When Jack woke up he was seeing the world in a new light. He knew he had made the right decision in walking away from his parents once more. The shocked lethargy that had overcome him, the shocked lethargy that could have easily ended his Pokémon journey in its infancy was gone.
He had not succumbed to the curse of the greenhorn Pokémon trainer – he was stronger than them. Jack leapt out of bed with a surge of energy and practically sprinted down the stairs, dancing to the counter of the Pokémon centre and picking up his two Pokéballs. 'The Heatran was quite badly injured but it is fine now. The Dratini was only tired.' Jack nodded his thanks and left with a jaunty wave.
For a moment he flirted with challenging Brock straight away, but he decided that he would make sure that he wouldn't lose again. Jack headed out of Pewter City and got ready for a full day of training Pokémon. His mind was full of techniques that would help both his Pokémon improve. With both of them released and facing each other across a grassy plain Jack set out his training plan.
'Today we are going to work on one-on-one fighting. You both will be trying to get under each other's guard and get a hit. Make sure the blows aren't full strength but don't pull out of them altogether. Ready?' Definitely. Both the Pokémon began to fight.
It was like watching an intricate dance. Dante went on the offensive, attacking in a hail of precise blows. Asrael exhibited fantastic control of his body by acrobatically twisting and turning through the air to avoid the blows.
He used his muscular tail to parry any of the blows that he couldn't dodge, pivoting around the point of contact and instigating his own offensive. The two Pokémon collided, the velocity of Asrael knocking Dante onto his back. Whilst Dante lay winded on his back Asrael wrapped all six foot of his serpentine body round the struggling tortoise-like Pokémon.
Slowly Asrael began to constrict, contracting the many muscles of his body in tandem to squeeze the life out of his victim. Dante roared as he struggled, but it seemed to be impossible to get free.
Dante relaxed suddenly and Asrael quickly unwrapped his body in one swift movement, scalded. Ah shit he screamed, the pale skin on his stomach covered in livid red marks. The skin was peeling and blistering. Asrael countered by opening his mouth wide and blowing a powerful stream of water from his mouth. The water hit Dante with more force than a high-powered hose, physically pushing the two hundred pound creature backwards by more than a metre.
The attack was obviously considerably damaging to Dante, but already he had devised a counter attack. A column of flame met the column of water in a titanic explosion of spray and smoke that exploded five metres into the air. For a second all Jack could see was the light-grey coloured steam resulting from the monumental collision of the two elements, but when it had cleared Dante's flamethrower was only half a metre away from Asrael's face.
Just as he was about to be overwhelmed by the ravenous flames Asrael dropped to the floor and shocked Dante with a weak jolt of electricity. Dante fell to the ground, body wracked by the tremors of paralysis. He tried to stand up and attack but his muscles betrayed him, spasms making him jerk out of control and collapse to the ground. He lay there unable to avoid the powerful dragon's tail cutting through the air towards him.
There was a faint whistling sound before the tail struck Dante, but it was soon drowned out by the echoing crack caused by the impact. Dante slumped, as if all the strings suspending his body had been cut, his glazed eyes betraying his unconsciousness. After the sound of the battle the silence was noticeable. Loud clapping broke the silence as Jack congratulated his victorious Pokémon. Asrael took a little bow. So, what's next?
Training next took a different turn. Jack decided to make training more specific, working on the individual weaknesses of each Pokémon. For a part steel Pokémon Dante's defence was surprisingly weak compared to its attack, so Jack wanted to improve it. He had Asrael attack Dante alternately with physical and ranged attacks and had Dante endure them. Dante was weakened quickly by this training, but numerous trips from Jack to Pewter City to buy potions enabled the training to be prolonged for hours. After a particularly vicious combo of attacks from Asrael Dante could barely stand, even his improved defence simply did not hold up against the dragon Pokémon's impressive attack. So he went to sleep. Whilst he was sleeping his body began to heal itself and Jack watched with fascination as the wounds slowly disappeared in front of his eyes. It never ceased to amaze him, this healing of Pokémon.
A quiet cough behind him caused Jack to whirl round in surprise. A small, powerful looking man dressed in a dark black suit was looking at him with considerable interest. 'You have a very unique style of training young man. Very unique... Are you just starting out?' Jack nodded, slightly taken aback by the probing interest in him. 'Yes, uh I got my Pokémon in January the first.'
