I hope you all have Blessed Lughnasadh and welcome back to my own personal play toy and therapy session. In case you missed it, this is an attempt at realistic reactions to isekai and Gamer tropes.
Obligatory Disclaimer: I still don't own this franchise. If I did, there'd be an actual open world game, with an actual world map, where you could travel between regions and explore all the uninhabited areas and stuff.
And fingers crossed for Scarlet this November! Because Sword and the Diamond remake were disappointing. LoA had some real fun moments though, so I'm holding out hope...
But buckle up friends! I am torturing myself today...
Chapter 22: The Trouble with Tyrunts (Part 2)
I'd finally gotten back to the Pokémon Center after eating entirely too much cassoulet at the local bistro and spending entirely too much time watching videos of Harley Davidson on whoever's phone. Tierno had told me that Shauna was planning to enter contests here in Kalos, but Serena's intense expression while watching the Hoenn coordinator had been a surprise. Vague memories of the anime I hadn't watched had shown the cartoon character's focus on being a coordinator instead of a battle oriented trainer, but the Serena I knew hadn't ever even mentioned it before. It was an interesting twist to think about, but ultimately I had little say in the blonde's choices. I was just grateful she and I were back on friendly terms. And I got to gush a little with two new Harley fans, so it was all good.
There was a brief stop on our way back to the Pokémon Center at a local butcher's shop advertising organic jerkies for travelling, as Serena and I both had carnivores on our teams. I also grabbed a rotisserie …ducklett… to eat with my team later. I winced paying for it, both at the price (€5500!) and the fact that I was eating such a cute pokémon. But there weren't any chickens on Pokea, most places either hunted the overpopulated (and usually invasive) pidgeys or used the domesticated pokémon that was closest in size … which was ducklett. At least it wasn't wild farfetch'd, which were still considered threatened, but why did farmyard animals have to be so adorable?
Shauna and I wailed together in commiseration as we trudged back to the Pokémon Center. Of course, we straightened up as soon as we hit the doors and had entirely too much fun as we waved cheekily at the desk staff. A few of the nurses went white again, and the one who'd initially accused me quickly picked up a tray so she could vanish into the back room. I felt no guilt.
Serena and the others had quickly dropped off their bags, they were all still sharing a room, and gone off again in search of camping supplies that they still needed. Meanwhile I had escaped up to the single room I'd booked, dumping my to-go bag on the opposite side of the room from Loxley's snuffling nose, eager to go through all the game alerts that had been crowding my vision all day.
Particularly the one that was flashing dark orange. The color had never appeared on my game screens before, and it felt suspiciously ominous.
[Quest Alert!]
Onward March: FAILED
+10 EXP
Game Alert!
Due to the fact that you did not go camping, [Base Camp] has been deferred. You must actually go camping if you want to unlock [Base Camp].
-50 [REP] with Kalos
"Wow, game," I grumbled at the screen, "That was rude, even for you."
As I frowned up at the hazard orange tone of the screen, an odd lump in my stomach. This was the first quest I'd failed. Yes, I'd had good reasons. And the penalty for that failure was honestly miniscule at best, even if I hadn't been expecting the reputation loss. At least it hadn't been with the League; I had plenty of points to spare with the Kalos region in general. But I didn't want to make a habit of failing quests if the Game was going to surprise me with unlisted demerits.
With a sigh, I flipped to the next screen.
[Quest Alert!]
Full Charge!: Catch the Electrike before it escapes!
Due to your actions, this quest was auto-accepted.
Complete! +500 EXP, All Items Returned
Hidden Objective 1/3: NA
Hidden Objective 2/3: Find the megastone! +1000 EXP, +€50000, +1 PP
Hidden Objective 3/3: Return the electrike to its trainer +200 EXP, +150 [REL] with Clemont Cugnot,
I coughed out a laugh at the quest window. This game was so very broken, and I couldn't even complain. Holy shit, the prize money just for finding the electrite was worth giving it away. This definitely made up for the failure on the other quest. Especially considering…
Congratulations! You have leveled up!
Congratulations! Due to acquiring previously unknown information about Megastones you have gained a new perk! [PERK] [Research Intern] has been automatically assigned. No PP has been used.
I froze as I read the last line, all intentions of looking at my stats page forgotten. Frantically I closed all the open screens and immediately pulled up my status menu. The last time I'd been 'automatically assigned' a perk, my life hand gone to hell in a handbasket.
The information provided would have given me a vague sense of relief if it hadn't been so obnoxiously confusing.
Congratulations! You've unlocked [Titles]! You can assign a [Title] on your main status page.
Baffled, I tapped on the new box just under my stats. I had a vague recollection of Titles being mentioned before… Perhaps back in the tutorial? Unfortunately, the tutorial phase had been a one time thing; I couldn't go back and run any of the introductions all over again. No, wait. According to the game log I'd unlocked the feature back in Lumiose City when I got Basil from Professor Sycamore. Only one title could be used at a time, and different titles would offer different buffs, or debuffs (though how that was going to work I didn't want to know), depending on what they were and how I got them. There wasn't any further information on how different titles could be gained, or even what they might be. There was just a long list of greyed out question marks with only two options available at the top.
