Percy unfortunately couldn't find the old sleeping man again. Which was a shame, if you asked him.
He safely passed the road and continued onwards, patting Eevee's Pokéball to feel its weight. He was terrible at not losing small objects and he definitely didn't want to leave Eevee at some random desk or something. That would be disastrous.
Just like how it had probably been disastrous for his old school pens. At least they weren't sentient and traumatised, though.
Percy shook himself out of his morbid thoughts. The morning was bright and crisp, the bird Pokémon's were singing, the sky was a clear blue and he had almost beat somebody to death last night. Deservedly, but still.
His mom would have probably blown a gasket. She was always supportive of him in his school grades and social status, but he didn't think she would approve of violence like he had displayed. Maybe she would, he mused. He was a demigod after all and they were basically created to be fighting machines. It was in his DNA to fight.
Percy briefly entertained the thoughts of being a demigod at his original world. A kid who had just lost his mom, a 'child of the eldest god' as the prophecy had called it, a boy destined to fight until his very last breath. He knew the tales of demigods. A brief glow of heroism and hope, always stuffed out before it could reach its conclusion.
Except Perseus, of course. His mom had named him after the ancient hero just for that reason. Maybe it had saved him too. He didn't have a death sentence hanging over him now. He didn't have to worry about monsters and gods. Didn't have to worry about quests and satyrs and vengeful bulls. Didn't have to worry about mothers.
Percy winced. Fergus croaked worryingly from behind him. He extended his hand scratched the turtles head reassuringly. It was Fergus' favourite spot. Fergus melted again.
No, he couldn't think like that. Manaphy had promised him that his mother was alive and kicking. He would get to see her again in a months time. Sally Jackson would have her blue eyes and brown hair. Her kind smile and fierce love. He didn't think he could handle it if she didn't.
He absentmindedly entered the place he had left before. The Viridian Forest. The forest was much longer than Route 1. It would probably take a few days for him and his team to get through again. To Pewter City, where he could battle the Gym Leader Brock. Whose rock types were supposed to be weak to water types.
Fergus probably couldn't defeat him right now, he still only had his base moves. He wasn't strong enough to damage the thick armour of most Pokémon. But, Percy reflected. By the end of this Forest, he will be more than enough.
Indeed, Fergus would be enough. His Pokémon was much too eager to not be.
On the other hand, Eevee would not be. The poor canine was still suffering from the treatment her former trainer had given her. Even with the help of the Pokémon Center, her body was still too fragile and her movements were too unstable.
Percy knew he needed to give her more time. It was just how Pokémon worked. They were naturally able to heal themselves faster than humans, it was that ability that made them able to life out in the wild. She just needed some more time to get on her paws again and Percy would be there to help her along.
He heard a thud as something hit the ground, then a whispered curse. Curious, Percy peeped out of the corner of a tree and smirked at his finding.
A kid with a bug catcher net was trying to be discreet on the corner. He must have fallen down somehow and was looking around frantically to see if someone had heard him.
Percy quickly retracted his head back before the bug catcher could see him. Bingo.
He had been forewarned about these trainers. They would camp by forest sides and pounce on unsuspecting new trainers. This way, they could snatch money out of the poor new trainers and buy some stuff with it. Probably games, Percy thought. That's what he would have done anyway.
He whistled innocently as he walked by, the sound instantly attracting the bug trainers attention. The kid faltered before smirking, seeing Percy's empty badge pocket and probably thinking he was about to make some easy money. Well, Percy would show him he was not someone to be taken lightly.
"Hey, hey, you! Yes, the one with the blue hat! I challenge you to a Pokémon battle! I will show you the power of bug type Pokémon! Go, Metapod!"
Two defeated bugs, a scowling trainer and a smug turtle later; Percy got his hands on his very first paycheck. The bug trainer was frustrated as he completed the transfer. The kid scurried out without a word.
Percy checked his Trainer Profile where his money was supposed to be stored at. It was a neat little system that made kids be able to manage money much more easily. The system was able to keep track of a Trainer's Pokémon's status, making a defeated team's trainer have to pay. The system would lock down on a trainer's profile until the transfer was completed. It made thousands of frustrated kids from all across the globe pay their respective money.
