To The Cosmos
II. The Grand Escape of Hugo Reiner
.
"Hugo! Hugo Reiner! Get back here!"
A middle-aged woman yelled, cupping her hands around her mouth. One could see in the distance the boy she was shouting at, a young lad with short, disheveled black hair who was poking his head out from behind a tree. He frowned, upset at the fact he had been spotted, and quickly darted behind the trunk of another tall tree. One could see he was dressed in wildlife survival clothes, with beige shorts and a camouflage top, with his red scarf wrapped around his neck the only color that didn't blend in with the woods.
"Hugo! You're going to be in big trouble. This goes against the Ranger Code!" The woman shouted again. The only response she received was Hugo sticking out his tongue at her from behind another trunk. The woman sighed, heading toward the grove herself, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a Pokeball. In one swift toss, the red laser burst from the Pokeball and materialized into a turquoise, bi-pedal reptilian creature. It let out a deep cry as it shook itself, causing the large, pink-and-red flower planted on its back to wobble slightly.
"Venasaur, get that troublemaker back here," the woman said, resting her hand on her forehead. The bulb Pokemon cried in response, shooting out two long vines from its back, which quickly extended and reached out behind the trunk. A second later they revealed the young boy, wrapped helplessly by the thick ropes.
"No fair!" he said, pounding his fists on the vines in a futile attempt to free himself. "No fair! You wouldn't have got me if it weren't for your Pokemon!" He made a desperate attempt to grab the lone Pokeball on his waist, but failed to reach it. Venusaur brought Hugo back to the woman, placing him right next to her and freeing him. Hugo made another dash to get away, but felt the firm grasp of the older woman latch onto his arm.
"You're not going anywhere, young man," she said. "We're taking you right back to the Balloon Festival with the other Junior Rangers."
"Aw, man!" Hugo cried, squirming. "It's just a bunch of slowpoke flying Pokemon! There's nothing to do!"
The woman ignored his complaining until she brought Hugo back to a group similarly-aged children, all dressed in same wildlife outfit Hugo was in. They were all looking upward to the sky, apparently in awe. Hugo begrudgingly looked up again with an angry look spread across his face. There were groups of rotund, purple balloon-like Pokemon gently drifting in the sky, all heading eastward. There were some occasional Tailow flying about, with flocks of other gently gliding Pokemon flying in the air as well.
Hugo took a look at his fellow Junior Rangers, who were all staring the sky with curiosity. He turned to the bespectacled boy next to him who was scribbling furiously on a notepad and gave him a questioning look.
"Hey," Hugo whispered hoarsely to the boy. The boy looked up to him, surprised.
"What 'chu doing with that notepad?" The bespectacled boy looked at his hands.
"Oh, this," he said, showing Hugo the paper. It was filled with tiny handwriting and pictures. "I'm taking notes on the Pokemon we're watching. There's some interesting ones not native to Hoenn, like that gliding Emolga. I'm writing down all that I see so I can remember all the details later." The boy turned back to Hugo, who had a look of extreme puzzlement on his face.
"What?" the notepad boy asked. Hugo shook his head in bewilderment.
"You do all that...? Huh," Hugo responded, turning back to the sky, accompanied by a rolling of the eyes. "I used to think you were smart."
The air Pokemon were still gliding along at a leisurely pace along with the clouds. Soon Hugo's attention span came to its ends again. Deciding to break the monotony, he cupped his hands around his mouth and took a deep breath.
"BOOORRRRRING!"
The boys and girls in front of him jumped in shock, much to Hugo's delight. After the shock wore off, his peers turned to shush him all at once, giving him mean glares and comments. They soon reshuffled themselves back into formation, looking back at the sky with intent. Hugo frowned. He guessed this only confirmed he was stuck with a group of losers.
"That's it, Hugo," the same woman from before grabbed his hand. "Sit over here by yourself where I'll be keeping an eye on you personally." She dragged him away from the other students and onto a tree stump where he reluctantly sat.
"Hmph," Hugo said. "At least I get to sit now." The woman ignored him.
He sat isolated, trying all ways to keep himself occupied. He stared at the rings of the tree stump, ripped patches of grass out of the ground, tried to leap over the trunk in one jump (he couldn't), and draw spirals in the soil with a stick. None of them alleviated his monotony. In a fit of boredom he threw the stick he was drawing with away and looked back at the sky to see if the spectacle was almost over. Instead, he saw something out of the norm.
"What the-" He squinted in the distance. There was something in the air that wasn't a flying Pokemon. No, rather, it was a human figure, not flying, but falling at a staggering rate. Seconds later he saw a flying, pterodactyl Pokemon made of stone diving toward the figure as well. There was a murmur amongst the junior Rangers. Hugo jumped up.