[League Sponsored Trainer] You've been chosen as a new trainer by the Pokémon League. +5% to all [Relationship] gains, 5% discount at Pokémon Center stores when [Title] is in use.
[Research Intern] You've provided Very Important information to a Pokémon Laboratory. Good Job! This Perk can also be used as a [Title]. +1 INT +1 DEF per level, +5% to [Relationship] gains with Science and Academic class characters when [Title] is in use.
Surprised but actually happy about it for once, I tapped on the new title and chose [yes] when the Game prompted me to add it to my status. The first title didn't have much going for it, and no matter how good my stats were, passive AP gains were not to be passed up. Neither were the relationship bonuses, as I was absolutely planning to email Professor Oak for advice about my new tyrunt when I had the chance. And it was very interesting because this was the first actual clue the Game had given me about character's having job classes. To be fair, I'd guessed the mage class from the magic I could use and the mystic armor I still hadn't unlocked, but I didn't have confirmation on it. If the game followed any decent logic, mages would focus on INT and WIS while scientists, and I guess academics, were INT and DEF based. There were ninja in this world too, and aura knights. Those were likely job classes as well, though I hated to speculate on how their stats would be oriented. But that couldn't be the only ones out there…
+1 WIS for considering the situation carefully!
I waved away the pop-up with a huff. Was it really too much for the Game to actually give me information on Jobs when I'd already figured at least some of it out? It could at least admit to the Mage class since I could cast spells. Flipping back through the screens, I reopened my status window.
Gryffin Higashi [Research Intern] lvl 19, 398/4430 EXP to next level. € 62632/210000
HP: 835/835
MP: 37/38
ED:25/25
STR: 20
DEF: 21
VIT: 22
DEX: 32
INT: 21
WIS: 25
CSM: 26
LUK: 15
AP: 30
PP: 13
Equipped: None
A satisfied smile slid across my face. For base stats that wasn't too shabby. And with a good amount of Perk Points stashed up I was really curious to see what new options had become available during this level up. The Game was developing a terrible sense of humor, and the options were often twisted reflections of my life. It was both annoying and amusing.
Perks
[Firestarter] Fire pokemon are more likely to appear! +10% EXP gains for all fire pokemon. -10% MP usage for all fire type moves.
[Irresistible Fluff] Cute pokemon are more likely to appear! +10% effectiveness to cute type moves, +10% [REL] gains with female characters when cute pokemon are on your team
[Birds of a Feather] Flying pokemon are more likely to appear! +10% EXP gains for all flying pokemon. -10% MP usage for all flying type moves.
[Undercover] You're (mostly) successful at sneaking around. +1 to WIS, +1 to LUK, unlocks [Stealth] skill
[Sleight of Hand] You can pull anything out of that 'hat'! +1 to INT, +1 to DEX, unlocks [Deception] skill **YOU HAVE ALREADY LEARNED THIS SKILL. Choosing this perk will add 1 skill level instead.
[Flare Despair] You're Team Flare's new nightmare! +10% to all STATS when fighting Team Flare, +10% to REL gains for defeating Team Flare
[Winning Streak] You've beaten (5) enemies in a row! +€5000
[Winning Streak 2] You've beaten (10) enemies in a row! +€20000, +1 CSM
[Un Peu Plus] You can understand just a little bit more! +10% to [Kalosi]
[Dark Diva] Dark Pokémon are more likely to appear! +10% EXP gains for all dark Pokémon. -10% MP usage for all dark type moves.
[Buckle Down] Sometimes you just have to take it. +50 HP, unlocks [Shields] in [Equip]
[It's Official] You're officially an official trainer! +1 CSM, €50000, +5 pokéballs
[Play Nice] You've smoothed over a serious problem, even though it's not your fault. +1 CSM, +Soothe Bell
[Grass is Greener] Grass pokémon are more likely to appear! +10% gains for all grass pokémon. -10% MP usage for all grass type moves
[Spot On] You've spun a pokéstop 10 times! +50 EXP, +5 ED
[Badge of Honor 1] You've gotten a pokémon gym badge! +5 CSM
[Compound Eye] You've got an eye for defeating Bug Pokémon. +1 WIS, +1 DEX, unlocks [Aim]
[Gotta Start Somewhere] You've finished your first Daily Quest! +1 CSM, +€5000,
[Boss Baby] You've defeated your first boss battle! +1000 EXP
[2][Dino-mighty!] You've obtained a fossil pokémon! +100 HP, +1 STR, unlocks [Special Dungeon: Prehistoric Prairie]
[Run, Girl, Run] We thought you didn't like sprinting? +1 VIT, +1 ED, Running Shoes
[Lights Out] You've 1-hit KO'd your first enemy! +1 STR, +1 LUK
[Honor Among Thieves] There isn't any. +1 LUK, unlocks [Steal]
[3][Prism Power] You've gotten three mega stones (even if you gave them all away again)! Randomly unlocks 1 [Black Magic] skill
As I ran my finger down the perk list I paused, scrolled back up and highlighted [Sleight of Hand]. Since when did I learn a [Deception] skill? The answer was not amusing.
