Contrary to popular belief (Probably), I am in fact still alive and kicking. Quick address to two anonymous reviewers:
Thank you to Mal for scolding me about my adverb use. It's a problem I've been trying to fix for a while. To superherofan721, Wally is still an incredibly important character without mudkip and a pokedex, and his role will continue to be more developed as the story goes on. Author's word. I personally like that he isn't traditional, as I think that's part of what makes him special. His team will be fleshed out in other directions!
Chapter 26: Fire in the Sky
May understood why Brendan had described Route 111 as 'terrible'.
"Only experienced trainers or explorers try it," he'd told her, which had made her both anxious about what was to come and strangely warm inside. Warm because he thought she was experienced enough for one of the most dangerous parts of the region.
Unlike the other routes they'd traversed through Hoenn, this one was completely ruled by wilderness. The path was barely there, thin and cragged as they wove between the towering evergreens and tall cliff faces. Other people were few and far in between, and the pokemon, from the majestic swellow flying overhead to the hardy zigzagoon, seemed more alert.
The area was starkly arid, something that proved a sharp contrast to the humid south. Combined with the ever-present heat that haunted Hoenn, May found herself constantly thirsty and struggling not to chug all of her water within an hour. It was something that made her extremely grateful that they had Demi and Neptune to help them find water sources.
"It's because there's a desert nearby," Brendan said, when she brought it up.
Her mind immediately jumped to the possibilities a remote desert could provide. There was nothing like it back in Johto, but such an environment could only be home to the strong. "What kinds of pokemon live there?"
"Doesn't matter. It's a death trap," he said at once. "Dozens of people go missing there every year."
Naturally, she turned to her Pokedex. Sandshrew line. Cacnea line. Baltoy line. Trapinch line. Gible and sandile reported, but unconfirmed.
Longing stirred within her when she saw the two powerful dragon types that the desert had potential to spawn. Flygon's insectoid features crept her out slightly, but either it or a garchomp could provide a key powerhouse for her team.
Especially if I want to be a Champion…. But she decided to let the matter lie. For now.
While the environment itself was challenging enough on its own, May's ankle only served to hamper progress even further. She was convinced that it was fine, that she could even take the brace off, yet Brendan insisted they should take things easily until they could have a doctor look at it again.
They'd only been going at a slow walk for an hour one morning when he paused, hands already drifting upwards to remove his backpack straps.
"Brendan, we're never gonna get there!" May huffed, and instead of blowing upwards like they usually did, her bangs stuck nastily to her forehead. They seemed permanently glued there with sweat, and two days into their excursion, she was already finding herself desperately longing for a shower.
"I'm the guide, don't complain," he said, as if her concerns were insignificant.
May looked to the north, where the mountain range they were entering reached its peak. One great formation loomed high above the other mountains, surrounded by hazy smoke even in the bright morning sun. It was Mt. Chimney, one of the two highest peaks in the region, and Lavaridge Town was located on its face.
Even after two days, it still seemed as distant as ever.
"Ugh. Seriously, I can keep walking."
Brendan ignored her, dropping his bag and stretching his arms high above his head. To her annoyance, she could see a slight smirk playing at his lips. "I'm also your coach, and I say it's time to train."
"You gonna train with me?" May asked, giving him a meaningful side eye. His smirk vanished.
"I guess Neptune can help Demi get the hang of her aqua tail… If he doesn't strangle her first. Or himself."
She pouted. "C'mon, Brendan. You know that's not what I meant."
He hesitated, avoiding looking at her face. "Yeah, well… I already said no."
May gave him a look. She was going to get him doing what he so clearly loved again, even if she had to drag him kicking and screaming. With a dramatic sigh, she said, "You never want to do anything fun with me."
"Poor you," he said, voice dry. Neptune's pokeball was in his hand, and he twisted it idly back and forth, as if he were waiting for her to stop acting like a child and get to work already.
"A good friend would feel sorry for me," she said.
Naturally, his response was, "Too bad we're not friends."
May rolled her eyes, trying to ignore the little sting the jab gave her, despite the fact that she knew he was kidding. At least, she really hoped he was kidding. She definitely considered him to be her friend. She'd never admit it to the doofus's face, but he was quite possibly her closest human friend.
The battling matter would have to be pushed later, but for now, Demi seriously needed some training. She was going to be a key player in Lavaridge's fire type gym, and she'd need a lot of work before then.
Demi appeared in a flash of light, her mouth forming a wide smile. Next to her, Brendan had brought out both Neptune and Knox. Neptune glanced around, rolling his red eyes once they landed on Demi. Knox, meanwhile, melted into the ground, becoming a barely visible shadow before streaking across the rocky path and out of sight.
May swallowed, and she felt the familiar tingle that told her Brendan's gaze was on her. When she glanced up, however, he was suddenly studying Neptune a bit too closely to be convincing.