"Mrs, there's someone there!" He tugged on the older woman's clothes and pointed in the sky. "They're falling!"
"Stand back, Hugo," the older woman said, and gestured toward her Venusaur. The dinosaur Pokemon raced as fast as it could with its four stubby legs. The crowd of children ran out of its path as it ran closer to the falling figure, who was about a small building's distance from the ground.
"Saur!" The two black vines jetted out of its back at a rapid speed as they both headed toward the falling person, synchronized in their movements. With extreme precision the vines grabbed the figure by its legs, almost plucking them out of the air. The figure came to an extreme halt and jerked up and down in response to the sudden halt. Since the figure was much closer now, Hugo could see it was a teenage girl, with her blonde hair spilling downward, holding her bag tightly against her chest. She had a dazed look on her face when she saw all the children looking up at her.
Venusaur gently lowered the girl, flipping her right side up and putting her on the ground. She still had a bewildered look on her face as he brushed herself off, adjusting her bag and looking around. The older woman rushed up to her.
"My Arceus, dear, are you all right? What were you thinking, miss, and how'd you get yourself in a pickle like that?" the woman said. The girl blinked, as if confused by the rapid response of questions.
"Huh? Oh, I guess I wasn't being careful, ha..." she said uncomfortably, still looking around. "You must have been the Venusaur's owner. Th-thanks... Jaws wouldn't have been able to reach me- wait, where is he?" She whipped around, checking around her. Seconds later, she heard the familiar cry of her Pokemon who landed next to her with a giant thump. It rubbed its snout against the girl affectionately.
"Oh, Jaws, it's all right. I'm fine, I'm fine!" she laughed, petting the Rock Pokemon gently. The children all around her stepped backward in a huddle, intimidated by the prehistoric creature.
"Kids, it's alright! Jaws is friendly. He likes being petted," the girl announced, looking at the children expectantly. They didn't budge. Sighing, she returned her Pokemon to its ball. The sense of unease the children gave off began to dwindle once the Pokemon was gone, and they began whispering to each other quietly. The woman grabbed the girl's hand, rushing her off at once.
"Stay here children! I'll be right back!" she announced, the girl in tow, turning back and focusing an object on the distance. Then she paused, as if recalling something important."
"Except you, Hugo, you come right here and help me," she said. Surprisingly, the mischievous boy followed suit obediently, rushing to follow them as they entered a log cabin where the woman sat the girl down squarely in a chair in front of a wooden table.
"Here's some tea," the woman said, giving her a cup. "I'll go to get a first-aid kit. Stay put! You too, Hugo." She rushed off into another part of the room. The girl sat looking around. Hugo took a seat at the spot across from her. At first there was awkward silence between the two alone in the room.
"Hey," Hugo said quietly to the girl, who was looking out the window. She looked at him surprisingly. He was leaning across his spot, stomach on the table, wearing a toothy grin on his face. "Are you a Pokemon trainer?"
"Me? No," the girl shook her head. She took a sip of her coffee. "Never really had the interest to be one when I was young. I just happen to have Pokemon."
Hugo leaned back in his seat. He had a somewhat disappointed look on his face, but it brightened milliseconds later. "Still, you've got an Aerodactyl, right? That's a super cool Pokemon. Where'd you get it?" he asked excitedly.
"My dad gave me Jaws when I was little," the girl gave a halfhearted smile. "He's like my best friend I have. He's friendly, too, really!"
Hugo's face fell. "...You didn't find it in some dangerous cave in the wild, and battle it to your wit's end, and catch it with your Pokeball?" The girl shook her head.
"...no," she said flatly. "I just said I received him when I was little. Younger than you."
"Hmph. That's pretty lame," Hugo crossed his arms. "You were a lot cooler when you were falling in the air."
She frowned and changed her demeanor. "Kid, you've got nerve." Her eyes fell on his outfit. "What's with the get-up? And what is this place?"
Hugo sighed, dropping his shoulders. "It's a camp for kids to be Pokemon Rangers when they get older. We train and learn about Pokemon and nature and that kinda stuff."
"Oh?" The girl raised an eyebrow. "That actually sounds pretty cool. You like it?"
Hugo laughed loudly, holding his stomach. "Like it? This has got to be the most boring place in the world! I've always wanted to get out of here, but stupid ol' Miss Hilshire, the director always catches me. I've tried sneaking out at night, swimming down the river, but nothing works."