Congratulations! Due to successfully misleading multiple people in various ways you have created a new skill [Deception]! This skill improves your ability to lie or distract others for whatever nefarious purpose you might choose. This skill is affected by the Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma of both the user and the intended victim. Good Luck!
Deception lvl 6. This is a Passive Skill.
+50 Evil Alignment +50 Chaotic Alignment for unlocking this [Skill].
Breathing deeply through my nose, I checked the time stamp before I closed the window. I had officially gotten the skill just after the Safe and Sound Quest, when I'd dropped the boys off at Trevor's house. The alignment points weren't too concerning. I'd been sickeningly deep in the Lawful Good category for a while, and could handle being a few shades closer to center. Still solidly Good, according to the chart, which was probably for the better all things considered, but much closer to the Neutral instead of Lawful now.
I'd have to keep my nose clean, though. No sense losing my newly improved reputation with the Kalos League.
Moving back down the skill list, I nearly choked up at the end. I didn't slam my palm into the screen. Really, I swear. I was absolutely calm and collected and perfectly gentle as I made my decision. The screen totally didn't fizzle a ripple of color under the impact. I didn't know that was even a thing, but honestly, who cares?!
You have chosen [Prism Power]. Randomly selecting [Black Magic] skill…
…
…
Congratulations! You have learned [Aqui]!
[Aqui]
Allows you to harness the power of water. Uses (5) MP per use. Amount of damage inflicted goes up as you improve.
"YES!" I crowed. There might have been jumping. There might have been fist pumping. There might have been Loxley on the bed rolling his eyes at my antics. None of that mattered.
"I've got magic!" There was no escape for my starter. He squawked as I plucked him off the pillows and twirled around the room. "I've got magic!"
I couldn't wait to try it out!
XYXYXY
After making sure everything was tucked away into my inventory, I took the time to sort out my armor properly before calling up the Instant Dungeon.
I'd wanted to try Prehistoric Prairie, and had picked the [Dino-Mighty] perk specifically for the dungeon. So of course, the recommended level was 25. The new tyrunt aside, Loxley was the strongest pokémon on my team at level 21. With Basil out for the count (I had specific medical instructions graciously translated by Trevor that said at least a week of no training whatsoever) and Tobio and Delacour weak against rock types, I wasn't willing to risk any of them in some Jurassic Park beat down. Once was enough, thank you.
So there I was, despite all my misgivings, calling up the Haunted Hamlet. Even with the lower level of the dungeon, I was hoping it would have new loot for me to sell and be a good way to train up Zen a bit. Ghosts were weak against dark types after all. I was hoping to get Tobio to evolve, too, as his normal typing would protect him from any ghost type attacks.
Just for the record, though, I hate graveyards. And Haunted Hamlet made sure to dump me in one from the very beginning. If I'd actually been playing a video game, I would have scoffed at the cliché setting. The dismal purple-blue sky was studded with black clouds and hung with a wicked red crescent moon. Grey mist creeped over ebony dirt, punctuated by withered grass and crumbling headstones. A broken iron fence, rusted and warped with age, wrapped around the edges in the distance. The blurred outline of dark houses could barely be made out beyond it. It was an almost comical stereotype. Almost.
Except for, you know, the tiny little detail of me actually being in it.
[Warning!] This Dungeon has a permanent Nighttime Effect
Shuddering, I glared at the pop-up before waving it away. The whole place was just at the point of being too cold to be comfortable. Add in the random, rattling gust of wind and it was just plain creepy. Loxley practically crawled up my legs into my arms and I was all too happy to hug him close. The warmth emanating from his body had very little to do with it.
A cool press in my head, like freezing rain pattering against a window, made clear just how much my starter did not like this place. He might not have officially gained his secondary psychic typing, but he had enough powers to feel the effect of the dungeon. Ghost pokémon were always a nightmare for psychics. They weren't much good against anything else, though, so I'd always stuck with dark types when I played the handheld games. But even if you took a gastly's second typing of poison in account, this still wasn't the best place for Loxley. At least I hoped I was just up against gastly. The pumpkaboo and phantump lines would be good too, as their grass typing would give Loxley back his edge. So far, though, the dungeons had been Gen 1 pokémon, so I wasn't betting on it. And if it was gastly like I suspected, with their dual poison type Levi was staying firmly in his ball. I'd had more than enough of super effective attacks nearly killing my pokémon already; I wasn't about to risk my baby fairy.
Which is why Zen was out instead, and chirping in confusion at her friend's uncharacteristically open display of fear.
"Give it five minutes, sweetheart," I clattered down at her. "You'll see."