They didn't like to discuss the matter much, as it made both of them (Especially May), uncomfortable, but there was still the little problem that someone had made May a target. She technically had no proof of who it was, although Archie was the prime suspect, followed by Tabitha. She didn't know if the goal had been to kidnap her, scare her, maim her, or… worse, or even if anyone would bother with her again.
Brendan had been sending Knox out regularly, just to make sure there was no one suspicious lurking around. So far, they were completely in the clear, which made May hope that whoever it was had either lost her trail, or lost interest. Preferably the latter.
As Demi tried in vain to tickle Neptune, who irately held her back with only his pointer finger, May sighed and pulled her water bottle out of her bag. The heat was really getting to her.
Her face fell when she saw that there was only about an inch of warm water sloshing around inside.
"Can we at least get some water first? I'm dying," she asked, holding up the nearly empty bottle in demonstration.
Brendan pulled out his own bottle, which had more liquid than hers, but was also less than half full. He frowned. "I guess. Hey Neptune, could you find some water?"
Like he always did when he was searching for water, Neptune shut his eyes. His webbed feet dug into the ground, dredging up the hopelessly dry soil to sense for moisture, and the gem on his forehead glowed.
Demi watched the golduck with an admiring black gaze for several seconds before copying his stance. Her large, round ears twitched, and May wondered if she was trying to hear a running stream. To her immense surprise, it was Demi who jerked excitedly first.
"Marill, rill, marill!" She waved at May and Brendan with her stubby little arms before taking off into the rough underbrush.
"Duck?" Neptune was dumbstruck, and so was May until she finally gathered the sense to chase after her pokemon.
"Demi! Demi, wait up!"
"Marill!" Demi bobbed her tail excitedly and seemed to pick up her pace. Miraculously, May managed to keep up with her. She thanked Latias that Demi had such short legs that were clearly built for swimming instead of running.
Demi came to a stop after dragging May through a thick grove of pines. The hardy trees opened up to reveal a clearing with a small creek feeding into a pond. The water was encircled by dry, brownish grass, which even in its unhealthy state had been an uncommon sight north of Mauville.
"Wow, Demi! It's the perfect training spot too!" May said, grinning. The stream looked clear and cool beside the muddier pond water, and the space was wide enough for them to maneuver comfortably. The nearby trees even provided some shade from the sun's harsh rays.
Demi let out a laugh and ran over to splash a paw in the pond. When she approached, the sleek, silvery form of some other watery type flashed in the mud as it fled into the water's depths (May figured it might've been a barboach), and her smile widened. May couldn't tell if she was more delighted that she had bested Neptune or simply that she was having a good time.
Brendan clambered through the trees with his golduck then, and May spun around at them with her eyebrows raised in amusement.
"Having trouble keeping up with us, wise coach?" she asked, biting her lip to tame her smile.
"Golduckduck! Duuu," Neptune argued, stomping his foot. Demi skipped over to him and tried to tug him towards the pond, which he responded to by standing still as a statue.
"Neptune was just being a gentleman like his trainer," Brendan said. To his credit, he faltered only briefly when Neptune refuted his words by shoving Demi into the water. She bobbed to the surface and cheerfully squirted a jet of the pond water straight into the golduck's face.
"Funny, I don't see one of those around here," May said, putting a finger to her chin in mock thought.
Brendan wisely chose to change the subject. "What, a trainer? You might not be one for much longer if you keep ruining your ankle, genius."
"Brendan, I told you it's fine." May crossed her arms, frustrated. It was her ankle after all; she knew what it felt like much better than he did. One moment, he'd show faith in her by seeming confident about how ready she was for a dangerous route, and then the next he'd go back to acting like she was a helpless baby.
And that was something she promised herself she wasn't anymore.
"I take this seriously," she added, trying to make her voice sound less irritated before an argument could break out. His tensed expression relaxed, and she then realized that maybe this was the perfect opportunity to tell him just how seriously she was taking it.
"Actually, there was something I sort of wanted to talk about. I've been thinking, and I know I'm not the best trainer in the world or anything, but Wattson said I was doing great, and I win most of my battles, and you know, my pokemon seem happy, and my dad-"
"And that is?" Brendan interrupted, but there was an amused twinkle in his brown eyes.
Champion. Can you help me be Champion? May knew what she wanted to say, although she prayed it wouldn't remind him of his lost Sirius and dreams so much that it caused him to seal himself away again.
She took a deep breath. He wouldn't. He'd already warmed towards her too much to go back to that point—the worst case scenario would be that he'd snap at her and then be in a bad mood for a while. Or he could just laugh at her. It couldn't get worse than those options.
Well, so she hoped, at least.
"D'you think that I could maybe… Actually try to win the Ever Grande Conference this year? And, well, you know." Her words came out a stumbled blur, and she felt less confident in herself than she had in a long while.
Brendan's expression remained predominantly blank, although May thought she saw one of his eyebrows twitch in slight surprise or something unidentifiable. She almost winced, but then she reminded herself that he hadn't really reacted that badly just yet.
