Chapter 8: A Blast From The Past

A wild wind swept through the beaten forest, raising a few Pokémon from a mid morning nap. Next to the rushing river stood Max and Roxanne, in excited postures. Roxanne tossed a red and white PokeBall into the middle of the path, seeming completely relaxed unlike Max. A white light appeared, and escaping from within it came a towering rock snake glaring at Charmander, not once lifting its intimidating gaze. Charmander was interlocked into Onix's eyes, which seemed to defeat Charmander without attacking him! Max was also feeling the heat; he had encountered Onix's before but he was never attempting to beat one in a battle, especially with a type disadvantage. All around the raging battle were small chirps from other Pokémon, like the green striped Caterpillar, peaking through the bushes on the other side of the ongoing sapphire river. The Caterpie seemed intensively agitated for an unknown reason.

"Okay, Charmander, we can do this…" his trail of speech faded, for some reason Max had clammed up.

"Onix, you ready?" A violent grunt came from the hard Rock Pokémon, "So lets get this party started, use Screech!" Onix rose his head to a further height; with one small movement he blasted a piercing noise toward the cowering Pokémon. The small orangey lizard flew with an immense force along the dusty terrain.

"Charmander no!" The Fire Pokémon was able to resist the urge to collapse and call defeat, "Charmander fight back with your Screech!" Max called.

Roxanne was ready, knowing that the inexperienced trainer would probably pull a trick like this, "Onix, retaliate with yours again!" With what seemed like all hell let loose, screeching noises soared like elegant waves of beauty at one another, as if to collapse into each other's arms. The huge velocities collided with a noticeable difference in force and power, seeing Charmander's Screech edge back toward him. "Onix, a slight bit more power!" She cried.

"Charmander you too!" The overall noise was unbearable for both trainers; Max had already resorted to clamping his hands round his ears tightly. Charmander couldn't hold out any longer, with double the strength it struck his light orange body causing him to topple over. With an aching cry he slumped his head against the coarse ground feeling sharp stabs of small pebbles jab into him. "Charmander! You were great buddy, take a nice long rest." The red beam of energy jagged its path over to the injured Pokémon and retracted it inside. "Thank you Roxanne, I feel more confident than ever that I will be able to beat my Dad with all this extra training," Max said, walking over and shaking Roxanne's hand. He reached across to Onix to feel the roughness of his body, but to his amazement it was as smooth as a marble top, allowing his hands to glide gracefully over the surface without feeling grazed.

"Anything wrong Max?" Roxanne asked with a puzzled tone.

"No, I just always though that an Onix would be rough, it came as a rather bewildering surprise you may say!" He chuckled with the faintest of smiles. "Do you think we can get going again, the more time we wait here the more I get excited," his thrill of battling his Dad reviving in his burning spirit.

"Sure," her gentle face soothing the fire alight within Max. "Onix return, we have a long trip ahead." The gigantic beast flew back inside and caused Max to wonder how something so big could fit into something so small. Roxanne placed the PokeBall back into her handbag; she slung it over her shoulder and proceeded over to Max, "Lets go!"

*****

"Jumpluff and Typhlosion let's show them your power!" A red spiky haired teenager watched as his two beloved Pokémon appeared in front of him, his pair of confident scarlet eyes matching the same fire burning around Typhlosion's neck. Typhlosion pounded his yellow front body attempting to scare his opponents. The blue floating sphere hovered over her trainer's head, the three cream cotton balls releasing little threads that blew in the dampened wind. "Typhlosion and Jumpluff, finish this off with one attack each, Flamethrower on Sunflora and Bullet Seed on Geodude."

*****

The sun's rays reached the top of Max's head blossoming warmth onto him as he tugged his green and black fleece from his body. He could feel the heat as if it was tickling his sensitive skin relaxing him as he continued walking alongside Roxanne.

"Roxanne, do you mind if we take a quick lunch stop?" Max asked, wiping sweat from his brow, the sun's rays becoming more intense.

Roxanne placed her handbag on the lush grass only a few metres away from the refreshing river. She started rummaging through the items in her bag, taking out ingredients, "Sure thing, I'll prepare the food while you take a quick dip," she smiled warmly.

