Chapter 25 - "Can You Handle Horror Movies?"
Cyan and Kala stayed at a Pokémon Center that was built in a place that Kala called Tapu Village. Cyan believed it was a weird place to build a center, but the fact that they had been traveling nonstop for a day, it was at the very least convenient.
The two sat in the diner of the center as they silently chewed their food. Cyan looked around, taking note that they were the only two customers in the whole diner. He thought back a bit, remembering that he didn't even see any other trainers when they rented their room.
"This place is creepy," he said. "Why is there no one else here?"
"Do you like horror movies?" Kala asked, ignoring Cyan's question.
"N-no," Cyan nervously answered.
"Can you handle horror movies?"
"Maybe. But, I'd rather watch literally anything else."
"I see."
Cyan sat back in his booth and stared wide-eyed at Kala. "Why?"
"C'mon," Kala said. The two were now traveling on Route 14 and its beach made of black sand. But Cyan was walking considerably slower than he ever had before. "Don't you want to take on your next trial?"
"You haven't told me about it, though! Instead, you keep asking weird questions like if I'm afraid of death and what scares me the most. It's rude!"
"You told me not to give you anymore hints."
"I didn't tell you to freak me out!"
"I'm not trying to freak you out. I just want to know more about you. You're my friend."
The two continued through Route 14. Cyan followed close behind, but he kept an eye out. Anytime he heard a noise that sounded out of the norm, he jumped and flailed his arms wildly. But, soon enough, they came upon their destination. In front of them was a massive building that anyone would be familiar with.
"A supermarket?" Cyan asked as he looked at the building. It was wide with walls made mostly from windows. They were plastered with what appeared to be outdated posters and newspapers, hiding what was on the inside. "You sure we're in the right place?"
"I'm sure."
Then, the doors slide open, and a small girl who wore a purple ragged dress revealed herself. She had a wistfulness to her walk, and a slightly mischievous look in her eyes.
"Are you here for your trial?" she asked in a high-pitched, mousy voice.
Cyan stepped forward, his fears now washed away after seeing the goofy supermarket.
"The strong but silent type," the girl said. "My name is Acerola, and I'm the Trial Captain for Thrifty Megamart. Your challenge will start once you step through these doors."
"I'm Cyan, and I'm ready."
The girl reached into a small knapsack, and pulled from it a small camera. She raised it and pushed its button, allowing a bright light to flash. The camera buzzed as it printed out the picture that she just took. She gripped on it lightly and shook the photo. Slowly, Cyan and Kala's image appeared.
"Your challenge is simple. You are to remain calm in scary situations. I want you to go into this market and take the perfect picture. It cannot be blurry, and make sure that whatever you take a picture of, it's positioned perfectly. Not too small but not too big."
Cyan took the camera slowly and looked up at Acerola with a confused look on his face. "I'm taking a picture?"
Acerola simply nodded.
"Good luck," Kala said. She pushed Cyan ever so slightly. "I'm going to stay behind for this one. I think you'll be better off this way."
The doors to the market slid open, and Cyan slowly walked over. He peaked in, and it looked like a regular supermarket to me. He turned around, got one last wave from Kala and Acerola, and then stepped forward. The automatic doors closed behind him, and there was a soft buzz. Suddenly, it all went black.
"Hello?" Cyan said, his voice reverberating off the walls of the market, but everything else was silent. Cyan paused before he pulled out a Poké Ball. With a quick flick of his wrist, Salandit appeared in front of him. The fire that flowed through her body gave off a small glow, lightly illuminating the path in front of him.
"Sala?" she wondered as she looked around. She peered back at Cyan, and upon meeting his gaze, blushed.
"Think you can lead the way for a bit? It's impossible to see where we're supposed to go, and unlike last time, I don't have a good method to get through here."
Salandit simply nodded and then slowly waddled forward. Cyan followed behind closely while he looked around. He held tightly onto the camera, prepared to take a snapshot whenever the right opportunity came, but it was undeniable that his hands shook.
Now that the lights were off, the market seemed like an entirely different place. It was as though the market from before was a fully functioning store with well stocked isles that we cleaned and organized. But what Cyan could make of the market now was a mess. It was as though the market had been destroyed by some sort of storm many years ago, and the isles were littered with trash and broken goods. Dust had collected on the floor, and Cyan walked through more spider-webs than he would have liked. Salandit remained calm though, and she weaved through the trash and the webs, constantly looking back to Cyan to make sure that he was following close behind.
"You're very brave," Cyan said, his voice shaking slightly. "I guess you'd have to be since you came from living on a volcano."
