Good morning, Krusty Krew! Here's another update which revolves around the Color Crew. Last chapter y'all got to see how Mimikyu's mind works and his relationship with the rest of the team - which is rocky, to say the least. Now let's get going!
BouncingFish: Ayy, confidence booster! I think Mimikyu's probably the most interesting character because, like you said, the way his mind works. The Color Crew's returning! I've been looking forward to this as well, since their personalities will start to become clearer (and one of them is just fantastic, if I do say so myself). Thanks!
The Phantom Starfish: You hit the nail on the head, my good man. Louise will start battling very, very soon, and I might even write one of her Gym Battles. Mimikyu also won't get along with the team at all, and while he does come off as high and mighty, I suggest paying close attention to the way he treats each individual teammate, which hopefully (if I did it well) gives you a better understanding of his mentality. Style and suave are what determine an evil team's success (not kidding, actually, haha), and I think you'll love at least one of the CC members by the end of this chapter.
Warrior of Hope: He's one manipulative son of a gun, to be sure. He should make up for it with his strength though. As for how he meshes with the team, it'll happen later down the road in a unique way imo. Louise is uber powerful and there should be a brief explanation about why she doesn't have badges from Lavaridge or Petalburg. The CC's goals are much, much simpler than I initially planned, but there will be quite a few confrontations between them and Tom (and his rivals). Don't worry about the whole in-depthness stuff, my good man. Just grasp for straws, ramble, and then bam! You've got it!
Thomas' Team
Grovyle, (f), level 20, Pound, Leer, Bullet Seed, Quick Attack, Mega Drain*, Double Kick*
Fletchling, (m), level 16, Growl, Flail, Quick Attack, Peck, Steel Wing*, Agility*
Slowpoke, (f), level 18, Curse, Yawn, Tackle, Growl, Water Gun*, Confusion*
Mimikyu, (m), level 17, Astonish, Scratch, Double Team, Baby-Doll Eyes, Shadow Sneak*
Rojo's eyes went back and forth between the Pokemon on the television, refusing to blink because she feared she'd miss something. Scizor did the exact same thing as her trainer and she beamed when the combatants finally charged at each other.
"Dragon Claw!"
"Dragon Rush!"
With a mighty flap of his wings, the one using Dragon Claw - a Flygon - took to the air and zipped across the battlefield while its opponent - a Garchomp - stomped on the ground and roared as he was surrounded in blue aura. The Flygon's claws began to glow neon green and extend exponentially as the Garchomp surged forward. The two attacks collided in the middle of the battlefield, and both Pokemon battled back and forth, refusing to give in to the other.
As the sparks of energy continued to fly off their attacks, a vortex of green and blue energy suddenly engulfed the Dragon-types and began to spin at hyper-speed. The force emitted from the neon and blue tower was so powerful people in the stands were being pushed back into their seats. The tower began to spin even faster, which, in turn, made it even less stable. Suddenly, it exploded and both Pokemon, as well as their trainers, were sent flying backwards while everyone in the stands dropped to the ground in fear of being injured by the force.
Rojo and Scizor gaped at the screen before slowly turning to face each other. Neither said a word so they looked back to see the smoke beginning to clear.
When it did both Flygon and Garchomp were revealed to be standing, albeit barely, and they had similar smirks plastered on their faces. The fact that neither had fallen after such a massive explosion was improbable to say the least, and it almost seemed like the battle between them was never going to end. Meanwhile, the crowd and trainers waited in silence as the two Pokemon narrowed their eyes and smiled. The camera zoomed in to show their legs shaking violently as the Flygon gave a very weak nod, and all of a sudden it collapsed.
"Fortis is unable to battle! Marcus and Garchomp are the winners and will be moving on to the championship round!"
The girl let out a sigh and fell back on the couch, exclaiming, "Aww! I wanted Gray to win!"
Scizor nodded and crossed her arms while saying, "That Marcus guy was really strong. I wonder if he became famous after that."
"Nope."
