Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, all rights to the owners.
Reuploading again, because the site screwed this fic over and wouldn't display it for almost two full days.
Yet another one-off Pokemon story. I'm quite a big fan of the fics that try to take a psychological and biological look at Pokemon, so I'm going to try and incorporate elements of that here.
No, I don't know how Zigzagoon and Linoone became the pokemon of choice for this chapter. They were the first thing I could think of an idea for.
In addition, I'm playing fast and loose with the exact geography of the locations. I know full well it doesn't look exactly like that in the games.
"Zigzagoon, Pin Missile!" I order.
The small pokemon skids to a stop for a moment and its fur bristles, standing up on end even more so than it usually does. Zigzagoon then lowers his head and thrusts his back into the air, sending hundreds of small, glowing hairs shooting out at the opponent in a wide spray.
The Solrock, already in motion for a tackle and unable to stop it's momentum, gets a face full of the hairs. It barrels right through them, but Zigzagoon nimbly hops to the side and avoids the telegraphed move.
"Rock Slide!" The opposing trainer shouts.
I know just how to respond. "Sand-attack!"
Once again, Zigzagoon proves to have greater agility. In the time it takes Solrock to spin around to face the racoon Pokemon, Zigzagoon has stuck his paws into the ground and flicks dust and small rocks up at its foe. Solrock squints and spin, trying to blow away the dust, and then glows a dark brown for a second as it pulls basketball-sized rocks out of the ground around it, but the damage is done.
Zigzagoon is already a small target, and his brown and tan coloration does the squinting Solrock no favors in trying to spot him on the hard-packed battlefield. The Rock Slide rains down on the last place Solrock spotted the racoon, but once again Zigzagoon has already moved out of the way.
"Pin Missile again!"
"Psywave!"
"Dodge first!" I add quickly.
Zigzagoon had skidded to a stop once more to use Pin Missile, but at my warning he leaps to the side to avoid the Psywave and only then uses his own attack.
Dodging isn't simply a matter of telling your Pokemon to dodge. The reason it works so well for Zigzagoon is his agility. Zigzagoons are well known for their quick hops in zig-zag pattern, and that translates fantastically to quick, short dodges. Try doing that with a Metagross and you're not going to have as much luck.
Solrock is looking haggard, and still has dozens of hairs sticking out of it's rocky exterior from the Pin Missiles. Zigzagoon scrambles around the battlefield, taking turns at random moments, making him that much harder to hit.
My opponent understands the issue, and makes a relatively smart choice next. "Fire Spin!"
A thought flickers through my mind. "Fire spin hits a large area, Zigzagoon isn't dodging all of it." I make a split-second decision. It's risky, but I can use Zigzagoon's quickest attack and try to win right here before Fire Spin can be used. "Headbutt! Quickly!"
Zigzagoon, who had been running away from Solrock a moment earlier, turns on a dime and launches himself through the air. I hold my breath as Zigzagoon's head meets Solrock's with a resounding crack… and the balls of fire gathering around the sun Pokemon's body sputter out into nothingness as Solrock crashes to the ground, decidedly knocked out.
My opponent's shoulders slump. It's a crushing defeat. Solrock didn't land a single hit, and lost to what is considered a weak pokemon only used by novices. Still, when I walk over to shake their hand, they politely reciprocate.
It's a nice change from the weaker, usually younger trainers I'm used to fighting. The benefit of having a few badges means you don't have to deal with as many overconfident novices who will be bitter and resentful over losses, because everyone who has a few badges has likely tasted the sting of defeat enough times to be able to take it with a certain amount of grace.
"Good job Zigzagoon!" I praise as the excitable little Pokemon runs circles around me. "Your accuracy with Pin Missile is getting much better!"
"Zig! Zig!"
I let Zigzagoon burn off his excess energy by running around the grass beside the main path as we continue our way to Meteor Falls. We might reach there by nightfall, but we're certainly not going through until tomorrow.
Zigzagoon brings back half a dozen mostly-used repels over the course of our travel, and when we set down in the evening for dinner I pool all the liquid into one container, which is almost full, wash out the remaining containers, and put the empty containers in my bag to be recycled later.
Zigzagoon eats a lot over dinner, almost twice as much as usual. It's not unusual for a Pokemon to eat more after engaging in battle, but twice as much is a bit odd. Still, if he wants it, I'll deliver. He's not usually greedy. I'll indulge him this once.
I soon discover why Zigzagoon wanted the extra food. As me and Dusclops are cleaning and putting away the pots and pans from dinner, I can see Zigzagoon dig itself a shallow hole in the ground against the rock cliff-face of the mountain next to us, drag some tall grasses overtop of the hole to hide it, then curl up inside. I know what that means: evolution.
