Chapter 4: The first rival battle
(Because it always happens, you can't deny it.)
Ray looked at Ion, an eyebrow raised in confusion. "What do you suppose happened?"
Ion's face was blank before he shrugged, starting the walk back to Cherrygrove. "He probably made hot pockets explode in his microwave again. That guy can't cook anything to save his life, he somehow set a bowl of cereal on fire just by adding milk."
Ray was utterly nonplussed by that comment. Not only was it illogical, but that a professor of Pokémon didn't know how to cook? Didn't they go on long excursions into the wild regions in search of Pokémon and whatnot? Did Elm buy his lunches at the Pokémarts? Weird...
And then a blur smacked right into Ray, and both he and the person that ran into Ray fell to the ground. And the person who ran into him immediately jumped to his feet, steaming mad, and shouted, "Oi! Watch where yer goin', ya git! Don't just be standing the middle o' the road like that!"
Ray got himself up, brushing off his clothes. This man was already annoying him, and not just because his mouth moved faster than his words, but because he was being accused of standing around? "We were walking too, you know." Ray replied calmly, though the tiniest hint of anger could be heard behind his words.
"Oh, yeah, walkin' as fast as molasses in January," The other boy huffed arrogantly. "You shouldn't 'o been walkin' in the middle 'o the road with that slow speed! Stay off to the side- 'Ey!"
He shouted that last part when Ion just shoved past him, nearly sending him on his butt again.
"You're worse than a Sunday driver," Ion stated plainly, making the new kid mutter angrily at his back.
"OY!" Came a shout from the direction of Cherrygrove, as a new figure appeared, soon catching up to Ion, Ray, and the new guy. "I told you to wait up!" Glancing at the two others, his face fell. "And who the (donkey) are you losers?"
Ray was perfectly fine just leaving these two idiots to their comedy routine, and began to walk towards Cherrygrove without a word.
"Oi, sorry boss, but we wanted to-" Before the other kid could finish what he was going to say, Ion whirled around and glared at the newest person among them.
"Oh, yeah, I'm the loser just for walking back to town, minding my own business, when some motor mouth idiot runs into my friend and starts accusing him of being rude when he's the rude idiot!" The boy snapped, pulling down his eyelid, blowing a raspberry, hmphing and then turning around to walk after Ray once more.
And 'motor mouth' was steaming in rage once more.
"I called you losers because that's what you looked like." The new arrival said, his red eyes narrowing in disgust as he looked at Ion. "I bet you don't even have good Pokémon yet."
And Ion took the bait, turning back and sticking his tongue out at the taller teen. "Shows how much you know, rude idiot, I got two good Pokémon and they're my best friends in the whole wide world. Not that you have any. Mneh."
"Hey, the boss has me!" 'Motor mouth' protested.
"As I said, not that you have any."
"... Oi, (mankey) you, git."
"Aren't you that Ponce loser I trounced a few weeks ago?" Came Ray's calm voice, having been forced to turn by the constant bickering Ion was engaging in. The motor mouthed kid finally took a good look at him, and also seemed to recognize the brown haired teen, judging by the angry look that came to the motor mouth's face. "No offense, but I suggest you move along before we make you."
"Oi," He shouted, a bit too loudly perhaps, "Yer that git that cheated me out of that tournament to get a rare egg!"
"So you're strong then?" Said the red head, an odd smirk spreading across his face. "You might be worth fighting then."
"Please, you couldn't handle Ion right now, let alone me." Ray dismissed him out of hand, causing the kid to turn that smile into a frown. Ion looked somewhat angered by that comment, himself, and as he raised a finger at the older boy, ready to retort at him, Ponce interrupted that with a sudden, barking laugh.
"Yeah, well, I got stronger, I have, and I bet I can beat your sorry Eevee (Gifarig) now, (chompy)!" Ponce grabbed a Poké Ball off his belt, enlarged it and readied himself to throw it. "Meet my new Pokémon! Go, Chikorita!"
The ball flew into the air and popped open, white energy flying to the ground and forming into the little sauropod-like Grass type, who shook its head, blustering, then looked out... And saw Ion, its eyes widening. And Ion recognized it, too.
