Venomously Honorable Koga, Chapter 17

Fuchsia's gym was almost the same on the outside as any other building in the city. Fortunately, after a bit of asking around, I found myself inside the correct one. Unlike the rest of the gyms, this one didn't have an arena for the Pokemon to battle. The entire hall was covered in wood floors, all brilliantly polished and maintained. It was almost a shame to do battle here, and risk damaging the floor. I noticed a shoe rack when I entered, and did the polite thing of leaving behind my sandals before entering the house proper.

"Proper manners, I respect that."

The voice came from across the hall, though there was no one sitting on the floor pillow there. I walked forward a bit, but stopped about half way through the hall. I picked up Vulpix, and took a few steps back. I sat down on the floor, and told Vulpix to stay seated as well.

"Again, you show respect to my gym." The deep voice said.

"I've come to challenge the gym leader for a badge. My name is Star, and this is Vulpix, my best friend."

A smoke bomb went off on the other side of the gym, shrouding the floor pillow for a moment. When the smoke dissipated, there was a man sitting on the pillow. He was dressed like a ninja from a TV show, his red scarf the most noticeable part of his outfit. I lowered my head, and Vulpix followed my lead.

"I am Koga, of Fuchsia City."

"I wish to have a Pokemon battle, do you accept?" Koga seemed to pay close attention to the fancy talk, so I kept it up.

"I do, Star. I am surprised you know so much about the traditions of the gym."

"Would you believe me if I said it was all luck?"

"Actually, I would!" Koga let out a hearty laugh, and I let slip a little giggle before composing myself.

"It seems you've changed a bit, Star." Koga said, eyeing me closely.

"Sir?"

"Since Saffron City. I am good friends with Sabrina, of the Saffron Gym. We keep in touch about trainers we face separately." I lowered my head, a bit ashamed of whatever it was Sabrina said. If she shared everything that had happened, he knew all about my fears and what Sabrina did to bring them out.

"What did she say?"

"That is between friends. Suffice to say, where Sabrina saw weakness, I saw strength of character."

"Is Sabrina always so..." I took a moment to find the right word, not wanting to offend Koga. "Cold?"

"It's her way. Carrying the burden of psychic powers is too much for just anyone. She copes with it by being the way she is. Trust me, I knew her back when she wasn't so 'cold', as you put it." If that was the case, perhaps Koga could answer something for me.

"Can I ask you something? Who's the little girl that's always with her?" Koga closed his eyes, and it was clear he knew who I was talking about.

"I would rather not say without Sabrina's consent. Now, you came here to challenge me for a Soulbadge, so why don't we get started on that?"

Koga stood up, producing a Pokeball from behind his back. I got up as well, sending Vulpix out first.

"What are the rules?" I asked.

"All out. Fight with all your might against my Pokemon. Are you ready?"

I nodded, and Koga threw his Pokeball not out in front of him, but at the side wall. The ball erupted, releasing his first Pokemon, and also knocking down the entire wall, revealing a large garden just outside. The sun was already setting on the garden, giving it an orange tint that really suited the white flowers. His Pokemon was a small purple bug, with large, red eyes. It was a Venonat, a Pokemon commonly referred to as a pest in the areas around Pallet Town. Mom didn't like them much.

"Shall we take this fight outside?"

Koga's Venonat ran ahead before us, taking its position on one side of a small flower bed in the shape of a Pokeball. If I thought it was a shame to fight on the wood floor, on the flower bed was worse. Still, Vulpix took her spot across from Venonat, and I was about to walk out onto the grass when Koga stopped me. He had his floor pillow in his hand, and dropped in on the edge of the floor.

"We stay here. Grab your seat, or stand."

Most certainly a twist on battling, sitting right next to your opponent. I grabbed the pillow like he suggested, and sat down to his left, matching Vulpix's position on the field. When you fight against another trainer, you usually get to look at them directly, and it helps you judge their actions. With Koga right next to me, I felt almost blind, like Venonat could attempt anything and I'd never see it coming.

"Your first move, Star?" Another aspect I hated about battling, making the first move.

"Vulpix, Ember!"

"Venonat, Foresight."

Vulpix took a step back, swinging her tails at Venonat to rain down small flames all over her opponent. Venonat moved to a side, his eyes glowing brightly for a moment. Vulpix's attack missed him completely, so I moved on to the next move.

"Use Flamethrower!"

"Venonat, Disable."

Vulpix opened her mouth for the attack, but Venonat's eyes began to glow again, and Vulpix just stopped. Disable was a great way to level the field, since it would prevent her from using her Flamethrower attack. And with Venonat able to dodge Vulpix's Ember, I'd have to play this one without the type advantage.

"Vulpix, Quick Attack!"

"Venonat, Supersonic."

Vulpix disappeared for a moment, ramming into Venonat a second later, sending the ugly bug flying into the air. After leveling out in the air, Venonat once again glared at Vulpix, this time letting out a sharp cry. Vulpix cried out a bit, trying to get the shriek out of her ears. She started to wobble around a bit, and I was afraid the attack had managed to confuse her.

"Vulpix, focus! Use Quick Attack!"

Vulpix nodded, as if she understood the order, but just spun around in a circle before collapsing on the ground. Koga snickered.

"Venonat, use Poison Powder."