"Oh…." He sounded caught off guard, but far from shocked out of his wits. He swallowed. "Well, I thought you might want to, since you're doing so well in the gyms."
"I am?" The words slipped from her tongue thoughtlessly, and May felt a load lift off of her chest. He wasn't laughing, crying, or having a temper tantrum, and he'd just complimented her. Maybe he thought it wasn't a complete lost cause…?
"Well, yeah." Brendan's tone, while mostly disbelieving, had also adopted an uncomfortable undertone. He scratched his cheek. "Almost like… Uh. Champion, though… You'll have to work a lot harder. Do extra things."
May opened her mouth, prepared to ask him what extra things, to ask if now that he'd helped guide her to be a decent trainer he was prepared not only to help her beat all eight gym leaders, but also win the Ever Grande Conference, wipe out the Elite Four, and then dethrone Steven Stone. All of which happened to be his broken dream.
Not a tall order at all.
Demi distracted her by tapping on her knee. She was dripping water onto the dull grass, and a couple droplets even splattered onto May's calf. She pointed eagerly at the pokeball belt around her waist.
"Ril, marill!"
"Oh, yeah," May said. She supposed it was only fair to let everyone out since they'd found such a nice place to train. Without removing the balls, she tapped the release buttons, summoning Soren, Ezra, and Gunner to join them. "Hi guys. We're gonna train here for a while!"
Ezra gave her a small smile, nodding calmly. Gunner leaned around him to stick his tongue out at Soren before running over to hide behind May's legs and out of leaf blade range.
"You guys need to stop-" May began, sticking her foot out to stop Soren from marching over to Gunner. His sharp leaves were shaking, eager to take a slice at the electrike.
A shadow streaked across the ground beneath the three of them, and a brief chill swept over the area as Knox rose back out of the ground. He shook his head at Brendan, whispering in his creepy voice and seeming overall much more animated than usual.
"Duskkknoir, dusss." Brendan's face paled, and May barely stopped herself from shivering. Soren and Gunner stopped fighting immediately. Gunner butted her leg lightly with his nose, like he was trying to snap her out of it, while Soren listened to Knox with narrowed golden eyes.
"Oh Latios, Brendan, did he see someone? Is someone following us?" May blurted, but her question was answered when an unknown human voice floated to her ears.
"Ty, look Ty! I told you I heard pokemon, and there're two trainers! Get a look at that dusknoir! They're good ones!"
A woman appeared out of the trees, her heavily made-up eyes glinting as they focused on May and Brendan. Her dark hair was styled in a short, high-fashion way, and her white capris and flats shined impossibly clean for such a perilous environment. Any fright May had was replaced by confusion; this lady was clearly no traveler, much less a criminal. Still, there was something strangely familiar about her…
A man trailed behind her, looking decidedly slouchy in his baggy jeans and backwards cap next to his companion. Of all things, he was lugging around a large camera along with his bulging backpack. May had no doubt he was carrying not only his own things, but those of his companion as well.
The woman let out a dramatic gasp when she caught sight of Brendan. She threw aside the low hanging pine branch dangling in front of her, not even sparing her companion a second glance when it flew back and smacked him in the forehead.
"Ow, Gabby! Watch it!"
"Shut up and get the camera rolling Ty! It's Brendan Birch! The Brendan Birch." She pulled something out of her back pocket to shove it straight in Brendan's face, and it took May several moments to realize it was a microphone. "Brendan! Is it true you're traveling again? Are you finally planning to redeem yourself and enter the Ever Grande Conference this year?"
Brendan blinked, looking from the microphone to Gabby's determined expression. "Uh-"
"We're recording!" Ty said. His face and voice were muffled by the huge black camera he had pointed straight at Brendan.
Gabby beamed and stepped closer to Brendan, taking care to elbow May out of the way in the process. The impact caused May to stumbled over Soren, who yanked his smaller foot out from in under her tennis shoe with an angry flourish. She scowled, rubbing at her injured elbow.
"Hey!" May protested, but Gabby held a finger up in her face.
"Shh! We're rolling," Gabby shushed, before plastering on a huge, fake smile. In a dramatic voice, she said, "This is HNN's Gabby Douglass, reporting from Route 111 with the one and only Brendan Birch! As many of you know, I've made it my mission to discover the cream of Hoenn's crop for this year's Ever Grande Conference, and here, on one of the most dangerous, wild, and invigorating routes in all of the region, I've found him!"
Gabby did an excited little hop, and May couldn't tell if it was also part of her show, or if she was really that happy to have the latest scoop. Beside her, Brendan's formerly shocked face slowly melted into one of irritation.
Oh crap, May thought.
"As many of you know, we've featured Brendan previously, and we're thrilled to see that Hoenn's most outstanding young trainer is at it again! Brendan, what's your strategy for the League?"
