The Truth
Rain had come before Ash. He was the little-spoken-of elder brother. Ash often LIED, in fact. Ash was an only child. Even his mother lied, at times. The truth was, Rain had a bad reputation, not like the pure-hearted trainer his brother (and most bloody trainers these days) was. His foes often died in front of him. He'd seen weeping girls, death and blood, all from these fighting creatures…But that's how it should be, Rain thought. A REAL match. Not jousting until a fall, but ending it all. If Rain's companions fell, they fell in battle.
Rain had the green eyes of the Ketchum family, but on him, they were very dark. A green inkwell, an uneasy sea. And the black spikes that looked cute on his kid brother hung way below Rain's waist, so pointed at the end, they could core apples. He wore black, but not to be cool. He felt dark, and towns spoke of his 'dark business.' He just wanted to look the part.
His crew was made up of only two pokemon-Rain didn't believe in collecting to show off, or unnecessary weight. His fighters had to prove their worth before they traveled with him, and he knew it would be a long time before he would catch another. He owned a huge Murkrow, whom had gotten the nickname 'Jack' whilst destroying the poke populatation of the small surrounding towns, so Jack he stayed. Jack was a huge Murkrow, as mentioned, with hanging wings like a vulture that almost met at the top. Jack possessed the spikes in his feathers characteristic of a Murkrow, but not the broad-rimmed feathers others had. His talons were like scalpels, and Rain often hunted with Jack. Rain had seen Jack rip through pokemon like paper, even attempt to eat the leftovers unless the opposing owner begged mercy. Rain's pokedex had this to say about Jack: 'Murkrow: Feared and loathed by many, it is believed to bring misfortune to all those who see it at night.' Jack was certainly 'feared and loathed', and the misfortune was usually the bitter end of the opposing pokemon, no matter how loved and well-trained.
The second in Rain's squad was, unusually, an Azumarill. He had not gotten a traveling nickname, but this particular Azumarill also didn't look the same as all the rest. Firstly, his face was scarred by age, and the red eyes betrayed the slight insanity that lay within. The right ear had a huge scar running right around it, and the ball in the tail wasn't used for buoyancy in the water-nay, it couldn't be, for the ball was now solid rock. Rain had performed the surgery his-self and remembered the fateful day entirely.
Azumarill took a beating in his younger years at the hands of Rain-A huge Arcanine had gotten hold of the pillowy ball, and swung the creature round it's firey head. Rain panicked-he'd heard a snap. Sure enough, the Arcanine had bitten the tissue clean off, and there was blood squirting alarmingly. The opposing trainer called for help whilst Rain wrapped the creature in a tight blanket, but refused the help of nurse Joy when she arrived on the scene. With blunt instruments and cooking utensils, Rain performed the operation on his beloved fighter, on a rough anesthetic of whiskey. He put pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding, then knocked Azumarill out with the alcohol. For many hours, he carefully shaped a boulder, whittling it with some sort of tool. Though the pokemon cried out, Rain stetched the skin taught around the hard sphere. Months of training lay ahead as the creature learned to carry the new weight, and swing its tail with ferocity. It paid off. Yes, this Azumarill had seen many years, but fought like a madman.
That was the past, but currently Rain was fighting a rather huge Meganium, with its arrogant young trainer at its side. He had an upturned nose with a smattering of freckles, rust-coloured hair and a piercing laugh. He boasted of the crushing power in the Meganium's foot, claming he was a 'dark trainer' like Rain. Whatever that meant.
"Yeah man, blood, guts, ALL that good stuff." He laughed. Rain just nodded, throwing his custom silver poke ball at the rough pitch. He could feel Azumarill rocking inside his pokeball, willing to fight it out, but Rain often liked to see his Azumarill rest a large amount of the day, with his age.
Jack was called to the field, unnervingly spreading his wingspan. The rusty trainer whistled between his teeth.
"Gee, I've heard all about THAT thing. Still, It'll have to be pretty damn quick to keep up with Meganium, unless you LIKE eating Murkrow liver pate, that is. Because Megs will smush him up real good if that's the case!"
Rain nodded coolly, hating his ignorance. "Would you like the first move?" He enquired.
"Well I don't know. Do you have any of that trainer code shit? Because I consider that cheating. A nod here, a click there? Don't give me that bullshit. I wanna hear your commands loud and clear."
"You can't have heard that much about me then, for loud and clear is the way I battle. Codes are unnecessary unless danger lurks."
"Well WHATEVER man. I'll have the first move, yeah." He grinned. The pokemon faced each other, around seven feet apart. The trainer cleared his throat. "Meganium, body slam, now!"
The leaf pokemon hurtled towards where Jack perched rather clumsily.
"Quick attack." Rain said from bowed head. It was only JUST hearable. When Meganium was around three feet away, Jack took a quick flight towards him. The Meganium slumped to the ground and Jack took to his trainers shoulder. It wasn't clear what was wrong with the Meganium until a number of internal organs fell out. Jack had gashed a quick, clean cut across the creatures chest, but Rain did not let the Murkrow eye up the liver and organs, but snapped the pokeball shut on his fighter. The opposing trainer burst into tears, hugging the huge form to his chest. It was an uneasy sight as organs squelched beneath him and he was covered in bile and other liquids. The creatures head lolled on his shoulder.
"I don't deny a fight, but I ask thoroughly that the other trainer know what they are doing." Rain stated. "I could have saved your dinosaur pet, but the gash is too deep, as you see. I recommend you bury his form and tone down your arrogance. You never know when another soul will be lost." Rain turned on his heel, ready to exit the forest, but the trainers tears turned to hatred.
"That was my fucking Meganium, man! Raised from a fucking SEED. You better give me a LOT of money or let me kill that godamn crow thing you carry on your back!"
Rain smiled. "I accept the damage Jack has done, but they are creatures controlled by man. They're no more evil than you or me. Both Jack and Meganium would have killed in the wild, Meganium has probably killed smaller foes, am I right?"
The trainer hung his head.
"That's right." Rain smiled. "A couple of Jigglypuffs, a Pidgey, nothing more. I will help the healing process, but I can do no more."
With that, Rain got on his hands and knees, and dug a shallow trench with his hands and sharp fingernails. The soil seemed to obey his very touch, parting and gathering with his will, until the dead one could be piled into it. Rain left another deathscene, and thought to himself "On to my next adventure."