if not the Gym Leader part.
It was a wonderful evening.
Unfortunately, Brock didn't have time to enjoy it. No, he had to console the children.
Again.
As much as he'd been enjoying the last few weeks – when he wasn't worrying himself sick about the kids back home – he sometimes wished that his companions were a little older. Part of finally being able to leave for his own Trainer journey was to escape being a parent.
Instead, he'd somehow picked up three strays.
He entered an out-of-the-way training field, the type of place you wouldn't know about unless you were a native. Or was looking for a place to hide.
Or was a former Gym Leader who could ask the local authorities.
In the back of the vast plain of grass surrounded by trees and a small wall, a rapid pitterpatter of thuds rang out as a series of compressed balls of water struck several targets set up for such a purpose. Siren the Feebas was easily visible, levitating front and center as she relaunched her attack. Brock still remembered the Water-Type taking down his team with surprising competence. He'd been impressed with both Siren, for the determination, and Peri, for training such an unpopular Pokémon to a decent level in a short amount of time. It spoke well for him that he was willing to put in the time and effort.
Especially when Brock met the rest of his team.
A wide cone of small fireballs sprayed over the targets and everything in between as Betty the Titan Bagon spewed a large Ember all over the field, not caring how much she destroyed as long as her targets were among it. Knowing the almost cliché Dragon-Type, she probably enjoyed it more that way.
The second most normal member of the team, the Elekid – Hercules, if he remembered correctly – was sitting in front of a large battery that Brock recognized as rechargeable by Electric-Type Pokémon. The small humanoid was glaring at the box, clutching the two protruding prongs in its hands, before it lit up with electricity. The small frame tensed as it tried to hold it, but Hercules was eventually forced to return it to the battery when it grew too much for it, much to its whirring disappointment.
Brock didn't know much about Electric-Types, other than to throw a Ground-Type at them, but he knew Fighting-Types. His eyes lingered on the broad shoulders, the slightly longer than average legs, and the evenly distributed musculature. While it wasn't quite the monster some of Peri's others were, it was still very well suited for battling, especially the close-quarters combat Peri seemed to be grooming it for.
Sol, the genetic freak of nature Growlithe that Peri – lucky bastard – had stumbled into was on his belly in the grass, tail wagging furiously behind him. He kept himself pressed flat while ever so slowly shuffling forward, nose sniffing and mouth panting. In front of the Fire-Type was Peri's newly acquired Eevee, like the boy needed another rare Pokémon for his collection. The Normal-Type was keeping its eyes firmly locked on the canine, looking distinctly unimpressed by his efforts to slide closer. Eevee waited until Sol was almost upon it before getting up and starting to move away, leaving the Growlithe to whine pitefully at his new playmate's escape.
Mew, what Brock wouldn't give for an hour of examining Peri's team. The sheer amount he could learn about deviation within a species, and the alternate coloration – casually known as a 'shiny' Pokémon– that sometimes appeared, beggared belief. He'd been on the verge of asking so many times, but the red-haired youth was extremely defensive about his team, and understandably so. Part of being a parent was knowing when not to take a losing fight. It would just make the future harder for no improvement.
Still, even from a distance, it was evident that they were well taken care of. Their fur was smooth and even – other than Elekid's scars – Betty's and Siren's scales glistened, and if Brock wasn't mistaken from the brief glimpse he caught, Peri had picked up something for their teeth, too, as Brock didn't see any plaque buildup.
The chewable sticks, if the boy had been smart and done his research. If not, Brock would advise him to switch, at least for Sol and Betty.
And near the center of it all, sat the boy himself, trying desperately to look like he hadn't seen Brock enter. Unfortunately for him, Brock was an old hand at that game and simply walked up close and crossed his arms. He didn't fail to notice the wounded knuckles clutching a brush, or the blood staining the bark-stripped, half-ruined and deformed wood of a nearby tree, but didn't comment.
A little scary, he would admit.
Ignoring him wouldn't make him go away, though. Peri may be a master of pissing people off, but Brock had learned from Rock-Types in many ways, and his patience was legendary.
It had to be when Billy and Tilly started screaming, Timmy and Tommy were fighting, and Salvadore had somehow lit the couch on fire.
At the same time.
Peri held out his brush to Eevee in a silent offering, their gazes locking for a moment while Brock stood silently and watched. The two of them weren't familiar with each other yet, and it was an essential time in a Pokémon-Trainer relationship.
Eventually, though, Eevee cautiously moved closer. It hesitated again, just out of reach, looking back up at Peri – and even glanced at Brock, who kept himself neutral – before finally lying down in front of the boy stiffly and letting him get to work.
He truly felt bad for interrupting what was clearly a step forward for the pair, and as such, gave them a few minutes to continue. But he was there for a reason.
"You know, when Misty came back with that… polite friend of Ash and you, and said that you bailed on your date, I thought that you would be back within a couple of hours, and we could talk about it. Didn't think you would disappear for a whole day."
Peri sighed, keeping his eyes on Eevee as he slowly ran the brush through the brown fur. "Guess Misty's pissed at me, huh? Kinda just left her. With Gary, of all fucking people."
"Not as much as I'd thought. Not the greatest date of all time." Just because Brock was there to cheer the guy up didn't mean that they should completely abandon their previous rhythm. Kids got angsty if you switched up on them too much.
"Oh, sorry. I forgot I was talking to a god of charming women. Let me guess, I should scream my eternal love at her on first sight and try to propose to all the Waterflowers at once, right?"
Brock coughed awkwardly, quickly moving on. He was fully aware that he wasn't the smoothest with women, but damnit, he was trying! He'd been stuck taking care of 12 kids since puberty hit. How was he supposed to learn!? And who was going to teach him, after Flint just vanished? Grant? That's who Brock learned it from in the first place! All the old fossil could say when questioned was that 'women were less bothersome in his age' and that screaming at women used to work!
"Anyway," He hurried on, "I'm not here to lecture you, or anything. Just thought you might want to know that Ash beat Surge on his second try, with Pikachu. Took a page out of your book and outsped him. Dumb of Surge to fall for it twice, but it still happened." Peri seemed pleased at the news about Ash, though he tried to hide it, and surprised at Brock not scolding him for his admittedly immature actions.
It was a fault of his; Brock could admit that. He'd spent so much time playing parent that he sometimes looked down on those younger than him as if they were children – and Peri was a child, he would stand firm on that point, no matter how many explicit curses the boy knew or how much violence he could inflict.
But that didn't mean that he was an infant, or that Brock needed to babysit him constantly. The boy could be surprisingly mature.
"Lil' bitch stopped whining? Good, I could hear it from here. Mew damned loser, wait until I tell Gary."
Sometimes. Occasionally.
"Well, if you want to tell Gary, then you will probably need to be on the ship." He could almost smell Peri's brain frying from how hard he was trying to think of an excuse.
"We've just met back up, though! It would be a shame to part ways so soon-"
"-acutally, the rest of us got tickets as well," Brock smirked at the look of panic on Peri's face, like a Stantler in a Noctowls sight. "We ran into a couple of fans of Misty's, who had an emergency and couldn't make it, so they gave the tickets to us. They're not first class or anything, but we'll be on board. So if you really don't want to be separated…" He trailed off meaningfully, hiding his own excitement at going on the cruise. He'd heard about it as a child and had always dreamed of going on it to learn about all the foreign Pokémon there, but life had kicked him in the groin and said no. Better late than never, though.
"... thought you weren't here to lecture me."
"And I'm not," Brock assured him, taking a seat next to the boy and Pokémon, with enough distance that he didn't spook Eevee too much. "I'm not going to try to force you on the ship if you truly don't want to. You're a licensed Trainer, you can make your own decisions."
"Don't wanna."
"Okay," Brock held up his hands in surrender, "if that's all it is, then that's your choice." And with that, he let silence consume them once more, leaning back and watching the target practice. The Pokémon were doing well with the stationary goals, but they would be better served with moving ones. Brock made a mental note to suggest that Peri had them attack each other's moves.
After the boy finally cracked, of course.
"It's fucking stupid." When the words finally came, they were so quiet that Brock almost didn't hear them.
Almost.
"It's the farthest thing from stupid," he disagreed. "You experienced something terrible, and that leaves its scars."
"Yeah, almost four years ago!" The Pebble Clan member wasn't surprised at he heat behind the words. It wasn't directed at him. "It's been four fucking years since then, and I've tried to put it behind me, I've tried therapy, fuck, I've tried beating the shit out of criminals, and nothing works! I still lose my shit when I see a Gyarados or fucking run away when thinking about going out to sea! It's fucking pathetic!"
There were many ways to handle that kind of breakdown. Most were gentle and slow, coaching the person to realise the problem and potential solution themselves. It was the way Brock preferred. Things tended to stick better when you learned them yourself.
That said, the approach had to be tailored to the individual in question. And Peri was an aggressive brat that didn't really do gentle.
"It's not the most adult thing I've ever seen. Even by your low standards." He cringed internally at the offended look he got from both Peri and Eevee. He hated playing the bad guy, but necessity compelled him. "I'm mostly confused about how you think this is going to help." He gestured to the training field.
"The fuck you mean?" The older teen knew he deserved the anger behind the words, and quickly continued. He wouldn't put it past Peri to start swinging and seeing the damage he was doing to trees, Brock had a bad feeling about his chances.
"What I mean is that, what do you think staying here while we head off is going to accomplish? Do you think it's going to make you feel better? Is hiding from your problems going to make them disappear?"
"Fuck you." The boy threw the brush away in disgust after Eevee flinched a little from the increasingly forceful tugging. "I don't know, okay! I-... I don't know." Brock's heart went out to the kid, hating the uncharacteristic weakness in his voice. He'd never bought the bravado, but it was jarring to hear the absence nonetheless.
Yet he persevered.
"Of course you don't. If you knew the solution, then you wouldn't have a problem in the first place. You want to know my thoughts?" He waited for the confirmation, not wanting to push too hard either. "I think that your words to Ash apply to yourself as well. You had one bad experience – a truly terrible one – but then you stopped trying. While I wouldn't phrase it the same way as the young Oak," or say anything at all in the same way as Gary, "There is something to his words. You listed all the things you've tried, but nowhere on that list is slowly exposing yourself to build up a resistance."
The purple-eyed teenager didn't say anything in response, staring into the distance blankly while his Eevee pressed against him a little closer, despite the rough treatment. Brock suppressed a smile. Peri really had a way with Pokémon that might rival even Ash's. He would love to know what they fed the kids in Pallet.
"There are Teleporters on the ship. World-class security, literally. There are usually top notch Trainers, or even bona-fide Masters who spend years on board that ship. Chances are, you will never get as safe an opportunity again. So, it would be a shame to let it pass you by. Still, as I said, it's your choice."
"...if I go, will you promise that you'll never try to console someone with tough love ever again? Seriously, that was so fucking sad. You were as transparent as fucking glass."
"I promise." Brock chuckled, letting him have that one unopposed. He wasn't wrong anyway.
"... then fine. I'll go on the dumb ship. It's not that big of a deal." The Rock-type Trainer wasn't sure who Peri was trying to convince – though he had a fair guess – but once more let it go.
Brock smiled, reaching over and squeezing the younger boy's shoulder in support.
"It will be okay, you'll see. I promise you that nothing bad is going to happen on board the S.S. Anne."
AN: Such a nice guy, Brock, convincing Peri to face his demons head-on.
Nobody seemed to notice that when Peri was listing the Team Rocket events he remembered, the S.S. Anne wasn't on it. That's because I didn't remember that the S.S. Anne being attacked was an actual canon event and not a fanfic trope. For some reason, it just doesn't stick out in my memory.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
Pandaemonium04
Know what you're doing yet?
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Huh, maybe the best way for Peri to get over his trauma is to associate beating up Team Rocket on a ship. That way very time he thinks of ships and water, he gets reminded of beating Team Rocket instead of being downed by them.
The Radiance's Follower
The Radiance is best.
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I like that Peri has many goals. But while he is motivated by revenge and self-improvement. Does he have any idea on what he will do after succeeding. This is the most important question he needs to answer to himself so he can start to heal.
GNB
Getting out there.
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Oh no. You should't say that at all.
Error29
The Wandering Reader
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Is it too fucking much to put fucking tags in a fucking fic? I would have fucking loved to know that this was going to be misery fucking porn. It would have at least been wonderful to not ruin my day with all this unnecessary torture. Fucking tags exist for a reason. Fucking hells, use them
Chapter 39.
New
HankPankylol
Making the rounds.
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Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
And we're back at it in 2026 (Somehow. WTF happened to time?).
"Watch it!"
"Excuse you!"
"Hey, buddy, there's a line!"
"Kids these days, I swear."
I paid the grumpy people no mind as I shoved my way through the crowd, as we all headed towards the pier. Aura training hadn't quite made me into the Dragon Ball-style powerhouse I wished – yet, anyway – but keeping a constant slow circulation of it through my body did make it a lot easier to body check people out of the way.
It also made my mood worse and increased my aggression, but I doubted anyone would be able to tell that morning.
"Watch where you're going, punk-AW FUCK!" Some wannabe tough guy screamed and hopped on one foot after he tried to block me and got his toes crushed for his trouble.
Okay, so maybe a tiny bit angrier than usual, but I was having a bad fucking day already, and it was clearly the rest of the world's fault for putting me in that situation, so they should be the ones to pay.
Made perfect sense.
Behind me, Eevee dodged and weaved between calves and feet, doing her best to keep up. Her fur stood on end, her ears flat against her skull, and her eyes were wide, yet she still did her best to stay with me.
It didn't take the research I'd been doing on Eevee behaviour and care to see that she wasn't having a good time.
I wasn't sure scooping her up unceremoniously, and without warning, to dump her on my shoulder was a better choice, but it was what it was. Several people were looking at her with a little too much interest for my comfort, though if I'd been in a better state of mind, I'd have asked first instead of risking the fairly solid foundation we'd been building.
She didn't jump down, though, which was good. Her standing completely still and tense wasn't, but whatever.
I needed all the mental fortitude I could get to not embarrass myself even further as the pier came into view and the monstrosity of a ship docked there with it.
My heart dropped, and a little bile rose in my throat as my eyes scanned the dozens of floors rocking gently in the calm waters of the Vermillion port.
Fuck me. Maybe it wasn't too late to turn around and just leave. Brock could shove his advice up his ass-
"PERI, OVER HERE!"
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
Unfortunately, there was no getting around it when Ash was staring straight at me and screaming, waving his arms in the air furiously from where they were standing over to the side of the primary cue.
I could still leave. There was enough distance that I would be able to vanish into the crowd-
Both Misty and Gary's expressions changed as they glared at me, hands on PokéBalls and appearing entirely willing to chase me down and drag me on board.
I did my best not to slump too much as I moved over to them, bumping some more people on the way just to be a dick. I shouldn't have interfered and let them kill each other. I could handle them separately, but combined, I feared for the whole planet.
"Yo." I did my best to act nonchalant and avoid eye contact while Eevee jumped down now that she was safe to do so.
"'Yo', he says. Done changing your tampon, cry-baby bitch?"
"Fuck you!"
"You wish!" The smirk on Gary's face was real enough, yet there was a glint of hesitation in his eye that only partially dispersed when I gave him a slight nod.
Misty, on the other hand, was an unflinching mask that didn't have a single crack when I glanced at her.
"Uh, Misty, hey," Mew I wished we didn't need to talk with a whole ass audience, but there was no way I could justify putting it off, "listen, I-
"-save it. Let's just get on the Lugia-damned ship." I sighed in relief. I definitely wasn't forgiven, based on the coldness in her voice, but at least she didn't want to make it a spectacle either.
"I hate to agree, but she is right, we're about to start boarding," Gary remarked after consulting his wrist watch, which looked way fancier than I remembered. And then, he proceeded to stare at Ash, Misty, and Brock expectantly.
"What?" Ash looked down at his shirt for stains, but didn't find any. After checking over both his shoulders as well, he turned back to his rival, confused. "What!?"
"Don't you think you should get in the cue, dumbasses?" I'd almost forgotten how condescending Gary could sound. It was genuinely a talent.
"We are in the cue, Gary! Ha, who's the dumb one now!?" Ash grinned alongside Misty as he pointed at the red rope barring the way to a narrow staircase that led up to the S.S. Anne. Daring a quick peek, I looked away from the massive vessel again. Misty hadn't been kidding about it being fucking huge. The damn thing had to be almost a thousand feet long.
"OH!" Gary truly could have taken up acting. If I didn't know better, I'd say the surprise was real, if not for the gleeful maliciousness pulling at his lips. "You thought-? Haha. Hahahaha. HAHAHAHAHA!" Throwing his head back, the young Oak cackled like he'd heard the funniest joke of all time, whipping a tear away from the corner of his eyes. "Oh, that's so adorable! No, this way is for actual important people. Your entrance is over there." He pointed to the much larger ramp that led to the lower levels, in front of which several hundred people were gathered, growing increasingly rowdy as time passed. Meanwhile, there were only a little over 30 with us to the side. "Alongside the other peasants. Soooo, good luck with that."
Brock rolled his eyes while Ash stared at Gary, a look of astonishment on his face. Meanwhile, Misty was looking at me expectantly. The polite thing was to join her at the standard boarding zone, but it was a minor miracle that I hadn't shanked someone on the way there. Putting me back in an agitated crowd was not a good idea.
Some part of my mental state must have leaked into my expression, as her own face softened a little and she refrained from saying anything before grabbing Ash by the collar and beginning to drag him away.
"DAMN YOU, GARY!"
"Smell you later!"
Gary's chuckles trailed off slightly awkwardly as we resumed our wait, me doing my best to ignore the fact that I could see both ship and stairs bob up and down. At the same time, he looked increasingly uncomfortable the longer no one said anything.
"Are you-uh… are you, like, uh, okay, or whatever?" He flushed at my raised eyebrow. "It's just that, uh… I-I didn't know it was that bad, and I know that I… came on strong, or you know, a little hot… look all I'm saying is that, uh, if-if you really don't want to, then… then fuck the money, right, and-" I raised my hand to cut of his rambling as it got faster and faster.
"Dude, it's fine, I-..." Taking a deep breath, I pushed on. If Gary could apologise unpromted by anyone other than his own guilty conscience, then I could admit my faults, at least somewhat. "... you were right, okay? I've been trying to just… shove it down, ignore and deny it whenever it becomes a problem, and it's not working. I shouldn't… I shouldn't lose my shit and hide like a child whenever someone even mentions the possibility of me going on a boat. This is probably one of the most controlled environments I can start in, so… thanks. I guess."
Gary looked stunned at my words, yet he couldn't hide the wide smile that took over his whole face, his expression lighting up and softening from his customary sneer of superiority. He patted me on the back in a way that was more of a slap than anything, and tried to change the subject.
"Of course I'm right, I'm Gary-motherfucking-Oak! How have you not realised that me being right is a fact of reality?"
"Bitch please," I had no issue going back to joking, feeling equally uncomfortable myself, "you can't even wipe your ass without five people helping you. Speaking of, where are your babysitters?"
"Oh, they're taking the car back to where we're getting off. Gramp's got cash, but not that kinda cash. Can't believe those losers just got handed tickets. Fucking nonsense. How lucky can you fucking get!" Gary whined, though he would probably protest me calling it that.
"Yeah, lucky…" It was definitely just my paranoia and overall fucked headspace, but something was off about that. Weirder shit happened daily in the PokéWorld, but something about Brock's story of how they got the tickets was bothering me.
The sharp clang! of footsteps on metal pulled me from my thoughts and directed my attention to the three people walking down the ramp towards us. The two men walking behind looked like they had been pulled straight from a fetish calendar, white and blue striped T-shirts straining to contain their humongous pecs, the seams visibly straining against the meat, while the white pants groaned audibly against the person-sized quads. Dark sunglasses hid their eyes as the over seven-foot-tall men stepped onto the dock, a little white hat crowning their bald heads.
My eyes widened a little at the sight of the 10 PokéBalls they were each carrying, though it also settled my nerves somewhat – definitely not standard security.
The front man, on the other hand, was dapper as fuck. Dressed in a well-tailored, three-piece light blue suit that complemented his slicked back silver hair and carefully groomed handlebar moustache, the man screamed 'sophisticated butler' as he took out an honest-to-Mew pocket watch and checked the time, before bowing deeply to us.
"Our honoured VIPs, welcome to the S.S. Anne." Even his baritone voice was smooth, with a faint British accent like Bill's. Guess they weren't kidding about the S.S. Anne sailing all around the world. There was a nine-out-of-ten chance that his name was either Walter or Jeeves. "We thank you for choosing us, and we promise an experience unlike any other, even if you have travelled with us before. On board the S.S. Anne, we pride ourselves on constantly innovating with knowledge from around the world to create a truly unique experience. Please, this way."
With that, the fancy guy turned around and began leading the way back up to the ship, while the two sailors took up positions on either side of the entrance, with crossed arms and muscles bulging intimidatingly. Compared to the public ramp, the VIPs were like a well-oiled machine as they got into line, yet I still took a step to the side and let the others pass, Gary having to quickly step aside to avoid them when he saw me.
"Just, uh, being polite." His disbelief was palpable, but he didn't say anything, just tapping his foot impatiently as everyone else walked before us.
Eventually, there was no delay anymore, though.
My knuckles were white around the railing as I clutched it desperately, playing one foot after the other while taking deep breaths. There was no getting around being able to see water on both sides of the stairs, and I was forced to stop when a particularly strong breeze shook the rickety contraption.
Eventually, though, we made it to the top, where the others were waiting impatiently. However, they backed down at Gary's glare, allowing me a moment to recover as best I could while still breathing in the scent of seawater and my stomach flip-flopping with every minute shift of the giant vessel.
At least I hadn't had any full-blown panic attacks yet, or Nam flashbacks. I was a little bit proud of myself and my confidence in the whole endeavour grew marginally.
Step one was… okay.
"If you will follow me, I shall give you the tour and show you to your cabins. Here are your maps as we, of course, do not expect you to memorise the whole ship." The butler, or whatever he was, explained once we were all there and then led the way.
In all honesty, I didn't hear much of the tour, focused as I was on not losing my shit. What little I did pick up, though, told the tale of ridiculous opulence. Large, furry carpets covered the hallways, and artwork lined the wooden walls in gilded frames. The metal was bronze and brass, giving the whole thing an old-school hotel or mansion vibe. It was extremely silly to see on a ship, and I wondered how long it took to clean salt out of-
-Oh, shiny!
"And here we have the commercial area, or the shop, if you prefer. Here you can find everything from exclusive PokéBalls to exotic Pokémon the likes of which this region of the world has never seen. It is also where trading will be happening." That was all the spiffy tour guide said before he moved on, but it was significantly more difficult for me to drag myself away from the lit-up shelves holding all manner of goodies. My mouth started salivating slightly at the row after row of TM cases, not to mention the area to the left where I could just barely see the very top of what looked like a small Flying-Type, with a red, almost flame-like head.
If that was a Pikipek, like I thought, then they truly had explored further than most, as that was an Alolan Pokémon.
Reluctantly, I grabbed Gary by the arm and dragged him away as the group started rounding a corner, not wanting to be lost in a giant metal coffin.
Eventually, we arrived at the long corridor that held the VIP rooms and were left to our own devices after getting our keys. I raised an eyebrow at only Gary getting one, but he simply shrugged while unlocking the door.
"Getting two tickets was already a struggle; no way I could swing two rooms. Dips on the top bunk!"
I snorted, highly doubting that something that fancy would have bunk beds.
And I was very right.
Even Gary whistled as we stepped into the enormous rooms, dual king-sized beds on either side with enough room in between for four or five of me to lie down. Armchairs surrounded a low table, giant beanbags slung around. The back wall was dominated by a massive aquarium featuring various underwater plants, divided into two sections marked by a pair of plaques labelled 'fresh' and 'salt' respectively.
The entire room was more than 40 feet by 40 feet, with ample space for both our teams to stretch out. Even my oversized dumbasses would fit comfortably.
"Holy shit," I mumbled, looking around the apartment-sized area.
"Yeah, there's a reason for the price tag," Gary commented, flinging his bag carelessly on the floor and jumping into the left-most bed. Guess I was taking the right. "Also, a reason a ship this fuck-off huge only carries 1.000 people at a time. Gotta make room for Pokémon and rich pricks. By which I mean us. Here, catch."
Catching the object he flung at my head with way more force than necessary, I quirked a brow at the slim chequebook, all the notes already having the Professor's signature on it, but the space for the amount was left blank.
"We hitting the strip club?" I asked, getting a bark of laughter in return.
"I fucking wish! You think Gramps gave us the tickets so we could go on a vacation? You've been hanging out with Ash too much; I can see your brain leaking out of your ears. No, dumbass, obviously we're on the clock, how did you think I managed this? He's been banned for a decade for bothering the other guests. That's where we come in. We can't bother the guests, but we can buy scans of their Pokémon. A scrub like you doesn't have that kinda cash, hence the chequebook."
"You want me to work!? What the fuck, Gary, you sold this as a pleasure cruise with battling!" I felt bamboozled and betrayed.
"Stop being a bitch. It's the least we can do for him in return for covering the expenses. Besides, you can just lie and say they all said no; he can't fact-check it." I grumbled a little anyway, mostly because I'd feel bad if I didn't put in at least a little effort. "And yes, there is battling. Three tournaments, to be exact. 1-2 Badges, 2-3 Badges, and 3-4 Badges. Nothing beyond that, given, you know, the fact that we're on a sinkable platform and shit." I must have paled at the reminder since he hurriedly reassured me. "Not that it's going to sink, of course, because they take such good care! Fuck me, will you calm down? You're giving me anxiety. Anyway." He sat up before continuing.
"I've already signed us up for the one tomorrow. We're only allowed to compete once, some shit about 'fairness', and thought our chances were better. I'd still win the last one, obviously, but figured I'd throw a weakling like you a bone."
I frowned. "How the fuck did you do that? Don't I need to sign shit?" Seeing him attempt to whistle innocently, I narrowed my eyes. "Did you fake my signature? How the fuck did you even do that!? I thought it was connected to my PokéDex!?"
"Never mind that!" He swiftly deflected. "We're going to clean the fuck up. While they aren't as strict as Gyms, they're still going to check over our Pokémon beforehand and ban anything too strong. As rookie Trainers, we'll probably get a little more leeway than the older guys, which is great since I don't think any of our Pokémon are strong enough to get disqualified. Unless you've caught some other bullshit beyond your usual garbage?"
I shook my head. "Nah, I've only got another two, actually."
He stared at me for a moment. "Like… two good ones?"
"No, two at all. Well, three, but I gave that one away. Fuck, if you wanna be technical, I didn't even catch Eevee, Bill gave her to me."
"You've only caught one Pokémon in a month!?" Gary seemed genuinely shell-shocked. "What the fuck have you been doing!? Even the loser has done better than that!"
I shrugged, not really put off by it. I knew that the 'gotta catch them all' line of thinking was more common among Trainers who could afford the stabling, but I very much preferred having all my Pokémon with me, rather than back at the Reserve. Unless I encountered some that wanted to be relocated, or something especially rare, it would likely remain that way. "I'm picky, what can I say."
"There's picky, and then there's not even having a full team yet. And who the fuck is Bill?"
"Bill Masaki, you know, the inventor? The Professor talked about him occasionally." I threw the information out carelessly, but was forced to reevaluate my opinion of its significance when Gary scowled.
"You ran into that dickhead? Where? Why?"
Shrugging again, I saw no harm in telling the story. Bill had gotten some info that only Oak had, so it only seemed fair to return the favour.
Gary appeared very interested in the Colossal Dragonite and asked me to send the video from my camera to him so he could forward it to his grandfather himself. Still, he didn't seem pleased with me.
"What?" I asked, not really in the mood.
"It's just… Gramps and Masaki hate each other, dude. Or, hate is a strong word, but they really don't like each other after their last time working together. He won't be very happy with you selling him shit."
"Well, I'm not very happy with him either, so I guess we're even." I shot back, getting a scowl.
"Hey, Gramp's been nothing but good to you!"
"Yeah, like when he took all my money and let you train your starter behind everyone's back!"
That got a mildly conceding winch. "...okay, so he's made some mistakes, but still."
I threw my arms out, exasperated. "Why hasn't he released that video, anyway? It's been a month, the fuck is he waiting for?"
It was Gary's turn to shrug, refusing to meet my eyes while rifling through his bag. "How the fuck should I know. The old man doesn't tell me shit. He's been like that as long as I can remember, though. He likes squeezing everything out of something before he gives it over to others. Come to think of it, I think it was something similar that made Masaki and him pissed at each other."
Silence fell over the lavish room before I broke it with a sigh. Gary and I had barely made up, and we were already fighting.
"You said you wanted to check out the shop?" He nodded. "Okay, how about you head there and I'll go get the others before meeting up with you?"
I expected him to complain about involving others, yet all I got was a nod before he headed out the door. Hopefully, that meant he was trying to avoid arguing with me, not that he was already angry.
Fucking interpersonal relationships. Way more complicated than terrorist groups, somehow.
Sending Misty a message, since I trusted her to check way more than Ash, I collapsed on the vast bed and stroked Eevee's fur absent-mindedly.
"Don't suppose you have some sage advice about humans?" Evidently, she didn't, but I would take her pressing into my side.
Hearing a ping! from my PokéDex, I reluctantly got up and consulted my map on the best way to get to the top deck, where the others apparently were.
A while later, plus several random detours and a near fist fight with some fucking snob that didn't believe that I belonged in the VIP area and thought I was a thief, I finally stepped foot on the top deck.
I'm not sure what I was expecting, yet somehow it was exactly that. A massive pool dominated the front portion of the deck, lined with chairs and tables for the bathers and a large bar and grill to the side. People and Pokémon were already splashing around in the water, and as advertised, there were plenty of foreign Pokémon to be found. A medium-sized penguin with yellow ridges on its head, a Prinplup, bounced on the diving board a couple of times before doing a perfect impression of a missile into the pool. The waves washed over a Poliwrath and a massive green bipedal toad with weird orange lumps on its body that I recognised as a Shiny Seismitoad as they swam laps, weaving around an orange otter with two tails and what looked like a floating device around its neck.
There were over a dozen others that sent my Pokémon fan senses into overdrive. It was sometimes easy to forget, but Pokémon were amazing creatures, and seeing so many new ones for the first time was incredible. Yet the back half of the ship swiftly grabbed my attention.
Compared to the pool, it was pretty barren, but that was clearly the point. Massive rows of cushioned benches stood in a square, and as I moved closer, I saw that in the middle, there was another square. It was an expansive platform raised over the deck, literally, I noticed, as it appeared to actually be floating. Likely to stop Ground-Type moves from fucking up the ship itself. It was made of large stone slabs, and podiums were placed on all four sides, which surprised me. Maybe they held group battles?
Much like the pool, people were also surrounding that part, though they were much more concentrated around the bottom of what was presumably the Captain's place, with the steering wheel and shit – I wasn't a boat guy, I didn't know the terminology. Regardless, the people were lined up in front of a desk, taking turns speaking to the four crew members in light blue suits sitting behind it.
And right at the front of the line were the three people I came to meet.
"Ey, you made it," I greeted, thankful for the stands cutting off the view of the ocean. I was starting to believe I'd be okay, but that didn't mean I wanted to stare at it.
"No thanks to you." I grimaced slightly at Misty's tone. Perhaps I was not as forgiven as I'd hoped.
"Right," I coughed. "So, signing up for one of the tournaments?"
"Yeah, I'm going to be in the first one!" Ash exclaimed, making the guy in an open tropical shirt and bathing shorts in front of him flinch a little, his pen jerking as he signed the waiver and moved on, giving me a mild glare, which I returned.
"Oh, guess we won't be fighting each other, then. Gary and I are in the one tomorrow, 2-3 Bagdes. You can only be in one." I explained, making the boy gape.
"WHAT! Then I'm gonna be on the second one too, and beat both you and Gary!" Ash slammed the desk as the bewildered woman switched forms at his words.
"Not joining? Well, I guess you don't have Badges." I asked the two former Gym Leaders as Ash was led through the process, seeing both of them shaking their heads.
"Nah, we're disqualified for being Gym Leaders in the first place, former or not," Brock answered. I noticed that he had taken off his vest. "Honestly, I'm more interested in the foreign Pokémon here than anything else. Not as many Rock-Types as I could have hoped, but then again, we are on water."
I nodded. "And you, Misty? Trying to pick anything up for the Clan?"
She shook her head noncommittally. "Well, if anything exciting catches my eye, sure, but the Clan already had someone here while in Hoenn. The S.S. Anne has agreements with different places around the world. We get first pick of anything special in return for helping out with security and some funding here and there." That kind of made sense. I was wondering who was running all of it, and it made some sense that it was a semi-shared project.
"Oh, so the security is all various Clan members?" I asked as another humongous dude in sailor clothes walked by.
"Not all of them," Brock picked up the thread, "but some. I know there's a couple of Pebbles around here somewhere."
I frowned; the information was not putting me at ease. Once more, something was poking at my brain, something that felt important.
"Where's Gary?" Ash interrupted my musing, making me blink.
"Oh, he's actually waiting for us down-"
HOOOOOOONK!
I flinched violently at the loud sound, the floorboard vibrating under my feet as a faint humming sound vibrated-
-Something was off. The perpetual hum of the engine that had been our constant companion to the degree it had become as much a part of the journey as the movement of the ocean had gone quiet.
Straining my hearing, I could barely pick up a faint noise like an engine, but definitely not ours. Indistinct talking sounded from the upper deck, though not as loud as I expected them to be without the engine burr, like the passengers were whispering-
-"ri! Peri!" Hands grabbed my cheeks tighter as I tried to jerk away, eyes darting around before being forced to focus on the bright blue orbs right in front of me. "Hey, hey, it's okay, I got you. You're fine."
I nodded shakily, removing Misty's hands apologetically, but I needed to breathe. Sucking oxygen in deeply and pushing it back out, I ignored the looks both Brock and Ash were giving me before I said something I'd regret.
I didn't need their fucking pity. I was fine.
"As-" the voice crack didn't help, "as I was saying, Gary's waiting down in the shop, so we should go there. Now." I stepped aside and held out my arm, gesturing for them to go forward. Thankfully, they did so – though Brock laid a hand on my shoulder briefly and nodded his head supportively – giving me a moment to calm down, a task made much more difficult when the whole ship lurched as the S.S. Anne left Vermillion.
Okay, so jumping off was no longer a possibility. Good. Excellent even. I didn't want to get off anyway, and I was shaking from excitement, not my fucked-up brain playing tricks on me.
I was fine.
I was startled once more as a light weight – relatively – landed on my upper back and pulled itself up to my shoulder. Looking over, I saw Eevee looking back as she curled her tail around her legs. Huffing, I scratched her lightly under the chin. I hurried after the others, letting Herc and Siren out of their balls as extra company, Siren staring up at Eevee accusingly, before I snatched her up in my arms. Herc, being a big boy, could walk on his own, apparently, as he rejected the offer.
They didn't say anything about my brief delay, though Misty did fall back to walk beside me. Matching her tempo, we ended up walking a little behind, as Ash had somehow been allowed to be the one with the map, and Brock was trying to prevent us from getting instantly lost.
"So-
"Misty, I-"
We went quiet to allow the other to continue. Refusing to end up in a rom-com, I took the chance to just keep going.
"Misty, I'm sorry about our date, that wasn't-"
"Don't," she cut me off before I could even begin, shaking her head and tickling Siren's scales to absolutely zero response. "Dude, you just had a panic attack because the engine started. Yeah, I don't appreciate the way you went about it, and you only get this one, but it's okay. Seriously, Peri," she leaned her head in and forced me to make eye contact with her uncharacteristically open expression, "it's okay. That type of shit makes us do stuff we're not proud of." It wasn't just sympathy in her voice. It was genuine empathy, with a haunted undertone of familiarity.
"A story for next time?" I asked jokingly, getting a snort. She opened her mouth to reply, only to pause and turn back to me with a scheming look on her face.
"Or, maybe the time after that. You're VIP thanks to that micro-dick asshole, right?" I nodded, needing no further information about who she was talking about. "That means you can get reservations at The Milotic for tonight. You're paying."
"Uh, sure," I agreed. It couldn't be that expensive, right?
Misty's grin reminded me of a shark's, and I suddenly had a terrible feeling about my wallet. I should do that before buying TMs.
"If you'll excuse me real quick." I made my escape, consulting the map to find my way to what was presumably a restaurant.
Thanks in no small part to Ash's awful directions, I made it back to the group right as they arrived at the shopping area, or giant ass floating mall that took up a whole floor, as it might be more appropriately called. Throwing Misty a stinkeye in response to her big smile, I grumbled half-good-naturedly.
"Damn witch. All my precious money." Holy fuck, I knew that both Gary and Misty had said that shit was expensive, but my fucking god, I could've gotten several TMs for that price.
