Wildheart Ch. 2
_Enter The Jungle_
"Great job, Miku! Keep it up, you're doing great!"
Miku squeaked out a reply as she flew through the trees around us.
Turns out, Malie Garden is more of a nature preserve than a park. There's a small jungle in part of it, a dead volcano in the back, and of course, a huge lake in the shape of a Gyarados smack-dab in the middle.
I watched my starter swerve around a tree and course correct to avoid flying into a tangle of vines. You see, I wanted Miku to be as fast as possible. For that to be possible, we'd need to start early. With some advice from Ryuki, I'd made a training plan involving both terrain navigation and cardio, where I'd have Miku fly through the trees and push for as fast a time as possible without hitting anything. With the multitude of trees, vines, and other obstacles in the Garden's small jungle, this would be great training.
Miku swooped down from her route, and I tapped the stopwatch as she landed.
"Great time, girl. 4:37!" I showed her the time. "That's a whole 15 seconds faster than yesterday!"
She smiled, sitting down with a yawn.
"Heh… tired already?" I sat next to her, scratching her lightly behind the ear. Miku squeaked out a reply, and I grabbed a Berry Biscuit- a small, healthy snack made with berry bits- and gave it to her.
I watched fondly as she devoured it.
This is nice…
Leaning back with my backpack supporting me, I opened the Pokedex up to my notes and typed in her time.
"Let's see, day 2, time trial 3… time, 4:37. Training is proving successful, with good results having been… what's the word- achieved, right."
I then clicked to the next page, where my team plans were laid out.
"So, Miku, I have some plans for our next team member."
She looked up, tilting her head.
"Yeah, so basically, there's this Bug-type called Cutiefly." I showed her an image of the species. "They evolve into Ribombee, a Pokemon that can be both great support and a powerful special attacker. I was thinking that, once we find a good one, we can have it use weaker versions of certain moves to both build up your endurance against attacks, especially Fairy type moves, and to simulate flying in a gust of wind. How does that sound?"
Miku grinned, nodding.
"Perfect." I stood up, closing my Pokedex. "You ready to keep moving?"
She fluttered up from the ground in response.
I grinned. "Great. Let's go."
As we walked through the forest, I reflected on my plans for what we'd do next. I want to make sure Miku can move, first and foremost. Attacks will come soon, and I want to focus on the special side of things, since that's where Noivern's true potential lies. Boomburst, Draco Meteor, Hurricane- those are the eventual goals. For now, we start with upgrading Gust to Air Cutter, mastering her sound moves, and figuring out Dragon energy.
I ducked around a low-hanging vine, continuing my thoughts. If we can get Dragon energy working, she should logically be able to learn something like Dragon Breath or Twister. Twister especially should be easy- Gust is a similar move. Right?
Then there's a potential Ribombee for the team. That'd pair well with Miku, especially if it can set up some sort of field hazard and act as support along with attacking. Plus, Fairy is a valuable type for taking on powerful trainers: it's got plenty of super effective targets to hit, and if we get her moving fast enough- quiver dance sweep, maybe?- we can tackle Dark, Dragon, Fighting, Psychic, Grass… anything else I'm not remembering? Eh.
We entered into a small clearing that was currently acting as our campsite. I walked over to my tent, going to zip it open when I noticed a strand of something like string stuck to the top.
"What's this, then…"
I went to pull it off, but it stuck to my hand.
"What the…"
Suddenly, Miku cried out, and I whirled around to see her getting covered by a cloud of yellow powder. She tensed up, and despite trying desperately to stay afloat, she fell to the ground. I barely caught her, and blew the powder away with my breath.
Stun Spore, I bet. Does that mean…?
My fears were confirmed when I caught a glimpse of yellow from the corner of my eye. Well, that's convenient.
I whirled around, spotting the Cutiefly as it flew behind my tent. Setting my bag down, I grabbed a Paralyze Heal, spraying it over Miku. A few moments later, she calmed down, and her muscles relaxed.
"You alright, girl?" I asked. Thankfully, she nodded, rising to her feet. "Great. Now, are you up for a challenge?"
