Chapter 3: Crawl

Sanjay

It was nearly dusk by the time I made it back to the Pokecenter in Amos, and I was quite impressed by the building. Amos was only a small town, but the center here was still five stories high. I entered the lobby and marched right up to the front desk, where an old woman was doing paperwork.

"Hi, I'd like to register for a room, and I need to get my Pokémon checked out too." I figured I could get my hands and head looked at while I was at it. The burns from setting the Spinarak's web ablaze didn't seem too bad, but they still hurt like a bitch. My head was throbbing, and my hands hurt too much for me to grab anything except with the most gingerly touch. My hair was also missing a big chunk out of the left side, which was no doubt why the receptionist was staring at my head.

"Oh dear, are you ok? Come with me, the nurse is just back this way, and we'll work on getting you a room after you've seen her."

She led me through a hallway at the back of the lobby, and it led to large waiting room. The nurse behind the counter gave a small shriek as soon as she saw my head. I was quickly lead into a back room, with questions about what happened flying at me.

"Well, uh I got my hair caught in a Spinarak's web, and I didn't realize it was so flammable… oh wait! Here, can you check on this. I caught the Spinarak and he was burned pretty badly."

They took the Spinarak's pokeball from my hands, assuring me that they would take care of him. The nurse then treated myself. Like I thought the burns weren't very serious, but the nurse applied some kind of lotion on my hands, and then bandaged them up. They told me it would be easier to treat my head if they could remove my hair, and I told them it was fine. The nurse left the room and I went to the mirror to get a good look at my hair. While it wasn't exactly long, my hair was still a pretty decent length, coming past my ears. The left side where my hair caught on fire was pretty ugly however. The hair looked thin and messy, and in one spot it was burned away down to the skin, and that's where the burn marks were. I really hoped I would be able to grow hair there still.

The nurse came back shortly with an electric shaver and began to shave my head. She took care to avoid the burned areas, but I still felt a shooting pain the entire time she was doing it. When she finished she applied the same lotion she put on my hands and wrapped my head in a bandage. She gave me a bottle of the lotion and a roll of bandages with strict instructions to apply the lotion and change the wrapping every morning and night.

I asked about my Pokémon, and she told me to go ahead and head back to the receptionist in the lobby to get a room, because it would still be a few minutes. I made my way back to the lobby and found the same old lady at the front desk.

"Um, can I get a room now?"

"Yes, of course dear. Are you feeling better?" the old woman smiled up at me.

"Yeah. The lotion they put on me feels amazing." It was true, it had an instant cooling effect on my skin.

"I'm glad to hear that. What's your name? And I'll also need to see your trainer I.D."

I handed her my I.D., and after finding out this was the first Pokecenter I'd been in, she began to explain how they worked. Trainers get free rooms at centers, and also free medical care for themselves and their Pokémon. Rooms came on a first come first serve basis, and it wasn't uncommon to have to room with someone else. We were guaranteed at least a week in our rooms, but after that if there was a waiting list you would be booted out. The center also had a cafeteria, where it was only $5 to buy a meal ticket, which provided you with one meal.

The nurse who treated my burns entered the lobby from the back hall and looked around. Spotting me, she called out, "Sir, your Spinarak is ready to be picked up."

We headed back to the waiting room while she explained how the medical center worked. "Usually you'd have to come pick up your Pokémon yourself, but it's not too hard to tell that you're a new trainer, so I thought I'd come let you know."

"Thank you, and also thank you for taking care of my burns."

"Oh don't worry about it, that is my job after all."

I was about to leave, but after a moment's hesitation I turned around and asked the nurse, "Do you know what gender he is? I have no idea how to tell a spider's gender."

The nurse gave out a small laugh. "He's a male, you can tell by his pedipalps."

"His pediwhats?"

"Pedipalps, they're a small pair of legs, underneath his jaws. They're hard to spot unless he extends them. He uses them to help him spin webs, and they're enlarged in males. When he evolves they're used during mating. He grabs a hold of the femal-"

"Thanks," I quickly cut in, "Sorry but I don't really feel like learning how spiders reproduce."

The nurse laughed again. "I suppose most people wouldn't. I have to get back to work, but good luck on your journey."