"You mean your ill-gotten money." She reminded me.
"I fully disagree. Swindling a billionaire is common courtesy, comrade." Was Misty going to understand a communist joke? No, but I did, I thought both the joke and her semi-confused face were good.
"OH! There's Gary!" Ash pointed out, and sure enough, the spikey brown hair and purple shirt were unmistakable as he stood, frowning, by the TMs.
"Looking to get an advantage before tomorrow? While I agree that you need it, I don't think-HOLY SHIT!" I was brutally ripped from my mocking when I saw the price tags he was glaring at.
Guess I might only have been able to get one TM for the dinner reservation, after all.
If that.
"This is a fucking scam!" Gary spat, only making me feel slightly better. If even Oak's money thought it was too much, then I felt completely validated. "10 grand for fucking Rock Throw! I can get it for half that in Pewter!"
"That's because Rock Throw is a popular move in Pewter." Brock chimed in. "Thanks to the Clans and the type of Trainers that hang around there, some moves become more common and therefore, less valuable. That being said, these prices are crazy. I think I'll have a peek at the Pokémon on offer."
Misty nodded after the oldest of us as the teen moved over to the Pokémon area, where several stores and independent people were posted up, ready to peddle their wares. "I'll go with him. The Clan's got me covered if I need TMs, and I could use another team member. What time is the reservation?"
"7."
"Good, then I'll meet you there. I wanna get some sun and swim with my Pokémon, so I'll be upstairs. Put on some different clothes." I rolled my eyes as she moved away. She and her sisters were more alike than they realised. Turning back to my last two companions – not counting my Pokémon – I was met with Gary's wiggling eyebrows and giant, smug grin. At least he wasn't angry, I guess.
"Oh, grow up," I sneered at him. "Are we buying anything or what?"
"We can see if they have a human TM somewhere that can teach you some moves." He laughed at the middle finger I gave him. "I don't know, man, they've got some good stuff, but fuck me, those prices. I can only get a couple, and they have shit I didn't even know there were TMs of." He said, leaning closer to the glass to peer at a Superpower TM.
"Yeah," I paused, an idea striking. "What if we went halvesies?"
"How do you mean? We can't rip it in two."
"No, you idiot. I mean, what if we each pay half and then teach it to both our teams? That way we can get more."
He hummed for a moment, looking thoughtful. "I mean, they should have like, five or six charges. But then who would get the disk afterwards?"
That was a good point. "Get an even number, each takes half? What about you, Ash, you want in on this?"
"Uh," the Ketchum looked unusually hesitant, looking at his PokéDex dejectedly. Looking over his shoulder, I winced a little. It wasn't bad, in fact, I'd say he barely spent money at all, but being a low-level Trainer didn't pay that well. "I probably shouldn't."
"That's rough. You can borrow one of mine. Hell, maybe we'll find a hidden gem for cheap and we'll split it."
"REALLY!?" I nodded, getting an excited fist pump, and to my shock, he grabbed me around the midsection in a quick hug. "Thanks, Peri!"-
-I opened my mouth to apologise if they were the wrong size, yet I was cut off as the kid slammed into my midsection with a giant hug.
"Thank you so much, Peri! I love them!"-
He let go before I could cause a scene, and other than a slightly odd look from Gary, it seemed like I got away with it. That was… that was a new one. Still rough. Still emotionally devastating as I felt tears pricking at the edge of my eyes.
Fuck, I needed to be on guard while on the bitch-ass boat.
Over the next several hours, we poured over the displayed TMs and even moved a bit beyond them to the rest of the shop. We ended up buying several – one of which was the aforementioned Superpower TM – and left some others undecided until later, when we finally lost Ash after having to focus on the same thing for more than 10 minutes, which might be a record for him.
"I'm going to watch the tournament! I'm all fired up!" Ash screamed, speeding out of there. Looking at Gary, I shrugged as we made our way after him, done with the TMs for now. We had three days on the ship – plenty of time to think it over.
Might as well check out the competition. So far, the whole 'being on a ship again' wasn't terrible – barring that one time.
Yeah, it was going to be fine.
Ah, the S.S. Anne. What a nice, relaxing trip. I think this will really help Peri conquer some of his demons.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
And we're back at it in 2026 (Somehow. WTF happened to time?).
"Watch it!"
"Excuse you!"
"Hey, buddy, there's a line!"
"Kids these days, I swear."
I paid the grumpy people no mind as I shoved my way through the crowd, as we all headed towards the pier. Aura training hadn't quite made me into the Dragon Ball-style powerhouse I wished – yet, anyway – but keeping a constant slow circulation of it through my body did make it a lot easier to body check people out of the way.
It also made my mood worse and increased my aggression, but I doubted anyone would be able to tell that morning.
"Watch where you're going, punk-AW FUCK!" Some wannabe tough guy screamed and hopped on one foot after he tried to block me and got his toes crushed for his trouble.
Okay, so maybe a tiny bit angrier than usual, but I was having a bad fucking day already, and it was clearly the rest of the world's fault for putting me in that situation, so they should be the ones to pay.
Made perfect sense.
Behind me, Eevee dodged and weaved between calves and feet, doing her best to keep up. Her fur stood on end, her ears flat against her skull, and her eyes were wide, yet she still did her best to stay with me.
It didn't take the research I'd been doing on Eevee behaviour and care to see that she wasn't having a good time.
I wasn't sure scooping her up unceremoniously, and without warning, to dump her on my shoulder was a better choice, but it was what it was. Several people were looking at her with a little too much interest for my comfort, though if I'd been in a better state of mind, I'd have asked first instead of risking the fairly solid foundation we'd been building.
She didn't jump down, though, which was good. Her standing completely still and tense wasn't, but whatever.
I needed all the mental fortitude I could get to not embarrass myself even further as the pier came into view and the monstrosity of a ship docked there with it.
My heart dropped, and a little bile rose in my throat as my eyes scanned the dozens of floors rocking gently in the calm waters of the Vermillion port.
Fuck me. Maybe it wasn't too late to turn around and just leave. Brock could shove his advice up his ass-
"PERI, OVER HERE!"
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
Unfortunately, there was no getting around it when Ash was staring straight at me and screaming, waving his arms in the air furiously from where they were standing over to the side of the primary cue.
I could still leave. There was enough distance that I would be able to vanish into the crowd-
Both Misty and Gary's expressions changed as they glared at me, hands on PokéBalls and appearing entirely willing to chase me down and drag me on board.
I did my best not to slump too much as I moved over to them, bumping some more people on the way just to be a dick. I shouldn't have interfered and let them kill each other. I could handle them separately, but combined, I feared for the whole planet.
"Yo." I did my best to act nonchalant and avoid eye contact while Eevee jumped down now that she was safe to do so.
"'Yo', he says. Done changing your tampon, cry-baby bitch?"
"Fuck you!"
"You wish!" The smirk on Gary's face was real enough, yet there was a glint of hesitation in his eye that only partially dispersed when I gave him a slight nod.
Misty, on the other hand, was an unflinching mask that didn't have a single crack when I glanced at her.
"Uh, Misty, hey," Mew I wished we didn't need to talk with a whole ass audience, but there was no way I could justify putting it off, "listen, I-
"-save it. Let's just get on the Lugia-damned ship." I sighed in relief. I definitely wasn't forgiven, based on the coldness in her voice, but at least she didn't want to make it a spectacle either.
"I hate to agree, but she is right, we're about to start boarding," Gary remarked after consulting his wrist watch, which looked way fancier than I remembered. And then, he proceeded to stare at Ash, Misty, and Brock expectantly.
"What?" Ash looked down at his shirt for stains, but didn't find any. After checking over both his shoulders as well, he turned back to his rival, confused. "What!?"
"Don't you think you should get in the cue, dumbasses?" I'd almost forgotten how condescending Gary could sound. It was genuinely a talent.
"We are in the cue, Gary! Ha, who's the dumb one now!?" Ash grinned alongside Misty as he pointed at the red rope barring the way to a narrow staircase that led up to the S.S. Anne. Daring a quick peek, I looked away from the massive vessel again. Misty hadn't been kidding about it being fucking huge. The damn thing had to be almost a thousand feet long.
"OH!" Gary truly could have taken up acting. If I didn't know better, I'd say the surprise was real, if not for the gleeful maliciousness pulling at his lips. "You thought-? Haha. Hahahaha. HAHAHAHAHA!" Throwing his head back, the young Oak cackled like he'd heard the funniest joke of all time, whipping a tear away from the corner of his eyes. "Oh, that's so adorable! No, this way is for actual important people. Your entrance is over there." He pointed to the much larger ramp that led to the lower levels, in front of which several hundred people were gathered, growing increasingly rowdy as time passed. Meanwhile, there were only a little over 30 with us to the side. "Alongside the other peasants. Soooo, good luck with that."
Brock rolled his eyes while Ash stared at Gary, a look of astonishment on his face. Meanwhile, Misty was looking at me expectantly. The polite thing was to join her at the standard boarding zone, but it was a minor miracle that I hadn't shanked someone on the way there. Putting me back in an agitated crowd was not a good idea.
Some part of my mental state must have leaked into my expression, as her own face softened a little and she refrained from saying anything before grabbing Ash by the collar and beginning to drag him away.
"DAMN YOU, GARY!"
"Smell you later!"
Gary's chuckles trailed off slightly awkwardly as we resumed our wait, me doing my best to ignore the fact that I could see both ship and stairs bob up and down. At the same time, he looked increasingly uncomfortable the longer no one said anything.
"Are you-uh… are you, like, uh, okay, or whatever?" He flushed at my raised eyebrow. "It's just that, uh… I-I didn't know it was that bad, and I know that I… came on strong, or you know, a little hot… look all I'm saying is that, uh, if-if you really don't want to, then… then fuck the money, right, and-" I raised my hand to cut of his rambling as it got faster and faster.
"Dude, it's fine, I-..." Taking a deep breath, I pushed on. If Gary could apologise unpromted by anyone other than his own guilty conscience, then I could admit my faults, at least somewhat. "... you were right, okay? I've been trying to just… shove it down, ignore and deny it whenever it becomes a problem, and it's not working. I shouldn't… I shouldn't lose my shit and hide like a child whenever someone even mentions the possibility of me going on a boat. This is probably one of the most controlled environments I can start in, so… thanks. I guess."
Gary looked stunned at my words, yet he couldn't hide the wide smile that took over his whole face, his expression lighting up and softening from his customary sneer of superiority. He patted me on the back in a way that was more of a slap than anything, and tried to change the subject.
"Of course I'm right, I'm Gary-motherfucking-Oak! How have you not realised that me being right is a fact of reality?"
"Bitch please," I had no issue going back to joking, feeling equally uncomfortable myself, "you can't even wipe your ass without five people helping you. Speaking of, where are your babysitters?"
"Oh, they're taking the car back to where we're getting off. Gramp's got cash, but not that kinda cash. Can't believe those losers just got handed tickets. Fucking nonsense. How lucky can you fucking get!" Gary whined, though he would probably protest me calling it that.
"Yeah, lucky…" It was definitely just my paranoia and overall fucked headspace, but something was off about that. Weirder shit happened daily in the PokéWorld, but something about Brock's story of how they got the tickets was bothering me.
The sharp clang! of footsteps on metal pulled me from my thoughts and directed my attention to the three people walking down the ramp towards us. The two men walking behind looked like they had been pulled straight from a fetish calendar, white and blue striped T-shirts straining to contain their humongous pecs, the seams visibly straining against the meat, while the white pants groaned audibly against the person-sized quads. Dark sunglasses hid their eyes as the over seven-foot-tall men stepped onto the dock, a little white hat crowning their bald heads.
My eyes widened a little at the sight of the 10 PokéBalls they were each carrying, though it also settled my nerves somewhat – definitely not standard security.
The front man, on the other hand, was dapper as fuck. Dressed in a well-tailored, three-piece light blue suit that complemented his slicked back silver hair and carefully groomed handlebar moustache, the man screamed 'sophisticated butler' as he took out an honest-to-Mew pocket watch and checked the time, before bowing deeply to us.
"Our honoured VIPs, welcome to the S.S. Anne." Even his baritone voice was smooth, with a faint British accent like Bill's. Guess they weren't kidding about the S.S. Anne sailing all around the world. There was a nine-out-of-ten chance that his name was either Walter or Jeeves. "We thank you for choosing us, and we promise an experience unlike any other, even if you have travelled with us before. On board the S.S. Anne, we pride ourselves on constantly innovating with knowledge from around the world to create a truly unique experience. Please, this way."
With that, the fancy guy turned around and began leading the way back up to the ship, while the two sailors took up positions on either side of the entrance, with crossed arms and muscles bulging intimidatingly. Compared to the public ramp, the VIPs were like a well-oiled machine as they got into line, yet I still took a step to the side and let the others pass, Gary having to quickly step aside to avoid them when he saw me.
"Just, uh, being polite." His disbelief was palpable, but he didn't say anything, just tapping his foot impatiently as everyone else walked before us.
Eventually, there was no delay anymore, though.
My knuckles were white around the railing as I clutched it desperately, playing one foot after the other while taking deep breaths. There was no getting around being able to see water on both sides of the stairs, and I was forced to stop when a particularly strong breeze shook the rickety contraption.
Eventually, though, we made it to the top, where the others were waiting impatiently. However, they backed down at Gary's glare, allowing me a moment to recover as best I could while still breathing in the scent of seawater and my stomach flip-flopping with every minute shift of the giant vessel.
At least I hadn't had any full-blown panic attacks yet, or Nam flashbacks. I was a little bit proud of myself and my confidence in the whole endeavour grew marginally.
Step one was… okay.
"If you will follow me, I shall give you the tour and show you to your cabins. Here are your maps as we, of course, do not expect you to memorise the whole ship." The butler, or whatever he was, explained once we were all there and then led the way.
In all honesty, I didn't hear much of the tour, focused as I was on not losing my shit. What little I did pick up, though, told the tale of ridiculous opulence. Large, furry carpets covered the hallways, and artwork lined the wooden walls in gilded frames. The metal was bronze and brass, giving the whole thing an old-school hotel or mansion vibe. It was extremely silly to see on a ship, and I wondered how long it took to clean salt out of-
-Oh, shiny!
"And here we have the commercial area, or the shop, if you prefer. Here you can find everything from exclusive PokéBalls to exotic Pokémon the likes of which this region of the world has never seen. It is also where trading will be happening." That was all the spiffy tour guide said before he moved on, but it was significantly more difficult for me to drag myself away from the lit-up shelves holding all manner of goodies. My mouth started salivating slightly at the row after row of TM cases, not to mention the area to the left where I could just barely see the very top of what looked like a small Flying-Type, with a red, almost flame-like head.
If that was a Pikipek, like I thought, then they truly had explored further than most, as that was an Alolan Pokémon.
Reluctantly, I grabbed Gary by the arm and dragged him away as the group started rounding a corner, not wanting to be lost in a giant metal coffin.
Eventually, we arrived at the long corridor that held the VIP rooms and were left to our own devices after getting our keys. I raised an eyebrow at only Gary getting one, but he simply shrugged while unlocking the door.
"Getting two tickets was already a struggle; no way I could swing two rooms. Dips on the top bunk!"
I snorted, highly doubting that something that fancy would have bunk beds.
And I was very right.
Even Gary whistled as we stepped into the enormous rooms, dual king-sized beds on either side with enough room in between for four or five of me to lie down. Armchairs surrounded a low table, giant beanbags slung around. The back wall was dominated by a massive aquarium featuring various underwater plants, divided into two sections marked by a pair of plaques labelled 'fresh' and 'salt' respectively.
The entire room was more than 40 feet by 40 feet, with ample space for both our teams to stretch out. Even my oversized dumbasses would fit comfortably.
"Holy shit," I mumbled, looking around the apartment-sized area.
"Yeah, there's a reason for the price tag," Gary commented, flinging his bag carelessly on the floor and jumping into the left-most bed. Guess I was taking the right. "Also, a reason a ship this fuck-off huge only carries 1.000 people at a time. Gotta make room for Pokémon and rich pricks. By which I mean us. Here, catch."
Catching the object he flung at my head with way more force than necessary, I quirked a brow at the slim chequebook, all the notes already having the Professor's signature on it, but the space for the amount was left blank.
"We hitting the strip club?" I asked, getting a bark of laughter in return.
"I fucking wish! You think Gramps gave us the tickets so we could go on a vacation? You've been hanging out with Ash too much; I can see your brain leaking out of your ears. No, dumbass, obviously we're on the clock, how did you think I managed this? He's been banned for a decade for bothering the other guests. That's where we come in. We can't bother the guests, but we can buy scans of their Pokémon. A scrub like you doesn't have that kinda cash, hence the chequebook."
"You want me to work!? What the fuck, Gary, you sold this as a pleasure cruise with battling!" I felt bamboozled and betrayed.
"Stop being a bitch. It's the least we can do for him in return for covering the expenses. Besides, you can just lie and say they all said no; he can't fact-check it." I grumbled a little anyway, mostly because I'd feel bad if I didn't put in at least a little effort. "And yes, there is battling. Three tournaments, to be exact. 1-2 Badges, 2-3 Badges, and 3-4 Badges. Nothing beyond that, given, you know, the fact that we're on a sinkable platform and shit." I must have paled at the reminder since he hurriedly reassured me. "Not that it's going to sink, of course, because they take such good care! Fuck me, will you calm down? You're giving me anxiety. Anyway." He sat up before continuing.
"I've already signed us up for the one tomorrow. We're only allowed to compete once, some shit about 'fairness', and thought our chances were better. I'd still win the last one, obviously, but figured I'd throw a weakling like you a bone."
I frowned. "How the fuck did you do that? Don't I need to sign shit?" Seeing him attempt to whistle innocently, I narrowed my eyes. "Did you fake my signature? How the fuck did you even do that!? I thought it was connected to my PokéDex!?"
"Never mind that!" He swiftly deflected. "We're going to clean the fuck up. While they aren't as strict as Gyms, they're still going to check over our Pokémon beforehand and ban anything too strong. As rookie Trainers, we'll probably get a little more leeway than the older guys, which is great since I don't think any of our Pokémon are strong enough to get disqualified. Unless you've caught some other bullshit beyond your usual garbage?"
I shook my head. "Nah, I've only got another two, actually."
He stared at me for a moment. "Like… two good ones?"
"No, two at all. Well, three, but I gave that one away. Fuck, if you wanna be technical, I didn't even catch Eevee, Bill gave her to me."
"You've only caught one Pokémon in a month!?" Gary seemed genuinely shell-shocked. "What the fuck have you been doing!? Even the loser has done better than that!"
I shrugged, not really put off by it. I knew that the 'gotta catch them all' line of thinking was more common among Trainers who could afford the stabling, but I very much preferred having all my Pokémon with me, rather than back at the Reserve. Unless I encountered some that wanted to be relocated, or something especially rare, it would likely remain that way. "I'm picky, what can I say."
"There's picky, and then there's not even having a full team yet. And who the fuck is Bill?"
"Bill Masaki, you know, the inventor? The Professor talked about him occasionally." I threw the information out carelessly, but was forced to reevaluate my opinion of its significance when Gary scowled.
"You ran into that dickhead? Where? Why?"
Shrugging again, I saw no harm in telling the story. Bill had gotten some info that only Oak had, so it only seemed fair to return the favour.
Gary appeared very interested in the Colossal Dragonite and asked me to send the video from my camera to him so he could forward it to his grandfather himself. Still, he didn't seem pleased with me.
"What?" I asked, not really in the mood.
"It's just… Gramps and Masaki hate each other, dude. Or, hate is a strong word, but they really don't like each other after their last time working together. He won't be very happy with you selling him shit."
"Well, I'm not very happy with him either, so I guess we're even." I shot back, getting a scowl.
"Hey, Gramp's been nothing but good to you!"
"Yeah, like when he took all my money and let you train your starter behind everyone's back!"
That got a mildly conceding winch. "...okay, so he's made some mistakes, but still."
I threw my arms out, exasperated. "Why hasn't he released that video, anyway? It's been a month, the fuck is he waiting for?"
It was Gary's turn to shrug, refusing to meet my eyes while rifling through his bag. "How the fuck should I know. The old man doesn't tell me shit. He's been like that as long as I can remember, though. He likes squeezing everything out of something before he gives it over to others. Come to think of it, I think it was something similar that made Masaki and him pissed at each other."
Silence fell over the lavish room before I broke it with a sigh. Gary and I had barely made up, and we were already fighting.
"You said you wanted to check out the shop?" He nodded. "Okay, how about you head there and I'll go get the others before meeting up with you?"
I expected him to complain about involving others, yet all I got was a nod before he headed out the door. Hopefully, that meant he was trying to avoid arguing with me, not that he was already angry.
Fucking interpersonal relationships. Way more complicated than terrorist groups, somehow.
Sending Misty a message, since I trusted her to check way more than Ash, I collapsed on the vast bed and stroked Eevee's fur absent-mindedly.
"Don't suppose you have some sage advice about humans?" Evidently, she didn't, but I would take her pressing into my side.
Hearing a ping! from my PokéDex, I reluctantly got up and consulted my map on the best way to get to the top deck, where the others apparently were.
A while later, plus several random detours and a near fist fight with some fucking snob that didn't believe that I belonged in the VIP area and thought I was a thief, I finally stepped foot on the top deck.
I'm not sure what I was expecting, yet somehow it was exactly that. A massive pool dominated the front portion of the deck, lined with chairs and tables for the bathers and a large bar and grill to the side. People and Pokémon were already splashing around in the water, and as advertised, there were plenty of foreign Pokémon to be found. A medium-sized penguin with yellow ridges on its head, a Prinplup, bounced on the diving board a couple of times before doing a perfect impression of a missile into the pool. The waves washed over a Poliwrath and a massive green bipedal toad with weird orange lumps on its body that I recognised as a Shiny Seismitoad as they swam laps, weaving around an orange otter with two tails and what looked like a floating device around its neck.
There were over a dozen others that sent my Pokémon fan senses into overdrive. It was sometimes easy to forget, but Pokémon were amazing creatures, and seeing so many new ones for the first time was incredible. Yet the back half of the ship swiftly grabbed my attention.
Compared to the pool, it was pretty barren, but that was clearly the point. Massive rows of cushioned benches stood in a square, and as I moved closer, I saw that in the middle, there was another square. It was an expansive platform raised over the deck, literally, I noticed, as it appeared to actually be floating. Likely to stop Ground-Type moves from fucking up the ship itself. It was made of large stone slabs, and podiums were placed on all four sides, which surprised me. Maybe they held group battles?
Much like the pool, people were also surrounding that part, though they were much more concentrated around the bottom of what was presumably the Captain's place, with the steering wheel and shit – I wasn't a boat guy, I didn't know the terminology. Regardless, the people were lined up in front of a desk, taking turns speaking to the four crew members in light blue suits sitting behind it.
And right at the front of the line were the three people I came to meet.
"Ey, you made it," I greeted, thankful for the stands cutting off the view of the ocean. I was starting to believe I'd be okay, but that didn't mean I wanted to stare at it.
"No thanks to you." I grimaced slightly at Misty's tone. Perhaps I was not as forgiven as I'd hoped.
"Right," I coughed. "So, signing up for one of the tournaments?"
"Yeah, I'm going to be in the first one!" Ash exclaimed, making the guy in an open tropical shirt and bathing shorts in front of him flinch a little, his pen jerking as he signed the waiver and moved on, giving me a mild glare, which I returned.
"Oh, guess we won't be fighting each other, then. Gary and I are in the one tomorrow, 2-3 Bagdes. You can only be in one." I explained, making the boy gape.
"WHAT! Then I'm gonna be on the second one too, and beat both you and Gary!" Ash slammed the desk as the bewildered woman switched forms at his words.
"Not joining? Well, I guess you don't have Badges." I asked the two former Gym Leaders as Ash was led through the process, seeing both of them shaking their heads.
"Nah, we're disqualified for being Gym Leaders in the first place, former or not," Brock answered. I noticed that he had taken off his vest. "Honestly, I'm more interested in the foreign Pokémon here than anything else. Not as many Rock-Types as I could have hoped, but then again, we are on water."
I nodded. "And you, Misty? Trying to pick anything up for the Clan?"
She shook her head noncommittally. "Well, if anything exciting catches my eye, sure, but the Clan already had someone here while in Hoenn. The S.S. Anne has agreements with different places around the world. We get first pick of anything special in return for helping out with security and some funding here and there." That kind of made sense. I was wondering who was running all of it, and it made some sense that it was a semi-shared project.
"Oh, so the security is all various Clan members?" I asked as another humongous dude in sailor clothes walked by.
"Not all of them," Brock picked up the thread, "but some. I know there's a couple of Pebbles around here somewhere."
I frowned; the information was not putting me at ease. Once more, something was poking at my brain, something that felt important.
"Where's Gary?" Ash interrupted my musing, making me blink.
"Oh, he's actually waiting for us down-"
HOOOOOOONK!
I flinched violently at the loud sound, the floorboard vibrating under my feet as a faint humming sound vibrated-
-Something was off. The perpetual hum of the engine that had been our constant companion to the degree it had become as much a part of the journey as the movement of the ocean had gone quiet.
Straining my hearing, I could barely pick up a faint noise like an engine, but definitely not ours. Indistinct talking sounded from the upper deck, though not as loud as I expected them to be without the engine burr, like the passengers were whispering-
-"ri! Peri!" Hands grabbed my cheeks tighter as I tried to jerk away, eyes darting around before being forced to focus on the bright blue orbs right in front of me. "Hey, hey, it's okay, I got you. You're fine."
I nodded shakily, removing Misty's hands apologetically, but I needed to breathe. Sucking oxygen in deeply and pushing it back out, I ignored the looks both Brock and Ash were giving me before I said something I'd regret.
I didn't need their fucking pity. I was fine.
"As-" the voice crack didn't help, "as I was saying, Gary's waiting down in the shop, so we should go there. Now." I stepped aside and held out my arm, gesturing for them to go forward. Thankfully, they did so – though Brock laid a hand on my shoulder briefly and nodded his head supportively – giving me a moment to calm down, a task made much more difficult when the whole ship lurched as the S.S. Anne left Vermillion.
Okay, so jumping off was no longer a possibility. Good. Excellent even. I didn't want to get off anyway, and I was shaking from excitement, not my fucked-up brain playing tricks on me.
I was fine.
I was startled once more as a light weight – relatively – landed on my upper back and pulled itself up to my shoulder. Looking over, I saw Eevee looking back as she curled her tail around her legs. Huffing, I scratched her lightly under the chin. I hurried after the others, letting Herc and Siren out of their balls as extra company, Siren staring up at Eevee accusingly, before I snatched her up in my arms. Herc, being a big boy, could walk on his own, apparently, as he rejected the offer.
They didn't say anything about my brief delay, though Misty did fall back to walk beside me. Matching her tempo, we ended up walking a little behind, as Ash had somehow been allowed to be the one with the map, and Brock was trying to prevent us from getting instantly lost.
"So-
"Misty, I-"
We went quiet to allow the other to continue. Refusing to end up in a rom-com, I took the chance to just keep going.
"Misty, I'm sorry about our date, that wasn't-"
"Don't," she cut me off before I could even begin, shaking her head and tickling Siren's scales to absolutely zero response. "Dude, you just had a panic attack because the engine started. Yeah, I don't appreciate the way you went about it, and you only get this one, but it's okay. Seriously, Peri," she leaned her head in and forced me to make eye contact with her uncharacteristically open expression, "it's okay. That type of shit makes us do stuff we're not proud of." It wasn't just sympathy in her voice. It was genuine empathy, with a haunted undertone of familiarity.
"A story for next time?" I asked jokingly, getting a snort. She opened her mouth to reply, only to pause and turn back to me with a scheming look on her face.
"Or, maybe the time after that. You're VIP thanks to that micro-dick asshole, right?" I nodded, needing no further information about who she was talking about. "That means you can get reservations at The Milotic for tonight. You're paying."
"Uh, sure," I agreed. It couldn't be that expensive, right?
Misty's grin reminded me of a shark's, and I suddenly had a terrible feeling about my wallet. I should do that before buying TMs.
"If you'll excuse me real quick." I made my escape, consulting the map to find my way to what was presumably a restaurant.
Thanks in no small part to Ash's awful directions, I made it back to the group right as they arrived at the shopping area, or giant ass floating mall that took up a whole floor, as it might be more appropriately called. Throwing Misty a stinkeye in response to her big smile, I grumbled half-good-naturedly.
"Damn witch. All my precious money." Holy fuck, I knew that both Gary and Misty had said that shit was expensive, but my fucking god, I could've gotten several TMs for that price.
"You mean your ill-gotten money." She reminded me.
"I fully disagree. Swindling a billionaire is common courtesy, comrade." Was Misty going to understand a communist joke? No, but I did, I thought both the joke and her semi-confused face were good.
"OH! There's Gary!" Ash pointed out, and sure enough, the spikey brown hair and purple shirt were unmistakable as he stood, frowning, by the TMs.
"Looking to get an advantage before tomorrow? While I agree that you need it, I don't think-HOLY SHIT!" I was brutally ripped from my mocking when I saw the price tags he was glaring at.
Guess I might only have been able to get one TM for the dinner reservation, after all.
If that.
"This is a fucking scam!" Gary spat, only making me feel slightly better. If even Oak's money thought it was too much, then I felt completely validated. "10 grand for fucking Rock Throw! I can get it for half that in Pewter!"
"That's because Rock Throw is a popular move in Pewter." Brock chimed in. "Thanks to the Clans and the type of Trainers that hang around there, some moves become more common and therefore, less valuable. That being said, these prices are crazy. I think I'll have a peek at the Pokémon on offer."
Misty nodded after the oldest of us as the teen moved over to the Pokémon area, where several stores and independent people were posted up, ready to peddle their wares. "I'll go with him. The Clan's got me covered if I need TMs, and I could use another team member. What time is the reservation?"
"7."
"Good, then I'll meet you there. I wanna get some sun and swim with my Pokémon, so I'll be upstairs. Put on some different clothes." I rolled my eyes as she moved away. She and her sisters were more alike than they realised. Turning back to my last two companions – not counting my Pokémon – I was met with Gary's wiggling eyebrows and giant, smug grin. At least he wasn't angry, I guess.
"Oh, grow up," I sneered at him. "Are we buying anything or what?"
"We can see if they have a human TM somewhere that can teach you some moves." He laughed at the middle finger I gave him. "I don't know, man, they've got some good stuff, but fuck me, those prices. I can only get a couple, and they have shit I didn't even know there were TMs of." He said, leaning closer to the glass to peer at a Superpower TM.
"Yeah," I paused, an idea striking. "What if we went halvesies?"
"How do you mean? We can't rip it in two."
"No, you idiot. I mean, what if we each pay half and then teach it to both our teams? That way we can get more."
He hummed for a moment, looking thoughtful. "I mean, they should have like, five or six charges. But then who would get the disk afterwards?"
That was a good point. "Get an even number, each takes half? What about you, Ash, you want in on this?"
"Uh," the Ketchum looked unusually hesitant, looking at his PokéDex dejectedly. Looking over his shoulder, I winced a little. It wasn't bad, in fact, I'd say he barely spent money at all, but being a low-level Trainer didn't pay that well. "I probably shouldn't."
"That's rough. You can borrow one of mine. Hell, maybe we'll find a hidden gem for cheap and we'll split it."
"REALLY!?" I nodded, getting an excited fist pump, and to my shock, he grabbed me around the midsection in a quick hug. "Thanks, Peri!"-
-I opened my mouth to apologise if they were the wrong size, yet I was cut off as the kid slammed into my midsection with a giant hug.
"Thank you so much, Peri! I love them!"-
He let go before I could cause a scene, and other than a slightly odd look from Gary, it seemed like I got away with it. That was… that was a new one. Still rough. Still emotionally devastating as I felt tears pricking at the edge of my eyes.
Fuck, I needed to be on guard while on the bitch-ass boat.
Over the next several hours, we poured over the displayed TMs and even moved a bit beyond them to the rest of the shop. We ended up buying several – one of which was the aforementioned Superpower TM – and left some others undecided until later, when we finally lost Ash after having to focus on the same thing for more than 10 minutes, which might be a record for him.
"I'm going to watch the tournament! I'm all fired up!" Ash screamed, speeding out of there. Looking at Gary, I shrugged as we made our way after him, done with the TMs for now. We had three days on the ship – plenty of time to think it over.
Might as well check out the competition. So far, the whole 'being on a ship again' wasn't terrible – barring that one time.
Yeah, it was going to be fine.
Ah, the S.S. Anne. What a nice, relaxing trip. I think this will really help Peri conquer some of his demons.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
The Radiance's Follower
The Radiance is best.
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Peri really got it bad. Will he even be able to participate in the tournament ?
Chapter 40.
New
HankPankylol
Making the rounds.
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Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
"WELCOME, TRAINERS AND AUDIENCE, TO OUR SECOND TOURNAMENT ON OUR WAY TO CERULEAN! YEASTERDAY WAS A FIERCE DISPLAY OF-"
My jaw flexed as I yawned with my mouth closed, rubbing my eyes to try and remove the slight ache. Beside me, Ash was thoroughly entranced by the announcer's words, despite having spent the previous day watching the first tournament. Meanwhile, Gary bumped his shoulder into mine.
"You didn't come back to the room last night. I always knew that the Waterflowers sisters were sluts, but dinner went that well, huh?"
"Well, I swung by your mom's place afterwards. You know she can't sleep unless I give it to her." I whispered back. Of course, I didn't go back to the room. No fucking way I was going to sleep until we made it back to land. Even blinking was taking my eyes off the ball a little too long for my tastes.
"Publicly admitting to necrophilia is wild."
"I'm very wild, just like your mom is when I'm giving it to her."
"Riveting. So the date didn't go well? What happened, your Orre ass tried to eat the cutlery? Couldn't figure out which fork was which?"
"The date went fine," I whispered back, internally crying at the state of my bank account. Between the dinner, some random stuff from the store that looked neat, and the TMs – especially the TMs – I was damn near back to where I was before meeting Bill, which was extremely upsetting.
At least, the date truly had gone well, if uneventful. We'd mostly just made small talk and stayed away from anything too heavy.
"SHHHHHH! I can't hear!" I contemplated informing Ash of the irony that he was way fucking louder than we were and drawing multiple eyes to us. Still, I decided to simply leave it to Gary as they began whispering insults at each other.
"-THE ORDER HAS ALREADY BEEN DECIDED! IF EVERYONE BUT OUR FIRST TWO TRAINERS WOULD PLEASE MAKE THEIR WAY TO THE WAITING AREA!"
"YES! FINALLY!" Ash cheered, getting laughs from the audience as he took his place on one side of the field, a chuckling older guy standing across from him.
The rest of the 120-something group of Trainers began making our way down from the centre platform under thunderous applause as over 500 people cheered and clapped for the beginning of the 2-3 Badge tournament.
Also, what did the announcer say at the start?
"Did he say Cerulean!?" I hissed at Gary, while forcing him to step behind an absolute unit of a woman, like the human version of a Spheal.
"Yeah, of course he said Cerulean. Did you not check where we're going? I even told you yesterday!" Gary looked at me like I was stupid.
"No, you said Cinnabar!"
"And we're passing that now! Will you stop whining!? I'll give you a ride to Celadon if you don't piss me off too much." That didn't stop me from grumbling as we walked through the sign-up desk and through a door that led to a set of stairs that took us upwards. I liked Cerulean, but I just spent two weeks there. I definitely wouldn't mind if it took a little longer before I made my return.
The waiting area was beneath the ship's control room. Couches and armchairs were arranged along the entire glass wall that overlooked the small stadium. Food and other refreshments were stacked high on the buffet table on the other side, and the other contestants didn't take long to make themselves comfortable.
Securing a couple of plushy chairs for the two of us, I smacked Gary's feet away as he plopped them up on the table between us, while he flipped me off in response.
"You know, the placement is incredibly convenient," I remarked, watching as the referee raised a flag in Ash's direction – apparently, he'd lost the coin toss that decided who went first while we were climbing the stairs – not that he seemed to mind, turning his hat around and throwing out his PokéBall happily. I raised an eyebrow in surprise at the appearance of a small orange reptile with stubby arms and a flame flickering at the end of its tail.
I completely forgot that Ash got Charmander so early. Wait, thinking about it, the Fire-Type had been up for grabs for essentially anyone with basic empathy. It didn't have to be Ash.
FUCK! God damn Cerulean, taking up all my time!
"Yeah, you and I won't meet until the finals. Bet you a grand that idiot loses first round, though," Gary snarked, sitting sideways with his legs over the armrest while throwing some kind of nuts into the air and trying to catch them in his mouth.
"I'll take that bet." I felt vindicated when Ash's opponent released a Whismur. An Alpha Whismur, sure, but a Whismur was a Whismur.
It didn't last long, and the money felt sweet. The early rounds – as in, until the quarter finals – were only one-on-one as we had quite a few Trainers to get through. Later on, it would become a three-on-three.