The man nodded with satisfaction, 'You will go far. I will be keeping an eye on you. Maybe we will be able to work together some time.' Jack was even more confused by this and slightly worried by the man's persistent querying. 'Maybe?' The man seemed pleased by this. 'I'm Giovanni by the way.'
After another hour of training Jack knew it was time to challenge Brock. After healing his Pokémon at the Pokémon centre he arrived outside the gym. As soon as they saw a trainer walking towards the gym a large crowd began to gather. Just my luck thought Jack ruefully just my luck to challenge on market day! Around him stood thousands and thousands of multicoloured stalls wafting contrasting aromas towards him, aromas which fought for control of his nostrils.
The noise which had been such a cacophony before he had been spotted was now silence as thousands of eyes turned to stare at him. Jack gulped; he could feel their eyes on him. It felt like light fingers were being slowly drawn down the back of his neck. He shivered and entered the gym without a backwards glance.
'Ah, a challenger at last.' A tall teenager with spiky black hair lounged at the back of the gym. 'Come to lose? We will grind you down with our superior power! Go Geodude!' With a cry Brock released a rock shaped Pokémon with two stony, muscular arms. It supported itself on one of those arms whilst beckoning confidently to Jack. Jack raised his eyebrows. 'You want a fight. You'll get a fight. Go Dante! Iron head!'
Dante was moving even before the bright light of the Pokéball receded, charging towards the off-guard Geodude. 'Geodude, defence curl,' ordered Brock just before Dante connected. The Geodude only had time to brace its arms in front of its face before there was a loud crash as steel met rock. Steel won and the Geodude was knocked against the gym wall. It left a sizeable dent.
The Gym Leader's Pokémon was tougher than it looked. It easily picked itself up from the attack and gave Dante a look that said is that all you got? 'Geodude, mega punch.' Geodude pulled back his arm, rocky muscles pumped up to breaking point, and launched a crushing punch into Dante's side. Dante groaned as he was knocked to the floor but still managed to heave himself up, albeit rather difficultly.
Brock had his opponent on the run and he knew it. 'Geodude, crush this loser. Rock throw.' Geodude plunged his hands into the ground and ripped out two rocks, straining with exertion. In one fluid motion it flung both of them towards Dante before plunging his hands back in to dig up more.
'Dante, use flamethrower to knock the rocks out of the air, then use rest' ordered Jack. Dante nodded and let out two powerful streams of fire to knock the rocks off target. He closed his eyes and fell asleep, healing himself in the process. Brock smiled, 'your Pokémon may have healed itself. But now it's asleep and can't battle!' Jack raised his eyebrows, 'oh really? Dante, use sleep talk.'
Dante grumbled in his sleep and opened his mouth. A huge ball of fire was building there, growing larger and larger and hotter and hotter. It flickered orange and red, distorting the air near it like a mirage. Still sleeping, Dante moved its head around and locked onto the Geodude. The ball of flame that engulfed it was larger than any Dante had ever produced and was of such intense heat that the air itself seemed to burn.
The Geodude had no chance. It was nowhere near powerful enough to withstand such a blow and if it hadn't been for its rocky exterior it would have been burnt to a crisp. As it was, it barely survived the roasting it was subjected to and collapsed, small wisps of smoke spiralling off its body. Brock's face was less confident when he returned his Geodude, his face now showed an expression that was something between admiration and consternation.
'Hmm.' Brock studied Jack intently before releasing a huge Onix. He was smiling now. 'I know I've got you. You have potential, but you've underestimated me. I'm going to win now. Onix, use bind.' Onyx raised itself off the floor and roared. It immediately wrapped itself round Dante and began to squeeze.
It was incredibly powerful and Dante began to get crushed. Dante could not cope with the power of the Onix. He was unable to free himself, unable to even move. He was like a mouse trapped in the deadly coils of a boa constrictor, waiting to die.
Jack remembered something, something that could save Dante from his predicament. He scratched his head, debating with himself. 'Dante,' he called, finally making a decision, 'use explosion!' That decision was not one to be made lightly, but Jack could think of no other way for Dante to damage the Onix. Dante had no such compunctions – the Pokémon using explosion felt no pain.