"So, you're not a Trainer..." Hugo rubbed his chin. "Where are you going? How'd you end up falling from the sky?"
The girl bit her lip. "Uh, I was riding Jaws a bit carelessly since I... got too little sleep last night... anyway, I'm off to Littleroot Town for a delivery I need to make."
Hugo leaned across the table again, a glint in his eyes. He turned his head both heads before whispering to her again.
"Take me with you," he said in a low, hushed tone. "Get me outta here."
The girl shot him an unconvinced look.
"Huh? Sorry, I'm pretty sure I could get pinned for kidnapping if I took you away from this... Ranger camp place," the girl answered obviously. "Not to mention, you know, running away from your problems never works."
"Aw, come on!" Hugo threw his hands up in the air. "I can't be stuck in this Ranger camp forever! I wanna be a Trainer!"
"Rangers have a pretty important job," the girl pointed out. "They... uh... um, protect the forests?" She scratched her head, confused.
Hugo stood on his chair. "Exactly! No one cares about being a Ranger! Listen," he exclaimed loudly. "I'm Hugo Reiner, upcoming Trainer-in-the-works and soon-to-be most powerful Gym Leader in Hoenn!" He made a muscle and grabbed his wrist, flashing a grin in triumph. The girl sat unimpressed.
"Whaddya think? My introduction's starting to get pretty good," Hugo sat back down, then looked at the girl expectantly. "So, you gonna take me with you? What's your name, travel companion?"
The girl sighed. "I'm Luna Cozmo, and I'm not taking you with me."
"You sure? I'll ask again. I'm persistent," Hugo insisted. "Everyone says that's one of my qualities."
"More like persistently annoying," Luna replied. "Besides, why only Gym Leader in Hoenn? Most dreamers your age want to go all the way and be the big top Champion of the Elite Four."
Hugo smirked. "Being the Champion is boring. Once you've made it up there, you've got no one to beat! 'Sides, you get to face lots of Trainers when you have your own gym too. A lot more than the Champion gets."
"It's not all fun and games," the girl pointed out, raising an index finger. "You can't just beat down the challengers. You have to assess their level before sending out your Pokemon. You know Roxanne of Rustboro?"
The boy nodded eagerly. "I saw her on TV. "
"Well, she's an old friend of mine and obviously a gym leader as well. All the newbies from Littleroot come and face her? She doesn't send out her Aggron to beat them senseless. She sends out two Geodude and a freakin' Nosepass."
Hugo was about to speak up again when Mrs. Hilshire, the older woman, came back with a first-aid kit in hand. She sat down between the two, glancing back and forth at them.
"You two are getting along, wonderful," she said, clapping her hands once. "Now, any injuries, miss? It looked my Venusaur grabbed you pretty hard. I'll bandage your ankle where the vines were. Let's get those legs up!"
Before she could respond, Luna's legs were abruptly lifted onto the table. Mrs. Hilshire quickly wrapped white bandages over the legs several time, making sure to tighten the m appropriately.
"I'm not going to pry in your business, since passerbys always have some crazy reason for being here," Hilshire said to Luna, wrapping the last bandage on her ankle. "There. Good as new."
"Thank you," Luna said, taking her feet off the table. She looked out the window. "Excuse me, but where am I exactly? I came from Fallarbor..."
"Fallarbor? That's a bit of northwest of here," Hilshire responded. "If that's your home, it's not too far away." She brought a map over and pointed at the specific area.
"Oh, I see," Luna looked disheartened. She grabbed her bag and headed toward the door, turning her head over her shoulder and waved. "Well, I've still got a ways to go. Thank you for everything, especially saving my life. Bye, Hugo. Have fun."
Hugo scowled, crossing his arms as the blonde left, leaving him and Mrs. Hilshire alone once more.
.
"Now, it looks like I got off-course around here.. between Fallarbor and Lavaridge..." I said to myself, legs shoulder width apart, taking a look at my own map spread out in front of me. A quick glance at the sky above revealed to me the faintest of stars forming in the evening sky. It was summer, so there was still daylight and time before the darkness set in.
Jaws was a few feet away, on the ground for a change of pace. I walked over to him.
"This seems like a good clearing," I said to him, pointing at the grass. "We'll stay here for the night. You're probably pooped from all that flying." Jaws cried in response. I nodded, then reached toward the bundle of sticks I had gathered earlier, tossing them in front of us.
"You know what to do."
Jaws nodded, then with a quick puff, let out a small ember out of his mouth and onto the bundle of sticks. The ember immediately sprung to life. What was before a small jet of flame now was a hearty-sized fire, with flames licking the edges of the sticks with satisfying crackles. I let out a relieves sigh. After all, today I almost at death's doorstep, and didn't want to go there again.