"That's one of Elm's starters!" Ion said in surprise, eyes wide. "How the hell did you get it?"
The red haired boy smirked. "You don't need to know. But you're both going down. Go Totodile!" He cried, throwing a ball that released the same jerkgator that had bit Ion hours before.
Ray sighed. "A double battle, is it?" He gave the slightly younger boy a glance. "Ion, will you work with me? I doubt it's smart to fight them both alone." He took out a Poké Ball and released Umbreon, which jumped to the front line ready for battle.
"Uh, sure," Ion said uncertainly. This was going to be his first real battle? Against two rude idiots that bumped into them and had two of his local professor's Pokémon? And the jerkgator was 'grinning' at him, showing off its teeth once more.
He took his own ball out, knowing that Mortimer would'nt have a good time against a Grass and Water type, so he sent out Nabel, his baby Kangaskhan.
"Oi!" Ponce recoiled, looking at the rare Pokémon with surprise. "Oi, boss, ya see that? That git got a Kangaskhan! Those lil' (Beluga) be tough!"
The mysterious boy did look shocked to see the baby Pokémon, but immediately recovered. "That doesn't mean that it's strong." He retorted. "Totodile! Water gun that Kangaskhan!"
Totodile obeyed, breathing deep and letting out a gurgling sound as it began to gather up water from its belly.
"Umbreon take the hit!" Ray shouted, and Umbreon jumped in front of Ion's Pokémon as Totodile spat his attack, taking the pressurized jet of water in the other's place.
Ion winced, especially when Ponce gained some courage and ordered his Pokémon, "Use Poison Powder on that Umbreon, Chikorita! Take out that Kangaskhan's defender!"
Chikorita let out a bark and waved its head leaf, sending a cloud of purple, poisonous powder at the dark canine, which covered its skin thickly, coagulating thanks to the remnants of the Water Gun.
Ion panicked for a moment, and he decided to use a random move as he knew he didn't have any ones that were super effective against these things, "Nabel, use Fake Out!"
The baby Pokémon leapt over Umbreon and dashed at Chikorita and Totodile, and with its large arms, smashed their heads together and then jumped away, leaving both dazed (And Chikorita looked a little ill now, for some reason).
"Umbreon, you alright?" Ray asked, and Umbreon gave a little nod, though obviously the poison was beginning to take effect. Ray looked over at Ponce, and allowed a smirk when he saw the rude teen's confusion over Chikorita's sudden bout of sickness. "By the way Ponce," He said, getting the other boy's attention, who glared at him, "you seem to have forgotten my Umbreon's ability." At the confused look his scowl became, Ray clarified, "Synchronization; all status effects on a Pokémon with this ability are transferred to the other Pokémon as well." Ray couldn't help the way his smirk transformed into what Ion thought was a creepy slasher's smile at the dawning comprehension on Ponce's face. "In other words; You poisoned him, and now your Chickorita is poisoned as well."
"… (Hitmonlee)." The other boy cursed.
Ray pointed at the Chikorita in such an epic way Ion couldn't help by stare, surprised. "Now, Umbreon! Use Assurance!" Umbreon growled, and charged forward before giving the Chikorita a powerful kick to the face. Since it had already been hit by the Kangaskhan, and the poison had been wreaking havoc on the little sauropod this entire time, it fainted dead-way.
The red head kid now knew for sure that this guy was strong, or at the very least knowledgeable. "Totodile! Bite the Umbreon!" While dazed, his Totodile heeded the order and ran over, giving a painful bite Umbreon on the leg, making it whimper in pain. Umbreon, however, kicked out with its other leg and smashed it into the front of Totodile's muzzle, making it release the dark canine's leg, holding its nose in pain.
Ion was a little more confident now that he saw that they were winning, even if he was worried about Ray's Umbreon (it had battled earlier and they hadn't been able to stop at a Pokémon Center yet), he put it to the side for now; he pointed at the Totodile and ordered, "Use Comet Punch, Nabel!"
The Kangaskhan let out what would have been a roar if she had been older, but sounded more like a baying at this time, and hopped over to Totodile, which tried to back away, still holding its nose, but couldn't get away fast enough; he was met with a barrage of punches to the face, and he stumbled as he was knocked around. An uppercut to his jaw sent him flying head over heels to land at the red haired kid's feet, and it took him a moment to stand up again, shaking his head clear of stars.