However, the system was far from perfect. It would not be able to check if a Pokémon was fatally injured; thus requiring medical help. That was up to the trainer's to make sure that their Pokémon got the help they needed. Which sucked, in Percy's opinion.
They continued on their journey until well into night time. They spotted lazy Caterpie's and Weedle's on tree branches, spotted sleeping Metapod's and Kakuna's in the bushes. And even seen a yellow mouse, a Pikachu, once. It had a heart-shaped tail, making the electric mouse a Female. They had watched as it had bound away with electrified cheeks, seemingly enjoying running across humidified air of the Forest.
A few caws from various bird Pokémon echoed across the Forest at all times, not all of them Pidgey. Percy saw red winged, black and brown birds fly a lot, only beaten in population by the native Pidgey's. A curious look at his Pokédex revealed they were Spearow's, the Tiny Bird Pokémon's.
He saw more than Pidgey's and Spearow's, though. Brown owls, grey birds, tiny robins, dark crows, they all flew in their Pokémon forms. Most of them were a mere speck in the sky. Percy unfortunately couldn't identify all of them due to the sheer speed they flew at.
They battled some more, of course. He learned that bug trainers were fairly common in the Forest and that every single one of them was up to a challenge. They were cocky with their Pokémon but ultimately faced defeat to Fergus.
They also battled some wild Pokémon too. Two Pidgey's, two Caterpie's and a Spearow, if Percy remembered correctly. Fergus managed to defeat them with some trouble. He acquired the most injuries from the flying Pokémon, still having some trouble with hitting them while they were flying. He seemed more than a little tired by the time Percy announced they would be resting. Percy recalled his starter when Fergus looked ready to doze off.
Finally, when the sun had given the skies to the moon, he decided to camp under a tree. He carefully chose the spot to be as unnoticeable as possible but knew he still needed to do something about it. He signed, this was going to be a rough night.
He released Fergus and carefully administered a Potion. He watched in worry as Fergus slumped for a second. His worry quickly turned to amazement as he watched the turtle's cuts and bruises healed rapidly in front of his very eyes.
Fergus awoke with a jump and examined his skin. He seemed just as amazed as Percy was. He turned one blue limb over with a critical eye before croaking in happiness. He waved the limb at Percy as if to say 'can you believe this?'. Percy laughed.
He let Fergus investigate the area. The turtle wanted to be especially safe with his choice of sleeping. After a while of consideration, he released Eevee.
Eevee gave a little cry as she appeared. Percy panicked and went to recall her back. However, Eevee seemed to recognize her surroundings and calmed down. Percy warily let her Pokéball drop but didn't take his eyes off of her.
Eevee jumped around for a bit, stretching her legs and getting used to her injuries. She pawed at her torn ear absentmindedly and Percy's eyes were instantly drawn to it. He badly wanted to ask the story behind it but knew it would end badly.
He cleared his throat awkwardly and Eevee immediately turned to face him. Inwardly, he frowned at the almost militaristic look on her face but outwardly he didn't give anything away. He opened his body as non threateningly as he could and kneeled down next to her.
Since he didn't know what to actually say, he just stayed that way. After a while, Eevee relaxed her robotic position and peered at him curiously. Percy decided he could speak now.
He muttered the days happenings to Eevee. He told her about Fergus' battles and their bug trainer opponents. Their destination and their goal to defeat the Gym Leader Brock. To her credit, she didn't seem to mind much. She just put her head on her front paws regally and listened.
Fergus returned sometime in the middle of his story. The normally cheery water-type was quiet as he watched his trainer and teammate.
After Percy's throat had gone dry, he stopped. To his satisfaction, he found that while Eevee hadn't slept, she was certainly sleepy. Fergus nudged him with his curled tail and Percy remembered their deal.