There are a few pokemon that can evolve in a matter of moments, such as cocoon pokemon, but most evolutions take hours or days. I know what happens when a Zigzagoon evolves because I made sure to research this early into owning Zigzagoon. A Zigzagoon, when it is prepared to evolve, will hole up in its burrow (or create one or find shelter if it does not have one), cover the entrance with grasses to mask the faint glow that accompanies evolution, and then go to sleep and evolve overnight. They need to eat a lot for a day or two beforehand to have the energy to manage evolution. This is part of the reason why springtime is the easiest time to find Linoone, and indeed most evolved pokemon, because with the abundant food every Zigzagoon that was waiting to evolve will suddenly find itself with enough energy to do so.
Tomorrow, I'm going to have a Linoone.
With that exciting thought in mind it's rather difficult to get to sleep, but I eventually manage to do so.
###
"Linoone!"
"Good morning Zig- er- Linoone." I greet, and pat the racoon on the head. "Feel alright? Your evolution had no problems?"
"Linoooone!" Linoone responds, and then runs a wide circle around our camp, testing out his new speed. He awkwardly skids and scrambles against the dirt when attempting to stop his dash. He's not used to the momentum I suppose.
"Glad you're feeling alright." I say. "I've got to make breakfast, so give me a few minutes alright?"
That's mostly an excuse for me to look through the notes I made in my pokedex as I make some soup. Linoone is going to have new nutrition requirements, I'm going to have to adapt the training regime to account for Linoone's new capabilities, and probably a million little things I'm forgetting.
After breakfast, we step into Meteor Falls. The cave is surprisingly bright thanks to a hole on one side of the cave where the waterfall comes through from the outside. The sunlight reflects off the water, casting a brilliant and constantly shifting array of lights across the walls. A few Solrock hover above the water near the waterfall, laying horizontally to look up at the sun and basking in the spray of the waterfall. Lunatone, on the other hand, roam the rest of the cave, taking in the light reflecting off the water. Neither of the two meteorite Pokemon remain in the darkest corners of the cave where neither sun nor reflected light reach. There, the nocturnal Zubat and Golbat hide away from the unusual brightness of their home during the day.
Linoone immediately goes to scavenging, picking up trash and half-used items from behind rocks and sometimes lying out in the open. There are lots of super potions this time. Dusclops and Roselia are much less energetic, and walk silently behind me while taking in the sights.
I may not have seen anyone walk in before us this morning, but there are other humans in the cave. The main path through Meteor falls to Rustboro is relatively short and easily traversable in a day, but there are further depths to the cave if one wishes to explore, and a number of researchers have taken up temporary residence in the cave to investigate the numerous small meteorites, star pieces, and moon stones
It's relatively common knowledge that Zangoose, Taillow, and Swablu use the many shiny space rocks around Meteor Falls as bait to fish for Goldeen, Magikarp, and Barboach. They put the meteorites or star pieces or moon stones in the water in such a way that it reflects the sunlight, and when a curious water Pokemon comes to investigate the hunter strikes. Through this process all the rocks on the top of the cave and in the surrounding area are eventually deposited into the water. Those space rocks are then eventually flushed into the cave after the current knocks them loose from the riverbed outside and they fall down this very waterfall into the cave.
The person I see doesn't look like a researcher, but they're definitely interested in space rocks judging by how they're sitting on the back of a Sharpedo and using an extendable claw to pick shiny objects off the river bed. They're dressed in blue and white striped clothes with ripped pants and a bandanna.
Ordinarily the presence of someone else wouldn't be an issue. I'd note their presence, maybe nod politely if our eyes meet, and then move on. That's fully what I intended to do, but apparently this man doesn't approve.
"Hey! You're intruding on official Team Aqua business!" The man shouts from across the cave. His sharpedo jets to the shore, and he hops off, pulling a pokeball from his belt.
"My apologies!" I call back. "I didn't realize there was something-"
"Hand over your money!" The man shouts. "And I'll let you get off with just a warning."
Ah, a thug. Well, that's disappointing, but manageable. "I'm going to have to refuse."
"I warned you!" The man snarls, and lobs his pokeball as far as it will go in my direction. A Mightyena bursts out of the ball and lands with a snarl on the rocky floor.
Oh dear. "Linoone, I need assistance clearing up this mess please!"
"Noooone!" He barks, and places himself between me and the Mightyena.
Mightyena is stronger, but Linoone is faster. I'm hoping Linoone can run circles around his foe as per our usual strategy. I have my doubts that this thug has actually properly trained his pokemon, if only because he's a thug.
"Mightyena, Assurance!"
"Sand Attack then dodge!"
Sand Attack goes off without a hitch. Linoone's new, longer claws actually seem better at scooping dirt and dust than Zigzagoon's. The dodge, however, doesn't go as planned. Linoone tries to hop to the side, but only manages a small jump that doesn't even bring him ten centimeters away from his starting point. Despite the Sand Attack Mightyena has no problems barreling into Linoone, and it sends the smaller Pokemon tumbling across the rocks.
"Pin Missile!" I order.
"Dodge it!"
In a familiar motion Linoone lowers his head and thrusts his back into the air. His new, sleek fur bristles and launches hundreds of glowing hairs in a tight volley that Mightyena manages to avoid thanks to the distance giving it time to react.
"Howl Mightyena!"
"Headbutt!"
