The Definition of Strength
What makes a Pokemon strong?
Do species and types determine the strength of a Pokemon?
Humans were clueless, and unsure what makes a Pokemon truly strong. And so they came up with the system to sort them out. Scientist crafted and complicated the structure, and with meticulous work, the LE system was set in place.
Levels and Evolution.
Levels were sorted from 1 to 100, and technology had advanced to the point where EXP points can be calculated, giving trainers the convenience to check how strong the Pokemon is. Evolution was the same, where certain levels mark the checkpoint of a Pokemon's growth. For example, once a Caterpie reaches level 7, it has an almost 99% chance of evolving, and at level 10, it achieved the last checkpoint of its species' evolution stages and thus transforms into a Butterfree.
By creating such a system, humans made things easier for themselves.
They made things easier for trainers, where any homo sapiens could gauge the power of any Pokemon.
They drawn the line where lower levels were weaker, and higher levels were stronger.
They separated the strong and the weak.
"... What's wrong?"
Those were the first two words that went out of Red's mouth on the 2nd hour of the 29th of July. A cream-colored creature nudged him roughly, a thin leaf tickling his nose as he struggled to sit up. The heavy weight of Bayleef refused to budge, as the Leaf Pokemon murmured a soft growl.
"Bay..."
Red's palm reached for Bayleef's head and ruffled his thin hair, and the Pokemon rubbed against the trainer's chin. Both hands clasped onto the abdomen of the Bayleef, and Red heaved him off his stomach.
"... Hey, what's the problem?" Red tried asking again. Bayleef did not answer. He then slid out of his trainer's grasp, and climbed down the bed, his silhouette running towards the outline of the curtains. Red blindly reached out for the bedside lamp switch, his fingers touching random objects as he tried to find the electricity source. A soft click was heard and dim light misted the room.
Red gazed at the small dinosaur-like figure hiding behind the curtains, the Pokemon curling itself up into a ball. Red rubbed the sleep away from his eyes and kicked away the thick blankets, his feet cold and numb from the air-conditioner. Glancing at his surroundings, the other three pokemon were still cuddled together, sleeping. Thick blankets draped over them, and the flame on Charizard's tail flickered, weak and harmless as the fire-type Pokemon snored.
The trainer walked across the carpeted ground and headed towards Bayleef. He reached out his right hand, and Bayleef seemed to shudder as his fingers got closer. Gulping, the trainer touched Bayleef softly, and then caressed the Pokemon's back. Bayleef arched his neck behind and stared at the boy's red eyes.
"... Tell me. What's wrong?... Stomach pain?"
Another shake of the head.
"Are.. you hurt?"
Not.
"Sleep-deprived?"
Nope.
"Did the three of them... do anything to you?"
Vigorous shaking of the head.
"... Then what?"
Red was tempted to wake Espeon up and request her to use telepathy to understand what Bayleef needed. Instead of him squatting here while doing random guesses that seemed to miss the target. But it was late in the night, and he did not want to irritate the psychic type, who needed her sleep like any other living being.
He tickled Bayleef's neck, who was not amused when his eyes drooped a little in response. The pokemon then cocked his head out of the window, and Red looked out. The city's nightlife was still very much alive, and probably even much so as compared to the day. Iridescent lights shimmered throughout, streetlamps burning brightly, and the neon signboards of the Department Store flashed noisily. Bayleef's leaf then seemed to quiver for a little, before the tip pointed out in a direction, towards somewhere. Red squinted his eyes to fight against the glaring brilliance of the metropolis and noticed what Bayleef was pointing at.
A building with a spotted roof that seemed to glow pink in the dark.
The Goldenrod City Gym.
The trainer finally understood.
His hand touched Bayleef's head before he bent over and hugged the pokemon. Tight.
"... I'm sorry.." he whispered, his face lined with guilt. "... You're still not strong enough."
"Bay..."
"... You wanted to fight alongside us."
"Bayleef.."
"... I'm so sorry."
The pokemon sniffled slightly in response.
"... Can you forgive me?"
