Chapter One: One for the Money
The crowd roared in the packed confines of the warehouse. Men and women cheered, shoving their fists in the air as a Growlithe's leg snapped backwards. The Growlithe yipped and whimpered in pain, but his owner refused to give up. The man within the inner circle took his belt off, cracking it like a whip at the mangled canine. Tears streamed down the Growlithe's face as it turned its head toward its opponent.
Standing at the opposite end of the spray-painted ring was a Mightyena, nearly two times the size of the little Growlithe. With one leg broken and dangling at an awkward angle, the Growlithe hobbled over to the Mightyena. The Mightyena took its time to inspect the crowd that watched him fight. It's what the Mightyena lived for: the attention and the respect.
He turned his attention back over to the Growlithe, just a bit too late to see the Growlithe sink his teeth into his neck. The Mightyena howled as the crowd roared louder and louder, egging the two brawling Pokémon on. The Mightyena shook his body violently in an attempt to free himself from the Growlithe's grasp. Eventually, he managed to shake the Growlithe off, but not without injury. Blood flooded down the Mightyena's neck and he winced in pain. Mightyena's owner shouted profanities at the dog to get him to continue fighting, and the Mightyena loyally obeyed.
The two dogs' blood mixed within the ring as they rolled on the floor, both growling and snapping at each other with equal intensity. The Mightyena's grey fur turned a deep shade of red as the Growlithe used his three remaining useful paws to claw into the Mightyena's skin. With the sudden twist of advantage, the crowd that had bet on the Growlithe cheered with encouragement for the Growlithe to end it. But it wasn't that simple. The Mightyena found a golden opportunity. In a split-second movement, the Mightyena moved its paw to the Growlithe's face. Without hesitation, the Mightyena gouged the Growlithe's eyes out. Blood splattered everywhere as the Growlithe roared in pain. With Mightyena on top of the Growlithe, it began digging into the Growlithe's chest. Intestines and other organs spilled everywhere as the Growlithe rapidly bled to death.
The crowd cheered at the amazing and entertaining fight and exchanged the money that was bet. The Mightyena's owner returned the beaten up Pokémon without a word as the Growlithe's owner picked up the carcass with a shovel, carried it to the corner, and dumped it onto the pile of other dead Pokémon. No emotion was shown on the owner's face as he merged back into the crowd to watch the next fight.
Two individuals pushed up into the center ring, eager to fight. One was named Thomas. The other, Vixon. Both opponents were well-known within the PokéFighting community. Thomas had a track-record for being particularly ruthless to his opponent. Vixon, however, had something special. Latched around his ear was a wireless PokéNav accessory called the PokéChat. Vixon got it as a gift from a relative who worked for the Devon Corporation in Hoenn's Rustboro City. While many trainers had the PokéNav, only a select few had the PokéChat. With its limited supply and its insanely inflated cost, it was a true commodity. With it, any Pokémon's speech was clearly audible in English to its wearer. This allowed Vixon to communicate more effectively with the Pokémon he used in fights.
As the betting began, the two opponents released their Pokémon at the same time. In a bright flash of light, Thomas's Bagon formed with a devilish grin on its face. Vixon's eyes narrowed at the cocky Bagon as his Teddiursa appeared on the floor of the ring. The crowd all laughed and pointed at the small, teddy bear sitting on the concrete floor of the warehouse. The bets quickly became one-sided as onlookers became eager to see the stuffing pulled out of the tiny bear.
Ignoring the ridicule from the crowd, Vixon calmly said, "Teddiursa, aim low."
Teddiursa looked back at her owner and said, "You got it, Boss." With that, the fight began.
The Teddiursa leapt for the Bagon, but the Bagon saw it coming. Just as he was about to close his jaws around her, the Teddiursa slammed down on the top of his head with her fist. The Bagon's razor-sharp teeth clamped shut on his tongue with so much force that a part of it was severed off. The limp end of his tongue fell to the concrete as his mouth filled with blood.
Everyone was astonished. Vixon told the Teddiursa to aim low, but she landed a head-shot. That's what was so special about Vixon's fighting strategies; no one ever knew what he really meant by his commands. The crowd was more-or-less silent now.
The Bagon began tearing up as blood pooled in his mouth and began to stream down his body like a river.
"What would you suggest, Teddiursa?" Vixon called out to her.
"He has small arms. They're useless. Let's go for the legs. Without them, he can't function." Teddiursa shouted, refusing to take her eyes off the Bagon.
"That sounds reasonable. Do your worst."
With a hint of helplessness in his eyes, Thomas shifts between looking at the Teddiursa and looking at Vixon rapidly. "You cocksuckers done with your tea party? How fuckin' fair is it to talk with your Pokémon here?" His gaze then shifted to his crying Bagon. "Bagon, I want you to grow some goddamn balls and tear that bear to shreds!"
