Varem stood at attention while Bret's Pokémon took form. The opponent's pinkish red wings flapped to keep itself stationary right above the ground. The rough, brown plumage on its head sported a short, hooked beak that opened to cry out a battle cry.
Spearrr!
Paige had seen Spearows before and knew many were infamous for their terrible attitudes. It was known that some of the wild ones would attack other Pokémon and humans without provocation.
As a flying type, Varem didn't have an advantage and neither did the Spearow. Her inexperience was the only thing that she would have to deal with in this battle. Still, Paige disliked the way Bret had curved his lips up in a sneer but she would not let that discourage her. Patrick and Alex had taken seats behind Paige while Bret's buddies stood on the sidelines to watch the conflict. Both of them seemed to be pretty nonchalant about the battle, confident in their leader's abilities.
"Let's go Spearow. A good thrashing is in order with these two! Fury Attack!" Bret yelled out the command as the Spearow darted forward with its wings spread out. The Pokémon halted the dive in front of Varem then began to repeatedly thrust his beak and talons downwards. Varem was struck by a barrage of pecks and scratches, wincing and crying out with each hit. The speed that Spearow moved caught Paige off guard and she had no time to issue a retort, struggling to speak. Her heart raced while her mouth grew steadily dry. Patrick yelled out to Paige.
"Paige! Don't just stand there! Make a move!"
"Cha . . Varem . . . ahh." Paige felt that creeping numbness coating her body with skin rising in goose bumps. Her mind was in a hazy state as she struggled to come up with words to issue a counterattack. The attack from the Spearow hit a climax with a final swing downwards with his beak. The attack forced young Varem to stumble backwards away from the hovering opponent. Several surface skin scratches were left over Varem's face. Paige struggled to focus on the battle and not on the urge to run. Even the most mundane attack by an opponent had crippled her attention.
"Good job Spearow! Now give that little lizard a Leer!" Spearow's eyes narrowed onto Varem as they gave off a menacing red light that seemed to sap Varem of strength to fight as his body slumped down a bit. Patrick watched the move as he began to relive his own battle with Bret and noticed his tactics had not changed.
"Paige! He is setting up for another fury attack! You need to get your Pokémon out of the way now!"
"Shut up kid. It's too late to help this one", Bret stated as he folded his arms over his chest with a confident smile. He could sense that the girl was a rookie, if even that, with handling Pokémon in battles. Bret had participated in plenty of battles with the local bug catchers and fellow bird keepers. Not one to lose, he would always pick on those he knew were less experienced than him either through intimidation or physical violence. This girl was not an exception to the rule. "Fury Attack again!"
The Spearow's pink feet swung out above Varem as he scratched furiously with his talons. Varem attempted to get out of the way from the constant attacks by running around the designated battle area but was clawed several times by the Spearow's talons. Paige continued to fight her inner demons that tormented her with doubt and paralyzed her resolve. Watching Varem flee from the Spearow's attacks initiated an ache in her chest as she wanted to stop this battle or at least fight back. Her throat felt like there were hands clenched around it and tightened with each moment. She managed to let out an audible squeak but the words would not come. Her eyes closed tightly with a sudden rush of disappointment overcoming her. She could feel all eyes dropping on her, judging her inadequacies as a Trainer.
Even through this self-imposing despair, Paige heard voices from the past speaking out in encouragement. The words came to her like a fire being lit in the darkness.
"I am right about you Paige. It just will take you some time to realize your potential."
"Pokémon crave a strong trainer and it is a disservice to that Pokémon if you can't meet that expectation."
"Your Pokémon choose to battle other Pokémon, having faith in your abilities. You can't let them down just because you are afraid."
An inner light grew and began to melt away her numbed state. She had to be confident in herself and give it her all with no regrets. Paige still disliked the idea of Pokémon fighting but she would not let her new friend stand alone. Her eyes opened quickly with a sharp and stern look, dismissing the tears that had formed at the corners. Her dominant hand clenched into a fist as she punched it forward with a shout out.
"Varem! Jump up and use Headbutt!" Varem, who had been running all this time from Spearow's attacks, turned quickly around to face his opponent. Using the bottom of his tail, Varem kicked off the ground and bashed his forehead into Spearow's underside. Spearow tumbled backwards in the air and climbed in altitude to recover from the attack. Bret lowered his eyebrows and frowned a bit, not expecting her Pokémon to turn about and attack that quickly. It didn't matter in the long run though as her Charmander had already sustained plenty of damage.
"What are you doing Spearow? Don't back away! Dive down and commence another Fury Attack!" Bret yelled out his command in an aggravated tone while the Spearow cawed out and began descending back down. Paige could see that Varem wasn't in any shape of running away so it was decided a good defense here would be a fiery offense.
