Well, the first chapter of my first fanfiction. The first thing I want to say is that English is not my natural language, and I learned it mostly from games and books, so please bear with me.
Second, I tried to stay as far away as I could from the main series of the games, so the story happens in a (yet) unnamed region, without much relation to the games.
And third, please read and review, I could use any critics and advice I could have.
Thanks for reading!
The Serious Man
"Should I grab my coat?" asked him, his grey eyes shining slightly.
"I don't think it will be necessary, I can handle a little challenge. After all, I am the gym leader now." Alexander said, his eyes lit with fiery excitement where his brother's were cold.
"Do not hurt yourself." With that, the younger brother left the room, a wide smile in his face.
Darius sighed and stared as his brother left for the road in his motorcycle. The boy was an adult now, he thought, prideful. When his wife entered his office, he was smiling a little.
"Well, that's a rare sight," she said, leaving a coffee mug in his desk. "I bet he had some good news"
"He just received his first challenge as a gym leader, the boy is just a little overjoyed."
"Now that's the man I married," she laughed quietly. Gillian was happy and easygoing, the complete opposite of Darius, who was always serious. "Maybe we should go and watch it."
"I think we should not, we would just make him nervous."
"He is 23! He can deal with a little caring from his older brother."
Darius sighed again. She was right, as always. He grabbed his dark grey coat and grabbed the car keys from under his table. Gillian had run to their room and was swiftly changing outfits.
He went downstairs and found Octavius sleeping in the couch, which he kicked with a little too much force. The boy was thrown to the floor and scrambled a little before getting up.
"What was that for?" the youngest brother asked, containing the indignation on his tone. He knew better than making Darius mad. Had it been his other brother, the two would probably be wrestling in the floor.
"Alex is going to have his first challenge as a gym leader, and we are going to watch." He stated dryly. Octavius shot up and went upstairs without a word, grinning all the way. Darius went outside and into a smaller house near his own.
"Viscero" he called and a humanoid figure appeared from the shadows of the small, one story house. The house floor was filled with sleeping forms, most of them very small and huddled together in groups, but the form towered them all, standing maybe a feet shorter than Darius. The form bowed a little, and Darius smacked him in the head, making an hollow metallic sound from its helmet.
"You called, buddy?" The Bisharp asked, and Darius knew that if his mouth was visible, he would be grinning, but he could not get angry at Viscero.
"We are going to watch Alex in his first gym battle, want to come?"
"Like I would lose a chance to watch the boy gets his ass kicked by some random kid." Darius smiled at that. Viscero always made him smile.
"Then let's go, the others are waiting." It was early September, and it was getting cold, but Viscero did not mind, while everyone else had to wear coats. Gillian was wearing a light brown coat with furry boots, with a furry hat to match. Darius was wearing his long grey coat, with jean pants and leather boots. Octavius was wearing clothes identical to Darius, but smaller. He always wore clothes similar to him, and they even looked alike, but Octavius had a slightly lighter hair tone and his eyes were not nearly as cold as Darius'. Still, he looked like a miniature version of his older brother, and always tried to copy his way of acting. Gillian thought it was cute, but it irritated Darius, even if he did not say anything.
They boarded the car, a simple black sedan, with Darius driving, Gillian in the front sit, and Octavius and Viscero in the backseat. The ride took nearly 20 minutes, which the two on the backseat kept poking and taunting each other, which was making Darius angry to the point of threatening to turn the car around and go back home, after which the two stopped. They arrived at the gym a few minutes after that.
The gym itself was a huge rectangular building with windows all around and a huge, arced door in front. The arcs were shaped like Hydreigon heads, to represent the type of choice of the local trainers. Inside, the gym had bleachers on all sides, huge screens to show the fights currently happening, and in the center a huge maze made of dark, spiked stone walls. In the end of the maze there was a stone arena, where the challenger would fight the gym leader.