Bayleef looked up, where his red eyes met his trainer's ones. The leaf on his leaf wavered, and the pokemon nodded slowly in reply. Then he stood up on all fours, and trudged off, rejoining the threesome, burying himself in the blankets.
Red needed time to train the grass-type starter. But he doesn't have time. Time.
This was the reality he had to accept. For now.
"Blimey!"
At the west streets of Goldenrod, men and women of all ages crowded around the bulletin boards, all craning their necks to get a good look at the information that was put up early this morning.
"Please take one! Take one!"
At the east streets, a number of flyer distributors were stationed everywhere, handing out pieces of paper to the street-goers. People reluctantly took it, and most of their faces instantly went stunned, their pacing slowed down.
"...bzz... Good morning, citizens of Kanto and Johto! Now is the time slot for morning news, and Mary here has some breaking news to report..."
At the south streets, everyone was either tuning into the Goldenrod Radio Station, earphones stuffed into their ears, or watching the screens of their communicative devices of different brands: Silph Co.'s Pokegear, Devon's PokeNav, Poketch, Xtransceivers, et cetera.
"This morning, the League has informed..."
At the north end, neighbors were popping into each other's door, spreading the news they have all heard from their televisions.
Even in the dirty alleyways where a musty smell permeated the air, scrawny kids were shouting at one another excitedly, thoughts on stealing breakfast from the food stalls temporarily off their minds.
Violet, Azalea, Ecruteak, Olivine, Mahogany, Blackthorn, all throughout Johto.
Viridian, Pewter, Cerulean, Vermillion, Celadon, Fuchsia, Saffron, Cinnabar, all throughout Kanto.
One message burned throughout the two regions.
"The fire of war was ignited."
It's pretty rowdy on a weekday morning." Lance commented as he walked down the streets, with a solemn Red and Pikachu beside him. The two humans had eaten, their stomachs satisfied from the scrambled eggs and bread, while the mouse was burping in delight after cramming himself with a tasty bowl of poke-cereal. Neither Red nor Lance bothered to put on their respective disguise and veils and instead moved through the unknowing crowd easily. Red wasn't wearing his usual red vest, and neither was Lance donning his cape and blue embroidered clothes. A casual top and pants for both men and neither could be recognized.
Just before this, Red had gone to stock up on more trainer utilities and purchased a magnetic Pokéball belt, since his bag was too full to hold his Pokéballs. His face had only a plain and boring expression of neutrality, and it felt tough for Lance to strike a conversation with the younger trainer.
"So, Elite Four style Gym battles? How're you feeling?"
"..."
"At least get into the mood."
"..."
"What happened to all that talkativeness yesterday?"
"... Un."
"That's not human speech."
"... Don't talk to me."
For once, Lance shut up, the Dragon Master perplexed at the boy's gloominess. It was rare for Red to say such a sentence. He remembered Red to be more cheerful and down to earth in the past, like how the kid had become humorously flustered when he shook Lance's hand for the first time years ago.
Ah, yes, nervousness, nervousness. It was normal for any human being to keep quiet when they are nervous.
Throughout their walk, zero conversation between the two. Following after, they reached the Gym, and Lance waved a goodbye to the silent teen before he entered the building via the backdoor. Red, on the other hand, headed for the front entrance. The doors hang the sign "closed" but the trainer knew otherwise. He entered.
Stationed next to a pokemon statue was Mitch the Gym Guide, who stiffened when he saw Red.
The Goldenrod City Gym Guide was nervous since this was the first time the Gym had ever witnessed battles arranged in Elite Four style. He was nervous since this was the first time the Gym ever had four Gym Leaders gathered together. He was nervous since this was the first time the Gym ever had an ex-Champion walking on its grounds.
He was nervous, since this was the first time the Gym ever had an ex-Champion to be the challenger.
It was almost comedic to see someone else so nervous other than yourself, and somehow it gave a healing effect on Red, who felt less paranoid than he thought.
He brought everything. Bottles of Hyper Potion, Revives, Antidotes, Paralyze Heal, Ice Heal, et cetera. He could probably set up a Poke Mart with all the products stuffed in his bag. Hopefully, the bag would not burst.