The Bagon nodded slowly and found a way to push through its pain. As the two Pokémon approached each other, Thomas saw Vixon smirk as the Bagon jumped up and the Teddiursa slide across the concrete. As the Bagon was in midair, the Teddiursa latched on to his foot and began to gnaw it off the bone. In panic, the Bagon didn't stick the landing and it fell face-first onto the concrete. His nose snapped on impact and blood flooded out of his face. With the Bagon's arms being too short and his legs being mutilated, he had no means to get up. He squirmed and cried out in pain as the Teddiursa broke every bone she possibly could in the Bagon.
"Teddiursa, stop," Vixon calmly said.
Confusion was heard throughout the crowd as other fighters began to wonder why the Teddiursa wouldn't continue to mutilate the Bagon. When one has the advantage, one milks it to the last drop. But the Teddiursa backed away. She spit the Bagon's blood out of her mouth as she admires her work. Twitching on the floor, the Bagon waited for death.
"Should I?"
Vixon nodded, "Finish him fast."
Teddiursa walked over to the Bagon, and slammed her fist into the space between the Bagon's head and neck. Its nerve was shocked and effectively stopped, shutting his brain down permanently. The crowd was so silent that they could hear the final breath from the Bagon. After a tense couple of seconds, the crowd abruptly began to cheer loudly for Vixon. Vixon smiled as he looked down at his Teddiursa. She looked back at him with a slightly smaller smile, but a smile nonetheless.
Through the crowd's cheers, only Vixon could barely hear Thomas scream, "You cheating sonofabitch! You killed my best fighter! Fuck you!" Thomas pulled something out from beneath his shirt. It seemed to have been tucked into the front of his pants. He held it firmly and pulled the trigger. The Teddiursa's brain splattered across the floor, joining the pool of the Bagon's blood. Then, Thomas turned it on Vixon and fired again. In shock, Vixon gripped his hand over his left shoulder where he was shot. Not thinking twice, Vixon turned around, pushed through the crowd, and ran for the back door of the warehouse. More shots rang out behind Vixon as he stumbled out into the night.
Vixon didn't know where his feet were taking him, but he let them guide his body. His brain was foggy and he could hear his heartbeat pound at his eardrums. He lifted his hand from the wound to see it caked in his blood. He quickly squeezed his hand back onto his shoulder and winced his pain.
He walked slowly down the center of the silent road as he searched for somewhere that could possibly save his life. As he searched, he began to hear faint sirens in the distance. At first, he was confused, but as the sirens grew louder, he realized what they were. He sprinted off the road and laid down onto the grass between two homes, effectively hiding himself. He cried in pain as he watched six police cars rush down the road. Presumably towards the warehouse. Once he thought the the coast was clear, he got up and continued into town.
Vixon doesn't remember how, but he ended up in front of the Lilycove Pokémon Center. He took one look at his arm and realized something. 'If I go in there and they treat my gunshot wound, they have to report it to the police. I'll be arrested for PokéFighting.' With his head hung low, he turned his back to the neon sign of the PokéCenter and walked away from help.
As rain began to fall on Lilycove, Vixon turned the key to his home. He stumbled inside and threw the door shut. Someone on the couch jumped in surprise and looked around the room in panic.
Vixon, on the verge of passing out, groaned, "Kara… help…"
The woman's eyes focused on her brother as she realized what was wrong. "Oh, my God, Vixon! What happened?!" she yelled as she sprinted over to him.
She turned her attention to the dining room table. She swiped everything off of it, shattering her plate from dinner that she didn't bother to clean up. Vixon, knowing what to do, stumbled over to the table and flopped onto it. His brain was no longer functioning and he began to fade.
When Vixon opened his eyes, he immediately looked over to his left shoulder. Laying on top of it was a reddened gauze wrap that seemed to need a change. He looked beyond his shoulder to see his sister passed out with her head resting on the table beside him. Her hands were covered in blood as she struggled to stay on the chair beside the table. Then, Vixon notice the pain. He clenched his teeth and hissed through them, having his back arch. Kara mumbled and raised her head, waking up to see her brother alive.
Instead of happiness, though, she expressed her anger. "What the fuck is wrong with you?!"
Vixon looked confused as he breathed through the pain. "What, Kara?"
Kara reached for some pills and a glass of water, giving Vixon two and forcing them down his throat with the water. Vixon choked, but managed to keep most of the water and the pills down.
Kara's fists slammed down onto the table as she said, "You're damn lucky that I'm a nurse."
Vixon chuckled, "Yeah, a Pokémon nurse."
Kara stood from her chair and slapped him across his face, causing Vixon's head to whip back. "What the fuck, Kara?" Vixon yelled as he looked up at his sister.