She grabbed a hold of two PokeBalls in the side Pocket, throwing them high into the air. "Nosepass and Onix; come and take a break!" The towering Snake appeared first and signalled its hunger with a gigantic roar, Nosepass came out without any fuss. "Don't forget to let your Pokémon out as well!" she called after Max who ran toward the sparkling river, throwing off his t-shirt, which immediately made his body cooler. He plunged straight into the frosty delight where he saw beautifully decorated Pokémon gliding up and down with their majestic fins and tails. The elegance shone as pure beauty to Max, and his amazement captivated his thoughts. For once he felt peaceful and one with nature. He broke through the surface of the water, still with an awe struck face painted on to him. He never knew that Pokémon could be so magnificent and stunning all at once, he could feel what is what like to be with Pokémon.

*****

'Phlo, Typhlosion,' the human sized Pokémon roared as it released a jet of fire toward the cowering Sunflora who was immobilized from the fear. The Sunflower Pokémon was struck directly against its cream coloured face causing it to wail in agony as it fell lightly to the floor.

'Pluff,' cried the cotton Pokémon as hundreds of seeds were released from the cotton spores around its spherical body. The sharp seeds pierced the stony body of the frowning ball of Rock, standing his ground against the oncoming attack. The Bullet Seed started to ricochet from his solid body and strike both Jumpluff and Typhlosion.

"Argh, I didn't predict this! Typhlosion and Jumpluff quickly dodge it!" Cried the shady character as he himself ducked out of the way of the repelled attack. Glaring back up he noticed that Geodude was still floating above the ground with only a few injuries received. "Typhlosion and Jumpluff this time we'll combine our attacks…"

"I think I'll get an attack in first mate, Geodude use Rollout on Typhlosion!" Jimmy called out from the opposite side, while his Rock Pokémon starting spinning at a high velocity straight for Typhlosion.

"Lets react quickly! Both use the same attacks!" The glowing Seeds were released first followed by the warm jet of fire, which started to spiral around the Bullet Seed. Geodude had no time to move out of the way, blundering directly into the intense assault. It swiftly fell against the ground, no longer able to continue the fight!

*****

With the sounds of faint ripples crashing over his head Max once again broke the surface of the water, watching Goldeen, Feebas and Mantyke jump into the brisk air. Their movement seemed so stylish as their body's sparkled in the rays of the sun, and his appreciation of them grew ever fonder.

He reluctantly swam for the shore, not once averting his gaze from the Pokémon, as he seemed to be learning more and more as he watched their behaviour in their natural habitats.

"Wow! Aren't they stunning Roxanne." Max rhetorically stated with his continuous face of wonder. "I can now understand why and old friend of mine loves to paint them in their natural habitats. You can learn so much from them," forgetting that he was still sitting in the shallow water of the river.

Roxanne gave one of her caring smiles as she stared at the back of Max's head, remembering her time when she felt this way. She returned her attention to the stew that was cooking away while Max began to dry himself down on the towel that Charmander had gracefully given him. Budew was sitting on the patch of grass next to Roxanne, cutting vegetables with her razor like Bullet Seed.

"Nosepass, wake up! It's lunch time!" A cry of approval sounded from everyone around. Onix burst through the soil layer of the ground, its surface also glistening in the sun's rays. Nosepass tottered over to its food bowl immediately slumping down in front of it. Charmander had already dug into his supply and was scoffing the food at a fast rate, while Budew was waiting for her trainer to begin to eat.

Max had rushed over faster than her had ever done before, grabbing his bowl of stew rapidly out of Roxanne's delicate grip. Within a matter of seconds his plate was pristine, and he delved in the pan of Vegetable Stew with a super sized ladle.

"Slow down there Horsea, it ain't going anywhere!"

"Dnt quoke me on Potamon jotes," Max said while spiriting the food in his mouth everywhere. He took a huge gulp and relaxed his face and began to continue, "I just feel the need for more energy, and food gives you lots of it!"

"But cramming it will only give you stomach cramps or indigestion. You can eat the same amount of food in a longer period of time," her melodic voice said. Realising that not much conversation was going to be made this mealtime she turned to face the river and its inhabitants playing (as it seemed) softly among the beautiful scenery.