Until then, it didn't seem like anything interesting was going to happen.
Oh well. At least the snacks were good.
"GARY'S SQUIRTLE'S ALREADY EVOLVED!?" Grabbing him by the back of his shirt, I yanked Ash back into his chair, an imprint of his face left on the grass. Down below, Squirty the Wartortle swaggered up to a Chikarita confidently. The girl opposing Gary must have thought she lucked out when he sent out a Water-Type, hoping the type advantage would save her.
It didn't.
"Not all of us refuse to evolve our starters," I commented, taking in Squirty. It was my first time seeing him since before evolution, and the change suited him well. His height wasn't horrifically above average, but he was broad and sturdy, Razor Leaf barely leaving scratches on his shell. The fluffy white ears and curly tail seemed well maintained, though I wasn't the best judge on the Squirtle line.
"You're one to talk! You're the only one who hasn't evolved any Pokémon!" He pointed and laughed, only for the sound to turn into a yelp as I kicked his chair hard enough that it wobbled.
It wasn't my fault that my team was filled with slow growers and alternate evolutions. We'd get there.
"MOVING ON TO THE THIRD-TO-LAST MATCH OF ROUND ONE! ON THE LEFT SIDE, ANOTHER TRAINER FROM PALLET, WHO HAS ONLY JUST STARTED HIS TRAINER JOURNEY! WILL HE IMPRESS AS MUCH AS THE OTHERS!? IT'S PERIWINKLE!"
The crowd cheered, though there was a fair amount of booing as well from people who got tired of Ash and Gary taking down their opponents so quickly. I did my best not to pay them any mind, throwing Misty a smirk when I spotted her in the front of the stands. Despite not wanting to be on the ship in the first place – and still flinching like a bitch every time a wave hit the bow – I was a little excited. I hadn't spent a lot of time battling random strangers, despite that being a pretty integral part of being a Trainer. The last time I'd done so was in Viridian Forest, and Bug Catcher didn't count. Neither did the Cerulean Gym Trainers.
It would be good to see how I stacked up.
"AND ON THE RIGHT SIDE, AN EQUALLY YOUNG TRAINER FROM HOENN, TRYING HIS LUCK IN KANTO, BRAVING THE SEA TO TEST HIS METTLE AGAINST THE WHOLE WORLD! IT'S STUART!"
I wasn't super impressed by the glare of the acne-struck, black haired teenager with his floral bathing shorts and bare upper body.
"Left Trainer, release your Pokémon!" The referee – yet another suit guy, though his dark brown hair was up in a man-bun and he had a shitty goatee that more resembled a dirt smudge than a beard – said.
Eevee walked forwards, ears flicking uneasily at the loud noises, eyes darting around nervously and back to me periodically. I nodded to her as reassuringly as possible. While I would've liked to test her out under calmer circumstances, I'd figured the first round would probably be fine.
Seeing the Wingull that Stuart sent out circle around as the Psychic barriers sprang up, I felt confident that I wouldn't be paying for my arrogance quite yet.
"This will be a one-on-one battle! First to surrender, fall unconscious, or be judged unable to continue will lose the battle! Are both Trainers ready!?" We both nodded. "Then begin!"
"Sky Terror, rapid Water Gun!"
I was so distracted by the nickname that I almost forgot to respond. I could've gotten away with it if it were one of the others, but Eevee was a little too new, and yet, too well-trained to act on her own.
"Dodge, Hyper Voice."
During my time… ruminating upon my problems in the training field of Vermillion, I'd taken the time to run Eevee through her move set. In that session, I'd learned two things about the pint-sized fox.
1. She was very mobile.
I hummed appreciatively as jets of water fell from the sky with only a couple of seconds intervals. Having used Water Gun myself for quite a long time, I knew that it must've taken a lot of practice to be that quick.
It was still too slow, however.
A light jump to the side let the first beam wash over the stone arena, a twirl bringing Eevee around the second. She hesitated briefly as some of the watchers waved a large banner furiously, only for her ears to twitch at the last moment before she crouched to let another Water Gun pass over her head, the fur between the large ears being drenched in water before she leapt forwards again to clear the fourth jet easily, gaze firmly locked on her target.
I didn't know whether it was her egg move, Detect, or whether the Waterflower Clan simply bred them differently. Still, she made it look almost effortless as she danced across the stage between the liquid missiles, a white energy coating her as she blurred to the other side of the battlefield. Her Quick Attack was amateurish, even compared to Hercules who was far from a master himself, but it was sufficient for shirt bursts.
Using the brief pause as Stuart yelled Eevee's location up at 'Sky Terror', the Normal-Type inhaled deeply, her minuscule lungs filling and then overfilling as her puffy chest expanded beyond logic.
2. She hit like a tiny truck.
"EEEIIIIIIIIII!"
Despite the barriers dulling the vast majority of the noise, the audience still winced at the piercingly loud screech that erupted from Eevee's mouth, the air itself distorted as it vibrated furiously, a sonic cone rippling out from the Normal-Type.
"SKY TERROR, NOOOO!"
The warning would've come too late for a regular Pokémon. Against a Flying-Type, with a much sharper-than-average sense of hearing?
It wasn't worth the breath.
Sky Terror the Wingull cried out as the sound wave struck it, eyes rolling back into its skull as its brain rattled around inside its cranium. It being my first battle with a Wingull since the one at the oasis where I'd found Siren's egg, I'd admit to taking some pleasure in watching the bird plummet from the sky, unable to stay aloft with the dizziness, and hit the deck with a soft thud!
Seeing Eevee relax and begin sitting down, I called out to her. "Don't back down yet! Be ready with a Swift if it gets back up!" The words had her back on edge, which was good. The battle wasn't over until the referee said so, and better Trainers than me had been caught with their pants down after thinking they won.
That didn't turn out to be the case as Stuart recalled his edgy-named bird with tears of humiliation in his eyes as he glared at me, but it was still worth it to start integrating the habits into Eevee.
"AND PALLET TOWN GOES THREE FOR THREE AS PERIWINKLE'S EEVEE BRINGS DOWN WINGULL WITH A DEVASTATING HYPER VOICE! CAN ANYTHING STOP THESE YOUNG PRODIGIES!?"
I nodded, satisfied. Walter had been right, Eevee wasn't that far behind the rest of the team, if at all. A bigger move pool, faster charge time, and some ways to keep foes at a distance and she would be a little menace. A touch more confidence wouldn't hurt either, but that would come with time.
The tournament, on the other hand, was off to a somewhat slow start. I may have bought into the S.S. Anne hype too much, but that was pathetic for someone with two Badges.
Oh well, it was only the first round. I'd reserve full judgment for later.
"Who the fuck has that loser been sucking off for these Pokémon!?"
"Didn't I hear that you've caught an Alpha Pidgey?" I scoffed at Gary's disbelief while down in the arena, Ash's Bulbasaur pulled itself out of the way with a creative Vine Whip, letting the small, light brown canine – with a darker brown muzzle and paws – and sky-blue eyes sail past with the top of its head glowing with Psychic-Type energy. The Zen Headbutt faded as the Rockruff looked around for its target, only to whine in pain as another Vine Whip lashed it across the back.
Looking around cautiously, I snuck my PokéDex out of my pocket and directed it down at the canine. Might as well get some work done for the Professor. My actions got an approving nod from Gary as he copied me, despite flipping out, scooting a little closer to hide our recording.
"Yeah, but I'm awesome, and he's not! Have you been catching Pokémon for him, with your bullshit luck!?" It was funny watching Gary lose his mind over Ash having revealed that he'd caught all three Kanto starters, something that had a lot of tongues wagging around the stands. The S.S. Anne loved their rare Pokémon, and very few Trainers could boast about having all three regional 'starter' species. Starter was a strong word, as it required a sponsorship from the local Pokémon Professor, but they had become synonymous with their regions as their species were very rare in the wild, yet excellent for newbie Trainers.
"You got me. I found a Charmander, Squirtle, AND Bulbasaur in the wild but decided 'eh, don't need 'em' and gave them to Ash. You're so smart, Gary." I mocked, starting another exchange of insults as Ash cleaned up his third battle.
It would've been even funnier if I weren't quite envious myself, but I liked my team.
"Fuck you. Why'd you recall Siren so quickly anyway, during your last match?"
I refused to meet his eyes. "Long tournament, gotta keep them fresh. Besides, you recalled Squirty pretty fast yourself."
"Well, your anxious ass is robbing off on me, I guess."
I hummed lightly, not letting on that it actually made me breathe a little easier. The more combat capable Pokémon we had, the better. I still wasn't convinced that shit wasn't going to go down.
"-OH, AND ANOTHER ONE GOES DOWN! IT WOULD SEEM THAT ANDREW SIMPLY CANNOT STAND AGAINST THIS MONSTEROUS GROWLITHE! EVEN BY S.S. ANNE STANDARDS, THIS IS A ONCE IN A LIFETIME SIGHT! WHERE ARE THESE PALLET TRAINERS GETTING THEIR POKÉMON!?"
Sol panted happily as the opposing Lombre faded into crimson energy, basking in the attention as the crowd gossiped and snapped pictures of the Shiny Alpha. He'd caused quite the stir when I released him, overshadowing Ash's starter trio with ease. I could practically feel Gary seething as no one gave a fuck about his Wartortle.
I'd been hesitant to actually use Sol, as it was the first time we battled so publicly, but after Eevee got a little too close to losing to a shiny Nosepass, it felt like time to pull out the big guns. Combined with Sol being the only one who didn't get to fight Walter, it only felt fair.
Given the way he took out the Treeko with a single Ember and then waded straight through the Lombre's Bubblebeam, it was the right choice.
"Fucking nepo-babies, coasting off your sponsorship! You know nothing about hard work!"
Digging around in my ear, I flicked away a little bit of earwax while giving the full-grown man across from me my best half-lidded gaze.
"Uh-huh. Can you send out your next Pokémon so we can get this over with? I was kinda in the middle of a sandwich."
I did genuinely feel a little bad as the scruffy, bearded man sent out his last Pokémon, a frilly mushroom materialising as Andrew from Hoenn put his final hopes on his large Shroomish. The one-on-one fights hadn't been anything worth mentioning, and my first three-on-three – the quarter final – wasn't much better. The Grass-Type shook itself, small dots of yellow pollen drifting from under its skirt-esque lower body. A cloud hung around the Shroomish, preventing Sol from getting close as it started drifting over the battlefield-
"Ember."
-only to be struck by a barrage of fire pellets that violently ignited the Stun Spore into a fiery conflagration, the shockwave sending Shroomish flying backwards and giving Sol plenty of time to rush over and pound it into the ground.
Andrew did have a point. So far, Sol had brute-forced his way through a whole team, and I didn't think the others would do much worse.
While a skilled Trainer could take ordinary, weak Pokémon extremely far, it couldn't be denied that it was a lot easier with rarer Pokémon.
On the other hand, we were on the S.S. Anne, the luxury cruise filled with rich pricks. What the fuck did he expect?
"UUHHHH, AND BUTTERFREE MANAGES TO LAND A STUN SPORE! IS IT ENOUGH TO TURN THE TIDES!?"
It wasn't. Butterfree flapped its wings furiously, wind whipping around as it desperately tried to protect itself with a Whirlwind. Yet, the Ice Beam was too strong and punched straight through the turbulence to strike the Bug/Flying-Type centre mass, frost crawling over its body and the base of its wings as it finally gave up and dropped from the sky.
"BUTTERFREE!"
"HA! That's the best you've got, loser!? This is sad even for you!"
"SHUT UP, GARY! GO, PIKACHU, LET'S SHOW THEM WHAT WE'VE GOT!"
It was a little early for Gary to be so cocky, though that was par for the course with the younger Oak, I mused as the Electric-Type jumped off Ash's shoulder and took his place across from the smirking Squirty. Ash choosing Butterfree as his opener was simply bad luck. Gary wasn't supposed to have an Electric-Type despite his plethora of catches.
Though I noted that Gary had apparently bought Squirty an Ice Beam TM at some point. Valuable info, since it was looking more and more likely that I'd be facing off against him in the final.
Well, I had to get through my own semi-final first, yet from everything I'd seen, the stuck-up, wealthy lady was heavily reliant on her shiny Beautifly and shiny Skitty – and Sol was going to eat them for lunch. Both Siren and Herc made more sense, seeing as they had the type advantage, and would be my back-ups, yet I couldn't resist the urge to show off after the snob with the heavy makeup had been so very eager to shove her shinies in people's faces.
"AND A VICIOUS THUNDERSHOCK TAKES OUT WARTORTLE, THOUGH NOT BEFORE DELIVERING A HEAVY BLOW IN RETURN! THE SCORE IS NOW ONE-ONE! CAN THE LEFT TRAINER RECOVER FROM HIS EARLY LOSS!?"
It honestly made sense that Team Rocket was so interested in Pikachu in the anime. Every time, I was surprised by how much sheer power he could produce when he got serious. The Thundershock that brought Squirty low hadn't been on the level of Surge's Thunderbolt, yet I knew that if Herc saw it, he would've been feeling inadequate again.
Gary growled as he threw his next PokéBall, a round, rocky Pokémon with a wide grin appearing. Stony scraping sounds rang out as the Graveler cracked all four sets of knuckles menacingly at the panting Pikachu, who nursed his ribs, winching with every movement.
Ash really needed to teach him Iron Tail or something. The only moves the Electric-Type had that could even hurt the Rock/Ground-Type were Quick Attack and Tackle, and as funny as watching the small mouse throw itself face-first into a rock would be, it wasn't exactly a winning strategy. The Ground-Type immunity to electricity wasn't a hard rule, as far as I knew after asking Brock, but the minerals in Graveler's rocky hide would conduct the current and insulate its biological insides.
To Pikachu's credit, it lasted longer than I would've expected and even landed a couple of hits. The rodent had a clear speed advantage and used Quick Attack to circle faster than Graveler could turn before slamming into it at full speed, managing to stagger it slightly. Yet, as I'd thought, it was questionable who it hurt more: the target or the attacker.
"COME ON, KID, YOU CAN DO IT!"
"GIVE UP ALREADY!"
The audience had split reactions, some rooting for the underdog and others wanting to fast-forward to the inevitable outcome. Neither of the two boys battling were faced with the hooting and hollering from the stands. Hell, Gary seemed to relish it, the vain bitch.
Pikachu once more put on an impressive light show; however, between the injury from Squirty and damn near fucking concussing himself on Graveler's stony carapace, it was only a matter of time before he got caught, and the ref called it.
And that was honestly the end of it. Ash screamed himself hoarse as his Squirtle took on the Rock-Type and took it down with only minimal struggle. Graveler's lack of speed allowed the turtle to stay out of reach and hose it down with Water Guns. A couple of Rock Throws clipped the blue amphibian, and a Magnitude sent it to the floor in pain, but it got there in the end, Gary recalling it before it could get too hurt.
But when Gary released his last Pokémon with a smirk, and a Clefairy bounced around cheerfully to the crowd's and announcer's delight, it was over in moments. The Fairy Pokémon lit up with an impressive amount of electricity and unleashed a blinding Thunderbolt that sent Squirtle to the ground. A second one made sure it stayed there.
So, the reason Gary couldn't afford the TMs was that he'd been on a spending spree and already loaded up. Good to know.
I'd have to see how Ash was doing later. First, I had to clap some rich bitch's cheeks and show her who had the better shiny Pokémon.
And then, I was apparently getting a chance for some payback.
Hopefully, Gary wouldn't be too salty when I fucking decimated him. We just became friends again.
"AND HERE WE ARE, FOLKS! THE FINAL MATCH OF OUR SECOND TOURNAMENT AND WHAT A TOURNAMENT IT'S BEEN!"
The sun had dipped beneath the stands, casting the arena in shadow. Orange bled through the gaps, and I imagined that if I were to walk around, the ocean would be a magnificent sight worthy of poetry.
I had absolutely no intention of doing that.
"ON THE LEFT, THE YOUNG BOY FROM PALLET TOWN WHO'S SWEPT ALL BEFORE HIM! THE GRANDSON OF THE FAMOUS PROFESSOR OAK! IT'S GARY OAK!"
Gary waved casually, a giant smirk on his face, though I caught the slight twitch of his eye at the mention of his grandfather.
"AND ON THE RIGHT, ALSO FROM PALLET TOWN, THE BOY WITH THE SHINY ALPHA GROWLITHE! IT'S PERWINKLE!" It was my turn to twitch. Okay, Sol was awesome, but so was I! And the rest of my team, of course.
"THE STAGE IS SET FOR A SHOWDOWN OF CHILDHOOD FRIENDS! NOW, THE COIN TOSS!" The guy was laying it on thick, but I guess that was his job.
"Heads!" Gary called out before I had a chance to. I glared at him lightly, but didn't really care that much. I was confident.
"Tails!"
Especially when he still lost.
"He'll go first," it was my turn to grin as Gary gritted his teeth, fingers dancing across the six PokéBalls on his belt. There was no changing your team between rounds, and so far, he had used Squirty, Graveler, his Clefairy, and a chunky Raticate. It was entirely possible that he would use something else, as neither were a good option against my team.
However, Gary was a vain fuck who hated when others got the spotlight. Ash had drawn attention with his complete set of Kanto starters, and Sol had been the main attraction of the tournament so far.
There was no way Gary wouldn't try to show off, even if it was a stupid decision.
"AND WHAT'S THIS!?" The announcer screamed from his place higher in the control tower as Gary's PokéBall arched through the air and opened upon contact with the ground. The light grew and grew, beyond what I'd expected, standing as tall as Gary himself. The ruby energy dispersed as the prominent figure spread its six-foot wings wide and cawed loudly. "IS THAT ANOTHER ALPHA!? WHERE ARE THESE KIDS GETTING THEM FROM!?"
Brown feathers clad the human-sized avian, except for the cream-colored face, underside, and the inside of its wings. A pinkish-red crest glowed from its head, matching the colour of the tail feathers, which alternated with the same cream hue. Sharp, predatory eyes surveyed the field before locking onto me with a hungry look as the giant bird took flight, circling around as best it could in the limited space of the Psychic barriers.
It appeared I was wrong. Gary didn't have an Alpha Pidgey.
He had an Alpha Pidgeotto.
Very impressive, yet as I thought, a very dumb move. Trying to outmuscle my team simply wasn't going to work.
Siren materialised on my side of the field to loud laughter and ridicule, making me flip off the stands in response. They could go fuck themselves, and were about to eat their fucking words anyway.
"AND THE RIGHT TRAINER ANSWERS WITH AN… UNUSUAL CHOICE, A FEEBAS! WILL THE ODDBALL PICK PAY OFF!?"
"Are both Trainers ready?" WE both nodded at the referee's words. Despite everyone else's reactions, Gary looked a little pale at seeing my fish. He'd grown up with her training in the pond. Made sense that he knew he was fucked. "Then begin on three. One. Two. Three!"
"Pidgeotto, Gust!" Gary screamed before the last syllable left the referee's mouth, the scamming fuck. Pidgeotto spread its double-digit wingspan, slowing its hovering to hang in the air.
And then it dove, screeching loudly as its three-toed feet spread wide, ready to grasp Siren in its massive talons.
"WHAT!? NO YOU MORON, DON'T GET CLOSE!" I had to hold back my laughter, the Sensational Sisters' words coming back to me. It seemed Gary still hadn't gotten his Alpha to listen. Oh, Gary, you unbelievable idiot.
The difference between catching it and raising it, I guessed.
"Ice Beam, let's wrap this up!"
"MOVE, DUMBASS!"
Pidgeotto didn't move. The chilly Ice attack left mist in its wake as it pierced through the air and smacked straight into the Flying-Type's chest. Ice spread on impact, yet Pidgeotto was so large that it failed to cover its entire breast. The super-effective move was enough to stun it; the enormous bird jerked and dropped in the air as its sensitive nervous system was shocked. However, it managed to recover and flexed hard enough that the frosty shell shattered into shards.
It wasn't an Alpha for nothing. I was starkly reminded of Sol's tendency to trust his size to carry him through. Seems there were some similarities between Pokémon with the rare genome.
Finally listening to its Trainer, Pidgeotto tried to dodge the following Ice Beam, but its size worked against it. It was too big and slow, especially after already being hit once. The left wing froze over, and then the right. The pinions glowed with a sky-blue energy beneath the cold covering, a Wing Attack freeing it for a moment before a fourth Ice Beam hit it again.
"FUCK! FINE, DIVEBOMB THEIR ASS!"
My eyes widened as the vast wings snapped close to its body and it dropped like a missile straight towards Siren, the weight of the oversized avian making it blur through the air.
"JET!"
Too late. Siren's general slowness reared its head meaningfully for the first time in a while, the propulsion from the Water Gun barely managing to move her half a foot before almost six feet of bird slammed into the arena floor right on top of her.
BOOOOM!
"SIREN!" I cried out as my Feebas tumbled out of the dust cloud, spinning head over tail uncontrollably multiple times as she skidded over the floor. Eventually, she slowed, her levitation enough to counter the remaining momentum. Looking her over, I breathed a sigh of relief. She was dirty, missing a couple of scales, and I was sure she'd have a bruise to show off later, but she was mostly fine.
Which was more than I could say about Pidgeotto when the impact zone became visible. At the bottom of a pretty impressive crater, the Normal/Flying-Type struggled feebly to get up. I didn't even have to say anything before another Ice Beam was shooting towards it, the red light of a PokéBall sucking it away right before it could be knocked out.
"AND IN AN UNEXPECTED UPSET, THE MAGNIFICENT PIDGEOTTO GOES DOWN TO THE FEEBAS! WHO COULD'VE SEEN IT COMING!? HOW WILL THE LEFT TRAINER RECOVER FROM THE DEVASTATING LOSS OF HIS HIDDEN ACE!?"
The announcer was bothering me. I understood that it was a cruise for wealthy people, and that they were trying to sell rare Pokémon, but Pidgeotto – while impressive – wasn't Gary's strongest. Maybe if he could command it effectively, but until then, the title of cornerstone went to someone else.
Namely, the Wartortle that was released on the other side of the field, stomping its foot and crossing its arms confidently in the face of Siren's glare.
"AND WARTORTLE COMES OUT! DOES THE YOUNG OAK HOPE THAT IT WILL CARRY HIM AS IT HAS THROUGHOUT THE TOURNAMENT!?"
Not if I had anything to say about it.
Turns out, fighting regular battles is a lot easier than real fights. Let's see if Gary is gonna be any different.
Kinda speedrunning the tournament, but there's gonna be plenty of battling in the coming chapters.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
"WELCOME, TRAINERS AND AUDIENCE, TO OUR SECOND TOURNAMENT ON OUR WAY TO CERULEAN! YEASTERDAY WAS A FIERCE DISPLAY OF-"
My jaw flexed as I yawned with my mouth closed, rubbing my eyes to try and remove the slight ache. Beside me, Ash was thoroughly entranced by the announcer's words, despite having spent the previous day watching the first tournament. Meanwhile, Gary bumped his shoulder into mine.
"You didn't come back to the room last night. I always knew that the Waterflowers sisters were sluts, but dinner went that well, huh?"
"Well, I swung by your mom's place afterwards. You know she can't sleep unless I give it to her." I whispered back. Of course, I didn't go back to the room. No fucking way I was going to sleep until we made it back to land. Even blinking was taking my eyes off the ball a little too long for my tastes.
"Publicly admitting to necrophilia is wild."
"I'm very wild, just like your mom is when I'm giving it to her."
"Riveting. So the date didn't go well? What happened, your Orre ass tried to eat the cutlery? Couldn't figure out which fork was which?"
"The date went fine," I whispered back, internally crying at the state of my bank account. Between the dinner, some random stuff from the store that looked neat, and the TMs – especially the TMs – I was damn near back to where I was before meeting Bill, which was extremely upsetting.
At least, the date truly had gone well, if uneventful. We'd mostly just made small talk and stayed away from anything too heavy.
"SHHHHHH! I can't hear!" I contemplated informing Ash of the irony that he was way fucking louder than we were and drawing multiple eyes to us. Still, I decided to simply leave it to Gary as they began whispering insults at each other.
"-THE ORDER HAS ALREADY BEEN DECIDED! IF EVERYONE BUT OUR FIRST TWO TRAINERS WOULD PLEASE MAKE THEIR WAY TO THE WAITING AREA!"
"YES! FINALLY!" Ash cheered, getting laughs from the audience as he took his place on one side of the field, a chuckling older guy standing across from him.
The rest of the 120-something group of Trainers began making our way down from the centre platform under thunderous applause as over 500 people cheered and clapped for the beginning of the 2-3 Badge tournament.
Also, what did the announcer say at the start?
"Did he say Cerulean!?" I hissed at Gary, while forcing him to step behind an absolute unit of a woman, like the human version of a Spheal.
"Yeah, of course he said Cerulean. Did you not check where we're going? I even told you yesterday!" Gary looked at me like I was stupid.
"No, you said Cinnabar!"
"And we're passing that now! Will you stop whining!? I'll give you a ride to Celadon if you don't piss me off too much." That didn't stop me from grumbling as we walked through the sign-up desk and through a door that led to a set of stairs that took us upwards. I liked Cerulean, but I just spent two weeks there. I definitely wouldn't mind if it took a little longer before I made my return.
The waiting area was beneath the ship's control room. Couches and armchairs were arranged along the entire glass wall that overlooked the small stadium. Food and other refreshments were stacked high on the buffet table on the other side, and the other contestants didn't take long to make themselves comfortable.
Securing a couple of plushy chairs for the two of us, I smacked Gary's feet away as he plopped them up on the table between us, while he flipped me off in response.
"You know, the placement is incredibly convenient," I remarked, watching as the referee raised a flag in Ash's direction – apparently, he'd lost the coin toss that decided who went first while we were climbing the stairs – not that he seemed to mind, turning his hat around and throwing out his PokéBall happily. I raised an eyebrow in surprise at the appearance of a small orange reptile with stubby arms and a flame flickering at the end of its tail.
I completely forgot that Ash got Charmander so early. Wait, thinking about it, the Fire-Type had been up for grabs for essentially anyone with basic empathy. It didn't have to be Ash.
FUCK! God damn Cerulean, taking up all my time!
"Yeah, you and I won't meet until the finals. Bet you a grand that idiot loses first round, though," Gary snarked, sitting sideways with his legs over the armrest while throwing some kind of nuts into the air and trying to catch them in his mouth.
"I'll take that bet." I felt vindicated when Ash's opponent released a Whismur. An Alpha Whismur, sure, but a Whismur was a Whismur.
It didn't last long, and the money felt sweet. The early rounds – as in, until the quarter finals – were only one-on-one as we had quite a few Trainers to get through. Later on, it would become a three-on-three.
Until then, it didn't seem like anything interesting was going to happen.
Oh well. At least the snacks were good.
"GARY'S SQUIRTLE'S ALREADY EVOLVED!?" Grabbing him by the back of his shirt, I yanked Ash back into his chair, an imprint of his face left on the grass. Down below, Squirty the Wartortle swaggered up to a Chikarita confidently. The girl opposing Gary must have thought she lucked out when he sent out a Water-Type, hoping the type advantage would save her.
It didn't.
"Not all of us refuse to evolve our starters," I commented, taking in Squirty. It was my first time seeing him since before evolution, and the change suited him well. His height wasn't horrifically above average, but he was broad and sturdy, Razor Leaf barely leaving scratches on his shell. The fluffy white ears and curly tail seemed well maintained, though I wasn't the best judge on the Squirtle line.
"You're one to talk! You're the only one who hasn't evolved any Pokémon!" He pointed and laughed, only for the sound to turn into a yelp as I kicked his chair hard enough that it wobbled.
It wasn't my fault that my team was filled with slow growers and alternate evolutions. We'd get there.
"MOVING ON TO THE THIRD-TO-LAST MATCH OF ROUND ONE! ON THE LEFT SIDE, ANOTHER TRAINER FROM PALLET, WHO HAS ONLY JUST STARTED HIS TRAINER JOURNEY! WILL HE IMPRESS AS MUCH AS THE OTHERS!? IT'S PERIWINKLE!"
The crowd cheered, though there was a fair amount of booing as well from people who got tired of Ash and Gary taking down their opponents so quickly. I did my best not to pay them any mind, throwing Misty a smirk when I spotted her in the front of the stands. Despite not wanting to be on the ship in the first place – and still flinching like a bitch every time a wave hit the bow – I was a little excited. I hadn't spent a lot of time battling random strangers, despite that being a pretty integral part of being a Trainer. The last time I'd done so was in Viridian Forest, and Bug Catcher didn't count. Neither did the Cerulean Gym Trainers.
It would be good to see how I stacked up.
"AND ON THE RIGHT SIDE, AN EQUALLY YOUNG TRAINER FROM HOENN, TRYING HIS LUCK IN KANTO, BRAVING THE SEA TO TEST HIS METTLE AGAINST THE WHOLE WORLD! IT'S STUART!"
I wasn't super impressed by the glare of the acne-struck, black haired teenager with his floral bathing shorts and bare upper body.
"Left Trainer, release your Pokémon!" The referee – yet another suit guy, though his dark brown hair was up in a man-bun and he had a shitty goatee that more resembled a dirt smudge than a beard – said.
Eevee walked forwards, ears flicking uneasily at the loud noises, eyes darting around nervously and back to me periodically. I nodded to her as reassuringly as possible. While I would've liked to test her out under calmer circumstances, I'd figured the first round would probably be fine.
Seeing the Wingull that Stuart sent out circle around as the Psychic barriers sprang up, I felt confident that I wouldn't be paying for my arrogance quite yet.
"This will be a one-on-one battle! First to surrender, fall unconscious, or be judged unable to continue will lose the battle! Are both Trainers ready!?" We both nodded. "Then begin!"
"Sky Terror, rapid Water Gun!"
I was so distracted by the nickname that I almost forgot to respond. I could've gotten away with it if it were one of the others, but Eevee was a little too new, and yet, too well-trained to act on her own.
"Dodge, Hyper Voice."
During my time… ruminating upon my problems in the training field of Vermillion, I'd taken the time to run Eevee through her move set. In that session, I'd learned two things about the pint-sized fox.
1. She was very mobile.
I hummed appreciatively as jets of water fell from the sky with only a couple of seconds intervals. Having used Water Gun myself for quite a long time, I knew that it must've taken a lot of practice to be that quick.
It was still too slow, however.
A light jump to the side let the first beam wash over the stone arena, a twirl bringing Eevee around the second. She hesitated briefly as some of the watchers waved a large banner furiously, only for her ears to twitch at the last moment before she crouched to let another Water Gun pass over her head, the fur between the large ears being drenched in water before she leapt forwards again to clear the fourth jet easily, gaze firmly locked on her target.
I didn't know whether it was her egg move, Detect, or whether the Waterflower Clan simply bred them differently. Still, she made it look almost effortless as she danced across the stage between the liquid missiles, a white energy coating her as she blurred to the other side of the battlefield. Her Quick Attack was amateurish, even compared to Hercules who was far from a master himself, but it was sufficient for shirt bursts.
Using the brief pause as Stuart yelled Eevee's location up at 'Sky Terror', the Normal-Type inhaled deeply, her minuscule lungs filling and then overfilling as her puffy chest expanded beyond logic.
2. She hit like a tiny truck.
"EEEIIIIIIIIII!"
Despite the barriers dulling the vast majority of the noise, the audience still winced at the piercingly loud screech that erupted from Eevee's mouth, the air itself distorted as it vibrated furiously, a sonic cone rippling out from the Normal-Type.
"SKY TERROR, NOOOO!"
The warning would've come too late for a regular Pokémon. Against a Flying-Type, with a much sharper-than-average sense of hearing?
It wasn't worth the breath.
Sky Terror the Wingull cried out as the sound wave struck it, eyes rolling back into its skull as its brain rattled around inside its cranium. It being my first battle with a Wingull since the one at the oasis where I'd found Siren's egg, I'd admit to taking some pleasure in watching the bird plummet from the sky, unable to stay aloft with the dizziness, and hit the deck with a soft thud!
Seeing Eevee relax and begin sitting down, I called out to her. "Don't back down yet! Be ready with a Swift if it gets back up!" The words had her back on edge, which was good. The battle wasn't over until the referee said so, and better Trainers than me had been caught with their pants down after thinking they won.
That didn't turn out to be the case as Stuart recalled his edgy-named bird with tears of humiliation in his eyes as he glared at me, but it was still worth it to start integrating the habits into Eevee.
"AND PALLET TOWN GOES THREE FOR THREE AS PERIWINKLE'S EEVEE BRINGS DOWN WINGULL WITH A DEVASTATING HYPER VOICE! CAN ANYTHING STOP THESE YOUNG PRODIGIES!?"
I nodded, satisfied. Walter had been right, Eevee wasn't that far behind the rest of the team, if at all. A bigger move pool, faster charge time, and some ways to keep foes at a distance and she would be a little menace. A touch more confidence wouldn't hurt either, but that would come with time.
The tournament, on the other hand, was off to a somewhat slow start. I may have bought into the S.S. Anne hype too much, but that was pathetic for someone with two Badges.
Oh well, it was only the first round. I'd reserve full judgment for later.
"Who the fuck has that loser been sucking off for these Pokémon!?"
"Didn't I hear that you've caught an Alpha Pidgey?" I scoffed at Gary's disbelief while down in the arena, Ash's Bulbasaur pulled itself out of the way with a creative Vine Whip, letting the small, light brown canine – with a darker brown muzzle and paws – and sky-blue eyes sail past with the top of its head glowing with Psychic-Type energy. The Zen Headbutt faded as the Rockruff looked around for its target, only to whine in pain as another Vine Whip lashed it across the back.
Looking around cautiously, I snuck my PokéDex out of my pocket and directed it down at the canine. Might as well get some work done for the Professor. My actions got an approving nod from Gary as he copied me, despite flipping out, scooting a little closer to hide our recording.
"Yeah, but I'm awesome, and he's not! Have you been catching Pokémon for him, with your bullshit luck!?" It was funny watching Gary lose his mind over Ash having revealed that he'd caught all three Kanto starters, something that had a lot of tongues wagging around the stands. The S.S. Anne loved their rare Pokémon, and very few Trainers could boast about having all three regional 'starter' species. Starter was a strong word, as it required a sponsorship from the local Pokémon Professor, but they had become synonymous with their regions as their species were very rare in the wild, yet excellent for newbie Trainers.
"You got me. I found a Charmander, Squirtle, AND Bulbasaur in the wild but decided 'eh, don't need 'em' and gave them to Ash. You're so smart, Gary." I mocked, starting another exchange of insults as Ash cleaned up his third battle.
It would've been even funnier if I weren't quite envious myself, but I liked my team.
"Fuck you. Why'd you recall Siren so quickly anyway, during your last match?"
I refused to meet his eyes. "Long tournament, gotta keep them fresh. Besides, you recalled Squirty pretty fast yourself."
"Well, your anxious ass is robbing off on me, I guess."
I hummed lightly, not letting on that it actually made me breathe a little easier. The more combat capable Pokémon we had, the better. I still wasn't convinced that shit wasn't going to go down.
"-OH, AND ANOTHER ONE GOES DOWN! IT WOULD SEEM THAT ANDREW SIMPLY CANNOT STAND AGAINST THIS MONSTEROUS GROWLITHE! EVEN BY S.S. ANNE STANDARDS, THIS IS A ONCE IN A LIFETIME SIGHT! WHERE ARE THESE PALLET TRAINERS GETTING THEIR POKÉMON!?"
Sol panted happily as the opposing Lombre faded into crimson energy, basking in the attention as the crowd gossiped and snapped pictures of the Shiny Alpha. He'd caused quite the stir when I released him, overshadowing Ash's starter trio with ease. I could practically feel Gary seething as no one gave a fuck about his Wartortle.
I'd been hesitant to actually use Sol, as it was the first time we battled so publicly, but after Eevee got a little too close to losing to a shiny Nosepass, it felt like time to pull out the big guns. Combined with Sol being the only one who didn't get to fight Walter, it only felt fair.
Given the way he took out the Treeko with a single Ember and then waded straight through the Lombre's Bubblebeam, it was the right choice.
"Fucking nepo-babies, coasting off your sponsorship! You know nothing about hard work!"
Digging around in my ear, I flicked away a little bit of earwax while giving the full-grown man across from me my best half-lidded gaze.
"Uh-huh. Can you send out your next Pokémon so we can get this over with? I was kinda in the middle of a sandwich."
I did genuinely feel a little bad as the scruffy, bearded man sent out his last Pokémon, a frilly mushroom materialising as Andrew from Hoenn put his final hopes on his large Shroomish. The one-on-one fights hadn't been anything worth mentioning, and my first three-on-three – the quarter final – wasn't much better. The Grass-Type shook itself, small dots of yellow pollen drifting from under its skirt-esque lower body. A cloud hung around the Shroomish, preventing Sol from getting close as it started drifting over the battlefield-
"Ember."
