Don't be a hero
Johto region, Mount Silver
"Don't wonder too far out, Tommy!" His mother called out.
Tommy nodded and walked out of the Pokecenter. He did not understand why his parents wanted to move to this Arceus-forsaken place anyway. He was happy in Pewter City. He had friends, a life… All that was gone.
Slowly, he walked around and explored the small town set up in the middle of nowhere. Everybody he met was old and aged. Some seemed ready to collapse at any moment. There was no one his age at the town at all – no one who could possibly relate to him.
Sighing, Tommy walked absent-mindedly along the dirt road. His new life here was going to be horrible.
"Hey kid, where're you goin'?"
Tommy quickly turned around, only to come face to face with an extremely tall and well-built man. "Wow!" He exclaimed as he quickly backed off a couple of steps.
"That's right." The man nodded. "You wouldn't want to go there if you're smart."
"Don't tell me what to do. Who do you think you are, my father?" Tommy said defiantly.
"This road leads to the woods, where some fearsome Pokémon live. Are you sure you're prepared for this?" The man asked.
"Of course!" Tommy lied. He wasn't even a trainer yet, even though he was already twelve. His parents refused to get him a starter Pokémon when he turned ten as they felt it was too dangerous for him.
"Show me your Pokémon then." The man said. "If you impress me, I'll let you through."
Tommy frowned. He reached his hand into his pocket and said, "Don't blink."
The man seemed intrigued and bent down for a closer look.
"Here!" Tommy took his hands out and poked the man harshly in the eyes.
"Uwaargh…!" The man quickly covered his eyes with his hands and let out a string of profanities that would make a sailor blush. "Arceus! You son of a…"
Tommy stuck out his tongue. "Oops, my bad." He said as he ran towards the forest. "Better luck next time."
"Kid, wait-"
It was too late. Tommy did not stop to listen and ran deeper into the forest. Soon, the branches overhead formed a continuous canopy, which enveloped Tommy in darkness.
The sense of victory vanished quickly as Tommy got tired from running. He stopped to catch his breath and took in his new surroundings. The forest was dark and everything around him seemed to cast an eerie shadow. He took a step back and felt his feet coming into contact with moist grass. Wait… moist grass?
Tommy quickly turned to look at where he came from and sure enough, he was surrounded by forest. The dirt trail which he once followed was long gone. Panic started to set in. How was he going to escape?
"Okay… Calm down." Tommy said to himself. "What would my parents do?"
"Stay calm and wait for help." Tommy could imagine his father saying. "Don't be a hero. Don't try to escape on your own."
Tommy nodded and sat in the floor. Help was on the way… Right? The man who Tommy provoked… he was a guard. His duty was to rescue people like Tommy right? Or was he going to stay quiet and leave Tommy all alone in the forest? Okay, maybe provoking that man was not such a good idea after all.
'Psssh…' The bushed rustled.
Tommy jumped up and backed away. So far, he still had not encountered any wild Pokémon. How long was his luck going to last?
Suddenly, a large Pokémon came jumping out at him, brandishing its huge red claws in a menacing manner.
"Ahhh!" Tommy yelled instinctively as he quickly ran in the opposite direction. He took a quick glance to identify the Pokémon behind him.
It was a large bug with a giant mushroom growing out of its back. Its whole body was bright red – a sure sign that its body was laden with numerous harmful toxins. At each side of its body, it held a massive red pincer, almost as large as its face. The Pokémon snapped its pincers with a loud 'Clang!' noise.
"Parasect…" Tommy muttered as he recognized the Pokémon. It was so much more fearsome in real life than in his textbooks back at school.
Tommy soon found out that turning his head to identify the Pokémon was another mistake, as his legs got caught in some vies and he fell – face first – onto the ground.
The Pokémon let out a squeal of delight as it pounced onto Tommy.
Tommy closed his eyes. It was over.
Then, there was another squeal.
Tommy opened his eyes, only to see Parasect suspended in mid-air. Upon closer inspection, Tommy saw that there were actually tiny fibres trapping and holding the Pokémon in place. The Parasect struggled and squirmed, but the web only wrapped more tightly around its body.