The challenger arrived soon after they settled themselves. He was a boy of about 15, wearing a baseball cap and a red and white sports jacket. He was blonde and blue-eyed, and Darius could see the determination in his stare, and he had five badges to back his attitude.
He quickly advanced through the maze, using a Sawk to quickly defeat the gym trainers that hid in the way. After about ten minutes he arrived at the top of the stairs that led to the arena, which was covered in darkness, hiding Alexander and anything else on it completely. When the challenger stepped into it, a spotlight illuminated him. He took another step forward, and a second spotlight revealed the gym leader.
He was wearing a dark leather trench coat and iron gauntlets, his regular battle outfit. He was holding a microphone and hiding his face behind his long hair. Suddenly, he threw his head back and let out a powerful scream. Darius sighed and hid his face with his hand, but Gillian giggled and Octavius was cheering.
"Here he is, our brave challenger. Let me introduce myself, I am Alexander Trebion, leader of this gym and master Dark-type user." He paused, scratched his chin and threw the microphone to the younger trainer. "And you are?"
" My name is Martin and.. huh…" the boy sounded nervous from being in the spotlight, which Darius could understand. He started to blush and sweat, and Alex saw the problem and pulled the microphone back to him with its wire. "Well then, let us begin this gym battle!" he announced.
The determined look returned to the boy's eyes and he threw a pokéball, releasing the same Sawk that he used to beat all the other trainers in the maze. Alex smiled and threw his own ball, releasing a Honchkrow.
The judge finally stepped into the battle ground and announced the beginning of the first round. The Fighting-type was quick to act, but the dark bird was much faster. He flew high and dove down hard into the other Pokémon, causing him to shout out in pain and fall to the ground, but managed to get up thanks to its Sturdy ability.
"Sawk, use Close Combat!" the trainer yelled as the fighting type used the last of his strength to pummel the bird hard, forgetting his defenses completely. The flier managed to recover without much effort, and proceeded to eliminate the opponent with a swift Aerial Ace. The young man whispered a curse and returned the defeated Sawk back to his pokéball. He sent a Luxray, who snarled at the Honchkrow, making it nervous.
"Honchkrow, use Night Slash." Alex said through the microphone, showing no fear of the type disadvantage. The bird's claws began to glow dark red and he sliced at the other Pokémon, leaving a trail of dark energy. The other flinched a little, but seemed fine otherwise. He countered the attack by leaping at the Honchkrow and releasing a huge spark of electricity.
The Flying-type fell to the ground, unconscious. Alex recalled the defeated Pokémon and released his next fighter, a Houndoom. The two hounds snarled at each other for a while, until the fiery dog leaped at his foe, his mouth aflame. The enemy Luxray was startled, but jumped into the other Pokémon, causing both to crash into the ground in a confusion of scratches and bites.
"Use Spark again, Lux!" the boy was very agitated, a curious contrast against the calm gym leader. The boy waved his hand at his Pokémon, finally getting his attention and repeated his command. The electric dog shocked his opponent, but the Houndoom was barely affected and finished him with a powerful Flamethrower.
After recovering his fallen Pokémon, the trainer sent a Tauros into the fray. The powerful bull charged his foe, which easily dodged the reckless attack.
"Inferno, Houndoom." The hound's eyes began to glow red and he released a torrent of fire at the Tauros. He was set on fire and began to run around in panic. The other Pokémon used the opportunity to deliver a Flamethrower at the poor bull, adding more fire to the living torch that was the Tauros. Soon the whole gym smelled like burned hair, and the burning Pokémon was recalled after finally running out of energy.
The challenger cursed and sent out a Feraligatr. The gigantic reptile charged the surprised Fire-type with a Waterfall attack, knocking the Houndoom out. Alex smiled, and returned the defeated Pokémon.
"I guess it's time to the main show, then." His smile became a sinister grin. Darius saw what his brother was planning and cleared his throat, loud enough for Alex to listen. He looked at his brother, then looked a little disappointed. He quickly switched pokéballs and sent out his Absol.