Those ominous words were reinforced by a mewling whine from Loxley. Zen's ears went flat, and with a shimmer of purple, she was disguised as a fennekin once again. But at level 19, she was almost twice the recommended level for the Haunted Hamlet. We'd be fine. Totally.
Loxley and I absolutely did not scream like small children when the first gastly popped out from behind a cracked tombstone.
Giant Gastly lvl 12
HP: 500/500 MP: 25/25
STR: 13
DEF: 22
VIT: 15
DEX: 12
INT: 26
WIS: 21
CSM: 8
LUK: 6
Special Ability: Levitate
Ground type moves have no effect on this Pokémon. Moves such as Arena Trap or Spike also have no effect.
Perks: Intangible
They have no body, so purely physical attacks have no effect on them.
Giant Ghost
Due to their size, giant ghost pokémon are much stronger and tougher than normal ghost types. Because they lack tangible bodies, the increased size has no effect on their speed.
Drops: ?, ?, ?
I slid backwards several steps, holding Loxley close.
The ghost pokémon wasn't anything like the cute drawings from the games. There was no centralized round body. It was just a large amorphous blob of dark gas, perhaps purple, maybe grey. There might have been the vague outline of something the size of a beachball in the center around a bizarrely distinct set of pale, glowing yellow eyes, but it shifted away even as you tried to focus on it. Even if the creature didn't feel wrong, wrong, wrong (and it did) it still hurt the senses just trying to look at it.
Zen hissed as the ghost pokémon lurked in her direction, vaporous body expanding out to wrap misty tentacles around her, like an octopus pulling in their prey.
"Zen, Feint Attack! NOW!" I screeched.
Fortunately, my little zorua wasted no time gathering dark energy and leapt through the ghostly mist with a shadowy growl, preventing what had surely been an attempt at asphyxiation. Gastly were well known (and well feared) for the tactic. The ghost screeched as it gathered itself, finally forming some semblance of the dark orb it was illustrated to be, and rose to hover above my head. Despite my shivers, I shook Loxley loose and focused. Raising a cupped hand, I channeled my mana into my fingers, pulling the growing spell toward me before pushing it at the gastly.
"Aqui!" I called as I cast. Clear blue rippled into form, turning into a narrow corkscrew jet as it lanced through the ghost pokémon. The water seemed to pull at the vapor that made up the gastly's body, leaving it smaller after the attack. Dark gas swirled to reveal bared fangs, and the ghost pokémon hissed defiantly at me.
That was apparently Loxley's limit, and he slid from behind my knees to snarl back. Fire danced between his paws before lashing out at the gastly. While they didn't have a specific weakness to that element, gastly were made up of poisonous gasses, and the ember attack ignited it quite nicely. Gathering more dark energy, Zen took the opportunity to leap through the ghost again with a second feint attack. She daintily shook off a fine layer of ash from her paws as she landed, and then turned to scoff a single sniff at vaporous remnants of the gastly.
With a deathly wail, what was left of the ghost pokémon dissipated into nothing, leaving only a few golden orbs of loot behind.
You've gained 90 EXP. You've gained (x1) Reaper thread, (x1) Chesto berry.
A stiff breeze blew through the graveyard, carrying with it a chorus of furious mutters. Pale blue lights spluttered into existence all around us, as if all the stars that were hidden by the clouds had clawed their way down into the graveyard.
Loxley stepped back, putting one paw up on my knee, and Zen ducked down, slowly crawling between my legs with a whine.
Everywhere I looked, more and more ghost pokémon faded into view.
Gulping, I pulled out Tobio and Delacour's pokeballs. But even as I shuddered at the appearance of the ghouls…
"This is gonna be a draaaaag," I whined, releasing the birds into the night sky.
The ensuing fight was the epitome of grinding battles. With all the gastly being between levels 10 and 15, it was easy enough to manage. Tobio and Delacour managed the field with gust and whirlwind attacks, keeping the ghosts from mobbing us all at once. And with everyone on my team being between level 19 to 21 it only took a few blows for each ghastly to fall. I was chewing through leppa berries like nobody's business though.
Around the fifteenth gastly, just when I was starting to register concern about my inventory, a new game window popped up. Leaving my pokémon to defeat the next few ghosts on their own, I flung another water spell at a lingering spirit before sneaking a chance to read.
Congratulations! Due to defeating 15 of the single type of pokémon in a row, you have unlocked Battle Chains! The more victories you manage to chain, the better the rewards! The chain will reset if you defeat a different type of monster!
I grinned sharply as the next gastly we took down provided not only larger loot orbs, but also a burst of pale green energy that blew over the whole team. The magic pulse restored about a fifth of our HP each, which was very useful considering I'd been about to cast Cure myself. A few more gastly, and a blue aura waved over us to restore a small portion of MP. Not a lot, but enough for another spell for me at least.
