Introduction:
I tried to write this story with a bit of realism, and while I've changed some things to fit my needs it does still share many of the common points and characters of the games. As for the rating, while the story does start off safe it will get darker as it progresses. To those who stick around for the show, I hope you enjoy! If you leave a comment or something I would greatly appreciate it. If this isn't your cup of tea I thank you for stopping by anyways. :)
Update 02/22/12: Made some corrections to the grammar and story. I think maybe I should really consider finding a beta lol... Having a second set of eyes makes it easier to catch mistakes.
Disclaimer: Pokemon is the property of Nintendo. I wrote this for the fun of it and nothing more.
xXx
Hollow
As I sit here ignoring the rain, thunder and the hostile growls that surround me I wonder, what does it mean to be a trainer?
Well, says the movie industry, it's about defeating bad guys and saving the world from one of the many global catastrophes that never seem to happen in reality but are totally plausible! Promptly following that I imagine them to excuse themselves to go swim in their pools of money while I dream of a hot meal and a warm place to sleep.
Well, JubiliTV interrupts my wishful daydreams with a the most convincing fake smile I have ever seen, it's about winning tournaments and the approval of strangers across the globe before falling into obscurity following your much deserved retirement! After which they move onto news of scandalous photographs of people I don't know or care about.
Well, Says the grouchy old man living down the street, It's about proving exactly how useless you are to society by dropping out of school to chase diseased rats and sleep in caves while your family worries for your safety- But nobody ever cared what he had to say.
Gripping the rough bark of the tree in numb hands, I tried to ignore the shivers and aches going through my body. How long had I been up here? I couldn't read my watch with the poor lighting and the sky had been black for some time now, I had no idea if the sun was still up. I was however thankful that the rain had finally begun to subside. I looked down at the pack of monsters below. Making eye contact with the largest of them the growling resumed once more making it clear that I wasn't getting anywhere anytime soon. Most of them had settled themselves down comfortably under the tree, what I assumed was their alpha would pace in front of me, head down and teeth bared, eyes always on me.
My stomach chose that moment to whine and I slapped a hand to my forehead. I sniffed quietly and clenched my eyes shut for a moment.
"What do you want from me?" I screamed down at them, "I can't do anything to you, I'm not a threat! I'm sorry about... Just let me go!"
They only stared up at me. Soon one of the mightyena started making a strange yipping sound and the others followed suit, I realized they were laughing at me. I felt a heat rise in my face and a tightness grip my throat. I wanted so badly to hurt them right then... but I was helpless. What could I do now but stay up here out of their reach? Why couldn't they just leave me alone... I grabbed my hair and pressed my face to the tree trying my best not to listen to their laughter. I hid my face with my arm and pressed my palm to my ear, trying my hardest not to think about anything. I was shaking hard and it wasn't completely the weathers fault.
A terrified yelp cut off their laughter and I snapped my head around to see what had happened. There was a sudden commotion in the pack as they all scrambled to hide behind the tree, peering around the corner at something rustling in the tall grass. Some began to back away while others paced, growling nervously. I stretched my head forward straining to catch a glimpse wondering what could possibly scare a pack of fully evolved mightyena. I saw a flash of dark fur, it had looked purple in the gloomy light but I couldn't be sure. I quickly racked my memory trying to remember all the furry purple pokemon it could possibly be. By the way the grass rustled it actually didn't seem like it was to big and was moving at a rather slow and steady pace. The only pokemon that I could come up with were rattata... Maybe a nidoran, but that didn't seem right. Weren't they at the bottom of the food chain? What tiny creature could possibly spook a pack this big?
Finally it reached the edge of the grass and came into view. It stopped and took in the scene before it. Baring its large front teeth with its tail held high and shaking in warning the stunky crouched low to the ground. It began a slow and purposeful advance. The stunky was less than half their size and demanded control of the field.
I watched with fascination as the pack grew more and more agitated. They fidgeted, whined and growled. To my amusement a few even did an awkward prance backwards. Many of them glared up at me, furious with this turn of events. Finally it seemed their alpha had had enough of this and dashed forward, hackles raised and snarling. It snapped at the stunky and it screeched in response, dashing away trying to put the tree between itself and its attacker. The mightyena was faster and caught the little creature up in its jaws only to drop it and leap back with a pitiful yelp. It gagged and swiped at its own nose as if trying to wipe something away. The stunky let loose once again, this time getting the mightyena right in the face.
