So, for this chapter, we have two narrations going on, Hercules telling Blitz's story and the regular narration. Hercules' parts are the parts that are in italics. Might be obvious, but I decided to mention it anyways just in case. This probably won't be the only chapter where this style of narration is used, so I'm glad it worked out so well as I feel it did. Anyways, hope you enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 22: I'm really not all that special; I'm just a Shinx like the rest of you!
"Lightning Plateau is very different from Fenix Town in many ways. Here, we are used to seeing many different types and species of Pokémon every day, but at Lightning Plateau, there aren't really any other Pokémon around other than the Luxray pride, as it is their territory, and they would rather not share it with anyone.
There also aren't really any buildings there, as the Luxray pride prefers to stick to the lifestyle they have always led, and so they prefer to sleep out in the open or live in caves. The only real thing you'll see that was built at some point is a shrine carved out of stone, dedicated to the legendary Pokémon Raikou, whom is said to have been spotted running through the area during stormy nights, and is worshipped by the Luxray tribe.
Blitz, Lita and their parents lived in a cave. They were a happy family of four, and were all respected within the Luxray pride."
On a nice and quiet morning, Blitz and his father were heading out to do some training, as the two of them often did when they could. Other members of the pride greeted them as they walked past, and some of them reminded Blitz's father of a meeting regarding an upcoming hunting trip.
"You sure have a lot of responsibilities, don't you?" Blitz asked, looking up at his father.
"Well, yeah," the Luxray responded, smiling at his son. "But right now, we have some time to ourselves, and can continue where our last training session left off!"
"And this time there won't be any interruptions, right?" Blitz asked, smiling back at his father.
"Don't worry, we have a few hours at least before I am needed somewhere," Blitz's father replied. "So, remind me where we left off last time?"
"You were telling me about the Fire and Ice Fang attacks!" Blitz responded, grinning. "Will I get to try them out today?"
"Now, there's no need to rush, is there?" Blitz's father replied. "And besides, these attacks can be dangerous if you don't get the technique just right."
"What do you mean?" Blitz asked.
"Well, our fangs alone be pretty dangerous just because of their sharpness," Blitz's father explained. "Add ice or fire to it, and well, that should speak for itself."
"Oh, right," Blitz responded, nodding his head. "I get it."
"Good," Blitz's father replied, smiling at his son. "Unlike Thunder Fang, the Ice and Fire Fang moves are not learned naturally by our species, and thus a Shinx will only be capable of performing the move if their father knows how to use them."
"And since you know those attacks, that must mean you learned them from your father, didn't you?" Blitz asked. "And since you know those attacks, that means both Lita and I are capable of using them?"
"You got it spot on," Blitz's father responded, nodding his head.
"Does that mean you'll teach Lita those attacks too someday?" Blitz asked.
"Maybe," Blitz's father replied. "Of course, with my responsibilities as leader of the pride, I'm not entirely sure if I'll have the time to train you both."
"Being leader of the pride doesn't sound like much fun," Blitz commented, tilting his head slightly.
"It is a lot of work, but someone has to do it," Blitz's father responded, smiling at Blitz. "But for now, let's focus on these lessons."
"Okay!" Blitz replied, nodding his head. "So, how do I do this?"
"It's kind of complicated, but once you know it, it's not that hard," Blitz's father responded, picking up a branch that fallen from one of the trees during a lightning storm and putting it down in front of Blitz. "I think we'll start with Fire Fang, so listen closely."
Blitz nodded his head, listening closely to his father's instructions on how to perform the attack, and using the branch to practice on.
"So, Blitz's father was the leader of the Luxray pride? Wait, so does that make Blitz… a prince, or something?"
"Well, you're certainly not that far off, Sera. Blitz was expected to take over his father's position as leader once he was old enough. And so, there were many things Blitz was expected to learn. Luckily, he was a fast learner, and seemed to be well in touch with his instincts. He had sharp senses, and seemed to possess many qualities that would seem to give him good leader potential.
Yet, Blitz preferred to think of himself as just any other Shinx in the pride."
After their training session, Blitz's father had work to attend to. Blitz decided to go see what some of the other Shinx around his age were up to. He eventually came across a group of Shinx that were doing some training of their own, taking turns fighting each other.
"Hey guys!" Blitz said, walking up to the other Shinx.
"Oh, hi Blitz!" one of the Shinx responded, walking up to him. "What's up?"
"Dad taught me some new moves," Blitz replied.
"Cool!" one of the other Shinx responded. "Could you show us?"