Fire flew from golden paws and red wings. Zen slipped in and out of the shadows, snapping her feint attack. From above, Tobio whipped powerful wind attacks through the hoard. I spent the battle teetering on the edge of mana exhaustion, barely keeping ahead of my draining MP bar as I swallowed nearly all of my leppa berry supply. The Battle Chain provided the Cure boost three times again, minimizing the need for my cure spells, but the MP boost again only once. With my low MP, I spent more time dodging ghosts than dealing damage.
But sweet Goddess it was so nice to have an offensive spell at last! Twisting my new aqui spell after gastly soon became second nature, despite the drain on my mana. Controlling the spell worked better, mentally, if I moved in wide lunges as I flung the water out. The element of the spell meant that Loxley was careful to stay out of the way, but that worked out quite well for us. He and Delacour would flambé ghosts on one side while Tobio, Zen, and I cut through them on the other. The water spell was oddly effective on the gastlies, too, often catching the moisture in the gasses and almost dragging them along with it. Stretched thin, the ghosts were no match for Zen and Tobio's own elemental attacks.
After exactly 42 gastly, the graveyard was finally clear. Chest heaving and bent over my knees, I scanned the blackened ground, but there were no more lights flickering. And while a faint floral scent did linger, the purple haze left behind by all the ghosts was already drifting away into the night air.
Even split five ways, all the experience from the hoard battle left me exactly ten experience points away from the next level. But more importantly were the notifications about my pokémon. All four had gained a level from the fighting. And there was one notification in particular I'd been waiting on.
Tobio has leveled up! Tobio is now level 20! Tobio is ready to evolve!
Evolve pokémon? [Y/N]
"Hell yes!" I cheered. Despite my exhaustion I pushed myself up to pump a fist. "You ready Tobio?"
"Piyo!" My pidgey warbled triumphantly and swooped in to land on my forearm.
Carefully, I transferred him to my shoulder. Being as large as he was already, I wasn't sure my arm would hold under the weight of his evolution. Light began to ruffle from underneath his feathers, and I turned my face away. Even shut tight, I had to shield my eyes with one hand as the other was held out as a counterweight to Tobio.
Despite not being able to see, I could feel his body shift and grow. I had to rebalance my own stance to accommodate his new size. Claws that once fit comfortably on my shoulder now had to grip my upper arm as well to remain upright. And the body that once nestled close to my head now shot up, suddenly perched nearly on top of me. The glow died down at last, and I dared to peak at him.
"Holy shit, you're huge!" I grinned up at him, and Tobio trilled, flapping proudly.
He ought to, as the newly evolve pidgeotto was now the size of a full grown eagle. Spread out, his wings were now longer than my arms! But flapping like that made him dig his talons into my arm where it wasn't covered by the armor and I winced in pain. Tobio was careful enough not to break the skin, but the fabric of the shirt was still shredded.
"Off, buddy," I grimaced as I shook him lightly.
Tobio warbled an apology and glided over to land by Loxley on the steps of the mausoleum. With the two of them standing side by side it was easy to see the full effects of the evolution. To Loxley's very poutful dismay, the pidgeotto stood nearly a head taller than the braixen.
"You're a beast," I laughed at him. "And I can't wait until you're fully evolved."
Tobio trilled in excitement again and fluffed up in pride, his newly grown crest fully orange and spread out like a cockatiel's.
With the graveyard still silent, I decided it was safe enough to let out Levi and Basil. They deserved to join in the celebration too. Levi was quick to hop all over Tobio, bouncing up and down on his back like the hyper active disaster that he was. Tobio was quite patient, his new size making the little azurill a minor annoyance at best, and just let Levi play. Which gave me time to check the most critical member of the team at the moment.
"Swar~" Basil grumbled up at me. He'd barely moved from where he'd been released, and only far enough to snuggle into my feet.
Obligingly, I picked him back up and cuddled him like the baby he was. Basil certainly didn't mind being rocked and smothered with kisses, and I was especially careful not to jostle his bulb. Even with the Gamer abilities granted to my pokémon, and all the care from the Pokémon Center, his status still read as having severe injuries. Pretty much all his stats were halved and the chance of further injury was up to 75% according to the status information. He wouldn't be doing any training at all until that was gone.
Carefully settling the Bulbasaur back down, I rummaged through my inventory for a moment. Six sets of greedy eyes watched in anticipation. They knew what was coming. Tobio and Delacour were all fluffed up and preening. Zen and Levi were vibrating in place. Loxley just stared, smug, and a warm sensation of static hovered in the back of my mind.
Despite the morbid surroundings, there were loud cheers when I pulled out a delicately designed bag of poképuffs.
XYXYXY
With everyone settled after Tobio's evolution, and after devouring the entire 24 count package of treats, and the graveyard around us still clear of any enemies, I decided it was time to deal with my newest … teammate. I stared at the blue and red great ball for several long minutes.
In addition to translating the note from the nurses about my bulbasaur, Trevor had also written out a website called PokéDoc, which provided professional advice on critical healthcare issues for various pokémon ailments. He'd probably been thinking about Basil's wounds and how to care for them, but I'd had a very different issue in mind when I'd looked up the website.
