We've finally gotten done moving into our new house. So, now I can update again.
Chapter 20:A Fateful Encounter
I didn't know how to feel when we walked inside the gym, because there were three people there I recognized. The first two were Wes and Rui, who I was happy to see.
The third person I wasn't so thrilled about. It was Jack, who was growling at the gym leader for a battle while Wes and Rui watched from across the room. When they noticed us walking towards them, Rui smiled and Wes grinned.
"Hey, Ken,"he said, the two of us hitting our fists together.
"Wes. Rui,"I greeted, nodding at them. I glanced at Jack."I see you've met Jack."I spat out his name.
"Yeah, and I gotta tell ya, this guy's giving off a bad vibe,"Wes muttered."I've met a lot scumbags in my life, but this guy just gives me the creeps. And that's saying something."
"I don't blame you,"I said."But there's something you might want to know."They both looked at me."Remember how I told you Serenity was turned into a Shadow Pokemon by her old trainer?"I pointed down at her for emphasis and they nodded. I tilted my head at Jack."Guess who?"They blinked and looked at each other, then an absolutely infuriated look crossed Wes' face, his lips curling into a raged snarl as he...well, let's just say if looks could kill, Jack would've disintegrated on the spot down to the last molecule, quite painfully at that. If my psychic senses were any indication, I'd say Wes was even angrier than I had been, if that was even possible. Damn...
"I'll kill him,"Wes growled through clenched teeth, eyes bloodshot as he clenched his fists."I'll fucking kill him..."Rui firmly placed a hand on his shoulder, and some of his anger seemed to drain away as he looked at her.
"No, Wes,"she said calmly.
"But-!"
"No, Wes,"she repeated forcefully."You can't go around killing whoever you want. This isn't Orre."
"Don't worry, Wes,"I said. They looked at me as I smirked coldly."I've already given him a damn good scare today."
"What'd you do?"Wes asked. I could tell he liked the way I was smirking. I told them. Wes grinned while Rui gasped and covered her mouth.
"Um, wow,"she said quietly.
"Now that's my kind of threat!"Wes said approvingly, patting my shoulder. We looked over to Jack and the gym leader, who were walking towards us.
"Hello there,"the old man said."I'm Wattson. Are you here to battle me, too?"
"You got it, old-timer,"Wes said as I nodded silently.
"Well, this boy asked first,"Wattson said. I heard him hesitate slightly when he said 'asked,' which obviously meant 'demand.' What a swell guy..."So, I'm afraid you'll have to wait your turn."
Wes sighed irratably."Fine."
"If we have to,"I shrugged.
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"This will be a 3-vs-3 pokemon battle between the gym leader Wattson, and the challenger, Jack Masters!"the Ref said. The rest of us were all sitting on the sidelines on opposite sides of the room, watching with anticipation, excitement, and in Wes' case, impatience."Jack will choose his pokemon first!"
"Let's get this over with. Get out here, Sadic!"Jack shouted, throwing a pokeball forward and releasing a female Weavile. I heard a gasp behind me, then turned my head to see everyone staring at Zaps, who was staring at the Weavile with wide eyes and a gaping, quivering jaw.
"B-Boss..."he whispered hoarsely, pointing at the Dark and Ice type.
"What's wrong, Zaps?"I asked worriedly.
"Look...her left claw..."he said faintly. I looked back at the Weavile and looked at her claw, noticing what looked like a yellow ring. A light bulb went on in my head.
No. Effing. Way.
Was that really the Weavile Zaps had been looking for all his life? The descendant of the one who had stolen his ancestor's ring? What were the freakin' odds? I couldn't imagine how Zaps must have felt at that moment. I looked back at him, who was staring intently at the Weavile, a blank expression on his face. There wasn't a snowball's chance in Hell this was going to end pretty...
Or so I thought.
The Weavile glanced over at us, then did a double-take. It was easy to tell she was staring at Zaps. You know that old saying 'You could cut the tension with a knife?' You couldn't cut the tension between them with an axe. The Weavile turned to face us completely, then started walking towards us, much to the confusion of everyone but the team and I.
"What do you think you're doing, Sadic?"Jack asked angrily. The Weavile didn't even glance at him, continuing to walk towards us. Zapperton stepped in front of us as the Weavile stopped. There was a moment of silence.
"Are you the descendant of Zapperton Thunderos the First?"she asked, her voice calm and smooth. Zapperton nodded.
"And you're the descendant of Frostaria Glacielle,"he replied, his voice surprisingly neutral. There was another moment of silence as the Weavile looked at Serenity.