Ponce had been in shock since he saw his Chikorita get trounced so easily, bested by a Pokémon that looked like it'd seen battle earlier in the day and thus should have been tired… He shook his surprise off, growling, and returning his new Pokémon to her Poké Ball.
And then he pulled his other ball out from a pocket in his shirt, crying out, "Go and kick that git's (treasure), Riolu!"
Summoned to the field was the strange little bipedal canine, and he hopped around a bit, looking around with the excitement of a puppy.
"Use Force Palm on that Umbreon and bring it down!" The trainer ordered.
The little dog charged, its hand pulled back to give the dark canine a powerful strike to its face, a rather determined look on its adorable face.
Umbreon took the hit, being too stubborn and sick from the poison powder to move much anymore, and was sent flopping over into a tree from the force of it. With a cry, he collapsed to the ground and Ray returned him to his Poké Ball.
"Good shot," He began, pulling his second Ball of his belt, "but I'm sure you haven't forgotten my next choice. Espeon, come on!" Out popped Ray's second Pokémon, her majestic split tail moving back and forth.
"Oi! That's not how it works, git!" Ponce protested, stomping his foot angrily. Why did it have to be that stupid little purple cat? It was what that kid had cheated with before.
"Use Confusion on the Totodile!" Ray cried, and the Totodile, which was still trying to recover, got blasted onto its back once again, this time thanks to psychic force, and didn't get back up.
This caused the red haired kid to growl, returning the tired gator back to its Ball.
"Go Cyndaquil!" He cried, throwing a second Ball, and Ion really, really hoped it wasn't the same Cyndaquil... "Cyndaquil, Ember that Kangaskhan!"
The little firemouse obeyed, spitting a ball of flame at the 'little' kangaroo-like Pokémon, and she took it right to the chest, letting out a loud baying in pain in reaction as her fur was set on fire.
Ion winced once more, looking worriedly as his baby girl hissed in pain at the flames dancing on her, but shook his head rapidly. He shouldn't be freezing up like this!
Since there were now Pokémon out that wouldn't take out Mortimer easily, he yelled out, "Nabel, return!"
Nabel looked at him for a moment, but then ran back over to his side (And began rolling around on the ground to put the flames on her out) as Ion pulled another ball off of his belt, and sent out his little Cubone buddy.
Ponce winced at another of their Pokémon going down, scowling much like his 'Boss' was now. This wasn't going in their favor…
"(Bubble), whatever!" He shouted, before pointing at Espeon, "Riolu, Quick Attack that Espeon!"
"Espeon, Confusion!" Ray shouted in reply.
The young pooch thing blurred over at Ray's freshly sent out Pokémon, and struck him as hard as he could. Or would have, if it wasn't suddenly lifted and thrown several feet back, flat on its face.
"Ion, take out that Riolu first!" Ray told his companion. "We'll worry about Cyndaquil afterwards!"
Red hair's face fell angrily at that comment, thinking the older boy wasn't taking him seriously. "Cyndaquil! Tackle that Espeon!"
Cyndaquil obviously didn't like that order, looking back at the boy uncertainly, but the scowl she received in return sent her running at the larger cat-like Pokémon which, of course, only looked on in vague amusement.
Ion didn't listen to Ray, instead pointing at the Cyndaquil that was rushing at his friend's Pokémon, "Mortimer, use Bone Club on that Cyndaquil!"
The little theropod-like Ground type jumped in front of Espeon, and waited, his club positioned like a baseball player's bat in his hands. The Cyndaquil stubbornly didn't change direction, just kept running at them, and so Mortimer just smashed his club into the little firemouse's head, sending her flying into the air to crash into the ground at the red haired kid's feet.
"Oh, (Magicks)," Ponce was the first on the other side to process that, wincing harshly. He knew what this meant, and damnit, the odds were definitely NOT in their favor now. These both had Pokémon that were super effective against theirs.
Riolu stood shakily at last, the fighting type weakness to psychic types making that Confusion attack hit it a little more harshly than normal, but it tried to carry out its master's last order again; rushing at Espeon and Mortimer at blinding speed.
