This chapter was finished with halcyonhuer sending me the chapter through DocX after I started writing it out and the additional help of AEthereal Devastation who also helped write some cool parts to the story and edited some of my work. A three author work this chapter was and that's why it's so long. After writing this chapter I want at least someone to review because when no one reviews it makes me feel like I did all that writing, ruined my eyes, and stayed up so late for nothing. Please read and review.
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Walking out of the cave into fresh air and the light of day was the best feeling they had today.
"You know what I hate about this cave?" Archer broke the silence after a few minutes.
"Loose rocks?" Patrick joked, recalling how the cave entrance gave in rather easily. But Archer was holding his hands behind his head, looking somewhat forlornly at the ceiling. "There weren't any cool pokémon in here. I have nothing against any pokémon, don't get me wrong, but I want to have a cool team to use in order to get my eight badges. After I get the eight badges with my cool team, then I can go back and capture the pokémon that aren't as cool."
"You do know that being cool doesn't mean strong, right?" Patrick replied. "There are people who define Kakuna as cool, and while that pokémon has a strong defense, it's definitely not a battler. I'd recommend looking at the strength of the pokémon before you judge based on appearance." He mused as he thought about the pokemon.
"What's a Kakuna?" Archer inquired curiously. "I don't think there are any here in Unova."
"They are the pre-evolved form of Beedrill, mainly found in Kanto. Professor Juniper once gave me a book about Kanto pokemon- that's how I learned about them." Patrick looked at Rino as he spoke. If his memories served well, Nidorinos were from the Kanto region.
"Professor Juniper said I might go to Kanto one day." Patrick continued and he grinned.
"For real? That must be sweet."
"Yeah, it would be." Patrick agreed and recalled a certain figure standing at the championship stand. "Nidorinos are also from Kanto, you know."
"I am very sure that Kanto are packed with way cooler pokemon."
"Oh wait a moment. I recall I have notes on Kakunas. I can tell you more about them." Patrick looked in his pack and drew out a book. He flipped open to one of its pages, and points at the pictures revealed. "Kakuna, a bug-type. It evolves from Weedle, and into Beedrill- I was right. However, while it's in that stage, it has no attack capability. It can only defend. Despite that, its defense stats are relatively higher than the average pokemon per ratio."
"Cool, although I got lost at whatever you said about defense stats. Still I guess you mean it has crazy defense right?" Archer replied excitedly as Patrick nodded. "I definitely need to get one- no I am getting one, then let the Gym Leaders exhaust themselves battering at its defense. Then my other cool pokémon can beat them."
"The evolved Beedrill form doesn't look all that awesome so I am keeping as Kakuna." Archer shook his head and Patrick's eyes rolled upwards with a sigh of exasperation.
"Hmm... This is strange. The groundwater leads to one source. That isn't natural, might it be the 'special' place?"
"Huh? Archer?" Patrick looked at the boy who looked at him equally in confusion. "What about the special area?"
"Huh? Beedrills are in special areas?" Archer now perplexed, raised his voice slightly.
"No the special area in the forest Professor Juniper wanted us to go to. You mentioned something about underground water going into a certain direction and source." Patrick said.
"What? I don't understand anything you are saying- you sure you didn't hit your head somewhere when you battled just now? For Arceus' sake, we can't see nor feel underground water, we aren't ground pokemon you know?"
"Ground pokemon?" His gaze turns to Sandile, who was waddling beside him. But he hadn't turned his pokédex on at all.
However, coming to think of it, he didn't have his pokédex on, or the translation function active when he spoke to Rino. Patrick wondered what was happening. Everyone knew he had a special bond with pokémon, but understanding their speech without psychic or technological aid was in no way normal. Indeed, it was supposed to be impossible. Only after years of experience with a single specific pokémon was understanding of that pokémon's speech possible, and even then they couldn't understand other pokémon of the same species. Was he developing some weird ability? Did this change have something to do with one of his pokémon?
"Patrick, you are acting really weird. Now you aren't talking…" Archer interjected, jolting him out of his thoughts.
"I...I might be developing psychic abilities," Patrick admitted after a while, drawing a look from Archer. "I can understand pokemon's speech without needing the pokédex translator."
Surprisingly, the boy never reacted much other than his expression and even his expression was the 'really-that's-all- nothing-more?' disappointed kind of look.
"I suspected that all along, you are really slow. Maybe you might want to check if you had telekinesis and telepathy," Archer said, relatively calmly but that only made Patrick feel somewhat flabbergasted. "Also if you really developed telepathic gifts, you may want to be trained to use them- there are a couple of physics out there. After all, hearing the thoughts of everyone around you without a way to block them out is a good way to be driven insane, especially in cities."
"Hey!"