He began to fill his body with fire, slowly building up energy inside him. Very quickly the pressure began to build and soon it became almost unbearable. Dante braced himself and let the energy explode out of him. The shockwave hit Onix and tossed it through the air, caught like a leaf in a gale. The dust caused by its impact on the ground mingled with the smoke from the explosion to cause an opaque fog which covered the gym.
Jack recalled Dante and waved his hands through the air trying to clear the smoke. Slowly the smoke began to drift towards ground level, slowly uncovering the devastated remains of the gym. The explosion had completely ripped away two of the walls and left charred black marks covering the two walls that were left standing.
Rubble was strewn across the gym, huge boulders were shattered into small pieces and pieces of the ceiling were still raining down on the Gym Leader and his opponent. Jack sighed, but inside he was ecstatic at getting his first badge. There was a low groan and a creaking sound. Jack gasped as the Onix heaved itself up. Huge black marks peppered the rock snake Pokémon's body and it was missing the last two boulders in its tail.
Jack growled, 'too bad for you I have another Pokémon. Go Asrael!' Asrael appeared on the battlefield hissing a challenge. His body was tensed to breaking point as he waited for an order from Jack. He was extremely eager to attack in his first experience of a trainer battle. 'Asrael, finish this,' shouted Jack dramatically, gesturing wildly into the now open air, 'use twister.'
A powerful twister whirled itself into being in front of Asrael and shot towards Onix picking up rocks and dust along its way. The twister reached the Onix and began to ravage its body with savage winds and the sharp rocks which had been picked up by the twister.
Each blow was agonising to the severely weakened Pokémon - its tortured roaring showing how much pain it was in. Brock did not let up, his face was set as he ordered his near-unconscious Pokémon to attack again.
'Onix, use stone edge. Take out that dragon.' The Onix clearly loved its trainer and to its great credit it tried to carry out its orders. It was too weak to do so. 'Put it out of its misery Asrael, use slam.' Asrael nodded and smashed the Onix in the face with his tail. The Onix was knocked out cold and lay prone on the ground.
Brock did not look happy, his face was thunderous as he returned his Pokémon. He viciously kicked out at a rock and clenched his fists. 'Well, I suppose you have beaten me. In recognition of this victory I must hand give you the Boulder Badge. The teenager slapped the clouded grey octagon in to Jack's hands with some force, gripping his hand as if in greeting. The grip got tighter and tighter until Jack could feel the bones in his hands grinding together.
Jack did not let the pain show in his face as he ripped his hand from the angry teenager's vice-like grip. 'Nice fight Brock, you're really good.' Brock sighed, his anger partially deflated by Jack's good sportsmanship, 'not good enough apparently. I hate losing.' He turned his back to Jack and his ruined gym, dismissing him. Jack just smiled at the rough treatment, someone's a sore loser he thought as he walked out.
He ignored the huge crowd that had gathered, ignored the whistles and cat-calls from those that idolised Brock. He was done with Pewter City. After a final visit to the Pokémon centre he left without a backwards glance. He only looked forward now. His Pokémon journey was finally under way.
Mount Moon was his next destination. It was only a few hours of trekking away, across mountainous, rocky terrain. Jack released both his Pokémon to train on the numerous diminutive Spearow that fluttered around the barren landscape. For such a small Pokémon the Spearow were incredibly ferocious, attacking both Dante and Asrael – both many times their size – with no regards for their safety.
They were also plucky fighters, their mirror move attack especially was deceptively powerful. An especially small but violent specimen nearly knocked Asrael out cold with a copied slam attack, knocking the dragon Pokémon to the floor with painful concussion. It took a powerful flamethrower from Dante to subdue it, but a potion from the quick thinking Jack ensured it was killed or permanently burnt.
There were also many trainers here. Most were badgeless youngsters who had just received their Pokémon. The multitude of Ekans, Pidgey and Rattata were no match for the growing power of Dante and Asrael. Every so often Jack met a trainer who posed more of a challenge. When the mass of sharp, rocky peaks that made up Mount Moon came in to view Jack's ability as a trainer was sorely tested.