"No strategy, 'cause I won't be entering," Brendan said, rather coldly. He weaved around Gabby and out of the camera's range. Ty followed his path briefly before turning back to Gabby, like he wasn't sure what to do.
"What?" Gabby shrieked, before taking a deep breath in a clear effort to gather herself back together. "I mean, Brendan, wait! Our viewers would love to see you battle us again! Brendan! Don't let the viewers down!"
May found herself growing surprisingly angry with the situation. Sure, she pressured Brendan to battle, but she was his friend, not some nosey reporter. There was a huge difference, and Gabby had no right when she didn't know anything about Brendan. She didn't care about him; she only wanted the best story!
"Brendan, is there a reason you won't be entering? Was there a devastating loss? A change of heart? Family issues?"
Brendan's hands curled into fists, and he gave Gabby an icy glare. He was clearly preparing to tell her off, probably with a threat to have Neptune push her into the nearby pond, but May got to her first.
"Look, lady, he said he doesn't want to be interviewed, so just leave him alone!" she cried, throwing up her arms in disbelief. To her displeasure, Gabby's attention snapped to her at once. She pointed a manicured finger eagerly towards May, and Ty's camera was directed at her.
May gulped. "Wait a second, I don't want-"
But Gabby was already upon her. She stood close to May's side, sticking her large microphone right in under her nose. Soren and Ezra immediately scrambled off to get away from the camera, while Gunner puffed out his chest, hoping to be seen. May stared around with shocked sapphire eyes, unsure of where to look, but in the end, she settled for half holding her hands in front of her face, half facing Gabby.
"This is Gabby Douglass, reporting with the girlfriend of Brendan Birch—What's your name, kid?"
"I'm not! We're just…We're not…" May felt her cheeks grow red as she continued to sputter helplessly. "Um."
Simultaneously, Brendan growled, "Stay out of my business!"
All of it was made worse by the fact that her most prominent thought was, Do we really look like a couple? Gabby's face was aglow with savage delight as she glanced between the two of them. She reminded May of a seviper preying on a baby zigzagoon.
"Get that microphone out of the poor girl's face before she has a heart attack," a masculine voice said, interrupting the massacre.
At first, May thought that it was Brendan smarting off to Gabby again, but he was standing off to the side behind Neptune, still trying to stay away from the camera himself. Besides, the voice was different than his, deeper and with a somehow even more backwoods Hoenn twang.
The speaker was propped up against a particularly large pine on the other side of the clearing, arms crossed and bright hazel eyes sizing Gabby up. Thick, golden hair fell over his forehead, partially concealing his face, yet May could tell he was around eighteen, just a bit older than she and Brendan. She spotted several pokeballs lining his belt, and she realized he was dressed like a professional trainer, not some passing camper.
If at all possible, Gabby's grin stretched even wider. It was almost like two fishhooks were pulling on either side of her lips, permanently etching her face that way once a camera was on her.
"I remember you… Vito! Vito Winstrate. Remember, Ty? We battled him a few days ago!" Ty's camera shifted from May to Vito, and she took the opportunity to rush over towards Soren. She hoped the grumpy expression on his face might ward Gabby off. "Vito, tell us: are you here to challenge Brendan? Are you concerned he might be a threat to your goal?"
Vito didn't look near as pleased to see Gabby as she was to see him. "Actually, I came to tell you to buzz off. These trainers don't want to be bothered."
Gabby's façade slipped for a second, her cheeks puffing out. Slowly, she released a breath, and her face returned to its normal size. Sounding more forced than before, she said, "We're allowed to interview whoever we like. This is my job."
May got the sick feeling that Gabby wouldn't be praising Vito's apparent ability as a trainer if she interviewed him again.
Vito's face hardened. "Not on my family's property you can't. Do I really have to ask my friend Duke to chase you off?"
He ran a long finger across the ultraball on his belt, tilting his head in a silent challenge. Gabby's microphone fell limply to her side.
"But-But Hoenn deserves to be informed," she screeched. Behind her, Ty put away his camera and grabbed her arms soothingly.
"C'mon, Gabby, he trashed our pokemon last time," he pleaded. "We can find another trainer out here, and I got some footage of 'em anyway! Let's just get outta here."
May watched, wide-eyed and relieved as Ty persuaded a protesting Gabby back through the pine grove, presumably to some other section of the route. All of the pokemon were unnaturally quiet, like they were trying to process what had just happened. Over by the pond, Brendan was looking surlier than ever. He pointedly avoided everyone's gaze, and May realized with dread that she'd probably be the only one interacting with their mysterious savior.
Awkwardly, she turned to Vito. He flicked his hair out of his eyes, and she could see that they were focused on Brendan. A light smirk was on his lips, somehow more excited and less taunting than the ones Brendan so often wore.
May cleared her throat. "Thanks a ton for helping us out back there. I thought they'd never leave!"
With some clear reluctance, Vito glanced away from Brendan. The boy was grumbling under his breath, probably something about how he could've handled himself. May was relieved when Vito's gaze swept briefly over the pokemon (All of May's plus Neptune and Knox) before finally meeting hers.
