"Go, Mightyena!"
"Silver, show 'em what you're made of!"
In a grand entrance to the tournament that Tessa was participating in, the huge Tentacruel bust out of the Poke'ball. The Mightyena tried to look intimidating, but when it was soaked in the water that had sloshed over it when Silver entered the arena, it just managed to look cute. Silver giggled, but kept his focus.
"Mightyena, use Take Down!"
The wolf-like Pokemon charged full speed at Silver. When it reached him, it jumped and slammed into his head, but since Tentacruel are made up mostly of water, Silver took no damage, and the Mightyena was bounced across the battlefield.
"Silver, use Poison Sting!"
The Tentacruel shot dozens of poisonous barbs across the flooded arena at the bedraggled wolf. It howled in pain as the quills made contact with its skin.
"Mightyena, shake it off and use Crunch!"
The Mightyena, although poisoned, managed to produce a lopsided gait that brought it within range to use an attack. It lunged for Silver, who easily dodged.
"Silver, Constrict!"
Silver shot out his tentacles, ensnaring the limping Mightyena in his coils. He squeezed, and the Pokemon howled in pain before fainting.
"Mightyena, return!" called the boy they were battling. He took out another Poke'ball from his belt.
"Go, Torkoal!"
The steaming turtle Pokemon appeared in the arena. It stomped its feet and bellowed, ready for the fight.
"Torkoal, Iron Defense!"
The Torkoal glowed, taking on a glossy sheen as its defense nearly doubled. Silver growled his displeasure.
"Silver, finish it off with Hydro Pump!"
The Tentacruel blasted water at the fire Pokemon, who looked at the torrent with dread before being engulfed. It screamed as the water entered its shell, creating a billowing white cloud over the arena. Silver kept blasting water until the screams faded, and the white cloud diminished. The Torkoal was unconscious.
The crowd erupted as Tessa was declared the winner of the tournament. She beamed, congratulating Silver on a job well done. The announcer handed them the prize money, and she left the building.
Outside, hundreds of people congratulated her; many of which only knew her as the Shiny Assassin. She sighed, brushing off their compliments and offers to trade as gently as she could, and walked to the bus that would take her to a Pokemon Center. The people on the bus gasped, and some made room for her to sit in the back.
Tessa sighed again and thought to herself as she waited for her stop. There was just too much popularity all of a sudden. Suddenly, an ad from newspaper someone was holding caught her eye.
If you want peace, relaxation, and Pokemon; come to Hoenn.
This large island in the Pacific has everything
a personcould want for a relaxing vacation, or
even a full time stay! Plus, there's even a Pokemon
League all its ownThis island has miles of wild country
for the active explorer, and large cities for the elegant
population! Come today; don't throw it all away!
Tessa thought about this as she walked off the bus. Surely there must be some catch! As she waited for her Pokemon to be healed, she looked it up on the Internet. There was loads of space, and all of the land was very cheap! She looked up boats going to the area, and found one that was leaving the next day. Tessa reserved a ticket, and smiled to herself. She was going to keep her promise to Ruby after all!
Four months later, Hoenn...
"Come on, you idiot Pokemon! I bought you because you were strong and rare! Earn you're keep, and I might give you something to eat later!"
The Pokemon struggled in the heavy shackles he was in. His elegant blue striped tail swished behind him in agitation as he strained to get off the ground.
"Come on! Fly! Those shackles aren't even heavy!"
The Pokemon looked doubtfully at the hundred pound weights attached to each manacle. His stomach growled painfully, and the call for food was just too much to resist. He redoubled his efforts, wings churning as he managed to lift a few feet off the ground before collapsing in the dirt.
"Well, I guess I'll have to settle for that, you weakling! Tomorrow you get arm bindings too! I'm giving you half rations tonight, and if you want any more food, I suggest that you try harder!" said the boy, taking out a whip and slashing a painful gash in the Pokemon's back.
The creature cried out in pain and anguish, and the trainer laughed.
"Crying will do you no good, weakling, it'll only make your workload heavier!"
The trainer slammed the switch down on the Pokemon's back again; blood ran down his sides, but he did not cry out this time. His eyes blazed with anger, and he growled.