"Sure, I guess," Blitz replied, looking around. "Just need to find a branch or piece of bark, since dad says it might be dangerous to use on other Pokémon if you don't get the technique just right."
"Oh! I'll go look for something you can use!" one of the female Shinx said, running off.
"I'll help!" one of the other female Shinx said, joining the first one.
"I'll go too, in case the girls need any help carrying the stuff back," one of the males commented, before following the two female Shinx.
"Oh, uh… Thanks, I guess," Blitz responded, tilting his head slightly. "I probably could've done it myself, though."
"Yeah, he has a point, you know," said a voice from behind them, and they turned to see what looked to be a bigger Shinx with two yellow rings on his forelegs and a black mane, albeit his mane weren't as impressive as that of a Luxray. The young Luxio had a smug look on his face as he approached the Shinx.
"Oh, hello," Blitz said, rubbing his forelegs together.
"What do you want, Charge?" one of the Shinx asked, glaring at the Luxio.
"Nothing at all," Charge responded, smirking. "Just wondering what the big deal about Blitz is all about. I mean, sure, his father might be the leader of this pride, but Blitz himself… he hasn't really ever done anything all that impressive or noteworthy."
"And just what have you done?" one of the female Shinx asked.
"Yeah, you're just jealous!" one of the male Shinx said, pointing a paw accusingly at Charge.
"Guys, calm down!" Blitz said, moving in-between Charge and the Shinx group. "I'm really not all that special; I'm just a Shinx like the rest of you!"
"Exactly," Charge responded, nodding his head. "I know that, and you know that, but they don't seem to have caught on."
"Blitz, you don't have to listen to what Charge says!" one of the Shinx said. "You know he's just after attention!"
"I know he's not the nicest member of the pride, but really, there's no need to fight," Blitz responded, trying to keep things calm.
"Hey, I'm not looking for a fight," Charge said, turning away. "Or at least, I'm not looking for a fight against any of you. I'm way too tough for you kids."
"Blitz could take you on!" one of the Shinx commented, smirking. "He's been training with his dad!"
"Oh, is that so?" Charge asked, looking back over at Blitz. "You think you could take me on?"
"Now, I never said that…" Blitz responded, rubbing his forelegs together and glancing around nervously at the other Shinx. "You guys aren't really helping here…"
"Well, maybe I'll test you later, see if those fans of yours are right or not," Charge replied, smirking. "For now, I'll be off. See you all later."
And with that, the Luxio left, and Blitz sighed as the other Shinx gather around him.
"Hey, Blitz?" one of the Shinx said. "Sorry if we put you in a bit of a difficult spot there."
"Yeah, we didn't mean to," one of the other Shinx added. "But you know, since Charge is always bothering us and telling us all about how everything we can do, he can do better…"
"Don't worry about it," Blitz responded, managing a small smile. "You meant well, so… just try not to let Charge's mere presence get the better of you next time, okay?"
"Okay!" the other Shinx replied, nodding their heads.
"All right, so… I guess I'll show you those moves my dad taught me, then," Blitz said, looking at some pieces of bark some of the other Shinx had found for him. "These will do just fine."
"Sounds like Blitz had a lot of friends, didn't he?"
"It may seem that way, Chiaki, but… Well, while Blitz got along well with the other Shinx, they weren't necessarily particularly close. Blitz liked to play together with them, but they weren't really his close friends.
However, there was one Shinx whom he could always talk to, that understood him better than any other Shinx in the pride. It was none other than his little sister Lita."
As Blitz returned home to the cave later in the evening, he noticed that Lita was watching their mother sorting some things around the cave.
"You sure you don't want any help, mommy?" Lita asked, tilting her head slightly.
"Nice of you to offer, but I've got it covered," their mother replied, smiling. "So, don't worry about it, my little princess!"
"If you say so…" Lita responded, before her mood considerably brightened as she noticed Blitz walking over. "Big brother, you're back!"
"Hey, Lita," Blitz said, smiling at the younger Shinx. "How have you been?"
"Fine, I guess," Lita responded, shrugging slightly. "How was your day?"
"Well, dad finally taught me how to use the Ice and Fire Fang moves," Blitz said.
"Ooh, really?" Lita responded. "Can you show me?"
"Sure," Blitz replied, nodding his head. "Maybe I'll even teach you how to use them yourself someday!"
"You'd really do that?" Lita asked, smiling at her brother.
"Of course, once I've fully mastered the attack myself, that is," Blitz responded, smiling back.