"They're alright, but only if you're in the mood," he said, his tone pleasant, but not overly friendly. He inclined his head towards Ezra, who was hovering shyly behind her leg. "These your pokemon?"
"Oh, well, yeah! Well, the golduck and the dusknoir are Brendan's, but the others are all mine." May couldn't help the pride in her smile as she looked out at all of her pokemon. They'd all worked so hard, and they were looking better than ever. The actually sort of looked like a real team now.
She then remembered the stream and pond, complete with grass, which seemed very lovely compared to the rest of the route. "So is this really your family's property?"
"Sure is. Our house is just back that way," he said, offering her a small smile and pointing through another gathering of pines opposite the one May and Brendan had come through. Suddenly, the exaggerated accent made sense. A place like this was even more isolated than Littleroot Town. "This is my first time home in… Wow, a long time."
May idly thought back to Littleroot at the word 'home'. Was it her home? Although she hadn't lived there for very long, it stirred a surprisingly warm feeling within her, and her mother was there… She supposed it was.
Vito observed Knox, who was staring off blankly into space, for a good while before glancing at Brendan. The other boy didn't acknowledge him past a raised brow. Not looking back to May but clearly directing his question at her, Vito asked, "Got any badges?"
"Yep. Three!"
"Not bad. I've gotten seven in just four years." He said it as if he were bragging, and May blinked at him. What did that say about her time? Was she doing even better than she thought, or was she just in for a rough surprise with the other gym leaders?
"—one to go and then I'll spend the rest of this year training for the Ever Grande Conference. I heard Petalburg's new gym leader is tough, but I'll be fine…. I haven't lost a battle in eight months."
"Oh, he's tough," she couldn't stop herself from saying.
Brendan was still in a mood, so May exchanged a glance with Soren. His golden eyes were narrowed into slits, unimpressed with Vito. She hid her smile.
"What? How do you know? Have you battled him?" Vito asked, actually bothering to face her again. "No offense, but I think my pokemon are more experienced than yours… We've been training hard for years. And my family is pretty big on battling, so I've always been around pokemon. Do you think he'd be tough to me, or just to you?"
May's amusement evaporated instantly, and she bristled. "Just because you've got more badges than me doesn't mean you're better! I only started three months ago, Mr. Four Years."
"Two and a half, actually," Brendan muttered grumpily in the background.
She couldn't bother with precision in her blind agitation!
Vito's eyes widened at the words 'three' and then at 'two and a half', but the more she thought about it, the more angry she got. Just who did this guy think he was? His family was big on battling? What about hers? Her dad would wipe the floor with his whole family!
"And I would know because he's my dad, that's why." It slipped out. She knew she wasn't supposed to say it, and she had always hated for people to think she was worth something just because of her dad's accomplishments. Vito, however, had hit a nerve. She was just as strong as anyone else!
Instead of arguing back or even fanboying over the fact that she was Norman's daughter, which seemed the two most likely scenarios, Vito held his hands out in front of him in surrender.
"Woah, chill! I said no offense. I didn't mean to get your panties in a twist," he said. "I was just sayin'. And I gotta admit, three months seems crazy fast, even for a gym leader's daughter. Not bad at all, newbie."
"Don't talk about my panties," May grumbled to herself, flushing against her will. Thankfully, neither boy seemed to hear her.
"Uh—hey, do you think you could call these guys off? Please?"
It took May several moments to notice that Vito had been backed up against a tree. Gunner was sparking in front of him, growling viciously for such a small and cute creature, and for once, Soren was at his side. He had both of arms held out, like he was prepared to cut right through Vito if he insulted either them or his trainer again. Poor Ezra was behind them, tugging futilely at Soren's elbow in an attempt to pull him away.
"Guys!" May cried, slightly panicked. Gunner made a sound of protest, while Soren scarcely acknowledged her. She wisely whipped out both of their pokeballs, which sucked them back in before they could make mincemeat of Vito. Ezra's shoulders slumped in relief at his teammates' disappearance.
Normally, she'd feel more flustered about her pokemon's naughty behavior, but instead she was only mildly embarrassed. What could she say, really? She'd lashed out at Vito as well.
For her sanity's sake, she whispered sternly to the balls, "We don't attack people." Upon second thought, she lowered her voice even further and added, "Most people."
Vito dusted the bark off of his clothing, trying his best to look unruffled. He flicked his hair out of his face again, and May could practically feel Brendan rolling his eyes even though she wasn't looking at him.
"So… What are you guys doing here, anyway?" he asked.
Oh, whoops… Does he think we're trespassing or something? May wondered.
"Trespassing," Brendan said, moving to stand beside May again. He seemed to be getting over his ordeal with Gabby, but judging by the sarcasm in his voice, Vito wasn't turning out to be his favorite person, either. But then again, who was Brendan's favorite person?