She nodded."Hey, Serenity."
"Hello, Frostaria,"she said quietly, a small smile on her face, which obviously confused me and the others. Frostaria looked back at Zapperton, giving him an appraising look. She breathed in, then exhaled deeply, breathing out a small, icy mist.
"So, what should we do now that we've found each other? Fight to the death or something like that?"she asked rhetorically, eyebrow raised.
"That's a good question,"Zaps replied blankly. Okay, what the f-ck was going on? Why was Zaps just shooting the breeze with her? I would've expected him to attack her the moment she approached, but here they were, just chatting like they were having tea!
"Sadic! Get over here already!"Jack snapped angrily. Frostaria glanced at him for a moment before turning around and walking back to the battlefield.
"If you want this,"she started, holding up the claw with the ring on it."Meet me behind the pokemon center at midnight tonight."She didn't bother to turn around. Once she reached her spot, she faced Wattson, who raised an eyebrow before shrugging.
"Time for a battle, Electrode!"he shouted, throwing a pokeball and releasing said electric type.
The Ref raised his flags."Begin!"While the two began battling, we all looked at Zaps, who sat back down in his seat, rubbing his head.
"What was that all about, Zaps?"I asked."Why did you just...talk to her?"
He sighed."Honestly, Boss, I didn't know what to do, see? I've been looking for that ring my whole life, my whole family has. But...I didn't know what to do. I was freaking BORN to find it, but I just..."He sighed again, trailing off and burying his face in his hands. Anubis patted his shoulder reassuringly. The Electivire looked at Serenity, then suddenly asked "What's she like?"
The Kirlia blinked."Frostaria, you mean?"Zaps nodded."Well, believe it or not, she's actually the only member of Jack's team who treated me nicely. Sometimes, she can be kind of scary and even sadistic, but she's a lot nicer than she looks. Most of the time."She shrugged.
"Well, that would explain why Jack nicknamed her Sadic,"I muttered, stroking my chin in thought.
"She's also a little obsessed with hunting,"Serenity remarked. She blushed slightly."And the really weird part is that hunting, well, turns her on, so she's told me."That got us to stare at her with raised eyebrows, then look at the battling Weavile, who was dodging a thunderbolt attack, grinning fiercely.
"Well, Weavile are known to be near-perfect predators,"Psyche said."So, that must stem from her natural instincts. Even that last part, I'd say."
"It's still kinda weird,"Fang mumbled.
"Does she steal stuff like I do?"Zaps asked.
"Well, not as much as you do, if that's what you mean,"Serenity said."Though, sometimes she does steal bits of food from the others when they're not looking. But she's never stolen from me."She blinked once."At least, I don't think she has..."Zaps looked down in thought.
"So, she's not as big a theif as her ancestor,"I remarked."Sounds like the apple fell pretty far from the tree."There was another moment of silence, broken by the sounds of battle on the field.
"Hey, boss?"Zaps asked.
"Yeah?"
"You mind if I go have some alone time to think?"he asked. I smiled at him.
"Sure, Zaps, take as long as you need,"I said. He nodded, standing up and walking out of the room as Frostaria knocked out Electrode. As Wattson returned the unconcious pokeball imposter, Zapperton and Frostaria looked at each other as he walked out. Then just like that, he was out of the room. The rest of the battle went by fast. Almost pathetically so. Jack's pokemon were strong, I'll give him that, but they were pretty damn merciless.
I glanced at Wes, seeing that he was glaring at Jack coldly. Even Rui seemed pretty angry with him. As for said jerk, after recalling an Arbok, he walked over to Wattson and yanked the badge out of his hand, then walked right out the door without another word, not even looking at anyone. There was a long silence that followed.
"Well,"I said loudly, trying to defuse the tension. We stood up and walked towards Wattson, who was shaking his head."I take it you want to wait 'til tomorrow to battle one of us?"
"I would appreciate that, boy,"he sighed."It's pretty sad to know there are trainers out there like him."
"Huh, just pray you never go to Orre,"Wes muttered."There are plenty of people like him out there. But a lot of 'em aren't nearly as bad as he is."
"Yeah, that's a nice thought,"I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes.
"Just come back tomorrow,"Wattson said."I'll be more than happy to battle you both."
"At the same time?"I wondered aloud. I could've sworn I saw Wes hide a grin.