He checked for his Pokéballs and faltered for a moment when his hand brushed past Bayleef's. The trainer then swallowed saliva as he plucked the capsule off the magnetic belt and shove it into the bag. Pikachu let out a small squeak while Red forcefully zipped up his bag.
"Pika-chu?"
".. I'm fine."
"Are you ready?" Mitch asked as he wiped off his perspiration with his hanky.
".. Ready."
And in he went. Spotlights that were as bright as the daylight shone onto him, and the arena was spotlessly clean, no soft toys, no staircases and make-shift maze, just one large platform that was smooth and sparkling. The pink wallpapers remained.
Even so, the whole atmosphere was reminiscent of the days back when he challenged the Elite Four.
At the other end of the platform, stood Whitney, who was warming up by doing stretching exercises. The moment she made eye contact with Red, she grinned and straightened herself up. She took out a Pokéball, and Red quickly unattached one of the Pokéballs off his belt.
"I assure you, this is not gonna be an easy battle." Whitney declared as she placed her hands on her waist, seemingly trying to appear intimidating. It would be wrongful for Red to say he did not know Whitney, who was famous throughout the regions for being one of the toughest pokemon trainers within the league despite being in the business for only half a decade at most. In the past, before Johto was joined to Kanto, all trainers had to go through her at some point during their journey of badge collecting, and most left her for the last few Gyms. She was what pokemon trainers would call: a thorn.
So prickly and painful she was. Her Miltank was notorious; the cow would bulldoze through any challengers whoever try to oppose the Goldenrod City Gym, and there were accounts by junior trainers that claim that being able to last three turns against her is a miracle.
"Whoever has all three of their pokemon knocked out first is the loser!"
"... Okay."
Whitney's fingers brushed through her right pigtail, and her tongue moistened her lips. Meanwhile, Mitch tip-toed forward. His forehead was glistening with more sweat than before. With a whistle hanging around his neck, he stuck his right hand out, his poor fingers trembling with trepidation.
Mitch fumbled for the whistle, and shoved the mouthpiece into his mouth. Puffing his cheeks out like a Qwilfish, his face went pink. All trace of moisture on his lips evaporated, and with a force of a billion men, he blew the whistle.
For the first time in Mitch's life, he felt the sheer thrill of pokemon battles. The two Pokéballs being thrown in a perfect arc over towards the center of the platform, and somehow, the opposing trainers with their respective pride and values put on the line.
The small metallic gears within the Pokéball turned, working with absolute synchronization, and the DNA data of the pokemon resident was generated, coming off in the form of a white glob of energy. The covers opened, the energy spiking in all directions and was finally concentrated into one point, transforming into a straight ray of light. Before the white ray could hit the ground, it morphed into the organic shapes of the pokemon, and with two sparks of light, two creatures landed on the platform.
Magnificence and terror roared through the Gym and for the first time in his life, Mitch laid eyes on such a Charizard full of power and superiority. The orange colored pokemon's species was uncommon within Johto and he had only seen a scarce number of them. It's pre-evolution, Charmander is one of the Kanto starters, but they are not an exactly popular choice since taming and training them was of the utmost difficulty. Most starters were fairly trained before they are given to a trainer, but not Charmander. The fire reptiles were fiery, and if you were lucky, you'll get one that is more docile than the others. And when they evolve into the stronger Charizard, the word "gentle" disappears from the species' dictionary.
Most Charizards Mitch ever had the fortune to see, were jumpy, some disobedient, some too tough for trainers to handle during matches with Whitney. It was the violent nature of Charizard; if untamed and feral, they are aggressive. And if a feral Charizard is angered, destruction erupts in its wake
But not this Charizard. It was a being larger than life, its dignity was dazzling, controlled and calm, and it certainly looked very very eager to battle.
It was the first time Mitch ever saw such a tamed Charizard.