Patrick swerved around, though slightly disorientated to suddenly break off from conversion, only to see the Rocket members behind him.
"Can't shake them off easily huh?" Archer grimaced, they had only left a few feet away from the caves before trouble just had to come on them.
"Well, I give you for your amazing tenacity to have survived that herd of pokemon very much unscathed. But that pokemon." Allen violently gestured at Rino who cowered a little in fear, "I am sure it is mine."
Patrick knew that he couldn't steal Rino from Allen, however there was a possibility to keep Rino from Team Rocket's clutches. If he beat Allen in battle, he could request one pokémon from Allen's team as a prize.
"I challenge you to a battle for the possession of Nidorino. My Houndour against your Nidorino, winner takes the other pokemon. Sounds fair?" Patrick said and Allen widened his eyes.
How dare that brat demand from him?
Allen's rage over Patrick's 'impudence' soon turned into cold calculation as he realized, that for once, he had a legal, cannot be interfered with way of punishing Patrick for even thinking to go against Team Rocket. Beat Patrick, taking his Houndour, and turning a former friend against Patrick, sounded all too good. In Allen's mind, it's a perfect and easy way to get revenge, and he nodded with a smirk on his face.
"Very well brat. But you'll regret ever messing with me. Two on two sounds like a fair battle, or do you need a handicap?" Allen asked mockingly.
Patrick ignored Allen's mocking comment. He didn't need a handicap in this battle, having defeated the member of Team Rocket twice before. Patrick watched Rino, with a look of hope on his reptilian features, moved to stand behind Allen.
"…Thank you… please do your best for me." Patrick paused for a second and smiled.
"I will."
Allen didn't like how the boy suddenly smiled, and snarled. "We shall start the battle then, but before that…"
Suddenly, a red bird with a white mane and yellow beak flew over to Allen and dropped a pair of pokéballs in his hands and then back to its handler, Riveria. In Riveria's hand is a walkie-talkie that based its appearance of a Krabby's shell, and Patrick eyed it suspiciously.
"Calling in reinforcements when you asked if I needed a handicap? That's quite hypocritical of you." Patrick asked of the Team Rocket member who snorted. "Archer, mind keeping an eye on her?"
Archer gave a thumbs up and headed towards Rivera.
"Allen, as the challenged you get the first pick of pokémon. Now, shall we get started or are we going to lounge around all day? Or are you actually scared?" He jabbed at the Team Rocket member another time, who was now brimmed with irritation.
"We'll get started now and you're going to regret this choice, whelp," Allen said quietly. Patrick steadied himself, for danger is deadliest if silent.
" Cryogonal." Allen pressed the top of his Pokeball. His Pokeball popped open and white light was released. The shape of a Pokemon was seen in the air, then a snowflake with black tentacles appeared. " How do you like my Pokemon? It's one of my oldest Pokemon, my fourth chapter out of thirty others. I'm not some low ranked Team Rocket member. I'm an elite."
Patrick never faced this type of Pokemon before. He didn't know which Pokemon to use. With Lillipup with Leorna and Servine in who knows where he only had three Pokemon; Houndour, Mienfoo, and Sandile. Patrick didn't ask Archer for advice because this was suppose to be a fair game. Patrick picked a small Pokeball out of his pocket and it enlarged in his hand.
" Sandile; let's show Allen what you can do."
" Not Sandile!" Archer yelled at the poor choice of Pokemon.
It was too late. Once a trainer starts with a Pokemon they cannot switch their Pokemon.
"I'll let you start off, brat," Allen offers condescendingly, and Patrick considers his options for a moment.
"Sandile, begin with Stone Edge," Patrick orders, grateful for having a few tricks up his sleeve. Sharp stones form around the small pokémon, and then rocket at the ice-type, slamming into it and knocking it back sharply, but an Ice Beam crackles out immediately in response, freezing several of the stones that are still heading towards the pokémon, then lancing out towards Sandile. "Dig, now!"
Sandile used his claws to dig through the dirt. Sandile was safe underground but the hole he went through was frozen by Ice Beam. Cryogonal was freezing the entire ground making it look like it went through a snowstorm.
" You fool!" Allen laughed mockingly. " You put you Sandile underground before an Ice Beam. Because of your mistake your Pokemon won't be getting out."
"Fool?" Patrick asks, a slight smile appearing on his face. "You've locked the ground in ice, and a Sandile would indeed be hard pressed to break out," he agrees with a shrug. "It may indeed be impossible. However, consider this one little issue..." he trails off. "My Sandile knows Dig..."