"This is my final Pokémon for this battle, let us do our best." Darius knew that Absol, and knew what she could do. She easily dispatched the Feraligatr and the following Swellow, finally being defeated by a Galvantula.
After applauses, Alex announced that Martin was the victor on the microphone, letting out another screech.
"It was a great battle, you and your Pokémon fought well together, and for that, I present you with the Sinister Badge." The badge was a small, metallic brooch shaped like a burning skull. The boy added his fifth badge to the others inside his badge case. They were distributed to all the trainers officially participating the League tournament.
"Now then, do you have anything to say?" He pointed the microphone to the young trainer, who held it before saying. "Yes, I would like to make a challenge." Alex laughed, thinking he would get a chance to fight seriously. "Well then, why don't we get your Pokémon healed first, and then we can…"
"I challenge the Champion Darius Trebion." He said. Most people in the crowd gasped and all eyes turned to Darius, who stood up, and then sighed.
Viscero had to laugh. The boy wanted to challenge the Champion after his fifth badge? Darius would just go down there and scold the boy for being reckless and tell him that he was still too weak for that.
But to his surprise, when he got to the arena floor, he waved over for Viscero to get down there. He jumped, easily maneuvering in the air and landing right in front of Darius, who looked seriously at the challenger.
"Send all your Pokémon out." He ordered with his natural authority.
"But we should have a regular fight, I am the chall…"
"Do it." Nobody could defy his gaze for long, and the boy sent out all his six recently healed Pokémon. Viscero grinned under his facial protection and readied himself. "Viscero, make it quick."
The boy got angry at the careless way Darius spoke the command, and started to frantically issue orders to his team. They started to surround him and charge their attacks. The dark knight let out a chuckle and moved. In the blink of an eye, the Feraligatr, the Sawk and the Delcatty, the only Pokémon not used in the gym fight, were knocked out. The other three flinched at the sight of the lightning-fast attack of the Dark-type, who laughed again and knocked his remaining opponents out with three swift movements of his arm. Then he turned to stare at the Sawk, who held on thanks to his ability and was trying to sneak at him. He jumped at Viscero for a Close Combat, but he simply head butted the weakened fighter, who fell to the ground, unconscious.
The boy stared in shock at his defeated team. He recalled them all and stood there for a moment, silent.
"You have potential, boy. Some day we might face each other at the end of the Victory Road." Darius said with his usual cold voice. "But that day is not today." At that, the boy ran away, trying to hide his watering eyes.
Gillian and Octavius were waiting for Darius at the entrance of the building, and Alex soon joined them. Gillian scolded Darius for making the boy cry, but he just shrugged and they left the gym. Alex would stay, since the battling season had begun and he needed to be ready for battles any time. Not all challengers made appointments.
After a few hours travel, they reached the ranch again. The humans went back to the large house where the rooms were, and Viscero returned to the smaller one destined to pokémons. He found his bed covered by all kind of creatures. That's what happens when you live with about two hundred different Pokémon in the same house. He stretched and decided he preferred not to awake all the poor fellows, so he went for a walk around the fields.
The wind was cold outside, but the armored Pokémon barely felt it. He walked on the trails of the large estate that the Trebion family owned, thinking about the day he had. It has been more than a year since his last official battle, since last year no one managed to get past Elite Four and challenge Darius. So, he spent every day training the younger Pokémon in the art of battle.
Darius was not only a League champion, he was also a famous Pokémon breeder, so the ranch was always full of young ones for Viscero and the others to train. He was beginning to plan tomorrow's lessons when he saw Steve sitting near the lake. The huge aquatic Pokémon acknowledged him with a wave of his head and Viscero went to sit next to him.
"The battle season has begun." The bigger, older Pokémon commented.
"If the poor kid that fought Alex serves as example, we will have a quiet year." Viscero was smiling under his faceguard, so nobody really saw it. Steve sighed, his serious expression turning into one of worry.