A slimy, arrogant looking boy strutted up to him, his lips curled up in a smirk. Jack instantly hated him. 'Hey loser. Want to be destroyed?' Jack gritted his teeth but kept his voice civil. 'If you think you're up to it...' The boy's smile faltered at the heavy doubt in Jack's voice and his visage became thunderous. 'I will fucking destroy you! Bastard!' The boy tossed a Pokéball contemptuously into the air sneering, 'go Kabutops.'
A shellfish with a semi-circle shaped head and two razor sharp sickles for arms landed lightly on the ground. Immediately it launched a flurry of slashing attacks aimed at Dante. They cut deeply into Dante's back, leaving painful cuts criss-crossing his body. Dante's front legs collapsed and he hit the dust hard. The other trainer laughed, his voice filled with contempt, 'such a weakling. Your Pokémon too.' He shook his head, 'trainers like you should be executed.'
Dante growled as he got to his feet, spurred on by the poisonous words. His body began to glow and suddenly he caught fire. Summoning his remaining strength Dante ran towards the Kabutops with a last resort tackle. Dante's flaming tackle was devastating. It snapped one of the sickle's directly from its body, leaving a jagged stump where the deadly weapon had been but a second before.
It shattered its left kneecap, twisting the leg at a right angle from its body and ripped off one of the white plates of armour that protected the underside of its body. The Kabutops was knocked out cold and did not look like it would be getting up any time soon. Dante was in slightly better shape but he would not finish the next battle conscious. Jack decided one last attack would be enough, and then he would recall Dante.
'Go Omastar.' The boy was positively exploding with anger. 'My Pokémon will kill you.' Jack turned to Dante and started encouraging him, 'come on Dante, one last attack.' Dante took in a deep, painful breath and turned to face the armoured squid in front of him. Dante's flamethrower attack smashed into the front of the Omastar and swirled around its helix shaped shell. The inferno lasted for nearly thirty seconds before Dante had to stop the attack.
The Omastar had retreated into its shell so the attack was less effective than it otherwise would have been. The shell was slightly blackened by a thin coat of charcoal but the attack hadn't been particularly damaging.
'Omastar, spike cannon,' ordered the other trainer seeing that Dante wouldn't take any more hits. The row of spikes that were mounted on the Pokémon's shell suddenly launched towards Dante and smashed into him. Dante roared as the sharp spikes of bone hit him and buried themselves in his body. Dante screamed and collapsed, barely conscious.
The last spike smashed into his skull, glancing off but the damage had already been done. Dante was immediately knocked unconscious but the other trainer wouldn't stop the battle. 'Now Omastar, while he is down, hydro cannon.' An incredibly powerful jet of water exploded out of its mouth towards the unconscious Dante.
Just before it hit Jack recalled him. 'What are you doing you sadistic bastard? He's unconscious, the battle is over, what the fuck are you doing?' The boy smiled easily, and his voice was filled with sadism, 'I told you. I will kill your Pokémon, then I will kill you!' Jack said nothing and released Asrael in front of him, he wondered to end this battle soon. 'Asrael, thunder wave.'
A weak bolt of electricity shocked through the Omastar, locking its muscles in a dehabilitating paralysis. 'Now use thundershock.' A small ball of electricity appeared in front of Asrael before shooting towards the paralysed Omastar, as the attack hit the Omastar arcs of electricity shot around its body. For a second the Pokémon was trapped in a cage of burning electricity before the attack fizzled out. It had a deadly effect.
The Omastar was still paralysed but now it was covered in burns. Arcs of electricity still sparked across its body causing even more pain. 'Get up you weakling,' screamed the Pokémon trainer, 'my dad didn't pay all that money to have you die on me now. Get up!' He kicked his Pokémon. It collapsed. The kick had been the last straw. Jack's face was twisted in anger, 'how dare you. How dare you!'
He could not believe what this trainer had just done. 'Asrael, knock this bastard unconscious and take his money.' Asrael was all too happy to oblige. He ignored the trainer's enraged screams, and took great pleasure from smashing in his face. Blood spurted from the rich boy's broken nose as he sprawled onto the flaw. Asrael grabbed the boy's wallet in his mouth and tossed it to Jack.
Jack leafed through the wallet and gasped, 'wow, you really are a rich bastard.' With his new found wealth Jack walked towards Mount Moon with a spring in his step. He had humiliated a despicable Pokémon trainer and gained valuable experience of a real Pokémon battle. No-one would stop him now.