Chapter 7: Battle on Route 103
A big thanks to Puffleguy999 for following and favoriting this fanfic!
YaBoiKurama: Thanks for taking the time to review the last chapter! I hope that you enjoy this next one.
Disclaimer: Although I own a copy of Pokémon Alpha Sapphire, I do not own the rights to Pokémon. Don't sue me!
The next day dawned bright and clear, the sun peeking out over the horizon by the time Sapphire was on her way back towards Oldale Town. Fearing that the events of the previous night's battles would attract unwanted attention, the girl had packed up camp after their dinner had been consumed, and had moved as far away from the clearing as she possibly could. Fortunately no other wild Pokemon had tried to challenge the trainer as she stealthily made her way to the very back of the route, hiding near a rushing river. Normally she would have let Swampy go swimming, but the current was fierce, and the little Water type wasn't strong enough to handle it. She had overheard some of the locals in town talking about the heavy rains causing the river to almost overflow its banks, but hadn't realized they meant the river that split this part of Hoenn in two.
That had come as a rather nasty surprise. Sapphire had been planning to swim across it to reach Route 110 after that crazy Pokémon collector had blocked off Route 102. It would put her extremely close to Slateport City, and she'd be home that much quicker. Now she was going to have to take the long way, and stay in this infernally hot and humid place for at least an extra week or two. To make matters worse, she'd have to go through Petalburg City now, meaning that the chances of her father finding her had just increased.
Like it or not, the girl couldn't do anything about it. And so with much reluctance the teen directed her footsteps towards the path that would lead her down the cliffs and back to Oldale Town. Hopefully the crazy lunatic would be finished sketching his human, ahem, Pokemon footprint by now.
"Hah, looks like we found you!"
Sapphire allowed herself the luxury of a groan as she turned the corner to see May and Brendan resting by a pond of water.
"Give it up!" Brendan continued speaking. "We're not going to let Mudkip be used by the likes of a thief like you!"
"If I remember correctly, Mudkip chose to come with me." Sapphire replied cooly. "Now if you don't mind, I have places to be. Adios, kids. Do me a favor and quit stalking me."
"No way!" May was usually a timid, shy girl, but when faced with the callous dismissal of the girl she fully believed had stolen Mudkip, well, that ignited a rather righteous fury in her. "I'm not going to let anyone who thinks they can waltz into my father's lab and steal a Pokemon just walk away without a punishment."
"We're challenging you to a double battle!" Brendan snarled, reaching for a Pokeball on his belt. "And when we win, we're hauling you back to Littleroot Town to answer for your crimes."
"If you win." Sapphire corrected, grabbing two Pokeballs of her own out of her bag.
"Torchic, I need you!"
"Let's go Treecko!"
Her opponents released their Pokemon from their Pokeballs, the green gecko and red chick frowning as they recognized Alpha.
Alpha, for her part, shrugged. Sure, both of the two Pokemon appeared to be stronger than they had been back on Route 101, but these two brats weren't the only ones that had increased their strength.
"Swampy, Shadow, it's time to battle."
Swampy had a puzzled look on his face when he took in the angry faces of May and Brendan. Why didn't the two of them understand that he was happy with his trainer, and that she hadn't stolen him from the lab? It had been that mean old hag named Shelly who had done that. An apprehensive look was also cast towards his partner. Sure, the Mudkip knew that not all Mightyena and Poochyena were mean like Shelly's, but that didn't mean that he wasn't slightly scared of them.
Shadow, as the newest recruit to the team was called, also had an apprehensive look on his face, though this one was directed towards Sapphire. The girl had captured him last night, and though she had fed him and taken care of his wounds, and brushed his fur coat until all the mud had been removed, he still didn't quite trust this stranger. Nonetheless, she was a commanding leader of a pack of oddballs, and she had offered him a place in her pack. He may not have trusted her yet, but Shadow knew better than to disobey the leader of the pack.
"Shadow, Howl. Swampy, use Growl."
"Torchic, use Peck!"