With a few flaps of her wings, she fluttered up in front of me, screeching a challenge.
The Cutiefly revealed itself, making noises I assumed to be laughter.
I grit my teeth. "Miku, Screech!"
She breathed in, then let out a powerful Screech in her opponent's direction, causing Cutiefly to squint its eyes.
"Now, Gust!"
Another breath was followed by a burst of wind, which was swiftly beat into a small, swirling breeze directed at Cutiefly. It flung the bug a bit, but it danced out of harm's reach.
"Fine. Go in with Wing Attack." I commanded, and watched as Miku flew up a bit higher, then dove down, wings glistening with a light blue energy. Alas, the Cutiefly dodged the attack, swerving around and blowing a gust of green-tinged wind at her my dragon.
Miku was blown back a bit, but quickly recovered- the Bug-type move wasn't very effective. "Never give in, Miku! Use Supersonic until it's confused, then Wing Attack again."
My starter screeched, sound echoing from both her mouth and ears. I watched as a storm of noise made Cutiefly swerve and stutter.
"Now, go in!"
Miku rushed forth, crashing down on our foe with a blue-tinged wing. The bug was slammed down to the ground, bouncing off my tent and landing with a thud.
Expanding a Pokeball in my hand, I walked over, and with a smirk, tapped it on the Cutiefly.
It shook once, twice… "...and, sold!" I exclaimed.
A wave of excitement washed over me. I really did it! I caught a Pokemon!
I set down my backpack and pulled my Pokedex from my pocket. "Let's scan this thing."
A quick scan of the capsule set the electronic voice speaking:
Cutiefly, the Bee Fly Pokemon. A Bug/Fairy type. Cutiefly is capable of detecting the aura of living things. It uses this ability to predict the movements of its opponents and find healthy flowers to collect nectar and pollen from. This Cutiefly is female, and possesses the ability Shield Dust. Its moveset consists of the following: Absorb, Silver Wind, Stun Spore, Struggle Bug, Fairy Wind, Sticky Web, Sweet Scent, Draining Kiss.
"Wow. It's got Sticky Webs, which is great… plus it's got a good amount of moves. Definitely got the ability to be a tech and support, but we'll see what she can do."
_
After healing up Noibat and getting all the webs off my tent, I sat down to heal up my new capture.
"Alright, Miku. I'm gonna release Cutiefly now, so be welcoming."
She nodded, and I let the bug out.
Cutiefly appeared on the ground, lying unconscious.
"Ah. Right." I broke open the Revive capsule, sprinkling the healing dust over my bug type and watching as she blinked her eyes open.
"Hi, Cutiefly. How're you feeling?"
She glared at me.
"Yeah, I figured… Here, I've got a Potion that'll heal you up." I moved a bit closer, holding it at the now-sitting Cutiefly. "It might sting a little when it's healing but it's not bad. Ok?"
Cutiefly nodded.
After healing her up, Miku introduced herself. Cutiefly didn't seem too angry about her defeat, which I took as a good sign.
"So, Cutiefly, how do you feel about a nickname?"
She looked at me with a confused expression, but it disappeared as Miku chipped in. Cutiefly then nodded after a few moments.
"Alright… so, there's a few names that come to mind. You're a fast fighter, it seems. Very agile, very strong. So the one I feel fits most… is Valkyrie. See, in a far-off land's religion, a Valkyrie is a strong female warrior, who flies into battle and fells incredibly powerful foes. This name isn't to hold you to a standard, but to inspire you. Alright?"
Cutiefly looked up at me with inspired eyes, before nodding.
I grinned. "Perfect. Welcome to the team, Valkyrie."
_
"So, here's the plan."
Miku and Valkyrie both sat in front of me.
"Basically, I want Miku to be as fast as possible, and you both to be good at continually throwing out moves. As well, you'll both need to be able to take hits. All the offensive power in the world won't make a difference if you get taken out in two hits." I shifted my position on the rock I was sitting on. "First off, Valkyrie, can you do Silver Wind but with a minimal amount of Bug energy?"