"Varem! Don't let Spearow get close and use Ember", Paige shouted out. Varem stood strong even after the assault and followed the order. Opening its mouth, Varem spat out bolts of fire from its mouth up at the diving bird. The spray of gold fire was spread out too far for the Spearow to effectively dodge. The attempt at aerial acrobatics through the bolts failed. Being hit by the bolts of fire, the Spearow was forced to pull up and over Varem with a painful caw out. Bret had an angry and confused look crossing over his face. Was she just toying with him earlier? Where did all that confidence come from all of a sudden? Paige felt excitement growing in her as the tide of battle seemed to be turning her way. "Keep the heat up Varem and fire another Ember!"
"I don't think so. Aerial Ace", Bret yelled out with a stomp of his foot forward. The Spearow flipped around in the air to dive back down at Varem as he had begun to fire another wave of Ember. Engulfed in streaks of white light, Spearow seemed to disappear at the forefront of the Ember attack but reappear and slamming Varem with his beak. Varem was sent flying backwards from the impact of the attack. Flipping over twice before hitting the ground, Varem put its claws down to drag along the soil in attempt to stop the slide. Paige felt her confidence take a heavy hit as Varem struggled to stand after the attack. She couldn't stand seeing Varem in this state.
"Varem! I'm sorry!" Paige took his pokeball from her belt and sent a red beam of energy to connect with Varem. Varem was still attempting to stand up until the end. When his body was drawn back into the capsule, Paige stared down at the ball in her hand in disappointment of herself. Bret brushed his hand back over his mohawk with a chuckle.
"Now it's time to hand over your money too babe." Paige shook her head and reattached Varem to her belt. This wasn't over. Not by a long shot. Her fingertips slipped over her first partner's pokeball in prep.
"You're not the only skilled with flight. Gale! You're up!" Paige launched the ball underhanded into the sky. Splitting in the air, the Pidgey shot up into the sky and flapped its wings in a steady pace to keep at the same level as the Spearow. Gale looked at the injured Spearow with a soft coo while the Spearow forced himself to keep eye contact with its new opponent. Bret was still flying high, confident this rookie trainer was no match for his trained Pokémon. Before Bret could utter a snappy retort, Paige jumped in. "Quick Attack! Go!"
Gale stretched out her wings parallel to her body and bolted forward, leaving behind a trail of white light behind in flight. The Spearow had little time to react as Gale's wing clipped her opponent and sent him spiraling down to land on the ground. Bret's mouth was left ajar as he saw Spearow land with a stumble. It was unexpected that Paige would recover this quickly with this much vigor to her. Even Patrick and Alex looked on at Paige with a slow growing sense of respect. Paige felt her worries and fears being pushed aside but this was not done by herself. Those encouraging words given to her still rang true in her head while her Pokémon's faith in her as a trainer backed up her resolve to fight for those who could not stand up by themselves. As long as she could maintain this mindset, maybe she could get through this.
Spearow flapped his wings rapidly to take up to the air once more while Gale circled over above the treetops to watch her opponent. Bret clenched his fingernails tight into his palms as he yelled out his command.
"Spearow! Another Aerial Ace!" Spearow fired up into the sky engulfed in white light right at Gale. The opponent disappeared right before he reached Gale and sliced by her through the air with talons raking across her body. Gale took a heavy blow by the attack and went into a spiral dive downwards with wings tightened to her side. From the mix of the summer heat and the intensity of her battle, Paige felt a line of perspiration slide down her cheek. This wasn't good. Gale was her last Pokémon.
"Don't give up Gale", Paige yelled out in encouragement. "Use your wings to create a whirlwind under you!" Gale heard Paige's command and complied, extending her wings out and slamming them together rapidly to halt her descent. The dust devil she created kicked up the soil around the area with debris flying in the mini twister. Gale looked up to see the Spearow diving down after her. Paige saw her chance as the torrent of wind had not fully subsided. "Now Gale! Dodge to the side!" Her partner tilted her wings and body to the side to catch the top of the mini twister and ride the wave while the Spearow had dived into the center, narrowly missing the tiny bird. Spearow flapped his wings in a futile attempt to halt his dive but was caught in the wind at the base of the twister. The injuries from early had taken a toll on his wings and he could not prevent being spun around by the gust until the wind subsided and threw her enemy to the side and into the forest floor. Gale kept its altitude and watched as Spearow didn't recover from the fall and instead laid there. Bret grunted with a hurt look as he could see that Spearow was spent. Retrieving the pokeball, Spearow was recovered and placed back at Bret's side as his head was lowered.