Wattson quickly shook his head, chuckling."Oh, no, I don't think so. Brawly told me about his battle with you two. You thoroughly wiped the floor with him. I'm not making that mistake."I had to admit I was a little disappointed by that. Wes was a helluva battler, and it would've been cool to team up with him again. Heh, if only I had known what the future held for us both...
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We were now in our room inside the center. While everyone else was asleep, I was looking at Zaps as he paced back and forth. It was almost eleven thirty. Psyche and Wrath were in their pokeballs, Anubis and Serenity were in the bunk beds, and Fang and ZC were sleeping in different corners. We had spent most of the day wandering around the city before getting a room here at the Center. Fortunately for Zaps, Jack hadn't decided to leave the city. Fortunately for the rest of us, he and his team weren't sleeping in the center.
"Zaps, you need to calm down,"I told him calmly. He stopped and looked at me.
"Why?"
"Because if you don't, you'll probably pass out on the spot,"I said."Trust me, stress can do that and much, much more. I know from experience."He looked down at his feet, sighing.
"You're right, boss, as always,"he muttered.
"Don't bother feeding my ego, Zaps. It's dead,"I remarked dryly, standing up."Shall we?"He nodded.
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"You're early,"Frostaria remarked as we walked up to her. She glanced at me with a raised eyebrow.
"So are you,"I replied. The Weavile blinked, looking at me with wide eyes."Yes, I can understand you. It's a really long story."She shrugged, looking back at Zaps. She held up her claw, showing us the Volt Ring. Now that I had a better look at it, (sort of, it was midnight) I could see that the ring almost looked like a wedding ring. The ring itself was black with small, yellow lightning bolt designs criss-crossing on it. It also had a yellow jewel on it's top that I could swear was glowing faintly. I probably wouldn't have noticed it if it weren't night time.
I looked at Zaps, who was staring at the ring silently, a tense look in his eyes. We watched as the Weavile calmly plucked the ring off her claw. She then did something that stunned us both.
"Here ya go,"she said, tossing it to Zaps. He could barely react in time to catch it, fumbling with it for a moment. He stared at the ring like it was a gift from Arceus, then looked at Frostaria with an absolutely priceless expression. I probably would've laughed if I wasn't stunned, too.
"I-ga-duh..."Zaps failed to speak.
My thoughts exactly.
"Yeah, I know what you're thinkin',"Frostaria said."But listen to my little story. I didn't like my family at all. You know how most of us Weavile like to hunt? My family liked to steal crap. I was the only person in my family who actually preferred hunting. They just stole whatever they wanted while I spent all my life doing what I was meant to do. But, you know, family traditions and all that junk. I don't know why my great-great-whatever grandma stole your ring, but I just decided to give it back if I ever ran into you or your kin."I crossed my arms and tilted my head, looking at Zaps again, who still looked stunned.
Finally, he spoke."I don't believe it..."He looked at Frostaria."That's it? You're just...givin' it to me?"
"Well, if you were looking for a fight, sorry to disappoint you,"she said with a shrug."That thing's your birthright, isn't it? It doesn't work for me and my kind anyway, so you might as well have it."She smirked."But if you still want a challenge for that thing, I have a pretty good idea."We both blinked, looking at her with raised eyebrows."My specialty is hunting, and your specialty is sneaking around without being detected. Why don't we play a little game?"
"A game of Delcatty and Rattata?"I asked.
"That's right,"Frostaria said."I'll give you a one minute head start, then I'll start chasing you. If I find you before sunrise, I win. If I don't, you win. The only rules are that you can't leave the city and you can't go inside any buildings. Whaddaya say?"Zaps looked at me.
"You don't even have to ask,"I replied."Get going."To my surprise, Zaps actually smiled. Not grinned, not smirked, but smiled.
Then he ran off at top speed. I chuckled, then turned around to walk away, only for Frostaria to stop me in my tracks.
"I like him."
Yep, a pretty simple sentence, but it had a whole lot of meaning to it. I looked at her from over my shoulder to see her grinning.
"I see."And then I left.
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1:32 A.M.
Zaps was crouching on top of a building, keeping his senses on full alert for just the slightest distubance around him. Pachirisu in the tree across the street, Poocheyena in the alley-
There!
Zaps quickly leapt onto another building and dashed across it, hiding behind a large air duct, eyes narrowed. He looked down at the Volt Ring in his palm. He promised himself that he wouldn't put it on until sunrise, when he won this little game.
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2:56
Zaps was lying in a thicket of bushes near the pokemon center, his fur covered in mud to hide his scent. He didn't think Weavile used their noses for hunting that much, but he wasn't willing to take that chance. Plus, the yellow of his fur would have stood out against any backdrop in the city.