"Espeon, Sand Attack!" Ray cried, and Espeon complied, throwing sand into the Riolu's face and blinding it, making it skid into a tree trunk way off course, and then adding its Confusion again without waiting for an order, blasting it into the tree even harder. Riolu was a tough little thing, however, and got back up, rushing at the purple cat once more.
Red hair thought for a moment as this went on, before deciding another Tackle was out of the question as Ponce shouted an obscenity into the evening air. "Cyndaquil, use Ember!" It wasn't that he thought it would be effective, but getting clubbed again would do him no good.
The little firemouse shook her head, getting rid of the stars flashing before her eyes, got back up shakily, and began to run around, blasting fire at the one who struck her. Mortimer, however, began to dance around those attacks in reply, sometimes even batting the fireballs away from him with his club, all just to mock her. And his plan to get her angry was working, judging by how the flame on her back was starting to flare up.
Ion couldn't help biting his lip as he watched this fight. This was all a little more violent than the mock-battles he had with his friends, and while he knew it would be, he hadn't expected this level of violence. He wasn't sure if he wanted this battle to go on, but would these two rude idiots leave it be if he and Ray decided they didn't want to fight anymore? And speaking of Ray… Well, he and his Pokémon were both being so awesome and scary at the same time, Ion didn't know what to make of him.
He shook his head; however, seeing Riolu wasn't giving up either; so Ion decided to give the teamwork thing a try. "Use Headbutt, Mortimer!" He called, and at once, his little buddy turned his back to the Cyndaquil (making her even angrier), lowered its skull covered head and charged at the blindly rushing Riolu, and there was a loud cracking sound as skull helm met normal bone, and Riolu was sent tumbling back, holding its head, whimpering. While not knocked unconscious, it was injured enough now to be unable to battle, and Ponce knew it, as he started cursing up a storm as he returned his little puppy thing.
However, Mortimer couldn't dodge the Ember attack heading for his back, letting out a short scream of surprise and pain as he had stumbled around slightly, dazed, from the force Riolu had put into its Quick Attack.
Yagami smiled an almost feral smile, seeing the attack order pay off. "Cyndaquil, use Ember again! Get that Cubone once more!"
The Cyndaquil obeyed that order with relish, spitting a larger than average fire ball in Mortimer's direction, and his eyes widened when he turned back to the only opponent left on the field.
That was, decidedly, not good.
But Ray was ready. "Espeon, take that hit, and then use Helping hand!" Espeon complied to the order, jumping in front of Mortimer protectively and getting struck with the giant ball of flame. And though the fire burned, the next move was also made. She and Mortimer began to glow in concert as she concentrated, aid being provided to all Cubone's battle powers.
Ion had an idea on what to do now, and he smiled a very malicious smile at the red haired boy who seemed to realize what was going on much faster than Ponce, by his look of growing dread. The boy pointed in what he thought was an epic pose (and was unintentionally copying Ray from earlier) at the Cyndaquil, "Mortimer, finish it with a Bone Club!"
The Cubone let out a war cry as he lifted his club over his head with both his hand, charging as quickly as his little legs took it. He then jumped high into the air, coming down at the little firemouse with a crazed look in his eyes, leaving the little creature to freeze in fear... And then there was a loud crack as bone club met skull, and she was sent flying back into her trainer, knocking him over.
"Boss!" Ponce cried, immediately by the red haired kid's side and trying to help him up.
He let out a sound of annoyance as he stood with the help of his accomplice, glaring at their opponents. "We've wasted too much time with these losers." The kid said, the scowl on his face worsening. "Let's get moving." Before he turned, however, he tossed the Poké Ball of the fainted Cyndaquil down to the ground, and then crushed it under his heel.
"What a useless monster." He all but spat, and dashed off in the direction of Violet City, Ponce right behind him.
Ray half wanted to give chase to the odd pair, but... "Let's get this Cyndaquil back to Professor Elm's. We should also make sure the professor's okay."
"But what about that Chikorita and..." Ion paused for a moment in his protest before scowling. "Okay, he can keep the jerkgator; they're perfect for each other. But that Chikorita doesn't deserve a trainer like that foulmouthed motor man!"
