Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. Then again, if I did, you'd have a whole lot of cool new Pokémon. Or maybe I'm just ripping Pokémon off Nintendo's yet-to-be-released Pokémon Topaz. Yeah, and maybe I ate your baby.
Thanks for the latest review, WiekedWolf09! You're the only reviewer I caught last night, seeing as I'm in class now...
The Tentor Fog are indeed going to make their presence more pronounced, and strike a lot closer to home, too... but then again I shouldn't say too much too soon. Suffice to say I'll try holding off the major conflicts for now; they're building, but slowly.
And I've done the first poem in a "Poems From..." series! Hope you liked it, or, at least, appreciated the way it was written... it mightn't be exactly PokéFiction, but I'll try to add a bit more of that particular element later on.
But I've said too much; ah well, Pokémon Go! chapter 35; onward!
Crowds still thronged the inn as the four of them left the building, the commotion drawing more and more trainers, which in turn drew more attention to the place.
The police were gone, but there were still many who hoped to find out more. The four of them were jostled back and forth by the merciless tide of human traffic, trainer and non-trainer alike.
With all of the trainers in the area, one could hardly expect there not to be a trainer battle. And there were several already taking place; trainer battles, that is.
The four of them ducked with the crowd as a Ninjask buzzed over their heads. It was closely followed by a larger Pidgeotto, together with several ejaculations of outrage by the less conservative of the crowd.
"Fia! Wing Attack!"
The voice (and the nickname) was unmistakable. It was Fior; the Pidgeotto-girl from before.
To one side stood the tall, leaning boy they'd seen on so many occasions. With him was the small boy Dave knew as Terry, and the red girl Taera.
Ash was the first to notice, and pointed them out to the others.
"They're four of the six trainers who left from Palladium with me... Dave too, but he didn't get his Pokémon from the Prof."
"But if you're the fifth... who's the sixth...?"
Ash shrugged as the Pidgeotto dodged a Silver Wind attack.
"I think we should get out of the crowd first..." Dave said, eyeing the two flying Pokémon nervously.
"Fair enough…"
A/N: I'm home again! And late.
The four of them walked over to where the three trainers were spectating. They eyed their arrival with more than a little suspicion; but that wariness turned to surprise as they noticed Ash. Ralts floated beside him, looking apprehensive.
"Hey… aren't you that guy…" the tall boy seemed to have lost his train of thought at that; "that strange guy with a Ditto…?"
Ash sighed. What a name. But it was better than strange guy without a Ditto, at any rate.
"This is it; right here. Ditto… and my only two others are Hoppip and Ralts…"
He released Hoppip from its Pokéball, while Ralts continued to float at his shoulder level. The boy nodded, releasing a Raticate, Slugma, and Gastly of his own.
Erynn looked between the two of them.
"Now…?"
Overhead, Fia brought the Ninjask down for the count. The two boys watched the Pokémon's flight as it crashed into the ground, then nodded.
"Now."
It was a challenge he could hardly refuse.
"A Double Battle, then…?"
The boy shook his head.
"Better. Three Pokémon out; Triple Battle, I'd call it."
Ash tensed; he had no idea if Ralts would even work with him in the battle. If he could use just Hoppip and Ditto he knew he'd have a better chance…
"Fine. Three on three it is."
The others looked on from a side.
"Come on… you can do it, Ash!"
"You'd better not lose…!"
"Half your money, down the drain…"
Everyone but Ash stared at Michelle as she made that comment. It was at that moment that Fior ran back to join the remainder of her friends; she was in the process of stashing her money in her wallet.
"Hey… guys…… oh…" she slowed down as she saw the scene before her.
Terry and Taera motioned for her to stand with them. She complied, her eyes never leaving the battle. She recognized all the trainers there but one.
"What brings you here, anyway?" Ash called from across the field. The boy shrugged.
"We heard the ruckus from a while back; we were staying at the inn a short way up from here. Were you staying there…?"