"Treecko, use Absorb!"
The orders were shouted simultaneously, and the Pokemon moved to carry them out. Shadow howled to the sun, increasing his attack, while Swampy lowered that same stat for the two attackers. Treecko managed to nick him with the super effective Grass type attack, while Shadow darted out of the way of Torchic's continuous pecking. It stung, mildly, when the bird managed to jab his beak into the wolf's back leg, but thanks to Growl and Shadow's ability Intimidate it was a minor annoyance.
It was very much a pair of duels. On one side it was Treecko's pound versus Mudkip's Tackle, while on the other side it was Peck and Tackle that were duking it out. May and Brendan had done a good job of training their Pokemon, but Sapphire herself had also done a nice job.
For now the girl was content to watch, calling out orders occasionally, but granting her Pokemon the freedom to dodge whenever they wanted. That was one of the things they had worked on in their training. Sapphire had no wish to be a trainer that controlled every one of her Pokemon's movements. She wanted her partners to be able to be independent in battle, but at the same time listen to her occasional commands.
No doubt this frustrated Brendan and May. Since their opponent was not spouting orders like a leaky faucet, they had less time to react, less time to counter. Their partners were taking quite a beating, though Alpha's Pokemon were not unscathed. The fight was wearing down, and rather quickly. At such low levels and in such an intense fight, their Pokemon simply did not have the energy to battle for long periods of time.
Ten minutes wore on. Ten boring minutes of Tackles and Pecks, of Pounds and Absorbs, of Growls and Howls. Ten agonizingly slow minutes of Mud Slaps, Tail Whips, and Embers. Finally, though, Sapphire saw her moment.
"Switch opponents, now!"She suddenly barked. Swampy obeyed instantly, and after a moment's hesitation, Shadow did as well. Torchic chirped nervously as it realized that the black wolf pup she had been fighting was now gone, and in its place was Swampy. A Water type, one that was strong against her. Meanwhile, Treecko was frustrated as an Absorb that should have been enough to take out Swampy instead hit a rather annoyed looking Poochyena. Both Mudkip and Poochyena opened their mouths wide.
"Swampy, use Water Gun! Poochyena, hit Treecko with a Fire Fang!"
It was over when she called for those two attacks. As exhausted as the two other starters were, there was no way for them to fight back against two super effective attacks. Oh, they tried - Treecko managed to hit Shadow with a Pound that almost felled the Dark type, only for the pup's flaming teeth to clamp around his tail. Torchic tried to dart away, but Swampy adjusted his aim accordingly and nailed the bird in the back with a blast of water from five feet away. It wasn't particularly a long distance, but for the tiny Water type it was a pretty big accomplishment.
Treecko and Torchic were out cold before they sank to the dirt path. May and Brendan both had furious looks on their faces, not out of anger at their Pokemon, but out of anger because they had lost their chance to rescue Mudkip. The pair had no choice to recall their Pokémon, telling them to get a good rest and that they had fought well.
"I hope this proves to you that I am not some brat running around with a stolen Pokemon that has no idea how to battle." Alpha's voice was cold as she recalled her own team after whispering words of praise to the two fighters. "For the last time, I did not steal Swampy, he was a wild Pokemon when I caught him in one of the Pokeballs I purchased myself. I let you two ask him if he wanted to return to this lab you keep speaking of - a lab that I have no clue as to where it's located, by the way - and he chose to stay with me. Quit following me around and stop harassing me about being something that I'm not."
And with that she turned and recklessly hopped down a series of short ledges that crumbled under her weight. May and Brendan would have to take the long path down the Route, and they'd have to go slowly and carefully. After all, it would not be good for them to run into any wild Pokemon, especially since their only ones had just been defeated in battle.
Finished! Do you guys think that having both May and Brendan in this fanfic is a good idea? I mean, I'm not going to take either of them out, but I was just wondering what your opinions were on having two rivals instead of one. You can leave your answers, as well as any comments, compliments, or constructive criticisms in a review. Flames will be doused by Swampy using Water Gun.