Both Rojo and Scizor jumped at the sudden response. Once they spun around, they saw a man donning a yellow jump-suit. He was much taller than his female counterpart - he had to look down to meet her gaze - and it looked like his clothes were ten sizes too big. There was a large book in his hand and a long-necked Pokemon - an Ampharos - accompanied him.
It had a white stomach and black, cone-shaped ears that had a horizontal yellow stripe wrapping around the middle. A red orb rested just above its eyes and another on the tip of its tail while its stubby arms looked like flippers.
"He won the Indigo League that year, but when he battled Red he couldn't beat a single one of his Pokemon. He was never the same after that," the yellow-clad boy stated without looking up from his book.
"Really?" Scizor watched the boy nod. "That's disappointing."
"Did Gray go through the same thing, Amarillo?"
Upon hearing his name, Amarillo placed a finger on the page he had been reading and locked eyes with Rojo. He then raised an eyebrow, causing Rojo to tilt her head.
"Are you kidding?"
"No, why?"
"She was a member of Kalos' Elite Four for almost a decade."
"Wait, why did you say was? What happened to her?"
Rojo watched Amarillo and Ampharos walked over to the sectional and sit down, prompting her and Scizor to do the same and lean forward. Their attention was diverted, however, when they watched Amarillo close his book and place it by his side. Even Ampharos eyed his trainer, who suddenly sat upright.
"Do you remember the first time Dad told us about Ultra Beasts?" Amarillo asked, interlocking his fingers.
"I don't think so. When did that happen?"
The older boy sighed and began counting on his fingers until he reached seven.
"I was four, so you must've been two. Does that ring a bell?"
Rojo shrugged, which Amarillo took as a no.
"Well, according to him, the Ultra Beasts attacked Alola and almost destroyed the entire region. The Champions and Elite Fours of the six other regions went there and tried fighting them off, but apparently they were too weak."
Rojo's and Scizor's eyes went wide.
"Yeah, that was my reaction too." Amarillo sighed once again. "The Ultra Beasts killed Gray, as well as members of the other Elite Fours."
The red duo turned to look at the television, which was showing highlights from the battle they had just watched, but then Scizor shook her head while Rojo stood up and paced back and forth. Amarillo and Ampharos glanced at each other, the former rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
"So the Ultra Beasts have been around ever since then?" Rojo inquired, eyeing her older brother.
He shrugged and then picked up his book. Before he could leave Azul walked in with Lucario following closely, and she glared at Amarillo. He immediately put down the book as she marched his way, and when she was close enough she grabbed him by the neck.
"Why the hell were you talking about that?" she whispered, spitting each word out more angrily than the last. "You know what Dad would've done if he heard that!"
There was no response so the young woman let go of Amarillo, but not before she locked her sights on Rojo.
"Never bring this up again. Got it?"
The younger of the two stared blankly despite her brother mouthing 'yes' over and over again. When she shook her head, Amarillo, Ampharos, Scizor, and even Lucario turned a ghostly white. As for Azul, well, if looks could kill then Rojo would've died ten times over.
Azul stomped across the room and then threw Rojo up against the wall, which knocked the wind out of the younger girl's lungs. Despite the loud crack and Rojo's coughing, Amarillo and the Pokemon didn't move a muscle.
"Want to change your answer?"
Rojo nodded as best she could, prompting Azul to release her. Still, that didn't change the feral look in her eyes.
"Why did you do that?" Rojo asked between coughs.
"You should be happy that's all I did. Trust me, Dad wouldn't have been as lenient." With that, she walked towards the door but stopped moments before closing it. "By the way, he called for an emergency meeting."
She remained still, her back facing her younger siblings until she could hear their footsteps. Azul looked over her shoulder to see both Rojo and Amarillo standing a yard away and then they headed down the hallway along with their Pokemon, passing by a pair of doors before walking up the stairs. The siblings looked around the first level of their house on the way to their father's office, and once they arrived at the closed twin doors Azul stepped to the side. She placed her hand on Amarillo's back and pushed him ahead, but she stuck her arm out when Rojo tried to pass.