Salandit didn't respond, but rather continued forward. But then, she stopped as there was a rattling noise that came out from ahead. Cyan's heart seemingly sank into his chest, and he slowly raised the camera, ready to take a picture if he could bring his fingers to move correctly.
"L-let's go," he said quietly.
The two stepped forward as slowly as they could, and Salandit released some fire from her mouth to illuminate the path that was before them. The fire revealed a shopping cart made of wire. It had been thrown over, and it laid on its with nothing within its cage. But to Cyan's surprise, it shook.
"Hello?" Cyan said.
The cart stopped shaking, and everything went quiet once more. Trainer and Pokémon cautiously approached the wire cart, and Cyan held out the camera. But nothing. The two paused, and Cyan sighed. They looked at one another and smiled.
"I guess it was no-"
Suddenly, there was a loud shriek, and a shadowy figure exploded from the cart. A face made of red and black energy loomed overhead, and its cry filled the market with a blood curdling howl.
Cyan and Salandit screamed for their lives, and they turned and started to run the opposite way. Salandit was much faster than Cyan, and she found it much easier to weave through the isles. Cyan was much bigger than her, and he had to constantly jump over obstacles. One miss-timed jump was all it took, and Cyan found himself falling to the ground. He hit the hard marble ground face first, and Salandit looked back to him. The creature from before had followed them, and it was now inching closer and closer to Cyan.
"Sala!" the Pokémon cried out. She slithered back to her trainer, opened up her mouth, and released a small flame that exploded into a wave of fire. It engulfed the incoming threat completely.
Cyan looked back and he took his chance. As the fire illuminated the creature, he lifted his camera, centered it, and pushed the button on top, snapping a picture. The fire died down, the creature ran away, and they waited for the photo to print. Cyan felt at his face. As he applied pressure to his forehead, it stung. The wound he had taken was small, but he felt dizzy.
Nonetheless, he checked the photo, and to his surprise, all that was in the photo was Salandit's attack. The two looked at it with perplexed expressions on their faces. They both knew that something was there, and Cyan was positive that he took its picture. But the photo that he held in his hands showed no such creature.
Cyan slowly stood back up, his legs finally calming down. Salandit looked at him cautiously before he gave her the signal to continue forward. The two were now completely lost. Cyan had a good sense of direction, but after the small incident with the ghoul, he had lost any bearings on where they were. Even if he wanted to put the challenge on break and exit, he couldn't at this point. So, the two pressed forward.
"Thanks for saving me," Cyan said. "You didn't have to, but I'm glad you did."
Salandit simply kept walking forward, her hindlegs wildly waving back and forth.
The rest of their journey through the market was dull. Cyan got used to seeing the destroyed isles. He was no longer afraid of the webs. And the darkness was nothing to fear. The only thing that they could hear were Cyan's footsteps and Salandit's small legs pitter pattering against the marble floor. After awhile, it felt as though they had circled the market a few times, but now without an incident.
Cyan sighed while he looked around the dimly lit room. He squinted his eyes, trying to get an image of anything out of the ordinary, but nothing. He raised the camera and took a picture, illuminating the entire market momentarily. And then, something caught his eye. He took the photo and stuffed it into his pocket, not bothering to look at it. But instead, he focused on what was only a few yards away: two black doors.
"All markets have back rooms," he muttered. "I guess nothing is off limits."
Salandit nodded.
The two walked forward slowly, and Cyan pressed his hand against one of the black doors, moving it slightly. He took in one deep breath and looked down to his companion. Salandit gave him the signal, and then he pushed the door open. What waited for them on the other side of the door was a small room. It was dimly illuminated by a single bulb that dangled from a wire from the ceiling. In the middle of the room sat a small creature. It seemed raggidy, and it hung its head low as its body shivered.
"H-hello?"
The creature perked its head up slightly, and it slowly turned its yellow body around. It made eye contact with Cyan with what appeared to be faux eyes.
Cyan examined it closely. The Pokémon seemed faintly familiar to him, but he couldn't tell from what. He raised his camera, positioned the Pokémon in the middle, and tried to calm his breathing.
"Say cheese," he said. With that, he clicked the button, and there was a flash.
The Pokémon, seemingly terrified by the camera, screeched. Cyan and Salandit yelled back, and they both jumped as the Pokémon started to grow in size, almost doubling. Then, the lights flashed on, illuminating the back room in its entirety. The Pokémon before them surged with energy, and a red aura came over it.
"I think we're in for a battle," Cyan muttered. "You ready?"
Salandit gulped and then stepped forward.
The Pokémon before them screeched once more, and behind it, a face familiar to Cyan and Salandit formed. A purple Pokémon materialized around the face, creating a creature that Cyan and read about in books.