Glancing at the status screen, the Gym Guide was made known of the Charizard's gender. On the other hand, Whitney's current pokemon was an intimidating female, towering at 6.4 feet tall, brown fur covering the outer skin, with the exception of her muzzle, inner ears and paw pads, as well as a giant ring on the belly that had no fur, the yellowish tone of her dermis apparent. The fur on her shoulders was long, much longer than most of her species, and resembled epaulets. Her round and bushy tail bobbed as she shuffled about slightly. She sniffed multiple times, then let out a loud growl, and shot a glare at Charizard, her sharp and long claws threatening.
Red was familiar with this pokemon's species. He had encountered them uncountable times when he was transversing the treacherous Mt Silver, and frankly, he did not want to deal with them anymore. A humongous strength that could lift the frosted boulders on the mountain with little effort, jaw strength that could crush rocks, and the fact that it was highly territorial made things all the worse. Getting past the grizzly bear was a pain since Ursarings were unbearably sturdy.
Red had never fought against a trained Ursaring before, and although he won against many wild Ursarings in the past, underestimating his opponent would not be a wise choice.
A resounding bang cut short his train of thought, and Red looked forward, witnessing Charizard barely dodging an attack by Whitney's Ursaring. Charizard propelled himself upwards and growled at the foe. Then after, he let out a cry directed at his trainer, in an attempt to bring Red's focus back on the battle.
"Grisha! Again!" Yelled Whitney. Grisha the Ursaring stomped forward, launching herself higher into the air, and within seconds, she elevated herself higher than the flying opponent. Charizard weaved out of the way, his tail thrashing about, the fire on it increasing in intensity as adrenaline jolted down his spine. Suddenly, gigantic paws clasped on his thigh, and his whole body was dragged along with Grisha, the two creatures crash landing in a cloud of dust.
"Hammer Arm!"
"Fire Fang."
"Ursaaaa!" Cried Grisha, as his claws aimed towards the exposed belly of Charizard. Full impact was dealt and the fire type hollered, before he pushed his whole body upward, mouth leaking out a potent fire. Grisha tried to remove her arm away, but could not budge. Charizard's claws clung to her stocky forearm, and she violently pushed the opponent back to the ground with her left hind leg, and she Thrashed about, her claws scratching Charizard's hard scales. She backed away and tried to collect herself, until Charizard neared onto her in a flash, his jaws clamping down onto her right shoulder tenaciously. The fire within his mouth shot out, setting fire to the thick and long fur of the Ursaring. Blood spurted out, and Charizard held on, having no intention to let go of his mouth shot out more flames. The heat burned the wound, aggravating the pain. Grisha roared in a fit of fury and punched yet another Hammer Arm towards the side Charizard's ribs. Charizard's blue eyes widened as he felt a crack or two in his ribs. The force made him hurtled sideways, all the way to the wall of the gym.
The damaged wall quickly self-repaired, but not Charizard, for a large bruise was forming at where he was struck, and the fracture throbbed.
"ThunderPunch!" Commanded Whitney, the girl smiling broadly. Grisha was besting a Champion team pokemon. Maybe she was counting her chicks before the hatch, but the feeling of being superior to a Champion, even for a fleeting moment, felt good. Grisha clomped towards her opponent, while Red said,
"Evade."
The Ursaring then barreled forward, left paw crackling with a ball of electricity. She swung her fist down, a trail of lightning zapping behind the attack.
The punch rammed into the wall as Charizard slid out of the way in the nick of time. The concrete snapped and cracked as the electricity ran through the material, the impact sizzling the spot black.
"... Fire Fang."
"Grisha, Slash!"
Fatal fangs and claws were exchanged between the two pokemon, Grisha thrusting into and cutting the scales of Charizard, while the fire type did the same, before sinking his canines into the thick blubber of the bear. The howls and roars of the creatures shook the windows, and then Red commanded.
"Fly up..."
Charizard did as told, and distanced himself away from the Ursaring.
".. Flamethrower."
The draconic pokemon's belly swelled and his scales glowed, clearly marking the incoming release of a deadly attack of fire. Whitney then directed her right arm towards the Charizard and said, "Jump!"
Grisha did the same monstrous leap from before, and reached her claws out towards Charizard, wanting to do the same tactic of bringing the flying opponent back to the ground.
All she grabbed was air.