"Ssqealk!" There was that squeal again.
Tommy quickly got up and ran behind another tree to observe what happened.
Another insect climbed down from the treetops to observe its newfound victim. Tommy's eyes widened in fear and he quickly clasped his hands over his mouth to stop himself from screaming. It was a giant yellow spider with numerous blue, evil eyes. It used each one of them to stare at Parasect, as if wondering how it got trapped in the first place.
The spider must have gotten bored because it stopped staring and raised its fangs to deliver the final blow. Parasect was not ready to give up yet, as it quick shook its bulb, releasing thousands of purple toxins into the air. The spider flinches back from the attack and quickly unleashed a string of web onto Parasect.
The web seemed much more dangerous than the one used to trap Parasect, and it glowed a light yellow in the dark. Parasect screeched as some of the web managed to penetrate its gigantic bulb, causing some gooey green fluids to flow out.
Parasect looked like it was already at its limit, and as a final attempt to subdue its attacker, it unleashed a large amount of spores into the air. It was no use, however, as the spider immediately closed in for the final blow with its sharp fangs.
Tommy averted his eyes in disgust. He did not want to watch the Parasect die such a gruesome death. The battle was already over when Parasect got caught in the spider's webs. Deciding that it was probably better to gain a higher proximity from such dangerous creatures, Tommy tried to get up and leave the battlefield, but could not. There was a strange smell lingering in the air.
"Oh no… Spore…" Tommy muttered as he remembered Parasect's signature attack.
As he fell, he could see that the spores had the same effect on the spider, as it dropped from its web and landed on the ground.
"No…" His eyelids were getting heavier by the second and soon… He closed his eyes.
A strong tingling sensation brought Tommy back to consciousness. His eyelids flew open as he tried to comprehend what was going on.
As Tommy began to take in more of the surroundings, his eyes widened in fear. He was face to face with the giant electrical spider. It did not look pleased. Tommy quickly tried to get up and run, but that was out of question. His entire body was wrapped with yellow spider silk – the same one used on Parasect.
What happened to Parasect anyway? Tommy looked back to see for himself and immediately regretted his decision. What he saw was Parasect – well, what was left of it – hanging limply on the giant spider web. Its bulb was smashed open and the insides were sucked dry, probably by the spider in front of him.
Was that his fate too?
'Thud!' A loud noise rang out and the spider's body was thrown back and slammed against a tree.
"Hsssh!" The spider hissed fiercely as it turned to look at the newfound threat.
Tommy looked expectantly at his savior. He had not expected help to come so quickly.
What Tommy saw was a large brown bear with a huge scowl on its face. Its fur was ruffled and dirty and it had a large red scar just below its right eye. On its belly, there was a prominent, white, hollow circle.
The spider recovered quickly and quickly pounced onto the bear while unleashing more electrifying web from its mouth. The web stuck to the bear's right claw and the spider tried to use it to incapacitate the bear.
Tommy recognized the Pokémon – it was an Ursaring. Unfortunately, it did not look tamed. It was probably attracted to the sounds of the spider's and Parasect's battle. Tommy gulped and quickly tried to free himself.
The Ursaring was quick to use the web to its advantage, swinging its right arm to pull the spider towards itself, and then bashing it in the face with its left. The spider flew back once more and released its grip, taking a more defensive stance.
Tommy could feel his restrains slowly becoming more and more loose and could now wriggle his arms. The spider must have used the web while it was still sleepy, causing the web to not have most of its normal, sticky properties.
Ursaring dashed in for the final strike. The spider quickly dodged the attack and used its nimble legs to scale up the tree. Ursaring refused to give up and started bashing the tree trunk with its enormous fists. The tree shook under all that pressure and the trunk looked ready to give way.
Just then, the spider jumped out of its hiding place, sticking out its two fangs. Ursaring did not have time to evade the move, and instead used its right arm to block the heavy blow. 'Psssrk!' There was a sickening sound in the air as the fangs sunk right through Ursaring's flesh. Ursaring howled in pain and immediately swiped the bug away with an uppercut.
The spider landed beside Tommy, and fainted. The battle was over.
