Encounter
Skye was dozing off as the Ninetales that was curled around her let off a small yawn. She lazily watched as her Fennekin continued to run across the lobby of the ship. She never seems to run out of energy, the trainer thought as she observed the Fennekin's red hood flop up and down with every movement. Skye glanced at the notice board on the front of the ship.
"Just a couple more hours Kallian, then I'll finally be back home," the brunette trainer announced to her drowsy companion. The Ninetales grumbled in response, lifting her black cowl over her eyes. Kallian had never been to Skye's home region before, so she was more excited than she let on. Her associate, however, was anything but calm. The Fennekin was absolutely thrilled to be able to visit Skye's home, and showed this enthusiasm by sprinting across the ship.
A loud metal clamor caused Skye to look back towards the Fennekin. She watched with mild interest as the guy the Fennekin ran into tumbled to the ground, along with the tray he was carrying. The fallen tray had dented the ship's red carpeting. Kallian picked up her head as the scent of dropped berries caught her attention, dropping her hood back down her back.
"Look at what you've done!" the trainer exclaimed, his blonde hair starting to ruffle. "These berries were for my Pokemon! And now they're scattered across the floor!" The trainer shot up and started walking towards the Fennekin, who was now cowering in fear underneath a nearby table. "I'll have to teach you some manners…"
Skye and Kallian let out a simultaneous sigh and stood up, the red pendant around Skye's neck lightly smacking against her chest as she moved. They walked towards the angry trainer and placed themselves between him and the Fennekin. "I'm sure whatever Shadow has done can be easily fixed," Skye said, negotiating with the upset trainer, his blue eyes contrasting with his reddening ears. Skye glanced to the ground where the berries were still strewn about. She started to bend down, picking up the nearest one. "Look I'll help you pick them up—"
She was interrupted by the trainer, who had smacked her hand away. "Don't you dare touch them." Skye's right eye twitched in response.
She stood back up and faced the trainer again, moving her face so that the scar across her right eye gleamed in the light. Her intimidating stare usually caused people to back down, but this guy's anger was clouding his judgment.
"Fine," Skye said, her mouth turning into a smirk. "Then how about a battle to ease your anger?" Shadow was still under the table, but was no longer scared. In contrast, the Fennekin seemed to be laughing. Kallian looked back at Shadow and gave her a small smile.
"Yeah! Now that's an idea!" The trainer yelled. He ran into a room several feet down the hall and emerged with two PokeBalls in his hands.
"Alright, let's do this!" the trainer yelled, throwing out his first PokeBall without any warning. A large Crobat flew out of the capsule, its wings beating fiercely. "Let's go Rexxy!"
Kallian made a move to go out, but Skye put out her hand, stopping the Ninetales. The trainer looked back to the Fennekin who was still under the table. "Shadow get out here and earn your respect back," Skye said. Kallian made a face showing that she didn't believe the Fennekin had any respect from anyone in the first place.
Shadow jumped out from her hiding place, posing for battle. "POKEMON BATTLE. START." The announcement came from the PokeDex hidden in the brown bag that hung from Skye's shoulder. Skye took it out and placed it on the table the Fennekin was hiding under earlier.
Shadow gazed at the flying Crobat, waiting for instructions from Skye. Skye could feel her adrenaline pumping through her veins; she loved battles. Rexxy? Then I'm assuming that Crobat is a female… "Shadow, use Light Screen!" The Fennekin responded by putting up a transparent screen of light in front of her.
"Rexxy, Air Cutter!" The Crobat made a complicated movement in the air, causing blades of winds to fly towards Shadow. They hit Shadow, but didn't even leave a scratch as the screen of light absorbed most of the impact. Skye sighed at her opponent's weakness.
"Shadow, Double Team!"she yelled, her adrenaline slowly leaving her system. She had thought the other trainer would be more of a challenge. The Fennekin started running rapidly around the Crobat, leaving behind afterimages. The Crobat spun around rapidly, trying to lock onto the real Shadow.