-only to be struck by a barrage of fire pellets that violently ignited the Stun Spore into a fiery conflagration, the shockwave sending Shroomish flying backwards and giving Sol plenty of time to rush over and pound it into the ground.
Andrew did have a point. So far, Sol had brute-forced his way through a whole team, and I didn't think the others would do much worse.
While a skilled Trainer could take ordinary, weak Pokémon extremely far, it couldn't be denied that it was a lot easier with rarer Pokémon.
On the other hand, we were on the S.S. Anne, the luxury cruise filled with rich pricks. What the fuck did he expect?
"UUHHHH, AND BUTTERFREE MANAGES TO LAND A STUN SPORE! IS IT ENOUGH TO TURN THE TIDES!?"
It wasn't. Butterfree flapped its wings furiously, wind whipping around as it desperately tried to protect itself with a Whirlwind. Yet, the Ice Beam was too strong and punched straight through the turbulence to strike the Bug/Flying-Type centre mass, frost crawling over its body and the base of its wings as it finally gave up and dropped from the sky.
"BUTTERFREE!"
"HA! That's the best you've got, loser!? This is sad even for you!"
"SHUT UP, GARY! GO, PIKACHU, LET'S SHOW THEM WHAT WE'VE GOT!"
It was a little early for Gary to be so cocky, though that was par for the course with the younger Oak, I mused as the Electric-Type jumped off Ash's shoulder and took his place across from the smirking Squirty. Ash choosing Butterfree as his opener was simply bad luck. Gary wasn't supposed to have an Electric-Type despite his plethora of catches.
Though I noted that Gary had apparently bought Squirty an Ice Beam TM at some point. Valuable info, since it was looking more and more likely that I'd be facing off against him in the final.
Well, I had to get through my own semi-final first, yet from everything I'd seen, the stuck-up, wealthy lady was heavily reliant on her shiny Beautifly and shiny Skitty – and Sol was going to eat them for lunch. Both Siren and Herc made more sense, seeing as they had the type advantage, and would be my back-ups, yet I couldn't resist the urge to show off after the snob with the heavy makeup had been so very eager to shove her shinies in people's faces.
"AND A VICIOUS THUNDERSHOCK TAKES OUT WARTORTLE, THOUGH NOT BEFORE DELIVERING A HEAVY BLOW IN RETURN! THE SCORE IS NOW ONE-ONE! CAN THE LEFT TRAINER RECOVER FROM HIS EARLY LOSS!?"
It honestly made sense that Team Rocket was so interested in Pikachu in the anime. Every time, I was surprised by how much sheer power he could produce when he got serious. The Thundershock that brought Squirty low hadn't been on the level of Surge's Thunderbolt, yet I knew that if Herc saw it, he would've been feeling inadequate again.
Gary growled as he threw his next PokéBall, a round, rocky Pokémon with a wide grin appearing. Stony scraping sounds rang out as the Graveler cracked all four sets of knuckles menacingly at the panting Pikachu, who nursed his ribs, winching with every movement.
Ash really needed to teach him Iron Tail or something. The only moves the Electric-Type had that could even hurt the Rock/Ground-Type were Quick Attack and Tackle, and as funny as watching the small mouse throw itself face-first into a rock would be, it wasn't exactly a winning strategy. The Ground-Type immunity to electricity wasn't a hard rule, as far as I knew after asking Brock, but the minerals in Graveler's rocky hide would conduct the current and insulate its biological insides.
To Pikachu's credit, it lasted longer than I would've expected and even landed a couple of hits. The rodent had a clear speed advantage and used Quick Attack to circle faster than Graveler could turn before slamming into it at full speed, managing to stagger it slightly. Yet, as I'd thought, it was questionable who it hurt more: the target or the attacker.
"COME ON, KID, YOU CAN DO IT!"
"GIVE UP ALREADY!"
The audience had split reactions, some rooting for the underdog and others wanting to fast-forward to the inevitable outcome. Neither of the two boys battling were faced with the hooting and hollering from the stands. Hell, Gary seemed to relish it, the vain bitch.
Pikachu once more put on an impressive light show; however, between the injury from Squirty and damn near fucking concussing himself on Graveler's stony carapace, it was only a matter of time before he got caught, and the ref called it.
And that was honestly the end of it. Ash screamed himself hoarse as his Squirtle took on the Rock-Type and took it down with only minimal struggle. Graveler's lack of speed allowed the turtle to stay out of reach and hose it down with Water Guns. A couple of Rock Throws clipped the blue amphibian, and a Magnitude sent it to the floor in pain, but it got there in the end, Gary recalling it before it could get too hurt.
But when Gary released his last Pokémon with a smirk, and a Clefairy bounced around cheerfully to the crowd's and announcer's delight, it was over in moments. The Fairy Pokémon lit up with an impressive amount of electricity and unleashed a blinding Thunderbolt that sent Squirtle to the ground. A second one made sure it stayed there.
So, the reason Gary couldn't afford the TMs was that he'd been on a spending spree and already loaded up. Good to know.
I'd have to see how Ash was doing later. First, I had to clap some rich bitch's cheeks and show her who had the better shiny Pokémon.
And then, I was apparently getting a chance for some payback.
Hopefully, Gary wouldn't be too salty when I fucking decimated him. We just became friends again.
"AND HERE WE ARE, FOLKS! THE FINAL MATCH OF OUR SECOND TOURNAMENT AND WHAT A TOURNAMENT IT'S BEEN!"
The sun had dipped beneath the stands, casting the arena in shadow. Orange bled through the gaps, and I imagined that if I were to walk around, the ocean would be a magnificent sight worthy of poetry.
I had absolutely no intention of doing that.
"ON THE LEFT, THE YOUNG BOY FROM PALLET TOWN WHO'S SWEPT ALL BEFORE HIM! THE GRANDSON OF THE FAMOUS PROFESSOR OAK! IT'S GARY OAK!"
Gary waved casually, a giant smirk on his face, though I caught the slight twitch of his eye at the mention of his grandfather.
"AND ON THE RIGHT, ALSO FROM PALLET TOWN, THE BOY WITH THE SHINY ALPHA GROWLITHE! IT'S PERWINKLE!" It was my turn to twitch. Okay, Sol was awesome, but so was I! And the rest of my team, of course.
"THE STAGE IS SET FOR A SHOWDOWN OF CHILDHOOD FRIENDS! NOW, THE COIN TOSS!" The guy was laying it on thick, but I guess that was his job.
"Heads!" Gary called out before I had a chance to. I glared at him lightly, but didn't really care that much. I was confident.
"Tails!"
Especially when he still lost.
"He'll go first," it was my turn to grin as Gary gritted his teeth, fingers dancing across the six PokéBalls on his belt. There was no changing your team between rounds, and so far, he had used Squirty, Graveler, his Clefairy, and a chunky Raticate. It was entirely possible that he would use something else, as neither were a good option against my team.
However, Gary was a vain fuck who hated when others got the spotlight. Ash had drawn attention with his complete set of Kanto starters, and Sol had been the main attraction of the tournament so far.
There was no way Gary wouldn't try to show off, even if it was a stupid decision.
"AND WHAT'S THIS!?" The announcer screamed from his place higher in the control tower as Gary's PokéBall arched through the air and opened upon contact with the ground. The light grew and grew, beyond what I'd expected, standing as tall as Gary himself. The ruby energy dispersed as the prominent figure spread its six-foot wings wide and cawed loudly. "IS THAT ANOTHER ALPHA!? WHERE ARE THESE KIDS GETTING THEM FROM!?"
Brown feathers clad the human-sized avian, except for the cream-colored face, underside, and the inside of its wings. A pinkish-red crest glowed from its head, matching the colour of the tail feathers, which alternated with the same cream hue. Sharp, predatory eyes surveyed the field before locking onto me with a hungry look as the giant bird took flight, circling around as best it could in the limited space of the Psychic barriers.
It appeared I was wrong. Gary didn't have an Alpha Pidgey.
He had an Alpha Pidgeotto.
Very impressive, yet as I thought, a very dumb move. Trying to outmuscle my team simply wasn't going to work.
Siren materialised on my side of the field to loud laughter and ridicule, making me flip off the stands in response. They could go fuck themselves, and were about to eat their fucking words anyway.
"AND THE RIGHT TRAINER ANSWERS WITH AN… UNUSUAL CHOICE, A FEEBAS! WILL THE ODDBALL PICK PAY OFF!?"
"Are both Trainers ready?" WE both nodded at the referee's words. Despite everyone else's reactions, Gary looked a little pale at seeing my fish. He'd grown up with her training in the pond. Made sense that he knew he was fucked. "Then begin on three. One. Two. Three!"
"Pidgeotto, Gust!" Gary screamed before the last syllable left the referee's mouth, the scamming fuck. Pidgeotto spread its double-digit wingspan, slowing its hovering to hang in the air.
And then it dove, screeching loudly as its three-toed feet spread wide, ready to grasp Siren in its massive talons.
"WHAT!? NO YOU MORON, DON'T GET CLOSE!" I had to hold back my laughter, the Sensational Sisters' words coming back to me. It seemed Gary still hadn't gotten his Alpha to listen. Oh, Gary, you unbelievable idiot.
The difference between catching it and raising it, I guessed.
"Ice Beam, let's wrap this up!"
"MOVE, DUMBASS!"
Pidgeotto didn't move. The chilly Ice attack left mist in its wake as it pierced through the air and smacked straight into the Flying-Type's chest. Ice spread on impact, yet Pidgeotto was so large that it failed to cover its entire breast. The super-effective move was enough to stun it; the enormous bird jerked and dropped in the air as its sensitive nervous system was shocked. However, it managed to recover and flexed hard enough that the frosty shell shattered into shards.
It wasn't an Alpha for nothing. I was starkly reminded of Sol's tendency to trust his size to carry him through. Seems there were some similarities between Pokémon with the rare genome.
Finally listening to its Trainer, Pidgeotto tried to dodge the following Ice Beam, but its size worked against it. It was too big and slow, especially after already being hit once. The left wing froze over, and then the right. The pinions glowed with a sky-blue energy beneath the cold covering, a Wing Attack freeing it for a moment before a fourth Ice Beam hit it again.
"FUCK! FINE, DIVEBOMB THEIR ASS!"
My eyes widened as the vast wings snapped close to its body and it dropped like a missile straight towards Siren, the weight of the oversized avian making it blur through the air.
"JET!"
Too late. Siren's general slowness reared its head meaningfully for the first time in a while, the propulsion from the Water Gun barely managing to move her half a foot before almost six feet of bird slammed into the arena floor right on top of her.
BOOOOM!
"SIREN!" I cried out as my Feebas tumbled out of the dust cloud, spinning head over tail uncontrollably multiple times as she skidded over the floor. Eventually, she slowed, her levitation enough to counter the remaining momentum. Looking her over, I breathed a sigh of relief. She was dirty, missing a couple of scales, and I was sure she'd have a bruise to show off later, but she was mostly fine.
Which was more than I could say about Pidgeotto when the impact zone became visible. At the bottom of a pretty impressive crater, the Normal/Flying-Type struggled feebly to get up. I didn't even have to say anything before another Ice Beam was shooting towards it, the red light of a PokéBall sucking it away right before it could be knocked out.
"AND IN AN UNEXPECTED UPSET, THE MAGNIFICENT PIDGEOTTO GOES DOWN TO THE FEEBAS! WHO COULD'VE SEEN IT COMING!? HOW WILL THE LEFT TRAINER RECOVER FROM THE DEVASTATING LOSS OF HIS HIDDEN ACE!?"
The announcer was bothering me. I understood that it was a cruise for wealthy people, and that they were trying to sell rare Pokémon, but Pidgeotto – while impressive – wasn't Gary's strongest. Maybe if he could command it effectively, but until then, the title of cornerstone went to someone else.
Namely, the Wartortle that was released on the other side of the field, stomping its foot and crossing its arms confidently in the face of Siren's glare.
"AND WARTORTLE COMES OUT! DOES THE YOUNG OAK HOPE THAT IT WILL CARRY HIM AS IT HAS THROUGHOUT THE TOURNAMENT!?"
Not if I had anything to say about it.
Turns out, fighting regular battles is a lot easier than real fights. Let's see if Gary is gonna be any different.
Kinda speedrunning the tournament, but there's gonna be plenty of battling in the coming chapters.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
6NuttBuster9
Getting some practice in, huh?
- Joined
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Aaaawwww I wanted to see him humiliate the fat bitch 
Chapter 41.
New
HankPankylol
Making the rounds.
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Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
The arena seemed to hold its breath for a beat as Squirty the Wartortle and Siren stared at each other. The magic was swiftly broken, however, as Gary and I both called out at the same time.
"Scald!"
"Missile!"
I cursed as the steaming water washed off Squirty's hard shell, watching it retract its limbs and head into the protective shield. Every limb except for the tail, that was. The realisation struck at the same time as water surrounded the appendage and began swirling around.
"SIREN, MOVE!"
A quick Jet got her out of the way just in time as the Aqua Jet sent the Wartorlte hurling forwards in a spray of liquid so forceful the backwash created a wave behind it. Compared to Azumaril's, it was amateurish at best. Yet, it did the job of propelling the heavy turtle and slamming it into the barrier hard enough that it flashed into visibility for a brief moment. Shaking his head dazedly, Squirty emerged from his shell a little confused, but unhurt.
And more importantly, much closer than I was comfortable with.
"Got you now! Focus Punch!"
"Back, Siren, Back! Ice Beam!"
The Feebas tried, but neither Water-Type was built for speed on land. Siren's levitation allowed her to be faster over a longer distance, but Squirty's thick frame was filled with powerful muscles that could make it startingly quick.
The Ice-Type move washed over the Wartortle much like his Pidgeotto teammate in the match before. However, unlike the Flying-Type, Gary's starter barely flinched at the thin layer of hoar frost spreading over its front from the hasty attack, and I scowled as it failed even to slow it, much less stop the glowing front leg that slammed into Siren and sent her flying to the opposite side of the arena.
That set the pace for the rest of the battle. Gary and Squirty did their best to close the gap, while Siren tried to avoid them frantically and get in what shots she could. Aqua Jet proved to be the deciding factor, unrefined as it was. We simply had no way to get away fast enough, or even hurt it, and the Wartortle was proving to be an endurance beast. After a few repetitions, Squirty was growing both annoyed and arrogant, taking a little too long to charge up his rush attack.
"Scald!"
The very hot water sprayed the amphibian in the face right as it poked out of its shell, getting a grunt of pain and sending the larger Pokémon stumbling back a little. For a moment, I hoped we had created some sort of advantage, something we could use to chip him down slowly. Yet, the following Ice Beam was shrugged off with the same ease as before, and when he looked back, slightly wrinkly skin and a squinting of his eye was the only evidence he'd even been hurt.
Siren could compete in power, but she just didn't have the toolkit to hurt her opponent.
Squirty did.
"Yeah, that's it! Might as well surrender completely, right now!" Gary laughed loudly as my PokéBall saved Siren from another Focus Punch at the last minute. She could have continued for a while longer, yet as much as I loved her, it wouldn't amount to much more than maybe a couple more hits. Wartortle's hard carapace even protected it from the same tactics we used against Azumaril.
Maybe I'd gotten a little cocky after the embarrassing showing from the Pidgeotto. While I was still confident that my team was stronger, Gary had perhaps – just maybe – spent a little more time training his team's moves. He was proving to be a bigger challenge than the rest of the ship, at least.
Good.
Gary and I stared at each other across the arena as my fingers drummed between two PokéBalls. Not that it was much of a choice. I wasn't familiar enough with Eevee to be willing to risk it, and given that our opponent was a Water-Type – and a fairly strong one at that – Sol would be a wild choice. I briefly considered the face Gary would make if he had to face down Betty all of a sudden, yet the earlier Ice Beam made that inadvisable as well, even if I was going to crack and finally use her in public.
So yeah, it wasn't the biggest twist in the world when Hercules emerged from his ball on my side of the field, and given that neither Gary nor Squirty flinched, they had expected as much as well.
The announcer, on the other hand…
"WHAT'S THIS? THE LEFT TRAINER STILL REFUSES TO USE HIS GROWLITHE! IT SEEMS PERWINKLE IS ALL OUT OF RARE POKÉMON! HOW DOES HE EXPECT TO WIN WITHOUT HIS ACE!?"
Whoever the fuck that guy was, he better hope I never found out, or I'd kick his teeth in. Even Gary was annoyed, and he loved it when people insulted his opponent.
"Begin!"
""Get in close!""
My frown changed to a grin as Gary's eyes widened in surprise.
He didn't watch my match with Surge and expected a normal Elekid.
Sucks to suck.
"Thunder Fist!"
"Protect!"
I clicked my tongue at the swift reaction time, the sparking hand bouncing off the barrier of interconnected green hexagons that flickered into life at the last moment. It was a little hazy and only covered a third of the Water-Type, but it held up under the force. Squirty's move pool was actually crazy.
However, Protect wasn't just a very energy-intensive move.
It was also a stationary one.
"Keep hammering it!"
BAM-BAM-BA-BAM!
Half a dozen blows smashed into the shield like pistons, bright light flashing with every hit. I went to call out, yet held my tongue when I saw Herc shift slightly to the right.
He got it.
SMACK!
With a sudden shift, Hercules stepped right and threw a hook that curved around the subpar Protect and walloped the Wartortle right in the cheek. The bipedal turtle stumbled back, grunting in pain as more electricity was conducted through his body, another punch hitting him in the softer underbelly, and then another. He swung his arms around in an attempt to throw Herc off, yet he clearly wasn't as good at throwing hands.
"Fuck! Squirty, Withdraw and Missile out of there!"
Squirty wasn't fast enough to escape without another Thunder Fist, but stayed conscious as he retreated into the safety of his natural armour. The following Aqua Jet sent him almost as much upwards as it did to the other end of the battlefield in his hurry to get away. The Wartortle skipped off the Psychic barrier twice, tumbling chaotically through the air before bouncing on the ground. Shaking his head as he emerged, Squirty had all of two seconds to enjoy his pain-free existence before a yellow fist smashed into the back of his head so hard he recoiled off the ground upon impact and came back up. The Quick Attack faded from Hercule's compact frame as he got right back to business as the Water-Type once more sought the protection of its shell.
"Rapid Spin, you idiot! Get it off you!"
"Back." As instructed, my Elekid retreated, allowing Squirty to begin spinning around on the stone tiles, dust blowing back as it picked up speed, blurring like a top.
However, I hadn't just been sulking while in Vermillion.
"Shockwave!"
Thanks for the TM, Surge, you dickhead.
Blue electricity sparked between the dual prongs atop Herc's head as he focused, windmilling his arms furiously to build up the charge. Gary yelled to his Pokémon to move, but the Rapid Spin made any attempts useless as it would take too long to stop. Before long, a blinding lance of lightning leapt from the Elekid as he whirred loudly, noticeably stronger than he used to be capable of.
Not anything impressive yet – or even average, to be honest – but solid progress. We'd get there.
We were denied the chance to see the physical consequences of that progress, however, as the light from Gary's PokéBall recalled him before the electricity could strike.
"OH, AND THE YOUNG OAK-"
It appeared that I'd made Gary a tad upset as he didn't wait for the announcer – or the referee, even – to finish speaking before hurling his next pick out onto the field. I grimaced as the same Graveler that took down Pikachu materialised, looking basically fully refreshed. Gary must have pumped several potions into it between rounds. Even having expected it, it still sucked. Especially since the dual type showed up on the complete opposite side of the battlefield, far enough away that it would probably get an attack in before Herc could close the distance.
"Magnitude! Wrap this shit up!"
"Leap! Hammer Arm!"
Jumping into the air, The Rock Pokémon smiled nastily as it folded its limbs in close, truly resembling its title as it dropped back onto the arena floor. The heavy tiles shook and clattered as a seismic wave radiated outward from the Graveler, cracks splintering the shaped stone. Hercules was faster and had managed to get a Quick Attack up, the aura blazing around his body as he pushed off the ground right before the wave hit him. Soaring through the air, the coat of energy condensed around his arm as he came hurling down with a cocked-back fist.
"Rollout!"
I grit my teeth as the Rock-Type stayed curled up and rolled away right as the Hammer Arm swished through the air behind it and embedded in the ground. A wave of dust and air chased the Graveler as Herc pulled his hand out of the floor where it had been embedded up to the mid-forarm in a small crater.
"After him!"
With a whir of confirmation, Quick Attack swiftly roared back to life, boosting the Electric-Type's agility again – though I noticed the delay and extra time it took. Herc's stamina was impressive, but I was demanding a lot of moves from him, one after the other, rapidly.
Unfortunately, it was necessary. Most Ground-Type moves were area of effect and required a second of concentration, a second we couldn't afford to give him.
To start, the Elekid had no issue catching up to the spherical Rock/Ground-Type, his knuckles brushing against the grainy carapace, Graveler barely swerving out of the way as Hercules switched from Quick Attack to Hammer Arm. The slight delay in changing – or condensing and refining, as Grant claimed – energy type was just enough to keep Gary in the game.
However, the special quality of Rollout soon became apparent.
Slowly, the ever-shrinking gap between the two Pokémon grew a little. The flashes and sprints of Quick Attack became a little longer and more sustained. The Hammer Arms had to be abandoned before they really took shape as Graveler picked up speed, matching, and then surpassing, Hercules' normal pace. The desperate figure-eight patterns turned into smoother and smoother circles. He was still ahead, thanks to Quick Attack, yet I didn't know if there was a limit to Rollout's escalation, but pounding on it with nothing but the Normal-Type energy wasn't going to accomplish much.
"Herc, stop!"
The Electric-Type skidded to a halt in the middle of the ring, much to the confusion of the audience.
"What is the boy doing?"
"Has he given up? Understandable."
"Booooooo, lame!"
Gary himself appeared surprised, though a pleased smirk soon replaced it. "Ha! I'll admit, you kinda had me nervous on behalf of your Pokémon for a second, but it seems you've finally understood the pecking order! Good! Graveler, finish them off quickly to spare whatever they can salvage of their egos!"
Watching as Graveler circled my still Pokémon faster and faster, my eyes lagging behind a little and almost seeing an aftertrail, I lowered my voice and muted my microphone for a second. Thankfully, the pretentious douchebags of the S.S. Anne still allowed some strategising.
"When it gets close, Hammer Arm."
Paying attention to Gary's face out of the corner of my eye, I saw his smirk widen for a moment before returning to normal as Hercules hunched over himself in a way that covered his right hand.
Gary was by no means stupid, as much as I hated to say it. Not as smart as me – obviously – but not dumb. And I knew he thought the exact same way about me.
Which meant he would at least expect me to have a basic plan, and he'd be thinking two steps ahead.
"It's going to be a feint. Pretend to fall for it."
So I had to be three steps ahead.
Unable to turn around fast enough to keep eyes on his opponent, Hercules was left with focusing on his other senses to know when the attack came.
Not that it was hard to tell.
"Get him, Graveler!" Gary shouted, jabbing his finger towards my Pokémon dramatically and sticking his nose in the air. At his command, the circling Rock-Type shot inwards, rolling towards Herc's back like a cannonball. The Elekid spun around at the sound of Graveler's rough hide scraping against the stone and threw his glowing fist forward, supposedly putting his all into the Hammer Arm.
My heart surged when Gary grinned victoriously and clenched his outstretched hand into a fist as the two attacks neared collision.
"Now! Swerve!"
At the very last moment, Graveler spun left, the edge of Herc's glowing forearm just barely brushing against it before it rolled off. Appearing like he put way too much force behind the attack, the Electric-Type stumbled forwards uncontrollably, making sure to give the sentient boulder plenty of time to redirect in a large bow around and launch towards the Elekid's back once more, Gary guffawing loudly.
Which stopped when Hercules stopped pretending and suddenly found his footing, pirouetting much faster than either Graveler or its Trainer had expected.
Good news, I called the feint.
Bad news, for all that Herc was awesome, I kind of forgot that he was also a tiny maniac, and when I said 'pretend to fall for the feint', he took it very literally.
The back of his Fighting-Type enhanced fist smashed into the Rock/Ground-Type with a loud crack! as a small crater with spiderweb-like faultlines extending from it formed from the blow. But the small humanoid had waited too long to secure the hit, and not even the stone-shattering force was enough to stop the Rollout, not after that much buildup. Both Graveler and Hercules cried out in pain as the injured, four-armed Pokémon thundered into Herc's side, diverted just enough that it clipped his hip and shoulder, yet still struck hard enough to send him tumbling through the air. At the same time, Graveler shot uncontrollably into the barrier surrounding the arena, making it waver for a moment.
"HERC! GET UP!"
"GRAVELER, YOU MORON! UP! YOU'RE NOT LOSING TO A FUCKING ELECTRIC-TYPE!"
Both Pokémon struggled to rise. Graveler's lower left arm hung limply by its side while Herc's leg failed to support him twice and sent him back to the ground before he managed to stay up.
At a glance, it didn't seem like he'd broken anything – which was, of course, the most essential part – but given how gingerly he was stepping and the way he was working his arm, he was going to have one hell of a bruise later.
More importantly, given the current situation, the leg would make closing the distance difficult. The Hammer Arm was definitely going to make another Rollout rough, but that still left us in a ranged competition against an opponent immune to Electric-Type moves.
A losing gambit.
"OOOOH, AND YET ANOTHER EARLY RECALL!" The announcer screamed as Hercules vanished into his PokéBall. "THE PALLET TRAINERS SEEM RELUCTANT TO COMMIT UNTIL ONE SIDE FALLS, BUT IT IS NOW 2-2! THIS WILL BE THE DECIDING BATTLE!"
"BOOO!"
"PUSSY!
"GROWLITHE, GROWLITHE, GROWLITHE!"
Doing my best to tune the audience out, to limited effect, I took a moment to think, despite not really having options. There was little doubt in my mind that Hercules could've – and wanted to – keep going, but there was a reason I was so quick to recall my Pokémon, even if I might've been able to pull off a win by then. No matter how much I told myself that it was okay, or how many assurances I got, the thought of being on the ship with any of my team out of commission made me nauseous just thinking about it, especially after learning there were Pebbles running around.
No, I needed them ready to go, even if it put me in a worse spot – or cost me the match.
Usually, I was able to handle Type weakness to a degree, but so far, it had been hard counter after counter. If not for Gary's fuck up with Pidgeotto, I might've been the one behind.
I again felt the urge to use my Dragon-Type, but even though I was reasonably sure Graveler would survive enough Brick Breaks to be recalled, there was another problem.
I hadn't registered Betty. Despite Gary having signed us up beforehand, the S.S. Anne still required that any Pokémon the Trainers intended to use in the tournament be looked over and recorded. It was both a safety measure – making sure you didn't just pull a Gyarados out of your ass – and I was sure they got whatever data they could as well. Brock informing me that there were Pebble Clan members around had made me reluctant to reveal my only trump card before I could cram it down Team Rocket's throat: even if I was kind of getting to a point where I trusted Betty against fairly strong or durable, in Graveler's case, Pokémon.
No, I fucked around too much, my anxiety and paranoia making me play it too safe, and now we were working at a disadvantage.
Still, we'd dealt with worse.
Sol panted cheerfully as he appeared to thunderous applause.
"Man, that's unfair!"
"Such a handsome Pokémon!"
"Where does a plebeian like this child get a Pokémon like that? Surely it can't be by legal means."
"Come now, Charles, the child is sponsored by Professor Oak. You know as well as I that it's all about who you know."
"I'm not leaving this ship without that Growlithe, even if I have to give up my entire farm for it!"
Unlike me, my Fire-Type lapped up the attention joyously, his head swirling around as his tongue wavered in the sea breeze. Unable to get enough, he stood up on his hind legs to show off, barking happily to set off another round of praise.
"SOL!"
My own bark was a lot harsher, getting a whine from the Alpha, but I needed him to lock in if we wanted a chance to win.
"I need you to be serious, boy. Unless you want to lose to Gary again."
A lie, as the last time we'd drawn against Squirty, yet it was enough to make him focus on Graveler, even if his eyes still darted towards the spectators, tail thumbing furiously against the stone tiles. Walter's brother's Dewgong – back in Cerulean – and Siren had beaten a respect for Water-Types into the lazy, arrogant dog Pokémon. However, his attitude was definitely still a work in progress.
"AND THERE IT IS, FOLKS, THE SHINY, ALPHA GROWLITHE! EVEN BY S.S. ANNE STANDARDS, IT IS A RARE SIGHT! WILL HIS NATURAL SUPERIORITY PREVAIL OVER GRAVELER'S TYPE ADVANTAGE!?"
"Are both Trainers ready?"
We nodded.
"Then, for the last time… begin!"
"Sol, get close and beat its ass!"
"Magnitude, Graveler, crush that mutt!"
I openly smirked as Gary's Pokémon jumped into the air again and folded its three working arms close to its body. Sol hadn't made it halfway across the arena by then, slower than Hercules even without Quick Attack, but there was a reason I didn't have him use Agility or any other moves.
For all that Gary's move poll was expansive, he'd mainly stuck to the same attacks. Whether that was due to an unconscious habit or inexperience with the others, I wasn't sure, but if he wanted to repeat moves, so be it.
"Roar, Sol, interrupt it!"
The big dog Pokémon inhaled deeply while running forwards, Gary's eyes widening as, with a loud bellow, a visible shockwave rushed through the air and hit Graveler right as it was about to start its descent. The Rock Pokémon flinched and uncurled as a deep, primordial fear struck its heart. It wasn't as effective as it had been against Squirty, back then a Squirtle, or on the other, more mammalian Pokémon we'd used it against before – on account of Gravelers rarely having to worry about being eaten by anything canine sounding – but it was still enough that when it hit the ground, it was with little more than a tremor, rather than the stone-cracking force of earlier.
It still managed to shake it off before he got there, but it sure helped.
"ROCK THROW, KEEP IT AWAY! MUD-SLAP!"
The stone flooring cracked at the Rock-Type's touch, letting it gouge large chunks out of it effortlessly. The hunks of smooth granite flew through the air with precision, and there was very little I could do other than have faith as Sol lowered his head and trucked through, a suppressed whimper making it through his gritted teeth as one of them hit him in the ribs hard enough that it shattered upon impact. Thankfully, Herc's earlier efforts were paying off, and Graveler was forced to bend awkwardly to reach the ground with its upper left arm.
Beyond that, Gary had also made a mistake calling out the next move so early. It gave me the chance to counter.
"Flame Wheel into Brick Break!"
Fire spewed from Sol's mouth and poured back to coat his body, smaller embers leaking from his fur to aid the process as he threw himself forward into a roll, a large doughnut of flames hurling towards Graveler. Just in time, too, as the floor melted under its three-fingered hand, the precisely carved stone turning liquid under its geokinesis. Dragging its arm upwards with a grunt, a wave of mud erupted, rushing towards the incoming fire wheel that was Sol.
Steam exploded upon contact as the moisture in the mixture evaporated, leaving hardened, clay-like structures to fall to the ground and crumble into dust. The Mud-Slap did a lot to douse the Flame Wheel, Sol's yellow fur easily visible through the remaining, flickering fire; however, it had done its job as he let the last embers fade and jumped atop the sizeable, yet still smaller than Sol's beefy four feet, Pokémon.
I kept my eyes on Gary, watching his face redden as our Pokémon tumbled across the arena, growls and gravelly complaints ringing out as the battle turned into more of a wrestling match. Graveller had the advantage of not just having arms, which was better for punching, but also having four of them – even if it could only currently use three of them. Sol's claws scratched uselessly against the rocky carapace, unable to get through to hurt the soft insides, and his limbs quickly got grabbed by Graveler as the Rock Pokémon punched its remaining free hand into the opposite ribs it had injured with its Rock Throw.
Yet, Sol once more proved that he was simply a fucking beast without equal. Snarling with flames flickering between his teeth, he ripped his paws free from Graveler's grasp and raised them upwards, a shiny light swiftly covering them. A Rock Throw was used as an improvised bludgeon, breaking on Sol's fur as a half-formed Mud-Slap sprayed up and tried to blind him, to no avail, as it dried and crumbled within moments, Sol slamming the dual Brick Break down into his downed foe. Even I had to wince as the move lived up to its name, a huge crack splitting the rocky exterior open with little effort. Flashes of pinkish-red peeked through the cavity as the Rock/Ground-Type wheezed in a truly horrible manner, its fleshy interior exposed to the air in a way it was never meant to.
"YOU USELESS-DUMB-AHHHHH!"
Yet, Gary still made no move to recall Graveler. His hands were clenched into fists, his eyes were bloodshot, and I was starting to worry he was going to pass out as his face got more and more purple, yet he didn't give in. It didn't surprise me, but it still sucked. I probably wouldn't be any better in the same situation, given my track record, but whatever.
It was what it was.
"Knock him out, Sol, quick."
That finally got my frenemy's attention; his furious eyes shot up to meet mine. There was a storm of emotions behind his brown irises, way too much going on for me to process. Yet, something seemed to have happened as I watched a wall slam down to cover up his feelings as a lightly trembling hand raised a PokéBall and recalled his final Pokémon, surrendering the fight.
I'd won.
"AND THE WINNER OF OUR SECOND TOURNAMENT, NARROWLY BEATING HIS CHILDHOOD FRIEND, IS THE ASTOUNDING GROWLITHE AND HIS TRAINER! I IMAGINE THAT QUITE A FEW OFFERS WILL BE HEADING THEIR WAY!" It rankled somewhat to validate the commentating dickhead by winning with Sol, but I wasn't going to let it get me too far down.
Though if anyone thought I'd be selling him, they had a verbal shit storm unlike any they'd experienced coming their way.
"IF OUR SEMI-FINALISTS WOULD JOIN US ON STAGE, WE WILL COMMENCE WITH THE REWARD CEREMONY SO WE CAN ALL GET SOME WELL-DESERVED DINNER!"
It didn't take long for the four of us to be lined up in ascending order while the crowd laughed at the small joke, the sun all but having disappeared beneath the horizon and darkness taking its place. The middle-aged woman whose Shiny Beautifly I beat had ended up in fourth place and was not happy about it, based on the ugly expression she was making beneath her enormous Beautifly hat. Unfortunately for her, Ash had gone 2-3 with Gary, while she lost 3-0.
"Congratulations, son." The man – I wasn't sure if he was one I'd seen before or not, as they all wore the same clothes and had basically the same haircut – placed the medal around Ash's shoulders and shook his hand while handing him a case similar to the one he gave to the lady I beat in the semi-finale. I'd heard her name several times, and yet, I didn't care enough to remember it.
"FOR THIRD PLACE, WE GIVE 10.000 POKÉ, AND A VOUCHER TO OUR SELECTION OF EXCLUSIVE TMS, ONLY FOUND ON THE S.S. ANNE!"
I joined the crowd in clapping as Ash accepted his price with surprising grace for someone who'd been screaming about being better than Gary and me for years, only to end up lower ranked than us both.
Good to see him not taking it too hard, though, and based on the uncharacteristically firm expression he gave me when he caught me looking, he might start taking being a Trainer a little more seriously from now on.
If he could combine that protagonist optimism and inability to stay down with actual skills, he'd be a fucking menace much earlier than in canon.
Speaking of being a sore loser, however…
"AND FOR OUR RUNNER UP, WHO PUT UP A FIERCE AND CLOSE MATCH THAT SADDLY WASN'T ENOUGH IN THE FACE OF OVERWHELMING POWER," I tried to catch Gary's eye as he lowered his head so the man could place the large silver medallion on a blue ribbon around his neck, yet the brown-haired boy kept his gaze locked on the presenters shirt buttons, jaw clenched so tight that I could see the muscle twitching.
Shaking my head, I sighed.
Whatever.
"WE HAVE 15.000 POKÉ, TWO VOUCHERS FOR TMS, AND FINALLY, BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST, 50% OFF ON A POKÉMON OF HIS CHOICE FROM OUR WORLD WIDE COLLECTION, UNMATCHED BY ANY SINGLE ORGANIZATION IN THE WHOLE KNOWN WORLD! EVERYONE, GIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR GARY OAK!"
At least he looked pretty pleased with his prizes, which he should be. I hadn't seen anything like a Pseudo-Legendary in our quick perusal of the Pokémon on offer, but I had seen shit like Torchic or even a couple more mundane Alphas. He would be able to get something very cool.
Not as cool as what I'd get, of course, but hopefully it would stop him from bitching too much. I accepted the briefcase I was handed, which I suppose contained our money in cash, for some fucking reason.
But much more interesting was the PokéBall I was handed next.
"AND FOR OUR VICTOR, A TRULY SPECIAL PRICE! A WHOLE 25.000 POKÈ, OF COURSE, BUT THAT IS THE LEAST OF IT! YESTERDAY, YOUNG DEVAN WON A TRULY UNIQUE POKÉMON, A COMPLETELY UNDISCOVERED VERSION OF AN EXEGGCUTE, FROM A TROPICAL WONDERLAND FAR FROM KANTO, AND OUR FIRST PLACE PRICE TODAY IS NOT ANY LESSER!"