I headed up to my room on the fifth floor. I had managed to get a room all to myself, since Amos wasn't exactly a very popular town for trainers to stay at. Most people only stayed a night before they either headed back to Jameson's Station or left toward the more wild areas of Kyro. The room wasn't very impressive, just two bunk beds across from each other. There was a desk by the window, and also a bathroom with a half bath inside. I decided I might as well take a shower before I dealt with the Spinarak I had just caught. It was kind of a hassle taking a shower, I couldn't put my head underneath the faucet, but "luckily" since they practically shaved my head it wasn't too hard to wash.

I stepped out and looked at my reflection in the mirror. I was almost bald, which looked weird, since I normally kept my hair pretty long for a guy. The burn on my head was also pretty ugly, the skin was scarred in an almost two inch circle. I sighed, I it'd take a few weeks before my hair would cover it up.

I stepped outside into the room and put on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt I had packed for days off and lounging around my room. Picking up the Spinarak's pokeball, I looked at it with some trepidation. For all I knew it was hell bent on attacking me, and that was before I set it on fire. I thought about doing this in the lobby, where other people would be around who could help, but decided against it. I would have to face it eventually, so without stopping to think I held down the button on the ball and released the Pokémon into the room.

When the flash of light faded I got a better look at the Pokémon that I had caught. He had a small green body, broken up into two parts. The smaller head a small yellow horn in between his eyes, and two red fangs on either side of his mouth. The abdomen was almost twice the size of his head and blue band running around near the back. In the middle was the very distinct markings of a face that caused me to think was his head when I got stuck in his web. The face was only two small dots for eyes and line to represent the mouth, which at the moment was in a neutral position. His body was supported by three yellow legs jutting out from his abdomen. The legs were segmented into two parts, and each joint was blue.

He didn't looked burnt at all, which wasn't surprising considering how much faster Pokémon healed, especially when brought to a pokecenter. He looked confused by his surroundings, but when he turned and saw me sitting on the bed his abdomen line turned into a frown.

"Hey little guy. It's alright, my name is Sanjay." I smiled at him, hoping that it would calm him down. It didn't. He let out a squeak and fired a string of web at my face. I ducked, but he still managed to get some of it on my face.

I didn't want to panic and freak him, so I tried to remain calm. My heart was racing though, the nurse had informed me that his bite wasn't poisonous enough to kill a human, but it would still hurt. He hadn't moved yet, but he was still watching me, ready to fire another web if I made any sudden moves.

I slowly peeled the web off my face, and realized I should have checked my field guide on information about Spinaraks before I released him. I reached in my bag and pulled out a can of poke chow I had bought before I came to the center. It was the generic bug type food, and hoped it would help calm him down. I slowly took one of the pieces of kibble out, and held it out toward him.

He stared intently at my hand, trying to judge what I was offering him. He crawled forward, and I slowly lowered my hand to the ground, praying to Arceus that he wouldn't bite me. His jaws grabbed the kibble from my hands, and his frown turned into a smile. I considered that a good sign, and was quite happy till I saw him eat. He spat out some kind of acid on the kibble, and it dissolved into a gooey liquid. I then saw the pedipalps that the nurse was talking about. He was using them to shovel the liquid into his mouth.

"That's gonna take some getting used to."

I reached out toward him and touched his abdomen. He slightly flinched away from my touch, but didn't protest. I smiled, figuring that I was making real progress. I pulled out another piece of kibble, and handed it to him. While he was busy eating out pulled out my field guide and turned to the page on Spinarak.

Spinarak, the String Spit Pokémon.

Type: Bug/Poison

Spinarak are nocturnal hunters. They spend the day sleeping and making repairs to their webs, and at night they wait motionless for prey to become ensnared in their webs. They are very sensitive to the vibrations on their webs, so much so that it can almost be considered a second nervous system. Their bite isn't deadly to humans, but is quite painful and leads to a rash like mark and swelling. Their webs are highly flammable, and they are preyed upon by large flying types. They are found almost all over the world, and in Kyro they are native at lower elevations in the valleys between the Giri Mountains.

While I was reading I heard a small thump. The Spinarak had managed to knock over the can of poke chow, spilling the contents all over the floor. It gave a squeak of victory and began to devour the pieces of kibble. I managed to save half of its contents, but I didn't want to get too near to him. He liked it when I gave him food, but I doubted he would react well if I tried to take it away.