While on the road, they had discussed their sleeping routine. Since they couldn't afford to blindly sleep and be open to potential dangers of the forest, they had decided to take turns sleeping. It was the reason why they had decided to sleep as soon as the day fell. Hopefully, they would manage to sleep long enough. The first watch went to Percy, as he insisted on it stubbornly.
Fergus was just as stubborn at first but Percy managed to wear down the turtle through the road. What he didn't tell his friend was that Percy would let Fergus sleep more than him. Percy didn't need that much energy anyway, Fergus did all the battles. The Squirtle would certainly need the extra boost much more than him.
He watched as the water-type curled in his shell next to Eevee. Eevee seemed slightly comforted by the presence of the turtle and closed her eyes, dozing off lightly. Fergus was not behind her in joining dream land.
Percy just looked at the stars for a while before growing bored of that. He took out his Pokédex and looked at some Pokémon than quickly grew bored of that too. His ADHD was making him restless (ha!) but he was careful not to wake up his team.
He silently got up from their camp and walked a little bit. He didn't want to get out of eyesight of his Pokémon so he stopped at a certain point and began to walk in a circle. Thankfully, neither Eevee's nor Fergus' sensitive ears picked up on his footsteps. They were just too exhausted, Percy guessed.
A sudden sound of fast galloping reached his ears. He turned towards the sound but it was too late.
A green, spiked creature came barreling out of the bushes. It snarled at Percy with wild red eyes and sharp front teeth. Its head was shaped like a spike and its claws looked as sharp as a Charmander's.
Fergus woke up from the sounds. The turtle was a bit bleary from sleep but tried to get up as best as he could. Unfortunately, the green creature was faster. It charged with a warcry and managed to bite Fergus while the turtle was sleepy. The creature retracted its head back before Fergus could retaliate, leaving bloody teeth marks.
Fergus, now fully awake, was enraged. He was about to retaliate with a Tackle but Percy stopped him. The enemy Pokémon's face was directly poisoned to hurt anything that came close. "Fergus, calm buddy. We need to attack from afar. Use Bubble!" He shouted.
Fergus understood and inhaled. He unleashed a wave of water from his mouth. However, Percy was surprised to see it was much denser and quicker than normal. It also wasn't made out of seafoam like normal, it was pure liquid water. He grinned when he realised it was the move Water Gun.
But, he was worried when Fergus flinched. He was confused about its origins.
Fergus was able to continue though he seemed angrier. He blasted the enemy Pokémon once again. This time the horned creature was able to escape his onslaught. Its feet thumped the ground, hard. Fergus croaked in surprise then in pain as a Sandstorm started.
Fergus was thrown off into the Forest. The green little thing bared it's sharp teeth in victory and turned to Percy again.
Eevee came to his rescue, surprising the enemy and hitting it with her Tackle despite the storm. It snorted in amusement as it eyed the canines poor condition but decided to charge again.
Fergus came barreling out of the trees and managed to hit it with Tackle too. The turtle was more enraged than Percy had ever seen him. His starter gave a mighty cry as he stood unstably.
Percy saw an opportunity. He readied one of his Pokéballs in case he needed to slow it down. "Use Water Gun!" He cried. Fergus complied and blasted the creature again.
The enemy managed to fall on four legs. It's teeth glowed darkly as it prepared to bite again. Percy didn't let it. He threw one of his Pokéballs and watched as the creature was sucked in.
"Eevee, to the right! Get ready to use Tackle again! Fergus Water Gun as soon as it comes out!" He ordered. Eevee quickly ran towards the fallen Pokéball with a Quick Attack. Fergus powered himself up with water.
The ball shook once, twice before violently opening up and letting the hard creature out. The green Pokémon snarled furiously as it realized it had almost been captured. The shock didn't let it see Fergus' Water Gun.
Fergus used the last of his strength into the Water Gun. He managed to hit the downed creature. Percy watched as his starter collapsed, panting. The Sandstorm continued to hit the poor turtle.
Eevee quickly took action. With one last Tackle, the creature was down. For good.
Percy rushed over to Fergus and injected one of the Potions onto his friend. Fergus' trembling form calmed down just a bit but he seemed to have trouble breathing. Percy recalled him.