I rolled the PokéBall around for a minute, completely unsurprised that it was a Luxury Ball. It was entirely on brand for S.S. Anne.
Nor was the mention of the Alolan Exeggcute a shock. I'd been there for the finals the day before and saw the prize Pokémon for the 1-2 Badges tournament. I'd also seen that it was indeed Pikipek that they were selling down in the shop. My heart sped up in excitement at the thought of what I'd gotten as I pressed the button. It still wasn't my favourite way of acquiring a Pokémon for the team, and I was going to make it the same offer I did Eevee, even if getting whatever it was back home was going to be a whole lot more fucking problematic.
But for all that, it was a rare, mystery Pokémon. Who wouldn't be excited-
-the red light took the shape of a Pokémon, and the world stopped.
A small, quadrupedal Pokémon. Its pelt was short and white, the colour of fresh snow. Ice-blue eyes peered out beneath a tuft of wispy fur lying between its triangular ears. It had pale blue paws and dark blue inside its ears. Its snout was pronounced and pointed, with a cute little nose that twitched as it looked up at me. Behind it, what looked like a single large billowing tail swayed more than it should in the light breeze, yet I knew that beneath the ethereal fur lay six individual appendages.
"RECENTLY ACQUIRED FROM A SPECIAL BREEDER, ON AN ISLAND FAR BEYOND EVEN HOENN CALLED ALOLA, IT IS A NEW SPECIES OF VULPIX! NOT ONLY IS THIS POKÉMON VISUALLY DIFFERENT, BUT EVEN ITS TYPE HAS CHANGED! THIS IS SIMPLY ONE OF THE MANY EXCLUSIVE THINGS THE S.S. ANNE HAVE TO OFFER-"
The words blended together and faded, becoming a buzzing in my ears as the Vulpix and I stared at each other, the ship gently swaying beneath us.
Dun dun duuuuuun!
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
The arena seemed to hold its breath for a beat as Squirty the Wartortle and Siren stared at each other. The magic was swiftly broken, however, as Gary and I both called out at the same time.
"Scald!"
"Missile!"
I cursed as the steaming water washed off Squirty's hard shell, watching it retract its limbs and head into the protective shield. Every limb except for the tail, that was. The realisation struck at the same time as water surrounded the appendage and began swirling around.
"SIREN, MOVE!"
A quick Jet got her out of the way just in time as the Aqua Jet sent the Wartorlte hurling forwards in a spray of liquid so forceful the backwash created a wave behind it. Compared to Azumaril's, it was amateurish at best. Yet, it did the job of propelling the heavy turtle and slamming it into the barrier hard enough that it flashed into visibility for a brief moment. Shaking his head dazedly, Squirty emerged from his shell a little confused, but unhurt.
And more importantly, much closer than I was comfortable with.
"Got you now! Focus Punch!"
"Back, Siren, Back! Ice Beam!"
The Feebas tried, but neither Water-Type was built for speed on land. Siren's levitation allowed her to be faster over a longer distance, but Squirty's thick frame was filled with powerful muscles that could make it startingly quick.
The Ice-Type move washed over the Wartortle much like his Pidgeotto teammate in the match before. However, unlike the Flying-Type, Gary's starter barely flinched at the thin layer of hoar frost spreading over its front from the hasty attack, and I scowled as it failed even to slow it, much less stop the glowing front leg that slammed into Siren and sent her flying to the opposite side of the arena.
That set the pace for the rest of the battle. Gary and Squirty did their best to close the gap, while Siren tried to avoid them frantically and get in what shots she could. Aqua Jet proved to be the deciding factor, unrefined as it was. We simply had no way to get away fast enough, or even hurt it, and the Wartortle was proving to be an endurance beast. After a few repetitions, Squirty was growing both annoyed and arrogant, taking a little too long to charge up his rush attack.
"Scald!"
The very hot water sprayed the amphibian in the face right as it poked out of its shell, getting a grunt of pain and sending the larger Pokémon stumbling back a little. For a moment, I hoped we had created some sort of advantage, something we could use to chip him down slowly. Yet, the following Ice Beam was shrugged off with the same ease as before, and when he looked back, slightly wrinkly skin and a squinting of his eye was the only evidence he'd even been hurt.
Siren could compete in power, but she just didn't have the toolkit to hurt her opponent.
Squirty did.
"Yeah, that's it! Might as well surrender completely, right now!" Gary laughed loudly as my PokéBall saved Siren from another Focus Punch at the last minute. She could have continued for a while longer, yet as much as I loved her, it wouldn't amount to much more than maybe a couple more hits. Wartortle's hard carapace even protected it from the same tactics we used against Azumaril.
Maybe I'd gotten a little cocky after the embarrassing showing from the Pidgeotto. While I was still confident that my team was stronger, Gary had perhaps – just maybe – spent a little more time training his team's moves. He was proving to be a bigger challenge than the rest of the ship, at least.
Good.
Gary and I stared at each other across the arena as my fingers drummed between two PokéBalls. Not that it was much of a choice. I wasn't familiar enough with Eevee to be willing to risk it, and given that our opponent was a Water-Type – and a fairly strong one at that – Sol would be a wild choice. I briefly considered the face Gary would make if he had to face down Betty all of a sudden, yet the earlier Ice Beam made that inadvisable as well, even if I was going to crack and finally use her in public.
So yeah, it wasn't the biggest twist in the world when Hercules emerged from his ball on my side of the field, and given that neither Gary nor Squirty flinched, they had expected as much as well.
The announcer, on the other hand…
"WHAT'S THIS? THE LEFT TRAINER STILL REFUSES TO USE HIS GROWLITHE! IT SEEMS PERWINKLE IS ALL OUT OF RARE POKÉMON! HOW DOES HE EXPECT TO WIN WITHOUT HIS ACE!?"
Whoever the fuck that guy was, he better hope I never found out, or I'd kick his teeth in. Even Gary was annoyed, and he loved it when people insulted his opponent.
"Begin!"
""Get in close!""
My frown changed to a grin as Gary's eyes widened in surprise.
He didn't watch my match with Surge and expected a normal Elekid.
Sucks to suck.
"Thunder Fist!"
"Protect!"
I clicked my tongue at the swift reaction time, the sparking hand bouncing off the barrier of interconnected green hexagons that flickered into life at the last moment. It was a little hazy and only covered a third of the Water-Type, but it held up under the force. Squirty's move pool was actually crazy.
However, Protect wasn't just a very energy-intensive move.
It was also a stationary one.
"Keep hammering it!"
BAM-BAM-BA-BAM!
Half a dozen blows smashed into the shield like pistons, bright light flashing with every hit. I went to call out, yet held my tongue when I saw Herc shift slightly to the right.
He got it.
SMACK!
With a sudden shift, Hercules stepped right and threw a hook that curved around the subpar Protect and walloped the Wartortle right in the cheek. The bipedal turtle stumbled back, grunting in pain as more electricity was conducted through his body, another punch hitting him in the softer underbelly, and then another. He swung his arms around in an attempt to throw Herc off, yet he clearly wasn't as good at throwing hands.
"Fuck! Squirty, Withdraw and Missile out of there!"
Squirty wasn't fast enough to escape without another Thunder Fist, but stayed conscious as he retreated into the safety of his natural armour. The following Aqua Jet sent him almost as much upwards as it did to the other end of the battlefield in his hurry to get away. The Wartortle skipped off the Psychic barrier twice, tumbling chaotically through the air before bouncing on the ground. Shaking his head as he emerged, Squirty had all of two seconds to enjoy his pain-free existence before a yellow fist smashed into the back of his head so hard he recoiled off the ground upon impact and came back up. The Quick Attack faded from Hercule's compact frame as he got right back to business as the Water-Type once more sought the protection of its shell.
"Rapid Spin, you idiot! Get it off you!"
"Back." As instructed, my Elekid retreated, allowing Squirty to begin spinning around on the stone tiles, dust blowing back as it picked up speed, blurring like a top.
However, I hadn't just been sulking while in Vermillion.
"Shockwave!"
Thanks for the TM, Surge, you dickhead.
Blue electricity sparked between the dual prongs atop Herc's head as he focused, windmilling his arms furiously to build up the charge. Gary yelled to his Pokémon to move, but the Rapid Spin made any attempts useless as it would take too long to stop. Before long, a blinding lance of lightning leapt from the Elekid as he whirred loudly, noticeably stronger than he used to be capable of.
Not anything impressive yet – or even average, to be honest – but solid progress. We'd get there.
We were denied the chance to see the physical consequences of that progress, however, as the light from Gary's PokéBall recalled him before the electricity could strike.
"OH, AND THE YOUNG OAK-"
It appeared that I'd made Gary a tad upset as he didn't wait for the announcer – or the referee, even – to finish speaking before hurling his next pick out onto the field. I grimaced as the same Graveler that took down Pikachu materialised, looking basically fully refreshed. Gary must have pumped several potions into it between rounds. Even having expected it, it still sucked. Especially since the dual type showed up on the complete opposite side of the battlefield, far enough away that it would probably get an attack in before Herc could close the distance.
"Magnitude! Wrap this shit up!"
"Leap! Hammer Arm!"
Jumping into the air, The Rock Pokémon smiled nastily as it folded its limbs in close, truly resembling its title as it dropped back onto the arena floor. The heavy tiles shook and clattered as a seismic wave radiated outward from the Graveler, cracks splintering the shaped stone. Hercules was faster and had managed to get a Quick Attack up, the aura blazing around his body as he pushed off the ground right before the wave hit him. Soaring through the air, the coat of energy condensed around his arm as he came hurling down with a cocked-back fist.
"Rollout!"
I grit my teeth as the Rock-Type stayed curled up and rolled away right as the Hammer Arm swished through the air behind it and embedded in the ground. A wave of dust and air chased the Graveler as Herc pulled his hand out of the floor where it had been embedded up to the mid-forarm in a small crater.
"After him!"
With a whir of confirmation, Quick Attack swiftly roared back to life, boosting the Electric-Type's agility again – though I noticed the delay and extra time it took. Herc's stamina was impressive, but I was demanding a lot of moves from him, one after the other, rapidly.
Unfortunately, it was necessary. Most Ground-Type moves were area of effect and required a second of concentration, a second we couldn't afford to give him.
To start, the Elekid had no issue catching up to the spherical Rock/Ground-Type, his knuckles brushing against the grainy carapace, Graveler barely swerving out of the way as Hercules switched from Quick Attack to Hammer Arm. The slight delay in changing – or condensing and refining, as Grant claimed – energy type was just enough to keep Gary in the game.
However, the special quality of Rollout soon became apparent.
Slowly, the ever-shrinking gap between the two Pokémon grew a little. The flashes and sprints of Quick Attack became a little longer and more sustained. The Hammer Arms had to be abandoned before they really took shape as Graveler picked up speed, matching, and then surpassing, Hercules' normal pace. The desperate figure-eight patterns turned into smoother and smoother circles. He was still ahead, thanks to Quick Attack, yet I didn't know if there was a limit to Rollout's escalation, but pounding on it with nothing but the Normal-Type energy wasn't going to accomplish much.
"Herc, stop!"
The Electric-Type skidded to a halt in the middle of the ring, much to the confusion of the audience.
"What is the boy doing?"
"Has he given up? Understandable."
"Booooooo, lame!"
Gary himself appeared surprised, though a pleased smirk soon replaced it. "Ha! I'll admit, you kinda had me nervous on behalf of your Pokémon for a second, but it seems you've finally understood the pecking order! Good! Graveler, finish them off quickly to spare whatever they can salvage of their egos!"
Watching as Graveler circled my still Pokémon faster and faster, my eyes lagging behind a little and almost seeing an aftertrail, I lowered my voice and muted my microphone for a second. Thankfully, the pretentious douchebags of the S.S. Anne still allowed some strategising.
"When it gets close, Hammer Arm."
Paying attention to Gary's face out of the corner of my eye, I saw his smirk widen for a moment before returning to normal as Hercules hunched over himself in a way that covered his right hand.
Gary was by no means stupid, as much as I hated to say it. Not as smart as me – obviously – but not dumb. And I knew he thought the exact same way about me.
Which meant he would at least expect me to have a basic plan, and he'd be thinking two steps ahead.
"It's going to be a feint. Pretend to fall for it."
So I had to be three steps ahead.
Unable to turn around fast enough to keep eyes on his opponent, Hercules was left with focusing on his other senses to know when the attack came.
Not that it was hard to tell.
"Get him, Graveler!" Gary shouted, jabbing his finger towards my Pokémon dramatically and sticking his nose in the air. At his command, the circling Rock-Type shot inwards, rolling towards Herc's back like a cannonball. The Elekid spun around at the sound of Graveler's rough hide scraping against the stone and threw his glowing fist forward, supposedly putting his all into the Hammer Arm.
My heart surged when Gary grinned victoriously and clenched his outstretched hand into a fist as the two attacks neared collision.
"Now! Swerve!"
At the very last moment, Graveler spun left, the edge of Herc's glowing forearm just barely brushing against it before it rolled off. Appearing like he put way too much force behind the attack, the Electric-Type stumbled forwards uncontrollably, making sure to give the sentient boulder plenty of time to redirect in a large bow around and launch towards the Elekid's back once more, Gary guffawing loudly.
Which stopped when Hercules stopped pretending and suddenly found his footing, pirouetting much faster than either Graveler or its Trainer had expected.
Good news, I called the feint.
Bad news, for all that Herc was awesome, I kind of forgot that he was also a tiny maniac, and when I said 'pretend to fall for the feint', he took it very literally.
The back of his Fighting-Type enhanced fist smashed into the Rock/Ground-Type with a loud crack! as a small crater with spiderweb-like faultlines extending from it formed from the blow. But the small humanoid had waited too long to secure the hit, and not even the stone-shattering force was enough to stop the Rollout, not after that much buildup. Both Graveler and Hercules cried out in pain as the injured, four-armed Pokémon thundered into Herc's side, diverted just enough that it clipped his hip and shoulder, yet still struck hard enough to send him tumbling through the air. At the same time, Graveler shot uncontrollably into the barrier surrounding the arena, making it waver for a moment.
"HERC! GET UP!"
"GRAVELER, YOU MORON! UP! YOU'RE NOT LOSING TO A FUCKING ELECTRIC-TYPE!"
Both Pokémon struggled to rise. Graveler's lower left arm hung limply by its side while Herc's leg failed to support him twice and sent him back to the ground before he managed to stay up.
At a glance, it didn't seem like he'd broken anything – which was, of course, the most essential part – but given how gingerly he was stepping and the way he was working his arm, he was going to have one hell of a bruise later.
More importantly, given the current situation, the leg would make closing the distance difficult. The Hammer Arm was definitely going to make another Rollout rough, but that still left us in a ranged competition against an opponent immune to Electric-Type moves.
A losing gambit.
"OOOOH, AND YET ANOTHER EARLY RECALL!" The announcer screamed as Hercules vanished into his PokéBall. "THE PALLET TRAINERS SEEM RELUCTANT TO COMMIT UNTIL ONE SIDE FALLS, BUT IT IS NOW 2-2! THIS WILL BE THE DECIDING BATTLE!"
"BOOO!"
"PUSSY!
"GROWLITHE, GROWLITHE, GROWLITHE!"
Doing my best to tune the audience out, to limited effect, I took a moment to think, despite not really having options. There was little doubt in my mind that Hercules could've – and wanted to – keep going, but there was a reason I was so quick to recall my Pokémon, even if I might've been able to pull off a win by then. No matter how much I told myself that it was okay, or how many assurances I got, the thought of being on the ship with any of my team out of commission made me nauseous just thinking about it, especially after learning there were Pebbles running around.
No, I needed them ready to go, even if it put me in a worse spot – or cost me the match.
Usually, I was able to handle Type weakness to a degree, but so far, it had been hard counter after counter. If not for Gary's fuck up with Pidgeotto, I might've been the one behind.
I again felt the urge to use my Dragon-Type, but even though I was reasonably sure Graveler would survive enough Brick Breaks to be recalled, there was another problem.
I hadn't registered Betty. Despite Gary having signed us up beforehand, the S.S. Anne still required that any Pokémon the Trainers intended to use in the tournament be looked over and recorded. It was both a safety measure – making sure you didn't just pull a Gyarados out of your ass – and I was sure they got whatever data they could as well. Brock informing me that there were Pebble Clan members around had made me reluctant to reveal my only trump card before I could cram it down Team Rocket's throat: even if I was kind of getting to a point where I trusted Betty against fairly strong or durable, in Graveler's case, Pokémon.
No, I fucked around too much, my anxiety and paranoia making me play it too safe, and now we were working at a disadvantage.
Still, we'd dealt with worse.
Sol panted cheerfully as he appeared to thunderous applause.
"Man, that's unfair!"
"Such a handsome Pokémon!"
"Where does a plebeian like this child get a Pokémon like that? Surely it can't be by legal means."
"Come now, Charles, the child is sponsored by Professor Oak. You know as well as I that it's all about who you know."
"I'm not leaving this ship without that Growlithe, even if I have to give up my entire farm for it!"
Unlike me, my Fire-Type lapped up the attention joyously, his head swirling around as his tongue wavered in the sea breeze. Unable to get enough, he stood up on his hind legs to show off, barking happily to set off another round of praise.
"SOL!"
My own bark was a lot harsher, getting a whine from the Alpha, but I needed him to lock in if we wanted a chance to win.
"I need you to be serious, boy. Unless you want to lose to Gary again."
A lie, as the last time we'd drawn against Squirty, yet it was enough to make him focus on Graveler, even if his eyes still darted towards the spectators, tail thumbing furiously against the stone tiles. Walter's brother's Dewgong – back in Cerulean – and Siren had beaten a respect for Water-Types into the lazy, arrogant dog Pokémon. However, his attitude was definitely still a work in progress.
"AND THERE IT IS, FOLKS, THE SHINY, ALPHA GROWLITHE! EVEN BY S.S. ANNE STANDARDS, IT IS A RARE SIGHT! WILL HIS NATURAL SUPERIORITY PREVAIL OVER GRAVELER'S TYPE ADVANTAGE!?"
"Are both Trainers ready?"
We nodded.
"Then, for the last time… begin!"
"Sol, get close and beat its ass!"
"Magnitude, Graveler, crush that mutt!"
I openly smirked as Gary's Pokémon jumped into the air again and folded its three working arms close to its body. Sol hadn't made it halfway across the arena by then, slower than Hercules even without Quick Attack, but there was a reason I didn't have him use Agility or any other moves.
For all that Gary's move poll was expansive, he'd mainly stuck to the same attacks. Whether that was due to an unconscious habit or inexperience with the others, I wasn't sure, but if he wanted to repeat moves, so be it.
"Roar, Sol, interrupt it!"
The big dog Pokémon inhaled deeply while running forwards, Gary's eyes widening as, with a loud bellow, a visible shockwave rushed through the air and hit Graveler right as it was about to start its descent. The Rock Pokémon flinched and uncurled as a deep, primordial fear struck its heart. It wasn't as effective as it had been against Squirty, back then a Squirtle, or on the other, more mammalian Pokémon we'd used it against before – on account of Gravelers rarely having to worry about being eaten by anything canine sounding – but it was still enough that when it hit the ground, it was with little more than a tremor, rather than the stone-cracking force of earlier.
It still managed to shake it off before he got there, but it sure helped.
"ROCK THROW, KEEP IT AWAY! MUD-SLAP!"
The stone flooring cracked at the Rock-Type's touch, letting it gouge large chunks out of it effortlessly. The hunks of smooth granite flew through the air with precision, and there was very little I could do other than have faith as Sol lowered his head and trucked through, a suppressed whimper making it through his gritted teeth as one of them hit him in the ribs hard enough that it shattered upon impact. Thankfully, Herc's earlier efforts were paying off, and Graveler was forced to bend awkwardly to reach the ground with its upper left arm.
Beyond that, Gary had also made a mistake calling out the next move so early. It gave me the chance to counter.
"Flame Wheel into Brick Break!"
Fire spewed from Sol's mouth and poured back to coat his body, smaller embers leaking from his fur to aid the process as he threw himself forward into a roll, a large doughnut of flames hurling towards Graveler. Just in time, too, as the floor melted under its three-fingered hand, the precisely carved stone turning liquid under its geokinesis. Dragging its arm upwards with a grunt, a wave of mud erupted, rushing towards the incoming fire wheel that was Sol.
Steam exploded upon contact as the moisture in the mixture evaporated, leaving hardened, clay-like structures to fall to the ground and crumble into dust. The Mud-Slap did a lot to douse the Flame Wheel, Sol's yellow fur easily visible through the remaining, flickering fire; however, it had done its job as he let the last embers fade and jumped atop the sizeable, yet still smaller than Sol's beefy four feet, Pokémon.
I kept my eyes on Gary, watching his face redden as our Pokémon tumbled across the arena, growls and gravelly complaints ringing out as the battle turned into more of a wrestling match. Graveller had the advantage of not just having arms, which was better for punching, but also having four of them – even if it could only currently use three of them. Sol's claws scratched uselessly against the rocky carapace, unable to get through to hurt the soft insides, and his limbs quickly got grabbed by Graveler as the Rock Pokémon punched its remaining free hand into the opposite ribs it had injured with its Rock Throw.
Yet, Sol once more proved that he was simply a fucking beast without equal. Snarling with flames flickering between his teeth, he ripped his paws free from Graveler's grasp and raised them upwards, a shiny light swiftly covering them. A Rock Throw was used as an improvised bludgeon, breaking on Sol's fur as a half-formed Mud-Slap sprayed up and tried to blind him, to no avail, as it dried and crumbled within moments, Sol slamming the dual Brick Break down into his downed foe. Even I had to wince as the move lived up to its name, a huge crack splitting the rocky exterior open with little effort. Flashes of pinkish-red peeked through the cavity as the Rock/Ground-Type wheezed in a truly horrible manner, its fleshy interior exposed to the air in a way it was never meant to.
"YOU USELESS-DUMB-AHHHHH!"
Yet, Gary still made no move to recall Graveler. His hands were clenched into fists, his eyes were bloodshot, and I was starting to worry he was going to pass out as his face got more and more purple, yet he didn't give in. It didn't surprise me, but it still sucked. I probably wouldn't be any better in the same situation, given my track record, but whatever.
It was what it was.
"Knock him out, Sol, quick."
That finally got my frenemy's attention; his furious eyes shot up to meet mine. There was a storm of emotions behind his brown irises, way too much going on for me to process. Yet, something seemed to have happened as I watched a wall slam down to cover up his feelings as a lightly trembling hand raised a PokéBall and recalled his final Pokémon, surrendering the fight.
I'd won.
"AND THE WINNER OF OUR SECOND TOURNAMENT, NARROWLY BEATING HIS CHILDHOOD FRIEND, IS THE ASTOUNDING GROWLITHE AND HIS TRAINER! I IMAGINE THAT QUITE A FEW OFFERS WILL BE HEADING THEIR WAY!" It rankled somewhat to validate the commentating dickhead by winning with Sol, but I wasn't going to let it get me too far down.
Though if anyone thought I'd be selling him, they had a verbal shit storm unlike any they'd experienced coming their way.
"IF OUR SEMI-FINALISTS WOULD JOIN US ON STAGE, WE WILL COMMENCE WITH THE REWARD CEREMONY SO WE CAN ALL GET SOME WELL-DESERVED DINNER!"
It didn't take long for the four of us to be lined up in ascending order while the crowd laughed at the small joke, the sun all but having disappeared beneath the horizon and darkness taking its place. The middle-aged woman whose Shiny Beautifly I beat had ended up in fourth place and was not happy about it, based on the ugly expression she was making beneath her enormous Beautifly hat. Unfortunately for her, Ash had gone 2-3 with Gary, while she lost 3-0.
"Congratulations, son." The man – I wasn't sure if he was one I'd seen before or not, as they all wore the same clothes and had basically the same haircut – placed the medal around Ash's shoulders and shook his hand while handing him a case similar to the one he gave to the lady I beat in the semi-finale. I'd heard her name several times, and yet, I didn't care enough to remember it.
"FOR THIRD PLACE, WE GIVE 10.000 POKÉ, AND A VOUCHER TO OUR SELECTION OF EXCLUSIVE TMS, ONLY FOUND ON THE S.S. ANNE!"
I joined the crowd in clapping as Ash accepted his price with surprising grace for someone who'd been screaming about being better than Gary and me for years, only to end up lower ranked than us both.
Good to see him not taking it too hard, though, and based on the uncharacteristically firm expression he gave me when he caught me looking, he might start taking being a Trainer a little more seriously from now on.
If he could combine that protagonist optimism and inability to stay down with actual skills, he'd be a fucking menace much earlier than in canon.
Speaking of being a sore loser, however…
"AND FOR OUR RUNNER UP, WHO PUT UP A FIERCE AND CLOSE MATCH THAT SADDLY WASN'T ENOUGH IN THE FACE OF OVERWHELMING POWER," I tried to catch Gary's eye as he lowered his head so the man could place the large silver medallion on a blue ribbon around his neck, yet the brown-haired boy kept his gaze locked on the presenters shirt buttons, jaw clenched so tight that I could see the muscle twitching.
Shaking my head, I sighed.
Whatever.
"WE HAVE 15.000 POKÉ, TWO VOUCHERS FOR TMS, AND FINALLY, BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST, 50% OFF ON A POKÉMON OF HIS CHOICE FROM OUR WORLD WIDE COLLECTION, UNMATCHED BY ANY SINGLE ORGANIZATION IN THE WHOLE KNOWN WORLD! EVERYONE, GIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR GARY OAK!"
At least he looked pretty pleased with his prizes, which he should be. I hadn't seen anything like a Pseudo-Legendary in our quick perusal of the Pokémon on offer, but I had seen shit like Torchic or even a couple more mundane Alphas. He would be able to get something very cool.
Not as cool as what I'd get, of course, but hopefully it would stop him from bitching too much. I accepted the briefcase I was handed, which I suppose contained our money in cash, for some fucking reason.
But much more interesting was the PokéBall I was handed next.
"AND FOR OUR VICTOR, A TRULY SPECIAL PRICE! A WHOLE 25.000 POKÈ, OF COURSE, BUT THAT IS THE LEAST OF IT! YESTERDAY, YOUNG DEVAN WON A TRULY UNIQUE POKÉMON, A COMPLETELY UNDISCOVERED VERSION OF AN EXEGGCUTE, FROM A TROPICAL WONDERLAND FAR FROM KANTO, AND OUR FIRST PLACE PRICE TODAY IS NOT ANY LESSER!"
I rolled the PokéBall around for a minute, completely unsurprised that it was a Luxury Ball. It was entirely on brand for S.S. Anne.
Nor was the mention of the Alolan Exeggcute a shock. I'd been there for the finals the day before and saw the prize Pokémon for the 1-2 Badges tournament. I'd also seen that it was indeed Pikipek that they were selling down in the shop. My heart sped up in excitement at the thought of what I'd gotten as I pressed the button. It still wasn't my favourite way of acquiring a Pokémon for the team, and I was going to make it the same offer I did Eevee, even if getting whatever it was back home was going to be a whole lot more fucking problematic.
But for all that, it was a rare, mystery Pokémon. Who wouldn't be excited-
-the red light took the shape of a Pokémon, and the world stopped.
A small, quadrupedal Pokémon. Its pelt was short and white, the colour of fresh snow. Ice-blue eyes peered out beneath a tuft of wispy fur lying between its triangular ears. It had pale blue paws and dark blue inside its ears. Its snout was pronounced and pointed, with a cute little nose that twitched as it looked up at me. Behind it, what looked like a single large billowing tail swayed more than it should in the light breeze, yet I knew that beneath the ethereal fur lay six individual appendages.
"RECENTLY ACQUIRED FROM A SPECIAL BREEDER, ON AN ISLAND FAR BEYOND EVEN HOENN CALLED ALOLA, IT IS A NEW SPECIES OF VULPIX! NOT ONLY IS THIS POKÉMON VISUALLY DIFFERENT, BUT EVEN ITS TYPE HAS CHANGED! THIS IS SIMPLY ONE OF THE MANY EXCLUSIVE THINGS THE S.S. ANNE HAVE TO OFFER-"
The words blended together and faded, becoming a buzzing in my ears as the Vulpix and I stared at each other, the ship gently swaying beneath us.
Dun dun duuuuuun!
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
Pandaemonium04
Know what you're doing yet?
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Ah crud. Vulpix
The Radiance's Follower
The Radiance is best.
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That's just cruel. Losing a Vulpix then getting another Vulpix.
Chapter 42.
New
HankPankylol
Making the rounds.
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Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
A somewhat experimental chapter.
Warning: Graphic violence.
I vaguely knew that someone was speaking very loudly, but it came to me as if underwater. Distantly, hands touched me and guided me, yet all I knew was the increasingly rapid thudding of my heart and the feeling of choking no matter how fast I breathed. The sensation of icy water on my skin and in my throat as I fell into the eyes of the Vulpix, the creaking and splintering of wood as everything was torn apart around me, fur slipping between my fingers as I tried desperately to hold on, but my head hit a beam hard and went fuzzy-
SMACK!
My head whipped to the side, pain and heat spreading across my face. My hand lifted to my cheek while my eyes focused just in time to see Gary being shoved back by a furious Misty.
"Hey, back off, douchebag!"
"It fucking worked, didn't it!? Back with us, oh Champion of trauma?" It had been a while since there had been genuine anger in his voice, yet the undercurrent was thick and obvious. Another time I might've cared, but I was a little preoccupied, looking around in a daze, confused by suddenly being in our cabin rather than on the deck.
"Wha-what happened?" My voice was faint and trembling as it left my mouth, my tongue thick and wooden.
"You kinda just froze up there when you saw the weird Vulpix, so we recalled it and went down here. Are you okay?" Ash shifted from foot to foot, looking quite uncomfortable. I looked down at the mention, seeing the black and gold PokéBall still in my hand, and noticing that it was more than just my voice that was shaking.
"It was fucking embarrassing, having to pull you outta there! Get a fucking grip!" For once, I didn't fire back at Gary's venomous words, searching through my pockets quickly as my mind rebooted and the realisation I had earlier came back to me. "Now what!? Huh? Who the fuck are you calling?" He asked as I pulled out my PokéDex, fumbling with the touchscreen.
"W-we need help, the Rockets are coming!" I couldn't believe I'd forgotten. I knew that my memories of the anime were poor even before spending years blurring them with the real thing, but how the fuck could I forget the sinking of a giant-ass ship by terrorists!? That was serious shit!
"What are you rambling about!? Holy shit, you've completely lost it!"
"Peri, maybe it's best if you just sit down-" I knew Brock was just trying to help, but I still slapped his hand away and backed away from them.
"NO! I don't need-I know they're coming and we need help before they get here!"
It-... it was definitely a memory. I wasn't being crazy, I'd just forgotten and, and seeing the… the Vulpix reminded me.
Team Rocket was going to attack the S.S. Anne. It all lined up. The Pebble Clan members, the 'fans' that gave the gang tickets, and the rare Pokémon on board.
I wasn't being crazy.
I wasn't.
The blurred reflection of my pale face in the black screen faded as the call was picked up. On the other end, long blonde locks fell over a weathered face without the usual hat to hold them back, a long moustache wavering as the large man blew a strand away from his mouth. Ocean blue eyes blinked at me, confused, while a scared hand came up to scratch at The Admiral of Kanto's chin.
"Eh, that ya, lad? The hell do ya need at this hour? Ya youngin's need yar sleep, ya know." Walter Waterflower questioned in a bored tone. Despite his words, I recognised the area behind him as the same pool where I'd spent most of my time training in Cerulean, so it wasn't like he was lying in bed himself.
Not that it mattered beyond him picking up.
"Walter! Listen, I'm on the S.S. Anne and-"
"Oh? And here I thought ya were a lil' scardy Meowth 'bout the sea-"
"LISTEN TO ME!" The old sailor quirked an eyebrow at my outburst, yet did indeed go silent. "Team Rocket is about to attack the ship!"
That got his attention, a hard look turning his eyes to stone as he locked in and leaned forward.
"What? Tell me everything."
"Uncle, don't listen to him-" Misty leaned over my shoulder to appear on the camera, before I tilted so Walter couldn't see her.
"No, you have to listen to me! We're near Cinnabar Island. Send everyone, I don't know how long we have!"
"Lad, breathe for a moment and explain it clearly." Usually, Walter's even tone would probably have helped me calm down, even though Misty was getting more and more aggressive in trying to get the PokéDex from me.
Not that time.
"You'll have to trust me, we don't have time-" Suddenly, without any warning, the screen went black. "Hello!? Walter!? WALTER!?" I could feel sweat running down the back of my neck as a symbol with a red line through it popped up on the screen when I tried to recall him. I'd had a connection in the middle of Viridian Forest and the fields surrounding Cerulean, yet I lost it on the billionaire cruise ship?
"It's them, they're here! Send out your team and, and-"
"Will you stop it!? It's probably just the storm-" Misty seemed to have lost what patience she had and tried to force me down on my bed physically, but I wasn't having it.
"Storm!?" I interrupted. "What storm?"
Shoving them out of the way, I quickly moved over to the window and peered out. My stomach rolled at the sight of the water, the waves appearing like undulating black sludge in the night, but I forced the bile down and looked upwards. Dark clouds had replaced the clear skies in the short time since we'd gone downstairs.
"It's happening. It's happening right now! Get ready, they're coming!" In hindsight, I couldn't blame them for their disbelief. Despite the words being true – which they were, they had to be – there was more than a bit of mania in my voice as I clipped my newest PokéBall to my belt and yoinked another while grabbing my backpack as fast as possible, heart smashing against my ribs and my breath coming in pants.
"Peri, calm down! Nobody's coming, okay, you're having another flashback-"
A slight whine followed by a scratch interrupted us as the hidden speakers lining the ceiling sprang to life.
"Good evening, passengers of the S.S. Anne." A smooth, smug, and articulate voice echoed through the room. The words of my friends disappeared, the world narrowed to a pinprick of light at the end of a tunnel, and my blood turned to ice in my veins even as magma flooded my body.
I knew that voice. Not a week went by that I didn't hear it in my nightmares.
"This is your new captain, Proton, speaking. I apologise for the inconvenience, but we have claimed this vessel in the name of Team Rocket. Please return to your cabins in a calm, orderly manner. The replacement crew will come around to introduce the… new contraband list and confiscate anything… unusual. After all, your safety is our main concern."
"Thank you for sailing with the S.S. Anne. We really appreciate it."
—-
-"My name is Proton, Executive Proton, and we, that would be my fellows and I, come representing Team Rocket."-
"Peri!"
BANG!
The door slammed open so hard the metal hinges wrenched themselves apart, and the door itself fell to the floor. Dark smoke poured through the opening, thick enough to obscure our vision as several silhouettes stepped through the doorway, three in particular leading the way.
A human with obnoxiously long hair and another with a shorter, more spikey style stopped in the smoke and posed with their backs to each other, a small, bigheaded Pokémon standing between them.
"Prepare for trouble!"
"And make it double!"
The smoke slowly cleared to reveal the two figures, though I didn't need the introduction. I'd been on the lookout for them since day one.
A woman with ridiculous, comet-shaped magenta hair and sapphire blue eyes stood in a pose with her chest puffed out, lipstick-coated lips pulled into a cocky smirk, green earrings dangling in the breeze of their forceful entrance. Her clothing consisted of a short, sleeveless white shirt with a large red letter in the middle, a high-neck collar, and a short-sleeved black shirt that revealed her midriff. Her bottom half was covered in a white miniskirt that ended at her thighs and tightly hugged her curvy hips, and she wore long, skin-tight boots.
The other human was male, with shoulder-length periwinkle hair, a single fringe sprouting from the centre, and green eyes. Much like his companion, he wore a white long-sleeve shirt, a black short-sleeve undershirt, white pants with a purple belt, black boots, and matching gloves.
Finally, the Pokémon in the middle coughed and waved its paw to get the smoke out of its face, revealing the long whiskers and golden medallion in the centre of its forehead. Able to breathe, Meowth swiftly retakes his pose.
Behind them stood a couple of grunts in their ordinary black uniforms, dumb smirks on their faces, otherwise clad in the shadow of their low-pulled hats.
All of that was secondary to the large, red R in the middle of their shirts.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all peoples within our nation!"
-two men stepped out, the red R on their chests lighting up like beacons in the night-
"Jessie!"
"Jam-AHHHHHH!"
James' introduction got interrupted as I crashed against him, sword first, the point of my blade digging into the muscle in his shoulder. His shrill scream turned into a wet gurgle as his nose crunched against my knuckles, blood exploding out under my fist. Again and again, my hand rose and fell, his orbital socket and cheekbone splintering beneath my pounding. Teeth snapped under my assault and the jaw broke, bone and enamel failing under my unrestrained strength.
