Zangoose's Tale
I wrote this for my friends a long time ago, but I'll chance seeing how you folk like it.
-----
The afternoon sun beat down upon Zangoose's back, warming her fur, while a fresh breeze from the ocean below them to the North simultaneously cooled her body.
Her Master walked beside her down the dirt path, appearing several times taller than usual, as she was on all fours. There was a reason for acting like her wild counterparts: she was casually keeping alert for the scent of other Pokémon, specifically "newies", as her Master called them.
Newies were wild Pokémon the pair had not yet encountered and captured on film in the small camera he carried. It was almost a part of him, her Master's camera. Though almost primitive in the technology field, it still produced images upholding the quality of the shots the boy took and part of their journey was based on stopping by Pokémon Centers to upload and sort those images on the generously provided.
Her Master was the proud son of a famous Pokémon photographer, world known for achieving recognition as a photo artist as a child and capturing the natural, and often rarely observed soul of Pokémon in their natural habitat.
His father's life inspired the boy to take the same path, travelling the land and oceans photographing creatures and the world they live in, always with Zangoose by his side.
His first Pokémon, he had never given her a nickname, she was just Zangoose and he was Master, though unable to speak the same words as he did, the name was never heard out loud. She understood his language, though and through their lifelong bond, he in return could make sense of her movements and barks, and this proved invaluable in tracking photo subjects together.
Today they had only taken pictures of Wingull adapted to urban life as they passed through a seaside town, and the boy had asked her to keep her senses alert for any other shore-dwelling creatures, as they were expected by a family friend in the next town by the next evening, so they would not venture far off the path hunting blindly today.
The path they walked along had curved away from the shoreline a few hours ago, so they were still close to the sea, though they were entering the hilly countryside, its lush green sweeping ahead and to the South of them.
"Zangoose, I think we are too far from the beach for many Water Pokémon to be living around here, let's just take it easy for the rest of the day. Here."
Her Master stopped walking and produced a couple of Oran berries from the pocket on his cargo pants, kneeling and handing her one, then rising and staring down at the sparkling water while nibbling the remaining fruit.
Zangoose sat by his feet and did the same, the mild but distinct juice mixing with the salty air all around them.
- - -
Nidorino breathed raggedly from within the thorny bushes that grew across the hillside. Through the hazy red of its vision, it viewed the human and small white Pokémon, the scent of the town still on them blowing upwind across the Poison type's face, filling it with direct anger.
The almost permanent, dark memory circled in Nidorino's mind at the smell. Its sister Nidoran, lying still at the verge along the side of a black, unnatural path, not made by Pokémon feet, but by the shining, reeking monsters the humans moved in.
The adolescent humans on the monster that attacked her didn't even try to help, stopping only to gawp at her, muttering in low tones, and then speeding away.
Alone without its sister, Nidorino had run in unguided sadness for two days and nights, stopping to collapse in exhaustion on the hills near the big water, the sadness gradually becoming something more powerful and red as lonely, hungry days and nights passed by.
Now Nidorino didn't think of eating or grooming. It just remembered its sister and those who took her from the world.
- - -
The silence around them was only apparent when it was shattered by an awful combined roaring and rumbling. Zangoose and her Master were jerked back to the countryside by a muddy, purple hulking creature exploding from uphill toward them.
Dropping his berry, the boy cried out and dove to the ground, the Pokémon thundering past and raising dust into the air. Zangoose leaped to his side and barked at him to get up, for the attacker was turning in a clumsy wide half circle to return.
The boy clambered to his feet and identified the creature, calling to it in a confused voice. "Nidorino, stop! We won't hurt you-- we're just passing by--please listen to me!"
Nidorino didn't stop, however and crashed back uphill at the young man, the spikes on its back bristling as it emitted another roar like sound. Zangoose threw herself directly at the face of the aggressor, her claws tearing into and giving her grip to its head, just to one side of the deadly horn protruding from its temple. Nidorino's direction became random as it shook its head madly to remove her, but she hung on.
She didn't fear for herself: Immunity to Poison running through her veins and confidence in being much more nimble than the foe, but her boy did and was not, and this terrified her.
"Zangoose, no-- run!" Unable to see anything but the purple she clung to, the boy's shouts guided her and she kicked off from the moving wall in the direction of his voice, then rolled to her paws as she hit the ground.
Quickly assessing the situation, she bounded along with her Master, back to and down the path they had be travelling on as the Nidorino behind them tried to understand where they had gone. The boy's boots raised miniature dirt clouds and her claws splattered drops of the rouge's blood as they ran, both pushing themselves to keep moving, but within seconds their footfalls were joined by a heavier set as the attacker found and pursued them.
Zangoose's sharp hearing assessed that they would be trampled if they didn't move immediately, so she darted to the left suddenly, hoping her Master would follow.
Daring to turn her head, she watched him stumble out of the path of the Nidorino with half a second to spare, but barked in alarm as it swung its huge head in passing, the horn catching the boy's lower back and tearing across him, his t-shirt shredding loudly. He amazingly kept following her, though his face was creased in pain and terror, unable to do anything about the deadly toxins both knew would already be in his weaker, human bloodstream.
Again the relentless Poison type turned to attack the boy, its eyes bloodshot and face torn, resembling something from a nightmare. This time the youngster was not fast enough and Zangoose's ears were filled with his cry.