"The young ones will soon be ready for distribution. I hope the new trainers prove to be decent enough for them." Steve was a Samurott, Darius' first Pokémon and father of the Oshawott that the ranch sent to the local labs.
The Pokémon laboratories were research centers for professors of all regions, but also served as distribution centers for starter Pokémon. New trainers could get their first Pokémon there after filling the forms to join the Pokémon League championship.
Viscero looked at the moon. It was a clear night, so he had perfect sight of it. Steve was not the only one worried about that. He had his own sons to worry about. He knew that Allegro, his oldest, would stay, but the others would be sent to trainers everywhere. Pawniards were not common starters, but some parents bought different species for their sons to begin with "better" Pokémon.
"They will be fine, we taught them well." He tried to sound calm, but for anyone that knew him, his feelings were easy to read. "And Darius would never sell to anyone he could not trust to treat the boys well."
Steve turned his eyes to the moon. "I know that, but something feels different. I don't think it's about the boys."
Viscero nodded. "It's in the air, like a storm coming our way, but different, more… subtle."
"Maybe we should talk to the others about it. Hellion and Karma know it too, and Athena went into a training journey again." Athena always went to train whenever she felt troubled.
"It's probably nothing, we shouldn't worry Darius with it."
Steve seemed lost in thought. "Maybe we should ask the Old Bird if he knows something?"
The Old Bird was a Xatu that lived in the woods near the ranch and was rumored to see the future. "Ugh, you know what I think about that kind of thing. Go ahead if you want, I will stay around here, maybe talk to the others."
With that Steve started toward the small forest and Viscero decided to lay down there. The grass was soft and the night was quiet, so he decided to sleep. By the morning he would decide what to do.
Hellion woke up in the straw mound that served as his bed. Karma was sleeping next to him, surrounded by small Larvesta. He smiled, the best smile a giant flame moth could muster, and got up, doing his best to not wake up his mate.
He had that tingling sensation again. It felt like what he felt before a huge storm or a blizzard, but different. He could not tell exactly what it was, and Steve told him he felt the same yesterday.
Athena would probably know, but she was not in the Pokémon room when he looked around. Maybe she was having a night stroll. He left the building in silence. Outside the air was cool and the moon was shining. A huge reflection of it covered the lake, and Viscero was asleep in the grass near it.
Hellion approached the sleeper and poked him lightly with his small arms. The armored Pokémon showed no reaction, forcing Hellion to produce a powerful sound wave with his wings directed at him. His metal helmet started to rattle and his eyes opened.
He looked around confused for a second. "Uh… what the hell was that?" Then he saw Hellion. "Oh, it's just you. What is it, dude?" Viscero treated everyone well, and the two were friends for a long time.
"There is something wrong, I know it. I was thinking that maybe Athena would know what to do."
"Kinda late, bughead. She left to train in the mountains or somewhere like that."
"That's bad, she only leaves when there's trouble coming!" He was starting to panic.
Viscero laughed pushed the agitated bug down, who let out a little squeak. "Calm down, you are going to fry the whole place with those scales." Hellion took a deep breath and calmed a little, noticing that the scales falling from his wings were leaving burn marks in the grass.
"Maybe there is something coming, but don't get too troubled with it. When it happens, we can deal with it." Viscero said in a relaxed tone. "The kids are going soon. You don't want them to think that their parents are pansies, right?"
Hellion laughed, but he felt a little sad. He loved all his sons and daughters, but the worst would be Karma. She was very attached to the kids.
He stood still for a few minutes, and then decided he was going back to bed. He said farewell to Viscero and headed back inside the small house.
Everybody was still sleeping when he entered the only room. He flew back into his bed and started to make himself comfortable. Karma awoke for a brief moment, looked at him and gave him a small peck at the cheek. He blushed at that and she giggled quietly, trying to not awake the kids. Then both went to sleep.