"Yay!" Lita replied, hugging her brother. "You're the best big brother ever!"
"Um, sorry to interrupt, but you said Blitz had been through a difficult time before coming to our town, didn't you?"
"Well, I'm getting to that part, Sera. You see, Blitz's father had to go and lead the hunting trip the Luxray had planned. He and the other Luxray were only supposed to be away for a few weeks, but they all seemed to be away for longer than the rest of the pride expected. They considered sending out a search party, but the Luxray did return before it got to that point… or most of them did, anyways."
Blitz and Lita's mother had gone to figure out exactly what had happened when she heard the hunting party had returned. As she came across the Luxray that had gone on the hunting trip she noticed that several of them looked to be recovering from some sort of injury, and she felt concerned as she realized her mate was nowhere in sight.
"Ah, Leandra," one of the Luxray said, walking up to Blitz and Lita's mother. "Looking for the leader, aren't you?"
"Yeah, where is he?" Leandra asked, looking around. "Is he okay?"
"Well, last time I saw him he was okay, but…" the Luxray responded, and then explained how something during the hunting trip had gone wrong, resulting in an accident that injured many of the Luxray. Their leader, Tirell, was not among the Luxray that were injured, but he hadn't taken what happened well, and he blamed himself for what had happened.
He had helped the other Luxray treat the wounds of the injured Luxray, but once they were in good enough shape to head home, he had run off, apparently too ashamed to face the rest of the pride.
"What do you mean!?" Leandra shouted.
"I-It's like I said," the Luxray responded, shivering slightly under Leandra's intimidating gaze. "He ran away, and we don't know where he went off to…"
"But… He can't just run away, he's the leader of our pride!" Leandra replied, growling angrily.
"We were shocked too," the Luxray responded, shaking his head. "We never thought Tirell could abandon us like this..."
"Of all the irresponsible…" Leandra growled, the Luxray she was talking to seeming rather unnerved as she was scary enough when she wasn't angry. "I swear, whenever he gets back here, I'm going to give him a piece of my mind!"
"A-Anyways…" the Luxray responded, clearing his throat. "We must figure out what to do while Tirell is missing…"
"Well, Blitz is supposed to be the next leader of the pride," Leandra replied, shaking her head slightly. "But he's too young to take up his father's position."
"I guess we will need to choose a temporary leader until either Blitz is old enough to take up the position or Tirell returns," the other Luxray responded. "We will also need to do what we can to prepare Blitz to take on the role as our leader."
"I will do what I can," Leandra replied, nodding her head. "For now, I should probably go home and tell the kids what has happened…"
"We'll discuss this further at a later time, then," the Luxray said.
"So… Blitz's father left… just like that?"
"Yes… I understand that it is very difficult to understand; even Blitz couldn't understand why his father would do such a thing. And as if that wasn't enough, some of the Luxray decided that they needed to begin preparing him for what they all expected of him once he was old enough, to become their new leader."
Blitz carefully crept through the grass, listening for anything that might be waiting to ambush him. He glanced around, trying his best not to rustle any of the grass too much or step on anything that might give away his position. A Luxray was observing him, nodding his head as Blitz met his gaze.
"Good, you're in tune with your instincts," the Luxray said. "But you're breathing a little too hard."
"Oh…" Blitz responded, his voice barely a whisper.
"You just need to find a way to relax more, otherwise you did really well," the Luxray said.
"Thanks…" Blitz replied, rubbing his forelegs together.
"You really do have great potential," the Luxray said, smiling at Blitz. "We all believe you'll make a great leader someday!"
"Leader… right…" Blitz muttered, lying down in the tall grass as if he didn't want to be noticed. "As if I hadn't already heard that four times already today…"
"Well, I think that's all the training for today," the Luxray said, glancing at the sun setting in the distance. "You can go home now."
"Okay, thanks…" Blitz said, nodding his head slightly.
The Luxray walked away, but Blitz stayed right there in the tall grass for a little longer. He seemed to relax a little as he realized he was now by himself, the tall grass helping to hide him from sight just a little.
"Pathetic, aren't I?" Blitz muttered to himself. "I have no choice, so I might as well just accept it…" Blitz glanced up at the evening sky, even if he couldn't see the sunset clearly from his position. "Ihave to become the leader of this pride someday… I must… I guess… This must be what they call… destiny?" Blitz nodded his head slightly, resting his head on his paws. "Yeah… Becoming the leader of the pride… is my destiny… Whether I want it to be or not…"
Blitz opened his eyes, noticing that it had turned dark. He quickly got up to his feet, realizing that he had to have dozed off in the tall grass and that he had to hurry home. He wasn't sure how long he'd been out, but he hoped it wasn't too far past the time he was supposed to have been home. He hurried back to the cave, where he found Lita waiting for him.