*****

"Hah! That's my win!" The scarlet clear eyes once again piercing Jimmy's soul as he recalled his Pokémon back to their balls. "I got a tip for you…" he paused, most likely to give an effect to his words following, "Bond with your Pokémon more. If you do that then you will be able to tell what they can do in reaction to an attack. Good Luck!"

They both clasped the others hand tightly, as if saying that they will meet again. Jimmy parted company, wandering down the track heading towards Oldale Town.

*****

Max and Roxanne were moving rather sluggishly after their fattening meal, not really bothering to exert too much energy. Max gazed into the far off distance, hoping to see the sign welcoming them to Petalburg City, but still after six attempts, it wasn't there. Instead was the silhouette of a young boy heading toward them with a brisk step in his movement, fidgeting around with his yellow and black baseball cap until his positioned it back to front. A quaff of his dark blue hair was sticking out underneath the rim of the hat while he was unfastening the top half of his red fleece.

"Hey! You!" The young trainer called at Max. "Do you want a Pokémon Battle?" Max was rather taken aback by the unexpected comment thus immediately changing his posture.

"Sure! I need all the practice I can get!"

"Okay then! The rules are simple; it's a double battle, two on two. Whichever team faints first is the looser. Fair rules?"

"Sounds okay to me!" Completely reverting his dreary attitude, he grabbed Charmander's and Budew's PokeBall, "Budew and Charmander lets do our best!"

"Typhlosion and Beedrill! You too!" Jimmy cried throwing his PokeBalls up high. With a loud crack the four Pokémon stood in front of each other raring to begin the battle, with their eyes interlocking instantly. The Black and White striped wasp clanged its two needles together at the end of its front legs, showing Jimmy that he was ready for a fight. "Beedrill we'll start this off with your Twineedle attack now! And Typhlosion use your Fire Spin!"

"Budew and Charmander, doge it!" Max yelled above the humming sound of the Twineedle. The small bud Pokémon swiftly laid herself against the ground, allowing the Fire Spin to wave over her, Charmander however hit back with his ember, which burnt the needles to white ashes floating down upon the surroundings as if they were gentle and elegant snowflakes.

"Arrgg! We'll have to take a different approach then. Beedrill up we go and Typhlosion underground!" With a flurry of movement they were gone, nowhere to be seen. This caused minor panic for Max and his Pokémon as they could all be in for a bit of rough and tumble.

"Charmander, fire your Screech down the hole that Typhlosion dug, Budew sense for his movement underground to determine where he will appear."

"You forgot about on crucial thing! Beedril!" With just those words he re-appeared out of the blue, his two razor like needles, shining a metallic silver. With a mighty force he collided with Charmander, stopping his Screech attack straight away, leaving Typhlosion open for an assault on Budew. "Typhlosion, jump out and use your Flame Wheel on Budew!" With warp speed, he darted out of the gaping hole in the ground, too fast for Budew to sense him. He spun into a ball with a flame covering his entire body, quickly lunging straight into Budew. Both Charmander and Budew had fainted from the force of the attacks; they lay there, while Max held their two PokeBalls out to allow them some rest.

"Charmander and Budew. You deserve a good long rest," Max said. He clipped them back onto his belt, "Thanks for the practice; I've learnt that I can't just worry about one Pokemon, but I've got to keep an eye on both of them."

"That's absolutely correct, but you fought hard Max, and for that you should be proud." Jimmy replied.

"Huh? How do you know my name?" Max asked, very surprised by Jimmy's remark.

"I've met your sister, not that long ago actually, she was training with her Glaceon and Beautifly, they looked magnificent with their appeals. I can see why people love being coordinators so much…" he paused, "We got to know each other a little more, and she showed me a picture of you and your parents, and I then set out looking for you since then!"

"You've been looking for me?" Max seemed very puzzled; wondering what all this was for.

"Yes, that's what I just said!" Jimmy laughed, "I went to your house, but your parents said that you were in Oldale Town, so I then trekked down here. Anyway, May gave me this for you, saying you would know what to do with it." His hand slipped into the pocket of his fleece, drawing out a box, similar to that of a ribbon case. It had red markings all over the black leather, and straightaway Max knew what it was. He reluctantly took a hold of it, fearing what would be inside.

Before he had a chance to open it and face his fears, a male voice sounded from the opposite side of the river, startling all three "Hey Jimmy, good to see you again!"

*****