A pokémon that has been deprived of food for an extended period of time has also likely been deprived of vital fluids as well. Before starting a pokémon back on food it is important to first rehydrate the pokémon. Failure to reintroduce proper hydration, and especially critical electrolytes, before feeding can result in hypovolemic shock. Without immediate medical intervention this can be fatal.
...
In reptilian pokémon, extra care must be taken to establish the cause of starvation. If they have been kept in temperatures too cold for proper digestion, for example, the pokémon in question may appear to have a good body condition despite not eating for an extended period of time. Rehydration is still critical, as is the slow introduction of food to accommodate the likely decrease in gut bacteria necessary for digestion.
...
The rest of the website had become entire too technical for me to understand. And by that, I mean I actually pop-up that read [Intelligence Check Failed], which was a brand new kind of insult from the Game that I wasn't happy about. The main point, however, was pretty clear.
"Everyone, stay back okay?" The order wasn't really necessary. Loxley was already in the process of herding everyone between the mausoleum and another large obelisk monument for cover, with Basil leading the way despite a pronounced limp. I nodded at them, hoping that being tucked out of the line of fire would lessen the perceived threat for the tyrunt. Checking to make sure the bowls of food I had prepared were still in place, I lobbed the ball away from me.
"Traaaaraaaawr!"
The tyrunt came out the same way it went in, kicking and screaming. I winced as it smashed through a granite urn and cracked several nameplates as it stomped around. At took a few minutes of smashing itself in circles before the tyrunt slammed to a halt. It glared at me, heaving deep breaths with its mouth open and fangs bared. Now that I wasn't panicking, desperate to keep it from murdering my sweet little Basil, I could see just how rough a shape the poor dinosaur was actually in.
The tyrunt was actively breathing through its mouth; its nostrils looked clear, but they were dry and cracked. Old strips of skin clung to the ridge on its back, like a shedding gone wrong. And while the legs and jaw were still dangerously thick, there were hollowed indentations just under the ribs and along the spine at the end of the tail that made my heart hurt. I nudged a bowl toward the fossil pokémon with a foot before taking several steps backwards to where my team was hunkered down.
The tyrunt's gaze immediately focused on the various pots and food bowls I'd set out for it. I was assuming the Pokémon Center had taken at least the initial steps in rehydrating the baby t-rex, but I was going to make doubly sure it got what it needed. There was a whole bowl of fancy electrolyte water all by itself and another poured over a heaping scoop of pandépature, creating a meaty mushy goo that Zen and Loxley at least had sniffed at intrigued. The remainder of the roast ducklet was shredded up in a pot full of Sitrus berry juice too, bones and all. With the tyrunt's ability to literally chew through cars, I figured the risk of choking was minimal and it could probably use the calcium. At this point all I was really hoping for was that the tyrunt didn't decide to eat the pots as well.
Fortunately, they didn't seem to be on the menu today. Tyrunt looked up from the bowls to snarl menacingly at us. Putting my hands up to show I meant no harm, I moved even further back to sit with my pokémon. Only when my butt was on the ground, and Basil had climbed into my lap with a groan, did the tyrunt dare to step forward.
And what had the poor thing suffered under Team Flare, to be that hungry and still that afraid?
It took a lot of snapping and snarling, during which absolutely none of us moved, before the tyrunt took another very cautious step toward the bowls. Then another. Finally taking a wheezing sniff through its nose (and I was going to have to bother the nurses about that because it did not sound healthy), the tyrunt couldn't resist its stomach anymore. I winced as the bowl full of pokéchow was crunched, sharp teeth easily puncturing the heavy plastic as the tyrunt lifted the bowl with a growl to slurp down the contents in a single go. The pot was spared destruction, but only because the tyrunt managed to get the handle to tip it over. It ate whole chunks of earth as it gobbled up the roast duck and juice off the ground. It might have drunk some of the water, but most of it seemed to spill as the tyrunt shoved its whole snout into the bowl and snorted.
Any hopes I had of getting close enough to the tyrunt to cuddle it into submission with Magic Fingers died as its lips curled back to show of fangs the same length as my thumbs. Petting it was not worth the risk of losing my hands. I would have to gain the tyrunt's trust the old fashioned way. Then I would cuddle the dinosaur into submission. Because there was no way I was going to have a pet Tyrannosaurus and not spoil it rotten. I watched as the tyrunt carefully went over each bowl again, licking them clean. It lifted its head to level another baleful stare at me.
"Traaaaaaaaaar," it hissed, snarling and hunched liked it wanted to attack. I could feel my whole team tense around me…
And then it snapped its jaw shut and took off.
"Wha? Wait! No!" I scrambled up after it. "Tobio! Delacour! Don't let it get away!"