"There you are!" Lita said, cheerfully greeting her big brother.
"What took you so long?" Leandra asked, looking over at Blitz.
"Sorry I'm late…" Blitz responded, rubbing his forelegs together.
"Oh, it's okay," Leandra replied. "I saved you some dinner."
Blitz nodded, and walked up the flat rock serving as their dinner table. He looked down at the piece of meat in front of him, poking at it with his paw. This red, soft piece of meat had probably been part of a wild Pokémon until recently, but it was difficult to determine species or what part of the body the meat came from by how it looked and felt to the touch alone.
"Blitz? Aren't you going to eat?" Leandra asked.
"Huh? Oh, sorry…" Blitz responded, sniffing the meat. "It smells really nice, but… I guess I'm not all that hungry…"
"But you've barely eaten today!" Leandra replied. "Surely you must be hungry?"
"Well… I suppose I shouldn't let this go to waste…" Blitz responded, taking a bite out of the meat.
"That's better," Leandra replied, smiling.
Leandra went into her part of the cave while Blitz ate his dinner, however, Lita just watched Blitz with a concerned look.
"You okay, big brother?" Lita asked.
"Not really…" Blitz responded, shaking his head.
"Want to talk about it?" Lita asked, giving a small supportive smile.
After Blitz had finished his dinner, he and Lita went to their room to talk in private. Blitz sometimes wondered if it was really okay for him to tell Lita these things, but he knew his little sister was mature for her age, and besides, he knew she would just worry about him if he didn't talk to her about whatever was on his mind.
"So, what's wrong?" Lita asked, tilting her head slightly. "Is it that Luxio that's bothering everyone again?"
"You mean Charge?" Blitz responded, before shaking his head. "No, I haven't even really seen him around lately…"
"Oh," Lita replied. "What is it, then?"
"It's just… ever since dad left, everyone's been going on about how I'm someday going to be their next leader," Blitz explained, looking down at the floor. "But, I…"
"You don't want to be the leader?" Lita asked.
"Huh… You're the only one to ask that," Blitz responded, giving his sister a small smile, before sighing and shaking his head. "No… I don't, but… it doesn't seem like I have much of a choice…"
"Maybe dad can do something about it?" Lita suggested. "You know, when he gets back from… wherever he went."
"… You really think he's coming back?" Blitz asked.
"Of course I do!" Lita responded, nodding her head. "Don't adults sometimes need time to themselves to think about things?"
"… I'm not really sure if that's what's going on," Blitz replied, sighing again. "I just don't know what to do about everyone having decided my future without even asking me what I want, or giving me a choice in the matter…"
"Hmm… They want you to be the leader because our dad is the leader, right?" Lita asked.
"I guess so," Blitz responded, glancing around at the cave walls.
"Then, maybe… I could become the leader?" Lita suggested, smiling at her brother.
"You, become the leader of the pride?" Blitz inquired, tilting his head slightly.
"Well, why not?" Lita asked, rubbing her head against Blitz. "That way, you wouldn't have to!"
"Lita… That's probably the nicest thing anyone has ever offered to do for me," Blitz responded, smiling at his sister. "Thanks."
"You're welcome!" Lita replied, grinning. "All right, I'll work hard and become the leader of this pride!"
"I doubt it's as easy as that," Blitz responded. "I mean, everyone wants me to do it, and… well, I don't think we've ever had a female Luxray as the leader before."
"That doesn't mean a female can't be leader, though?" Lita asked, smirking. "Well, either way, I'm going to try my best for your sake, big brother!"
"… You're the best little sister ever," Blitz responded, rubbing his head against Lita.
"Even with Lita around for support, things didn't get any better for Blitz. When he had time, he would go play with the other Shinx as he had always done. However, he couldn't help but feel jealousy and resentment towards the other Shinx, since none of them had to deal with the burden of being the chosen one. They didn't understand how much stress he had to suffer, or how much he just wanted to be just another Shinx like them."
Blitz was having trouble keeping up with the other Shinx as they ran around, playing their games as usual. Tired from his training earlier in the day, Blitz had to stop and take a moment to catch his breath.
"You okay, Blitz?" one of the female Shinx asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Blitz responded, nodding his head slightly. "Just a little tired from today's lessons…"
"Oh, right!" one of the other Shinx said. "You've got to know a lot of things in order to become our leader, don't you?"
