Gema's Personal Disclaimer: I'm putting this in front of every chapter I write, so no one can miss it.
First, the obvious, I don't own anything trademarked or copyrighted.
Second; These are my fics, so y'all will have to deal with my writing quirks. Do not bother telling me about my spelling choices, like Yu-Gi, Joe, Millennial, or whatever else they may be. These are not mistakes, they are intentional. Therefore, I don't want to hear about how they are other wise spelled. If spelling bothers you that much, then leave.
I, and everyone else, do not appreciate personal attacks. My fics are what are open to being critized, not my character. Attacking me is libel, and I will report it as harassment.
I will not include profanity in my writings. Deal with it. Also, I do not appreciate profanity in reviews, so please don't include it. There's over 600,000 words in the English language. I am sure y'all can use something besides profanity.
Some review etiquette should be observed. As says at the bottom of each review page "It is extremely helpful to use this opportunity to comment on an aspect of the story that can be improved. A well rounded critique is often the most rewarding tool for the writer." I would appreciate constructive reviews. "Please continue" is not very helpful. Reviews that are solely demands for updates or explanations about a lack of updates are not helpful. And please, use recognizable grammar when reviewing. A review isn't very helpful if I can't read it.
Please check my bio from time to time. If I am on vacation or something and cannot update, that will be in the first few lines of my bio. I'll try to let y'all know if there's an update delay, so please check.
Feel free to contact me either through IM or e-mail, that information is in my bio as well.
Now, most of you aren't the problem, but this is for the few that are. This might come across as crabby, and I'm not really like this, but I've been pushed to my limit because of certain reviews.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Rustburo City was a large city, although it wasn't nearly as big as Domino City, which Kaiba held against the Poké-World. It was mostly slate grey in color, with rather plain skyscrapers rising around him and Isis. Compared to the fast-moving crowds of Domino, Rustburo felt rather empty. There was considerably less cars and general traffic; most people walked, some followed by Pokémon. Kaiba noticed the school and companies that Isis had mentioned and wondered what they even mattered to him. As they passed a fountain at an intersection, Kaiba's thoughts slowly drifted back to resentment at being launched into such a foreign world with seemingly no purpose. Isis occasionally tried to engage him in conversation but for the most part he was unresponsive.
The sun was shining brightly overhead, only a few puffy clouds threatened to block it. The bell from the nearby academy rang and children seemed to appear out of nowhere, running all across the street. Kaiba and Isis instinctively walked closer to the stone walls of the buildings to avoid being swept up in the mob. The alleyways to their left were narrow and dark compared to everything surrounding them. Kaiba slowed his pace, once more discreetly letting Isis lead. However, once they passed the brick school building he stopped short because of a very faint sound that he heard somewhere around them.
"What is it?" asked Isis, turning around when she realized that he wasn't with her any more.
"You didn't hear that?" Kaiba asked in return.
Her blank look was the only answer that he needed.
Isis had just opened her mouth to ask something else, but Seto Kaiba brushed around her coldly. His back was to her before her sharp frown once more showed on her face. He hurried ahead several yards until he was even with the next alleyway. He had almost walked by it, but movement from something red caught his eye, causing him to stop a moment and look.
Kaiba's view was mostly obstructed by a dumpster that was closer, but even in the shadows he instantly recognized the small cluster of people wearing Team Magma uniforms. Whatever they were focused on was hidden on the other side of the dumpster. But whatever that thing was, the odds weren't good for it. He told himself that the only reason he was bothering was because all of the grief Team Magma had already caused him. Without even waiting for Isis he strolled down the alleyway with all the confidence as the Duel Monster's champion. Despite the closeness of the buildings, he was confidence his dragons could destroy any attempts of a fight Team Magma could attempt to put up.
"Blue-Eyes, White Dragon is clearly superior to any of these Pokémon," Kaiba thought, not for the first time.
"Team Magma!" Isis gasped behind him once she entered the alley and saw the setting for herself.
As Kaiba approached he could hear parts of the conversation between the grunts and a young girl who was still outside of his line of vision.
"You've got no where to run to! So hand over that Pokémon!" barked one of the magma guys.
"Just leave me alone," the girl hastily said.
Kaiba was already stepping forward to intervene, anger hidden beneath the surface. Because of that, he didn't notice immediately that there was something about her voice that sounded familiar. Isis followed in his footsteps, just as eager to stop the confrontation.
"No can do, girly," sneered the second Magma guy. He reached down and plucked a Poké-ball off of his belt, leaning slightly forward to look more menacing.
"I said go away!" she snapped.