"SHADOW'S EVASIVENESS ROSE." The robotic voice of Skye's PokeDex droned on in the background. Skye watched the other trainer's eyes widen in shock. He hadn't anticipated this.
"Rexxy…Confuse Ray!" The Crobat was still trying to lock onto her target, without much success. She sent out an energized ray at one of Shadow's afterimages, which haphazardly went through them.
"ATTACK MISSED." Skye winked at the Fennekin.
"Shadow, Bite." The Fennekin leaped out of the circle and wrapped her jaws on the Crobat's head.
"CRITICAL HIT" Skye's PokeDex announced.
The Crobat fell to the ground, its wings struggling to move. "REXXY HAS FAINTED." Its trainer's face was a mask of disbelief. He recalled his Pokemon to its PokeBall and threw out his next one.
A Golduck appeared before Shadow and Skye. Skye's eyebrows went up, a type disadvantage, maybe this will get interesting. "Shadow come back!" The Fennekin acknowledged her trainer's command and ran back behind Skye. "You're up Kallian." The Ninetales elegantly waltzed up to face the water type Pokemon.
"Dippy, Aqua Tail!"
"Kallian, Confuse Ray." The Ninetales shot a ball of dark energy at the Golduck, stopping it in its tracks.
"DIPPY IS CONFUSED!" The Golduck stumbled along the ground, bumping into whatever was in its way. It began to cause quite a scene as it ran into a young girl and her mother. The mother scolded the Golduck and smacked the Pokemon on the head. "IT HURT ITSELF IN ITS CONFUSION!" The event was extremely embarrassing for Skye's blonde opponent.
"Dippy get back here!" its trainer yelled, embarrassment and anger filling his expression. "And shut off that damn thing!" he demanded, turning back towards his enemy and pointing at the PokeDex. Skye smirked and looked over at the device.
"My PokeDex merely tells the truth," Skye said, shrugging her shoulders. "And I can't turn it off during a battle." This was a lie. Skye could program her PokeDex's system to do anything she wanted, from turning off the battle announcer to filling in every PokeDex entry. She would never do this however, because then it would be pointless to capture Pokemon. The sight of the boy squirming in his boots made Skye chuckle; she had never seen someone so helpless.
"Kallian, Will-O-Wisp." The Ninetales sent out several small balls of dark flames at the Golduck, who was still stumbling around. The spheres encircled its target for a few seconds before striking. The impact left several scorch marks on the Pokemon's skin.
"DIPPY WAS BURNED. DIPPY IS HURT BY ITS BURN." Kallian watched with mild interest as the Golduck's status damaged it.
"Dippy, Disable!" Disable? This trainer is a joke. Even if that move does hit Kallian, it will be useless, Skye thought.
"DIPPY SNAPPED OUT OF ITS CONFUSION." The Golduck faced Kallian and raised its hands, waving them in circles. Kallian could feel her Will-O-Wisp ability locking itself away from her. Skye rolled her eyes at the other trainer's triumphant smile.
"Such an idiot," Skye whispered to herself. "Kallian, finish him with Hex." Kallian could sense her opponent's fear as dark power surrounded it. The Golduck braced itself as the energy struck him. The Pokemon fell to the ground, unconscious as the screen of light that was protecting Skye's team dispersed.
"DIPPY HAS FAINTED. LIGHT SCREEN HAS FADED. BATTLE IS OVER, SKYE IS THE WINNER!"
The other trainer recalled his Pokemon back into its PokeBall and fell to his knees. "How…" He looked up hopelessly at Skye, realization starting to form in his eyes. "You're…"
A dinging sound went off, signaling that they were approaching their destination and everyone should head towards the nearest exits. Skye recalled her own Pokemon and walked over to the collapsed trainer. "Azgil would eat you alive kid," she said as she walked by him. She picked up one of the Cheri berries that had fallen earlier and wiped it on her blue pants before plopping it into her mouth. She glanced back at the fallen trainer. "You should really just go back to wherever you came from." As she looked back, she noticed a tattoo on the back of the trainer's neck, it seemed to be in the shape of an M. That's odd, Skye thought as she chewed the berry, who has a tattoo of just the letter M?