"Yes, there certainly is," Blitz responded, forcing a smile while thinking to himself. "You have no idea how lucky you all are…"
"Being the leader seems like a lot of hard work," one of the other Shinx commented, smiling at Blitz. "But if anyone can handle it, it has to be you!"
"I've been getting that a lot," Blitz replied, still hiding his true thoughts behind a fake smile that none of the other Shinx seemed to see through. "Why does it have to be me? I never asked for any of this!"
"You seriously think he has what it takes?" a certain Luxio's voice asked, and they all turned to see Charge walking over. "If he's anything like his father, he'll probably just run away the moment things get rough!"
"Charge, why are you here?" one of the Shinx commented, giving the Luxio an annoyed look.
"I hadn't seen Blitz in a while, wanted to see how he were doing," Charge responded, turning to Blitz with a smug look on his face. "So, how have you been?"
"That's… really none of your business, Charge," Blitz replied, trying to remain calm. "Oh, for the love of Raikou… As if these oblivious Shinx weren't enough, now I have to deal with him too!?"
"Oh, what's the matter, Blitz?" Charge asked, leaning his face closer with a smug smile. "I bet you must feel kind of embarrassed that your dad just ditched his responsibilities like that."
Blitz glanced down at the ground, hoping Charge would just go away.
"I do wonder why he just left like that," Charge said, walking back and forth in front of Blitz as he thought to himself. "Are the meetings with the other Luxray or whatever just that boring and he just needed an excuse to get away?"
Blitz just continued staring into the ground, hoping Charge would just leave. He was aware that the other Shinx were probably glaring at the Luxio, but he just hoped they wouldn't say or do anything that would get him into trouble or make Charge stay longer.
"Or maybe it didn't even have anything to do with him being the leader," Charge said, smirking at Blitz. "Maybe you and your sister were being so annoying he decided to leave?"
Blitz narrowed his eyes, and glared at Charge. How dared he bring Lita into this?
"Oh, I know! He's probably hiding from your mother!" Charge said, snickering. "I mean, seriously. You've seen those teeth of hers, right? I'd run away too if I had to wake up to that every day!"
"SHUT UP!" Blitz shouted, startling all the other Shinx present.
"Oh, dear," Charge responded, seeming a bit startled himself momentarily before regaining his composure. "Maybe I went a little too far?"
"Charge, you can say whatever you want about me, but leave my family out of this!" Blitz replied, giving Charge a nasty glare.
"Huh, this suddenly got interesting," Charge commented, smirking. "And here I thought you were just a coward who'd rather avoid a fight."
"Well, he isn't!" one of the other Shinx said. "Now, get lost and leave Blitz alone!"
"Now, hold on…" Charge responded. "I'm not done here yet."
Blitz looked down at the ground, growling and hoping that Charge would just go away already. However, the Luxio suddenly leaned down to try to meet Blitz's gaze.
"Hey, do you remember the time I suggested we have a battle to see which one of is stronger?" Charge asked, and smirked as Blitz's eyes widened in fear. "What do you say?"
"I… I…" Blitz stuttered, rubbing his forelegs together. "I don't know if…"
"Come on, I'm just asking for one battle," Charge responded. "How about… we meet up near the shrine tomorrow night, before moving over to a suitable spot for our battle?"
"Charge, I really don't think that's a good idea…" Blitz muttered, glancing around at the other Shinx who were now just watching their conversation.
"Okay, how about this? If you win, I promise I'll take back everything I've said and leave you alone," Charge said, with a smug smile. "Does that sound good?"
Blitz tried to respond, but the words weren't coming to him. He had no idea what to do now. Charge just smirked, turned around and started to walk away.
"Well, I guess I'll go take a look around and find the best spot for our battle," Charge said, glancing over his shoulder at Blitz. "Remember, tomorrow night, meet me at the shrine!"
And with that, the Luxio left.
"Wait, I don't…" Blitz said, but Charge was already out of earshot. "… This can't end well…"
"Don't worry about it, Blitz," one of the other Shinx said.
"Yeah, we're sure you can beat him!" another Shinx commented, grinning.
Blitz just sighed and lied down in the grass, covering his ears with his paws and shutting his eyes while thinking to himself: "Why me?"
When Blitz got home later in the evening, he told both Lita and his mother about Charge's challenge, and asked them for advice on how to deal with the situation.