By that time, Kaiba and Isis had made it over to the fight. It was two rather burly grunts from Team Magma against a slightly younger girl. The grunts were nearly indistinguishable since both of their faces were mostly hid by the hood of their uniforms. They both took a similar stance, showing their brawn over their brain.
In contrast, the girl they had cornered was on the tall side but thin which made her seem to shrink in the presence of the grunts. Her curly brown hair had slid over her face, making her look truly afraid. Despite the black canine Pokémon in a harness-style leash by her side, Kaiba instantly recognized her.
"Shayla?!" he gasped, stopping short.
(AN/ Shayla is my Yu-Gi-Oh! OC and you can read about her in my Shayla's Story series. For this fic, Seto Kaiba knows her from those fics. But don't worry all newcomers, I'm going to make this easy for you to join right in.)
"You know her?" asked Isis.
She never got her question answered because Kaiba's cry alerted the two grunts to their presence. They turned in unison and sneered at Kaiba and Isis. However, neither of them backed down an inch from the intimidation acts. The Magma grunts eyed them up disdainfully as unworthy prey.
"Mind your own business!" the first one sneered. "This doesn't concern you!"
"If you're going to be hurting innocent people that does concern us!" Isis said sharply.
"Do as they said, mind your own business," the girl who had been cornered coldly shot, catching Kaiba completely off-guard.
"Shayla had never spoke so nasty before..." he noted. Nonetheless, that didn't sway his intentions one bit to intervene.
"Excuse me?" asked Isis, who also seemed to be taken back by her rudeness.
"I'm fine on my own!" she retorted, causing the Magma guys to snicker and continue posturing.
"But...aren't you blind?" asked Isis, sounding slightly stunned.
The girl went silent for a moment, her brown hair sliding away from her face to show that she was wearing a pair of thick sunglasses. That combined with the canine on a harness was enough signal to anyone that she couldn't see, although Seto Kaiba did wonder briefly if Isis suspected this because of her connection to Ishizu back in his own world. Her hands tightened into fists beneath the long flared sleeves of her blue peasant blouse. The grunts noticed her tension which only amused them more.
"You can't possibly hope to stop us, even combined!" mocked the second grunt. "Go, Poochyena!" He threw his Poké-ball and the grey-black canine that Kaiba had first encountered in the Pokémon World appeared. Kaiba quickly visually compared it to the one that stood in front of Shayla, but there were several major differences, including the orange fur under its neck. Following the cue, the first grunt also released his Poochyena.
"Come on," stated Isis, pursing her lips together. She already had her fingers around her own Poké-ball.
"I said stay out of this," hissed the blind girl as she bent down and unclipped the handle of the harness from her Pokémon, allowing it to move freely.
"You expect to battle us when you can't see?!" the second grunt nearly roared with laughter. "Bite it now, Poochyena!"
"Follow it up with Tackle!" added the first grunt.
"Houndour, use Smog and blind them!" ordered Shayla.
Her Pokémon charged forward ready to meet the other two Poochyena head on. The Poochyena showed their sharp fangs, but her Houndour opened its mouth and spewed smoke first, covering the entire alleyway in a thick, dank smog. Most everyone present began to cough and gag, losing sight of the battle in progress.
"No wondered...they're after her," coughed Isis. "Houndour is a fire type...which is what Team Magma is obsessed with..."
"Fire...Houndour..." Kaiba made a mental note to research it later, shielding his blue eyes from the harsh smoke.
"Don't give them a chance," Shayla said, her head lowered as she focused through hearing with all your might. "Be relentless and finish them with Ember!"
Through the haze Kaiba saw some flashes of fire before both Poochyena were thrown into the brick wall, scorched. The grunts from Team Magma gaped in silent surprise for a long moment before recalling their Pokémon at the same moment.
"This isn't the last you'll see of us!" threatened the first grunt.
"As if you'll see anything!" shot the second as they both ran out of the alleyway as fast as they could, shoving Kaiba and Isis aside as they did.
As the smog slowly lifted Kaiba could see her kneeling with tense shoulders re-attaching the handle to the harness of her Houndour, who waited patiently, sitting on the extra fabric of her flared jeans, as she did so. Isis seemed upset too as she made her way to the blind girl.
"Are you okay?" she asked, trying to sound gentle despite her irritation.
"Fine," she answered shortly.
"Shayla...what's going on here?" asked Kaiba, joining them.
She stood and tightly gripped the handle, facing him with a dark expression, "It's Shelia."
"So you do know each other?" asked Isis.