She looked at me with a confused expression.
"Basically, I want you to use a weaker version of Silver Wind to simulate strong winds for Miku to fly against. Not only will this build up Miku's ability to fly in winds like that and hopefully take special moves, but it'll help your stamina for continuously firing off moves… I hope. Understand?"
A bit of understanding washed over her face, and she nodded.
"Alright. Both of you, stand about… how far can you fire it? 5 feet?"
They did as I said, with Miku bracing for the attack.
"Alright, get ready. On three… one, two, three!"
Valkyrie fluttered up, blowing a strong gust of wind at Miku, who, after a few moments of weathering it, managed to flutter up to where she could fight the weaker parts of the attack.
After about 7 seconds, Valkyrie's attack slowed to a stop, and both fliers flopped to the ground, breathing heavily.
They looked up as I clapped. "That's perfect! Just what I wanted. Does that feel like it'll work, you two?"
A few noises of confirmation boosted my confidence. "Alrighty then. This, move training, and evasion flights will be the main forms of training we'll be doing here. I hope you two're ready, because I'm gonna do everything I can to help you become as strong as possible."
I imagined the image of myself commanding a powerful, lightning-fast Noivern and an elegant yet brutal Ribombee.
Now, that's a nice mental image.
_
Turns out, my training ideas were successful. While there weren't a ton of improvements in the way of the wind training, Valkyrie took to the agility training quick enough. She managed a great time of 5:03 the first time, but quickly excelled after learning the course, getting 4:27 in the last run of the last day.
Of course, before we left, I needed to do something.
See, back in my world, I was part of a Boy Scouts troop. This was my saving grace, the camping trips and events were my way of escaping the constant pressure of school and clubs and sports and everything else put on my shoulders. I loved going on difficult hikes, climbing hills, rocks, and mountains.
This is what I told my two Pokemon as we stood at the bottom of the volcano.
"And that's why we're going to hike as far up this as we can. Well, you two can fly, but… I'll be hiking, at least. Sounds good?"
They both nodded.
"Great. So, let the Malie Garden Hike begin!"
_
I grabbed a thick tree root, pulling myself further up the steep stone.
The trail we'd been following ended at a viewpoint, where a bench was bolted to the rocks. But I've never been one to stay on the beaten path during a climb, so onward we continued.
That was 15 minutes ago. Now, we were nearing the top, and the wind had kicked up around us.
"Miku, Valkyrie, you good?" I asked, looking around for them. I saw Miku flying through the weaker winds, then spotted Valkyrie, fluttering up towards me.
"Val, up here!" I held out a hand, and she landed in it, exhausted.
"It's alright, girl. You want to go in your Pokeball?" At her denial, I clicked the ball back on my belt. "Alright, do you want to sit in my backpack? You can be in the other bottle pocket," I said while taking the bag off.
She looked over it, then, having deemed it satisfactory, fluttered over and gently pushed her way into the mesh pocket.
"Alright, you keep a good hold on, ok?"
A buzz of agreement made me smile, and I picked up the backpack and carefully swung it back on. "Alright. Let's go!"
With a swig of water and a second wind, we made it to the top in roughly 10 minutes, I estimated.
Grabbing the ledge with my right hand, I began to pull myself up the final obstacle. Eventually, I managed to get up, finding a small, flat area with about 10 feet of space before the gaping mouth of the volcano.
"Wow… I may not be 14, but that's deep," I noted, looking over the edge.
Turning around, I sat my backpack down next to me, opening it up and grabbing my lunch as Valkyrie buzzed out from her pocket seat.
"Hey girl, feeling better?" The little bee fly responded with a happy buzz, and I grinned. "Wonderful. Do you see where Miku's at?"
At those words, my starter flew in from above, landing tiredly in front of us.
"Ah, there she is. Miku, want something to eat?"
She perked up, looking over at my sandwich.
"It's slices of Taillow and MooMoo cheese, your favorite."
