Episode 36: Seven too many!
Shortly after his defeat at Drayden's hands in the Opelucid Gym, Niko sat in a booth at an Opelucid City restaurant with Warren and Charlotte. He wanted to give the Pokémon that battled with him a chance to rest, especially since the next day they would get back to training.
"Niko…did something happen when Haxorus began attacking?" Warren asked. "I noticed you kind of froze around that time."
"That's because I did."
"Well…why?"
"Because dragon dance is…a terrible move." Niko said, scoffing. When Warren continued to press him on it, Niko looked up and stared into his eyes. "Dragon dance is part of the reason why I forfeited against Palmer, back on Battle Island. It's a move that powers up dragon Pokémon. Powers up all of their moves, and makes them faster. It can make them unstoppable if used long enough."
"And you haven't found a way around it?" Charlotte asked.
"Nope. Not at all."
"Well, take your time before your rematch, then." Warren suggested. "Who knows, maybe you'll discover a way soon enough. Plus, didn't Drayden give you a hint or something?"
"He just said to go to the mountains. That's it though." Niko said, shrugging. "Of course I'll do it, but I don't know what I'll find there."
"Maybe you won't find anything. Maybe it's just his favorite training spot, and he recommends that you go there too. In a way you might be able to emulate his success." Warren said, clearly grasping at straws now. Niko, however, did see it as a plausible explanation. "Also, we're coming with you."
"I didn't think you'd be interested, so I didn't really ask." Niko said plainly.
"Figured as much." Charlotte said with a wry smile. "I'm just interested to see why Drayden suggested the mountains."
That evening, Niko lay down on his bed, looking up at the ceiling above him. He had spent the previous hour or so just being with his friends and Pokémon. Of all of them, Servine was—without a doubt—the most devastated by their loss. It was clear to Niko, and to the rest of them, that she blamed herself for it. Niko made a few attempts to ease her out of those feelings of guilt, and Braviary tried to do the same. However, Servine refused to listen, and would instead curl up on a chair in their rental room in the Pokémon Center, away from everyone else.
After a while all of the Pokémon fell asleep, save for Litwick, who was still floating beside Niko, off of his bed and in the middle of the air.
Niko turned to the Candle Pokémon, who was on the verge of dozing off. "You know ghost types don't usually do well against dragons, right?"
Litwick, seemingly startled by her trainer, turned and nodded.
"Well, you did quite well against that Druddigon, even if you lost. That's the thing about gym battles: they're supposed to be harder than any ordinary battle. If that Druddigon was untrained, or owned by anyone else, you would have beaten it. Keep that in mind."
Litwick, realizing the meaning of Niko's words, nodded with a half-smile.
"If you're disappointed with how well you did, don't worry—you're stronger than you think. I know that to be a fact, Litwick." He said. "Goodnight." Litwick turned out her own flame, and the two quickly fell asleep.
Niko woke up late the following day (or, at least, later than usual). Gathering up his team of Pokémon he, Warren, and Charlotte journeyed north of the Opelucid Gym, bringing supplies for their trip, just in case they ended up staying there multiple days. Looking out into the small valley beyond Opelucid City, Niko saw empty plains until the base of the mountain range to the north. By empty, he noticed a surprising lack of Pokémon. Confused, he continued on, eventually reaching the mountains by midday.
The trio quickly found a pathway that led up the side of the mountain, through a forest that ran up along it. For nearly an hour, they walked, eventually stopping at the base of a cave to rest and feed their Pokémon.
"So…are we supposed to find anything yet?" Niko asked once they finished eating.
"No idea…Drayden only said to come up here." Charlotte, said, looking out onto the plains below, and then Opelucid City off in the distance. Curious, she pulled out her book on Unova and peered through it for a few minutes. "Oh! This is route 10, actually. It leads to a place called Victory Road."
"Victory Road…?" Niko asked, having sworn he heard the term somewhere before.
"Yeah, it's a training ground for powerful trainers aiming to take on the Pokémon League. I'm surprised you've never heard of it before."
"No, I can't say I really have."
Just as Niko said this, he heard a rumbling come from the cave behind him. Turning, they saw a pair of yellow eyes looking at them from Charlotte's eye-level. Niko was the first to stand up, quickly whipping out a pokéball. Then, from the darkness shot out a blue and red blur, nearly tackling Niko off of the side of the mountain. Fortunately, he was able to evade, but not without a scratch on his arm.
"Ow! What the hell was that?" Niko said, slowly peering over the mountain. In the forest below, sitting on a broken tree, was a Druddigon. Just like Drayden's. "What the…?"
"Oh! Niko!" Charlotte said excitedly. "Druddigon are native to this part of Unova!"
"They…are…?" Niko asked.
"Yes! That must be why Drayden wanted you to come here! To train again wild dragons!"
"Must be where he caught his own Druddigon…" Niko said. "You want to fight me? Am I interrupting your nap time?" He continued, clearly taunting the Cave Pokémon, who flapped its medium-sized wings and floated high into the air, above Niko. It's claws then began to glow a purple color, and it shot down at Niko. "Litwick, I choose you!" He shouted before evading Druddigon's dragon claw attack. "Use will-o-wisp!"