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4:03
There was less than 3 hours before sunrise. Frostaria had yet to catch that Electivire, even though she thought she had come close a few times. Still, she was having the most fun she'd had since Jack had caught her, and she wasn't about to give up. The Weavile's eyes peered through the city intently, trying to spot just the right amount of yellow...
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5:23
Just a bit longer, then Zaps was home-free. The mud in his fur had dried, but he knew he could just clean it later. He was pressed against a wall in an alley, just short of the light from a lamp post. He looked back and forth quickly, then went deeper into the alley, before climbing up a building yet again.
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6:36
Amazing. It was almost sunrise, but she still hadn't caught him. No prey had ever eluded her for more than two hours at most, but this guy had avoided her for almost six hours straight. All this hunting had actually aroused her, and by now she wasn't certain if she was simply going to catch him or make ou-
Hello!
She lunged from the lamp post she was standing on and into the alley Zaps was in.
"C'mere, you!"she shouted, running after the fleeing Electric pokemon. The chase was short, since the alley led to a dead end. Zaps turned around to face her, a calm expression on his face. She chuckled."Well, it looks I finally-"She paused and frowned, confused by the wide smile spreading on Zaps' face."What are you smiling at?"Wordlessly, he pointed into the sky behind her. Frostaria spun on her heel to see the sun slowly rising over the horizon. There was a silent pause as she turned to look at him again, seeing that he was holding the ring. He slowly fastened the ring on his left index finger, feeling a surge of energy go through him.
Against his will, he let loose a weak electrical nimbus that somehow blew the mud off his fur. The ring's glowing became a bit stronger, but did nothing else. There was another moment of silence as they looked at each other again.
"Now what?"Zaps asked, eyebrow raised. Frostaria smirked, walking over and looking up at him.
"That was fun,"she said. She motioned with a claw for Zaps to come closer. He crouched down curiously.
"What?"he asked. She moved her head right next to his, making sure to breathe into his ear.
"Let's do it again sometime,"she whispered suggestively. Zaps blinked, trying to fight down a blush as she turned and walked off, moving her hips back and forth, then she disappeared around the corner. He blinked again, then realized he was incredibly tired, his adrenaline spent. Nobody, pokemon or human, had ever given him such a hard time staying out of sight. Rubbing his head, he began to walk back to the center sluggishly.
XXXX
"Manectric is unable to battle! The winner of this battle is Wes!"the Ref said as Wattson recalled said electric type.
"Damn straight!"Wes grinned, his Espeon mirroring him.
"Nice job, Wes,"I told him, standing up as Rui ran over to him, smiling widely. Wattson walked over to him and handed him the badge. Wes tossed it up once, then put it in his coat. I couldn't help but wonder how much stuff he actually had in that thing.
"Good job, both of you,"Wattson told us. Yeah, I had battled him before Wes, and won, so now we both had our badges."I'm glad to have battled you both. It more than made up for yesterday's battle."
"I hope so,"I said as Wes frowned slightly.
"If I ever get the chance to battle him, I'm going to annihilate him,"he swore.
"Well, leave some for me,"I replied, the two of us walking towards the exit."With his strength, I'm almost certain we'll run into him at the Hoenn League."And with my luck, I was certain I would run into him sooner than that. And more often, to boot.
"You got a point there,"Wes remarked as we exited the building. We turned to each other.
"See ya later, Wes,"I said, holding my hand out. He nodded and shook it, then turned away and walked off, Rui waving to us as she followed him. I looked at the team."Well, this has been an interesting week."
"No kidding,"Anubis chuckled.
"Shall we go find Zaps?"Psyche asked.
"No need,"a voice familiar voice said. We all turned our heads to see Zaps walking up to us slowly. He waved weakly."Hey, fellas."
"Damn, Zaps,"I said with a frown, noticing his condition."You okay? You look like you just ran a marathon around Mt. Coronet. With a bag of bricks."He chuckled.
"Yeah, but I still won, see?"he said, holding his left hand up and showing us the ring."Boss, could you do me a favor?"
"Yeah?"
"I won't like it, but do ya mind letting me in my ball?"he asked."I took a nap, but I still feel like I'm about to pass out, see?"He blinked once."Well, speak of the devil."He fell over with a thud. The rest of us looked amongst ourselves, eyebrows raised.
Don't worry. He got better.
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End of Chapter
Long chapter is long. Zaps finally has the Volt Ring back, and maybe even something else.