"Haunter," Cyan muttered. He grabbed a Poké Ball and tossed it forward. Brionne emerged, and he stood up on his two front legs and did a pose, unaware of what was before him. He looked up, noticing the terrifying Pokémon before slowly lowering himself.
"We're dealing with a Ghost-type Pokémon, so be careful!" Cyan warned.
Salandit and Brionne nodded.
"Dragon Rage! Aqua Jet!"
Brionne was much faster that Salandit. He covered himself with aquatic energy before bounded forward. As Salandit released blue flames onto their small battle arena, Haunter zipped forward. Dark energy engulfed his fist, and punched, knocking Brionne directly in the jaw. Brionne's attack stopped, and he fell to the ground. Then, Haunter shifted his focus. His eyes started to glow, and a shadowy veil of energy stopped Salandit's blue flames. As though it had drowned them out, the flames disappeared suddenly. Haunter simply laughed.
"Sucker Punch and then some kind of Ghost-type move," Cyan muttered. "I have to be more crafty in my attacks…"
Haunter laughed as his ghostly body surged with energy. The way that the Pokémon carried himself told Cyan that he was going to be considerably strong. At this point, he was just playing with Cyan's Pokémon.
"Let's go long-ranged! Bubblebeam! Flame Burst!"
Cyan's two Pokémon unleashed their attacks simultaneously, creating a mix of bubbles and explosive flames. Haunter attempted to repeat his defensive maneuver from before to drown out the attacks, but it was only partially successful. The attacks broke through, and Haunter was quick enough to get out of the way. Everything went silent for one moment. Cyan and his Pokémon looked around, but neither Haunter nor the totem Pokémon could be found.
Then, Cyan felt a chill run up his spine. He turned to find Haunter floating directly behind him, his tail wagging frantically. The Pokémon quickly snapped forward and ran his tongue up the entirety of Cyan's face. Cyan's body froze up as though his nerves had all clenched at once, and he collapsed backwards. His Pokémon, in response, unleashed attacks, but Haunter disappeared once again.
Cyan tried to turn his head, but it was almost impossible. His muscles had seized up, and all that he could do at the moment was merely watch as his Pokémon panicked about his state of being.
"O-Oranguru," Cyan managed to mutter.
Brionne and Salandit looked at one another and then they fumbled for Cyan's belt, ripping off the Great Ball before tossing it into the air. Oranguru materialized and he yawned before noticing Cyan in his state.
"Oran?" the Pokémon wondered.
Cyan, unable to speak, managed to nod slightly, and that was all that Oranguru needed to see.
"Oran!" the Pokémon ordered.
Salandit and Brionne turned back to the action and faced Haunter. The Ghost-type was laughing as drool slowly dripped from his mouth. He waved his arms in front of his face, telling them to bring it.
"Oranguru!"
Brionne moved forward and unleashed the blast of bubbles from his mouth. Haunter repeated his motions from before and tried to choke out the bubbles. As soon as he did, Salandit appeared from the explosion. She opened her maw wide as a poisonous energy exploded forth. With one quick snap, she clamped her jaws down onto Haunter's body. The Ghost-type screamed, and to everyone's surprise, his body started to glow with a faint purple aura. Haunter had been poisoned.
"Yeah," Cyan muttered softly. Feeling in his fingers had slowly started to come back.
"Oran!" the Pokémon ordered.
Salandit and Brionne divided, jumping to either side of Haunter. And before the Ghost-type could figure out what was coming, the two unleashed fire and bubbles from their mouths. The attacks exploded upon impact, and Haunter's scream bounced off the walls. When the smoke cleared, he was not to be found though.
"Guru-gu!" the simian Pokémon warned.
But it was too late. Haunter emerged from the shadows, and he placed his claw onto Brionne's head. Haunter started to radiate energy, and without much warning, Brionne fell into a deep sleep. The Ghost-type quickly span his body around, and released the ghostly attack from before. Brionne was flung forwards, and he landed directly onto Salandit. The Fire-type squirmed as she tried to push her companion off, but Haunter was ready. He released his ghostly aura, and it wrapped around the two Pokémon. Quickly, it started to apply pressure on the two of them, sucking away their life force. With one small yelp, Salandit fell unconscious and Brionne became limp. Haunter laughed, but then the poisonous energy quickly flowed through him, and he slowly floated towards the ground. All three Pokémon had fainted.
"Oran?" the Pokémon wondered as he lifted the Poké Balls and returned his companions. He looked out towards the middle of the room where the totem Pokémon slowly emerged from the ground. It rattled as it cocked its neck from side to side, a sinister look in its fake smile.