"Remember-"
"Keep my mouth shut, I know."
Azul nodded and then gave Amarillo a thumbs up. He opened the doors in response, and when he and his sisters stepped inside they saw their father sitting at the head of the table while Blanco and Negro sat across from each other at the middle.
Without so much as a word, Rojo and Amarillo took the seats at the end of the table while Azul occupied one of the two nearest their father. Everyone glanced at the empty chair to their father's right and sighed. The man at the head of the table waited for his kids' undivided attention, and when he got it he rose.
"The last time I counted on you to capture one of the Ultra Beasts, you failed... miserably."
All of the kids except Amarillo flinched at their father's words. The mere mentioning of their previous failure brought back memories they were hoping to forget, especially Negro and Azul.
"To make matters worse, you two left Ro to die!"
After he slammed his hands against the table and glared at his eldest and middle daughters, the man turned away while cracking his knuckles. Azul and Negro trembled in their seats along with their siblings, but after a few deep breaths they managed to calm their nerves. Suddenly the group's father spun back around, his eyes locking with each of theirs one at a time before finally speaking.
"Your punishment can't make up for that," he said, eyeing his daughters' arms and the freshly-formed scars all over them. "In fact, I decided to follow Hammurabi's code of an eye for an eye so that you will understand how your sister felt."
Neither girl moved a muscle even as their father stared holes through them. A suffocating pressure fell over the room, and it was felt by all five of the children. All of a sudden their father leaned back in his chair and sighed, the tension fading in an instant.
"Rather, I had come to that decision until Verde swayed my mind. But if any of you do anything like that again, with Arceus as my witness, you will feel my wrath."
"Yes, Father!"
The man nodded to himself and rose from his chair while the projector hanging from the ceiling turned on. All five of the children stared at their father as he stepped to the side of the room and retrieved a controller. When he clicked a button on it, a projection of Hoenn showed up on the wall behind his chair. He pressed the same button again, which caused the focus to zoom in on Mauville City and the routes directly connected to it.
"Verde has discovered another Ultra Beast is taking refuge in New Mauville," he stated, crossing his arms over his chest as the aforementioned location was highlighted on the projection. "Power to Mauville City has been cut off recently, so I'd guess this is the Ultra Beast you'll encounter."
A picture of a human-like bundle of electrical circuits covered New Mauville, drawing stares from the jumpsuit-wearing kids.
"You're all going this time. Azul and Negro, you two will be tasked with covering Verde as he tries to capture it."
Both girls rose from their seats and saluted.
"Blanco, Amarillo, Rojo, your job is to make sure nobody else gets in there, no matter what it takes."
All three shot up and saluted just like their sisters.
"You'll be heading out first thing tomorrow morning. Any questions?" the man asked while circling the table, eyeing each of his children as he past them.
All of a sudden, Rojo raised her hand while her mouth remained shut. Azul and Amarillo stared at their little sister once she received a nod from their father. Their hearts started pumping faster and faster as beads of sweat fell down their brows, and then they heard her speak.
"Is Verde coming home soon? You said he'd be back after the trip to Dewford Town, but he's still gone."
Amarillo and Azul sighed in relief. Crisis averted. However, when they realized their father had returned to his seat - along with Blanco, Negro, and Rojo - their hearts started thumping again. Both of them bowed to the head of the table and sat down, prompting him to speak.
"I'm sorry, Ro. Verde has a very important mission starting right after we capture the Ultra Beast, so I don't know when he'll be back."
The young girl pouted and asked, "What if he gets hurt?"
"Hey, this is Verde we're talking about," Blanco responded with a smile. "He'll be back in no time."
A smile spread across Rojo's face and she nodded. Of course Verde was going to be okay, he was the strongest trainer in the whole world - at least that was Rojo's opinion. Since there weren't any other questions, the quintet left the room. The middle-aged man remained in his seat and turned to look at the Ultra Beast's picture once the doors were closed.
He tightened his grip on the remote until it broke, though that didn't seem to faze him. The only thing on his mind was the Ultra Beast and how it was going to die.
