A Retriever in Exile, Part I
- Chapter 1 -
The best recognizable symbol of the bond between human and Pokemon is the Poke Ball.
Two thousand years ago, the hero Aluxiver joined forces with the Eevee warrior Mythic, leader of the wilderness. With the powers of the ancients, they defeated Giratina, lord of the underworld, and established a lasting peace between mankind and Pokemon throughout the lands.
The hero's victory proved to the world that despite the differences between the two races, humans and Pokemon could accomplish great deeds together. And though cooperation had long existed between Pokemon and humans, Aluxiver was immortalized as the world's first Pokemon trainer.
As friends and allies, Pokemon and humans would bond through adventure, through terror, through shared pain. From man, Pokemon learned compassion; and from Pokemon, man learned instinct. Thus was born the legacy of the Pokemon Trainer, and with it, the rise of the Poke Ball.
An mysterious yet widely used device, the modern Poke Ball has an outer shell of semi-rigid polymer. The top half is transparent red, while the bottom half is opaque white. The interior contains an eight-lens laser that, when focused on a Pokemon, transforms them into a compressible state of matter.
As energy, the Pokemon is shrunken down to fit inside the capsule. Its aura will resonate with an energy crystal, which acts as a medium for the bond between the Pokemon and the trainer. This crystal also ensures that the Pokemon cannot be recaptured.
If a newly caught Pokemon is able to escape before the ball registers a capture, however, the crystal shatters, rendering the capsule useless. In recent models, the memory unit stores the auras of both the captive Pokemon and its trainer to prevent theft or misuse.
It is unknown why Poke Balls are immune to the effects of electromagnetic pulses or any form of electronic interference, or why they have no detrimental side effects on the Pokemon. Yet one thing remains certain, for no known reason: Regardless of ability, size, type, or free spirit, any Pokemon can live comfortably inside a Poke Ball...
And it was one such capsule from which a Pikachu watched his trainer approach his opponent, one sunny morning. Spark-Tail still remembered the day of his capture, nine months ago, the whirling capsule that cut short his battle, his terror within the Poke Ball, hearing Slick's voice from every direction... The boy had renamed him "Lightning" on that day.
At first, the Pikachu had been terrified and ashamed, barely able to even look at his teammates. He'd heard stories about humans in the wild, of course, how trainers sometimes mistreated their Pokemon. But for the first six months, Slick barely touched him at all. And slowly the fear went away... most of it, at least.
At that moment, Slick's hand grasped his capsule. Palm and fingers curled over the dome-window, the thumb reaching for the silver button. Still not used to the sight, the Pikachu cringed as the capsule flashed with white light around him. "Lightning, you're on!" called Slick.
Paws leaving the gel-pads, the Pikachu was swept out from the capsule in a flood of white light and tossed out into the open, the ground shrinking as he resumed normal size. The world rushed upon him in a thrill of senses, his heart pounding a mile a minute. "Pikapi!"
Pungent, earthy scents swept over the Pikachu, cool grass gently pressing on him as the breeze filled his fur. The wilderness had more light and more shadow than the view from a Poke Ball would suggest, no longer filtered in red, but displaying resplendent green hues.
With a thump, a Lombre landed on the other side of the battle ring. A Pokemon battle had begun.
"Lombre, headbutt!" ordered the trainer at one end of the arena. Nod ding, the Lombre at the trainer's side sprinted down the grass and sprang headfirst into the other trainer's Pikachu with a croak, knocking the rodent to the ground.
Wincing as his Pikachu hit the turf, Slick examined his opponent carefully- a triathlete in a blue jersey, shorts, running shoes, and shades. "Lightning, use thundershock!"
Getting to his paws, Spark-Tail stared hard at the Lombre, his paws clenched. Electricity flashed in his yellow-green eyes as twin bursts of golden sparks flashed from his red cheeks and struck his opponent, electrocuting the Lombre.
"Lombre, Water Gun!" ordered the triathlete. Grunting, the Lombre shook off the last of the sparks, crouched low, and spat a pressurized burst of water at Lightning, stinging the Pikachu and sending him reeling back a few steps.
"Lightning, Shock Wave!" Soaked fur flat against his flesh, Spark-Tail pointed at Lombre with a paw and sent a jagged column of blue sparks slashing across the grass with a sharp cry. The swift electric cyclone crackled loudly as it engulfed his opponent, drawing a yell from beneath the Lombre's lilypad hat.
"Lombre! Mega Drain!" Breathing hard, the Lombre got up and pointed a gnarled finger at Spark-Tail. The Pikachu gasped as green tendrils of energy shot from his chest and swirled into the Lombre, sinking to the ground, suddenly fatigued as if his blood was drawn.
"Lightning! Don't give in!" called Slick, his voice firm but supportive. "Secret Power!" Breathing hard, the Pikachu stumbled to his feet and glanced back up at his trainer, then stared at the Lombre.
"Wait, you're a member of the Secret Power Society?" asked the triathlete, lifting an eyebrow at Slick, but giving his opponent a friendly grin. "Nice. My neighbor's a member, too."
Ignoring Slick and the triathlete both, Spark-Tail ran at the Lombre, cheeks crackling as he sprang up and somersaulted in midair, striking down with a glowing Lightning-bolt tail towards his opponent's head. As the Lombre crumpled to the ground with a moan, the Pikachu prepared to finish his foe off with a spinning tail strike.
But then, right as he was about to deal the final blow, the Pikachu caught sight of his target and completely froze, his paws shaking as he stared down at his opponent. The Lombre's eyes were terrified, wide with the fear of a cornered animal- just like Leaf-Light, one year ago...