He did go over to pick up the unconscious Cyndaquil, however, looking rather concerned about it (Maybe that last attack had been too much?) and noticed something strange near where the red haired kid had been on the ground. It looked like he'd dropped something when he'd landed on his butt...
Ray was already there and had picked up the item; a trainer's ID, and the taller teen was reading it with a scowl. "Looks like that little (apple) dropped his trainer card." Ray said. "Apparently, his name is Yagami." He gave a sigh, shrugging. "Well, he and Ponce made quite a bad team, though apparently a good enough one to steal the Professor's Pokémon..."
"And what about Chikorita?" Ion asked, concerned. Ray had ignored him about it and he really didn't like the thought of leaving her alone with those two. The poor thing was probably terrified!
Nabel and Mortimer were by his side, looking with concern at their previous opponent. Now that he wasn't with those bad trainers, he was no longer the enemy. And Mortimer felt a little guilt, like Ion thinking he overdid it with that last Bone Club, perhaps.
"I doubt there's anything we can do about it right now." Ray said, also slightly concerned about it. "They say that Pokémon raised by bad people become bad themselves, I can only hope that it's just a rumor." Ray scratched his head. "I could go on ahead to Violet city and try to catch them, but at the very least you should head back to New Bark Town. Check on the Professor and your family. We don't know how those two got the Pokémon, so..."
Now that Ray mentioned it, Elm HAD called, and if they had stolen those Pokémon from Elm, then who knows what they could have done in his hometown? The desire to run back to town (After getting these Pokémon to a Center really quick for healing, that is) was almost as overpowering as getting the Chikorita back, but...
"Well, let's go back to lab first, just in the case these aren't the same ones," Ion didn't really believe they weren't the same ones, but they could be different, as there were several others of the same species', right?
So then... Why had they seemed to recognize him, and he them?
"Alright, let's do that then." Ray said, starting to jog towards Cherrygrove. "Well, at least we got the Cyndaquil back, that's something to be happy about." He said, glancing back at Ion, hoping the young boy wasn't too depressed.
"Yeah..." Ion took pace beside Ray easily after returning his Pokémon, looking with concern down at Cyndaquil's unconscious form in his arms. If these were the same Pokémon, then he wouldn't be able to apologize to Chikorita as well... And the thought depressed him.
Elm paced back and forth in front of a rather bored looking officer Jenny, looking up at the clock every so often anxiously. He had been waiting for an hour for those two to return after he called them, and they still hadn't come back yet. Lyra and Ethan he had sent out already, to both look for the two missing kids and to get back his starters from those perpetrators.
Where were they! It normally didn't take Ion this long. Had he been eaten by a Rhydon? If so his mother was going to kill him, and she wouldn't make it swift, oh no, she'd make sure to do it sloooowly and with a steady hand, smiling cheerfully as she cut him piece by piece by piece...
"Professor," A familiar voice, one he recognized as Ion, and his heart jumped with joy. His mother wasn't going to kill him now! "We're back!"
"Yo, professor Elm!" Came a second slightly tired call from a voice that could only be taken as that of Ray's. Then the door opened, and in came the two, looking slightly put out, but also glad that the professor was okay.
Elm rushed over to them, his face lit up, and immediately he grabbed Ion's shoulders and began shaking him. "You had me so worried! Why didn't you immediately return!"
"Weeee raaaan innnntoooo trooooublllle," Ion jittered through the shaking, his eyes turning into comical swirls.
"Yeah, we did, but what happened professor? You didn't explain yourself over the phone, so we didn't know what was so terrible..." Ray trailed off as Elm gave him a dark look.
"I'll tell you, my boy, but it isn't pleasant." He sighed, releasing Ion's shoulders to let the small boy stumble, dazed. Elm adjusted his glasses before he went on, "The three starter Pokémon were stolen while I was in the restroom a little while ago. Sudowoodo apparently heard a noise outside. When he went to check on it, those little devils snuck in and stole my Pokémon!"
Ray clenched his fist. "So it was them. The reason we took so long is because they forced us into a Pokémon battle."