000
"Mommy!"
Gale force winds drowned out the scream, making it sound like nothing more than a faint whisper. A little boy was all alone in the desert just north of Route 111, widely regarded as one of the most dangerous places in the region for even experienced trainers. After his mother heard rumors about Regirock living in a cave somewhere in the desert, she brought him along and tried finding the Legendary Pokemon. In the end, they were separated when a pack of Trapinch chased them both.
"Mommy, where are you?! I'm scared!"
Sand flew into the boy's mouth and struck his bare arms. A burning sensation fell over them as he spat, trying to rid himself of the taste of sand. Opening his eyes was out of the question, as he knew doing so would cause him to go blind. But what other option did he have? His mother wasn't responding to his calls for help, and the sandstorm wasn't just going to stop after raging on for forty years straight.
What made the situation even worse was the fact that wild Pokemon were hunting there day and night. It was a matter of when they'd find him, not if. And when they did, well, he knew what would happen, which was all the more reason to continue calling for his mother.
"MOMMY!"
Again, the wind overpowered his scream and even managed to knock him to the ground. After hitting his back the little boy struggled to get up, and when he did his ears picked up on the sound of something scurrying through the sand. Placing one hand over his heart, which he thought was about to leap out of his chest, the child screamed once more.
"GET AWAY!"
Whatever had been making the sound wasn't scared off, and the little boy could hear it closing in. A wave of energy swept over his body and he stared kicking at the sand as hard as he could. Then he angled his head downwards and used both arms to shield his eyes, which he barely opened. Something was standing a few feet in front of him, and it looked a bit darker than the sand, though it disappeared in an instant.
The energy continued to surge through the little boy's veins, so he stayed on guard and surveyed everything within a five foot radius of himself. All of a sudden something dug into his right leg, bringing the little boy to his knees. He rolled around in the sand and screamed when the pain increased exponentially, but because of the adrenaline and his primal instincts the little boy fought through it and swung his fist. It connected with whatever had attacked him, and he heard it cry.
Just as he began to rise, something else chomped down on his right arm. He punched it squared in the face, but that only made its grip tighten. Then he felt a sharp pain in his left leg, which must have been caused by the first one he struck.
"HELP! HELP! PLEASE!" he screamed at the top of his lungs while crying.
The little boy tried to shake off his attackers one last time, but he was zapped of his strength. His will to fight had vanished. All he wanted was to survive, yet that was impossible to do alone. He was going to die.
As he began to lose all feeling in his limbs, something compelled the little boy to open his eyes. He didn't know why, but he just had to do it. When he did, he saw an enormous creature - was it a dragon? - flying towards him. In the blink of an eye the unidentified object swooped down, grabbed him with its tail, and zipped out of the desert at the speed of light. The scenery down below changed from sand to the woods to a city in the span of two minutes before the little boy saw he was descending.
The moment he reached the ground the little boy was surrounded by a group of people in blue shirts. They placed him on a gurney and rushed towards the hospital, but before he disappeared inside, the little boy looked up and saw a young man in a green jumpsuit waving along with a green dragon.
Both of them continued to wave until the child was no longer visible, yet they stood outside and stared at the hospital for about ten minutes. Just as the young man hopped on his Pokemon's back he spotted one of the medics sprint out of the building.
"Wait! Don't leave!" she cried, prompting him to dismount. "You're... you're a hero, ya know that? Both of those people you brought in would've died had they not gotten immediate treatment. You saved their lives!"
The jumpsuit-wearing trainer turned to his Pokemon, and then they both looked back at the medic as she gasped for air. Suddenly the man in green placed his hands against his hips and looked out into the distance, prompting his Pokemon to whistle a tune, albeit reluctantly.
"I believe you're mistaken, for I, Green Granite, and my partner, Salamence, have done no such thing!" he exclaimed, doing his best superhero impersonation despite the embarrassed reaction from Salamence. "The doctors inside that very hospital are to thank, as they are the ones who perform life-saving surgeries every day!"