At that, she tiredly got up and walked over, a cute sight on her short legs, before holding a hand out.
"Here you go," I said, giving her a piece of meat and cheese. Turns out, nearly every food item at the grocery store is decently healthy and naturally raised. But, that's to be expected from a nearly perfect world.
As we ate, me with my sandwich and all three of us having some berries, I took in the beautiful sight.
Stretched out before us was the miles of Malie Garden, with its lush swathes of trees and the huge river and lake system in the vague shape of a Gyarados. I could see flying types in the air, but was only able to recognize a flock of Pikipek and Trumbeak that flew relatively close to us.
Beyond the Garden was Malie City, a beautiful place that matched itself with the nature surrounding it. And beyond that was the ocean, shining a beautiful blue, as well as the rest of the island, which includes the mountains towering over the rest of Ula'Ula. Clouds obscured the taller one, but the lower one was without snow.
"Hey, you two. Check out this view."
They both looked over, following the same gaze I had.
"See all those places? We're gonna go there someday. After we get down, we'll start by heading through those red rocks, over there. We might catch a new teammate there, if we find something cool. From there… I'm not sure where we'll go. I just want to explore, you know?"
They nodded, and Miku had a gleam in her eye as she stared off into the distance.
Suddenly, a cry echoed from within the volcano. I twisted around just in time to see a crimson blur fly out from it. The creature of the sky spread its wings and dove down towards us-
Time seemed to slow as I looked the Talonflame directly in the eyes, matching the bird's fierce gaze.
It shot past me, wind almost tearing my hat from my head before I could grab it. I followed Talonflame's flight as it circled the volcano, standing up as it flew back towards us.
It landed, a cloud of dust kicked up from its talons.
Regarding it cautiously, I spoke. "Hello there. Do… you need anything?"
The fire-type falcon pointed a wing at us all, then spit an ember at the ground.
"I see. You want a battle, eh?" I looked at my team. "I don't know if you two are up for it. I know that climb took a lot out of yo-"
My concerns were interrupted by determined cries from my two team members. Grinning, I clenched a fist. "Alright." I pointed in Talonflame's direction. "We might not win, but we're sure as hell gonna try our best!"
Talonflame adjusted to a battle-ready stance, and my girls flew in front of me.
"Three…"
Miku tensed.
"Two…"
Valkyrie fluttered faster.
"One…"
Talonflame spread its wings.
"Go! Val, prepare Webs, Miku, prepare Supersonic! Don't fire yet-!" I shouted as Talonflame launched into the air. "We need to be on the defensive!"
If we're against an opponent much faster and stronger, we need to catch them off-guard to have any chance. My mind raced with potential situations as I tracked the falcon.
Suddenly, Miku cried out, and the two shot to the side, narrowly avoiding what I assumed to be a Wing Attack.
"Great call, Miku!" I shouted while holding my hat down. "When it does that again, fire Supersonic- but only if you can ensure a hit without getting badly hurt. Understand?" With a noise of confirmation, Miku turned her gaze to the sky.
One, two, three more attacks were narrowly dodged before Talonflame got tired of playing. It flew up, and after a powerful screech, dove down with wings engulfed in fire.
"Miku!"
*Wham!*
My breath caught in my throat as Talonflame slammed into my starter. I looked frantically for her, but didn't see her until a frantic screech from our opponent caused me to look up.
"Holy shit…" I breathed. "She held on?!"
Miku was clutching onto Talonflame for dear life, and when it swooped closer down, I heard the little dragon's intense voice as she screamed Supersonic in the bird's ears. Despite the embers falling from her chest, she wasn't letting go. Slowly, her attack brought Talonflame spiraling downward.
"Great job, Miku! Val, can you get up there?"
In response, Valkyrie buzzed upwards, and when it got within range, Miku dropped and Val fired a shot of Sticky Web at Talonflame.
I stepped forward, catching Miku. Thankfully, she didn't fall over the volcano's caldera, so I was able to grab her and kneel down, taking a potion from my bag. "Valkyrie!" I called. "Try Stun Spore to mess it up!"