Litwick turned to the side and summoned half a dozen blue fireballs, all of which hit Druddigon in the side, causing it to collapse to the ground, with burns along its side. Druddigon then turned to Litwick and, in a rage, raised its claw and attacked once more.
"Hex!" Niko shouted. Litwick dodged the slash from Druddigon to conjure up a blue and purple orb of energy and hit her opponent with it. Druddigon, faced with the incredible force of the hex, collapsed onto the ground. Smirking, Niko looked at Litwick. "See what I told you? You can handle these things."
Litwick smiled cheerfully, just as the Druddigon was getting back up. Litwick, surprised, used another hex to hit the Cave Pokémon, keeping it down.
"Niko…" Warren said, slowly moving closer to his friend. "You…you should catch it."
"You think so?"
"Yeah! It's a dragon type, it's clearly strong, and what have you got to lose? Maybe Drayden intended for this to happen."
"Well…what do you think, Litwick? Should we let this Pokémon join our team?"
Litwick shrugged, lifting her stubby, waxy hands up in the air. She seemed perfectly content with having simply defeated it.
"But Niko," Charlotte piped in. "You've already got six Pokémon. You wouldn't be able to use Druddigon, right?"
"Right…I didn't even think about that…" Niko said. "This has never happened before." He sat there, thinking for a minute while Druddigon was slowly getting back up. "Alright, I'll do it." He pulled out a spare pokéball from his bag, which was just a few feet away. As he grabbed it, he heard something leapt towards him. Whipping around, Niko threw the pokéball through the air and at Druddigon. The Cave Pokémon went inside, and the pokéball collapsed to the ground. It wiggled around for a few moments before clicking.
"Niko…your arm is bleeding a little." Charlotte said, walking over. Warren then sent out Leavanny to help patch him up while Niko tried to figure out what to do with the caught Druddigon, whose pokéball had shrunk and was a dark, pale red color.
"I wonder if I can just say which Pokémon I want to not use…" He pulled out Duosion's pokéball. "I choose to use Druddigon instead."
Nothing happened.
"Okay…well then." Niko said, finally standing up after Leavanny wrapped up the cut on his arm. "Guess we need to go back to Opelucid and figure this out.
"Yeah, guess so." Warren said. "Should we come back out here afterwards?"
"I…guess so…?" Niko said with a shrug. "I don't really know what to do. All of this is new to me."
Just then, they all heard a rumbling in the woods up the path. Out of it came a two-headed black and purple creature, and just behind it was Elliot, of all people.
"Oh…Niko?" Elliot said, approaching the trio. "What're you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same question." Niko said. "I'm here to train. What about you?"
"Same. I just spent a week up near Victory Road. Defeated Drayden and then went up there to continue improving. How're you?" He asked, briefly eying Warren and Charlotte.
"Good, going to hopefully get my seventh gym badge. I just caught a Pokémon, as well, but my team is full. Have you ever dealt with this problem?" Niko asked, even though he knew the answer. Even back in Kanto, Elliot already had more than six Pokémon.
"Yeah, you can send it to someone to hold on to. Do you think your family would? Friends?"
"Nope. Neither. Haven't talked to them in months."
"But…your friends…"
"They both know about my travels before Unova." Niko explained.
"Ah. Hi, again." Elliot said, verbally acknowledging Niko's companions. "I'm Elliot. Niko and I go way back. We've had a couple battles before."
"Elliot's defeated me every time." Niko continued.
"Yeah, basically. Anyways, can you think of anyone who might take care of this Pokémon, or anyone you want to switch it out with?" Niko turned to his friends for suggestions. Immediately, Warren piped in.
"Sydney probably could. But I wouldn't give her the Druddigon, if I were you. Might be too rowdy for her apartment."
"You caught a Druddigon?" Elliot asked. When Niko nodded, showing him the Pokémon, Elliot's eyes widened. "Well done, Niko. Fay's rubbing off on you, isn't he?"
"Guess so. First dragon type, too." Niko said. "Never even thought about catching one before now."
"Not a bad one to start with. But…they're hard to raise, especially wild ones. At least, according to Fay, who's dealt with them from what I recall. I'm sure he'd be thrilled to see you with one."
"Yeah…don't think he'll want to talk with me again, though." Niko admitted, looking down at Druddigon's darkened pokéball. "What's that Pokémon you've got there? I've never seen it before."
"Oh, Zweilous. Yeah, remember the last time we battled, and I used that Pokémon called Deino? Well…this is it. Deino evolves into Zweilous." Curious, Niko pulled out his pokédex:
"Zweilous, the Hostile Pokémon. Dark and dragon type. The two heads do not get along. Whichever head eats more than the other gets to be the leader."
"Geez, sounds like a lot of management on your end." Niko added.
"Yeah, no kidding." Elliot said, looking away from Zweilous and rolling his eyes. "But this guy has been helpful in just about every match I've been in since he evolved. So, he's more than worth it I think."
"You heading for the Unova League this year?" Niko asked.