He looked back at the medic and struck another pose, this time sticking his chest out, placing one foot on an imaginary pedestal, and keeping his hands on his hips.
"Remember, Miss: Anyone can become a hero, so long as they work hard and-"
"She left."
The young man maintained his pose and glanced out of the corner of his eye to see the medic had indeed left. Even so, that didn't stop him from resuming his original pose and laughing heartily.
"HAHAHA! A hero never lets small things get to him, Salamence!"
Salamence began to nod, but he deadpanned after seeing a stream of tears roll down his trainer's face.
"Riiight," the Dragon-type muttered. "Can we go back to the mission now, Verde?"
After a few seconds of waiting for a response, Salamence waved his arm in front of his trainer's face. Slowly the young man focused his sights on Salamence, who flinched - the way his trainer' kept smiling scared the living hell out of him.
"Verde? You must be confused, my friend, for I am... Green Granite!"
Again, Salamence deadpanned while his trainer posed.
"Can you please tell me where to go now?"
After hopping on his shiny Salamence's back, Verde - or Green Granite - pointed straight ahead and held his arm out for about ten seconds. People that walked by whispered and pointed at the young man while Salamence hung his head in embarrassment.
"Where are we going, Green Granite?" he asked through gritted teeth.
"HAHAHA! How unheroic of me! You can't see where I'm pointing!" Verde exclaimed, only to receive a terrifying glare from Salamence. "Uh... right. Ahem. Let us patrol the city, my winged comrade! We mustn't let evil run rampant!"
Without any warning, Salamence flapped his wings and took off towards the heart of Mauville City while Verde held on for dear life. Neither spoke as they surveyed the streets for suspicious activity, and before they knew it they spotted the Pokemon Center.
"Let's go there and get everyone healed up," Verde ordered, using his normal voice instead of the painfully-forced heroic one.
The shiny Pokemon obliged and quickly landed in front of the red-roofed building. Verde removed his mask, hopped off Salamence's back, and rubbed the dragon's head with a smile before turning to the Pokemon Center. Then he exhaled.
Salamence heard that and raised an eyebrow, asking, "Everything all right?"
Verde flashed a toothy grin which answered the question quite clearly. "You'll need to be in your Poke Ball for a little while so Nurse Joy can work her magic. Sound good?"
"Of course."
Once Salamence was withdrawn Verde entered the building and handed Nurse Joy six Poke Balls. While doing so, he looked around the lobby and noticed nobody else was there.
"Must be a slow day," Verde said, drawing the woman's attention. "That makes your job a lot less hectic."
"Oh no, it's been a madhouse." The pink-haired woman giggled after Verde looked the room over for a second time with a befuddled expression. "Most of the trainers are outside battling, and from what I've heard they've all lost to the same person."
That nugget of information piqued Verde's interest. Nurse Joy then handed over his Poke Balls and pointed down a hallway to her right.
"If you're interested, the battlefield is at the end of the hall."
Verde bowed to the woman and decided to check out the back of the Pokemon Center. He couldn't help but smile at the thought of challenging such a powerful trainer while he looked down at the Poke Ball in his right hand. Second later he reached the end of the hall and walked outside once the automatic doors opened. Verde's face dropped when he saw a crowd of at least a hundred people - and that was just on one of the battlefield's four sides.
Word certainly spreads fast, the young man thought to himself.
Despite all of the people standing between him and the battlefield, Verde had no issue seeing over them. It was a double battle between a girl with short, wavy black hair and two boys who had the name 'Gene Eric' written on their shirts. Their Zigzagoon and Poochyena were covered in dirt and appeared to be bleeding, which caught Verde's attention in an instant. He turned to look at the girl and then her Pokemon.
One of them was a robotic-like creature with light blue skin - or was it metal? Either way, it didn't matter. Two thick arms - both of which were equipped with three white claws - protruded from its disc-shaped body, which also had a pair of white spikes on either side and one lone spike on the middle of its face. The Pokemon narrowed its red eyes and punched its fists together.