"Huuuuuuuu-whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!" The Professor shouted far more manically than Ion had ever acted, his eyes nearly popping out of his skull at them... And if Ion hadn't been so dizzy, he'd have been disturbed by this. "You fought them! Did you get any of the starters back? Any at all!"
"Only the Cyndaquil, sir..." Ion said, leaning against Ray so he wouldn't fall to the floor.
Ray propped up the slightly younger boy. "Yeah, they left it behind. Unfortunately sir, it looks like the other two are registered on their Pokémon trainer cards now. The only reason the Cyndaquil wasn't is because her trainer destroyed her Poké Ball."
"Oh dear, that's not good at all." The professor said, biting his nail in a habitual fashion. "If that is the case, there might not be much we can do for them. And here I've been offered the assistance of Officer Jenny and everything..."
"And I was so sure these two had been the ones," The blue haired female officer sighed to herself, still sounding bored. If those other two Pokémon had been registered as theirs, there wasn't much she could do to return them, but she could arrest the trainers. And she had been sure these two boys had been the ones. Now she was going to have to devote valuable man-hours looking for those other two, man-hours she could use catching up on her sleep and various little hobbies.
"And what about the Cyndaquil, has it been registered on anyone?" Elm asked, looking anxiously at them. Ion winced before speaking up, his voice hesitant.
"Um, me, sir... They wouldn't let me leave it for healing at the Pokémon Center until I had it registered under my name with a Poké Ball Ray gave me."
"Is she with you right now?" Elm asked, looking eager for some reason. Ion guessed he was probably remembering why he'd sent the two of them out in the first place.
"She's still at the Center, sir." Ion said, beginning to fidget.
"Then my boy, I'm afraid that you have no choice but to take Cyndaquil as your starter Pokémon. Not that you'd have had a choice, with the other two being pokenapped and all... is it still to your distaste to take her?" Elm asked, looking curiously at Ion, who seemed slightly more informed than last he was here.
Ion bit his lip, shaking his head. He really didn't have anything about the Pokémon themselves, he didn't feel like being forced to pick one, but he'd had to pick this one in order to heal it. It still had yet to wake up, but he hoped to apologize to her when she woke up.
"I'll take Cyndaquil, sir." He said, managing a small smile.
And now that he thought about it, he could have effectively cheated the system if he'd recovered the other two from those trainers, and the thought made him guilty, but then he wouldn't have had to choose.
"Very well then, I have a question for you boys." Said Officer Jenny, approaching the two of them. "Did you happen to get their names?"
Ray gave a snort of slight amusement. "Yes, one of them is an idiot from Sinnoh. His name is Ponce. His starter Pokémon is Riolu. The other one I didn't know, but he did drop his Trainer ID." Ray shuffled through his pockets, and pulled it out. "His name is Yagami, and he has the Totodile. Ponce has the Chickorita."
"Thank you." Officer Jenny said. "Well then Professor, I must get going. We'll try to catch them before they get too far."
"Thank you." Professor Elm answered, and watched the officer leave. "Now, I know this sounds a bit callous, but do you have that egg Mr. Pokémon gave to you? I'd very dearly like to see it."
Ray shrugged, but was glad the mood was turning towards a more positive note.
"Um, yeah." Ion murmured, digging into his duffel bag and pulling the strange egg (that once more seemed to move in his hands) out and handing it over to Elm.
"Huuuuuuuu-whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!" Elm's eyes popped out of his head once more at the egg, and Ion was disturbed that time, so disturbed he hid behind Ray with a squeak. "This is what he wanted me to look at! This is it?"
"Yes it is, sir." Ray answered, managing a smile despite the professor's odd reaction.
"This is indeed a type of Pokémon egg I have never seen before." Elm said, curiously looking at it from different angles. "You don't mind if I take it, do you Ion? I would like to begin my study of it as soon as possible."
"Er, go ahead?" Ion squeaked from behind Ray, not coming out from his hiding place. "The entire purpose of getting it was to give it to you..."
"Oh yes, yes, of course," Elm looked a little embarrassed, before clearing his throat. "Oh, by the way, you may want to go back to your house and pack up before you leave... Your mother might be worried about you, of course."
"Right..." Ion chuckled nervously, inching out of the lab. Elm could be a little weird, but reacting like that? He'd never seen it before.