Tommy was too late. His restrains were still stuck to his body and he still could not freely move.
Ursaring lumbered towards Tommy with the same fierce expression it held towards the spider. It stared at Tommy for a moment, then it collapsed backwards and fell to the ground.
What just happened? Tommy had no idea, but he rejoiced and quickly got up. Just as he was about to leave, he stopped to think. Ursaring saved his life, should he really just leave it to die?
No, this is the woods – It's kill or be killed. I didn't call for its help. It came on its own accord, Tommy thought. Slowly, he took a step away from the bear.
"Don't be a hero…" His father's voice echoed in his mind.
Tommy's resolve faltered. Was this really the right thing to do? It just did not feel right. Sighing, Tommy turned around and walked towards the bear. He had made his decision. "Please tell me I'm not going to regret this…" He muttered.
He quickly examined Ursaring's wounds. Nothing seemed too serious, mainly small cuts and bruises, except for the two bones jutting awkwardly out of Ursaring's right arm.
"What in Arceus did that spider do to cause this?" Tommy wondered.
Shaking his head, Tommy went to work putting the bone back in place. First, he had to push the bones back in place. He quickly grabbed the bones and tried to push them further in. Something did not feel right. The bones seemed too clean and the shape of the bones sort of reminded Tommy of… Fangs!
Tommy drew a sharp breath when he realised it. Those were not bones, they were the fangs of the spider. "Oh Arceus, tell me I did not make things worse by trying to force it in."
Hopefully, pulling the fangs out would cure the bear of its paralysis, or at least lessen it. It was easier said than done as the curved hook-like fang was stuck fast in Ursaring's flesh.
"Unnargg…!" Tommy screamed as he exerted all his strength.
Fifteen minutes later, he was done. The two fangs dislodged and Tommy threw them onto the ground triumphantly.
"Easy as pie." He said as he rubbed his hands together. "Huh…?" He quickly looked at his palms. There was a small cut in the middle of his palm which meant…
"Not again…" Tommy's vision started to go dark as he passed out for a second time.
Warmth – It was the first thing Tommy noticed. It was so comfortable that Tommy just wanted to continue sleeping on it forever.
'Wait…" Tommy quickly opened his eyes and jumped up. He was sleeping on Ursaring's fur! "Crap…"
Tommy tried to edge away slowly from the beast, but – of course – he stupidly stepped on a branch and broke it with a snap.
The bear's eyes flew open and it got up to face Tommy.
Tommy's eyes flashed with fear as instinct took over. He had saved the Ursaring, but that did not change the fact that it was still a wild Pokémon. Wild Pokémon are often unpredictable and, well, wild! It took all of Tommy's willpower not to turn and run away.
Ursaring, on the other hand, just stared at Tommy. It did not seem to have any intention of attacking Tommy.
Perplexed, Tommy started to stare back.
"Look in their eyes. The eyes can tell you the creature's true nature – their strengths, weaknesses, feelings, and even their character." Tommy remembered his mother saying.
Ursaring had big, brown pupils. In it, Tommy saw puzzlement and intrigue. However, deep within, there was also a touch of loneliness and even fear. It reminded Tommy so much of himself.
The longer they looked at each other, the more Tommy felt at ease. His feelings of fear soon turned into a strange sense of kinship. Slowly, Tommy reached out and touched Ursaring's scar.
Ursaring flinched slightly, but allowed it.
"You know… You remind me so much of myself…" Tommy said. He had no idea if the Pokémon could understand him or not, but Ursaring looked as though it understood.
It whimpered slightly and rubbed its face onto Tommy's.
"You know… I'm not a trainer, but would you like to come with me on a journey in the future?"
Ursaring did not respond, but instead lay on the ground and closed its eyes. The battle earlier must have taken a lot out of the bear.
"Silence means consent…?" Tommy asked hopefully. All he got in response was the soft snoring of Ursaring's sleeping. Tommy smiled as he too lay down onto Ursaring's body. It would probably be safe as no Pokémon in their right mind would think about attacking a sleeping Ursaring.
"He's over there!"
"Oh Arceus, Tommy!"
"Tommy, wake up! You're safe now!"