"You're a little thief, you know that." I smiled though, I had thought of a name.

"I think I'll call you Bandit. How does that sound." Bandit didn't seem to even notice he'd been given a new name, so intent he was on his food.

The sun was beating down on me as I made my way to the Ramona. Ramona didn't have a gym, but if I headed even farther east, I would reach Oppel, home to the rock type gym. I had planned to challenge my first gym there, but considering the only Pokémon I had was Bandit, it wasn't a very appealing idea. His bug typing would put him at a huge disadvantage, especially considering most rock types were also part ground, and they resisted his poison type attacks.

Speaking of Bandit, we were getting along quite well. He was quite amiable for a spider, even though I suppose he's the only spider I know. He was riding on my back right now, his feet had tiny hooked claws allowed him to cling to my shirt quite easily. We had already beaten a few Sentret that were loitering about the path, and I considered trying to catch the one that he managed to knock out, but I didn't want a normal type that would be useless against the next gym.

I kind of felt silly trying to battle with him. He ignored almost all of my commands, and I wasn't sure if it was because he wouldn't listen or if he couldn't understand me. Either option presented a problem, but I hoped it was the latter. He did understand "attack" though, but only when I pointed at the Sentret. Almost all of them were able to escape when they realized they couldn't beat him, so I was going to have to figure out how to stop that when I found a Pokémon I actually wanted to catch.

It was a perfect summer day out, not a cloud in sky. It was actually really, really hot. I missed being able to just go inside and sit in the air conditioning, but I'd have to get used to it if I wanted to be a trainer. The Southern Giri Mountains were visible from the path I was taking, and their snowcapped peaks looked very inviting, but I knew both myself and Bandit would have to get a lot stronger before we would survive even one night up there.

"Hey kid, do want to battle?"

I turned around and saw someone running down the path toward me. I stopped and waited for him to get closer. He was a few years older than me, probably around nineteen or twenty, and he had thick, curly dark hair. He definitely looked like a trainer, with his muddy hiking boots and worn clothing.

He slowed down when he was about ten feet from me and said, "So how bout it, you want to battle?"

I was a little anxious, this would be first battle after all, and he looked experienced, but I still replied, "Sure."

"Great. How many badges do you have?"

"I don't have any yet."

"That's perfect!" He exclaimed, clearly excited by finding a rookie. "I just caught a Shinx, so I need someone we-, uh inexperienced to battle. Since you're a rookie, how about we wager only $10?"

"That's fine by me." I was actually kind of pissed he called me weak, so now I was going to make sure I didn't lose.

We walked a few feet off the path, and took places across from each other. He released his Shinx from its pokeball, and I had to admit it made me want one. Luxray were pretty cool Pokémon, and his Shinx looked pretty fierce for an unevolved Pokémon.

"Bandit," I called out. He climbed off my back and scurried out in front of me. He was starting to respond to his name now. When I first gave him his name, he didn't realize I was talking about him, but he seemed to understand this time. I hoped it was a good sign that he would listen to me.

"You ready?" The other trainer called out. I nodded and decided I wouldn't wait for someone else to make the first move in my first battle.

"Bandit use Scary Face!" Bandit, however had a different idea. He fired out a web at the opponent's Shinx. The cat easily dodged it however, and responded by running toward Bandit at full speed.

"Use Tackle." The other trainer called out. Bandit tried to fire another web at the speeding Shinx, but he easily sidestepped and rammed into the spider at full speed. Bandit flew back into my gut, and I collapsed. The force of his flying body knock the air out of me.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I think so." I answered hoarsely, struggling to breath.

"That was perfect. You're doing a great job." My opponent was talking to his Shinx now, and it looked positively delirious with happiness from its trainer's compliment.

Bandit picked himself up off the ground, and looked at my struggling form. "Come on Bandit. Scary Face is like this." I tried to make the most intimidating face I could. All it managed to do was elicit laughs from my opponent. I glared up at him, my own scary face coming naturally this time.

"Hahaha, I'm sorry. You have the right idea though." He said as he managed to calm down.

What did he mean, the right idea? I didn't know what he was talking about, but we weren't finished yet, and we weren't going to lose.

"Bandit, use String Shot!" This time he listened and fire a string of web at the Shinx. It managed to dodge and again charged forward in a Tackle attack.