Ash nodded; he didn't see where it was going but he didn't really want to fight that much. They were standing at opposite ends of what just happened to be the same place they'd battled the horde of Pokémon the day before.
Scorch marks indicated where the Fire and Electric Pokémon had done their work. It had been flattened from their encounter; ironic, because now it perhaps was the choicest site for a battle anywhere in the vicinity.
"Let's begin then…"
Ash nodded, his head tilted to a side.
"If you will…"
The other side shouted a few words of encouragement to their friend, but it wasn't really the time, anymore. Both trainers were strategizing; the few crucial seconds which were the lull before any all-out battle.
The boy looked up first.
"Terror… Night Shade attack; Fang, Hyper Fang!"
The Gastly shook as its form shimmered; a wave of darkness emanating from it despite the bright sunlight.
"Ditto; Flash! Hoppip, Leech Seed!"
The white Tangela appeared again, the Flash ineffectual in the daylight, but managing to dissipate the darkness nonetheless. Hoppip charged its Leech Seed even as Fang hurtled toward Ditto, its sharp teeth bared.
"Therma; stop that Hoppip with an Ember!"
It was too late; the attack was released, streaking toward the Raticate and tangling it in a web of vines. It crashed to the ground, struggling to break free. But the bolt of flame was still heading straight for Hoppip.
"Ralts…!"
But the Pokémon didn't need any help from him; teleporting within a few feet of the Hoppip, it created a sphere of protection around the two of them. A Light Screen attack. The Ember fizzled against the powerful shield. Before Ash could get another attack in, though, the Raticate broke free.
"Fang; Super Fang attack on that Ralts! Terror; use a Lick on the Ditto and let Therma get an Ember in!"
Ash looked at him in astonishment. How he could remember his Pokémon's nicknames so well was beyond him. But the crux of the matter was that three of his Pokémon were actively engaging three of his.
"Ditto; Agility, Lock-On and Bubblebeam…! Ralts…"
He turned to watch in wonder as Ralts held out a single hand. Immediately the air around her rippled, as time slowed almost to a crawl; the Raticate's attack lost all impetus as it fell painfully to the ground.
"What the…?"
A Disable attack. Raticate struggled against the force of the psychic power but could not break free. Shifting his attention to his other Pokémon, he watched as the slower Gastly struggled to keep up with Ditto's pace.
The single eye of the Magnemite focused on its target as the Azumarill released a stream of bubbles, inertia arcing it straight into the Pokémon.
"Darn it… it's gotten more transformations since we last fought… Terror, Therma; regroup!"
Ash looked to the Raticate, still pinned to the ground by Ralts.
Time to finish this…
But even as he thought it, a strange rippling of emotions cut through his thoughts, shredding them like ribbons. He shook his head, determined not to be distracted.
"No…"
Erynn stood up and then sat down again, unsure of what she could do. He shook the feeling off, turning to Ditto.
"Triple Kick…!"
"No."
The voice was stronger now; he wasn't sure if it was Ralts speaking, or if it was himself. But it was too late to change things; Ditto rushed toward the Raticate, transforming in a flash of white light…
"No!"
There was a burst of psychic energy, a power strong enough that it ripped the ground from beneath them. As the dust flew through the air, Ash hid under his jacket until the energy faded out, dissipating into the wind.
"No…"
Ash looked up, finding the battle in a state of disarray. The ground under Ralts was a large crater, with cracks in the earth fanning out in all directions. Amazingly, none of the Pokémon were harmed. As Ralts descended to the ground, her psychic power fading, so did the protective Light Screens around each Pokémon fade.
"What…? What kind of battle…?" the boy looked utterly confused. Ash was no different.
"Ralts, return." In a single motion, he recalled the psychic Pokémon. The spectators were entirely silent. The boy Terry stood up.