The Tyranitar at the other side of the gym glanced up curiously, but looked back down swiftly as the trainer glared at it. The boy frowned at the growling Pokemon before him and, holding the whip high, brought it down on the creature's wing, slicing the membrane. The Pokemon cried out again, and the boy chuckled.
"Do I have to put you in the ice room again, or are you going to listen to me? Oh, by the way, I've cancelled you're food."
The Pokemon snapped; he roared in rage and used a powerful Dragonbreath on the trainer, making the boy cry out and fall back as blisters erupted on his exposed skin. The creature bellowed again, and used a Hyper Beam to burst the shackles around its ankles. He flapped his wings, wincing at the pain of the slice in the membrane, but gaining altitude.
The enraged dragon Pokemon used another Hyper Beam on the steel doors, blowing them out into the street beyond. He exploded out of the building, flying north rapidly. The Tyranitar and Flareon that were training in the gym at the time also ran out of the doors, relieved to be free once again, and ran into the dense forest as stunned humans looked on from the side of the streets.
Tessa relaxed on the couch in her new living room. The construction had just been finished yesterday, and now she had a one hundred and twenty thousand acre estate for her Pokemon to roam in. She had let all of her Pokemon out into the land. The only boundaries were fifteen-foot high fences all around her property, and these were mostly just to keep greedy humans out. The estate had a lake for the water Pokemon, a thick forest and grassland for the animal types, a small desert for ground types, and a volcano for the fire types. There was even a large barn for baths and grooming if the Pokemon wanted them.
Many wild Pokemon also lived inside the boundaries, but she wasn't worried about these; the entire point of buying this land was to crate a natural habitat that her Pokemon could live in like they were in the wild. It had cost her about half of her saved money, but she could always battle and get more. The Pokemon were very happy, and that was what counted; plus, she could raise many more without feeling like she was neglecting the ones she already had!
Tessa had already trained at least fifty others; besides her shiny team, which were her best friends. She had Flygon, Salamence, Metagross, Kingdra, Lanturn, Walrein, Ninetails, Raichu, Absol, Milotic, Armaldo, Aggron, Breloom, Pelipper, Sceptile, and who knows how many others. Almost all of them were raised to frightening levels, and knew the best attacks. She was content.
A Charizard flew past the window, and Tessa recognized it as the one she had trained after coming here, the female's name was Wood Smoke. The female had, surprisingly, taken Flame as her mate, and populated Tessa's estate with Charmander. She smiled, remembering Flame's face when he had first met Wood Smoke. Then she remembered the rest of her Pokemon, most of them had chosen mates now. She fleetingly thought of a career as a Pokemon breeder, but knew that she could not give up any of the young Pokemon without knowing exactly how they would be treated.
Orange purred beside her, snapping Tessa out of her daydream. The Persian hopped down from the couch and walked to the computer. She turned it on and surfed the web, which she had learned how to do from Tessa. Lavender hopped from the chair across the room and sat on a stool beside the Persian. They were looking at an auction site when a tiny popup came up on the screen.
"You have mail!" it squeaked.
Tessa walked over and asked if she could sit down; Orange hopped off the chair and set her front paws on the desk, watching intently. Tessa logged into her e-mail and saw that the letter was from Professor Birch, who lived in a town not far from her property. She opened it and read the letter with increasing interest.
Tessa...
I have received a report of a flying Pokemon terrorizing a town in the northern region of Hoenn. I don't have the resources to go, and my daughters aren't in Hoenn at the moment. The Pokemon is rumored to be a Shiny, so I thought that you would be the best bet for the job. I want you to go to Fallarbor Town and check it out. If you want to take this mission, come to my lab immediately. Send a reply, please.
-Prof. Birch
Tessa quickly sent a letter saying that she would be there shortly, and ran outside to call her Pokemon. She chose to take Silver, Lavender, Orange, Blue, Brown, and Flame; they were her original team (minus Ruby). She left the Gyarados in charge of the estate while she was gone.
Tessa called all but Flame and Lavender into their Poke'balls. She jumped on Flame's back and they quickly set off for Littleroot Town. Despite the situation, she was overjoyed to feel the wind in her hair again as they flew through the sky. She felt free of the world, and the feeling was great.
They touched down at Professor Birch's lab, and the scientist came hurrying out, waving a paper. As she dismounted, he gave her the document.
"What's this?" she said, looking at it in curiosity.