"Metang, the Iron Claw Pokemon, and the evolved form of Beldum. It is formed by two Beldum joining together. Its steel body won't be scratched if it collides with a jet."
"What? No it's not."
Verde's ears twitched in response to the sharp voice that came from the right, and, for whatever reason, he walked towards it. He spotted a shaggy-haired brunette sitting with a quartet of Pokemon at one of the tables near the Pokemon Center's wall. The young man, who looked to be seventeen or eighteen, stared at the Pokedex in his hand and then shook his head with a scowl.
"Two o' dose things toin inta dat freaky robot! Holy shit on a sandwich!" one of the Pokemon - a Fletchling - screamed, eliciting laughter from Verde.
"But that's not true. It evolves by leveling up," the brunette muttered.
Verde shifted his attention back to the battlefield where he saw a bipedal chicken, whose upper-body was yellow while its lower-body was red, use its gray legs to from one foot to the other. Three orange feathers stood at the top of its head and, like Metang, it had three sharp claws at the end of its freakishly long arms.
"Combusken, the Young Fowl Pokemon, and the evolved form of Torchic. Combusken toughens up its legs and thighs by running through fields and mountains. This Pokémon's legs possess both speed and power, enabling it to dole out 10 kicks in one second."
Verde glanced at the younger trainer who was about to say something, but he stopped when Combusken dished out ten kicks in the blink of an eye. A collective gasp followed Combusken's display before a wave of applause swept over the spectators, prompting Verde to check how Zigzagoon and Poochyena were holding up. Both were unconscious, just as he suspected, so he too joined in on applauding the victors.
"Zigzagoon and Poochyena are both unable to continue! Ashley, Combusken, and Metang are the winners!" the referee shouted, throwing both of his hands up to the sky.
"That's forty wins in a row!"
"She's so strong!"
"Those Pokemon are incredible!"
As comments flooded the air, Verde watched a small section of the crowd split. The girl walked through, stopped, and stared right at him with her ruby eyes. Verde flinched and strolled away from the Pokemon Center's back-entrance, though he couldn't help but glance over his shoulder to see if the girl was still staring. She was, except her target was the brunette, who stared right back.
So she was staring at him, not me, Verde thought as the girl's Combusken appeared by her side and waved.
The boy's Grovyle and Slowpoke returned the gesture, albeit with far less enthusiasm, before both trainers looked away from each other and headed for the doors - the brunette's Pokemon stayed behind, though that went unnoticed.
Verde sighed to himself, thinking, I must find a rival, someone who will push me beyond my limits!
On that note Verde walked towards the automatic doors with his eyes fixated on the ground. He could tell people were up ahead based on their shadows, so to keep from bumping into them he lifted his gaze. Suddenly a purple-haired girl and the brunette with the notebook stepped out of the Pokemon Center and headed back to the tables. He paid them no attention and quickly disappeared inside.
In the meantime, I, Green Granite, must return to helping those in need, for it is my duty as a hero!
The Color Crew's back and gearing up for another Ultra Beast encounter, which should go smoother than the previous one since Amarillo and Verde will be there to help. Speaking of Verde, he's quite the character with much, much different interests than his father and siblings. Expect to see a lot more of him in the future.
Anyways, that's all I have for now. Hopefully y'all enjoyed the chapter, because I sure as hell loved writing it.
Next chapter will focus on the return of Aiden and his team of dancing Pokemon, so stay tuned!
Till next time, peace out.
Next Chapter: "Regaining Rhythm"
Louise helps Thomas train for his Gym Battle against Wattson, but that's cut short when they run into Aiden, whose newest Pokemon can't get the hang of dancing in battle! Can the two help Aiden teach his Pokemon how to dance, or will they flounder?
Bonds Arc: Mauville City
Chapter 23: Diamond in the Rough
Chapter 24: A Hero Arrives
Chapter 25: Flames of Fury: Will and Pyro Emerge!
Chapter 26: The Gift
Chapter 27: Round 1: Grovyle vs Combusken!
Chapter 28: Mono-Type Mission