Chapter Two ~ Harsh Beginnings

I settled on the name Bo for my new Mareep, named after Little Bo Peep, my favourite nursery rhyme as a kid. As big as my initial disappointment was, I soon grew attached to Bo. She was friendly, and loved to cuddle (admittedly I did too, even if it meant my hair stood on end from the static). Unfortunately she didn't seem to have the thirst for battle I had hoped my starter would. Indeed her most aggressive act so far was shocking me awake when I refused to let my alarm clock defeat me.

After a few more days at home, packing and saying goodbye to friends and distant family I eventually set off on my journey. I learnt a lot in my first few weeks of traveling. Lesson number one was that skirts were next to useless, and I had to become a lot less fashion conscious (a lesson that took me three broken pairs of high heels to learn. To be fair, you always see the trainers on TV dressed up all fancy).

Lesson number two was that I loved picking fights with Starley. My Mareeps Thunder Shock was a godsend and I felt slightly over powered as we picked fights with every Starley we could. It wasn't long before we were knocking them out with one hit. I was now convinced that Mareep was the perfect starter. My Pokemon would go underestimated, only for it to be revealed to be a one of a kind. The top percentage of Mareep. As an Ampharos it would go unbeaten and unrivalled. Undefeatable.

I should have known I'd get a reality check. That was lesson number three. Don't trust strangers.

I'd just finished packing my sleeping bag in the early morning, hoping to reach Sandgem Town by the end of the day. Bo was slowly grazing as I did so. That was one positive about a Mareep; so long as there was grass, I needn't spend as much money on Pokemon food.

"Hey"

Me and Bo looked up in unison to see a stranger approaching.

"How can I help you?" I answered back, warily. I couldn't help but notice he had six pokeballs attacked to his belt. I silently prayed to Mew that he didn't want to challenge me to a battle. On the one hand my ego wouldn't let me say no, on the other I didn't fancy having to pay out half my cash.

"I'm looking for a battle", Dammit, "I don't suppose you'd be interested?" He asked. He seemed friendly enough, but it was obvious from his stance that he was far more confident, and experienced, than I was.

"I'm alright, thanks" I said, trying to sound as confident as possible; as if I was just merely disinterested rather than inept at battling.

"Sure, no problem" he said with a smile. "You new to training?"

"Newish", I said. Then I made my big mistake.

"It's just me and Bo at the moment. We started off last month."

The man nodded, smiled, and took a step towards me.

Then he drew out the knife.

For a moment everything froze. It's strange; I was prepared for all kinds of horrors on my Pokemon journey. I'd heard the stories of dead children when the trainer age was only 10, I'd seen gym challenges gone wrong, I'd even seen Pokemon fight to the death in an attempt to defeat the elite four. But I wasn't prepared for human violence. For a knife of all things.

Luckily for me, Bo was a little more prepared. With agility I'd never seen her demonstrate before, she bolted towards the man, her wool glowing a faint yellow as she used Charge to gain power. There was an audible crack as her skull hit his ribcage and the man let out a low grunt, gripping onto Bo for balance.

Then he drove the knife into her side.

Bo let out a pained scream. Her scream pierced the mist inside my head and suddenly I was moving, charging towards the man. Bo's wool was quickly turning red with the blood. Then the air sizzled with electricity as Bo let off a Thunder Shock. The man yelped and stumbled backwards, reaching for his pokeball as he did so.

"Bite!" The man yelled as red energy formed a Houndoom. It took a second for the Houndoom the register what was happening, but it soon dashed to attack Bo, sinking his teeth into the wool around Bo's neck. The Houndoom shook his head, and with a sinking in my stomach I realised it was going for the kill.

Thinking fast I grabbed Bo's pokeball from off my belt and clicked the return button. Bo disappeared in a blaze of light and the Houndoom looked confused for a second at the disappearance of its pray. At least Bo was safe, she had to be. She was still alive when I recalled her, and the pokeball should keep her stable for some time. I hoped.

"Wrong move" said the man. Then he whistled.

The Houndoom moved towards me at a speed I could barely comprehend. Suddenly it was tackling me to the ground, its jaws going for my neck. I raised my arms to defend myself as I fell backwards, and the Houndooms jaws wrapped around them.

All I could feel was pain; the feeling of my muscle being torn, the heat of the embers of fire dancing in the Houmdooms mouth. I screamed as the Houndoom shook viciously, blood splattering in all directions.

"Leo, go!"

Suddenly the Houndoom was gone, tacked from the side. Someones arms wrapped around me and dragged me to my feet. I looked to see a Luxray fighting with the Houndoom. It was obvious who the winner was; the luxray was much larger and had the advantage of surprise. It was currently pinning down the Houndoom, jaws firmly clamped on the back if it's neck. The Houndoom let out a whimper, clearly defeated, before disappearing in a blaze of red energy.

The man was bent over, holding his side and grimacing in pain. The Luxray let out a warning growl as he reached for another pokeball.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you" said the voice holding me up. It was a female voice, strong and confident. Thank Mew someone knew what they were doing. Maybe we could get to a Pokemon centre, that way Bo would be okay. Bo had to be okay. I wasn't going to lose her in my first battle. I couldn't lose my starter.

The girl behind me stepped forward, letting me stand shakily on my own two feet. She pulled out a pokeball and released an Alakazam. They stared intently at each other for a few moments, before the Alakazam made a small nod and disappeared, reappearing besides the man. He let out a small cry, and tried to scramble away, but was cut short as the Alakazam grabbed him and they both vanished.

And with that I learnt just how cruel the world could be.