My birds soared up, Tobio just a bit awkward in his initial takeoff before settling into a stronger sweep of his wings, and I hoped they could keep the tyrunt in sight. The damned thing was headed straight out of the graveyard! Scooping Levi and Basil back into their balls, because I was still terrified of them getting hurt, I rushed to pick up the discarded pot and bowls before dashing after Loxley and Zen. I ignored the brief terror of standing alone among the gravestones. I had a pokémon to catch. Again.
XYXYXY
I swirled a fistful of water at the misdreavus that had tittered out of the shadows. Its bright red necklace snapped into a cascade of beads as it dissipated.
Battle Chain Broken!
I kept running. Thank the gods Loxley had the presence of mind to turn back and wait for me, because I'd been swarmed the moment I exited the gates of the cemetery. But battling ghosts had been the last thing on my mind as I rushed down the broken cobblestone path. I had no idea if I could lose a pokémon in a dungeon, and I did not want to find out. Not that I could use my ID Escape skill while I was being targeted anyways. Because damnably, ghosts were persistent little blighters, and enjoyed chasing me way too much. It had just been gastly at first, which I'd been expecting. The first duskull to pop out in front of me, however, with its single crimson eye glowing demonically, had caused me to screech in fear. And that had opened the floodgates.
Tobio was still making wide sweeps overhead, occasionally punching powerful twisters into the fray. I hoped he was still keeping an eye on the tyrunt. Delacour certainly wasn't; he was too busy slashing burning wings through the various ghost pokémon trying to overtake me. Once again, my beautiful hwando was useless, slipping through the gaseous forms of various spirits without dealing any damage at all. And I was down to less than ten leppa berries. Zen jumped up on my shoulder after a nasty feint attack against a shuppet, just as Delacour and Loxley spun enough flames together to create a sort of shockwave of fire. Another twister from Tobio, and it spun into an unholy pillar of heat. Staring up at the tornado of flames, I wondered briefly if that was what fire spin was supposed to look like. The fact that my pokémon could create something so powerful… A mewl from Zen brought me back to my senses, and I quickly escaped from the path of destruction.
Running further down the unkempt road, I ignored the game alerts as well as the various ghosts that flitted out behind me. Loxley, Tobio, and Delacour were quickly gaining on us and any unlucky spirit that stayed in the way for too long got barbecued. I could feel the waves of heat behind me, dark wails echoing as I ran. Tobio soared overhead, darting in the direction of the rundown houses I'd seen before. A low wall, not much higher than the fence around the cemetery, surrounded the small enclave, with a single shattered gate opening up on the path in front of me.
Tobio's shriek of alarm was worrying. The ghosts following me also tapered off as I hurried through the gate, which probably should have been even more concerning but I could hardly think about it at the time. Slipping past the portico, I could see my errant tyrunt further in surrounded by…
Surrounded by… by…
"What … the … FUCK?" The harsh whisper was past my lips before I could slap my hand over my mouth. I clambered back to the gate I'd just rushed through, desperate to get behind the meager protection of a half-broken door, riddled with rust and tilted on its hinges.
My tyrunt was snarling in the street about 50 meters ahead of me, roaring in front of a growing, shambling crowd. I stared at the creatures moving to surround the dinosaur. Those were not pokémon. They were… they were…
The glut of bodies was disconcerting in their complete lack of uniformity. Pokémon didn't look identical, not exactly. Some might be a little bigger, or a little darker, or have a vaguely different spot pattern. But a caterpie was a caterpie and had about the same number of differences between individuals that you'd expect from insect larvae; in other words, none worth mentioning. These however…
A woman stood about my height, long hair ragged and the half of her face that wasn't missing was bloated and purple. The other half was bone.
A stocky man with a maggot filled beard lumbered sideways, foot missing and large chunks missing off one leg. His work overalls were splattered with dark stains.
Another woman, dark skin rotted to blue, staggered forward in a frayed dress. The heels had broken off her tattered leather pumps and when she reached it was with a single arm. The other was shredded and missing past the elbow.
A child who looked far far too much like Jean teetered unbalanced into a wall. If it weren't for the grey pallor of his skin and swollen, unseeing eyes he'd almost look normal. There was a single red bite mark on one hand.
There were more. There were so very many more.
I edged backwards, pressing back into the wall of the gate, my eyes darting wildly to try to identify where all of them were and watering from the stench of death that clung to every surface.
Even with Gamer's Mind activating, I could feel my rapid, shallow breaths turning my chest to cold fire. A warm paw patted against my thigh, and I pulled my terrified starter up into my arms again. A brush of Loxley's mind against mine, a reflection of a horrible dark emptiness, told me that there was nothing even vaguely conscious among the monsters in front of us.
Zombies.
Because ghosts apparently weren't bad enough. No, the Game had to go and give me a horrifying monster that was nowhere in, SHOULD be nowhere in the pokémon franchise. And it chose Actual. Fucking. Zombies!
I choked back a whimper. The undead … creatures hadn't sensed me yet and I wanted it to stay that way. But I could see my tyrunt ahead of me on the street snapping and snarling at the horde, thick hide protecting it from the mindless grasps and decayed teeth of its opponents. It was nearly surrounded, however, and if this dungeon had proven anything, it was that a higher level meant fuck all against these kinds of numbers. And my team and I were already dangerously low on Mana and Endurance points.