"Who gives a shit what kind of nurse I am? I'm a nurse that saved your goddamn life!"
Vixon closed his eyes and let out a long breath.
"I watched the news, genius. I know you don't work at the department store, you liar!"
Vixon realized why she was mad. He kept his eyes firmly shut as he attempted to explain himself. "Look, it was just for the money. I had to do something to get money."
Kara was enraged. "You fucking murder Pokémon! You make them kill each other!" She picked up the bullet that was lodged inside Vixon's shoulder and raises it to where he could see. "I just took this out of your fucking shoulder! I just saved a murderer's life! What the fuck does that make me?" Vixon opened his eyes enough to see the bloody bullet and his sister's tears streaming down her face.
There was a long pause as both Kara and Vixon refused to speak. Suddenly, Kara said, "I should've let you die. I should've let my brother bleed out."
Vixon began to cry as he realized how much he had hurt his sister. "Kara, I'm so sorry—"
"—Fuck being sorry for me! How many Pokémon have you killed? You should feel ashamed of yourself!"
Kara expected for Vixon to respond to what she had said, but he laid motionless on their bloody dining room table. She scoffed and said, "Once you heal, you're out of my house. You got it?"
Vixon nodded without another word.
Vixon stared at the television in his room as he sat, propped up in his bed. His eyes never moved as the anchor segued into the next news story.
"It's been a week since the tragic shootout in the warehouse at the south end of Lilycove. Today, we have the names of the twenty-four people that lost their lives…"
As the news anchor read off the names, Vixon forced himself to zone out. He never wanted to see the PokéFighters who died because of him.
Subconsciously, he whispered out loud to no one but himself. It was one sentence: "I didn't cheat."
He gripped the remote tightly and slammed his finger into the power button, forcing the news anchor to shut up. Just then, the door to his bedroom opened and Kara walked in. She held his lunch on a tray. Without a word, she placed the tray onto his stomach and began to turn to leave. As she did, she noticed two collapsed Poké Balls on his nightstand. She straightened herself up and faced Vixon once again.
"You don't even have a Trainer's License, do you?" Vixon shook his head. "How'd you buy the Poké Balls, then?"
With a dazed face, Vixon replied with, "Black market."
Unfazed, Kara continued. "How many did you kill?"
Vixon sighed, and whispered, "Too many to count."
A long pause enveloped the room in a toxic silence. Kara had to break it. "How many of yours have died?"
"Just one."
"Who?"
"My Teddiursa. She was shot to death after I was accused of cheating."
"Did you cheat?"
"I didn't cheat."
"To me, you cheated."
Vixon's head turned towards his sister. "What?"
"You lied to me. You said you worked at the department store. You promised your money was real, that the store just paid you well. You said you were good at your job, that you worked hard. You cheated me by making me believe in your lies."
In a monotone voice, all Vixon could say was, "I didn't cheat."
A furious expression overtook Kara's face. "Pack your things. Get out of my house."
Vixon got up from his bed and groaned in pain as his shoulder was shifted slightly. It was not a wound that would easily heal. Vixon was beginning to believe that time itself couldn't heal a wound that deep. Kara watched as he began gathering things up and placing them in a duffel bag. He packed his clothes, a thin blanket, a jacket, a toothbrush, some soap, shampoo, and other miscellaneous items. He reached under his bed and pulled out a shoebox full of cash.
Kara scoffed and said, "As much as I hate seeing you walk away with so much blood money, I refuse to keep it in my house."
Vixon nodded and shoved it into his bag. Then, he approached his nightstand and reached for the two Poké Balls.
As his hand laid outstretched for them, Kara said, "Touch those, and die."
With his hand frozen in place, Vixon looked over to Kara with a confused look.
"If you touch those Pokémon again, I will kill you. You are a monster who has no right to ever see a Pokémon again. Leave them."
Vixon slowly retracted his working arm back to rest at his side. He kept his gaze on the two Poké Balls for as long as he could before reluctantly turning his back on them. He left his bedroom with Kara in tow, heading for the door. He opened it and stepped outside as Kara refused to come out with him.
"Vixon, I love you. But I will never forgive you for what you have done. Pokémon are precious. They are living, complex creatures, just like we are… Don't come back."
Vixon nodded and walked away into downtown Lilycove without ever looking back to his sister or his home.
Author's Note:
I dont normally do author's notes but I felt that it was necessary here. I want to begin by saying that I am so sorry that I have been inactive for over half a year. My other story, The Project Integration Saga will continue, I promise. I just need a bit more time to write it out. On a more positive note, this is my new story! I hope you all enjoyed it! Don't expect frequent uploads because I spend weeks on each chapter. Let me know what you think!
~TheAuraManipulator