It took a moment but the stench eventually reached me high in the tree and I retched. I forced myself back under control and pulled my shirt up over my nose, eyes watering I watched as the stunky began to advance on the rest of the pack, this time it walked backwards as if daring them to try anything. Their leader was forced into a crying retreat and the rest jolted into a run for the forest, I'd been forgotten.
"Finally!"
I whipped my head around and caught sight of a trainer rising up from behind some bushes a small distance away. He was laughing to himself, watching as the last of the canines disappeared into the safety of the trees.
"You okay up there?"
I nodded my head and hastily rubbed the tears from my eyes, "Yeah. Is that your pokemon?" My voice sounded weak and I fought the urge to gag.
He laughed and was about to respond but instead grunted in disgust covering his nose with his own shirt, "I'm never going to get used to you."
He gave his pokemon a quick scratch behind the ear as if to thank it then withdrew it. "Yeah, he's mine. You're lucky I found you you know, this is waaaayyy off the path and those guys looked ready to kill," he looked up at me, "Are you going to come down or stay up there all day?"
I struggled with the climb, not quite remembering how I'd managed to get up here in the first place. By the time I got to the ground my palms were stinging from gripping the tree so tightly and I was sure I'd rubbed my jeans thin. He took a hold of my upper arm to help me balance once I hit the ground and found I was grateful for the assistance, my knees were shaking and I felt very tired and sore.
"Geez, how long did they have you up there?" He finally took notice of my state now that I was down and right in front of him. I was completely soaked from the rain and covered with mud from when I'd had to run. I must have looked a complete mess.
"I don't know," I gently pulled myself from his grasp and steadied myself, "A while I guess. Felt like forever."
He dropped a bag from his shoulder and I recognized it as my own, he held it out to me, "I found this by the road side. One of the mightyena was trying to get into it so it's a little roughed up. What did you do to piss them off?"
I opened my back and wrinkled my nose at the mess inside. One of my water bottles had been poked full of holes and some of the fruit I found earlier had been trampled and squashed into my clothes. My money tin was dented up but looked fine otherwise. The bag itself had several tears but nothing to serious. I pulled out a shirt and second pair of jeans from deeper in the bag; it was wet but still better than what I was wearing now,
"I tried to catch one of their puppies, I didn't realize the whole pack was nearby so they heard it yelping when it saw me", I stepped behind the tree and started stripping down.
"... Yeah, it's generally a bad idea to try and catch one of those guys without a stronger pokemon to protect you. You're a beginner huh?"
"You could say that," I pulled my shirt down and stepped back out offering him a small smile. "I didn't thank you for your help so... Thanks."
He grinned back, "Hey, no worries! We have to look out for each other out here, you know?"
"My name's Greg." He offered me his hand and after a brief pause I took it.
"I'm Alex."
"Well I'm gonna hit the road now that the weathers finally cleared...", He trailed off and gave me a quick look over as if noticing something for the first time, "Hey um... Did you lose something?"
"No, why?" I'd gone back to inspecting the tears in my bag wondering if I'd be able to fix it.
"Are your pokemon okay?" I looked up and saw his eyes searching my belt and the straps of my bag as if something were missing.
"Yup, I didn't send them out."
He stayed quiet for a moment.
"Um, if you want I can escort you back to town... It's not far so I wont be wasting much time and you're hurt so-"
"Naw it's fine. Thanks for offering," I tossed my bag over my shoulder and gave him the cheeriest smile I could muster. "I can take care of myself. Thanks for everything Greg. Good luck with your travels!"
"... You too."
I walked back to the road without a second look behind me. Once I'd put enough distance between myself and the forest I stopped and took a deep breath. I moved my bag around so I could reach into it and withdrew my only pokeball.
I never wanted to be a trainer, this was never the life I saw for myself but sometimes things just have a way of working against you. My grip tightened on the ball and I grit my teeth at the memory. Bastard could at least have given me a starter, what was he thinking tossing me out into the wild like this?
The answer was simple of course, he didn't care. Out of sight out of mind. What would I do the next time I was attacked? I can't always be so lucky, there won't always be a Greg out there to hear my screams.
I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. If I was going to survive I would just have to catch my own starter.