"Hmm… Tough one," Leandra commented. "You don't want to fight him, but you're worried he's going to keep bothering you if don't show up, right?"
"Yeah…" Blitz responded, nodding his head slightly. "Not to mention that the other Shinx seem to want me to defeat him…"
"Maybe I should have a talk with him?" Leandra suggested, smiling so that all of her sharp teeth were showing. "And if that Luxio won't listen to reason, maybe I can frighten him a bit with my Scary Face attack?"
"You mean that isn't your scary face?" Lita asked, tilting her head slightly as she looked up at her mother's grin.
"What do you mean, dear?" Leandra responded, looking over at Lita.
"Oh, never mind," Lita replied, looking down sheepishly.
"Mom, I don't think it'll help if you try to talk to him," Blitz said, rubbing his forelegs together.
"Well, if there's anything I can do to help, let me know," Leandra responded.
Blitz sighed and decided to go to his room, Lita following closely behind.
"You're not really going to fight Charge, are you?" Lita asked.
"I don't know, Lita…" Blitz responded, shaking his head slightly.
"We don't actually know how strong Charge is, do we?" Lita asked, giving her older brother a concerned look. "I don't want you to get hurt…"
"Lita, don't worry about me," Blitz responded, looking away. "I'll think of something…"
"Are you sure?" Lita replied, tilting her head slightly.
"No, but since it's my problem, I guess I'll have to sort it out myself," Blitz responded.
"That night, Blitz lay in bed trying to think of a solution, but none came to him and he eventually fell asleep. Blitz went through the next day as usual, and when the evening came, Blitz began heading for the stone shrine. He wasn't sure what he hoped to accomplish, nor did he know what he would do once he got there. However, it was as if something inside him was guiding him, as if there was no other way and it was too late to turn back…"
Blitz crept through the grass, occasionally glancing around. Dark clouds were starting to fill up the night sky, and it wouldn't be surprising if it started raining at any moment. Blitz just kept on moving through the tall grass, staying low as if he didn't want to be spotted. He could see the stone shrine in the distance, getting closer and closer. Blitz took a deep breath, and continued moving forward, towards the shrine dedicated to Raikou, a legendary Pokémon of thunder and lightning.
As he reached the shrine, he sat down next to it, looking around. Blitz hadn't seen any signs of Charge yet, but he figured it wouldn't be long before the Luxio showed up.
"Sure is dark tonight…" Blitz muttered to himself, glancing up at the cloudy night sky.
"Ah, there you are," a familiar voice called out. "I was worried you wouldn't show up."
Blitz flinched slightly, before nervously looking over at the Luxio walking over with a smug smile on his face.
"Are you ready?" Charge asked, glancing over in a direction. "I think I've found just the perfect spot for our battle."
Blitz reluctantly followed Charge as he led the way towards the location he had chosen for their battle. They eventually arrived at a fairly open area, with only a few trees surrounding them.
"What do you think? Good spot for a battle, isn't it?" Charge asked, smirking.
"I-I guess…" Blitz responded, rubbing his forelegs together.
Charge took a few steps forward, then turned around and tried to pounce on Blitz. Blitz made his fur glow, momentarily startling the Luxio, and giving Blitz time to move out of the way. Blitz ducked into some of the tall grass, hoping he would stay hidden from Charge's sight for at least long enough to come up with a plan.
"Oh, Blitz? Where did you go?" Charge said, snickering a little. "You do know that this is a battle and not a game of hide-and-seek, right?"
Blitz remained quiet, trying to make as little noise as he could. However, Charge still seemed to be headed in his direction.
"Come on, don't be a coward," Charge said, smirking as he moved closer and closer to Blitz's hiding spot. "Surely you don't want to let those Shinx down like your dad did with the entire pride, do you?"
Blitz growled, and leaped out to attack Charge, only for the Luxio to easily sidestep the attack.
"You're going to have to do better than that," Charge commented, snickering.
The two rings on Charge's forelegs began to glow, and he proceeded to swipe at Blitz with an electrified paw, only for Blitz to dodge it. Yellow sparks of electricity were rippling through Charge's fur, mainly around the yellow rings on his forelegs. He smirked and attempted to strike Blitz with his electrified paw once more, only for Blitz to block it with his own electrified paws.
The two kept going back and forth trying to hit each other with their electrified paws, yellow sparks of electricity streaming off of the yellow rings on Charge's legs, while blue sparks flew out from each strike of Blitz's paws. The two kept this going for a while, until Charge managed to knock Blitz onto his back.