"Mhmm. Got six badges right now, heading off to get my last two soon enough. Hopefully we'll see each other there."
"I hope so, too." Niko said. "We're heading down to Opelucid City, so I can figure this Pokémon team out. Are you heading down there too?" Elliot nodded. "Want to join us?"
"I've got other plans in the city, otherwise I would. But thanks for the offer." He said, reaching to shake Niko's hand. Niko returned it just as quickly. It was a firmer handshake than he remembered. Elliot is growing up, too. I remember when I first met him. He was a little kid…Niko thought to himself. Now his rival was just a few inches short of him, and looked more adult-like than ever before. It was slightly disconcerting to him, and made him once more consider the quick passage of time.
"It was nice to see you again, Elliot." Warren said, reaching out his hand. Elliot took it and smiled.
"Nice to see you too, err…"
"Warren."
"Right, Warren. And you?" Elliot turned to their third companion.
"Charlotte." She said, and the two shook hands.
"Of course. Warren and Charlotte. Well, see you later, Niko." The black-haired trainer said as he turned and walked down the path they had recently traveled.
"Interesting kid." Warren commented as they watched Elliot and his Zweilous walk through the forested path.
"Yeah, he definitely is." Niko looked back down at Druddigon's pokéball. "Let's get going, then. I'd like to make it back before sunset." He said, noticing the afternoon sun beginning its descent towards the west.
"Druddigon, the Cave Pokémon. Dragon type. It runs through the narrow tunnels formed by Excadrill and Onix. It uses its sharp claws to catch prey."
"Or Niko." Charlotte said, giggling to herself. She was sitting in the Pokémon Center lounge with Warren, reading up on the newest edition to their growing group. Meanwhile, Niko was off at the video call center. He was making calls to the couple of people that might help him in his new attempt at rotating his team of Pokémon.
He first called Sydney in Castelia City. Initially, she was fine with it, but when Niko mentioned that she might have to take care of Druddigon at one point, she wasn't able to honor the request. "Warren was right, then…" Niko said to himself. Then, out of nowhere came the thought of another person. "Oh damn, how could I forget?" He said as he dialed Professor Juniper.
"Hello?" She said as she answered the call.
"Hi, Professor Juniper? It's Niko. I caught your Snivy a few months back.
"Oh! Hi, Niko! How is everything?"
"Good, for the most part. I actually have a request of you."
"Alright, shoot." She said cheerfully. Niko then explained the situation with Druddigon and having seven Pokémon, and mentioning that he didn't know what to do about it. When he was finished, Juniper smiled. "Well, I could definitely take any of your Pokémon off of your hands, so you can keep this Druddigon on your team. You're suggesting a rotation of some sorts?"
"Yes."
"Then yeah, I can do this for you. I've done it with plenty of trainers before you, and all of them have been relatively successful." Professor Juniper said with a smirk. "Now, which Pokémon would you like for me to hold on to for now?"
"My Duosion, actually." Niko said, pulling out Duosion's pokéball. Juniper nodded, and he quickly and carefully placed the pokéball onto a machine and clicked a couple of buttons. Suddenly, the pokéball disappeared into thin air, and moments later Juniper was holding it. Juniper then sent out Duosion, who looked genuinely confused. "Hey buddy, I'll need you to stay with Professor Juniper for a little bit, alright?" Duosion, who almost looked sad, leaned towards the screen. "It's because I caught a new Pokémon—a new friend for all of us—and I can only keep six Pokémon with me at a time. I wish I could take all of you with me, but that's not how it works. Don't worry, though—I plan to swap all of you out at some point or another, alright?"
Duosion nodded in understanding. "Your Duosion is safe with me, Niko."
"Just make sure she's practicing her moves every day." Niko said with a wink towards the Mitosis Pokémon.
"I will. Best of luck in your endeavors, Niko. Call me whenever you need something in the future."
"Will do. Thanks again, Professor." Niko then ended the video call and got up to meet with Warren and Charlotte. "Well, I swapped Duosion for Druddigon. The seventh Pokémon will be staying with Professor Juniper."
"Good choice, Niko." Charlotte said. "Now, you should probably get some training in today. You have a gym battle to win!"
"That I do, Charlotte." He said, holding his newest Pokémon. He sent out Druddigon. The confused Cave Pokémon looked around before seeing Niko. Rage seemed to fill his eyes, but then Niko patted him on the top of his red-colored head. Niko could feel the rough skin, and wondered how much it could truly withstand. "Hi, Druddigon. My name is Niko. I'm your trainer now. These are my friends, Warren and Charlotte. I caught you because I wanted to learn how to train a dragon. And we're about to face some dragons soon—one of them even looks like you! And I want your help with it. So…are you in?" Niko reached his hand out.
Druddigon lifted his claw and took Niko's hand in his own. Suddenly, Niko felt his palm being cut. Lifting his hand out of Druddigon's, he saw several small cuts along the inside of his hand.
"Druddigon's ability is rough skin, Niko." Charlotte said in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Yeah, I got that." He said, laughing a little while looking at his cuts. "No matter, though. We're going to do great things, Druddigon."
For the first time since meeting Niko, Druddigon smiled.