Oranguru slowly bent over and grabbed the two remaining Poké Balls from Cyan's belt. With two quick tosses, Venusaur and Lycanroc appeared. Venusaur turned to Cyan, and a look of panic came over his face.
"Oranguru!" the Pokémon said, explaining the situation.
Venusaur, now filled with rage, turned and howled. He raised the leaves on his back, unleashing a storm of pink petals. They raced across the floor, but before they could hit the yellow Ghost-type, it disappeared. Not even a half second later, it appeared in front of Venusaur, lifted a black claw made of dark energy, and swiped. Venusaur was struck directly in the face, and the attack seemingly shocked him into a momentary flinch.
"Oran!" the Pokémon ordered.
Lycanroc nodded, and her body surged with energy. She bounded forward as rocks formed at her sides. She collided with the small Ghost-type, letting the rocks slash against its body. The small yellow Pokémon retreated, and it watched as Oranguru made his next plan.
Cyan was finally able to move slightly, and he shifted over onto his side. Only his right leg had mobility while his left leg was still frozen. He tried to move his arms, and even though he could reach his bag, he had lost feeling in his fingers. Whether or not he was touching a zipper, he couldn't tell. His neck still wouldn't move enough to allow him to check.
"Oranguru!" the Pokémon commanded.
Venusaur started a slow run forward, and white energy exploded off of his body. Meanwhile, Lycanroc howled, and a red aura began to surround her, blowing a strong air through the room. Venusaur eventually reached the Ghost-type, but he bounded straight through it as though it wasn't really there. Venusaur turned and looked in surprise as Oranguru realized his mistake.
"Oranguru-guru!"
The Ghost-type lifted its dark claw once again and prepared to strike, but following Oranguru's orders, Venusaur reached out with his vine and grabbed the claw. With a separate vine, he gripped onto the Ghost-type, keeping her in place. Lycanroc followed by running forward and opening up her mouth. Dark energy exploded as she clamped down onto the Ghost-type. There was a momentary pause as all of the Pokémon stood still and waited for a reaction. The Ghost-type's large head then cocked as though its neck had been broken.
"Oran?"
Then, the Ghost-type went into a frenzy. It spun around, surprisingly strong enough to pull Venusaur towards it. From underneath its cloak, dozens of claws emerged, and they began to swipe rapidly at the two Pokémon. Pink energy exploded off of them with every strike.
"Oranguru!"
Lycanroc nodded and then opened her mouth, creating the dark energy once again. The Ghost-type was quick though. It reached with one of its claws and wrapped around the maw of Lycanroc, forcing her mouth shut. With another claw, she punched Lycanroc in the snout.
Cyan had gained feeling in his fingers, and he unzipped his bag. Items started to slowly stumble out, and he turned his body around, finding the proper item that he was looking forward. Using all of the body that he could find within himself, he grabbed the item, and took a bite of it, letting the juices flow down his chin, but more importantly, into his throat. The relief was instant, and his muscles all came back to him. He took a sigh of relief before standing up. His body had taken enough damage from the fall, but he still knew that he needed to fight back.
"Oranguru, use Zen Headbutt!" he called weakly.
Oranguru looked at Cyan and then nodded. He ran into the mess of the fight, ramming his body into the three Pokémon. They all fell back, and although it was clear that the totem Pokémon was tired, Lycanroc and Venusaur were in a much worse position.
"Let's do this!" Cyan called. He tried to raise his arm for a Z-Move, but he couldn't. His arm wasn't paralyzed, but rather it had fallen asleep from him putting all of his weight on it previously. It dangled limply at his side.
The totem Pokémon twisted its body around, flailing limbs built from shadows and pink energy wildly. The three Pokémon were all struck hard, and to Cyan's surprise, they all fell backwards. Venusaur was the first to collapse, followed by Lycanroc, and then Oranguru, who had just barely entered the fight, fell to the ground.
Cyan looked up from his downed Pokémon. He was yet to lose a trial, and he wasn't sure what was going to happen next. But the totem Pokémon that was in front of him continued to flail around, its small body shaking with dark, evil energy. It inched closer and closer, and Cyan took a step back. He lifted his three Poké Balls, returning his downed Pokémon to safety. It was now him face to face with the ghostly creature.
"I'm not afraid of you!" he yelled.
The Pokémon startled to cackle maniacally, and the energy that imminated from its body increased. It raised two of its claws and prepared to strike.
And then, from out of a nowhere, a round Pokémon appeared. His body sparked with electric energy, and he focused it into his fist. With one quick forward movement, the new Pokémon jabbed the Ghost-type, knocking it backwards. The Pokémon turned to Cyan with a wide grin on his face.
