Chapter 10: Confrontation

I came to a halt, panting, at the top of a small hill that overlooked a wide road passing between the trees. I had pursued my targets deep into the secluded area of a city park, where the chase had finally come to a close. The four men had, at last, overtaken the fleeing boy and pounced on him, confiscating his backpack as they did so. At the sight of that, I'd slowed my pace and decided to be a bit more discreet—having been misled by my annoyance, I hadn't actually given any thought as to why he was running from those men in the first place. Settling my scores would have to wait.

I watched as two of the thugs pulled the boy up from the ground by his worn shirt, flipping him around and slamming back-first against a lamppost. Their hostage began to struggle, but was soon silenced by a swift punch to the face.

That's gotta hurt, I thought with a wince, considering how beat up this kid already was. His captors began to speak, but I was too far away to make out their words. Meanwhile, the other two members of their party began to empty the contents of the boy's backpack onto the street. As far as I could tell, there were only a couple of small books and empty bottles that might've, at one point, contained some sort of Pokémon medication. What could they be looking for?

In any case, I wasn't just about to sit around and wait for something to happen. Those guys wanted something, and things weren't going to turn out pretty. Rolling my shoulders, I left the cover of the trees' shadows and descended down the side of the hill. The men's backs were turned against me, so they hadn't noticed my presence just yet. Creeping up behind one of the men imprisoning the boy, I smirked, thinking what a nice surprise he was about to receive.

"Hello girlie," I greeted. The man's head whipped around in alarm.

"Wha―"

I lashed out with my arm before he could finish the thought, punching him square in the cheek. The man stumbled away from the lamppost in surprise, clutching the side of his face. Meanwhile his comrade whirled around, only to receive a quick kick to the gut before falling back with a moan as well. I stuck my tongue out at them.

"Ha! That's what you get for calling me—hey!" I suddenly found myself being dragged away by the arm, towed by the boy who had been helpless only moments before. "Hey!" I repeated. "I wasn't done!"

"Are you crazy?" the boy shouted. "I thought I told you to get away from here!"

"And who said I had to listen?" I spat, tearing myself free from the boy's grasp. I stared him down in the eyes, one of which was beginning to swell. He looked even worse now, except now he had a hard look on his face. "I don't know who you are, but I'm not about to start taking orders from you."

"We don't have time for this!" he growled back, exasperated. "You don't know what these people are capable of. Now come on!" He reached for me once more, but I backed out of the way, bristling.

"Look, I just saved your butt. The least you could've said was 'thanks'." The boy opened his mouth to snap back, but by then the four men had regrouped and began speaking.

"Hey you!" yelled the man whom I had hit first. "Who do you think you are, running around and punching people like that?"

I turned to confront the group before me, ignoring the "Stop!" that was hissed in my direction.

"So you really felt that one didn't you?" I asked with a hint of sarcasm, cracking my knuckles emphatically. "Well, let me ask you this: who do you think you are, pushing people out of the way and calling them 'girlie' huh? I think you deserved that punch."

"Why you―" One of the man's comrades waved a hand in front of his face, which was beginning to redden from the blow he had sustained.

"We apologize for any…inconvenience that we may have caused," he began in a more polite tone. "Now if you don't mind, please hand over that boy and we promise we won't disturb you again." An ominous pause followed the man's words, and I could sense the boy behind me tensing and freezing on the spot. For a brief moment, I actually began to consider the reality behind his warnings.

So they really do want something from him, I thought. No, they want him specifically. But why? I examined my potential enemies, but as far as I could tell, they were just an oddly-dressed bunch who was prone to up-front assaults. Was there more to them than it seemed? Nothing's ever as it really seems, is it? I spread my feet apart, assuming a readily stance. In any case, this kid looked like he had tied himself to a rampaging Tauros that had dragged him halfway around the world just to escape from these people. He couldn't have had much of a fight left in him.

"You might not disturb me again, but I'm pretty sure you'd disturb other people to get what you want," I said. "Knowing that, I don't think handing him over would be such a good idea."

The expressions on the men's faces darkened, especially on the ones of those I had ambushed.

"I think you're underestimating us, kid," one of them snarled. "Hand over the boy, and we'll leave you alone."

"Now would be a good time to run," the boy murmured. "I appreciate you trying to help me, but there's no way a Trainer like you with only one Badge will be able to defeat these guys."

I shot him a venomous glare, almost involuntarily, and if it weren't for the fact that I was defending him, I might've punched him right then and there.

"Only one Badge?" I echoed, aggravated. "You know how glad I was at winning this one Badge? I nearly got myself electrocuted to win it, and here you are making my hard work sound worthless." Not to mention you were the one who ran me over after I got it too. I bared my teeth in annoyance, rolling up the sleeves of my hoodie. I'll show him who's boss. I redirected my attention, facing the thugs once more. "Sorry, but you'll have to get through me first if you want him back."

The men snickered, each drawing a Poké Ball from his belt.

"Very well then—we'll have to seize him by force. Go!" Four Poké Balls flew into the air simultaneously, each releasing a beam of white light that materialized into a different Pokémon. The first was a Machoke, whose grayish-blue skin was bulging with muscles. Its arms were streaked with thin, red lines, while three ridges protruded from the top of its skull. Around its waist went an item that looked something like briefs with a wrestling belt.

The second form belonged to a Weezing, whose body was composed mainly of two round forms stuck together, one being larger than the other. It was covered in bumpy, lavender skin marked with an oval ring and crossbones beneath its two droopy faces. Next to it was a rugged form similar to that of Brock's Geodude. The Rock Pokémon's evolutionary, Graveler, was much larger, however, in comparison, and had four arms rather than two. It stood on a pair of small feet that were barely visible beneath its bulk.