"Are you even trying?" Charge asked, trying to step on Blitz only for Blitz to stop him by pressing paw back with his own paws. "Everyone keeps treating you like you're something special, but I think we both know that you're not!"
Blitz noticed that Charge seemed to be holding back, and realized that the Luxio had just been toying with him so far. Then again, considering how Charge normally was, it shouldn't really have come as such a surprise.
"You know, they say you've got a lot of potential to be a great leader, but I'm just not seeing any of that," Charge commented, with a smug smile. "Maybe I should've challenged your sister instead? I bet she'd be able to pose a real challenge!"
Blitz made his fur light up, momentarily blinding Charge so he could slip out of his grip.
"That trick again?" Charge asked, shaking his head. "Didn't you train with your dad, you know, before he ran off like a coward?"
Blitz tried to keep his rising anger under control as Charge looked around for him in the tall grass.
"You can't beat anyone by just doing that shiny thing and running, you know," Charge said, circling Blitz's hiding spot. "I thought you had like, some special moves or something. Was I wrong?"
Blitz took a deep breath, trying to think of a way to win the battle while carefully observing Charge's movements.
"Come on, don't you have anything to say?" Charge asked, rolling his eyes. "I mean, shouldn't you like, come up with something to say about why I'm wrong and why you are qualified for the leader position?"
Blitz waited until Charge was in front of him, before leaping out and trying to tackle him, only to be knocked aside from another strike of Charge's electrified paw.
"Nice try, but nothing leader-worthy," Charge commented, approaching Blitz. "If you want to live up to what everyone expects of you, then I suggest you train some more!"
Blitz got back onto his feet, staring down at the yellow rings on his forelegs for a moment, before looking over at Charge's forelegs. He was having trouble thinking clearly with all the bottled up negative emotions threatening to burst forth. Each comment about what everyone expected just made his anger rise, making it difficult to remain calm.
"Hey, is it okay if I watch when you admit to your friends that you're not as great as they think you are?" Charge asked, snickering. "I'll look forward to seeing the look on their faces… Oh, and what will your adorable little sister think when she finds out just how weak her brother is? Poor little Lita is going to be so disappointed!"
With that, Blitz could no longer contain his feelings, and lunged at Charge, seeming to be aiming for the Luxio's throat.
"Whoa!" Charge said, managing to dodge the attack. "So, you do have some fight in you? Well, bring it on!"
Blitz seemed to fighting much more aggressively and recklessly now, growling as he rapidly attempted to strike Charge with his electrified paws. Charge was actually the one who had to react quickly in order to block Blitz's vicious assault, and the Luxio actually seemed a bit unsettled by the sudden change in his opponent's behavior. It was like all the frustration, resentment and anger that the young Shinx had kept bottled up for the past few days was now being released in every attack.
However, even in his state of rage, Blitz seemed to have just enough awareness to notice an opening, and made his fur glow brightly to momentarily blind his opponent. As Charge flinched, and covered his eyes with one of his paws, Blitz promptly leaped forward and with red glowing fangs bit down on the Luxio's other foreleg.
"AH! Hey, what are you-!?" Charge shouted, screaming in pain as a pair of sharp fangs hot as fire dug deep into his leg.
Despite Charge's screams of pain, Blitz wasn't letting go. He didn't even seem to hear the Luxio's wails, nor did he seem to react when Charge tried to shake him off other than bite down even harder.
"P-Please stop!" Charge shouted, desperately trying to push Blitz off of him with his other foreleg. "O-Okay, you win! Please, stop this… Ah!"
Blitz's fangs cooled down slightly as he seemed to run out of energy for his Fire Fang attack, and Charge managed to muster up enough strength to make Blitz lose his grip and throw him aside before collapsing.
Lightning flashed in the distance, and Blitz seemed to come to his senses as the sound of thunder caught up. He got up onto his feet, seeming a bit dazed and looked over at his opponent. Charge was lying in the grass, panting and wincing in pain as he tried to move the damaged leg. The area around the yellow rings on Charge's left foreleg looked burned, and there was blood coming from the wounds Blitz had left right on the yellow rings.
Blitz gasped as he felt something wet and warm land on his leg, and looked down to see that drops of Charge's blood were dripping from his fangs onto the grass.
"W-What have I done…?" Blitz muttered under his breath, trembling as he fully realized what had just happened. "N-No, this wasn't supposed to… I didn't mean to-!"
Blitz fell to the ground as drops of rain began falling from above, and a group of Luxray ran over to see what was going on.