"Graveler?" Cyan asked. "What are you doing here?"
There was no time for Graveler to answer as the Ghost-type attempted one more strike. Claws of shadows raced from the darkness towards Graveler, but the Rock-type was prepared for a fight. He leapt into the air, and the ground below Cyan started to rumble. Rocks were pulled like magnets from the floor, and with Graveler's energy, he flung them forward. They crashed one by one into the shadowy limbs, eliminating them completely. The Ghost-type shrieked as though it had taken a lot of damage, and Graveler took his opportunity. With his fist exploding with electricity, he jabbed, getting a direct hit on the Ghost-type. It flew back once more and landed against the wall. Upon connecting with the ground, it let out once last whimper before sinking into the shadows.
All went silent, and Cyan fell to his knees. Graveler turned around and slowly walked over to him. He rest one of his rocky hands on Cyan's shoulder and then smiled.
"Thanks," Cyan said. "Let's go."
The market was still as dark as ever, but the entrance was a straight walk forward. Upon exiting the market, Cyan was greeted by Kala and Acerola. Kala looked physically confused by the appearance of Graveler though.
Cyan fell to his knees once more, and the two ran to him.
"You okay?" Kala asked.
Cyan took in a deep breath. "It was the hardest challenge yet. I failed. I lost."
"You lost?" Acerola asked. She looked at Graveler. "But your Graveler looks fine to me."
Cyan shook his head. "This isn't my Graveler. I mean, it was, but I released him. He followed me here. But nonetheless, I lost. I couldn't beat the totem Pokémon without help."
"Did you get a picture?" Acerola asked.
Cyan thought about it for a moment and he looked down to the camera that was dangling from his neck. A photo hung from the bottom of it. He pulled the photo out, and in the middle was a perfect shot of the Pokémon.
"I did."
Acerola examined the photo. "Then you pass. Your challenge was to get the picture. It wasn't to beat any Pokémon."
"What? Really?"
"Yeah! You pass! Congrats!" Acerola said happily. "But where is this? I don't recognize it."
Cyan sat back. "It was in the backroom."
"Backroom?"
"Yeah," Cyan said. He pulled the photo that he took from his pocket and looked at it. All that the picture had in it was a wall without the black doors that he walked through. "Wait. What?"
"I don't see any back room," Acerola said. "Maybe you were imagining everything."
Cyan looked to Kala for some advice, but Kala couldn't say anything. She simply smiled, which still comforted Cyan slightly.
"Thanks for helping me," Cyan said to Graveler. Graveler nodded and put one of his hands to his chest before standing up straight. "I take it that you want to come with me?"
"Graveler," the Pokémon mumbled. He avoided eye contact with Cyan.
Cyan reached into his bag and pulled out a Poké Ball. "I saved it. It's all yours if you want it."
Without looking to Cyan, Graveler stuck one of his arms out and pushed the button. The Poké Ball opened up, and Graveler was absorbed. With absolutely no struggle, the Pokémon was caught.
"That's a trial down and a Pokémon caught all in one day!" Kala exclaimed. "You're so close to being finished!"
Cyan looked back to the market. The cries of the Pokémon that he battled rang once more in his head.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
I think this may be the best chapter I've ever written from a technical standpoint. I enjoyed writing the horror elements of the market, and then having Oranguru take command of the battle was something that I wanted to try. I wanted to see if I could be descriptive enough to make sure that the attacks are clear. But who knows?! Also, Graveler was the creature following them, so yay!
REVIEWS:
wisdom-jewel - "I love how you did Eevee and it is good to see that Oshawott became a Dewott. I would love to see how Eevee reacts to Dewott becoming a Samurott. I know Samurott is only 4'11 feet or 1.5 m but she would tower any height of any Eeveelutions. Curious that something is watching them. A new Pokemon that want to join the team or a Legendary judging Cyan and kala to see if they are worthy enough. And it seems that Kala has done well in the future but what about Cyan. I wonder if he still traveling after two years or settle down." - Cyan's story is going to be interesting, I think.
CrescentApple - "Hmm... Kala is a Kahuna, and e original to challenge hey is... Logan I want to say. This chapter is funny, it shows me just because something acts cute doesn't mean it doesn't have a strong side, ala Jangmo-o. I was really really surprised the way it went from playful to serious. It really has talent. So im curious. If Kala stayed behind two years later, does that mean Lilo is somewhere out there traveling? Did she possibly meet Logan?" - So, without spoiling anything HUGE, Kala is NOT a Kahuna. As for Lilo meeting Logan, I like the idea, but I'm not sure if they have. I wonder how a battle between the two would work out.