Mightyena raises its head and howls. Grey-white energy coils around it, signifying the empowering nature of the move. The howl is loud and thoaty and rebounds off the cave walls, startling some Zubat and Golbat and grabbing the attention of a Lunatone or two. Mightyena is also stationary as it does this, making an easy target for Linoone to smash into. Head meets chest, and Mightyena staggers back while Linoone lands in front of it.
The grunt grins victoriously, and I know I've just fallen into a trap. "Bite!"
I can see Linoone try and move before I can even give the command to dodge, but his hop is once again too short of a distance to help, and Mightyena's jaws crush down around Linoone's small body.
This is a genuinely bad situation, but Linoone isn't knocked out yet so I call for our desperation play. "Flail Linoone!"
Linoone violently twists his body and lashes out with both claw and tooth. Despite the nature of the move technically not involving it. Flail is often considered a recoil move. It's a move that is at its strongest when one is weak, and you can imagine violently twisting your body when you're covered in wounds is a good way to make the wounds worse. Hence, while Flail is technically not a recoil move, it often has the same result.
Hence why Flail is my last resort. Using Flail at it's best often means Linoone won't be using anything else afterwards.
After Linoone's thrashing is finished, Mightyena lies unconscious on the floor, and Linoone limps back over to me. I'm quick to spray him with super potion and recall him into his pokeball. That battle went very poorly. Nothing went right. I'll have to think that over and analyze it later.
"Sharpedo!" The grunt shouts, and the Pokemon snarls in response… from the water. It's not getting out here with any sort of ease.
"Don't even try!" I call out. "Roselia will make quick work of your Sharpedo. Best be on your way, friend!"
The grunt gives me the middle finger, but apparently comes to the same conclusion. He hops on the back of his Sharpedo, shouts some obscenity, and rides the river out of the cave (leaping from the miniature waterfalls in the process no less).
The rest of my trip through the cave is much less eventful, and I'm thankful for that.
###
"Clearly something was off, wasn't it?" I ask rhetorically as I stroke Linoone's sleek new fur. "You couldn't dodge, and your Pin Missile wasn't as accurate as usual…"
"Lin." He mumbles, staring at the smouldering cooking fire.
"I noticed your jumps weren't as wide as they usually were." I say. "Was something wrong?"
"Lin, Linoone." He says. He extends an arm and tries to twist it. "Linoone."
"Stiff?"
"Lin." Linoone nods. He pushes out of my lap, and then makes a show of stretching, and I can see that whenever he tries to bend to the side he just can't twist his body very far. He never had a problem like this as a Zigzagoon.
"How odd." I murmur . I know Linoone are famous for their straight line speed and inability to turn, but I didn't expect it would be this crippling, especially with all the flexibility training we did as a Zigzagoon. "I guess we're going to have to adapt your training, aren't we?"
"Noone!" Linoone jumps twice.
"Not today." I scold. "You were quite hurt earlier. We'll start tomorrow."
"Linoooone."
"No amount of whining is going to change my mind. Tomorrow."
I use this time delay as a chance to do some more research. My knowledge about Zigzagoon was accumulated over months of owning one and looking through countless articles (from scholarly articles, research papers, magazines, websites, and anything else I could think of) so one day isn't going to be nearly enough to get as much information as I need about Linoone, but it's better than nothing.
Even my brief research that night at the pokecenter proves fruitful. I learn that the stiffness Linoone is feeling is natural. Linoone's joints just don't have as wide a range of motion as a Zigzagoon's. In return for their lack of agility they get greater speed in the form of longer limbs, more aerodynamic fur (ditching much of their former camouflage in the process), longer and sharper claws, and other minor traits.
In other words, Linoone is a specialist, whereas Zigzagoon was a generalist. Linoone is intended very specifically for a rush-down style of hunting and fighting, whereas Zigzagoon is an opportunist that is fit to take whatever opportunity is presented to it to a certain extent. It lacks the sheer skill of a Linoone at hunting, but is passable at almost everything else.
And therein lies my problem. I taught Linoone a fighting style that capitalized on what it did best as a Zigzagoon, namely his ability to quickly change his position at a moment's notice, and that does not translate well to his evolved form.
In addition, the reason Pin Missile worked so differently is due to Linoone's sleek fur. Zigzagoon's fur is all over the place, hence the wide spread on Pin Missile. Linoone's fur is all facing the same direction, making Pin Missile a more concentrated attack now. It will be more powerful if it hits, but aiming is going to be even more of an issue.
With all that in mind, I devise a new training regime for Linoone, one focused on striking, then ducking under or jumping over the target. If we can't dodge around, we can go above or below. It's going to be a steep learning curve for both of us, I'm not used to a rush-down style any more than he is, but it's a necessity that we adapt.
"At least he can learn Strength now. That's one step up from Headbutt." I muse. I try to imagine Linoone pushing around boulders four times his size. It's a funny mental image.
I suppose I know what I'm doing on the way to Petalburg. I need Linoone ready to fight Norman, because Dusclops won't be able to handle everything on his own.
I think I went a bit too ham with explanations, but hey, it was fun.