"With the events of that night, Leandra realized just how bad the situation had gotten, but wasn't sure what to do for Blitz. Charge did recover, but his leg never healed completely. Apparently, he limps a little when he walks, and seems to have difficulty charging electricity with that leg, leaving him with only half electric power.
The other Shinx talked about what had happened, some of them shocked at what had happened to Charge during the duel, never having imagined Blitz was capable of that. Some said it was Charge's own fault for pushing Blitz too far, while others pointed out that while Charge was a bit of a jerk, he probably didn't deserve having that happen to him.
And Blitz, well… As you can probably already guess, the accident was what left him with such an aversion towards using his fangs in battle. He spent most of the day after the battle with Charge crying in his room, and for the few days after that refused to go out.
Leandra thought hard about what to do, and eventually reached the conclusion that it would probably be best for Blitz to train somewhere other than Lightning Plateau. And so, she sent me a letter, explaining the situation and asking if I would be interested in helping Blitz train. Feeling sorry for the kid, I decided to do more than just that."
It was early in the morning as Leandraand Lita were following Blitz over to the border of Lightning Plateau. Blitz didn't want to run into any of the other Shinx, and so they had decided to do this while most of the pride was most likely still asleep.
"Okay, Blitz, this is it," Leandra said, pointing a paw straight forward. "Just keep going in that direction and you should reach a dirt road. The one called Hercules said he would come meet you, so just keep heading down the road until you meet with a Heracross."
"Mm-hm," Blitz replied, nodding his head slightly.
"You know what a Heracross is, right?" Leandra asked.
"Yes," Blitz responded, nodding his head.
"Good!" Leandra replied, grinning. "Well, then, I wish you luck, my little prince. I don't know too much about this Fenix Town, but from what I've heard, it should be a good place for you to continue your training."
"Okay," Blitz responded, nodding his head.
"Big brother…" Lita said, sadly looking up at Blitz. "I don't want you to leave…"
"Lita…" Blitz responded, hugging his sister. "I'm going to miss you too, but… while I don't know if this is the right thing to do, I do think mom is right about one thing; I need to get away from Lightning Plateau…"
"O-Okay…" Lita replied, wiping away some tears. "You'll write to me, right?"
"Of course," Blitz responded, smiling at his sister, who smiled back at him. "Well, I guess I should get going then… Good-bye, for now."
"Bye-bye!" Lita replied, waving good-bye as her brother began walking away in the direction Leandra had pointed to.
"Take care!" Leandra said, also waving good-bye.
Blitz continued walking, relaxing a bit once he noticed that Lightning Plateau was out of sight. He reached the dirt road, and continued walking down it by himself, until he finally spotted a blue beetle Pokémon ahead.
"Ah, you must be Blitz," the Heracross said, walking over and extending his hand for a handshake. "I am Hercules; I run the dojo in Fenix Town where rescue teams train."
"N-Nice to meet you," Blitz responded, reaching out his paw.
"So, are you nervous?" Hercules asked while shaking Blitz's paw.
"A little…?" Blitz responded. He probably would've rubbed the rings on his forelegs together if Hercules wasn't still holding one of them.
"Well, there's nothing to worry about," Hercules replied, giving Blitz a friendly smile. "The Pokémon of Fenix Town are quite friendly for the most part, and I'm sure you will fit right in once you get used to living there! I've already arranged so you have a place to stay."
"Oh?" Blitz asked, tilting his head slightly.
"Yep," Hercules responded. "A nice cozy stone hut, which I thought would be perfect for you."
"Wow… You really did that for me?" Blitz asked. "We don't even know each other yet…"
"Well, I guess it is a bit more than what most mentors do," Hercules replied, smiling. "But I figured it'd help you get comfortable."
"Oh, um… Thanks," Blitz responded, unsure what to say.
"Now, when it comes to training, we will do things at your pace," Hercules explained, as the two began walking down the dirt road together. "We'll only train whenever you feel like it, and there's nopressure. Take as much time as you need."
"Okay," Blitz replied, nodding his head.
"Also, if you have any other problems, you can come to me anytime," Hercules said.
"I'll keep that in mind, thanks," Blitz responded, smiling.
For the first time in a while, Blitz felt as if things were looking up for him. Once he got to Fenix Town, he would be surrounded by Pokémon who didn't know him or his father, and that weren't expecting anything of him. While he probably wouldn't be able to escape his destiny, at least here he could be just an ordinary Shinx for a while, and he wanted to enjoy that for long as it lasted.
End of chapter 22.