"I'm guessing we can declare this a draw…"
Shrugging in disgust, the boy recalled the rest of his Pokémon. Gathering his belongings, he put his backpack on again before turning to Ash.
"Sorry I've got to say this, but your Ralts will never be a battler."
"She said no…" he whispered to himself.
And then Ash nodded. That she would never be a battling Pokémon he knew himself. But himself, he didn't know at all.
Even now, there were a few police cars patrolling the road; possibly on the lookout for any suspect in the vicinity.
A/N: Ooh a review from Mossstar. Anyways, I have Pokémon Blue and Yellow, Gold, Silver and Crystal, played a little of Sapphire, finished Ruby, and finished Fire Red. Also finished the Pokémon Trading Card Game (a long time ago) and played Pokémon Pinball. Super Smash Brothers / Melee if you count that as a Pokémon Game, and now, Pokémon Fushigi no Dungeon Aka no Kyuujotai… Pokémon Rescue Team, basically.
The four of them were walking along the road; the trainers had already dispersed into their smaller groups, so it wasn't nearly as crowded. A sign stood in the middle of a fork which split the road into two branches ahead of them.
Port Aluminate
Iro Tunnel
Dave checked the Pokémon Handbook. Aluminate was another city with a Gym, while the Iro tunnel would have to be crossed anyways; it was the only way to get to Amon Town without the use of a ferry; it was, in fact, part of the Great North Road.
"Hey guys, it's a subterranean tunnel that actually goes under the sea…!"
Michelle looked impassively at him.
"That just means there's a higher chance of us being crushed to death by a sea of water over our heads."
Ash didn't even bother to contradict her this time, for two reasons. One, it was true. Two, he was still looking at his reflection in Ralts' Pokéball. Not because he was getting narcissistic, but because of… what, he wasn't sure.
Is what I'm feeling… my own…? Or are these merely Ralts' own emotions she's impressing on me…?
They turned left toward the west; chasing the sun, it seemed. The path this way was downhill; it led into a vast valley, almost entirely surrounded by mountains taller than they had a right to be.
There was only a single ray of light shining through the towering peaks; it fell in a straight line right through the center of the small town. Past the gap, he could just make out a line of docked ferries…
Ash shook his head and pocketed the Pokéball as he turned to follow his friends ahead of him. Chasing the sun might've been a clichéd analogy, but it more than fit the bill.
T E N T O R F O G
The boy sat in the waiting room, his brow set as he studied the electronic board in front of him. The room could have been any one of hundreds of waiting rooms in any dentistry or hospital in the world; there was the same air of sterility. Everything was white but the board, which was a dark, intimidating jet black. But the boy wasn't frightened.
There was something about him; he wasn't especially tall or intimidating in any way, but his self seemed to exude a presence that was singularly disturbing. In his hand, he held a single Pokéball. The Pokéball was a dark blue and grey in colour: it wasn't like any other Pokéball known to the world.
He had no idea what Pokémon lay, dormant, inside the ball. He had been issued the ball, and it wasn't up to him to question the authority of the Admin. Now he just waited; watched the black electronic board which hung in the center of the room.
At last, a signal. He stood up as a tone sounded. He was wearing a hoodie of dark grey, with dark blue streaks which looked like black lightning. His pants were of the same shades, but somehow there was a style about it which seemed more than foreboding.
The tone sounded again; his name blipped on the black screen. A woman appeared from behind a sliding door. She was wearing a tank top under a jacket; all blue-grey as well. She didn't smile as she looked at the boy. She probably never did.
"Reno Quinn…
"The Admin will see you now."
A/N: Chapter 35, finished! Any guesses on who Reno could be…?
Anyways, it's quite a while past my bedtime, so I'll just be heading to sleep now. Hope you enjoyed this chapter… and yeah, Ditto is quite a simple Pokémon compared to Ralts… I mean, it eats, sleeps, and plays. Don't we all wish Life could be so simple…?
Anyways, enjoyed it; hated it; please review! Hooray.