"No," retorted Shelia. "Neither of you sound familiar at all. Now, excuse me..." On an invisible signal her Houndour started forward, leading her right between them and towards the main street, carefully avoiding the dumpsters and miscellaneous trash that littered the alley.
"She looks and sounds just like Shayla...but her attitude, her actions...Shayla never acted like this," Kaiba contemplated, once more trying to figure out the world he was stuck in.
"I thought you knew her..." said Isis, stepping beside Kaiba as they watched Shelia leave.
"So did I..." muttered Kaiba.
Isis cleared her throat and called, "Are you sure you're okay? Team Magma was just after you."
"I'm fine," Shelia replied without turning around. She then entered the main street and vanished from sight.
Kaiba watched her leave, irritated by her attitude and his own confusion. Isis seemed equally put off, but primarily by her rudeness. His pride urged him into action first, and Kaiba started forward, out of the alleyway. Despite knowing the blind girl as Shayla from his world, he now had no intention of following her.
"Come on, let's go," he said in such a way that it was clearly an order.
Isis frowned behind his back yet again and followed, shaking her head slightly out of his sight.
x-x-x-x-x
"This is the Rustburo City Gym," announced Isis as the two of them stood in front of the widest building on that street.
The gym had a domed, rust-colored roof that was similarly shaped to the one in Petalburg. However, the building matched the slate color of the rest of the city. As they approached the steps, Kaiba noticed several other smaller difference. A red building labeled as "Pokémon Academy" was connected to the right side of the gym. Also, beside the main entrance was a large statue of the Ester Island Head.
"That makes sense," said Isis, stopping a moment to note the statue. "I believe Roxanne uses rock-type Pokémon."
Kaiba couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Roxanne uses rock-types. That's as unoriginal as Weevil using bugs." He stepped passed Isis and the doors opened automatically. He could feel the slightly cooler breeze from the air conditioning waft passed him. He could feel Isis's eyes boring into the back of his neck as she joined him, but he chose to ignore it.
They stepped into the large arena. The ground seemed to be solid rock with rocky pillars and outcroppings scattered across its surface. Despite its bumpiness, the stadium lines had been freshly chalked in. To the right a set of bleachers had been unfolded away from the wall and a couple dozen little kids squirmed as they sat there.
A girl who looked younger than the two of them stood in front of the children, giving some sort of lecture. She wore a uniform that clearly resembled the Japanese school uniforms. Her dark hair was tied back into loops and she was so wrapped up in her lecture that she didn't even notice their arrival.
"We must have come during a class," said Isis in a soft voice.
"Class?" echoed Kaiba
Isis nodded. "Roxanne also teaches at the Pokémon Academy next door. She uses her gym as a format to teach lessons about battling and strategy to future trainers."
Before Kaiba could comment, Roxanne turned around to gesture to the arena for emphasis in her lecture. This caused her to turn around and notice him and Isis still standing close to the entrance. For a moment she looked surprised, but she quickly composed herself.
"Are either of you challengers?" she asked.
"Yes, we both are," Isis answered for the two of them. This caused Kaiba to raise an eyebrow at her, but he didn't press the issue. The children in the stands instantly perked up and began paying genuine attention.
Roxanne smiled. "You have perfect timing then. I was just explaining to my students the importance of training for a gym battle. I hope you can both help me with a proper demonstration."
"It would be an honor," Isis answered with a small smile.
"Then will you please take your place at the opposite side of the field?" asked Roxanne. Without waiting to see if they would move, she turned back to her students and gave a brief impromptu speech to set up the battle for them.
Kaiba followed Isis over to the challenger's side, wondering silently what the purpose of this battle was. He had no desire to prove himself by defeating a teacher and could see nothing he'd gain by doing so. He was also confident that his dragons could easily defeat any challenge, so the thought about battling someone like Roxanne bored him.
"These battles will be a single Pokémon versus a single Pokémon," announced a referee once all three of them were in their places.
"Good. I only need one," Kaiba loudly stated. His fingers were already wrapped around the Poké-ball of his Blue-Eyes, White Dragon.
"Kaiba...you should know that..." Isis tried to warn him, but he cut her off.
"I don't need your help," he shot under his breath. She frowned sharply, once more forcing herself to be patient with him.
"Who will I be facing first?" asked Roxanne, speaking loudly so her voice could carry across the arena.
Isis deliberately stepped around Seto Kaiba to irk him like he irked her. She didn't even turn her head to look at him, although she knew he was scowling at her. For a brief moment she wondered if he would push the issue, but still she continued.
"I'll be your first challenger," stated Isis.
"Very well. I warn you, I won't hold back," replied Roxanne. "Go, Nosepass!"