"Huh?" Allen asks no one in particular, his face confused. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Sandile doesn't learn Dig until after it's strong enough to evolve," Patrick clarifies even as the ground bursts open beneath Cryogonal and a bipedal crocodilian pokémon lunges from the dirt, grabbing onto Cryogonal's back with powerful jaws and dragging it into contact with the earth. "Now use Brick Break!" Patrick orders, and a glowing fist smashes into Cryogonal, drawing a cry of pain from the Ice-type. "Finish it! Earthquake!" Patrick commands, and the newly evolved Krokorok slams one foot down as it sets off an Earthquake, shattering the ice across the field and leaving the Ice-type out cold.
"Yeah!" Archer cheered upon Patrick winning the first battle. "You managed to win, and your Sandile even evolved. Congratulations."
"Krokorok has been ready to evolve for a while now," Patrick shrugs in mild embarrassment. He knew that Archer was being sincere in his congratulations, but it sounded like he was bragging in front of their enemies. As Patrick collects his thoughts, Allen returns Cryogonal to its pokéball with a sneer of disdain.
"Your Sandile could have evolved at any moment and you choose now to do it, hmm?" Allen hisses, glaring. His eyes have the look of a rival ready to do anything necessary to win, and he nods in consideration. "Sneaky, brat. A trick worthy of Team Rocket. But while you may think it's funny to pull off some trick like that, your strength is nothing. I could crush all of your pokémon with my fists alone."
"Care to try it?" Patrick replies, his eyes serious. "I'm sure Krokorok wouldn't mind fighting you personally."
"You mean Krookodile, don't you?" Allen asks. "After all, only when Krokorok is past being ready to evolve does it learn Earthquake."
"True," Patrick shrugs with a slight smile on his face. "But I'll leave it up to Krokorok as to when he evolves. He's ready physically, but there's still development he can attain before he finishes his evolution."
" Stop talking strategy with this boy, bro," Allen's sister Rivera said." Just use your strongest Pokemon and finish him."
Allen remembered he had another Pokeball in his hand. He squeezed it and gave it back to the red bird. " Take this back and gave me my strongest Pokemon."
" You can't do that!" Archer yelled at Allen. " You already have your Pokemon brought to you."
" Your friend also can use any Pokemon he wants." Allen replied. " If he wants Rino he needs to beat my best Pokemon."
" But Patrick doesn't have many Pokemon."
"So?" Allen asks. "Not my problem. Go, Feraligatr!" He shouts, releasing a highly rare pokémon...that is most decidedly not a Feraligatr...and which is of a type that is utterly ineffectual against ground-types like Krokorok. Allen glances at the electric-type, pales, and then swears. "How...how did my Jolteon get mixed up with my Feraligatr?" He asks incredulously, and Riviera looks nervous.
"Bro.." she begins. "Just got a message from HQ...some newbie got assigned your Feraligatr to help with a prison breakout."
"Damnit!" Allen roars. "Jolteon, Thunder!"
The quills on Jolteon's body stood up creating a black storm cloud followed by a powerful thunder that was heading towards Krokorok.
" Krokorok, dodge!" Patrick shouted.
Krokorok didn't dodge because there was nothing that was going to hurt him. The thunder struck him but Krokorok didn't feel anything. Allen's sister Rivera got angry and smacked her head.
"Those damned idiots at HQ need to warn us before they pull some stunt like this," Riviera shrieks. "The boss is going to be hearing about this, that's for sure."
"Just get it over with," Allen glares wearily. "This is embarrassing and I don't feel like humiliating myself. But you will pay for this, brat," he assures Patrick, who chuckles.
"Fine," Patrick shrugs. "Krokorok, Earthquake," he commands, and the crocodilian pokémon slams one foot into the ground, causing it to shake and crack, throwing the Jolteon from its feet and into the sweet embrace of slumber. With a grimace, Allen grabs a pokéball from his belt, tossing it to Patrick, who returns Rino to his pokéball, then Allen returns his Jolteon. A moment later, Patrick returns Krokorok and Allen turns to walk away.
"Later, brat. Watch your back," Allen growls, striding away from the trainer, Riviera rushing over to follow him.
Team Rocket would always be Patrick's enemies. Allen and Rivera he thought were starting to become friendlier to Patrick. Patrick released Rino from his Pokeball and pat his head and horn.
" Come on, Patrick," Archer said. " We have to go to the place Professor Juniper told us to heal your fear of fire Pokemon."
XXX
"Well, I'd dare say that team rocket is more than a big crime organization. Whatever research they are conducting, I am not happy at all." There was the swift typing of the keyboard. "I can't see much hacked data from since the siblings' devices as they don't seem to be big shots in the organization…but the name I see really irks and tells me a lot of things."
The figure pulled his cap closer.
"Hopefully, Patrick would keep them occupied for a while more." It grumbled. "I hope I could still make it in time- for the upcoming tournament."
The screen gave a dull glow.
"…u3uuiwhcd…83983-%&&& $... K-Y-U-R-E-M…guihUIG8##45…"