As I sprayed Miku with the miracle medicine, I watched with bated breath as Val fought the winds to throw Stun Spores at it. However, it wasn't enough. Talonflame shook its head, and in a swift move, broke free from the weak Sticky Web and slammed a Wing Attack into Val.
I grabbed her Pokeball, returning her the moment she got in range.
"Alright… I think we give."
Suddenly, Miku stretched out an arm.
"Miku, it's alright. You don't need to keep fighting. You've done plenty."
She shook her head.
"Well, if you're sure…" I smiled. "Let's do this."
Talonflame landed, light paralysis flickering over its wings. We stood up, and Miku, despite her light burns not fully healed from the potion, stood tall. At least, tall for a one foot bat.
As if saying 'Bring it,' Talonflame pointed its wing at Miku once again.
"Oh, we will. Miku! Use Tailwind!"
A burst of wind and frantic flapping of wings kicked up a weak Tailwind from behind us.
"Now, go in with Wing Attack!"
She flew in, her newfound speed being enough to surprise Talonflame but not enough to hit the attack. Our foe ducked out of the way, causing Miku to fly past.
"Now, spin and use Gust!"
On my orders, Miku spun around and unleashed a wild gust in Talonflame's direction. It countered with its own, and Miku began to be pushed back.
"Come on, girl! You can do it!" I called encouragements, and as I watched Miku push against the opposing force, I thought back to something Ryuki had told me.
"Even as a Noibat, Usaki was very determined. She never backed down from a challenge, even when she knew the odds were against her."
And from what I was seeing now, it looked like Miku had inherited that trait. As I watched, I saw a glint in her eyes, and with a determined cry, she unleashed a second gust of wind, this one tinted blue-green with energy and violently crashing against Talonflame's attack.
Miku learned Twister!
"Let's go, Miku!" As I cheered, her attack slowly puttered out, and she slowly made her way to safety.
I walked up and took her in my arms. "Incredible job, girl. I'm so proud of you! You took that really strong attack, and sustained a Supersonic for longer than ever! And all that while holding onto Talonflame! You did amazing."
She looked up at me, a tired but happy smile lighting up her face.
A squawk from Talonflame grabbed our attention, and we glanced up to see it standing in front of us. Several of its feathers were out of place, and a light dust of Stun Spore still fizzled on its neck. When our gaze was satisfactory, it opened a talon, dropping a blue crystal on the ground.
"What's this…?" I crouched down, picking the glimmering item up. The crystal was four-sided, with a pair of wings visible through it.
I know this item. Flyinium Z.
"Are you sure you want to give-" I looked up to see that our opponent had disappeared, flown off to who-knows-where.
"...Huh."
My attention was diverted to Miku as she yawned, rubbing her eyes.
"You're tired, huh? I'll return you now, so I can get down easier. I don't want you getting swept away by the winds, mmkay?" I offered, unclipping her Pokeball from my belt. At her nod and after another yawn, I pressed the button and watched as she was absorbed into the capsule.
I stood, placing it back and wiping the sweat from my forehead as I turned to face the setting sun.
"Well, I didn't expect this to happen. But hey, at least it was fun…"
Taking a deep breath, I tightened my backpack straps. "Alright. Let's get back to camp."
_
Next morning, we packed up to leave. I figured we'd been in Malie long enough, and I wanted to explore more of Alola. But first, I needed to stop by Ryuki's gym.
The bell dinged when I pushed open the door, Miku and Valkyrie gliding in behind me as it closed.
I walked up to the counter, but as I cleared my throat, a voice caught my attention.
"Hey, Dennis! How ya doing?" Ryuki walked into the room, his usual Turtonator-inspired outfit swapped for a more casual one.
"Oh, hey! I'm doing great, thanks," I replied while offering a handshake. "I almost didn't recognize you there."
He laughed, releasing his grip. "Yeah, I've sorta made myself synonymous with that outfit, eh?"
"Definitely. No offense, but the when I found this place, the first thing I remembered from my studies of the city was 'oh, right, this is where that Turtonator dude works!'"