"Brendan," May hissed. Vito seemed just big headed enough to take his words seriously, but thankfully, the boy just raised his eyebrows. "We were training. Thanks again for helping us."
She said the last part grudgingly, hoping he'd get the hint and go on his merry way, or something. They'd already wasted enough time as it was!
Unfortunately, he made no move to leave or otherwise mind his own business. "Care to return the favor?" he asked, and May felt uncertainty creep over her when she saw that his smirk had returned.
"How?" Brendan asked suspiciously.
Vito's gaze zeroed in on him, and he looked strangely victorious at the fact that Brendan was finally talking to him. He pointed a finger straight at Brendan, the tip of it lingering only a couple inches away from his chest.
"I want you to battle me."
Brendan took a step back, giving Vito's hand a distasteful look. "Sorry, I'm retired."
"Retired?" Vito repeated, sounding like he was in complete disbelief. May bit her lip, wishing he'd just stop already. Brendan was already prickly after Gabby; this was just what he needed.
"C'mon, dude. You're like sixteen," Vito protested. He shook his blonde head. "I need to battle you. Champion's got my name on it, and you look like a good stepping-stone to me! People thought you'd be it, so if I can beat you I have a better chance!"
"I'm not a stepping-stone and I'm not battling you." Brendan's voice was growing increasingly agitated, but for May, the true tell was the way his fingers were drumming across his backpack strap. She knew he was itching to run them through his hair, like he always did when he was frustrated or nervous, but he didn't want to show it in front of Vito.
The blonde boy was equally displeased. "What, are you scared?"
Brendan's face contorted into a scowl, and May took the opportunity to slide in between the two boys, hands on her hips.
"You're acting like Gabby!" She glared up at Vito, and to her surprise and immense pleasure, she saw him flinch slightly under her intensity. That was a first. "And actually, Champion's got my name on it. Sorry."
"You?"
"Yes, me," May repeated. She didn't know what she was thinking, didn't know where this burst of confidence had come from after her earlier doubt, but she did know that she wanted to put Vito Winstrate in his place. Badly.
Unfortunately, she also knew that he was ridiculously ahead of her in every way. He had four years to her two and a half months, six pokemon to her four, and seven badges to her three, but she couldn't help the words that spewed out next.
"So battle me." He stared at her, and she felt herself sweating even more than she already was under his doubtful look. "What? Think I can't whoop your butt just as easily as Brendan can? Because… I can!"
Oh crap oh crap what did I just say? May thought when she saw his eyes flash, but she couldn't take it back now. She tried to project a self-assured expression onto her face.
"Fine," Vito said, through gritted teeth. He snatched the ultraball off of his belt. "One on one. And don't worry, I won't go too hard on you."
"He's just saying that because he knows he's about to lose, Demi," May said, scowling as she gestured for said pokemon to join her. The aquatic rodent skipped over merrily, oblivious to the fact that her trainer was in danger of strangling her opponent.
May was tempted to call out Soren or Gunner, arguably her two most powerful battlers (And definitely her most confident), yet she reminded herself that it was Demi that she had intended to focus on today. Besides, she was no pushover.
Vito chucked the ball he was holding, somehow managing to looking cooler than May had even dreamed of looking.
The ultraball flashed, oddly bright and dazzling compared to a regular pokeball, and a sturdy shape took form. Thick, blood red fur flowed across a squat, powerful body, and bushy, flame-like eyebrows rose over the creature's manacle expression. He rocked back and forth on two huge fists, eyeing Demi like she was his next meal.
May tried not to gulp. This pokemon… It was quite obviously a fire type, but she'd never seen one before, apart from maybe a passing glance in some textbook. He had to be a foreign import. Next to her, Brendan was watching the creature with a frown, and May got the feeling that even he'd never encountered one in person.
Fantastic.
She was embarrassed to do so after making such a show of their battle, but she wiggled her Pokedex out of her bag to scan the creature.
"Darmanitan, the Blazing Pokemon. Its internal fire burns at 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit, making it powerful enough to destroy a dump truck with one punch. When exhausted, it will revert to a stone-like form."
Demi's a lot smaller and squishier than a dump trunk, May thought apprehensively. She bit her lip, hoping Vito couldn't sense her nerves.
He chuckled, sending her hopes spiraling to the ground. "Never seen a darmanitan before? I'm not surprised. I got Duke after working myself into the ground to import him from Unova."
"Well I caught Demi right here in Hoenn, and she's just as great," May said, reminding herself that Demi had the type advantage. She had the type advantage, and Vito didn't seem to think they were a threat at all…. She really hoped she could prove him wrong.
Demi squeaked, but any effect it might have had was outweighed when she smiled at Duke and Vito. Duke reared up on his back legs, which were significantly smaller than his enormous forearms, and pounded his chest like it was a drum.
"Sure she is," Vito said, and May couldn't tell whether he was being sarcastic or not. "Ready to battle, or what? Duke's getting impatient."
