From Dusk Till Dawn
AN: Hi Everyone this is my first story that I've had in my head for a while and I'd really appreciate some reviews and how you think I should improve. This story is one which takes place in a more realistic pokemon world but not an incredibly dark one. This chapter is quite dark but the tone will only be this dark in a few chapters. By realistic I mean that certain things will be explained like the Nurse Joy system (I'm not going to go into intense scientific detail about everything as i find that often goes over my head) and there will be serious themes such as war but this isn't going to be filled with death and despair. It will be a story about a boy who has had a shit life learn to love and accept pokemon and others to improve myself. In many ways it will be a typical pokemon journey story just with some dark themes thrown in as it is aimed at a more mature audience than the anime. However it won't be like the 'dark stories' you see where everything is about death and despair, doom and gloom. The overarching story will simply be a bit darker than the anime and games but it will still feel like the world of the games or anime as I want readers to feel that they know the world i'm talking about. However there will be quite a bit of swearing i'm afraid. ANyway please leave a review it would mean the world and I hope you enjoy it!
The10thMuffinMan
Chapter 1
*CRACK*
"AARGH"
…
"Did that just happen?"
…
"Is it dead?"
...
*CHEERS*
"FUCK YEAH!"
"I win, hand it over…"
It was this cacophony of sound that the young boy heard as he raised his head to the dim light shining down upon him. He wiped his brow only to look at his hands to see the wraps covering them soaked in blood, his own and his opponents no doubt. The Breloom unconscious in front of him was called back into its pokeball as its trainer silently glared at him and walked away, fuming. A scruffy, balding man wearing a filthy shirt 2 sizes too small walked into the arena towards the boy,handing him a wad of bills.
"Well done Dante, another win in the bag, here's your earnings then. Don't spend it all at once."
The Boy, now known as Dante, silently accepted his winnings and walked out of the rundown, crowded bar, pushing through the mob of drunks whilst counting his winnings in his head.
"200 Poke, that should last me the week if I manage to haggle down my dinners to at least 25 poke a night. Goddammit who am i kidding this will last me 4 or 5 days better not be pulling one over me again that bastard ."
He hissed as he pulled his ratty old jacket on, knowing that the Breloom must have cracked a couple of ribs in their fight and he knew that at least 2 of the fingers on his right hand were broken. But that was the nature of the underground fighting rings, a human would fight a pokemon to unconsciousness in order to make some quick cash. There usually wouldn't be any fatalities, as that drew the attention of the local coppers but now and again, there would be the usual accident. By all rights he, a 14 year old boy, should have stood no chance against a fighting type like a Breloom but the pokemon he fought was in terrible condition, underweight and sickly, probably forced to evolve at an early age but despite that it still packed a mean punch.
Making his way outside, he took a deep breath of the cool, evening air and made his way through Canalave city, looking around at the factories billowing out smoke as if the city itself was bragging about being the industrial capital of Sinnoh. But despite this, Dante could positively say it was a shithole to live. Having lived there his entire life as a street urchin, Dante had been all over the city and whilst certain areas may be somewhat respectable, such as the centre with its famous library, gym and bridge, the rest of the city was simply an industrial hub,filled with factories and apartment complexes. Dante ruminated on this as he made his way through the city, noticing that whilst he had been inside the bar, a sudden downpour appeared to have come and gone, leaving behind a damp and chill in its place, making the streets empty but the sky clear.
He eventually reached his destination, overlooking the Straits of Sinnoh, the name given to the 20 mile wide gap that separates isle of Canalave from the rest of Sinnoh, although those in the league may call it "Route 218," Not that anyone calls it that. Dante had always loved the sight of the bay, it seemed like the 1 peace of pure nature on this Arceus forsaken rock, with its gentle waves and strong sea breeze, Wingull cawing overhead and the clicking of cascoon and dustox as they woke for the night. Collapsing on a nearby Bench, the backside of his trousers getting wet, Dante stared into a puddle on the floor in front of him. He barely recognised the face that stared back, dirty blonde hair reached the back of his neck, covering his once bright blue eyes, now dulled by years of pain seemingly held up only by the large bags under them, various hairs randomly sprouting from his chin and if one looked closely they would see the faint marks which may once have been laugh lines but if they were, all that was left now was a faint impression.
"Yep, just your typical ruffian, parents hide your kids!"he muttered quietly, chuckling to himself at the idea that he looked exactly like the kind of guy most kids his age would be being warned about. This wasn't helped by the large shiner developing on his forehead.
He keeled over coughing, feeling like a machamp's personal punching bag, blood spattering the puddle he was gazing into, distorting his image, leaving a tangy, metallic taste in his mouth; it was nothing short of a miracle that he still had all his teeth.