Ryuki cracked up, lightly slapping a hand on my shoulder. "That's just… hah! Maybe I should rebrand, if it's that recognizable!"
"Heh. Nah, you're good."
Wiping a tear of laughter from his eye, he focused on Miku and Valkyrie. "Oh, hey! I see you got a new team member!"
I grinned. "Yep! This is Valkyrie, or Val for short. She put up a fight, and has been a great teammate so far."
"I see, I see… One of my gym trainers has a Ribombee, so I know a bit about the line, but mostly just how to counter them in battle."
Nodding, I held out a hand for Val to land on. "Yeah, I figured. So far I've been training them both in speed and agility, with Miku getting stamina and flight training and Val working on sustaining attacks."
"Interesting…" Ryuki mused. "Tell me more."
"Well, when I started, I had the goal of getting Miku to fly as fast as she could. So I started with her flying a route through the jungle in Malie Garden around our campsite. She quickly adapted, with her best time so far being… what was it, 4:14?" I looked to Miku, who had perched on my shoulder. She nodded after a moment of thought, and I continued. "Then, a few days in, I found Val, who had been trying to… hunt? Look for food? Though, knowing her now, she probably just wanted to mess with someone. Right?"
Valkyrie blinked innocently, looking to the side as if to say, 'I would never.'
"Yeah, yeah," I chuckled at her behavior. "Either way, turns out she also knows Sticky Web, which, along with her already decent strength, lets her play the role of offensive tech incredibly well. I've been writing down several ideas that I plan to teach her after we've got the basic stuff down. Then there's Miku. She's done great so far, and I've had her flying against a low-power version of Val's Silver Wind to help her both fly in winds and take weaker attacks. Eventually we could up that to Fairy Wind, but not for a while. I think that's everything…"
Eyes widening, I snapped my fingers. "Right! The Talonflame!"
Ryuki raised an eyebrow. "Talonflame?"
"Yeah. So, back in Unova, one of my hobbys was exploring. I'd explore all sorts of places, and climb all the hills and cliffs I could. So when I saw that dead volcano at the back of the garden, I basically had to climb it. You feel me?"
He blinked. "You climbed a volcano."
"Yep! We were fighting the winds the whole way up! It was a ton of fun, and we were pretty tired when we got up. So we sat for a while, just watching the sky as I talked about where I wanted to go. Then, suddenly, this Talonflame flew out from the volcano!"
"... really." Ryuki looked more and more exasperated as the story went on, but I didn't stop.
_
Ryuki leaned back on the reception desk. He took a deep breath, then looked at me. "So, you climbed a volcano, fought a Talonflame that could have killed you, and it gave you a Z-Crystal?"
"Yeah, that sums it up."
He sighed, putting a hand on his face and laughing. "You remind me of myself. When I was just a kid with a baby Turtonator and a dream, I fought this Alolan Sandslash that could've killed us in one hit each, but it let us fight it fairly instead." He looked off into the distance and smiled. "I still think about it from time to time… that fight taught us some things. Maybe some day I'll find the Sandslash again, but who knows."
He stepped up to me, giving me a pat on the back. "You're doing great so far, Dennis. That Talonflame must have seen something in you that I did, too. Enjoy those moments, and remember them."
I smiled. "Thank you. I definitely will." Suddenly, my stomach grumbled, as did Miku's on my shoulder. "But, uh, for now, do you want to go get lunch somewhere?"
Ryuki laughed again. "Yeah, sure. I'm on my break anyhow. Let's try this great Hoennian place that opened up a few months back, I've heard great things about it. They've even got a Pokemon menu!"
"Sounds great, let's go." I looked at my two teammates. "Are you two down for it?"
They nodded, taking off from their perches.
"Alright. Let's go get some food!"
_
I think that's a good place to end off this chapter. Let me tell you, I'm not the biggest fan of writing all this dialogue, but I think I'm making it work. Hope you all enjoyed it, and feel free to leave a review!
See y'all next chapter,
ZeraoraTheKnight– out!