After a quick stretch of the arms, I leaned back onto Jaws, who was laying down as well. He lifted one wing to cover me, to which I could only respond to with a smile. Despite the hardness of my Aerodactyl's wing, I managed to close my eyes and lie down, feeling the stress leave my body like a liquid. The only noises I head were the steady crackling of the wood and the ambient noises of the woods and (likely) its fair share of Bug types. The combination of sounds almost lulled me into a peaceful sleep, until a cacophonous noise broke my trance-like state. I shot up and scrambled to my feet, whipping around in a circle. Jaws, startled, spreading his wings to intimidate any unseen disturbances.
A snap in a nearby grove of bushes. I turned to it as fast as possible, nearly breaking my neck.
"Who's there?" I yelled. Silence in return. Slowly, I inch myself to the bush, making as little noise as possible. I must have done a good job, as whoever was in there didn't notice me until I was right next to the bush. Suddenly, I gave a swift, deft kick to the bush, feeling the edge of my shoe hit something fleshy and whiny.
"Ouch!" Out from the bush popped a young boy with short messy hair and a bright red scarf.
"Hugh?" I gasped. He sat there rubbing his side, apparently where I kicked him. Upon my noticing of him, he stood up as fast as he could.
"H-hi," he murmured weakly, raising a hand in the air. A sheepish grin came over his face.
"What are you doing here? It's almost midnight! How far away are you from that Ranger thing?" I rapidly fired my questions, as a testament to how bewildered I was at his sudden midnight visit.
He shot me a look with his almond-colored eyes. "I managed to escape this tonight for the first time, thanks to you. After your crash landing Mrs. Hilshire had to gather all the flying Pokemon together again, and she was so busy that I managed to slip away." He seemed proud of himself.
"...then? How'd you end up here?"
"Well, things got a bit hairy after that," Hugo admitted, kicking the ground. "I wanted to follow you, but I had no idea where you were. But I remembered you said something about going to Littleroot, and that's way down south. So I used my compass and went down. Naturally, being the competent explorer I am, I managed to find you here."
"And then hide in a bush?"
He shrugged. "I was going to wait until you fell asleep and then surprise you in the morning."
"Well, you've given me the surprise part," I sighed, then looked around. The night was even darker than before. I sat back down, leaning against the still-snoozing Jaws. Hugo looked at me with curious eyes.
"It's too late for me to take you back now," I said, patting the ground next to me. "Sleep here. First thing in the morning, I'm taking you back."
Even in the darkness, I saw his eyes light up. With a broad grin he scrambled next to me, quickly sitting down.
"Awesome!" He exclaimed, putting a hand on Jaws. "Even if it's not battling with one, resting with an Aerodactyl is pretty cool."
"Just shush and close your eyes," I said, closing my eyes and leaning back, kicking my legs out. Plunging a thousand feet from the sky really took a toll on a girl's body. My body felt like dead weight. I heard the faint crescendo of his breaths on my side. Moments after I closed my eyes I must have fallen asleep, not bothering to check up on Hugh again. How long my short slumber lasted, I wouldn't know. The next thing I remember was my eyes bursting open as someone yelled my name loudly.
"Luna! Help!"
"What's going on?" I turned my head around in a frenzied panic, jumping to my feet. My vision blurred for a second since I stood up too quickly, then the world aligned itself again in a few short moments. My eyes darted around, still getting used to the pitch-black darkness. The hearty fire that lay before us was now a evanescent ember, barely giving off a few sparks. Jaws awoke with a start, flapping his wings.
"Luna!"
My name again. I about-faced to the voice. Out of the thick woods came Hugo. He was walking really fast... no, wait, sprinting. Was that a panicked look in his eyes? His short unkempt hair was flying in the wind, and he took a worried glance behind him.
"Hugo!" I yelled, cupping my hands around my mouth. "What's wrong?"
The boy took notice of me, then started waving his arms back and forth frantically. It was then I saw what was wrong. The first I saw was their eyes- white, ferocious, and glowing brightly in the dark. Their ebony bodies were camouflaged perfectly in the veil of night. White bands striped their backs, and they all sported fiery orange underbellies. The leader of the dog-like Pokemon pack had two large silver horns protruding from its head.
"Houndoom!" The Pokemon snarled, increasing its pace.
I grit my teeth. How did he get himself into this situation? I've barely known the kid for a couple of hours.
"Jaws!" I jumped onto his back, and he proceeded to roar and hovered a medium distance above the ground. I could see the confused, despairing look on Hugo's face as he remained on the ground.