"May," Brendan was muttering into her ear before she could respond. "You don't have to-"
"Yes I do," she whispered harshly back. It wasn't just for his benefit, anyway. She also wanted to prove to Vito (And just maybe, herself as well) that she was a force to be reckoned with. In a louder tone, she said, "Water gun!"
Demi took a deep breath, her round belly swelling with water, before spewing a large burst of liquid straight at Duke. To May's surprise, the darmanitan stood still in his place, like Demi's attack wasn't powerful enough to bother dodging.
"Fire punch," Vito said, his lips turning up into a smirk.
Duke swung his massive fist behind him, and the fur on it burst into flames. He brought it down in the direct center of Demi's water gun, which curled into steam with loud hissing noises. The gas shrouded Duke from view, and both May and Demi watched the thick cloud with squinted gazes.
"Demi-" May began, but Duke suddenly stormed out of the steam, blazing knuckles raised to come down on her tiny marill like a sledgehammer.
Demi's eyes widened and she rolled out of the way, causing the huge weight to miss her by inches. The grass sizzled, blackened and dead, and a huge indent was cracked in the ground around Duke's fist.
May wasted no time in getting her out of there.
"Demi, go hide in the pond!" She racked her brain for how in Hoenn she could hope to counter something so physically powerful. Demi disappeared beneath the shallow water with a splash, allowing May's thoughts to become slightly less frantic.
Everything has a weakness, she assured herself, intently observing Duke. He was a powerhouse, but that didn't change the fact that water put out fire. If she could get a strong enough water attack on him, they'd have the advantage.
It caught her attention that his back legs were substantially scrawnier than his formidable arms, yet she didn't know if she could use that to her advantage. She really wished Demi knew ice beam so she could freeze them in place or something…
"Enough hiding," Vito said, and Duke bared his pointy fangs in agreement. "Use your fire punch on the pond!"
May tensed as Duke neared Demi's sanctuary, fist aflame, yet she tried to assure herself that the darmanitan couldn't get her. He was completely out of his element, and Demi could just go deeper.
But when Duke plunged his fist into the murky water, clenching his face through the discomfort, it took only moments before the first bubble rose to the surface. It was followed by another and then another. He was trying to scald Demi!
"Come out and use aqua tail!" May ordered immediately. "Aim for his legs!"
Demi broke through the water, visible tremors rocking through her small body. Despite her obvious pain from the burning water, she swung her tail around, aiming low for Duke's vulnerable back legs. May held her breath, praying she could pull off the attack after so little practice.
Miraculously, swirls of water spiraled around her tail, which was locked and loaded straight for Duke.
"Hammer arm, hurry!" Vito said, eyes widening in concern for the first time.
Just before Demi's watery tail could smack into Duke's legs, the darmanitan's fist plunged protectively in front of it, surrounded in a silvery white glow. The two collided, and May could see Duke slide back several inches. Muddy lines streaked across the ground from where his legs were fighting to keep their hold.
The struggle ended when the water coating Demi's tail fell away to splash harmlessly onto the ground. Demi gasped, and Duke grinned. In a flash, he forced his arm upwards, slinging her across the clearing and straight into the trunk of a large pine tree. She thudded off of the bark and slid into the dirt.
May watched nervously as Demi tried to push herself back onto her legs. Her tiny arms trembled.
"Alright, Duke-"
"Stop," Brendan's voice interrupted them. It was devoid of any mockery, sarcasm, or annoyance, something that put May on alert immediately. "Is that fire?"
She followed his gaze above the tall pines surrounding them. A thick, noxious cloud of dark smoke billowed beyond the brittle green needles, and when she breathed in more deeply, she was alarmed to discover that there was actually a charred scent carrying in the breeze.
Something was on fire. Something close.
"Groudon," Vito muttered, all confidence drained from his features. He was shaking like a leaf. Duke tilted his head up at him, all the hunger from battle long gone. "T-that's in the direction of my house!"
Before May could fully process what he'd said, the blonde was stumbling through the trees, Duke right on his heels.
She stared after him in a daze before the warm feeling of a hand on her elbow sent her spiraling back down to the land of the living. Brendan's dark eyes were staring into hers when she turned her head. Of all things, she noticed that the ruby flecks in them were alight with worry.
"We'd better go," he said tensely. At first, she thought he meant away from the fire before realizing that he was nodding in the direction Vito had run.
"Oh," May said, shaking her head. She grabbed Demi's pokeball and swiftly returned her. Her marill was in no state to run, but if something went wrong, Neptune, Knox, and Ezra were still out and ready to protect them. "Yeah. C'mon!"
For once, it was her struggling to keep up with Brendan as they weaved around jagged rocks and hardy undergrowth. She urged her aching legs forward with everything she had, while Brendan seemed to be jogging almost effortlessly beside her on his longer limbs.
Thankfully, they didn't have far to go. They emerged from the tree line, and May
made the mistake of inhaling deeply. Heavy air rushed into her lungs, and she hacked helplessly for a moment before finally adjusting to the smoke by taking shorter, quicker breaths through her mouth.