Bandit tried to use another String Shot, but the Shinx managed to evade it. I was at my wit's end, how were we supposed to beat something we couldn't hit? As the Shinx almost reached Bandit, an idea came to my head, I just hoped Bandit would listen.

"Scary Face!" I almost screamed, praying that Bandit would listen. This time he did. When the Shinx was almost to him he raised his abdomen in the air and the eyes on his face slanted and his mouth drew into a frown. The Shinx, obviously frightened by the display, tried to stop, but his momentum carried him toward Bandit.

"Poison Sting!" Bandit fired a stream of small poisonous barbs at from his mouth at the frightened Shinx. All of them found their mark, and the Shinx gave a yelp of pain and jumped away.

Yes! I thought to myself. We can win this.

"Tell him good job." My opponent calmly said, a smile on his face.

"What?"

"Tell your Spinarak he did a good job. Trust me."

"Uh, good job Bandit. That was a good attack."

Bandit looked quite happy with himself, but I was confused why my opponent told me to compliment him. Shouldn't he be worried about his own Pokémon? I couldn't think about it though, we still had a battle to win.

The Shinx looked quite sick though, I guess taking a poison sting to the face at point blank range must have poisoned him. Not that I was complaining, it would make it that much easier for me to win.

"Bandit, use Constrict." He'd only used this move once, on one of the Sentret's we'd battled, so I knew it was a longshot that he'd actual listen to me. It was worth the chance though, if we managed to bind that Shinx the poison would run its course and we would win.

Bandit, however, didn't seem to come to that conclusion. Bolstered by my compliment, he continued trying to hit the Shinx with Poison Sting. The poison seemed to slowing him down, and several of the barbs made contact.

"Use Spark, like we practiced." My opponent called out.

Spark sounded like an electric attack, so I figured he tried to take down Bandit from a far, but to my surprise the Shinx again came barreling down toward Bandit. I smiled, we could just use Scary Face again, and then another Poison Sting from that close would end it.

"Scary Face!"

Bandit again tried to intimidate the charging Shinx, but it didn't seem to faze him at all. He crashed into Bandit at full speed, but this time there was an electric discharge as he made contact. Bandit flew back, and landing in the dirt. He tried to raise himself up with his legs, but collapsed and passed out.

I couldn't believe it. I lost my first battle as a trainer. All my hopes and dreams of becoming champion crashed down, like Bandit after he got knocked out.

"That was a good battle kid." I turned and watched my opponent walk closer.

"Hey what happened to your hea-"

He suddenly stopped talking. "That was your first battle wasn't it."

It wasn't a question. I returned Bandit and reached into my pocket to pull out my wallet, and was surprised to find that my opponent had pulled out a small case and held it out in front of me. He opened it up and I was shocked to find eight badges inside. He was only two away from completing the gym circuit. Anger flashed across my face, I thought he was about to gloat and say I wouldn't even be able to get one, but he surprised me with what he said.

"I lost five battles in a row before I managed to win one. And look at me now, I almost have all the badges."

I looked up at his face and he was smiling. "My name is Jason by the way."

"Jay." I replied. I generally went by that, since Sanjay was obviously a Gurgesh name.

"Don't worry about paying me. It wouldn't feel right taking money from someone who literally just started out."

I still pulled out the $10 and held it out in front of him. "It's cool. You earned it."

He took the $10 from my hand and smiled. "Are you heading to Ramona?"

I nodded, realizing what he was about to ask me.

"You want to travel there with me. It's a week journey, and trust me, it'll go by a lot faster with company."

Even though he beat me in my first battle, I agreed. He seemed like a good guy. He could've just took my money and went on his way, but he tried to make me feel better. I figured I could learn a lot about training from him, especially since he had eight badges, when most trainers didn't even manage to get five before they reached their ceiling.

I would take this loss and learn from it. One little loss didn't mean I wasn't any good. Besides, I still had a championship to win.

Chapter 3 is in the books! Remember to review if you liked or hated it. Sanjay lost his first battle, but he seems to be taking it well thanks to Jason. The next chapter will be a Bella view point, but since I go back to college in two days, I have no idea how long it will take me to write it. I'm shooting for an update every week, but it might be kinda hectic, so I apologize if it takes a little longer. Anyways, shout out to Marcus A for showing me how to fix line breaks. Everyone make sure you go check out his new Pokémon story!