The next second, the Ursaring's fur stood up on ends, sweat wetting her snout as a powerful aura loomed up upon her. She had no time to react, and a sharp Wing Attack was dealt on her back, knocking the wind out of her. The bear gasped and roared, and swerved her whole body to face the opponent.
And by now, Charizard was already spitting fire. In her face.
The heat bubbled around her, and the Ursaring yowled and her cries died down in a short moment. Her opponent was on the ground, standing, while she, was lying defeated on it. The bear could not move a muscle with all the burns and flaming fur slapping on her body like a wake-up call: she cannot win.
"3!" Mitch shouted, initiating the countdown.
"Grisha!" called out Whitney.
"2!"
The Ursaring had no sign of moving.
"1!"
Grisha closed her eyes in defeat and resignation.
"0!"
"U-Ursaring is unable to battle! It's C-Charizard's v-victory!" Mitch stammered in a loud and shaky voice. It was over. The battle lasted for minutes, but to him, it felt like hours.
How intense.
Meanwhile, Whitney rushed to Grisha's side, and after muttering encouragements and soothing words, she returned the giant bear into her Pokéball. After she walked back to her spot, a great ball magically appeared in her hands. The girl's face was tinted pink and she breathed heavily with excitement.
"Nika, you're up next!"
A Clefable appeared, chirping wildly, and started running towards Charizard. Meanwhile, her trainer yelled, "Cosmic Power!"
Stars sparkled around the pink pokemon, and Nika continued its dash towards Charizard, who unleashed Flamethrowers in succession. Even with the status-enhancing move, the Clefable did not stand a chance at all. The countdown started.
"3!"
"2!"
"1!"
"0!"
And the battle was wrapped in less than a minute.
"Clefable is unable to battle! I-It's Charizard's v-victory! A-again!" Mitch announced, his hands trembling.
"Heh. This was expected." Whitney said. "He is not called the Undefeated Champion for nothing."
Mitch gulped and looked back and forth from Red and Whitney.
"But!" Whitney shouted.
"But?"
"I'm not called a Gym Leader for nothing!" She yelled. "The next one is my ace! Go, Lei!"
A pink cow emerged and landed on its hind legs, ambling clumsily forward and then tripped over its own legs. It then dazedly stood up, the pink teats on its udder wobbling. It moved for a bit and its floppy black ears shook up and down.
"Mil-mil!"
Silence enveloped the place and awkwardness took over.
This clumsy and cute cow is that Miltank? That Miltank that massacred countless trainers? Where did that oppressing and satanic impression of the monster go?
"Mil-mil?" mooed Lei innocently. The Milk Cow Pokemon tilted her head to one side, a question mark forming in her head.
"Lei," Whitney called out.
"Mil?"
"Full?"
"Mil!"
"Good! Then let us start. Rollout!"
Lei mooed cheerily, curled herself up, and transformed into a deadly bowling ball.
And bloody hell, was that Miltank speedy. Lei whizzed off, her after-image disappearing at the same time she disappeared. Then the ball of pink and black was suddenly next to Charizard, boasting her unnatural and almost impossible speed, unlike her plump size. Fats, milk and udders and all.
With no time for him to react, Charizard was hit squarely in the chest, the rotation of the attack move jumbling up his bones. It was no fracture anymore, but a breakage in the ribs. Adding that it was a rock type move, the coat of fire he conjured up to diminish the damage did little against the stubborn rolling cow. Lei persisted, rotating her whole body further. Charizard retaliated, his claws trying to halt the cow's movement, but his attempts were deflected like it was nothing, and the fire type howled in pain.
Commands ran through his mind, as Red thought of the possible counters he could think of, and it was not long before both of Charizard's fists glowed white, and landed a Rock Smash onto the Miltank.
Damage was certainly done, but there was no sign of Whitney's Miltank stopping the Rollout. Instead, the pain from the fighting move seemed to encourage the cow to increase the intensity of the attack.
The two pokemon refused to give in, as Lei continued her Rollout, while Charizard continued to punch Rock Smash against the cow. The tenacity of the cow was not losing out to the mighty fire type species.