Percy then went over to Eevee who just seemed a little tired. She gave him a tired little huff and Percy knew he needed to return her too.
Finally, he went over to the downed unknown type. The Pokémon's angry features were relaxed in it's unconscious state. Percy looked at the creature than at the broken Pokéball on the ground. He realised he wanted this Pokémon on his team.
With a sigh, he took another of his Pokéballs and gently tapped the creature on its back. The Pokéball shook gently once, twice, three times before stopping; signalling the Pokémon's capture. Percy took the Pokéball and pocketed it.
He realised he had no means of protection, now. He groaned quietly and dragged his sleeping matt and packed it up, leaving only the pillow out. He looked up at the skies and found a good empty tree branch in the forest. Thanking his mischievous school days, he climbed the tree with little issue.
He laid the pillow on the branch and made himself as comfortable as he could. The rough texture dug into his back but he was sure he could handle it for the night. With that, he closed his eyes and was out like a light.
He awoke with a Caterpie on his chest. He shouted and almost fell off the tree. The Caterpie crawled off after a dirty look. Percy couldn't care less.
After calming down his racing heart rate, he looked up at the sky and cursed. He didn't have nearly as much sleep as he had wanted. But he knew he wouldn't be able to go to sleep after waking up. The damn Caterpie had insured it.
He put the fluffy pillow under his arm and groaned in pain as the back pain hit him. He almost fell down the tree but managed to steady himself just in time. What a great morning, he thought sarcastically.
Percy steadily climbed back down the tree and stretched his sore muscles as best as he could. He laid on the grassy surface of the forest and let his back rest. He closed his aching eyes and almost fell asleep again.
He mentally gave himself a slap to the face and got up for good. After a bit of consideration, he released Fergus.
His poor starter still looked tired. His injuries had mostly healed but Percy didn't think Fergus was ready to go out today. Fergus croaked tiredly in greeting and Percy affectionately scratched his Pokémon's head.
He decided to spend the day resting and maybe training. He didn't want to make it unbearable for his Pokémon.
He released Eevee and she seemed a bit better than Fergus. She chirped quietly in greeting before going off to the side. She probably wants to see the forest a bit more, Percy thought.
He looked over the unreleased Pokéball warily. Fergus, tired but still curious, crawled over. The turtle's curled tail swung in surprise as he realized what was in it. He croaked in shock and looked at Percy accusingly.
Percy raised his hands in surrender. "Yeah, I know. I know. I just had to keep it, y'know?" He said. Fergus seemed unimpressed. "Hey don't give me that look, man. It just felt right at the time." Fergus flopped back in exasperation.
Percy shook his head at his Pokémon's dramatics. While he knew it was a somewhat bad idea, it had been the right decision at the time. It might have been sleep deprivation talking, he reflected now. Well, that wasn't good.
But what was done was done. He knew he couldn't release the newest member before at least spending some effort on it. Just… when he had more protection.
Which reminded him– "Alright team. We won't be leaving this spot much tonight." Just as his Pokémon were about to cheer he stopped them. "We will be relaxing and training today!" He shouted. Eevee's and Fergus' faces fell. "C'mon, it's going to be fine. Up ya get ya lazy bums." Percy said giddily.
Eevee cried in mock outrage at the insult while Fergus sulked. Percy repressed a sleepy yawn. It was going to be a long, long day.
"Fergus, Water Gun on that tree. As quick as you can!" Percy ordered as Fergus rushed to comply. The Squirtle almost didn't even breathe before unleashing his current most powerful move. The move went out with a quick splash from Fergus' mouth.
The turtle managed to get the stream going for a few seconds before becoming breathless. He desperately tried to get it going still but it was for the naught. The water slowly cut off as Fergus became weaker. It ended after a few more seconds.
Fergus took in deep, gasping breaths. At first, Percy had tried to get him to breathe in through his nose while using Water Gun but he quickly found it was impossible for Fergus to do. Hell, it was impossible for Percy himself and he wasn't attacking anything!