Nidorino caught the photographer with the side of its head, pushing him down the hill with terrible strength, and his beloved Pokémon flinched as he fell and rolled several times, stopping on his back some way away, eyes closed and body still.
She almost flew down to fall beside him, pushing her head into his chest to feel for his breathing or heartbeat. Her own blood was rushing through her head and it was difficult to hear anything else. She was aware that Nidorino was not rushing them for a forth time and lifted her head to watch it lumber awkwardly away, apparently satisfied that it had won the one sided battle.
The boy below her coughed suddenly and she returned her attention to her Master, understanding that he was dying. A dark pool was forming below him, proving the horn wound was not just skin damage and his breathing was forced, but he managed to open his eyes.
Zangoose's own eyes swelled with tears at the fear in her Master's and he tried to speak to her, though he could only manage raspy coughs. The poison was acting quickly and he gave up trying to talk, instead gazing at her and the blue sky behind her head in silence.
Her Master died a few minutes later, under the afternoon sun.
***
Nidorino's heart beat gradually slowed, as did the adrenaline flow it pumped along.
The gashes on its face began to sting and its belly demanded filling.
The Pokémon moved painfully across the countryside, away from the human who it had made stop. Stop like his sister had.
The hazy red wasn't there anymore, yet Nidorino felt no better. It was a simple creature, but it had a sense of justice, as did all creatures.
There was not justice for Nidoran today.
- - -
It was early morning. Zangoose had not slept the previous night, and was thankful for the light.
The ground around her and her best friend's now cool body was scattered with long black feathers, the only tell-tale that Murkrow haunted these hills after dark, and those scavengers would not visit them again for a long while.
Defending her human all night had further wearied the Normal type, who while silently praying to the grey and yellow being in light that Pokémon have faith in, tucked herself under the boy's arm and slept.
She awakened later into the morning knowing what she would do.
Growling a soft goodbye to the young photographer, Zangoose pulled his wallet from his dusty pants pocket and placed it gently in the middle of the dirt track, nudging it open with her nose. She knew another human would walk this path eventually.
***
Zangoose set out following the rouge's trail. She did not need to use her nose, as the creature left blood and deep imprints from it's heavy paws, so she walked on her hind legs, like she did with her Master.
It took until the evening before she laid eyes on the Nidorino again, at the edge of a small woods, uncared for and wild. The Poison type was digging for roots at the base of a large tree with it's horn, spraying soil and grass everywhere in the process. It looked up as she approached, its eyes no longer bloodshot, just sad. It knew why she was here, yet didn't rush at her.
Zangoose did not want this. She leapt at the immobile Pokémon before her, swinging her right paw and catching it across the cheek, leaving three red gashes, though they were not deep. She swung with the left and again could not strike with her full strength.
All the while, the Nidorino that had such murderous rage mere hours ago stood, taking it; staring at its assaulter until she stopped, her eyes blurring with angry, confused tears.
Both Pokémon stood, staring into each other's faces until they somehow came to a silent, unexplained agreement together.
Nidorino inhaled and narrowed its eyes at Zangoose, deciding it truly wanted this and the small cat ferret barked that she did too.
Nidorino thrust its horn at the white Pokémon before it and she pounced to the side, avoiding the jab fully. Zangoose then doubled back on herself and stabbed with both claws, missing the great creature as it reared up onto it's hind legs.
Falling below the massive body, she quickly spun over and slashed upwards with her back paws, just scratching the purple exposed underside, using the movement to propel herself up and between the back legs, just as the front two came crashing down where her head had been.
Rolling out from under Nidorino, Zangoose jumped onto its back, the small spikes digging into her paw pads, piercing one. Nidorino felt the adrenaline returning and bucked sharply, launching the Normal type through the air, turning to where it heard the resulting thump. Zangoose was already gone, however, using Sword's Dance and slashing at its side with the surge of strength the move gave her.
The attack tore open the Nidorino's flesh, causing it to turn and swing at her with its front leg, knocking her head over haunches.
Dazed, Zangoose tried to rise and was hit again by a repeat blow which sent her sprawling on the grass.
A huge purple mass rose before her and Zangoose gritted her fangs together, focusing her energy into getting up for the final attack.
Nidorino rose to crush her with its front paws and Zangoose used every ounce of her power to take advantage of the second weak spot exposure. Leaping and slashing across with both front paws, she split the Nidorino's underbelly in a single movement. The Poison type roared and fell to the ground, its front legs flailing and catching Zangoose across the side, sending her spinning into the trunk of the tree with a disturbing crunch.
Both Pokémon lay dying where they fell.
Nidorino, unable to use its flat paws as hands, could not hold in its internal organs and lay on the grass as they leaked away its life.
Zangoose's spine was broken, she couldn't feel it, or much of anything, but knew that it was so. She lay in a heap at the base of the tree, breathing irregularly.
Both Pokémon could see each other the from their positions and exchanged a respectful gaze, truly understanding one another as their vision faded.
Nidorino was no longer plagued by blind rage nor a permanent melancholy for his sister and what he had done.
Zangoose had upheld her species' unsaid vow to seek and honour a vendetta; she hoped her human would comprehend what she had done for him from wherever humans go after life.
Zangoose closed her eyes.
----
Erh, I hope you haven't read this kind of story a thousand times before, I think the idea of a protective animal is a cliche, but I tried what I could.
I wanted to touch on how a world full of magical Pokemon that can literally smash through buildings might not be a very safe one for children. VGCats recently made a funny comic pointing this out, actually.