"Hammer arm!"
May's eyes shot to Vito, who was staring at some flaming trees in horror. A small, worn log cabin stood a few yards away from the blaze, still unharmed but clearly in the danger zone. There was a preteen girl running around in front of the fire, her shoulders shaking with suppressed sobs. A goldeen was clutched in her arms, futilely spraying water at the savage fire.
"Cameruuuuu!"
The ground shook, and May instinctively latched onto Brendan's arm, squinting her eyes shut. She could feel Ezra backed up against her legs, arms spread as if ready to defend her with his life. The muscles in Brendan's forearm were incredibly taunt underneath her fingers.
Get yourself together May, you're a trainer! she scolded herself seconds later, realizing how pathetic she was being. She dropped her hand from Brendan and peered out at the scene in front of her.
An enormous, bovine pokemon was stampeding across the clearing, a wild look in its bloodshot eyes. Duke had his strong hands wrapped around the creature's back, which was shaped like twin volcanoes. Lava spewed violently out of the formations, searing into Duke's face and fur, yet he gritted his teeth and held on as if his grip could somehow stop the flaming rocks from igniting more vegetation, or worse: the house.
"Ezra, confusion!" May shrieked, pointing towards the pokemon she finally recognized to be a camerupt. She'd never battled one (Thank Latias), but she was well aware of their rumored power and volatile temper.
Ezra sprung forwards, eyes glowing blue with concentration. A near invisible wave of energy shimmered through the air and collided with the camerupt's bulky skull.
"Ruuuuu!" It thrashed its head even more furiously than before. The motion was enough to make Duke's grip on the volcanoes slip and send him crashing an incredibly large distance away.
Somehow, Camerupt's crazed eyes landed on Ezra and May. Bellowing, it dug its hoof into the dirt in preparation to charge. Ezra took another step back towards his trainer, fists clenched but quivering with fear.
"Rain dance and psychic!"
Suddenly, dark clouds materialized, blocking out the sun and drawing even more attention to the growing fire in the background and the lava blazing on Camerupt's back. Thunder crackled overhead, and before the massive pokemon could make a move towards May or Ezra, thick droplets of liquid were pelting down from the sky like it was monsoon season.
The water seeped into the dry soil and bark of the pines, quelling the flames within minutes. Camerupt stood startlingly still, and May wondered if it was too terrified of the rain to move before it dawned on her that it was surrounded by a powerful blue aura.
Neptune was glaring at the fire type, the powerful energy emitting from the jewel on his head completely immobilizing it. Rain dribbled down his smooth feathers, making May realize that he'd also summoned the change in weather.
In the background, Vito rushed over to hug a weeping couple, an elderly woman and the preteen girl from before trailing behind him. The house was untouched apart from a few stray singe marks.
May, however, sought out Brendan. He was staring at the camerupt, his brow furrowed in deep concentration despite the fact that his clothes and hair were quickly becoming stuck to his skin with moisture. Seeing the effect on him drew May's attention to her own soggy clothing, which clung chillingly to her. If it hadn't been so unbearably hot out before, she'd be freezing by now.
"This camerupt shouldn't be here," Brendan muttered, patting Neptune absentmindedly on the head. "They usually live really deep in Mt. Chimney. Something had to disturb it to make it like this…"
Slowly, the camerupt's breathing was evening out to more natural puffs of air, and its dilated pupils returned to their normal size. It was calming down, but somehow, that did nothing to rest the worry brewing inside May.
Swallowing, she glanced skywards, where the silhouette of Mt. Chimney loomed. Somehow, its hazy outline seemed more ominous than ever.
AN: I thought a while about whether or not to include Vito in the Winstrate's appearance, but in the end, I'm glad I did (Shout out to waterwolf for being pretty much psychic XD I think you know my writing too well haha). Not only does he provide another (Albeit much less important) rival character to May in the clear absence of rival Brendan, but he also serves a great way to showcase her potential.
Just as a fair warning, this entire set up for the Mt. Chimney arc will seem a bit slow. It's definitely purposeful, of course, but I'm sure you're all really eager to see them get to Fallarbor. I am, too, but I also think that the routes to get there are some of the best in the game. It was either take it slow, and flesh out the awesome routes, or skip closer to the exciting plot and miss out on more world building and set up for character development. Naturally, I chose world building and character! I think I might be pulling my hair out before it's over, though.
Did anyone catch Gabby's earlier cameo? Free points to anyone who guesses when it was!
If you could be a pokemon for a day, which one would you be? Charizard all the way because who doesn't want to be a flaming dragon? XD
Bonus: What do you think about Sun and Moon? Tell me tell me tell me. I'm so out of the loop lately so if you guys know anything interesting then do share. Haha.
Next time…
"Look, uh. I'm sorry, but you're gonna have to make it to Lavaridge without me."