After that, they had tried the new water move on anything thick they could find their hands on. It was a simulator for Brock's Pokémon's thick armour. They hadn't managed to actually tear anything apart but it was looking better every time Fergus used the move.
Bubble was quickly found to be lacking compared to Water Gun. They decided Fergus would use it against more weaker Pokémon.
Eevee, on the other hand, was taking her training much more lightly. He had just said to jump and run around on the messy forest floor while occasionally slipping into Quick Attack. The training would hopefully make her muscles a bit more sturdier and faster. It would also probably improve her situational awareness. He had also given her permission to rest when she felt too tired.
Eevee seemed to like the chance to run around. She was hesitant at first but as the wind hit her head more, she was much more eager. Last Percy had seen her, she was jumping across entire bushes with her shaking hind legs. She seemed focused at the time so Percy hadn't called upon her.
He himself was running after his starter. The turtle was a traveller at heart and didn't like to practice on one target only. Fergus would fire a Water Gun at one tree, barrel into a Tackle onto another tree and Bubble on a rock right after that. Then he would laze for a solid minute as Percy caught up with him. Percy was seriously considering if his Squirtle was ADHD.
He was also getting creative with his Tackles. The blue turtle would hit with every body part he had. He hit with his shell, his hands, his tail, his legs and Percy had even seen him try to Tackle with his head! After the ordeal had given him a daze, the Squirtle didn't try again though.
The only time he stopped was when Percy ordered him to move on more specialised moves. He didn't like that kind of training much but he understood it was important. In those instances, it was Percy who was lazing around watching him.
He gave Fergus breaks after the water-type was exhausted. He didn't want to torture him, of course.
He had also gotten started on nonverbal orders. He had thought long and hard on his secret codes and decided to do a mix of code and action. It was going well, all things considered. He wouldn't use it in battles yet but Percy was confident they could do so later in Brock's gym.
With the ruckus the two Pokémon caused, it was more than enough to scare away any bug Pokémon. They were usually more peaceful creatures during the beginning of their evolution anyways. Percy was thankful no bug trainer had heard them. Those little suckers would come flocking in numbers.
After a few hours of the training, he managed to get Eevee and Fergus at the same spot once again. His Pokémon seemed tired but satisfied from their respective training. He let them do whatever they wanted to in the clearing for a solid hour.
Fergus plopped himself onto the ground and chilled on the green grass as Eevee groomed herself in probably forever. Percy just shut his eyes and lightly rested his eyes. He wouldn't sleep but he would gladly welcome the opportunity to rest a little while.
The hour went pretty quickly. By the end of it, he was feeling more like himself and his Pokémon were better. He decided it was time to introduce their new teammate. He called them over and they came trotting.
"Since we have now recovered a little, I think we should have the newest Pokémon welcomed to our team." He said. Fergus hissed in displeasure as he remembered his Poisoned state while Eevee dispassionately stared off. It seemed Fergus had informed Eevee about the captured Pokémon.
"I know it was a rough start for us all but we need to give it a chance. It seemed like it was running from something. Maybe it just bumped into us?" Percy suggested. It was a suggestion that had been circling around his mind all day. The little creature had been frantic in its running and more quick to anger.
Fergus didn't seem to give a single crap while Eevee tilted her head. Percy guessed that was the best they could do at the moment.
"I am going to release it so get ready." Percy announced. That made them move.
With a deep breath, Percy opened the Pokéball.
The green creature materialised with a hiss; it seemed even more frenzied than last night. It jumped at Percy with its sharp fangs but Fergus blasted it back with a well-aimed Water Gun. Thankfully, it was still exhausted from its capture. After the Water Gun, the new Pokémon hunched in weakness before putting up a bravado. It seemed wary of defeat now.
Percy almost stepped back in fright as his new Pokémon was blasted back. It had come straight for his throat! But he knew he couldn't risk showing any weakness. "Easy, there. We don't want to hurt you if you don't want to hurt us." Its red eyes narrowed as it didn't accept a single word out of his mouth. Percy could understand that. That didn't mean he wasn't annoyed.