Tommy opened his eyes to see his parents, as well as numerous other trainers from the village that he recognized. Of course, the tall guard who stopped him at the entrance to the woods was also there.
"Wahahah!" The tall man laughed. "Good to see that you're alright!" The man said as he slapped Tommy harshly on the back.
"Oof!" Tommy winced. "Y-You called for help?"
"Of course!" The man said. "I couldn't just let you die here, eh? Mount Silver is a treacherous place."
Tommy gulped. "You can say that again."
"Besides…" The man shot Tommy a dirty look. "We still have a score to settle…"
Tommy gulped and quickly ran towards his parents. "Mother, father, it's good to see you again!"
His mother immediately scooped Tommy up in her hands and hugged him tightly. "Oh Tommy… I'm so glad…"
His father smiled. "I see you took my advice and waited. That's a smart move, son."
"Yeah. Good thing there was… Wait… Where's Ursaring?"
"Ursaring?" His mother asked in a shaky voice.
"Yeah. I spent the night with it."
"You were with an Ursaring?" His father exclaimed. "Arceus, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, father. Ursaring saved my life!"
"Why would Ursaring save you? What exactly happened here?" His father demanded.
Tommy quickly told them a summary of what happened the night before. "… And that's about it."
"Are you daft!" His father immediately shouted with rage. "Saving a wild beast? How many times do I have to tell you – Don't be a hero!"
"I wasn't trying to be a hero!"
"Arthur, it's fine…" Tommy's mother said. "So long as Tommy-"
"No, it's not fine! He was lucky this time… But, what about the next?"
"Father…" Tommy said. What did he do wrong? Everything turned out fine, did it not?
"Heads up!" Someone shouted. "Wild Pokémon attack!"
Tommy quickly turned to see an Ursaring trying to get past the trainers who were trying to rescue him. "No…"
"Attack!" The trainers started sending out their Pokémon all at once to combat the bear. Tommy could recognize Beedrill, Nidorina, Kirlia, Carnivine, and many others which he had never seen before.
Ursaring fought back savagely. Its eyes were filled with rage as it looked around for something. Below its right eye, Tommy could see a bright red scar.
"Stop!" Tommy yelled.
"What are you doing?" His mother quickly pulled him back. "It's dangerous."
"That's the one which saved me!" Tommy yelled. "I recognize the scar!"
His father turned to him. "Look closely, son. Does it look friendly in any way?"
Ursaring was still thrashing about wildly, knocking out several Pokémon at once. The trainers would not give up, and sent out even more Pokémon against it.
"I don't care! It saved my life. I'm not going to stand around doing nothing while you people kill it." Tommy said.
"Tommy! Open your eyes! It's a wild Pokémon! It doesn't care if you've saved its life. It only cares for its survival!"
"No! It's not wild! It's my friend!" Tommy tried to run towards the Pokémon, but his father grabbed him by the collar and dragged him back.
"Stop being such an idiot! Grow up!"
Tommy gave one last look at the Ursaring. It looked like it was in pain. For a moment, the bear locked eyes with Tommy, and Tommy could recognize the same looked in its eyes – that had not changed. Tommy frowned. He knew what he had to do.
"If being smart means I'm going to have to give up my friends… Then I'll rather remain an idiot my whole life!" Tommy yelled as he struggled out of his father's grasp and ran towards the bear.
"Tommy!" His father yelled. "You idiot!"
"Kid, get outta the way!" The tall man said.
"Hold!" His father shouted.
Everyone stopped. The trainers and their Pokémon stopped attacking, for fear of hitting Tommy. His parents screamed for him to get back. Tommy ignored all of them. He had to get to Ursaring and save its life.
"It's all right now…" Tommy said as he hugged the bear. "Now is my turn to save your life…"
Ursaring let out a weak growl and rubbed its face against Tommy's. It opened its mouth and dropped a couple of berries beside Tommy. Tommy recognized them – they were Cheri Berries, used for curing paralysis.
Tommy smiled. He wasn't trying to be a hero. He wasn't trying to be smart. He was just trying to do what he felt was right.
And sometimes… That's enough
-End-