And with one final push, Lei won against the strength of the Flame Pokemon. His scales were chipped by the sheer power of the rock type move, and when he was hit on the chin by his spinning opponent, Charizard felt his vision blurred from the sudden impact. The next moment, the Miltank ran him over.
Whitney cheered and bounced on one spot, the Gym Leader energized by the fact that Lei had overcome the former Champion's Charizard. She then glanced at the status screen, noting that Charizard's HP was in the yellow, while Lei's was almost reaching the red zone.
"Milk Drink!"
"Mil!" Lei cried in acknowledgment before she curled her body up and sucked her own teats.
Red's face went pale, and his eyes widened in shock when the HP bar shot back to the green zone. He did not expect that. His mind went blank.
What can he do? The enemy was a Bulldozer, a Bulldozer that can damage Charizard this badly. Meanwhile, his pokemon painfully stood up.
He could quickly spray the Hyper Potion onto him, but Charizard's broken left rib was tough to heal. And after this battle, it was certain that the injury will be a hassle for the remaining matches.
Can he win?
Red gasped and gritted his teeth. Had he really gotten weak? To even have the urge to think of such a question.
Suddenly, Charizard roared, breaking Red out of his thoughts. Red smiled and chuckled, quick to send in another command.
"... Fire Blast!"
"Char!"
Charizard then blasted an intense fire attack that morphed into the shape of the Japanese kanji "大" towards Miltank, who received the attack head-on. The cow should have fallen with this overwhelming powerful move, but she stood.
"Milk Drink!"
Back to the green zone.
"Flamethrower..." ordered Red. He could feel his sweat going cold when the next fire attack proved insignificant to the satanic Bulldozer. And Whitney had quite the skill to quickly administer a Hyper Potion to the cow.
Back to the green zone.
"Flamethrower...!"
Back to the green zone. Again.
Attack after attack.
Attack after attack.
And yet the Miltank's HP had no sign of reaching the red.
"I bet you're wondering how can Lei be able to withstand your fire attacks so well."
"... Yeah."
"Heh. She has the Thick Fat ability. So all the damage by your fire moves is all halved."
That goddamn cow.
Whitney's Miltank was fat alright. Thick Fat, mind you. And adding that it had strength, speed and defense on par or even better than Charizard made her hard to defeat. Worse, she had that Milk Drink move.
She truly does live up to the name of Bulldozer.
They had to close in the distance, but if they were to do so, there was a higher chance that the cow would use Rollout on Charizard.
Should they take the risk?
But battling was all about risk, and Charizard was aware of that. Plus, his Pokémon was higher leveled.
"... Fire Fang!"
With a roar, Charizard ran forward with strong, heavy steps, as his mouth was instantly filled with fire. He ignored the piercing pain in his chest. He ignored the bruise. He ignored all the stings he felt all over his body. The only thing he won't ever ignore was Red's commands.
He neared onto the cow with insane speed, who deftly moved sideways, but Charizard wasted no time to swerve his head in the direction of Lei and clamped his canines onto the thighs of the cow. The fire exploded and the cow shrieked. With a hefty pull, she escaped from her opponent's jaws with a bad burn and a deep slash across her thigh, the blood dripping down profusely.
"Lei!" Called out Whitney worriedly.
There was absolutely no time for the Miltank to respond to her trainer when she felt the heat reaching her. The Miltank scrambled off. Charizard chased after Lei, right behind her tail, his breath angry and his fight seemingly unstoppable. The tables were going to turn in Red's favor.
"Rollout backward!" Yelled Whitney.
Red clicked his tongue and yelled for Charizard to stop his chase and his Pokémon wasted no time to pivot himself the other way. He ran, and Lei spun vigorously, the cow rolling towards Charizard.
"... Up! And.. use Wing Attack!" Cried out an agitated Red.
The fire type flapped his wings, zoomed into the air, the wind swishing by violently. Charizard flew full circle, his scales glowing white, wings sharpening into two great knives. Lei was still rolling, and Charizard was sure that the attack will finish-
"Hammer Arm!"