She threw her Poké-ball about a quarter of the way across the arena where it opened with a small explosion of light. The Pokémon that emerged was slate grey and appeared to be a garden sized version of the Easter Island Head Statues.
Kaiba blinked in surprise and forced him mouth to remain shut. Her Pokémon looked ridiculous and almost inanimate. "A stupid rock is an insult for my dragons to face," he thought bitterly. However, he remained quiet and decided to use Isis as his visual guinea pig. He would watch her battle and see what their opponent could do. That would completely ensure his victory.
"And I chose Sandshrew," said Isis with surprising calm for the upcoming battle. As she spoke, she released her Pokémon from its Poké-ball. Both faced each other in the battlefield, eyes locked on the other, unmoving.
"Let this match begin!" declared the referee.
"Moves like Scratch and Fury Swipes won't help here," thought Isis as she hurried to come up with a mental strategy.
"I'm not holding back, so hit me with everything you have!" challenged Roxanne. "Nosepass, use Rock Tomb!"
Although her Pokémon hardly moved, everything around it seemed to. Kaiba could feel tugs along the metal studs in his jacket and quickly deduced some type of magnetic field had been activated. The rocky arena began to shake as if an earthquake was starting. The pebbles bounced around and the boulders danced. Within a few seconds, jagged rocky pillars erupted from the ground, getting closer and closer to Sandshrew. Both Isis and her Pokémon looked panicked as the pillars encircled Sandshrew.
"Sandshrew, Dig!" Isis called over the rumbling rocks. As the rocks closed in on her Pokémon to pull it underground and entomb it, Sandshrew started digging rapidly, hiding the effects of the two attacks in a small dust cloud.
"Pokémon can do all that?" Kaiba couldn't help but gape at the arena.
"Keep digging!" Isis ordered, a strategy finally forming in her mind.
"Protect!" called Roxanne.
Her Pokémon tottered backward, the air around it shimmering. A moment later in an explosion of dirt Sandshrew popped out of the ground directly in front of it, nearly causing the Nosepass to fall into the hole it had just dug.
"Class, I hope you're watching closely!" called Roxanne. "After this I want you to all write an essay about the usefulness of Protect."
There was groans and unhappy muttering from her students who were all still sitting in the bleachers, watching the fight anxiously. They exchanged looks briefly about their new assignment, but the fight quickly captivated them again.
Roxanne had ordered her Pokémon to attack again, and once more it was levitating the rocks in the arena around, trying to crush Isis's Pokémon. Her Sandshrew tried to dodge as they pounded in from every angle. In a moment of apparent desperation, on her word her Pokémon started digging again, vanishing underground.
"You can't keep hiding forever!" Roxanne criticized.
"We're not hiding!" countered Isis, a smirk flickering across her face. "Finish this now, Sandshrew!"
Her Pokémon jumped out of the ground almost immediately in front of her, looking dusty and winded but proud. There was a moment of stillness. Then, before Roxanne could finish articulating her next command, the entire arena imploded into a giant crater, taking Nosepass down with it. A thick, dusty haze hung over the air, completely obstructing all vision across the field.
"Nosepass is unable to battle! The challenger is the winner!" declared the referee as soon as he could see enough to make a judgment.
Roxanne looked down at her Pokémon in surprise a moment before recalling it, then finally spoke at length, "Well done, using Dig to trap my Pokémon. I am quite impressed. You definitely deserve this badge."
Both women walked around the arena and met halfway. Isis offered her hand for a handshake before accepting her Stone Badge. They exchanged a brief conversation outside of the range of Kaiba's hearing before returning to their respective sides of the field. Roxanne stopped for a moment in front of her class, lecturing on various points of the battle. Once she had returned, Kaiba stepped forward without a word.
"This is a joke for my dragons. But regardless, it will show this world my strength! No one messes with Seto Kaiba!" he thought, still bitter about his sudden arrival in this world to begin with.
"My Nosepass might be unable to battle right now, but my other Pokémon are no lightweights either!" called Roxanne. "You'll still have to keep your guard up if you want to win!" She then plucked a second Poké-ball off of her belt.
"I doubt that..." muttered Kaiba. Isis shot him a sideways look, but kept her lips pressed tightly together as she congratulated her Pokémon.
"Go, Geodude!" called Roxanne. The boulder with arms did little to impress Kaiba.
"Blue-Eyes, White Dragon!" shouted Kaiba, his massive dragon appearing in a flash of light.