She walked off the ship and into Holly Port, the smell of the sea mixed with a subtle metallic tint made Skye feel nostalgic.
She was finally home.
Walking on towards the Pokemon Center to heal her Pokemon, Skye didn't notice when the trainer she defeated failed to exit the ship.
As she was walking, she noticed a rather obnoxious boy about her age rapidly talking with some passengers who had been travelling on a ship from Unova. His raven hair ruffled as he moved his head around in complicated motions. A Purrloin was lazily perched on his shoulder, his motions not bothering her in the slightest, and a Mime Jr. was at his heels, mimicing his motions. The passengers were laughing uncontrollably at the boy and the Pokemon.
Skye looked away in disgust. I'm glad I wasn't on that ship, she thought.
She entered the Pokemon Center and placed her PokeBalls on the counter in front of the nurse. "Hello, would you like me to heal your Pokemon today?" the nurse asked in a monotonous tone. Skye just nodded her head and went to sit on a nearby chair.
She crossed her legs under the table and began flipping through an issue of Pokemon Today when an annoying sound began to fill the room. She looked towards the entrance and saw the same boy from earlier walk in. This time he was alone, but he and his Mime Jr. were making enough noise for a crowd. Skye's brow twitched in annoyance.
She watched out of the corner of her eye as the boy walked to the counter. His tan skin glowing under the fluorescent lighting.
"Hi! Can you rest up my Pokemon? I think they're kinda tired from the long journey," he exclaimed without letting the nurse say her usual line.
The nurse glanced at the Purrloin, who seemed to be asleep on the boy's shoulder, then to the Mime Jr. who was jumping up and down in an attempt to see over the counter. "Sure," she responded with a small smile, "I just need you to recall them into their PokeBalls."
The boy looked confused. "Sorry, I don't have any of those, can't you just take them and do whatever it is you doctor people do?"
Disgust filled Skye's expression. If they aren't your Pokemon, what are you doing trying to heal them in a Pokemon Center? She distractedly flipped a page.
The nurse's smile wavered as she cocked her head to the side, giving him a confused expression. "I'm sorry sir, are these your Pokemon? If they are wild Pokemon I'd be happy to take them to the back, and you may leave."
The boy just laughed some more, rocking the Purrloin back and forth. "No no, these are mine, I just don't put them in PokeBalls. They just kinda follow me around, you know?" The nurse was at a loss for words.
Skye had had enough and stood up, leaving the magazine open on the table. "Look kid, they're only your Pokemon if they're registered to you. They can only be registered to you if you've captured them in PokeBalls." She didn't know what triggered her outburst, usually she didn't care about other people's problems, but this kid had gotten under her skin.
The boy looked at Skye with his large brown eyes in awe. "Oh wow! I didn't know any of that! Thanks!" He then continued to stare at her for awhile, squinting his eyes. "Say… are you that girl that beat the blonde kid on the Kalos ship?" he asked, walking closer to Skye.
"Um, what?" she said, taking a step back. "Oh that. I wasn't aware that that battle was televised."
"Oh yeah! Everyone was talking about you and how you're the new Kalos Champion! I'm not sure what that means, but it must be pretty important. Everyone and their mothers were crowded around all the television screens on the boat. You shoulda seen it! Some kids were in the back, trying to get up to the front to see, but they couldn't, so they got sad! That's when me and Twisty started playing with them to make them happy!" He continued to ramble on as he approached Skye.
Skye narrowed her eyes. What's wrong with this kid?