Don't worry, Hugo, I thought. Abandoning kids isn't in my policy.
My fingers scrambled to my bag, where I firmly grasped a Pokeball. The pack of Dark-type Pokemon was gaining on a Hugo. With a grunt, I aimed my Pokeball as close to the cluster as possible. The sphere burst open to reveal a bipedal Rock Pokemon, with several earth-colored plates and insect-like legs. Most notable, however, were the two long sickle-like appendages. The pack of Houndour and Houndoom suddenly halted to a stop in face of the new threat.
"Tops!" It cried, slicing the air with its arm.
"Aqua Jet!" I yelled out as fast as I could, swooping down closer to the ground with Jaws so my Pokemon could hear my command. With an affirmative cry, Kabutops quickly rushed forward, ramming into one bewildered Houndour, sending it reeling backward in the ground. Its brethren quickly formed a circle around their opponent, attempting to pick it off from all sides.
Spotting Hugo in the corner of my eye, I took this time to seize my opportunity. Jaws swooped down, hovering extremely close to the ground, and glided toward the young boy, who was facing the battle, paralyzed in fear.
"Hugo!" I cried. He turned around, then his eyes widened and instinctively brought his arms to guard himself.
"Grab!" I managed to sputter, fighting against the wind battering against my face, stretching my arm as far as I could. He grimaced and grabbed my hand with both of his. I cried out as pain shot through my arm as I pulled him off the ground, just as Jaws swooped upward. With a heave I threw my arm behind me, sending Hugo flying onto his stomach, but at least safely on Jaws's back. He shook his head and let out a sigh of relief.
"Your arm okay?" He asked, peering over my shoulder.
"Just a bit strained," I replied curtly. Then I remembered why I was in this situation in the first place. "Anyways, what were doing in the middle of the night to get yourself chased by a bunch of angry Fire-types?"
Hugo gave a nonchalant shrug despite the dangerous situation.
"You fell asleep pretty quickly, and I was bored," he yelled over the wind. "I went into the forest to see if anything cool was in there, and I think I accidentally stepped on one the leader's tail 'cause it was really hard to see anything... and you y'know what happened after that."
I started to lecture him. "Next time-"
My point of wisdom was interrupted by a stream of fire that barely missed Jaws's right wing. I felt the strong heat against my cheek as I looked down to see the Kabutops narrowly dodging the flame and attacking the Dark-type. We swooped down again at a high speed to assist.
"Hold on again, Hugo," I yelled, focusing my sights on the Houndoom. "Jaws, Head Smash!"
I gripped my Aerodactyl's rough skin again as he folded his wings, dramatically increasing our downward speed with the more aerodynamic form. The Houndoom grew closer by the second. I braced myself for impact.
"Now!"
Jaws opened its wings again, lowered its head and barreled directly into the dark hide of the Houndoom. I felt the bump from the impact, closing my eyes in response. When I opened them the Houndoom was several meters away, on its side in agony. It was safe to say it wouldn't be getting up for a while. We landed haphazardly on the ground, since the attack scrapped all chances of getting back in the air again. I turned my head to see Hugo rubbing his head, but otherwise unharmed.
"Dour..." I heard a growl and looked around to see the remaining Houndour stepping backwards, as if seeing their leader incapacitated made them fearful of what was to come. With a bark, the rest of them scurried back into the woods, and silence hung over the area once more.
"Nice job, Kabutops," I called out, returning the Pokemon to its ball, wiping sweat off my brow, feeling more weary than ever. Hugh, however, seemed more energized than ever after the skirmish. He eagerly jumped off Jaws's back, stretching his arms.
"Dang! That was pretty exciting," he flashed a toothy grin at me. "Even if you're not a Trainer, you can battle pretty good."
"Pretty well." That was all I could say before letting out a deep breath and hopping of Jaws, returning him to his Pokeball. The now-lifeless campfire gave off only the tiniest columns of smoke. It was probably past midnight at this point, I figured, from all the stars in the sky, but I was too tired to check the time. With a groan I laid down on my back; the grass felt softer than ever.
"Hugo," I called out, still lying on my back. "Don't wander off again..." The footsteps coming toward me grew louder.
"I'm not going anywhere," he replied, taking a seat next to me. I turned my head to its side and narrowed my eyes at him.
"First thing tomorrow," I yawned. "I'm taking you back to your Ranger camp or whatever..."
There was a incomprehensible grunt in response, but I didn't bother repeating myself as I had already closed my eyes and drifted off into a heavy sleep.