"It's the report about the Pokemon. They said that it attacked its trainer and escaped after blasting the doors. No one got a good enough glimpse to say what it was, but they said it sparkled like glitter. Now there are reports of a Pokemon terrorizing Fallarbor, and I'm afraid that it may be the same one. The trainer only got minor burns, thankfully."
"Hmm. Did anybody say what color it was?"
"Well, some witnesses said they saw flashes of blue and green, but that's all."
"Okay. I'll fly to Mauville tonight, and then I'll let Flame have a rest. After that, I'll ride my mach bike to Fallarbor. That should only take about three days in all."
"Good. I'm counting on you!" called Professor Birch as Tessa and Flame lifted off again.
Flame had been flying hard, and was now exhausted. Tessa had asked him to land, but he refused to do so until they reached Mauville. Tessa finally gave up, although she continued to worry. Finally, she saw bright lights up ahead. Lavender sighed; glad that they had at last reached their destination.
"Mauville's coming up!" said Flame over the wind; he sounded relieved.
"Good!" said Tessa.
Flame landed rather shakily at the front of the Pokemon Center. Tessa called him into his Poke'ball and hurried into the building.
This Pokemon Center was much busier than the ones in Jhoto. There were trainers bustling about everywhere, showing off their Pokemon and badges. Tessa walked straight to the front desk and had all her Pokemon healed. She reserved a room for the night, and got some food.
Tessa walked to a small, deserted table in the corner and let her Pokemon out. She gave them some of her food, and got water for them as well. A boy in a white t-shirt and yellow hat walking past stopped suddenly, turning his head in amazement.
"Hey, were you on TV a while back? At that big tournament?"
Tessa nodded while she sipped her root beer.
"Wow! Then you must be who they call the Shiny Assassin!"
"My name's Tessa." said Tessa.
"Oh. Sorry, can I sit here?"
"Go ahead, it's a free country."
"Thanks. Your Pokemon look really strong!"
"I've raised them for years."
"I just got my first Pokemon. My dad bought it for me as a present for my fifteenth Birthday."
Tessa wondered what kind of Pokemon this boy had. She remembered when she had gotten Flame for her twelfth Birthday.
"Neat. What kind is it?"
"Oh, I'll show you." he said, pulling out a Poke'ball, "By the way, my name's Cougar."
He pressed the button on the front of the sphere, and a soft, yellow Vulpix materialized in front of Tessa in a shower of glitter. It jumped in Cougars lap, licking his face happily.
"Wow, another Shiny! I never thought I'd see another one!" exclaimed Tessa happily, leaning forward to get a better look at the golden ball of fluff.
"Yeah, she's my best friend, even though we can't understand each other."
"I can help that. I'll ask her name so you don't have to call her just 'Vulpix'"
"You can speak Pokemon?"
Tessa nodded and asked the Vulpix her name. The tiny fox was too surprised to speak at first, but then snapped out of it.
"My name is Sparkle!" she replied, waving her six curled tails.
Tessa smiled and told Cougar the Vulpixs' name.
"Wow, that is such a beautiful name!" said Cougar happily, hugging the Vulpix as she tried to squirm around to lick his face again.
"She doesn't look like she's very old though, where'd your dad find her?"
"He got her at a Vulpix farm. She was half price because they said she was defective," said Cougar. He frowned, hugging the Vulpix again, "but I think she's perfect."
"Why did they say that?" asked Lavender, Tessa translated.
"They said that her fire attacks aren't very good. Whenever we practiced, her flame backfired and got her instead. She can only use physical attacks effectively."
"That's not a very big problem. She's so young that all she needs is some experience. I could have Flame help her if you want." Said Tessa; Flame nodded in agreement.
"That would be great! We can start tomorrow!"
"Yeah, but unless you want to travel, I can only give her one lesson. I have a schedule."
"Huh? What kind of schedule?"
"I've been sent on a mission by Professor Birch. I have to get to Fallarbor Town in two days."
"How are you going to get there that fast?"
"I'm planning on riding my mach bike the rest of the way."
"Oh. I have a mach bike too, I could go with you and raise Sparkle that way!"
"You do realize that this mission could be dangerous?"
"Yeah, but we need some adventure to keep away the boring monotone of life, you know?"
"Yeah. Then it's agreed. We start off at dawn tomorrow!"
The Pokemon cheered.