Using observe, I could see that the zombies ranged between levels 13 and 17. There was no way I was surviving a hoard battle against all of them. Zen huddled at my feet, quaking so hard I could practically hear her teeth rattle. Tobio continued to circle overhead, but Delacour had swooped low over the unseeing crowd to latch onto my pauldron. His feathers fluffed in alarm, but the warmth tickling my face did little to soothe any of us.
It was almost a blessing that the tyrunt was drawing all of the zombies' attention. It gave me time to assess the broken hovel of a town. Most of the buildings were crumbling, single level houses that you might expect in an old country village. Only a few had a second level. And of those, only one, a greyed out shell of an old general store, had a fire escape. I eyed the rusted ladder, it was only about a meter off the ground so I could definitely get to it. And it was far enough from the crush of zombies I would probably have time to climb it before they could catch up. As long as they were slow zombies. (Sweet goddess I hoped they were slow zombies.) What I needed, then, was to get close enough to recall the blasted dinosaur, so I could get up and get out of here.
"Delacour," I whispered hoarsely to the fletchinder on my shoulder, "Do you think you can draw them away?"
I swear to every deity above and below, my hawk gave me an actual "what-are-you-crazy?" face.
"You can fly!" I hissed at the insulted bird. "Make a lot of noise and make them go that way!" I pointed aimlessly in a random direction. I honestly didn't care where the blasted zombies went, so long as it was away from me.
Picking up on my terror, Loxley also hissed precariously at Delacour, who huffed and warbled low, eyeing the shuffling corpses with apprehension. But he and Tobio were our best shot. They were fast and couldn't be caught up in the air. Not by such slow moving enemies. At least I hoped they were slow. (Please, please be slow zombies.)
A low rumble spread through the crowd of undead, and my tyrunt roared in fury. It lunged and bit the hand off a zombie that had gotten too close with a fiery SNAP. The zombie wailed in agony but my tyrunt also stumbled backwards, retching violently. Only part of the hand came back up.
"Del, NOW!" I insisted, practically shoving him off. I recalled Zen even as I tugged Loxley up to the pauldron I'd just removed Delacour from. Eating zombie bits was bad. Terrible, awful, horrific bad. And the damned tyrunt was already sick! Fuck…
Delacour screamed fire as he flew over the heads of the undead horde. Several zombies moaned as their hair and clothes ignited, and the crowd scrambled, thankfully not quickly though, in various directions to avoid the flames. My fletchinder spun in mid-air snapping several more embers in random directions. Tobio dove down with several powerful gusts of his own, spreading the fire attacks even further.
Swallowing bile as the stench of burning flesh overpowered the whole square, I ran into the fray. Still gagging and snorting every element it could, the tyrunt didn't have a chance to avoid me as I dashed close enough to recall it. The only good thing, and I do mean the ONLY good thing about zombies was that they were corporeal. My hwando slid through several as I dodged the burning corpses, and Loxley snapped super effective ember attacks at several more. I didn't stop for loot orbs. I didn't care about battle chains. The only thing that mattered now was getting to that ladder.
I hit the side of the stone wall without stopping, clambering up the creaking fire escape at full speed. I rolled over the ledge of the roof, blindly lashing out at the single zombie that had managed to get stuck up there before whistling for my birds. By the time Tobio and Delacour had whooshed in, I had my Escape Rope out and ready. They went back in their balls without any complaints. Shuddering as I looked down on the furious scrabble of scorched zombies below, I smashed my palm down on [yes] when the Game asked if I was sure if I wanted to use it.
The world dissolved into ash around me, and I fell on my ass back in the beginning of the graveyard. Loxley was still clinging to my shoulder, claws out and shivering. As I heaved in some semblance of relief, it was my starter that called up the screen to exit the dungeon and pressed yes.
And I sat there, sobbing in my dorm room, clinging to my wonderful, brilliant, stupidly brave fox and refused to let go.
Guess what my absolute least favorite horror genre is? Go on, guess. But with a fantasy game, and a gamer fic with Instant Dungeon, it was only a matter of time before they showed up... It will be a while before I work up the nerve to fight them again. And like Giant Pokemon they will be dungeon only monsters.
OMG, so many reviews! Thank you everyone! I'm so glad everyone likes the tyrunt, it's my favorite pokemon from XY besides Delphox so I was really glad it was in the manga. I get to blame the official plot for my early acquisition. But rehab-ing an abused animal is hard. Add the intelligence of a small child and the ability to smash through steel and you have a Problem.
And look! there's no French for anyone to complain about! XD
If you want to read something absolutely strange about XY, check out the plot we almost had:
pankopop/ the-xy-files-the-lost-plot-of-pokemons-6th-generation-d0d140881148
Remove the spaces after the backslashes and enjoy bizarro world XD