"Hmm... Ion, how about you meet me at the edge of town? I think I'll head for Violet city myself, so we might as well stick together until then." Ray said, ignoring Ion's nervous movements.
"Right, uh, actually, wanna meet mom? Told her I was running an errand with a new guy and my parents got curious about you," Ion replied, still inching out of the lab, smiling nervously.
"Eh, I think I'll just wait near the edge of town." Ray shook his head at the offer. As much as he'd have liked to, if they were anything like Ion he could go without the headaches. "If you're taking the Pokémon League challenge you won't be seeing them for a good while. Make sure you wish them good health, alright?"
"Um, right, I'll do that. See you soon!" And with that, Ion raced out of the lab, leaving Ray and a distracted Elm behind.
"Professor Elm, what do you know about the gyms in Johto?" Ray asked, turning to the researcher.
"Hmm... well people say that Johto gyms are in the middle. Sinnoh is known for some of the toughest challenges; Kanto for its leaders; Hoenn for its travel time; and Johto is sort of in the middle of all that." Elm said, bending over the egg.
"I see. Do you think Ion can manage on his own?"
"Ha, he's a good boy, if a bit naive and thickheaded." Elm chuckled, shaking his head. "I think he'll do just fine, though perhaps it will take him a while to get used to the world of trainers. Unlike you, who have helped professor Rowan and your father in research since birth, Ion has lived here most his life, never getting into fights or dealing with rough crowds."
"I see." Ray said, running one hand through his brown hair. "Well, since I'm in Johto, I may as well test their gyms before I decide whether to stay or head back to Sinnoh."
"Yes, you should do that." Elm said, and Ray could tell that the professor was no longer paying attention. With a small shrug and a shake of the head, he left the lab.
Ion was finally beginning to tire out after a day of running around, and it was beginning to show. He was panting heavily when he finally made it home, but he didn't stop to get a drink of water; he immediately headed for his room and began to finish preparing to leave his home and lifestyle behind him for a few months at the very least…
Grabbing the last of his camping gear, his duffel back near bursting after he put in his sleeping bag, he let himself rest for a moment. He began to make his way to his the kitchen, and saw his family gathered there, sitting at the table. They seemed to be discussing something (well, his parents at least, his sister was eating mac & cheese), however they all looked up at him as soon as he entered the room, and all noticed he was packed, ready and rather tired looking.
His mother was on her feet immediately, and he found himself on the end of a tearful hug from her before he could react. He almost felt like struggling for a moment, but that moment passed and he just let it happen. "Oh Ion, my little boy, you're really going to leave, aren't you?" She practically sobbed, and Ion couldn't help but inwardly roll his eyes. It wasn't like he didn't plan to come back… Eventually.
"Yeah Mom, I am. But I'll call and write!" He insisted when it looked like she was going to let out a wail.
His father was shaking his head, standing up and going to pry his wife from his son, as it looked like she wasn't going to let go. "Dear, we already talked about this. Let him go." The woman let out a sniff but finally let her son go, and his Father patted him on the shoulder, smiling. "You go out and make us proud, kiddo. And we're here for you in the case you need any help."
"Yeah, Dad." The boy smiled up at him. He almost felt like tearing up as well thanks to his Mom, but he put up the strong front. If his little sister didn't look so apathetic toward this, he probably would not be able to resist it.
"Do you have the Poké Balls I got for you packed already?"
"I just did, Dad." The boy looked kind of sheepish. He'd forgotten to take them with him earlier when he'd gone to Elm's lab. If he hadn't, that shiny Pidgey that Ray caught would have been his, probably. But now it was time for his sister to say her good byes, and she didn't look like she really wanted too. But she did anyway, looking up from her food to frown at her older brother.
"Yeah, don't go die, big brother. Whatever," The girl grumped, before continuing to eat her mac & cheese. All three of the weirdoes she lived with (as she called them) turned to her then, each one having an identical strange look on their face. And suddenly she had a cold feeling run down her spine.
Ion was the one who broke the silence from that remark, lifting up his arms at her as if about to suddenly embrace her from over the table. "Hug. Now."