"Um sir?" the nurse said, saving her. "Sir, I can still heal those Pokemon if you wish." Skye looked around the boy and gave the nurse a grateful smile. The nurse smiled back in response.
"Oh yeah!" The boy said, twirling around to face the counter again. "That'd be great!" He lifted the sleeping Purrloin off his shoulder, causing it to meow in anger, and set it on the counter. The Mime Jr. climbed up the boy's arm and onto the counter, next to the sleepy Purrloin. The nurse took the two Pokemon to the back instead of placing them in the machine where Skye's Pokemon were currently being healed.
The boy turned back to Skye, who was watching the machine heal her Pokemon. "My name's Damien!" he said, putting out a hand. The machine beeped, signaling that the Pokemon were fully healed.
"Skye," she responded, touching his hand just before walking over to the counter. The nurse came out and presented Skye's PokeBalls to her. She placed the balls on her belt behind her jacket, and walked out of the building.
"Wait!" Damien's voiced echoed out of the building. Skye stopped in her tracks and looked back. "You seem to know a lot about this Pokemon thing! Can you show me how to do it?" This kid is an absolute idiot. He makes that trainer on the ship look like a genius.
"I don't have time for this," she said, walking away again.
"Wait!" Damien grabbed her arm. She spun around and punched him in the face.
"Don't you ever do that again," she threatened.
Damien's eyes widened in shock. He had never heard someone sound so angry at him before. "Sorry," he began, lifting a hand to his face, "I didn't mean to make you angry, I was just trying to get some help…"
"Here's a bit of advice: don't leave your Pokemon unattended." She watched as he realized they were a couple blocks down the road from the Pokemon Center. His eyes widened before he spun around and ran back to the Pokemon Center without a word. "What a moron," Skye said to herself. She continued walking towards the docks, but she couldn't stop thinking about the boy and how stupid he seemed.
Her pendent beeped and started emitting a red light. She held it up in front of her face and clicked a button on the back of it. This caused a small hologram of her father to appear out of the pendent.
"Hey there Champion," the hologram said to Skye, causing her to smirk. "You still in Holly Port?"
"Yeah, I'm heading to the docks now, I just stopped to heal my Pokemon." Skye tucked her hair behind her ear as the wind picked up. She looked around; it was getting dark.
"Well be careful, your sister got in yesterday. She's waiting for you."
"Alright, I should be there in a few hours. The boat to the Isle is already docked," she said as the ships came into view.
"Ok, see you soon Skye," he said before cutting the connection.
Skye smiled as she clicked the same button to turn off the signal. She reached the ferry that would take her to Deus Isle. There were several people on board—a couple workers and a few trainers that had come to challenge the Elite Four. She showed the workers her ID to prove she was a resident of Deus Isle. They nodded in acknowledgement and allowed her passage onto the boat. She stood outside rather than waiting in the lobby. She leaned on the railings and looked out onto the water; a couple of Magikarp lazily floated by. She smiled at them before she closed her eyes and enjoyed the cool night breeze on her face.
The ferry was starting to leave.
"WAIT!" A familiar screech disrupted the silence of the night. Skye looked over and cringed when she saw Damien hanging onto the railing of the boat several feet away from her, the Purrloin and Mime Jr. clinging to his back. A nearby worker ran over to him and pulled them up onto the boat.
Skye sighed and turned her head away, hoping he hadn't seen her. She could hear Damien and the worker arguing. "Sir, you can only be on this ferry if you have all eight Azgil gym badges or if you are a resident of one of the islands.
"No-I-her! I'm with her!" Damien yelled. Skye cringed again, knowing he was pointing at her. The worker walked over to her.
"Excuse me miss, is this young man with you?" the worker asked in a gruff voice, yet courteous voice.
He's relentless. Skye gave the worker a slight nod, not wanting to cause him any more trouble. The man gave her a grateful smile and went back to his post.
Damien ran up to her and started thanking her. It didn't seem like he was planning on shutting up any time soon.
This is going to be a long ride…