When had I drawn the sword?
"JAMES!"
"Hey, kid, get off hi-HOLY SHIT! JESSIE HELP!"
Out of the corner of my vision, I saw a tan feline coming at me, a talking Meowth – The Meowth – moving to get me off James, yet before he could make it to me, a much larger yellow canine barreled into him, snapping jaws doing their best to clamp around the cat's neck. The callout gave me just enough time to roll to the side, though, as Jessie clicked open a PokéBall and a long Pokémon emerged to lunge at me. Bringing the sword up, I was just in time for the purple snake to bite down on the metal, allowing me to swing the Ekans to the side and get back up.
One of the grunts made for me, only to fall back screaming and clutching his hand, two of the fingers he'd outstretched towards me falling to the floor with a wet thud! Then I no longer had to worry about him as a forceful jet of water struck him in the chest with a sickening crack! and he collapsed, wheezing awfully. Looking around, I was just in time to see Jessie push the other Grunt in front of her as she tried to make it to the door, grabbing a moaning James – whose face probably wouldn't recover for a while – and dragging him with her. Meanwhile, Meowth had somehow managed to scramble out from under Sol and left him to fight a Koffin, before rushing after his friend, bleeding profusely from his ripped apart shoulder.
Did I release them? Did they sense what was going on and come out on their own?
Not that it mattered. Even as the comic relief of Team Rocket tried to make their getaway, Betty decided she disagreed and inhaled deeply. I barely had the time to recall Sol before blue dragon fire washed over the front half of the cabin, wide enough to cover even the large room. The Koffin groaned miserably, and the Ekans hissed in panic as it was picked up from where it had been slittering back my way, as both Pokémon were sent hurling towards their Trainers. Jessie looked over her shoulder at the roar and paled at the sight of the greenish-blue sea of flames coming towards her, screaming briefly before she was cut off by the Ekans wrapping around her throat and the Koffin hitting her in the stomach.
And then they were gone, vanishing beneath the Dragon Breath, along with almost the entirety of the back wall, debris and tiny pieces of wood clattering against the ground. A hole stretched through the S.S. Anne, a new path of broken stuff that led further in than I could see. Jessie and James were nowhere to be seen.
Panting heavily, despite the whole thing taking less than two minutes, I looked back over at my friends, only to find them frozen in basically the same pose I remembered them being in. The only difference was that at least Misty and Brock had released Starmie and Geodude, respectively, alongside a Zubat that clung to the back of Brock's head.
Ash and Gary, on the other hand, were simply gaping at me, Pikachu still on Ash's shoulder.
"What the fuck are you staring at!? They're here, we're under attack!" While speaking, I lashed out with a foot and kicked the Grunt, whose fingers I cut off, in the head to make him stop whimpering. I failed to knock him out, but Herc finished the job. "Send out your fucking Pokémon and tell them that it's kill or be killed!"
"Peri, I'm not sure-"
I didn't stick around to hear whatever bullshit Brock had to say, running to the destroyed wall with my team, clutching my sword tightly. I could hear faint crashing and yelling in all directions, but I paid it no mind as I jogged towards the stairs that would lead back up to the deck, not bothering to acknowledge the others as they scrambled to follow.
Proton was there. Proton was on the fucking ship, and he was upstairs, and he was in the Captain's quarters, and I was going to fucking kill him-
"Hey, let him go!" Blinking out of my thoughts, I looked up to see what Ash was yelling at and saw another two Team Rocket Grunts, based on their basic black uniforms. They were standing in front of an open cabin door, with one of them crouched over the back of an older man with a moustache who they'd forced to the floor. The other was busy fiddling with the old man's belt, and as he looked up at our arrival, I could see he was holding a couple of PokéBalls.
"What the hell? Oi, brats, hand over your Pokémon, or Gastly here's gonna give ya a nasty cough!" A swirl of purple, pink, and black miasma leaked up from the Grunt's feet and gathered over his shoulders, huge eyes and an enormous mouth forming as the Gastly stuck its tongue out at us-
-A wispy cloud of purple-black toxic gas appeared from the corner of my eye, jumping from the larger mass protecting their position. Huge eyes formed over a large, open mouth with a pair of long fangs chomping down towards my arm-
-"Peri!" A hand touched my shoulder without warning, making me swing my sword automatically. Gary jumped back as red painted a thin line across his chest, my blade missing by inches. "WOAH, CAREFUL, MORON!"
Panting even harder, I looked around to find myself at the end of the corridor, far from where I started. At my feet, a pair of glazed-over eyes peered up at me, the face twisted in a grimace of the Grunt's last moments of pain and dread, two large slashes cutting across his belly and chest. Blood dripped from my blade and hand, droplets staining my face.
Did… did I?
What happened?
Looking behind Gary, I saw the second Grunt on the floor next to Hercules, left leg bent at a wrong angle, blood leaking from a gash in his head, and a wide swath of scorch marks littering the front of his uniform. In fact, most of the walls were pockmarked with circular, Ember burns, and presumably the culprit was Betty, who even now was slowly stalking closer to the downed Rocket. Further down, Ash and Misty were helping the older guy back to his feet and handing him his PokéBalls.
We'd just left the cabin, and… what the fuck?
"Hey, idiot!" My reflexive flinch saved me from another slap to the cheek as Gary got my attention. Despite the anger and impatience, the youngest Oak was pale and sweaty, his eyes constantly darting around and to the corridor behind me as he reached up and brushed a shaky hand through his messy hair. He wasn't handling things as well as he wanted to pretend. "While your whole psycho shit is useful right now, we need you to stay with us, okay?!"
"Right, right," I agreed, trying to shake it off as Brock came up to us. Siren and Eevee were at my feet, with Sol down behind the gang, keeping watch.
"You okay, Peri?" The older teen didn't seem to buy my nod and attempt at a brave face, but he didn't mention it. We had other shit to worry about. "Okay, we need to head up to the top deck and get to the lifeboats. There's probably going to be quite a lot of Rockets between us and there, so we need to figure out which Pokémon we're going to use. Much as I hate to say it, Onix isn't going to be much help here, and both Geodude and Zubat are weaker than a lot of what you guys got." He grimaced at his own words and reached up to scratch the aforementioned Zubat under the chin as the Flying-Type clicked at his words.
Looking around, I had to agree with his statement. The hallways of the S.S. Anne were wide, around 8 feet, but there were still limits to how many could move forwards at the same time-
"Wait! We have to help the others, too!" I didn't need to look to know that it was Ash who said that, though I did so anyway, finding him side-by-side with Misty and the old guy, and a horde of smaller Pokémon surrounding them. "Harold has already agreed to help as well-"
Suddenly, the whole ship tilted to the side violently. Everyone lost their footing and stumbled into the wall as the vessel came down, rocking back and forth-
-Water rushed in to fill the path the Hyper Beam had left, walls falling as the ceiling crashed down around our ears-
-pain exploded in my head as it smashed into a doorframe, dazing me and splitting my eyebrow open. Even though I was extremely out of it, I still had enough wits to sway to the side, letting a fist pass over my shoulder and hit the same doorframe with a crack! and curses from behind.
That, in turn, gave me a location for the backwards elbow to hit the guy in the face as I rushed backwards and forced him against the opposite wall, feeling his breath being forced out of his lungs. Stomping on his toes, I judged him suitably distracted and turned around, jamming a fist into his throat and leaving him to choke as I took in the situation.
Misty's Starmie, Ash's Squirtle, Squirty, Siren, and a Mudkip that I didn't know were all gathered in the centre of the massive room we were standing in, opposite a similar gathering of Pokémon as jets and beams of water shot back and forth. In front of them and to the sides, more physically oriented Pokémon duked it out, Sol's large form towering over them as a floating, grey, mechanical Pokémon with a pair of magnets sticking out of either side of its body was sent flying by a Brick Break.
"SOL!"
While I wasn't sure what was going on, I did know that the large brown blur coming at my Growlithe was an enemy, and that wasn't good. Thankfully, he managed to get clear before a glowing pair of enormous incisors clamped down where the back of his neck would've been, the chunky Raticate chittering in annoyance before it was forced away by both Sol and another Raticate that I believed belonged to Gary. Trusting the two to handle it, I tried to get my bearings and looked around.
Once more, the room was more suited for a castle than a ship, with gilded walls and massive, glittering chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The floor was polished to a mirror finish, and the round tables with elaborate chairs around them looked hand-carved, with intricate designs and patterns.
Or, they had been. Now, they were little more than firewood as a horde of rampaging Pokémon tore through the hall. I could see Betty off to the side, having the time of her life as she spat out the limp body of a Rattata, not even caring that another two tried to sink their inch-long front teeth into her hind legs. Instead, she breathed a massive arc of Dragon Breath across the space, forcing the half dozen Rockets hiding behind some tables to duck and take cover. I heard more than a few cry out in pain as the Dragon-Type happily stomped over towards them.
Herc and Eevee were by my side, a couple of wounded and unconscious Poochyena and Zubat lying around us. The Normal-Type fox whined up at me and pressed against my leg, obviously not a fan of everything going on – whatever that may be. Brushing a hand through her fur, I also noticed that she flinched when I got to her back leg and that she didn't want to put weight on it. Likewise, Herc was rotating his shoulder, trying to hide a grimace. While his fight against Graveler left him wounded, it shouldn't bother him that badly.
Something had clearly happened while I was… out or whatever.
There were also half a dozen people I didn't recognise, with as many Pokémon, all standing in the middle with Ash, Gary, Misty, and Brock as they gave orders for the group firefight in the middle.
Goddammit, I needed to get my shit together. It really wasn't the time for a breakdown.
"Herc, when I tell you to, give me your best Shock Wave, okay?" I said, moving up from where I'd apparently been engaged in my own fight over to the side while the others handled the bulk of the Grunts. They briefly looked at me, but nobody seemed particularly angry or scared, so hopefully I hadn't fucked up too badly.
"When I say so, use the widest Water-Type attacks you have. We're going to electrocute them." I quickly informed the others as I joined their ranks, waving over Betty when I made eye contact – and also winching when I became aware of a large cut across my tricep. She wouldn't be helpful with the current plan, but having her close made me feel better.
Getting a round of nods, I kept my eyes peeled and pushed away my confusion and, admittedly, fear, to look for the right opportunity.
The Rockets Pokémon seemed to be the usual Zubat and Poochyena, mostly, but as I noticed earlier, there was a fair amount of Electric-Types as well. Nothing crazy, mostly Magnemites and considering I could see two Pikachus, at least one of those as well.
It made sense for an attack on a boat – which in and of itself was somewhat surprising from Team Rocket. Not really known for logic.
But the true surprise was the near-human-adult-sized yellow humanoid that had placed itself front and centre. Bulky arms windmilled constantly as electricity buzzed around the bipedal, forcing the front-line fighters to keep their distance. The long tail lashed side-to-side aggressively as the Electabuzz bared its teeth, almost single-handedly carrying the fight for its team as the constant barrage of Electric-Type moves forced us to keep protecting our Water-Types. Even Starmie found itself locked down, with the majority of the attention focused on it.
So, that definitely had to go first.
"Brock, be ready with Geodude, I'm gonna take care of that Electabuzz first," I said, not waiting for a response before moving sideways to get a better angle.
Sol and Siren already had their posts, and it didn't seem wise to get too far away from Eevee, so it was an easy decision which of them to trust to take care of it.
"Betty, charge! Herc, protect her!"
Where was my fucking sword when I needed it?
Shrieking in delight, Betty stomped the floor heavily before lowering her head and kicking off the ground. Her hide was covered in blood and minor scratches, a long cut running down the side of her neck, yet she practically glowed with delight as she approached the evolved Pokémon. In contrast, Hercules was all grim determination and focus, blurring with Quick Attack as he slammed a leaping Rattata to the side and stunned a swooping Zubat with a Swift and weak Thunder Shock. A different Elekid, one a little taller than Herc but not as wide, managed to slip by him using its comrades as a distraction. The Electric-Type whirred as its arms windmilled, lightning leaping between the prongs on its head, before shooting at the incoming Bagon and hitting her head on-
-to damn near zero effect against her shock-resistant hide – other than getting Betty's attention and an extra hard Headbutt to the ribs on the way past, followed by a Hammer Arm to the back of the head that embedded it into the floor.
By then, the Electabuzz had taken notice of them and whirred in a much deeper tone than Hercules was capable of. The larger Electric-Type glowed with an impressive amount of power and unleashed a Thunderbolt that cracked across the distance.
"Herc, ground it!"
Running in front of the attack and almost up in the Electabuzz's face, Hercules threw up one arm and placed the other beneath him. The Thunderbolt struck him with a flash as he barred his teeth and shook with power, the electricity melting and warning the wood polish on the boards beneath him. By the time it let up, Hercules slumped forward, spasming uncontrollably as he hit the floor.
At almost exactly the same moment, a barrage of rocks hit the evolved Electric-Type in the front, stunning it briefly. That allowed Behemoth to leap over Herc's downed body and strike the Electabuzz right in the chest with all of her nearly 500 pounds of weight, both of them falling backwards.
Seizing the chance, I turned around and gave the signal.
"Now! Water!"
They didn't need further instruction. The Water-Types inhaled deeply and sprayed out wide swaths of water. Starmie spun as beams of liquid appeared from each of its ten arms and merged into a wave, free to use its full power now that Electabuzz was down.
"Electricity!"
A variety of different Pokémon, not all of them Electric-Types, shone with thunder as they followed my command. Even Hercules redirected the leftover absorbed lightning into the waves. Most noticeable, however, was the small yellow rodent that leapt up high, shining like a star as Pikachu roared its fury.
"PIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"
Multiple bolts of lightning rained down from the mouse, striking the flood of water as it surged towards the Rockets, currents sparking across the surface. The terrorists tried to run, but were too slow. They were swept up in the wave, bubbles erupting from their mouths in silent screams. Others tried to use defensive moves, yet none of them were encompassing enough and soon they were spasming as they were carried away, nervous systems and muscles rendered useless.
Betty had been caught up in the attack as well; however, as the tide hit the far wall and deposited the electrocuted and unconscious humans and Pokémon, the Bagon emerged from the pile, shaking her head before getting right back to work cleaning up the various Pokémon that were still capable of standing.
After finishing taking down the last of them, we all took a moment to breathe. I petted Sol's fur affectionately as the dog Pokémon came lumbering up with my sword in his mouth, though I'd have to teach him not to play tug-of-war with sharp metal. I also got a Full Heal from one of the guys we'd helped – some mid-twenties surfer dude – which helped Hercules with the worst of his overload. He'd feel it the next day, but seeing another sunrise was in and of itself a victory.
"Alright, everyone!" Brock spoke up after helping inject a Potion into the Mudkip from earlier. "I know that not everyone here is a fighter, but unfortunately, that doesn't really matter right now. Team Rocket has taken that choice away from you." Looking out over the crowd, I saw that he was right. Other than one guy in the S.S. Anne uniform, all the rest seemed to be civilians.
Fucking knew we couldn't trust the Pebble Clan. Where the fuck were they?
"Brock's right," I spoke up. I wasn't sure it was a good idea, given that I didn't know what they'd seen me do, but I might as well try. "I was on a different ship that Team Rocket attacked, and, sorry to say if you think this has a peaceful ending, but they stole all our Pokémon and killed the humans. I doubt this time will be different. Our best chance is to at least get to the top deck and escape." Not what I'd prefer, but telling a bunch of ordinary people that we should fight to the death probably wouldn't turn out well.
Based on their pale, yet firming facial expressions, I made the right choice.
"Yeah!" Ash spoke up, to my relief. He would have the right words to rally them. "We have to-"
-without warning, the S.S. Anne listed to the side again, the remains of expensive chairs and tables screeching over the polished, red-ish wooden floorboard and smashing even further apart on the walls. People screamed as they lost their footing and fell, myself included. My head bounced against the floor as the leftover water from the attacks soaked my clothes and hair-
-the liquid was ice cold as it surrounded us, pinned under the debris. My forehead hit something hard on the way down-
-a hand grabbed me by the back of my shirt and yanked me back, barely in time for a knife to pass right by my nose. Instinctively, I lashed out with a foot and kicked the middle-aged Rocket in the gut. He let out an 'ooopphhh' and bent over at just the right angle for Gary to step forward and knee him in the face.
"Watch yourself, idiot!"
"Wha-ye-yeah, right." We were in another corridor, and judging by the decor, we were getting closer to the top. Several doors lining the wall were open, and our resistance force was spread up, small groups each engaged with a couple of Rockets. Seems like we'd been ambushed. "Thanks, Ga-down!"
I pulled him down as a Zubat with wings glowing a steely silver, swooped past with a headache-inducing shriek that was cut off by my sword hitting it head-on like a bat and smacking it into the wall.
Our Pokémon were on either side of us, dealing with the ground forces, leaving Gary and me to go back to back and hold off flyers and Trainers that came close, waiting for them to finish. Eevee was still by my side, star-shaped projectiles of Normal-Type energy shooting from her mouth and plucking Flying-Types out of the air.
Meanwhile, I was swinging my sword around like a madman, trying to force everyone back while keeping an eye on Gary. I cursed as I was forced to let another Zubat sink its fangs into my shoulder to turn around and force a Grunt with a baton to jump back before he could hit Gary over the head. I held in a scream as a fist punched me in the liver, the enemies quickly finding out that Gary wasn't a fighter and targeting him harder and harder. Injuries started piling up, the increasingly familiar feeling of poison rushing through my body as I pulled him back to take another blow in his place-
-a rock hit the female Grunt in the back of the head, her eyes rolling back as she fainted on the spot. A furious gurgling was followed by a barrage of Water Bullets peppering our opponents as Siren showed her displeasure at my wounds. I could hear bones breaking and imagined several people lost their ability to walk or even breathe to that attack.
I gasped as a needle pierced my skin, and the cold sensation of an Antidote spread through me as Brock distributed healing items.
"You two good?" He asked. I nodded and bumped Gary with my shoulder, knocking him out of the daze he'd fallen into once we were no longer in immediate danger. He jolted and nodded jerkily, eyes darting to me, and the blood flowing from the dozen minor wounds I'd accumulated, guiltily.
Looking behind Brock and down the corridor, I saw, at the end, a staircase that I recognised as the one that led up. Adrenaline and rage chased away the pain and exhaustion, and I pushed off the wall, making to continue.
"Come on, we're almost there."
"Hold on, Peri," Brock interjected, stepping into my path with his hands up, "I think I should go first."
"I told you I'm fine," I tried to push past him, yet a hand on my chest held me back. Looking up to tell him off, the words died on my tongue when I found myself pinned by the most serious expression I'd ever seen on Brock's face, eyes wide open and severe.
"No, you're not." At least he kept his voice low. I wasn't sure the others had noticed that I wasn't just my normal psychotic self. "And normally, that's okay. But right now, you're a liability – not to mention injured – so you're staying behind me."
…shit. I wanted to protest so badly, yet I merely nodded mutely and allowed him to push me behind him. He was right, in the end. I barely knew what was going on anymore. I might've been able to handle the Rockets, the ship, or the Vulpix, hell, maybe even two at once.
But all three had me fucked up, and there wasn't time for my shit. Every time I'd come to, I'd been out of position or over to the side, doing my own shit.
For once, I'd swallow my pride and do the smart thing. It didn't matter as long as we got Proton.
"Fine, whatever. Lead the way, then, as long as we hurry up."
He looked at me for another moment before nodding and turning to the rest of the 20-30 people we'd somehow gathered along the way. The time it took to organise us had me gritting my teeth, but finally, Brock led the way up the stairs and out onto the deck of the S.S. Anne.
And into pandemonium.
Yells rang out over the deck, along with explosions and crashes. Bright flashing lights came from every direction as the ship crew – which I'd found suspiciously absent earlier – did their best to hold off the advancing ranks of Team Rocket. Dozens, if not a hundred, Pokémon fought back and forth, the more common TR species battling with the rarer types of the S.S. Anne. Those already defeated lay sprawled across the deck, the Rocket Pokémon much more numerous. And yet, even as I watched, more and more Grunts poured over the side of the ship, throwing out their PokéBalls to replace their fallen twice over.
BOOOOM!
A large smash over to the side drew my attention to a large group of Rockets, my heart thundering at the two white uniforms I saw among the masses. Across from them, a shadowy figure stood alone, their arms crossed as their equally hidden Pokémon battled a horde all by themselves.
Above it all, the dark skies swirled menacingly, howling gales threatening to send everyone overboard. The storm I'd seen through the window had intensified massively. Thunder boomed as rain whipped across our skin, and on the horizon I could see the top of a monstrous wave before it vanished beneath the railing, only for the ship to rock violently again.
"Hold the line! Left: push further up; right: get yourselves together! Arianna, reinforce the middle!"
The words cut through the chaos without issue, defying logic, and piercing straight through my brain like a bullet. Like magnets, my eyes moved on their own volition to the source, just as a booming thunderbolt split the sky and bathed the world in pale light, revealing the tall man's face behind the Rocket lines, directing them forward and barking orders.
A pointed chin at the bottom of a long face, cheekbones protruding sharply. The nose was petite and straight, the lips full and held in a casual smirk. The handsome man reached a slender hand up and pulled his black beret further down over his teal hair to protect against the storm.
"Come on, gentlemen, put your backs into it!" Executive Proton commanded as my world faded until only he and I existed.
Oh my God, Team Rocket, what are you doing here!?
I don't know if the way I wrote this works. I wanted to kick up the whole 'PTSD flashbacks' into full-blown episodes as there were a lot of triggers going on, where Peri just blacks out while doing shit. But I don't know how it comes across in the text.
It's not necessarily going to be a recurring thing, at least not often, but it felt appropriate.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
A somewhat experimental chapter.
Warning: Graphic violence.
I vaguely knew that someone was speaking very loudly, but it came to me as if underwater. Distantly, hands touched me and guided me, yet all I knew was the increasingly rapid thudding of my heart and the feeling of choking no matter how fast I breathed. The sensation of icy water on my skin and in my throat as I fell into the eyes of the Vulpix, the creaking and splintering of wood as everything was torn apart around me, fur slipping between my fingers as I tried desperately to hold on, but my head hit a beam hard and went fuzzy-
SMACK!
My head whipped to the side, pain and heat spreading across my face. My hand lifted to my cheek while my eyes focused just in time to see Gary being shoved back by a furious Misty.
"Hey, back off, douchebag!"
"It fucking worked, didn't it!? Back with us, oh Champion of trauma?" It had been a while since there had been genuine anger in his voice, yet the undercurrent was thick and obvious. Another time I might've cared, but I was a little preoccupied, looking around in a daze, confused by suddenly being in our cabin rather than on the deck.
"Wha-what happened?" My voice was faint and trembling as it left my mouth, my tongue thick and wooden.
"You kinda just froze up there when you saw the weird Vulpix, so we recalled it and went down here. Are you okay?" Ash shifted from foot to foot, looking quite uncomfortable. I looked down at the mention, seeing the black and gold PokéBall still in my hand, and noticing that it was more than just my voice that was shaking.
"It was fucking embarrassing, having to pull you outta there! Get a fucking grip!" For once, I didn't fire back at Gary's venomous words, searching through my pockets quickly as my mind rebooted and the realisation I had earlier came back to me. "Now what!? Huh? Who the fuck are you calling?" He asked as I pulled out my PokéDex, fumbling with the touchscreen.
"W-we need help, the Rockets are coming!" I couldn't believe I'd forgotten. I knew that my memories of the anime were poor even before spending years blurring them with the real thing, but how the fuck could I forget the sinking of a giant-ass ship by terrorists!? That was serious shit!
"What are you rambling about!? Holy shit, you've completely lost it!"
"Peri, maybe it's best if you just sit down-" I knew Brock was just trying to help, but I still slapped his hand away and backed away from them.
"NO! I don't need-I know they're coming and we need help before they get here!"
It-... it was definitely a memory. I wasn't being crazy, I'd just forgotten and, and seeing the… the Vulpix reminded me.
Team Rocket was going to attack the S.S. Anne. It all lined up. The Pebble Clan members, the 'fans' that gave the gang tickets, and the rare Pokémon on board.
I wasn't being crazy.
I wasn't.
The blurred reflection of my pale face in the black screen faded as the call was picked up. On the other end, long blonde locks fell over a weathered face without the usual hat to hold them back, a long moustache wavering as the large man blew a strand away from his mouth. Ocean blue eyes blinked at me, confused, while a scared hand came up to scratch at The Admiral of Kanto's chin.
"Eh, that ya, lad? The hell do ya need at this hour? Ya youngin's need yar sleep, ya know." Walter Waterflower questioned in a bored tone. Despite his words, I recognised the area behind him as the same pool where I'd spent most of my time training in Cerulean, so it wasn't like he was lying in bed himself.
Not that it mattered beyond him picking up.
"Walter! Listen, I'm on the S.S. Anne and-"
"Oh? And here I thought ya were a lil' scardy Meowth 'bout the sea-"
"LISTEN TO ME!" The old sailor quirked an eyebrow at my outburst, yet did indeed go silent. "Team Rocket is about to attack the ship!"
That got his attention, a hard look turning his eyes to stone as he locked in and leaned forward.
"What? Tell me everything."
"Uncle, don't listen to him-" Misty leaned over my shoulder to appear on the camera, before I tilted so Walter couldn't see her.
"No, you have to listen to me! We're near Cinnabar Island. Send everyone, I don't know how long we have!"
"Lad, breathe for a moment and explain it clearly." Usually, Walter's even tone would probably have helped me calm down, even though Misty was getting more and more aggressive in trying to get the PokéDex from me.
Not that time.
"You'll have to trust me, we don't have time-" Suddenly, without any warning, the screen went black. "Hello!? Walter!? WALTER!?" I could feel sweat running down the back of my neck as a symbol with a red line through it popped up on the screen when I tried to recall him. I'd had a connection in the middle of Viridian Forest and the fields surrounding Cerulean, yet I lost it on the billionaire cruise ship?
"It's them, they're here! Send out your team and, and-"
"Will you stop it!? It's probably just the storm-" Misty seemed to have lost what patience she had and tried to force me down on my bed physically, but I wasn't having it.
"Storm!?" I interrupted. "What storm?"
Shoving them out of the way, I quickly moved over to the window and peered out. My stomach rolled at the sight of the water, the waves appearing like undulating black sludge in the night, but I forced the bile down and looked upwards. Dark clouds had replaced the clear skies in the short time since we'd gone downstairs.
"It's happening. It's happening right now! Get ready, they're coming!" In hindsight, I couldn't blame them for their disbelief. Despite the words being true – which they were, they had to be – there was more than a bit of mania in my voice as I clipped my newest PokéBall to my belt and yoinked another while grabbing my backpack as fast as possible, heart smashing against my ribs and my breath coming in pants.
"Peri, calm down! Nobody's coming, okay, you're having another flashback-"
A slight whine followed by a scratch interrupted us as the hidden speakers lining the ceiling sprang to life.
"Good evening, passengers of the S.S. Anne." A smooth, smug, and articulate voice echoed through the room. The words of my friends disappeared, the world narrowed to a pinprick of light at the end of a tunnel, and my blood turned to ice in my veins even as magma flooded my body.
I knew that voice. Not a week went by that I didn't hear it in my nightmares.
"This is your new captain, Proton, speaking. I apologise for the inconvenience, but we have claimed this vessel in the name of Team Rocket. Please return to your cabins in a calm, orderly manner. The replacement crew will come around to introduce the… new contraband list and confiscate anything… unusual. After all, your safety is our main concern."
"Thank you for sailing with the S.S. Anne. We really appreciate it."
—-
-"My name is Proton, Executive Proton, and we, that would be my fellows and I, come representing Team Rocket."-
"Peri!"
BANG!
The door slammed open so hard the metal hinges wrenched themselves apart, and the door itself fell to the floor. Dark smoke poured through the opening, thick enough to obscure our vision as several silhouettes stepped through the doorway, three in particular leading the way.
A human with obnoxiously long hair and another with a shorter, more spikey style stopped in the smoke and posed with their backs to each other, a small, bigheaded Pokémon standing between them.
"Prepare for trouble!"
"And make it double!"
The smoke slowly cleared to reveal the two figures, though I didn't need the introduction. I'd been on the lookout for them since day one.
A woman with ridiculous, comet-shaped magenta hair and sapphire blue eyes stood in a pose with her chest puffed out, lipstick-coated lips pulled into a cocky smirk, green earrings dangling in the breeze of their forceful entrance. Her clothing consisted of a short, sleeveless white shirt with a large red letter in the middle, a high-neck collar, and a short-sleeved black shirt that revealed her midriff. Her bottom half was covered in a white miniskirt that ended at her thighs and tightly hugged her curvy hips, and she wore long, skin-tight boots.
The other human was male, with shoulder-length periwinkle hair, a single fringe sprouting from the centre, and green eyes. Much like his companion, he wore a white long-sleeve shirt, a black short-sleeve undershirt, white pants with a purple belt, black boots, and matching gloves.
Finally, the Pokémon in the middle coughed and waved its paw to get the smoke out of its face, revealing the long whiskers and golden medallion in the centre of its forehead. Able to breathe, Meowth swiftly retakes his pose.
Behind them stood a couple of grunts in their ordinary black uniforms, dumb smirks on their faces, otherwise clad in the shadow of their low-pulled hats.
All of that was secondary to the large, red R in the middle of their shirts.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all peoples within our nation!"
-two men stepped out, the red R on their chests lighting up like beacons in the night-
"Jessie!"
"Jam-AHHHHHH!"
James' introduction got interrupted as I crashed against him, sword first, the point of my blade digging into the muscle in his shoulder. His shrill scream turned into a wet gurgle as his nose crunched against my knuckles, blood exploding out under my fist. Again and again, my hand rose and fell, his orbital socket and cheekbone splintering beneath my pounding. Teeth snapped under my assault and the jaw broke, bone and enamel failing under my unrestrained strength.
When had I drawn the sword?
"JAMES!"
"Hey, kid, get off hi-HOLY SHIT! JESSIE HELP!"
Out of the corner of my vision, I saw a tan feline coming at me, a talking Meowth – The Meowth – moving to get me off James, yet before he could make it to me, a much larger yellow canine barreled into him, snapping jaws doing their best to clamp around the cat's neck. The callout gave me just enough time to roll to the side, though, as Jessie clicked open a PokéBall and a long Pokémon emerged to lunge at me. Bringing the sword up, I was just in time for the purple snake to bite down on the metal, allowing me to swing the Ekans to the side and get back up.
One of the grunts made for me, only to fall back screaming and clutching his hand, two of the fingers he'd outstretched towards me falling to the floor with a wet thud! Then I no longer had to worry about him as a forceful jet of water struck him in the chest with a sickening crack! and he collapsed, wheezing awfully. Looking around, I was just in time to see Jessie push the other Grunt in front of her as she tried to make it to the door, grabbing a moaning James – whose face probably wouldn't recover for a while – and dragging him with her. Meanwhile, Meowth had somehow managed to scramble out from under Sol and left him to fight a Koffin, before rushing after his friend, bleeding profusely from his ripped apart shoulder.
Did I release them? Did they sense what was going on and come out on their own?
Not that it mattered. Even as the comic relief of Team Rocket tried to make their getaway, Betty decided she disagreed and inhaled deeply. I barely had the time to recall Sol before blue dragon fire washed over the front half of the cabin, wide enough to cover even the large room. The Koffin groaned miserably, and the Ekans hissed in panic as it was picked up from where it had been slittering back my way, as both Pokémon were sent hurling towards their Trainers. Jessie looked over her shoulder at the roar and paled at the sight of the greenish-blue sea of flames coming towards her, screaming briefly before she was cut off by the Ekans wrapping around her throat and the Koffin hitting her in the stomach.
And then they were gone, vanishing beneath the Dragon Breath, along with almost the entirety of the back wall, debris and tiny pieces of wood clattering against the ground. A hole stretched through the S.S. Anne, a new path of broken stuff that led further in than I could see. Jessie and James were nowhere to be seen.
Panting heavily, despite the whole thing taking less than two minutes, I looked back over at my friends, only to find them frozen in basically the same pose I remembered them being in. The only difference was that at least Misty and Brock had released Starmie and Geodude, respectively, alongside a Zubat that clung to the back of Brock's head.
Ash and Gary, on the other hand, were simply gaping at me, Pikachu still on Ash's shoulder.
"What the fuck are you staring at!? They're here, we're under attack!" While speaking, I lashed out with a foot and kicked the Grunt, whose fingers I cut off, in the head to make him stop whimpering. I failed to knock him out, but Herc finished the job. "Send out your fucking Pokémon and tell them that it's kill or be killed!"
"Peri, I'm not sure-"
I didn't stick around to hear whatever bullshit Brock had to say, running to the destroyed wall with my team, clutching my sword tightly. I could hear faint crashing and yelling in all directions, but I paid it no mind as I jogged towards the stairs that would lead back up to the deck, not bothering to acknowledge the others as they scrambled to follow.
Proton was there. Proton was on the fucking ship, and he was upstairs, and he was in the Captain's quarters, and I was going to fucking kill him-
"Hey, let him go!" Blinking out of my thoughts, I looked up to see what Ash was yelling at and saw another two Team Rocket Grunts, based on their basic black uniforms. They were standing in front of an open cabin door, with one of them crouched over the back of an older man with a moustache who they'd forced to the floor. The other was busy fiddling with the old man's belt, and as he looked up at our arrival, I could see he was holding a couple of PokéBalls.
"What the hell? Oi, brats, hand over your Pokémon, or Gastly here's gonna give ya a nasty cough!" A swirl of purple, pink, and black miasma leaked up from the Grunt's feet and gathered over his shoulders, huge eyes and an enormous mouth forming as the Gastly stuck its tongue out at us-
-A wispy cloud of purple-black toxic gas appeared from the corner of my eye, jumping from the larger mass protecting their position. Huge eyes formed over a large, open mouth with a pair of long fangs chomping down towards my arm-
-"Peri!" A hand touched my shoulder without warning, making me swing my sword automatically. Gary jumped back as red painted a thin line across his chest, my blade missing by inches. "WOAH, CAREFUL, MORON!"
Panting even harder, I looked around to find myself at the end of the corridor, far from where I started. At my feet, a pair of glazed-over eyes peered up at me, the face twisted in a grimace of the Grunt's last moments of pain and dread, two large slashes cutting across his belly and chest. Blood dripped from my blade and hand, droplets staining my face.
Did… did I?
What happened?
Looking behind Gary, I saw the second Grunt on the floor next to Hercules, left leg bent at a wrong angle, blood leaking from a gash in his head, and a wide swath of scorch marks littering the front of his uniform. In fact, most of the walls were pockmarked with circular, Ember burns, and presumably the culprit was Betty, who even now was slowly stalking closer to the downed Rocket. Further down, Ash and Misty were helping the older guy back to his feet and handing him his PokéBalls.
We'd just left the cabin, and… what the fuck?
"Hey, idiot!" My reflexive flinch saved me from another slap to the cheek as Gary got my attention. Despite the anger and impatience, the youngest Oak was pale and sweaty, his eyes constantly darting around and to the corridor behind me as he reached up and brushed a shaky hand through his messy hair. He wasn't handling things as well as he wanted to pretend. "While your whole psycho shit is useful right now, we need you to stay with us, okay?!"
"Right, right," I agreed, trying to shake it off as Brock came up to us. Siren and Eevee were at my feet, with Sol down behind the gang, keeping watch.
"You okay, Peri?" The older teen didn't seem to buy my nod and attempt at a brave face, but he didn't mention it. We had other shit to worry about. "Okay, we need to head up to the top deck and get to the lifeboats. There's probably going to be quite a lot of Rockets between us and there, so we need to figure out which Pokémon we're going to use. Much as I hate to say it, Onix isn't going to be much help here, and both Geodude and Zubat are weaker than a lot of what you guys got." He grimaced at his own words and reached up to scratch the aforementioned Zubat under the chin as the Flying-Type clicked at his words.
Looking around, I had to agree with his statement. The hallways of the S.S. Anne were wide, around 8 feet, but there were still limits to how many could move forwards at the same time-
"Wait! We have to help the others, too!" I didn't need to look to know that it was Ash who said that, though I did so anyway, finding him side-by-side with Misty and the old guy, and a horde of smaller Pokémon surrounding them. "Harold has already agreed to help as well-"
Suddenly, the whole ship tilted to the side violently. Everyone lost their footing and stumbled into the wall as the vessel came down, rocking back and forth-
-Water rushed in to fill the path the Hyper Beam had left, walls falling as the ceiling crashed down around our ears-
-pain exploded in my head as it smashed into a doorframe, dazing me and splitting my eyebrow open. Even though I was extremely out of it, I still had enough wits to sway to the side, letting a fist pass over my shoulder and hit the same doorframe with a crack! and curses from behind.