The final Pokémon was a sleek, bipedal Golduck with smooth blue skin. The back of its head tapered into four points while its mouth extended from its face in the form of a bill. Each of its clawed hands and feet were webbed, giving the impression that it was a rather talented swimmer.

"Not bad," I observed, a small smile already spreading across my face, "but if you wanna beat me, those Pokémon had better be stronger than they look." I plucked a Poké Ball off of my belt, enlarging it before tossing it into the air. "Blaze, Hisakugen!"

The Poké Ball popped open, and soon Hisa's dark form had developed on the makeshift battlefield. He flexed his wings, arching his neck and uttering a loud roar at which the opposing Trainers jumped at. Even the boy seemed taken aback.

"You…you're…!" he began, clearly at a loss for words. His face bore the same surprised and disbelieving expression that it had when he had first seen me at the training grounds.

"Surprised?" I asked, grinning. "You'd better be." To my opponents, I said, "Well then, let's get this started." The bunch snickered, clearly not impressed with Hisa.

"Having a pretty Charizard ain't gonna help you win, kid. Attack!" The four Pokémon charged at the given command, each closing in from a different angle. Hisa snorted at their words, offended.

"My Charizard is a he, thank you," I asserted. "Calling him 'pretty' probably isn't a good idea, is it, Hisa?" The Fire Pokémon growled in reply, the flame on the tip of his tail flaring angrily. Hisa felt the same way about being called "pretty" that I did about being called "girlie" or "little girl". Those Pokémon were in for a beating. "Take care of them however you'd like, pal."

The corners of Hisa's mouth curled in something like a smile, and he bellowed, prompting a red glow to settle over his body. I took a few steps back, pulling the boy along with me.

"Now would be a good idea to step away," I said. Meanwhile, Hisa had positioned himself for the attack that he was about to launch, even as the distance between him and the enemy continually shrank. The countdown began in my head.

Three...two...one…now!

At that moment, the opponent had just come within range of Hisa, but it was already too late. The Flame Pokémon took a deep breath and exhaled, loosing a powerful explosion of flames that blasted the four Pokémon backwards and sent them careening into their owners with cries of pain. The attack was so powerful that the ground vibrated from its force, also sending a hot wind into our faces. I lifted a hand to shield my face from the heat, thinking that Hisa was probably overdoing it. Hopefully, he wouldn't start a forest fire.

When the attack finally subsided, all that was left of Hisa's opponents were four smoking forms covered in various burns. Even the Golduck hadn't been able to withstand the attack with his type resistance. Steam coiled from the blacked spots on the road, carrying with it the smell of burnt asphalt.

I watched as the four men rose from where they had fallen, brushing soot from their uniforms but otherwise appearing unharmed. They examined the scene before them with sneers on their faces.

"Darn you, kid," one of them grumbled.

"This isn't good!" another added, withdrawing his defeated Pokémon and backing away. "Let's get out of here!" His comrades seemed to agree with unspoken consent and took off running down the street after returning their Pokémon. The man whom I had punched, however, marched forward defiantly, his cheek already swollen to a decent size.

"You'll pay for this!" he shouted, jabbing a finger in my direction. "No one belittles the great Clan―" His partners dragged him away before he could finish, obviously eager to be gone.

Clan? I echoed, puzzled. Despite my curiosity, I waved at the fleeing patrol, a victorious smile spreading across my face.

"Bye!" I shouted, as though our battle had been nothing more than a tea party.

"Wait till I tell my boss, you dirty little—!" And then they were gone.

Well then, I thought, already inquisitive about the new piece of information I had received. I turned to Hisa, who had a rather smug look on his face.

"Show off," I teased, flicking him playfully in the snout. The Flame Pokémon snorted indignantly, as if to say, "Never!"

"What kind of attack was that?" the boy asked, finally stirring from his state of awe.

"A modified version of Blast Burn," I replied proudly. "Instead of invoking energy from the ground to create an explosion, Hisa absorbs the energy into his body and channels it into a Flamethrower." Hisa growled agreeably, his chest swelling with pride. It had taken a good year or so for the Flame Pokémon to master that technique, time which was spent quite well considering how long we were in Almia (and the fact that we wanted to stop blowing up roads and parks every time we used that move).

"I see," the boy said, now having finally regained his composure. His black eye had grown to its fullest now, obscuring some of his vision. If it bothered him, he certainly didn't show it. "Well, I should get going now." He moved forward to collect his scattered belongings, acting as though he had merely dropped his backpack. I blinked, not being able to comprehend his passiveness towards the whole situation.

"Hold on a minute," I called, realizing that letting him go would also mean letting go of the potential to learn about who those strangers were. I wasn't going to get much of a hint out of the word "clan" (even though it was better than nothing), and I still had to ask him why he was being hunted down in the first place. Besides, he wasn't going to make it very far looking the way he did; at the very least, I knew I wouldn't. "You're not going anywhere looking like someone's punching bag."

The boy continued to gather his stuff, shooting me a warning glare.

"I appreciate you trying to help me, but I can take care of myself," he grumbled darkly, jamming empty bottles into his backpack. "Besides, if you don't have to listen to me, I don't have to listen to you either. I'm grateful for your help and everything, but I really have to ―"

"Would you like another black eye?" I asked bluntly, raising my fist. I would hate to beat up someone who was already injured, but there was no way I could let him go without some answers. "If you can take care of yourself so well you would've done so to begin with."

The boy's head snapped in my direction, his gaze becoming filled with more and more anger. For a moment, he just continued to leer at me, and I began to wonder if he intended to do so until my eyes burned out.

"…Fine," he grumbled at last, and then continued to pick up his stuff without another word. He obviously didn't want another beating.