"Argh fuck," he groaned, feeling his head spin as he pulled a couple of questionable painkillers from his pocket that he kept for situations like these and downed them, feeling them slowly slide down his throat uncomfortably. He leant back, closed his eyes and waited for the meds to kick in when…
"DOOOOOOM"
*CRASH*
"CLOPS"
*BANG*
Out of nowhere the signs of a battle near him caused him to shoot his feet,hissing at the pain in his side as he turned his head towards the noise coming from the nearby trees debating on what to do. Against his better judgement he made his way into the small grove, pushing aside branches to witness what could only be described as a massacre. In The middle of a clearing stood a lone Dusclops, its arms held out wide in front of it, preparing a shadow ball as it faced down a Houndoom and its trainer, an older man with a thick, black beard and a cowboy hat.
"Poacher," he realised, "But what is he doing so close to the city, it can only be 10 minutes away, this doesn't make sense. Normally they stick to the wilds and rural areas with less police, not on the outskirts of cities." He was brought out of his musing when he saw a flamethrower send the dusclops backwards towards, where he noticed, another dusclops lay, dead as its red eye was not glowing and visible. The houndoom then pounced upon the defenceless dusclops.
When he saw this he felt a burning rage settle upon him, red mist clouded his eyes ashe charged forwards almost bounding towards the poacher slamming a fist into the side of his head, knocking him out cold. As the houndoom got up from its current prey, Dante grabbed the pokeball hanging off the poacher's belt, hurriedly pressing the button on the front hoping it would work as he had seen.
Fortunately it did as a redbeam struck the houndoom and pulled it into the ball. Dante dropped the ball and rushed over to the 2 dusclops's to check on their condition. He didn't know why he felt such a need to protect these pokemon, he just felt a tug in his gut that he should. As he suspected the one he had seen lying first was dead, there was no light in it's red, ruby eye. But the other one, the one he had seen try to fight was still alive, but barely as it suddenly gripped his coat with a grip like iron and then seemed to look behind him. As he turned he saw a small shadow push him over and press its face into the dusclops chest.
"A Duskull he realised, they must have been protecting it." It made a heartbreaking, keening sound followed by repeated high pitched "dusk dusk, DUSK DUSSSUUUUSSKK!" As it was now bashing his face into its mother's chest. Dante simply sat there, not knowing what to do until he almost unknowingly placed his hand on its head, trying to convey some form of comfort to the small pokemon. It turned around, burying its face in his chest, weeping and he could see that now the mother to was dead.
A sudden rustling drew his attention and as he turned around he saw that the poacher was getting to his feet,doing his best to stay quiet but now he had been seen he stood up to his full height and looked at him with a look of pure hatred.
"YOU LITTLE SHIT! I'LL TEAR YOU LIMB FROM LIMB. HOUNDOOM, RIP THIS FUCKER TO SHREDS!" He spat, sending the dark/fire pokemon started towards fim.
Gripping the petrified duskull to his chest, Dante sprinted through the trees which whipped his face and clothes, having a slight advantage as the houndoom tripped but as he ducked under a branch he felt a burning warmth pass above his head. The wet wood was all that prevented a forest fire from killing all the pokemon in the near vicinity. With that he sprinted towards the edge of the treeline but came to a sudden halt as his stomach dropped. He had not come out where he entered but on a small cliff face where he was trapped by a pissed off houndoom on one side, and a 20 ft drop on the other.
He turned around when he saw his pursuers emerge from the trees, the houndoom looking to pounce but the poacher held it back.
"Listen son, I fink there's been a slight misunderstanding but i'll tell you what, i'll let you live so long as you give me that sweet little Ghostie you got there okay," the poacher said in a sickly voice which was somewhat marred by the slight lisp he now had due to him now missing a couple of teeth.
"Fuck you!" Dante shouted back, clinging the now shivering but surprisingly warm ghost type to his chest.
"Ah you got spunk kid but that aint gonna help you so i suppose i'll just take him off you the hard way, houndoom, BITE!"
The horned canine approached him and Dante realised that he was terrified, up until now the only pokemon he had fought were weak, mistreated and not fit for battle but this houndoom was the real deal, its left eye was welded shut by a scar and its body was definitely not underfed, it was 80 lb of pure muscle and ferocity; this was a trained fighter and he didn't stand a chance. As it pounced at him he closed his eyes holding up his left arm to defend himself as he curled his right over the small ghost type and then he was suddenly on his back and his left arm felt like it was on fire, he opened his eyes to see it was being held like a chew toy by this beast which to his eyes looked like a demon.
Terrified and without thinking, Dante began to struggle through the pain, pure adrenaline keeping him alive. He didn't wasn't to die and with that blind panic encompassing his thoughts he almost didn't feel the pain, almost didn't feel the blood dripping onto his face until suddenly he felt a shake underneath him and then he and the 2 pokemon with him fell into the icy depths below...