There was exclamations of surprise and awe from every corner of the gym, causing Kaiba to secretly smirk. Even Roxanne seemed to be totally taken off guard. Her mouth hung open slightly as she stared at his dragon. The Blue-Eyes bellowed the moment it appeared, shaking the foundations, causing even more surprise and alarm.
"This won't last long, I only need one attack," boasted Kaiba while Roxanne stood in shock. "Blue-Eyes, White Lightning!"
While Roxanne was still too stunned to give an order to her Pokémon, Kaiba's dragon fired a massive beam of heat and thunder. The attack totally engulfed the cratered field, Roxanne's Geodude, and continued on passed the field until it shot out of a window, sending glass everywhere. Once again, the loose dirt on the field turned into dust and clouded everyone's sight of the result of the attack.
"It's over," Kaiba said to no one in particular.
"Look!" exclaimed Isis.
Geodude was still standing—or sitting, it was hard to tell with that Pokémon—in the middle of the field. Its arms were crossed defensively in front of itself and not a scratch remained on it. For once, Kaiba couldn't prevent his jaw from dropping.
"Class," started Roxanne. "What's happens when you use an electric attack against a ground-type Pokémon?"
"Nothing!" they all chimed in unison.
"That's right," agreed Roxanne. "It's beginner's knowledge that ground-types are completely immune to any and all electric attacks."
Kaiba's mind was slowing as he heard this, "My...White Lightning...won't work?! It's...just a pebble! How?! How can it survive an attack from my dragons?!" His thoughts hit a wall hard when he realized he knew no other orders to give to his Blue-Eyes, White Dragon.
Both his dragon and Roxanne's Geodude waited in the arena, sizing each other up. However, neither moved a muscle to attack the other, they both waited intently for the orders from their trainers. Unfortunately for the Blue-Eyes, Kaiba was in too much shock to even speak.
"Rock Tomb!" ordered Roxanne.
"Geoooo!" bellowed her Pokémon. It buried its fists into the ground, which immediately began to shake and quiver. Long, sharp pillars rose out of the ground intent on impaling whatever was above it.
"It...won't end like this," thought Kaiba as he fervently searched his mind for any strategy, any potential way to fight back. His blue eyes widened as he realized that he knew nothing about this world, about Pokémon that could help him. It was his own failing.
"T-Tail Whip!" ordered Kaiba, remembering back to one of his earliest nights in the Pokémon World.
The Blue-Eyes, White Dragon obeyed perfectly. She swung her massive tail and wiped out an enormous rocky pillar, sending the pieces cascading to the ground. However, it was too little, too late. Geodude had nearly a dozen other pillars surrounding the dragon. They tore at her wings and neck. Then, when they were at their highest and without any further warning they collapsed around the Blue-Eyes, White Dragon, burying her beneath tons of rock and boulders. She collapsed with a bellow, her eyes pressed tightly shut in pain.
"KISARA!" a voice in the back of Kaiba's head shouted. His feet wanted to run to her, but his eyelid twitched and shock held him fast.
He didn't hear the referee declare his lost or Roxanne's compliments and lecture to her students or Isis's "I told you so." When he could finally move his feet he walked numbly over to his dragon and stroked her scales lightly.
As he recalled her into her Poké-ball, blue ice sparked in his eyes. Her clenched both hands into tight fists and set is jaw rigid. He spun on his heel, his coat fluttering behind his ankles. He walked stiffly right passed Isis without even acknowledging her presence.
"Are...you okay?" she couldn't help but ask.
"Don't follow me," he said so sharply she didn't even consider disobeying.
No one seemed to notice as he left, bringing an icy chill in his wake. He stepped into the bright light outside of the gym and continued down the street purposefully, knowing exactly what he had to do.
x-x-x-x-x
It was passed dark when he arrived back at the Pokémon Center. Everyone else had long since fallen asleep, even Isis, who was asleep on one of the lobby couches having waited for him as long as she could. He carried the shopping bags he had quietly, not waking her. After a long glance to make sure she didn't stir, Kaiba walked over to the opposite side of the center's lobby and spread his stuff across two couches and a table and started unpacking.
He quickly set aside several articles of clothing, a shoulder bag that looked more like a laptop case, and a new pair of boots. From the bottom of a bag he pulled out a large, single volume encyclopedia. Then, he dug into his pockets and pulled out the Poké-Dex that Prof Birch had given him.
"This world will not beat me! I'll show them all the power of Seto Kaiba!" he thought as he began flipping through entries. He quickly hurried towards the N to look up Nosepass, but along the way the word Houndour caught his eye. As he read article after article, listening to the Poké-Dex to supplement the sun began to rise before his resolve even let him continue sleep as a potential option.