He cleared his throat. "You seem like a battle eager type of Pokémon, not one content to live a peaceful life. You certainly attack like you love battles." Percy said. The horned Pokémon seemed somewhat interested but it didn't let down its guard a single inch. Percy hurried along. "Anyways, you probably like to grow strong and dream of evolving into your final form." Here, Percy smirked fiercely.
"Well, that's what we plan to do. We are going to defeat trainer after trainer, battle Pokémon after Pokémon and be the best we could ever be. We will prove our worth in front of the world and leave it in awe even after our passing." He said, almost shouting. Fergus and Eevee were ready to attack at even the slightest indication of attack but they managed to give off their reflective sounds.
"You could join the Forest if you want, I can release you at Pewter City. But you could also stay with us, train with us and become stronger with us. I am giving you a choice." Percy offered. The creature snorted in amusement and bared its fangs mockingly.
Fergus was instantly in front of him. The turtle snarled in anger as he readied up a Water Gun.
Percy's heart dropped. "Stop, Fergus." He said quickly. The Squirtle was about to disobey but the Larvitar stopped him with a Sandstorm.
The storm whipped ferociously and Fergus couldn't hold on to the ground. The Squirtle stumbled with a cry of alarm, stopping the Water Gun at his throat. Percy very suddenly regretted his hasty decision.
However, the rock-type didn't attack. The storm raged on with the Larvitar in it. A deep, angry growl reached Percy's ears and he understood.
Larvitar didn't want to hear about his words and his promises. No, he wanted to be shown.
"You want to be shown something, right!?" He shouted at the storm. He didn't get an answer back. "We'll work on it." Percy mumbled to himself. He realized there was an opportunity here and whipped out his Pokédex.
Percy squinted at the storm and pointed his Pokédex at the middle of it.
Larvitar, the Rock Skin Pokémon, the Pokedex named. A Pokémon that eats soil. Once it has eaten a large mountain, it goes to sleep so it can grow.
This Larvitar is Male and knows the moves; Bite, Leer, Sandstorm, Screech, Dragon Dance, Outrage, Iron Head.
Percy looked in amazement at the now identified Larvitars stats. Damn, that thing ate a lot. He hoped the rock-type liked the soil on the Viridian Forest because Percy sure as hell couldn't afford a mountain of soil.
On the other hand, he wondered if he was using all the luck he hadn't had in his original world here. Goddamn, Egg Moves were supposed to be rare.
An angrier sound reached him and he knew he was standing uselessly. He recalled the Larvitar back without much trouble and watched the storm dissipate. As he did, his mind raced with theories.
His mind whirled with theories on how a wild Larvitar could have Egg Moves. Squirtle had gotten his Egg Moves from a mysterious breeder, Eevee had gotten her Hidden Ability from wherever human environment she had been born in but Larvitar? There was no plausible explanation.
He was now much more sure in his theory of someone or something chasing Larvitar last night. Perhaps he had escaped from wherever he had been bred at? Maybe he was running from his special trainers. But why would they not catch him if that was the case?
The questions rose to the tip of his tongue but one look at Larvitar's Pokéball made him hesitate. The Pokémon needed to trust him. Percy resigned himself to the fact he would get his story with time. He just needed to be patient.
He lifted his head from the screen and watched Fergus straighten up. The turtles head whipped around frantically for his foe. He noticed Percy holding Larvitar's Pokéball and relaxed. Percy glared at his starter. The Squirtle had almost disobeyed him. In more serious situations, would he back down if I commanded him, Percy wondered. He didn't want to maim or injure someone because his Pokémon was disobedient. He would need to work on this.
Meanwhile, Eevee had already started hopping away into the forest for just a little bit more of that sweet wind. Percy was about to call her back when he noticed her happy face. He sighed and decided to address her at a later date.
He gestured for the Squirtle to follow him and the Pokémon grudgingly did.
With that, they headed to their training grounds. Unaware of the two strange persons with R on their breasts just a corner away. Unaware of the trouble they would bring into their life and change it in irredeemable ways.
-o-