"Vulpix, get out of the way!" I screamed in panic.

Venonat ran up to Vulpix, shaking about for a moment, and releasing a bunch of purple dust all over her. She cried out a bit as the dust landed on her. She was still confused, and now poisoned, there was little hope she could win this battle. I threw in the towel, and called her back.

"You forfeit the match?"

"No, just switching Pokemon." Vulpix stumbled over to me, trying to focus enough to snap out of the confusion. I dug around my bag for an antidote, when Koga produced one for me.

"League rules are clear: use of an item disqualifies the Pokemon from battling further."

"I understand, and thank you." I applied the antidote on Vulpix, relieved when she started breathing normally again. After petting her for a moment, I reached for the next Pokemon to face Koga. I released Primeape. Koga wasted no time in preparing for the next match.

"Venonat, Double Team."

With a single yelp, Venonat produced a body double, then a triple, and clone after clone. Before long, there were over a dozen copies of Venonat surrounding Primeape. I had been slow to pick up on Koga's strategy, but I was finally starting to catch on.

"Primeape, use Focus Energy!"

Primeape threw me an odd glance, like I was crazy for not ordering it to go crazy itself. Still, he started beating on his chest, pumping himself up for the next blow. I was tempted to turn my head towards Koga, and see just what his reaction was, but I ended up keeping my eyes on the battlefield. Koga waited for a moment before ordering his next attack.

"Venonat, use Poison Powder."

My strategy would cause Primeape to get poisoned on purpose, but I'd be able to pick out the real Venonat. Double Team caused exact clones of the Pokemon to appear to cause confusion to the opponent, but they were more like shadows than anything. And a shadow needed the original to make the first move. I kept my eyes fixed on Primeape, and once the first Venonat flinched to start the attack, I had him picked out. I stood up and pointed at the right critter.

"Screech on that Venonat, now!"

Primeape followed my finger, spotting the Venonat I was pointing at. He opened his mouth, letting out a powerful wave that sent the critter flying back, and the others all disappeared. With Venonat in the open and off balance, I order Primeape in for the finishing blow.

"Seismic Toss!"

Primeape ran towards Venonat, picking the Pokemon up as it tried to scurry away. Holding it over his head, Primeape leapt into the air, landing on the roof of the building surrounding the arena, and then jumped again into the air as high as it could. He came crashing back down, Venonat first. After the explosion of dirt and dust, there was only a whole in the ground and Primeape standing over it. Venonat was out for good.

"Congratulations, Star," Koga said as he recalled his Pokemon. That was almost too easy to have been the entire match.

"Is that it?"

"You want to fight again?" He asked with a hint of surprise in his tone.

"No, it's not that. I expected another Pokemon, since Venonat wasn't..." I paused for a moment, trying to find the right word again. "That strong?"

"Yet, he was strong enough to defeat your Vulpix." Koga had a point there.

"I have a feeling there was a point to this whole battle, other than for me to win a badge."

"And Sabrina said you were a throwaway trainer," Koga said, laughing it up at his supposed friend. I called back Primeape, seeing as how the battle was won.

"So what was the point?" I asked.

"You saw Venonat, and did not think it a worthy opponent."

"That's-," I stopped myself, thinking hard on the answer again. Koga was more impressed with the fact I caught myself before I could say it.

"You're right." I said, slightly ashamed of my way of thinking.

"You went with the easiest route to victory, and lost in the process. I caught you off-guard with a Pokemon you would think would be an otherwise easy victory. Sabrina fell for this herself, the second time she faced you."

"So, I should trick people into not trying hard enough?"

"If your opponent underestimates you, victory is already favoring you. Do not give them a reason to fear you, and they will always be at a disadvantage." That was certainly one approach to battling.

"I think I understand." Koga smiled, and reached into his pocket for a badge.

"The Soulbadge is yours, Star. Remember the spirit in which you earned it."

I took the badge, taking a good, long look at it before attaching it to the back of my trainer card. After returning my floor pillow to its original place near the entrance, I turned to Koga one last time. There was still a question I didn't have an answer to, something that had been bothering me for a while now.

"Koga, what was Sabrina like before? You said you knew her since before she was like that, right? Why did she change?"

"People change, Star. Sometimes they do it with good reason, other times it happens without their consent. Just remember one thing-" he said, turning to look me in the eye.

"That somewhere deep down, the person you once knew is still there. It just takes a bit of work to find them, is all."

~o~

After bidding Koga farewell, I left the gym, and made my way back to the Pokemon Center. After letting Vulpix get treated by Nurse Joy, I took her with me to the second floor, the typical area where I slept whenever I stayed at a center. I looked Vulpix in the eyes for a while, trying to see myself reflected in them. Turned out to be quite difficult, what with her constantly tilting her head back and forth. Still, after enough trying, I managed to see my reflection in them, if only for a second or two.

I looked like myself, but I certainly didn't feel like myself. Like Koga said, people change, but it isn't always their choice. It took me all night, but I finally came to the conclusion that I had changed, too. Was it my choice? That was a question I couldn't find an answer to. Was it my choice if life forced me to make it? What was the alternative?

Before setting out on this journey, I never thought about things like this. And I didn't choose to start thinking about them either. I guess, it wasn't my choice after all.

I wondered: did Deneb make the choice, or did life do it for him?