With the blink of the eye, Lei was standing upright, both arms bursting with power.
"... Char-!"
The two fist was thrust diagonally upwards, pummelling into the abdomen of the fire type, who had no chance to avoid. Miltank did a barrel of Hammer Arms, and very soon Charizard was sent flying smack into the walls of the Goldenrod City Gym.
Everyone held their breaths, when the limp body of Charizard slammed onto the ground, rubble surrounding the pokemon as he laid there, still. The air went heavy when everyone witnessed the seeming defeat of the mighty Charizard.
"Charizard!" Red yelled, his heart sinking, so much pain filling his chest when he saw his friend collapsed on the ground like a rag doll. He clenched his fists and screamed in his mind.
This was not right! They trained! They were higher leveled!
"..."
Charizard can't have lost!
"Higher levels don't mean your pokemon is necessarily stronger." interrupted a smooth voice. Almost as if this person had overheard his internal refusals.
"Baka Matsuba! Where did you come from!?" Shouted Whitney, flabbergasted.
"From the door."
"When!?"
"Ever since the battle between your Ursaring and his Charizard."
"Huhhhh!? Are you a ghost?" The Goldenrod City Gym Leader then shuffled further away from Morty, wary and shocked.
"Maybe. Anyways, Gym Guide, do the honors."
Mitch's lips trembled, and he stuttered, starting the countdown. Red clenched his fists tighter, his lips trembling for a whole different reason.
"3!
He made Charizard lost. Even though he was of a higher level.
No. That guy was right. Levels don't determine a Pokémon's strength 100%. His previous team of six was the product of vigorous training and his so-called training skills.
What about Bayleef?
He left him behind. The worst thing he could do as a trainer. Condemning a Pokémon for being weak just by being low-leveled.
"2!"
The trainer felt more guilty than ever, and vulnerable, since tasting defeat was after all, not something to be proud of.
Unknowingly, he became proud, thinking he would never lose.
Pallet Town. The Year XXXX.
"Hmm... A Charmander, huh?" Professor Oak scratched his stubble and glanced at the young boy, who nodded his head.
"A Charmander, please."
"I can't change your mind, can I?"
The boy's red eyes bore into him.
"Fine, fine."
The Pokéball weighed onto his hand, and all the bottled up excitement burst out. The boy thanked the professor, his hand gripping the red-white capsules tight as he rushed back home, and upon opening the front door, he found his mother sitting on the couch, reading a small pamphlet.
"Red," His mother greeted him. "Let's see, what have you gotten?"
"Mum... I got a Charmander!"
The boy pressed the button on the Pokéball, releasing a small bipedal reptile that glared at the boy the moment he was out. It then sniffed at his new trainer, before crossing its arms, the male Charmander disapproving that he was getting a trainer.
"A feisty little one I see. Any reason why you chose him?"
"Why...? Because my name is Red... Fire is befitting."
The boy then squatted down, face to face with the surprised Charmander.
"The name's Red."
The Charmander gulped.
"I want to be a Champion... So I'll need your help."
The Charmander listened.
"Let's win."
The fire type stared at its trainer's red eyes, and suddenly, the boy extended his pinky out.
"Promise?"
The Charmander grasped his trainer's little finger, a little too tightly. His trainer's eyes suddenly lit up, and he smiled excitedly towards the fire Pokémon.
"I'm gonna give you a nickname."
The Charmander widened his eyes.
Even though he was still somewhat skeptical of this child's ability, a name was still enticing. Then the Charmander let out an excited cry,
"Char!"
"This name is our little secret... so when I need help, I'll call you-"
Tears fell onto the platform.
"1!"
They lost.
"... I'm sorry."
Mitch's mouth opened to say the "zero."
"... Aki."
The spot where Charizard laid blazed. And the scales of the fire type slowly tinted black, the orange fire on his tail changing to an electric blue color.
Aki.
The Charizard's eyes snapped open, deep blood red irises flaming as if autumn leaves were scorching the air.
The name "Aki"
A Japanese name that means "autumn".
紅葉は焼きます
そして、踊り
The autumn leaves burn.
And dance.