She couldn't help but roll her eyes at that, having expected a more volatile reaction, and stood up to do as he said, walking around the table. He was the older brother after all…
Instead of a normal hug, though, he gave her a Big Hug, lifting her off the ground and spinning, making her scream and start giggling. After a few rotations, Ion put his now dizzy little sister back down on the ground and ruffled her hair, grinning at her.
"And you make sure to do your homework, little sis." He gave one last smile to his family, glad for their support in their own ways. His father openly, his mother secretly, and his sister in her almost apathetic seeming way. And then he was off, dashing out of his family's kitchen and then the house entirely, eager to start his adventure.
Ion's father and mother watched him run off, the father steadying his dizzy daughter. And then his father smiled ruefully and shook his head, chuckling. "I wonder who he takes after more?" He asked almost sarcastically, giving his wife a look.
She pointedly ignored him with a bit of a smirk, and then went to go make them all an early dinner. If only her little boy had stayed long enough for it.
It was a little while later that Ion arrived at the outskirts of town, panting slightly, pausing to catch his breath; When he looked around he could'nt see Ray. He frowned slightly, walking out a little bit more, but he didn't see the taller trainer anywhere around, and he actually looked sad for a few moments.
So... They weren't going to travel together? Darn, and here he was already kind of looking up to the Eevee trainer as a mentor, sort of. He had wanted to learn a little more from him before they eventually went their separate ways, but if Ray had already left...
"Yo!" Came the calm voice of Ray, from the shade of the tree Ion's Pokémon had been napping under that very same day. Ion jumped, and he looked at the relaxing boy with surprise, before he smiled widely. Ray seemed to have a relaxed smile on his face, as well; not as wide as Ion's but it was there. "I was wondering what was taking you so long."
"I was just saying good bye to my parents." Ion stated, going to sit down by the older boy a bit, still a little out of breath. "Mom was doing that thing where she doesn't want her little boy to leave home, Dad was doing that thing where he was so proud of his son he was reduced to tears and Sis was like 'at least you won't take the shower before me anymore'," Ion rolled his eyes, and snickered. Ray couldn't help a chuckle at that, shaking his head. He could understand the boy's exasperation, but only about the parental figures. It could be quite annoying, regardless.
After letting the boy catch his breath, Ray stood from his relaxed posture, stretching slightly. "So, shall we make the trek to Violet City? I heard the Gym leader there has some pretty impressive Bird Pokémon. I'd like to have a shot at him."
"Sure, Mr. Lazybutt." Ion began, his voice in a perfect imitation of Ray's accent. "Let's go show them birds whatfor, eh?"
He couldn't help but giggle at that, knowing that Ray might not like him making fun of his accent, but it was just so easy to do so. He stood, and soon the boys began to walk out of New Bark Town for the second time that day, packed and ready for their adventure.
And so, our heroes managed to win their first battle, and save the Cyndaquil! We're sure there are many more things for our heroes to learn, and many more things to do! To find out--
Tatsu55 and One say: NO.
One sez: Okay, okay, this was supposed to come out Friday last week but I wasn't in the mood to edit anything and Tatsu wasn't helping. . Anyway, so yeah, first rival battle. In the case you didn't notice, our Silver, the red haired kid, is not named Silver in this universe because, frankly, I find the name stupid, and we already have a character with a metal themed name. So we went with what Tatsu named his rival in HeartGold, and I decided to make up an entirely new character to be Yagami's accomplice. And he's named after my rival in HeartGold.
And just so you know, yes, they did steal all three starters (And Ion got one back). This will merely be the first of many things we change from the games. After having two main characters, of course.
Ray and Ion are lucky they'd been together at this point in time, because if they hadn't, they'd most likely have lost against Yagami and Ponce. Four Pokémon against two or three? Yeah, not happening. Ponce is a (somewhat) experienced trainer, so he'd have been able to pick up any slack from Yagami's side.
Tatsu55 says: And no, we will not have a 'narrator' be doing that every chapter. Just... no. If there's anything that needs clarifying, we will suffice, and I'm pretty sure you all don't want the 'narrator' cutting in at random intervals, so... no. I would continue my nerd rant, but there's nothing else to say, so I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and will send us your character submissions, along with any reviews you are willing to give.