That, in turn, gave me a location for the backwards elbow to hit the guy in the face as I rushed backwards and forced him against the opposite wall, feeling his breath being forced out of his lungs. Stomping on his toes, I judged him suitably distracted and turned around, jamming a fist into his throat and leaving him to choke as I took in the situation.
Misty's Starmie, Ash's Squirtle, Squirty, Siren, and a Mudkip that I didn't know were all gathered in the centre of the massive room we were standing in, opposite a similar gathering of Pokémon as jets and beams of water shot back and forth. In front of them and to the sides, more physically oriented Pokémon duked it out, Sol's large form towering over them as a floating, grey, mechanical Pokémon with a pair of magnets sticking out of either side of its body was sent flying by a Brick Break.
"SOL!"
While I wasn't sure what was going on, I did know that the large brown blur coming at my Growlithe was an enemy, and that wasn't good. Thankfully, he managed to get clear before a glowing pair of enormous incisors clamped down where the back of his neck would've been, the chunky Raticate chittering in annoyance before it was forced away by both Sol and another Raticate that I believed belonged to Gary. Trusting the two to handle it, I tried to get my bearings and looked around.
Once more, the room was more suited for a castle than a ship, with gilded walls and massive, glittering chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The floor was polished to a mirror finish, and the round tables with elaborate chairs around them looked hand-carved, with intricate designs and patterns.
Or, they had been. Now, they were little more than firewood as a horde of rampaging Pokémon tore through the hall. I could see Betty off to the side, having the time of her life as she spat out the limp body of a Rattata, not even caring that another two tried to sink their inch-long front teeth into her hind legs. Instead, she breathed a massive arc of Dragon Breath across the space, forcing the half dozen Rockets hiding behind some tables to duck and take cover. I heard more than a few cry out in pain as the Dragon-Type happily stomped over towards them.
Herc and Eevee were by my side, a couple of wounded and unconscious Poochyena and Zubat lying around us. The Normal-Type fox whined up at me and pressed against my leg, obviously not a fan of everything going on – whatever that may be. Brushing a hand through her fur, I also noticed that she flinched when I got to her back leg and that she didn't want to put weight on it. Likewise, Herc was rotating his shoulder, trying to hide a grimace. While his fight against Graveler left him wounded, it shouldn't bother him that badly.
Something had clearly happened while I was… out or whatever.
There were also half a dozen people I didn't recognise, with as many Pokémon, all standing in the middle with Ash, Gary, Misty, and Brock as they gave orders for the group firefight in the middle.
Goddammit, I needed to get my shit together. It really wasn't the time for a breakdown.
"Herc, when I tell you to, give me your best Shock Wave, okay?" I said, moving up from where I'd apparently been engaged in my own fight over to the side while the others handled the bulk of the Grunts. They briefly looked at me, but nobody seemed particularly angry or scared, so hopefully I hadn't fucked up too badly.
"When I say so, use the widest Water-Type attacks you have. We're going to electrocute them." I quickly informed the others as I joined their ranks, waving over Betty when I made eye contact – and also winching when I became aware of a large cut across my tricep. She wouldn't be helpful with the current plan, but having her close made me feel better.
Getting a round of nods, I kept my eyes peeled and pushed away my confusion and, admittedly, fear, to look for the right opportunity.
The Rockets Pokémon seemed to be the usual Zubat and Poochyena, mostly, but as I noticed earlier, there was a fair amount of Electric-Types as well. Nothing crazy, mostly Magnemites and considering I could see two Pikachus, at least one of those as well.
It made sense for an attack on a boat – which in and of itself was somewhat surprising from Team Rocket. Not really known for logic.
But the true surprise was the near-human-adult-sized yellow humanoid that had placed itself front and centre. Bulky arms windmilled constantly as electricity buzzed around the bipedal, forcing the front-line fighters to keep their distance. The long tail lashed side-to-side aggressively as the Electabuzz bared its teeth, almost single-handedly carrying the fight for its team as the constant barrage of Electric-Type moves forced us to keep protecting our Water-Types. Even Starmie found itself locked down, with the majority of the attention focused on it.
So, that definitely had to go first.
"Brock, be ready with Geodude, I'm gonna take care of that Electabuzz first," I said, not waiting for a response before moving sideways to get a better angle.
Sol and Siren already had their posts, and it didn't seem wise to get too far away from Eevee, so it was an easy decision which of them to trust to take care of it.
"Betty, charge! Herc, protect her!"
Where was my fucking sword when I needed it?
Shrieking in delight, Betty stomped the floor heavily before lowering her head and kicking off the ground. Her hide was covered in blood and minor scratches, a long cut running down the side of her neck, yet she practically glowed with delight as she approached the evolved Pokémon. In contrast, Hercules was all grim determination and focus, blurring with Quick Attack as he slammed a leaping Rattata to the side and stunned a swooping Zubat with a Swift and weak Thunder Shock. A different Elekid, one a little taller than Herc but not as wide, managed to slip by him using its comrades as a distraction. The Electric-Type whirred as its arms windmilled, lightning leaping between the prongs on its head, before shooting at the incoming Bagon and hitting her head on-
-to damn near zero effect against her shock-resistant hide – other than getting Betty's attention and an extra hard Headbutt to the ribs on the way past, followed by a Hammer Arm to the back of the head that embedded it into the floor.
By then, the Electabuzz had taken notice of them and whirred in a much deeper tone than Hercules was capable of. The larger Electric-Type glowed with an impressive amount of power and unleashed a Thunderbolt that cracked across the distance.
"Herc, ground it!"
Running in front of the attack and almost up in the Electabuzz's face, Hercules threw up one arm and placed the other beneath him. The Thunderbolt struck him with a flash as he barred his teeth and shook with power, the electricity melting and warning the wood polish on the boards beneath him. By the time it let up, Hercules slumped forward, spasming uncontrollably as he hit the floor.
At almost exactly the same moment, a barrage of rocks hit the evolved Electric-Type in the front, stunning it briefly. That allowed Behemoth to leap over Herc's downed body and strike the Electabuzz right in the chest with all of her nearly 500 pounds of weight, both of them falling backwards.
Seizing the chance, I turned around and gave the signal.
"Now! Water!"
They didn't need further instruction. The Water-Types inhaled deeply and sprayed out wide swaths of water. Starmie spun as beams of liquid appeared from each of its ten arms and merged into a wave, free to use its full power now that Electabuzz was down.
"Electricity!"
A variety of different Pokémon, not all of them Electric-Types, shone with thunder as they followed my command. Even Hercules redirected the leftover absorbed lightning into the waves. Most noticeable, however, was the small yellow rodent that leapt up high, shining like a star as Pikachu roared its fury.
"PIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"
Multiple bolts of lightning rained down from the mouse, striking the flood of water as it surged towards the Rockets, currents sparking across the surface. The terrorists tried to run, but were too slow. They were swept up in the wave, bubbles erupting from their mouths in silent screams. Others tried to use defensive moves, yet none of them were encompassing enough and soon they were spasming as they were carried away, nervous systems and muscles rendered useless.
Betty had been caught up in the attack as well; however, as the tide hit the far wall and deposited the electrocuted and unconscious humans and Pokémon, the Bagon emerged from the pile, shaking her head before getting right back to work cleaning up the various Pokémon that were still capable of standing.
After finishing taking down the last of them, we all took a moment to breathe. I petted Sol's fur affectionately as the dog Pokémon came lumbering up with my sword in his mouth, though I'd have to teach him not to play tug-of-war with sharp metal. I also got a Full Heal from one of the guys we'd helped – some mid-twenties surfer dude – which helped Hercules with the worst of his overload. He'd feel it the next day, but seeing another sunrise was in and of itself a victory.
"Alright, everyone!" Brock spoke up after helping inject a Potion into the Mudkip from earlier. "I know that not everyone here is a fighter, but unfortunately, that doesn't really matter right now. Team Rocket has taken that choice away from you." Looking out over the crowd, I saw that he was right. Other than one guy in the S.S. Anne uniform, all the rest seemed to be civilians.
Fucking knew we couldn't trust the Pebble Clan. Where the fuck were they?
"Brock's right," I spoke up. I wasn't sure it was a good idea, given that I didn't know what they'd seen me do, but I might as well try. "I was on a different ship that Team Rocket attacked, and, sorry to say if you think this has a peaceful ending, but they stole all our Pokémon and killed the humans. I doubt this time will be different. Our best chance is to at least get to the top deck and escape." Not what I'd prefer, but telling a bunch of ordinary people that we should fight to the death probably wouldn't turn out well.
Based on their pale, yet firming facial expressions, I made the right choice.
"Yeah!" Ash spoke up, to my relief. He would have the right words to rally them. "We have to-"
-without warning, the S.S. Anne listed to the side again, the remains of expensive chairs and tables screeching over the polished, red-ish wooden floorboard and smashing even further apart on the walls. People screamed as they lost their footing and fell, myself included. My head bounced against the floor as the leftover water from the attacks soaked my clothes and hair-
-the liquid was ice cold as it surrounded us, pinned under the debris. My forehead hit something hard on the way down-
-a hand grabbed me by the back of my shirt and yanked me back, barely in time for a knife to pass right by my nose. Instinctively, I lashed out with a foot and kicked the middle-aged Rocket in the gut. He let out an 'ooopphhh' and bent over at just the right angle for Gary to step forward and knee him in the face.
"Watch yourself, idiot!"
"Wha-ye-yeah, right." We were in another corridor, and judging by the decor, we were getting closer to the top. Several doors lining the wall were open, and our resistance force was spread up, small groups each engaged with a couple of Rockets. Seems like we'd been ambushed. "Thanks, Ga-down!"
I pulled him down as a Zubat with wings glowing a steely silver, swooped past with a headache-inducing shriek that was cut off by my sword hitting it head-on like a bat and smacking it into the wall.
Our Pokémon were on either side of us, dealing with the ground forces, leaving Gary and me to go back to back and hold off flyers and Trainers that came close, waiting for them to finish. Eevee was still by my side, star-shaped projectiles of Normal-Type energy shooting from her mouth and plucking Flying-Types out of the air.
Meanwhile, I was swinging my sword around like a madman, trying to force everyone back while keeping an eye on Gary. I cursed as I was forced to let another Zubat sink its fangs into my shoulder to turn around and force a Grunt with a baton to jump back before he could hit Gary over the head. I held in a scream as a fist punched me in the liver, the enemies quickly finding out that Gary wasn't a fighter and targeting him harder and harder. Injuries started piling up, the increasingly familiar feeling of poison rushing through my body as I pulled him back to take another blow in his place-
-a rock hit the female Grunt in the back of the head, her eyes rolling back as she fainted on the spot. A furious gurgling was followed by a barrage of Water Bullets peppering our opponents as Siren showed her displeasure at my wounds. I could hear bones breaking and imagined several people lost their ability to walk or even breathe to that attack.
I gasped as a needle pierced my skin, and the cold sensation of an Antidote spread through me as Brock distributed healing items.
"You two good?" He asked. I nodded and bumped Gary with my shoulder, knocking him out of the daze he'd fallen into once we were no longer in immediate danger. He jolted and nodded jerkily, eyes darting to me, and the blood flowing from the dozen minor wounds I'd accumulated, guiltily.
Looking behind Brock and down the corridor, I saw, at the end, a staircase that I recognised as the one that led up. Adrenaline and rage chased away the pain and exhaustion, and I pushed off the wall, making to continue.
"Come on, we're almost there."
"Hold on, Peri," Brock interjected, stepping into my path with his hands up, "I think I should go first."
"I told you I'm fine," I tried to push past him, yet a hand on my chest held me back. Looking up to tell him off, the words died on my tongue when I found myself pinned by the most serious expression I'd ever seen on Brock's face, eyes wide open and severe.
"No, you're not." At least he kept his voice low. I wasn't sure the others had noticed that I wasn't just my normal psychotic self. "And normally, that's okay. But right now, you're a liability – not to mention injured – so you're staying behind me."
…shit. I wanted to protest so badly, yet I merely nodded mutely and allowed him to push me behind him. He was right, in the end. I barely knew what was going on anymore. I might've been able to handle the Rockets, the ship, or the Vulpix, hell, maybe even two at once.
But all three had me fucked up, and there wasn't time for my shit. Every time I'd come to, I'd been out of position or over to the side, doing my own shit.
For once, I'd swallow my pride and do the smart thing. It didn't matter as long as we got Proton.
"Fine, whatever. Lead the way, then, as long as we hurry up."
He looked at me for another moment before nodding and turning to the rest of the 20-30 people we'd somehow gathered along the way. The time it took to organise us had me gritting my teeth, but finally, Brock led the way up the stairs and out onto the deck of the S.S. Anne.
And into pandemonium.
Yells rang out over the deck, along with explosions and crashes. Bright flashing lights came from every direction as the ship crew – which I'd found suspiciously absent earlier – did their best to hold off the advancing ranks of Team Rocket. Dozens, if not a hundred, Pokémon fought back and forth, the more common TR species battling with the rarer types of the S.S. Anne. Those already defeated lay sprawled across the deck, the Rocket Pokémon much more numerous. And yet, even as I watched, more and more Grunts poured over the side of the ship, throwing out their PokéBalls to replace their fallen twice over.
BOOOOM!
A large smash over to the side drew my attention to a large group of Rockets, my heart thundering at the two white uniforms I saw among the masses. Across from them, a shadowy figure stood alone, their arms crossed as their equally hidden Pokémon battled a horde all by themselves.
Above it all, the dark skies swirled menacingly, howling gales threatening to send everyone overboard. The storm I'd seen through the window had intensified massively. Thunder boomed as rain whipped across our skin, and on the horizon I could see the top of a monstrous wave before it vanished beneath the railing, only for the ship to rock violently again.
"Hold the line! Left: push further up; right: get yourselves together! Arianna, reinforce the middle!"
The words cut through the chaos without issue, defying logic, and piercing straight through my brain like a bullet. Like magnets, my eyes moved on their own volition to the source, just as a booming thunderbolt split the sky and bathed the world in pale light, revealing the tall man's face behind the Rocket lines, directing them forward and barking orders.
A pointed chin at the bottom of a long face, cheekbones protruding sharply. The nose was petite and straight, the lips full and held in a casual smirk. The handsome man reached a slender hand up and pulled his black beret further down over his teal hair to protect against the storm.
"Come on, gentlemen, put your backs into it!" Executive Proton commanded as my world faded until only he and I existed.
Oh my God, Team Rocket, what are you doing here!?
I don't know if the way I wrote this works. I wanted to kick up the whole 'PTSD flashbacks' into full-blown episodes as there were a lot of triggers going on, where Peri just blacks out while doing shit. But I don't know how it comes across in the text.
It's not necessarily going to be a recurring thing, at least not often, but it felt appropriate.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
Despacitoleo
Versed in the lewd.
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I like the ptsd alot yippie
The Radiance's Follower
The Radiance is best.
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Reading this while listening to Nightcore re-awakened my emotions. I became my teen self for a bit kek. This chapter is the best yet. Looking forward to the next. I need to know what's coming in next.
Peri Vs Proton.
Peri Vs Proton.
Chapter 43.
New
HankPankylol
Making the rounds.
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Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
I'm getting my ass kicked by this illness, but nevertheless, the fight begins.
The storm raged. The pouring rain and undulating sea meeting in the dark and becoming indistinguishable, briefly revealed by the bluish-white cracks of thunder that rent the sky asunder and bathed the world in black and white.
The battle intensified. The S.S. Anne shook and creaked from more than just the waves. Two lines of Trainers – the crew and the boarding Team Rocket – met furiously in the middle of the deck, fire, lightning, water, and everything in between flying back and forth. Over to the side, an even more intense, if smaller, fight was playing out, two Executives throwing down with some powerful, mysterious Trainer.
None of it mattered.
Proton was a handsome man. It was somewhat startling to realise that I'd never had the chance to really look at him. Yet – in the second that stretched an eternity – I had to admit. He struck quite the figure, white uniform contrasting starkly with the black horizon, his pose casual despite the hectic surroundings, oozing confidence.
-I had a moment to see slanted teal eyes wide open in panic, pale skin glistening with sweat, and hair of the same green color partly covered by a black cap-
It was quite a difference from when we last met.
Hands were grabbing me, and voices were speaking, yet it was just so… faint.
"Handle the others." Even my own words were distant, my limbs wooden and moving on their own as I tore free from the grasp of my friends, feet pounding across the deck as I was suddenly sprinting. The Grunts in my way tried to stop me, but I must either have given a command, or my team simply understood my stupidity well by that point. Regardless, the obstacles in my path found themselves bowled over by Betty charging like a Rampardos, headfirst, a burning wheel of fire that was Sol by her side as they cleared the way.
And then, after years of dreaming, he was in front of me. I don't remember swinging my sword, yet when the green hexagons of a Protect leapt up to shield him, it felt like I was the one getting stabbed.
"PROTON!"
"Greetings!" He sounded almost cheerful, hand on his hat to prevent it from blowing away. "You say my name with such familiarity. Have we met?" A large purple head with half-lidded eyes and one hell of an underbite floated into view, seemingly unbothered by maintaining the Protect. Vents covered the Weezing, my eyes burning, and bile rising in my throat at the rank stench. The Poison-Type shifted, the smaller, secondary head meeting my eyes as a brightly burning Ember so dense it almost resembled a Flamethrower was blocked. "Oh! You are the Trainer of that very nice Growlithe! What was your name, Perspiration, or something? Not that it matters."
It was pure luck and Herc pulling me back that allowed me to avoid in time for something purple to shoot past me faster than I could register. Slowing down, four wings on a spherical body became distinct as the Crobat circled overhead, casually vanishing and taking down a Fearow that came a little too close. His shadow wavered, such a pitch black that it stood out even against the darkness. Two red eyes shone balefully, an unnaturally wide maw of fangs stretching. "Thank you for bringing it all this way, but I will take it from here. I would be a poor host if I allowed you to do all the work, no?"
I didn't even have the capacity for words, screaming in mindless rage as I threw myself at the Executive.
—-
Gramps had always been reluctant to tell him about the war. He'd never understood why. Even with the limited information that he had, Gary knew that his grandfather had been a hero.
He finally understood.
"Missile!"
Gary couldn't fucking believe it as Squirty retreated into his shell and flew into a Poochyena that thought it was clever. The Dark-Type was knocked out on the spot, much to the vocal dismay of its piece of shit, terrorist Trainer. Even still, Gary flinched at the sound of bones breaking and labored breathing, doing his best not to look at the still bodies and blood that surrounded them and only accumulated the longer the battle went on.
How had the traumatized psychopath actually been fucking right? How had he known they were going to be attacked?
Gary wasn't sure whether to classify that as Peri's usual Victini-level luck or absolute garbage.
As he watched, a Rocket's Golbat decided that its comrades were acceptable collateral and furiously beat its wings to unleash a barrage of Air Cutter slashes. The wooden deck was ripped to pieces, multiple Pokémon from both sides going down with cries that would haunt his nightmares as blood gushed from the deep cuts. His heart lurched into his throat as Squirty barely managed to turn around in time to tank the Flying-Type move with his shell and still ended up with a pair of deep grooves in the near-steel-hard armor.
It barely felt better when his Wartortle's returning Ice Beam froze the bat's left wing, and it plummeted from the air, only to be intercepted by Gary's Raticate as it leapt up and caught its throat between glowing incisors.
Gary turned his head away just in time, bile on his tongue at the wet sound of the Hyper Fang finishing the Golbat off.
No, it was definitely horrific luck.
He'd known that even weak Pokémon could be deadly, and it wasn't like he'd thought Peri was lying about Team Rocket's cruelty, yet to see it firsthand…
It was a horrible thought, especially when it was Gary himself who had dragged Raticate into it, but the casual violence the rat was engaging in only made him more resolved to send it back to Gramp's Reserve. Clefairy filled the Normal-Type slot better anyway, and Raticate was starting to hit a limit with its training.
Mew, how he wished he had Graveler with him. The Rock-Type's durability would've gone a long way towards putting him at ease. But, unfortunately, he'd fucked that up earlier. He knew he shouldn't have pushed her so hard; however, the thought of losing to Peri when they were so close…
Stupid, arrogant. But how the fuck was he supposed to know that he'd be in the middle of a fucking war?
"Starmie, Rapid Fire! Staryu, Defense!"
A storm of condensed balls of water, held together with a faint purple Psychic aura, bombarded the enemies as the Water/Psychic-Type levitated a little over the deck and started spinning, a blob of liquid gathering at the point of the top-most arm and being launched before the next appendage came back up. It wasn't a very strong attack, but then, neither were the Rockets. Scores of them fell, Pokémon and Trainers alike diving behind their unconscious comrades and using them as shields, the absolute fucking scumbags.
Meanwhile, the Staryu blocked what little managed to make it around Starmie's assault with liberal use of Rapid Spin and Protect to shield the stupid-haired Waterflower. It seriously grated to admit, but she might – potentially, perhaps – be contributing more than Gary himself was.
"Ash, take Charles and Mindy and reinforce the left side!"
"You got it, Brock! Come on, guys, they need our help!"
He felt like a spectator as the squinty-eyed rock-humper took charge of coordinating the defense. A massive shadow curled behind them, a scraping bellow emerging from the throat of the Onix as it did its best to help Staryu keep everyone safe, the wooden planks splintering under its weight. Meanwhile, a front line of melee fighters was gathered, Peri's beast of a Bagon in the heart of it all as she wounded and maimed left and right. She wasn't actually listening to Brock, but the former Gym Leader was planning around her. His Geodude guarded the Dragon-Type's flanks, leaving the brute free to tear into the primarily first-stage evolutions that the dirtbag thieves had probably ripped from the hands of some sniffling child.
Behind the physical fighters, the ranged battlers were rounded up, firing beams and jets of elemental energy into the Rocket formation – if the mindlessly charging horde could be called such. Finally, in the very back, the Trainers stood, Gary among them, reduced to a bystander as his team did most of the fighting on its own.
Fuck, even the loser was helping out. As soon as he got the order, he was off, running down to hold the side that threatened to fold.
Leaving Gary behind to aimlessly hold his dick, unable to even stop trembling, too scared to move, while everyone around him risked their lives. People he'd sneered at and mocked now had to look after him like an infant, just as Peri did in the corridors.
Fucking pathetic.
"Ariana, the center!"
"Fuck off, I'm busy!"
Hearing the obnoxiously haired prick that Peri had headed straight for – Proton, presumably. At least fucker looked stupid enough for the name. Glancing in the direction of the woman who responded, for a brief moment, Gary found himself mesmerized. Not by 'Ariana', though the white-uniformed woman had quite the pair of hips on her, but by her opponent.
Thunder boomed, the flash of light illuminating the blue bandana of the large, muscled man with his arms crossed casually, like they weren't on a sinking ship filled with murderers and scumbags. In front of him, a large blue, white, and black Pokémon levitated back and forth, water swirling around it calmly. The analytic part of Gary's mind that Gramps had spent years trying to foster noted the thick scars across the rough, sandpaper-like skin and the large tears in three out of four fins. The blank, almost dead eyes above a blood-dripping mouth of overlapping, interlocking teeth was disconcerting, but nobody had ever enjoyed making eye contact with a Sharpedo.
The rest of Gary was busy feeling a mix of envy and awe as the Water/Dark-Type held off a whole horde by itself, including Ariana's and another white clad Rocket leader's.
"Have to do everything myself," Proton mumbled to himself, wiping rain off his face with a sigh. "Sorry, kid, but it would seem that I have to end playtime here. Good subordinates are so hard to find."
Focusing back, Gary was just in time to see the hulking Weezing groan and open its ugly mouth, ass-gas spewing out in a purple cloud that Peri and his team frantically dodged backwards to avoid. As they did so, a cackling wraith with crimson eyes rose from Sol's shadow. Clawed hands of solidified miasma corroded the bright yellow pelt as they grasped the canine's sides, a painful howl lost in the rain and combat. An enormous tongue unfurled from the fanged maw, the Gengar uncaring as a Swift, a cluster of Water Bullets, and a wildly spinning sword passed through its body. Instead, it slurped loudly as it licked up the Growlithe's back, the vibrant fur dying and sticking to the tongue on the spot as the Fire-Type froze, paralyzed in one of the most awful ways possible, before vanishing in a red light as he was recalled.
"Gary, the Poochyena are starting to look weak! On my mark-Gary? GARY!?"
It was Brock, more than his own actions, that made Gary aware that he was running. Rockets turned in his direction, sensing weakness, but acting with that synchronicity that he'd heard stories about yet rarely, if ever, actually achieved, his team was suddenly with him.
Maybe it was their presence that gave him the balls to recruit some aid.
"OI, MORON!"
He pulled back his hand from the slap to the back of Behemoth's head as the limp body of a Zubat was spit out, and jaws the size of his skull snapped closed inches from him. The Dragon-Type shrieked after him as she ground her foot into a Magnemite, cracks spreading over the Steel-Type's body.
"Not me, idiot, him! Get!" The Bagon looked in the indicated direction right as the circling Crobat swooped down with all four wings glowing, shining with the energy of Steel Wing. Peri's Elekid tried to push him aside again; however, Gary's heart skipped a beat as blood spurted into the air, a cut running across Hercule's back and Peri's chest.
Thankfully, based on how quickly they were on their feet, it wasn't instantly deadly. And with the way the red-haired boy's mouth was moving and Proton's eyebrow raised, he was quite angry.
Like Trainer, like Pokémon.
Gary tried to hide it, but Betty was scary even on her best day. Something about the way she looked at him made him sure that if she could get away with it, she would eat him on the spot.
At that moment, though, she was truly terrifying.
Her pupils shrank down to pinpricks, a tiny slit of black on bloodshot white. The love of carnage that she usually embodied vanished, and it was only when she unleashed a bowel-loosening roar, accompanied by a plume of dragonfire that cleared both part of the deck and, briefly, the sky, that he realised that he'd never actually seen her angry.
And as she crouched before leaping much further than something her size had any right to, there was no doubt that she was furious.
Proton looked to the side as the last green-blue embers reached him. "Wha-" his eyes widened as a screeching Bagon fell from the sky with a short, glowing arm cocked back and murder in every fiber of her being. The Weezing put the Protect back up just in time as the Fighting-Type move hit the barrier with a sound like a gong.
And cracks spreading over the shield.
CREE-CRACK!
The Brick Break fought against the Protect for a second before it shattered like glass, green shards hanging in the air for a moment as the arm plowed through and hit Weezing head-on. Proton didn't have time to protest before his foul-smelling balloon bowled him over, and they rolled across the deck, unhinged Dragon-Type hot on their heels.
Meanwhile, Gary managed to make it to Peri's side right as the boy used his reclaimed sword to cut his shirt into strips and used them to bandage his chest wound and another on his shoulder and triceps. He had to suppress a small gag at all the blood, even as the hammering rain washed it away as soon as it emerged.
"Gary, go back to the others-"
"Shut the fuck up! I'm not gonna watch you die just because of your thick skull!" His voice was embarrassingly high-pitched, yet there was nothing for it. He couldn't just stand by; he couldn't. Not when people were dying all around him, and the guy who mentally fucked up his friend was right there, trying to do the same shit again.
Maybe, if they beat Proton, the rest would surrender or retreat. Maybe he could tell them everything they needed to take down the whole operation.
Maybe then, Peri could finally start healing.
"That's not-LOOK OUT!"
Thanks to Peri's warning, they sidestepped in time for a giant Bagon to come rolling by them, screaming in hatred all the while. Emerging from where they'd been tossed, Proton stomped back towards them, Weezing in tow with a big-ass bruise on the main head of the Poison-Type. The Team Rocket Commander, on the other hand, was soaked through, his clean uniform smeared with blood and dirt. He wiped furiously at the stains before giving up, glaring at Gary and Peri with murder in his eyes. Blood was thinned by the rain as it ran from his eyebrow, and his pretentious hat had been lost somewhere.
"You fucking brats. I was trying to be a nice guy, but for that, I will make it hurt. You!" He pointed to Peri, a snarl curling his thin lips. As an expert provocateur, Gary felt a sense of professional pride at seeing the fucker's facade shatter. "Where did you get that Bagon!? Huh!? Were you on the Orange Islands!?"
"Suck my dick, bitch!" Atta boy, Peri.
"I will make you spill your secrets then, along with your guts. Let us see how snarky you are when surrounded by corpses!" Taking a PokéBall from his belt, Proton released his fourth Pokémon. At first sight, Gary recognised the blueish-gray skin and reptilian features of a Machoke. But while normal Machoke were muscular, they didn't look like they were about to rip out of their skin. Nor were they panting like they were dying and had eyes so bloodshot they were almost pure red.
What in the world did they do to it?
"Kill the kids!"
Gary only had a second to register how fucked up that sentence was before the situation exploded into violence.
The juiced-up Machoke roared and moved, the floorboards splintering under each lumbering step. It was more of a series of leaps than running, the Fighting-Type bounding towards them with the Gengar in tow. Squirty, Growly, Raticate, Hercules, and Betty rushed forward to meet the Machoke as a storm of elemental energy plowed towards the ghost, who simply sank into the shadows with a cackle.
Gary's eyes widened as the Machoke swung an arm, the rain visibly bending to the side from the air pressure as the appendage nearly disappeared from how fast it was moving. The long wind-up and heavy telegraphing gave Squirty enough time to retreat into his shell, and yet, fragments burst from the tough carapace as it shattered upon impact. The sideways direction of the blow was the only reason the Water-Type didn't plow down through the deck, and Gary was still forced to watch his Wartortle hit the control tower and collapse the whole wall before he could recall the unconscious turtle.
Back at the fight, the Machoke was roaring with every blow, arms swinging wildly as it tore apart everything in sight. Gary's own Pokémon were smart enough to back away and use ranged attacks, Raticate bidding its time to act, yet Peri's madmen stayed in there. Gary winced in sympathy as the Elekid's left arm snapped like a twig upon trying to divert one of Machoke's own appendages, the Electric-Type whirring in pain. However, despite the amount of pain the yellow humanoid must've been in, that didn't stop it from taking advantage of the larger Pokémon stumbling from the force of its own attack. A Hammer Arm smacked into its left knee with the sound of a Pyro grenade going off, the deadly jaws of Betty snapping closed around the other thigh. It failed to do much, Machoke's steel-esque muscles protecting it from the worst until he kicked the two off and halfway across the ship, but it did expose a weakness.
Whatever move or stimulant they'd pumped the Fighting-Type up on, it wasn't used to it. Meaning there was an opening after it attacked.
Speaking of openings, though.
"HAAA!"
"HOLY FUCK!"
Somehow, Peri, the insane bastard, had snuck through the chaos and gotten within Weezing's guard, taking a swing at Proton. The very tip of his sword bit into Proton's cheek, carving a wound across his aristocratic cheekbone and the bridge of his nose, before the red-haired boy was forced to run away to avoid a Body Slam from the dual-headed Poison-Type.
"Arrggh, you fucking brats! Will you just die already!?"
Not if they had anything to say about it. Their Trainer almost getting his head lopped off distracted Proton's Pokémon, even penetrating through Machoke's drug haze, and they turned to look.
That was all the opportunity Raticate needed.
The Normal-Type blazed with a Quick Attack as it pushed off the deck, leaping through the air as the energy shifted to its mouth, front teeth glowing brightly as they seemed to grow even larger. Raticate couldn't sustain Quick Attack like Peri's Elekid could, but all it needed was a boost and Hyper Fang would do the rest. The rat flew through the air, over its comrades and directly towards Machoke's throat. Despite his earlier thoughts, Gary held his breath and hoped that it would be the killing blow-
-as Raticate's shadow passed over the overlapping ones beneath it, a black mass shot up and intercepted it. The large rat snapped its huge front teeth together threateningly, kicking and writhing, yet the Gengar holding it only squeezed tighter.
"A Raticate? How pedestrian. Gengar, do the young Oak a favor and clean out his trash."
Gary screamed at his team to do something, Peri doing the same and even charging in with his blade up, Gary hot on his heels, ready to punch the Ghost. Growly, Gary's own Growlithe, unleashed an eye-shearingly bright Flamethrower, steam erupting as the rain evaporated, yet it was easily avoided. Clefairy crackled with electricity, branching bolts of thunder cracking through the air, but the Weezing simply floated forwards to block it all.
The close-range fighters were all too far away to do anything as the Gengar's arm de-solidified into toxic miasma before shooting down Raticate's throat. Purple veins stood out instantly under the brown fur, the Ghost-Type dropping the Raticate and reforming its arm as the rat seized on the ground, flopping around like a Magikarp on land. It felt like an Ekans was wrapped around Gary's heart as pink foam leaked from his Normal-Type's mouth, and it snapped its own spine from the violent spasms.
Though that was nothing compared to the pain he felt when Raticate finally went still.
—-
It might've been a feeling of kinship, or maybe guilt. No matter the reason, the absolutely heart-wrenching scream Gary let out as his Raticate stopped twitching and went limp did a lot to bring me back to my senses.
For all that it mattered. By the time I finally made it to the Gengar, there was nothing to be done for Raticate.
The bisected upper body of the Gengar slowly rotated in mid-air to face me, revealing the deadpan expression on the Ghost-Type. An expression that didn't fade even as my sword passed through its head a dozen times, crisscrossing lines patching together as quickly as they formed, until I was forced to accept that it wasn't doing anything. The huge eyes moved from me to the half-melted blade in my hands, warped and discolored, and back to me with the most 'you serious?' energy I'd ever seen on a Ghost-Type.
Though it took it a little more seriously when Betty popped up behind it with her wide-open maw gleaming darkly with a Bite and chomped down on the Gengar. A horribly hoarse, whining cry – like a baby that had been chain-smoking for a decade – left the specter as it was forced into corporeal form by the Dark-Type energy.
"Siren!"
A trio of Water Guns pierced the Ghost before it forced Betty off of it with a clawed hand dripping with Distortion, but unfortunately, that was all we had time for before we were back on the run, Shadow Balls exploding in our wake. A crackling Thunderbolt and a steaming Flamethrower helped us out briefly, but Clefairy and Growly were soon forced to focus on themselves as Machoke was quickly on them.
I hated to admit it, but shit was looking bleak. Gary was down to just his Clefairy and Growlithe. I was doing slightly better, with Siren, Hercules, Betty, and Eevee still up; however, that w-
"EEE!"
-a small, furry shape hit me in the ribs, knocking the breath out of me and making me stumble. Something blew past me at speed, barely missing my neck, before it was gone again, Eevee yipping in pain as I caught her before she could hit the ground. I didn't bother inspecting the long wound that the flying assassin Crobat left behind, recalling her as quickly as I could get the ball out.
Scratch that, I guess. We were down to just five Pokémon.
At least the battle against the Grunts was going well, I noticed. The front line was being pushed back towards us faster and faster, with gaps starting to appear. At some point, the seemingly endless tide of Team Rocket that had been pouring over the railing had slowed and ceased.
Okay, if we could just hold out until the others got done, then we could team up and fuck Proton in the ass-
"PERI!"
-I got distracted. At some point, while I'd been overlooking the rest of the ship, Gengar and Machoke had switched places in a maneuver I hadn't thought the Fighting-Type had the mental capacity to pull off. The hulking brute was panting, muscles twitching as whatever was wrong with it tore its body apart, yet it was still more than capable of lifting a hand and preparing to bring it down on my head.
"BAAEEEEE!"
500-ish pounds of affectionate murder reptile leapt up and grabbed the wrist in her mouth, using all her weight and strength to bring it back down. Betty's head whipped back and forth furiously, droplets of blood running down the blue-grey skin as she tried to rip the hand off.
But it wasn't enough. Machoke barely seemed to register the added resistance, dragging the Titan Bagon behind it as it stepped back up to me. I tried to move away, to run backwards, yet my foot slipped on the mixture of water and blood that coated the deck. I fell on my ass, unable to do anything as another hand, palm broader than my head and with enough strength to easily shatter my skull, rose and came thundering down.
"EEEEEEEEIIIIIII!"
Again, one of my Pokémon got in the way. Hercules, the Elekid, jumped in front of me and raised both oversized hands above his head and braced himself, catching Machoke's as it came down despite his broken arm.
Instantly, Herc's legs gave up and collapsed under him, knees hitting the wooden boards and snapping them with a splintering crack! He whirred furiously as the hand pressed down further and further, his elbows being forced to bend under the force as the point of his snapped bone pressed against his skin. Even with Betty doing her best to pull the other way, even with Siren using whatever energy she had left after all the fighting we'd been doing, Machoke still barely seemed to realise that they were there. That close, I could see the pupils under the extreme bloodshot, and they were wide enough to completely cover the whole iris, the Fighting-Type high out of its mind. It took another step forward, Betty's claws carving through the deck as she was forced along. I could hear Hercules' teeth crack with how hard he was biting them together, and his tendons popping as he demanded his body keep going, trying to muster enough strength to get us out of the situation.
But he couldn't. Even if I moved, no one could help. Gary was being hounded by Gengar, spittle flying from his mouth as slurs and curse words I'd never even thought of poured like the rain. Siren was already doing everything she could, and just didn't have the leftover energy.
As Machoke's hand touched Hercules' head and he whirred even louder, glowing brightly with electricity, it just wasn't enough. It was a damn good effort, but no Thunder Shock he could pull off would be enough. No matter how loudly or deeply he whirred, or how brightly he glowed, or how tall he got-
-wait, what?
Indeed, Machoke's hand was slowly being forced back upwards, not just because of strength, but because Hercules himself was moving upwards. Glowing a blinding white that illuminated the stormy darkness around us, and emitting a constant static sound that grew deeper in pitch, the humanoid form of the Elekid changed. He grew taller, going from a little under two feet to around three, and broader as well, shoulders widening as they flexed and strained. One leg rose from its crater, three clawed toes forming on the foot as it supported the longer, thicker leg, and then mirrored on the other side as the Electric-Type ended up crouched before me. The dual prongs on his head shrank and vanished, replaced by antennae with bulbous tips where a human's ears would be, two long tufts of fur emerging from the top of his head.
With one final screech, Hercules stood up and threw Machoke off him, the starlight of evolution fading as he hammered a fist into his opponent's chest. Spit flew from Machoke's mouth as it stumbled back, tripping over Betty and ending up on the deck.
I gaped up at the Electabuzz from the ground, taking in the yellow fur striped with black, except for the white parts where he still had his scars. There was a large, lightning bolt-shaped patch on the newly evolved Pokémon's chest, a V-shaped stripe on his forehead, a thick stripe down his back, two bands on the legs, and several broken bands on each arm. His new tail, long and with more black bands, whipped back and forth in agitation as sparks leapt over Hercules' new form.
The knuckles on his new, five-fingered hands popped as he moved forward, slightly awkwardly, given his new form, yet learning with every step. Coming over Machoke as it began to rise, Hercules fell so he straddled the broad, beefy chest, mouth wide open and panting. Despite his obvious exhaustion, he still raised a hand high, thunder crackling around it with an ease he'd never been capable of before, coating the fist completely from view before bringing the real, proper Thunder Punch crashing down on his enemy.
BAM!
And again.
BAM! BAM!
And again.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
He didn't stop until a beam of red light hit the Fighting-Type and sucked it back into its ball, Proton glaring at us as Hercules was left panting on the ground, too tired to even stand.
"That's what I get, bringing lab freaks to the field. Damn eggheads told me it was ready, but I should have fucking known better. Have to do everything my-fucking-self around here, useless, garbage, pieces of low-class trash…"
Muttering curses to himself, he reached down and grabbed a fifth PokéBall from his waist. The capture device was dented, and the paint was chipped, suggesting a long, arduous journey that I didn't think the Rockets went through with their team. I braised myself as he reared back, trying to mentally prepare for the one Pokémon I hadn't seen yet, and had been dreading-
-The ship shook in response. A deep, low rumble reverberated through the boat, like a hundred tigers growled at the same time.
-suddenly, Proton stopped and rummaged around in his pocket. Pulling out what I recognised as a PokéNav, he opened it and started speaking into it.
"This is Proton. Yes, Sir, just wrapping up now-no. No, that's not possible, the field is still up." The Executive glanced at his Gengar, who nodded. "Yes, Sir. No, I deployed it before any boots touched the deck. I do not understa-yes, Sir. Yes. Ye-WHAT! YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!"
I wanted to give Gary the benefit of the doubt and think he took the opportunity while Proton was distracted with whatever was happening on the other end of his call, but truth be told, I doubted Gary gave two fucks about how open Proton was or wasn't.
So, somehow, I found myself playing support, despite the same urge to murder flooding my body. Proton's team switched to defense, Gengar and Weezing releasing vast swaths of poisonous gases and headache-inducing Distortion that forced us back, Crobat swooping down at every opportunity to harass and keep us on our toes. Several times, I had to break off my own attack to pull Gary or one of his team members back when anger blinded them, and even without the freak of a Machoke, it was essentially impossible to break through.
Still, we kept at it. Maybe we could take him down before he spilled the beans too much.
"But, Boss, I believe I have located the Titan Dragon-Type we lost on the Orange Islands!"
Welp, fuck me, I guess.
"I-no, I do not have it in my possession, yet, but if you give me-yes, Sir, I do. Yes, we could, but I am looking right at it-yes, Sir. Yes, Sir… then tell him to delay them, or have that freak help us out!... what do you mean, it's not time!? What better time is there!? We've finally crawled from the shadows and have a chance to show the world that they cannot fuck with us! Boss!"
Proton's face was very red by the time he was finished spitting his words out. I still couldn't hear the other end of the conversation – presumably with Giovanni – over the explosions and general bedlam that had befallen the S.S. Anne, but I saw the rapidly shifting emotions flash across his expression as his eyes fell on me again, before he finally settled on pale and shut off. With one final mumbled "yes, Sir," he closed his PokéNav and lifted his hand to his mouth, pressing a button on a hidden microphone, much like Bill had, emotionlessly giving orders.
"Drop the Distortion Field and prepare for extraction. We're done."
Despite being faint, the words stabbed like an icepick into my brain, especially as the green-haired fuck started turning his back towards us, neck turning so that he could keep eye contact with me the whole time, only briefly flickering towards Betty as Weezing sent her sliding across the deck back to me and floated over to its Trainer.
"This is not over, boy."
Damn fucking right it wasn't.
"KILL HIM! KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIIIIIM!" Gary sounded fully deranged, spit flying as he screamed. Still, it was a great suggestion, and one we were all eager to follow. Cones of flames, both normal and dragon, jets of water and ice that froze the rain in their paths, all flew towards Proton as he kept backing away. Hercules whirred in his new, deeper tone as he somehow rose, arms blurring in circles as he crackled with electricity far beyond what he'd been capable of before his evolution. A blinding lance of thunder leapt from his new and taller frame while paws and feet pounded across the deck to try and close the distance in time.
The orange and black fur of Growly blurred as she hurled into the front, lips peeled back to show her teeth and nothing but blood on her mind. She glowed with a Quick Attack as good, if not better, than Hercules' and sprinted faster than Sol could muster. Flames sprang to life around her fangs as she jumped, the light reflecting off Proton's wet throat-
-when the teal-haired fuck blinked out of existence with a tiny wink of azure light.
In fact…
Looking around the S.S. Anne, I saw that all of a sudden, there was only something like a quarter of the people left on board. Every single Team Rocket member, whether conscious or not, alive or dead, Pokémon or human.
All were gone in that miniscule flash of icy blue. The defenders were caught flat-footed, Pokémon mid attack tumbling across the deck, elemental blasts dissipating harmlessly into the stormy night.
Speaking of, I looked up in confusion as the freezing droplets whipping against my skin calmed rapidly. Much, much too fast to be natural. High above, the swirling thunderclouds began visibly slowing, the illuminating cracks of thunder vanishing before our eyes.
For a brief moment, I swore the spiderweb of lightning flashed behind a figure floating in the sky, yet when I blinked the water out of my eyes, it was gone.
In the distance, amidst the calming waves, a light blinked on and off, slowly growing larger.
It… it was over. It didn't feel real, my head fuzzy and everything seeming almost dreamlike, but…
We did it. We saved the S.S. Anne.
I watched as Gary collapsed to the deck, swiftly being surrounded by his team as they crowded around the body of Raticate.
Or what remained.
Yeah, what a win.
Victory? I mean, it's better than canon.
Right?
I knew that I had to kill Raticate here, it just fits too well with canon.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
I'm getting my ass kicked by this illness, but nevertheless, the fight begins.
The storm raged. The pouring rain and undulating sea meeting in the dark and becoming indistinguishable, briefly revealed by the bluish-white cracks of thunder that rent the sky asunder and bathed the world in black and white.
The battle intensified. The S.S. Anne shook and creaked from more than just the waves. Two lines of Trainers – the crew and the boarding Team Rocket – met furiously in the middle of the deck, fire, lightning, water, and everything in between flying back and forth. Over to the side, an even more intense, if smaller, fight was playing out, two Executives throwing down with some powerful, mysterious Trainer.
None of it mattered.
Proton was a handsome man. It was somewhat startling to realise that I'd never had the chance to really look at him. Yet – in the second that stretched an eternity – I had to admit. He struck quite the figure, white uniform contrasting starkly with the black horizon, his pose casual despite the hectic surroundings, oozing confidence.
-I had a moment to see slanted teal eyes wide open in panic, pale skin glistening with sweat, and hair of the same green color partly covered by a black cap-
It was quite a difference from when we last met.
Hands were grabbing me, and voices were speaking, yet it was just so… faint.
"Handle the others." Even my own words were distant, my limbs wooden and moving on their own as I tore free from the grasp of my friends, feet pounding across the deck as I was suddenly sprinting. The Grunts in my way tried to stop me, but I must either have given a command, or my team simply understood my stupidity well by that point. Regardless, the obstacles in my path found themselves bowled over by Betty charging like a Rampardos, headfirst, a burning wheel of fire that was Sol by her side as they cleared the way.
And then, after years of dreaming, he was in front of me. I don't remember swinging my sword, yet when the green hexagons of a Protect leapt up to shield him, it felt like I was the one getting stabbed.
"PROTON!"
"Greetings!" He sounded almost cheerful, hand on his hat to prevent it from blowing away. "You say my name with such familiarity. Have we met?" A large purple head with half-lidded eyes and one hell of an underbite floated into view, seemingly unbothered by maintaining the Protect. Vents covered the Weezing, my eyes burning, and bile rising in my throat at the rank stench. The Poison-Type shifted, the smaller, secondary head meeting my eyes as a brightly burning Ember so dense it almost resembled a Flamethrower was blocked. "Oh! You are the Trainer of that very nice Growlithe! What was your name, Perspiration, or something? Not that it matters."
It was pure luck and Herc pulling me back that allowed me to avoid in time for something purple to shoot past me faster than I could register. Slowing down, four wings on a spherical body became distinct as the Crobat circled overhead, casually vanishing and taking down a Fearow that came a little too close. His shadow wavered, such a pitch black that it stood out even against the darkness. Two red eyes shone balefully, an unnaturally wide maw of fangs stretching. "Thank you for bringing it all this way, but I will take it from here. I would be a poor host if I allowed you to do all the work, no?"
I didn't even have the capacity for words, screaming in mindless rage as I threw myself at the Executive.
—-
Gramps had always been reluctant to tell him about the war. He'd never understood why. Even with the limited information that he had, Gary knew that his grandfather had been a hero.
He finally understood.
"Missile!"
Gary couldn't fucking believe it as Squirty retreated into his shell and flew into a Poochyena that thought it was clever. The Dark-Type was knocked out on the spot, much to the vocal dismay of its piece of shit, terrorist Trainer. Even still, Gary flinched at the sound of bones breaking and labored breathing, doing his best not to look at the still bodies and blood that surrounded them and only accumulated the longer the battle went on.
How had the traumatized psychopath actually been fucking right? How had he known they were going to be attacked?
Gary wasn't sure whether to classify that as Peri's usual Victini-level luck or absolute garbage.
As he watched, a Rocket's Golbat decided that its comrades were acceptable collateral and furiously beat its wings to unleash a barrage of Air Cutter slashes. The wooden deck was ripped to pieces, multiple Pokémon from both sides going down with cries that would haunt his nightmares as blood gushed from the deep cuts. His heart lurched into his throat as Squirty barely managed to turn around in time to tank the Flying-Type move with his shell and still ended up with a pair of deep grooves in the near-steel-hard armor.
It barely felt better when his Wartortle's returning Ice Beam froze the bat's left wing, and it plummeted from the air, only to be intercepted by Gary's Raticate as it leapt up and caught its throat between glowing incisors.
Gary turned his head away just in time, bile on his tongue at the wet sound of the Hyper Fang finishing the Golbat off.
No, it was definitely horrific luck.
He'd known that even weak Pokémon could be deadly, and it wasn't like he'd thought Peri was lying about Team Rocket's cruelty, yet to see it firsthand…
It was a horrible thought, especially when it was Gary himself who had dragged Raticate into it, but the casual violence the rat was engaging in only made him more resolved to send it back to Gramp's Reserve. Clefairy filled the Normal-Type slot better anyway, and Raticate was starting to hit a limit with its training.
Mew, how he wished he had Graveler with him. The Rock-Type's durability would've gone a long way towards putting him at ease. But, unfortunately, he'd fucked that up earlier. He knew he shouldn't have pushed her so hard; however, the thought of losing to Peri when they were so close…
Stupid, arrogant. But how the fuck was he supposed to know that he'd be in the middle of a fucking war?
"Starmie, Rapid Fire! Staryu, Defense!"
A storm of condensed balls of water, held together with a faint purple Psychic aura, bombarded the enemies as the Water/Psychic-Type levitated a little over the deck and started spinning, a blob of liquid gathering at the point of the top-most arm and being launched before the next appendage came back up. It wasn't a very strong attack, but then, neither were the Rockets. Scores of them fell, Pokémon and Trainers alike diving behind their unconscious comrades and using them as shields, the absolute fucking scumbags.
Meanwhile, the Staryu blocked what little managed to make it around Starmie's assault with liberal use of Rapid Spin and Protect to shield the stupid-haired Waterflower. It seriously grated to admit, but she might – potentially, perhaps – be contributing more than Gary himself was.
"Ash, take Charles and Mindy and reinforce the left side!"
"You got it, Brock! Come on, guys, they need our help!"
He felt like a spectator as the squinty-eyed rock-humper took charge of coordinating the defense. A massive shadow curled behind them, a scraping bellow emerging from the throat of the Onix as it did its best to help Staryu keep everyone safe, the wooden planks splintering under its weight. Meanwhile, a front line of melee fighters was gathered, Peri's beast of a Bagon in the heart of it all as she wounded and maimed left and right. She wasn't actually listening to Brock, but the former Gym Leader was planning around her. His Geodude guarded the Dragon-Type's flanks, leaving the brute free to tear into the primarily first-stage evolutions that the dirtbag thieves had probably ripped from the hands of some sniffling child.
Behind the physical fighters, the ranged battlers were rounded up, firing beams and jets of elemental energy into the Rocket formation – if the mindlessly charging horde could be called such. Finally, in the very back, the Trainers stood, Gary among them, reduced to a bystander as his team did most of the fighting on its own.
Fuck, even the loser was helping out. As soon as he got the order, he was off, running down to hold the side that threatened to fold.
Leaving Gary behind to aimlessly hold his dick, unable to even stop trembling, too scared to move, while everyone around him risked their lives. People he'd sneered at and mocked now had to look after him like an infant, just as Peri did in the corridors.
Fucking pathetic.
"Ariana, the center!"
"Fuck off, I'm busy!"
Hearing the obnoxiously haired prick that Peri had headed straight for – Proton, presumably. At least fucker looked stupid enough for the name. Glancing in the direction of the woman who responded, for a brief moment, Gary found himself mesmerized. Not by 'Ariana', though the white-uniformed woman had quite the pair of hips on her, but by her opponent.
Thunder boomed, the flash of light illuminating the blue bandana of the large, muscled man with his arms crossed casually, like they weren't on a sinking ship filled with murderers and scumbags. In front of him, a large blue, white, and black Pokémon levitated back and forth, water swirling around it calmly. The analytic part of Gary's mind that Gramps had spent years trying to foster noted the thick scars across the rough, sandpaper-like skin and the large tears in three out of four fins. The blank, almost dead eyes above a blood-dripping mouth of overlapping, interlocking teeth was disconcerting, but nobody had ever enjoyed making eye contact with a Sharpedo.
The rest of Gary was busy feeling a mix of envy and awe as the Water/Dark-Type held off a whole horde by itself, including Ariana's and another white clad Rocket leader's.
"Have to do everything myself," Proton mumbled to himself, wiping rain off his face with a sigh. "Sorry, kid, but it would seem that I have to end playtime here. Good subordinates are so hard to find."
Focusing back, Gary was just in time to see the hulking Weezing groan and open its ugly mouth, ass-gas spewing out in a purple cloud that Peri and his team frantically dodged backwards to avoid. As they did so, a cackling wraith with crimson eyes rose from Sol's shadow. Clawed hands of solidified miasma corroded the bright yellow pelt as they grasped the canine's sides, a painful howl lost in the rain and combat. An enormous tongue unfurled from the fanged maw, the Gengar uncaring as a Swift, a cluster of Water Bullets, and a wildly spinning sword passed through its body. Instead, it slurped loudly as it licked up the Growlithe's back, the vibrant fur dying and sticking to the tongue on the spot as the Fire-Type froze, paralyzed in one of the most awful ways possible, before vanishing in a red light as he was recalled.
"Gary, the Poochyena are starting to look weak! On my mark-Gary? GARY!?"
It was Brock, more than his own actions, that made Gary aware that he was running. Rockets turned in his direction, sensing weakness, but acting with that synchronicity that he'd heard stories about yet rarely, if ever, actually achieved, his team was suddenly with him.
Maybe it was their presence that gave him the balls to recruit some aid.
"OI, MORON!"
He pulled back his hand from the slap to the back of Behemoth's head as the limp body of a Zubat was spit out, and jaws the size of his skull snapped closed inches from him. The Dragon-Type shrieked after him as she ground her foot into a Magnemite, cracks spreading over the Steel-Type's body.
"Not me, idiot, him! Get!" The Bagon looked in the indicated direction right as the circling Crobat swooped down with all four wings glowing, shining with the energy of Steel Wing. Peri's Elekid tried to push him aside again; however, Gary's heart skipped a beat as blood spurted into the air, a cut running across Hercule's back and Peri's chest.
Thankfully, based on how quickly they were on their feet, it wasn't instantly deadly. And with the way the red-haired boy's mouth was moving and Proton's eyebrow raised, he was quite angry.
Like Trainer, like Pokémon.
Gary tried to hide it, but Betty was scary even on her best day. Something about the way she looked at him made him sure that if she could get away with it, she would eat him on the spot.
At that moment, though, she was truly terrifying.
Her pupils shrank down to pinpricks, a tiny slit of black on bloodshot white. The love of carnage that she usually embodied vanished, and it was only when she unleashed a bowel-loosening roar, accompanied by a plume of dragonfire that cleared both part of the deck and, briefly, the sky, that he realised that he'd never actually seen her angry.
And as she crouched before leaping much further than something her size had any right to, there was no doubt that she was furious.
Proton looked to the side as the last green-blue embers reached him. "Wha-" his eyes widened as a screeching Bagon fell from the sky with a short, glowing arm cocked back and murder in every fiber of her being. The Weezing put the Protect back up just in time as the Fighting-Type move hit the barrier with a sound like a gong.
And cracks spreading over the shield.
CREE-CRACK!
The Brick Break fought against the Protect for a second before it shattered like glass, green shards hanging in the air for a moment as the arm plowed through and hit Weezing head-on. Proton didn't have time to protest before his foul-smelling balloon bowled him over, and they rolled across the deck, unhinged Dragon-Type hot on their heels.
Meanwhile, Gary managed to make it to Peri's side right as the boy used his reclaimed sword to cut his shirt into strips and used them to bandage his chest wound and another on his shoulder and triceps. He had to suppress a small gag at all the blood, even as the hammering rain washed it away as soon as it emerged.
"Gary, go back to the others-"
"Shut the fuck up! I'm not gonna watch you die just because of your thick skull!" His voice was embarrassingly high-pitched, yet there was nothing for it. He couldn't just stand by; he couldn't. Not when people were dying all around him, and the guy who mentally fucked up his friend was right there, trying to do the same shit again.
Maybe, if they beat Proton, the rest would surrender or retreat. Maybe he could tell them everything they needed to take down the whole operation.
Maybe then, Peri could finally start healing.
"That's not-LOOK OUT!"
Thanks to Peri's warning, they sidestepped in time for a giant Bagon to come rolling by them, screaming in hatred all the while. Emerging from where they'd been tossed, Proton stomped back towards them, Weezing in tow with a big-ass bruise on the main head of the Poison-Type. The Team Rocket Commander, on the other hand, was soaked through, his clean uniform smeared with blood and dirt. He wiped furiously at the stains before giving up, glaring at Gary and Peri with murder in his eyes. Blood was thinned by the rain as it ran from his eyebrow, and his pretentious hat had been lost somewhere.
"You fucking brats. I was trying to be a nice guy, but for that, I will make it hurt. You!" He pointed to Peri, a snarl curling his thin lips. As an expert provocateur, Gary felt a sense of professional pride at seeing the fucker's facade shatter. "Where did you get that Bagon!? Huh!? Were you on the Orange Islands!?"
"Suck my dick, bitch!" Atta boy, Peri.
"I will make you spill your secrets then, along with your guts. Let us see how snarky you are when surrounded by corpses!" Taking a PokéBall from his belt, Proton released his fourth Pokémon. At first sight, Gary recognised the blueish-gray skin and reptilian features of a Machoke. But while normal Machoke were muscular, they didn't look like they were about to rip out of their skin. Nor were they panting like they were dying and had eyes so bloodshot they were almost pure red.
What in the world did they do to it?
"Kill the kids!"
Gary only had a second to register how fucked up that sentence was before the situation exploded into violence.
The juiced-up Machoke roared and moved, the floorboards splintering under each lumbering step. It was more of a series of leaps than running, the Fighting-Type bounding towards them with the Gengar in tow. Squirty, Growly, Raticate, Hercules, and Betty rushed forward to meet the Machoke as a storm of elemental energy plowed towards the ghost, who simply sank into the shadows with a cackle.
Gary's eyes widened as the Machoke swung an arm, the rain visibly bending to the side from the air pressure as the appendage nearly disappeared from how fast it was moving. The long wind-up and heavy telegraphing gave Squirty enough time to retreat into his shell, and yet, fragments burst from the tough carapace as it shattered upon impact. The sideways direction of the blow was the only reason the Water-Type didn't plow down through the deck, and Gary was still forced to watch his Wartortle hit the control tower and collapse the whole wall before he could recall the unconscious turtle.
Back at the fight, the Machoke was roaring with every blow, arms swinging wildly as it tore apart everything in sight. Gary's own Pokémon were smart enough to back away and use ranged attacks, Raticate bidding its time to act, yet Peri's madmen stayed in there. Gary winced in sympathy as the Elekid's left arm snapped like a twig upon trying to divert one of Machoke's own appendages, the Electric-Type whirring in pain. However, despite the amount of pain the yellow humanoid must've been in, that didn't stop it from taking advantage of the larger Pokémon stumbling from the force of its own attack. A Hammer Arm smacked into its left knee with the sound of a Pyro grenade going off, the deadly jaws of Betty snapping closed around the other thigh. It failed to do much, Machoke's steel-esque muscles protecting it from the worst until he kicked the two off and halfway across the ship, but it did expose a weakness.
Whatever move or stimulant they'd pumped the Fighting-Type up on, it wasn't used to it. Meaning there was an opening after it attacked.
Speaking of openings, though.
"HAAA!"
"HOLY FUCK!"
Somehow, Peri, the insane bastard, had snuck through the chaos and gotten within Weezing's guard, taking a swing at Proton. The very tip of his sword bit into Proton's cheek, carving a wound across his aristocratic cheekbone and the bridge of his nose, before the red-haired boy was forced to run away to avoid a Body Slam from the dual-headed Poison-Type.
"Arrggh, you fucking brats! Will you just die already!?"
Not if they had anything to say about it. Their Trainer almost getting his head lopped off distracted Proton's Pokémon, even penetrating through Machoke's drug haze, and they turned to look.
That was all the opportunity Raticate needed.
The Normal-Type blazed with a Quick Attack as it pushed off the deck, leaping through the air as the energy shifted to its mouth, front teeth glowing brightly as they seemed to grow even larger. Raticate couldn't sustain Quick Attack like Peri's Elekid could, but all it needed was a boost and Hyper Fang would do the rest. The rat flew through the air, over its comrades and directly towards Machoke's throat. Despite his earlier thoughts, Gary held his breath and hoped that it would be the killing blow-
-as Raticate's shadow passed over the overlapping ones beneath it, a black mass shot up and intercepted it. The large rat snapped its huge front teeth together threateningly, kicking and writhing, yet the Gengar holding it only squeezed tighter.
"A Raticate? How pedestrian. Gengar, do the young Oak a favor and clean out his trash."
Gary screamed at his team to do something, Peri doing the same and even charging in with his blade up, Gary hot on his heels, ready to punch the Ghost. Growly, Gary's own Growlithe, unleashed an eye-shearingly bright Flamethrower, steam erupting as the rain evaporated, yet it was easily avoided. Clefairy crackled with electricity, branching bolts of thunder cracking through the air, but the Weezing simply floated forwards to block it all.
The close-range fighters were all too far away to do anything as the Gengar's arm de-solidified into toxic miasma before shooting down Raticate's throat. Purple veins stood out instantly under the brown fur, the Ghost-Type dropping the Raticate and reforming its arm as the rat seized on the ground, flopping around like a Magikarp on land. It felt like an Ekans was wrapped around Gary's heart as pink foam leaked from his Normal-Type's mouth, and it snapped its own spine from the violent spasms.
Though that was nothing compared to the pain he felt when Raticate finally went still.
—-
It might've been a feeling of kinship, or maybe guilt. No matter the reason, the absolutely heart-wrenching scream Gary let out as his Raticate stopped twitching and went limp did a lot to bring me back to my senses.
For all that it mattered. By the time I finally made it to the Gengar, there was nothing to be done for Raticate.
The bisected upper body of the Gengar slowly rotated in mid-air to face me, revealing the deadpan expression on the Ghost-Type. An expression that didn't fade even as my sword passed through its head a dozen times, crisscrossing lines patching together as quickly as they formed, until I was forced to accept that it wasn't doing anything. The huge eyes moved from me to the half-melted blade in my hands, warped and discolored, and back to me with the most 'you serious?' energy I'd ever seen on a Ghost-Type.
Though it took it a little more seriously when Betty popped up behind it with her wide-open maw gleaming darkly with a Bite and chomped down on the Gengar. A horribly hoarse, whining cry – like a baby that had been chain-smoking for a decade – left the specter as it was forced into corporeal form by the Dark-Type energy.
"Siren!"
A trio of Water Guns pierced the Ghost before it forced Betty off of it with a clawed hand dripping with Distortion, but unfortunately, that was all we had time for before we were back on the run, Shadow Balls exploding in our wake. A crackling Thunderbolt and a steaming Flamethrower helped us out briefly, but Clefairy and Growly were soon forced to focus on themselves as Machoke was quickly on them.
I hated to admit it, but shit was looking bleak. Gary was down to just his Clefairy and Growlithe. I was doing slightly better, with Siren, Hercules, Betty, and Eevee still up; however, that w-
"EEE!"
-a small, furry shape hit me in the ribs, knocking the breath out of me and making me stumble. Something blew past me at speed, barely missing my neck, before it was gone again, Eevee yipping in pain as I caught her before she could hit the ground. I didn't bother inspecting the long wound that the flying assassin Crobat left behind, recalling her as quickly as I could get the ball out.
Scratch that, I guess. We were down to just five Pokémon.
At least the battle against the Grunts was going well, I noticed. The front line was being pushed back towards us faster and faster, with gaps starting to appear. At some point, the seemingly endless tide of Team Rocket that had been pouring over the railing had slowed and ceased.
Okay, if we could just hold out until the others got done, then we could team up and fuck Proton in the ass-
"PERI!"
-I got distracted. At some point, while I'd been overlooking the rest of the ship, Gengar and Machoke had switched places in a maneuver I hadn't thought the Fighting-Type had the mental capacity to pull off. The hulking brute was panting, muscles twitching as whatever was wrong with it tore its body apart, yet it was still more than capable of lifting a hand and preparing to bring it down on my head.
"BAAEEEEE!"
500-ish pounds of affectionate murder reptile leapt up and grabbed the wrist in her mouth, using all her weight and strength to bring it back down. Betty's head whipped back and forth furiously, droplets of blood running down the blue-grey skin as she tried to rip the hand off.
But it wasn't enough. Machoke barely seemed to register the added resistance, dragging the Titan Bagon behind it as it stepped back up to me. I tried to move away, to run backwards, yet my foot slipped on the mixture of water and blood that coated the deck. I fell on my ass, unable to do anything as another hand, palm broader than my head and with enough strength to easily shatter my skull, rose and came thundering down.
"EEEEEEEEIIIIIII!"
Again, one of my Pokémon got in the way. Hercules, the Elekid, jumped in front of me and raised both oversized hands above his head and braced himself, catching Machoke's as it came down despite his broken arm.
Instantly, Herc's legs gave up and collapsed under him, knees hitting the wooden boards and snapping them with a splintering crack! He whirred furiously as the hand pressed down further and further, his elbows being forced to bend under the force as the point of his snapped bone pressed against his skin. Even with Betty doing her best to pull the other way, even with Siren using whatever energy she had left after all the fighting we'd been doing, Machoke still barely seemed to realise that they were there. That close, I could see the pupils under the extreme bloodshot, and they were wide enough to completely cover the whole iris, the Fighting-Type high out of its mind. It took another step forward, Betty's claws carving through the deck as she was forced along. I could hear Hercules' teeth crack with how hard he was biting them together, and his tendons popping as he demanded his body keep going, trying to muster enough strength to get us out of the situation.
But he couldn't. Even if I moved, no one could help. Gary was being hounded by Gengar, spittle flying from his mouth as slurs and curse words I'd never even thought of poured like the rain. Siren was already doing everything she could, and just didn't have the leftover energy.
As Machoke's hand touched Hercules' head and he whirred even louder, glowing brightly with electricity, it just wasn't enough. It was a damn good effort, but no Thunder Shock he could pull off would be enough. No matter how loudly or deeply he whirred, or how brightly he glowed, or how tall he got-
-wait, what?
Indeed, Machoke's hand was slowly being forced back upwards, not just because of strength, but because Hercules himself was moving upwards. Glowing a blinding white that illuminated the stormy darkness around us, and emitting a constant static sound that grew deeper in pitch, the humanoid form of the Elekid changed. He grew taller, going from a little under two feet to around three, and broader as well, shoulders widening as they flexed and strained. One leg rose from its crater, three clawed toes forming on the foot as it supported the longer, thicker leg, and then mirrored on the other side as the Electric-Type ended up crouched before me. The dual prongs on his head shrank and vanished, replaced by antennae with bulbous tips where a human's ears would be, two long tufts of fur emerging from the top of his head.
With one final screech, Hercules stood up and threw Machoke off him, the starlight of evolution fading as he hammered a fist into his opponent's chest. Spit flew from Machoke's mouth as it stumbled back, tripping over Betty and ending up on the deck.
I gaped up at the Electabuzz from the ground, taking in the yellow fur striped with black, except for the white parts where he still had his scars. There was a large, lightning bolt-shaped patch on the newly evolved Pokémon's chest, a V-shaped stripe on his forehead, a thick stripe down his back, two bands on the legs, and several broken bands on each arm. His new tail, long and with more black bands, whipped back and forth in agitation as sparks leapt over Hercules' new form.
The knuckles on his new, five-fingered hands popped as he moved forward, slightly awkwardly, given his new form, yet learning with every step. Coming over Machoke as it began to rise, Hercules fell so he straddled the broad, beefy chest, mouth wide open and panting. Despite his obvious exhaustion, he still raised a hand high, thunder crackling around it with an ease he'd never been capable of before, coating the fist completely from view before bringing the real, proper Thunder Punch crashing down on his enemy.
BAM!
And again.
BAM! BAM!
And again.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
He didn't stop until a beam of red light hit the Fighting-Type and sucked it back into its ball, Proton glaring at us as Hercules was left panting on the ground, too tired to even stand.
"That's what I get, bringing lab freaks to the field. Damn eggheads told me it was ready, but I should have fucking known better. Have to do everything my-fucking-self around here, useless, garbage, pieces of low-class trash…"
Muttering curses to himself, he reached down and grabbed a fifth PokéBall from his waist. The capture device was dented, and the paint was chipped, suggesting a long, arduous journey that I didn't think the Rockets went through with their team. I braised myself as he reared back, trying to mentally prepare for the one Pokémon I hadn't seen yet, and had been dreading-
-The ship shook in response. A deep, low rumble reverberated through the boat, like a hundred tigers growled at the same time.
-suddenly, Proton stopped and rummaged around in his pocket. Pulling out what I recognised as a PokéNav, he opened it and started speaking into it.
"This is Proton. Yes, Sir, just wrapping up now-no. No, that's not possible, the field is still up." The Executive glanced at his Gengar, who nodded. "Yes, Sir. No, I deployed it before any boots touched the deck. I do not understa-yes, Sir. Yes. Ye-WHAT! YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!"
I wanted to give Gary the benefit of the doubt and think he took the opportunity while Proton was distracted with whatever was happening on the other end of his call, but truth be told, I doubted Gary gave two fucks about how open Proton was or wasn't.
So, somehow, I found myself playing support, despite the same urge to murder flooding my body. Proton's team switched to defense, Gengar and Weezing releasing vast swaths of poisonous gases and headache-inducing Distortion that forced us back, Crobat swooping down at every opportunity to harass and keep us on our toes. Several times, I had to break off my own attack to pull Gary or one of his team members back when anger blinded them, and even without the freak of a Machoke, it was essentially impossible to break through.
Still, we kept at it. Maybe we could take him down before he spilled the beans too much.
"But, Boss, I believe I have located the Titan Dragon-Type we lost on the Orange Islands!"
Welp, fuck me, I guess.
"I-no, I do not have it in my possession, yet, but if you give me-yes, Sir, I do. Yes, we could, but I am looking right at it-yes, Sir. Yes, Sir… then tell him to delay them, or have that freak help us out!... what do you mean, it's not time!? What better time is there!? We've finally crawled from the shadows and have a chance to show the world that they cannot fuck with us! Boss!"
Proton's face was very red by the time he was finished spitting his words out. I still couldn't hear the other end of the conversation – presumably with Giovanni – over the explosions and general bedlam that had befallen the S.S. Anne, but I saw the rapidly shifting emotions flash across his expression as his eyes fell on me again, before he finally settled on pale and shut off. With one final mumbled "yes, Sir," he closed his PokéNav and lifted his hand to his mouth, pressing a button on a hidden microphone, much like Bill had, emotionlessly giving orders.
"Drop the Distortion Field and prepare for extraction. We're done."
Despite being faint, the words stabbed like an icepick into my brain, especially as the green-haired fuck started turning his back towards us, neck turning so that he could keep eye contact with me the whole time, only briefly flickering towards Betty as Weezing sent her sliding across the deck back to me and floated over to its Trainer.
"This is not over, boy."
Damn fucking right it wasn't.
"KILL HIM! KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIIIIIM!" Gary sounded fully deranged, spit flying as he screamed. Still, it was a great suggestion, and one we were all eager to follow. Cones of flames, both normal and dragon, jets of water and ice that froze the rain in their paths, all flew towards Proton as he kept backing away. Hercules whirred in his new, deeper tone as he somehow rose, arms blurring in circles as he crackled with electricity far beyond what he'd been capable of before his evolution. A blinding lance of thunder leapt from his new and taller frame while paws and feet pounded across the deck to try and close the distance in time.
The orange and black fur of Growly blurred as she hurled into the front, lips peeled back to show her teeth and nothing but blood on her mind. She glowed with a Quick Attack as good, if not better, than Hercules' and sprinted faster than Sol could muster. Flames sprang to life around her fangs as she jumped, the light reflecting off Proton's wet throat-
-when the teal-haired fuck blinked out of existence with a tiny wink of azure light.
In fact…
Looking around the S.S. Anne, I saw that all of a sudden, there was only something like a quarter of the people left on board. Every single Team Rocket member, whether conscious or not, alive or dead, Pokémon or human.
All were gone in that miniscule flash of icy blue. The defenders were caught flat-footed, Pokémon mid attack tumbling across the deck, elemental blasts dissipating harmlessly into the stormy night.
Speaking of, I looked up in confusion as the freezing droplets whipping against my skin calmed rapidly. Much, much too fast to be natural. High above, the swirling thunderclouds began visibly slowing, the illuminating cracks of thunder vanishing before our eyes.
For a brief moment, I swore the spiderweb of lightning flashed behind a figure floating in the sky, yet when I blinked the water out of my eyes, it was gone.
In the distance, amidst the calming waves, a light blinked on and off, slowly growing larger.
It… it was over. It didn't feel real, my head fuzzy and everything seeming almost dreamlike, but…
We did it. We saved the S.S. Anne.
I watched as Gary collapsed to the deck, swiftly being surrounded by his team as they crowded around the body of Raticate.
Or what remained.
Yeah, what a win.
Victory? I mean, it's better than canon.
Right?
I knew that I had to kill Raticate here, it just fits too well with canon.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
The Radiance's Follower
The Radiance is best.
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Huh ? What happened at canon ? How fucked up was canon for this to be the better outcome ?