Paige stood there, almost in a daze at what had just happened. She had successful defeated Bret's Pokémon in combat. Ecstatic, Paige could feel her body shiver in excitement before she began to jump from one foot to another in an excited dance with arms up and a bright smile. "Yes yes yes yes! We did it Varem! We did it Gale!" Gale happily cooed out at Paige, enjoying seeing her owner in such a state. This felt like it was a defining turn for Paige. Her first battle and she had succeeded. Her celebration was cut short however as Bret would only smirk and draw a second ball.
"Oh it's not over yet hun. Did you think I only had one partner at my side?" Paige had stopped and looked back over to Bret while his grip tensed around the new ball. The black shading around the green circles etched on it was something Paige had never seen before. The red eye of the pokeball met with his fingertip as the container opened from the bottom to reveal an eruption of black light lined with purple energy. Patrick and Alex recognized this immediately as the primary torturer that Bret used.
"Paige watch out! That's Bret's Murkrow! It's too strong!" Alex yelled out as Paige watched the black feathered Pokémon fly out of the dark cloud and up above the area. With its crooked yellow beak and red eyes, this Pokémon's shadow loomed over Gale with ominous intent. Gale gazed up at the new foe not shaken but more curious about what it was capable of. The Murkrow kept flight in the air with slow flaps of its wing while staring quietly down at Gale. Bret smiled widely with teeth clenched in exposure. The dusk ball in his grip was lowered to his side while he prepared for the second and final round. Paige was worried at just how shocked Alex sounded and she knew little of Murkrows off the top of her head. Quickly she recovered her Pokedex from her skirt pocket and pointed it directly at the new opponent. The panel flipped open and with a chime as data appeared on the screen.
*Bing* Murkrow, the darkness Pokémon. Murkrows are feared and loathed by many as they are believed to bring misfortune to all those who see it at night. This Pokémon shows a strong interest in objects that sparkle and will even attempt to steal rings from women's hand.
This information didn't help Paige in battle and only casted the Pokémon in a darker light. Hearing about this dark Pokémon made her think back to the Houndoom, her skin starting to break out in fearful goosebumps. Still, she had to stay confident in her abilities or she would fall back into her old ways. She wasn't going to let Bret intimidate her with this. Slipping the Pokedex back in her pocket, she returned her attention to the battle.
"Alright Gale. Let's show these guys what you are fully capable of! Quick Attack!" Paige shouted out to Gale as the Pokémon darted forward in a charge through the air directly at the Murkrow. The Murkrow didn't try to move away, instead Bret sneered and shouted out a retort with a sharp tone.
"Wing Attack now! Block it!" The Murkrow had waited until Gale was about to make connection and swung both his wings forward to strike. Gale found herself halted by the offensive move used in defense and dropped down out of the sky. Paige shouted out to Gale as her Pokémon recovered from the strike and found herself perched on one of the fruit tree's branches. Breathing heavily, Gale had telltale signs that she had sustained a lot of punishment. Paige gasped softly, seeing that Bret had just been waiting for her to attack so he could counter. Her nerves and jitters were getting the better of her as she could not stay calm, instead yelling out her next command.
"Gale! Gust attack! Blow the Murkrow away!" Gale seemed to ignore Paige and hopped farther into the branches. "Pi-Gale?" Paige watched with disbelief as her Pokémon disobeyed. At times Gale would not listen to Paige such as making deliveries to the wrong window, pecking at packages with food or just blatantly refusing to work with her. It was uncommon but when it did happen, it seemed to happen at the worst of times. This was one of those times. Paige felt her chest and face growing red in embarrassment, fully aware that her skills as a trainer were still lacking. Bret looked puzzled for a second but then began to laugh happily.
"Do you see what happens when you bite off more than you can chew? I knew you were a lucky amateur. Now . . . let's get your Gale out of that tree shall we? Night Shade Murkrow!" Bret pointed to the tree that Gale had taken cover in as Murkrow flew overhead with the outline of his body glowing in a light purple shade. From opening his beak, the Murkrow cried out and sent multiple rings of crimson energy down at the tree. The rings expanded and surrounded the tree, casting it in a pale purple light and damaging the branches to drop all the leaves and fruit from it. Paige watched in horror as the foliage decomposed before her eyes while fruit was rotted out before it hit the ground. Gale didn't stand a chance. Bret smiled and watched as the tree grew barren of cover and was fully exposed now. Paige expected the worse but was surprised to see that Gale was exposed but unharmed by the attack. Patrick could see the confusion on Paige's face.
"Paige. Night Shade doesn't affect Pokémon that are normal type. Bret is just trying to scare you and expose you Pokémon so it can't rest. Keep it together already!" Patrick hushed up quickly as Bret whistled to get the young bug catcher's attention then waved his index finger in a shaming motion for helping Paige.
"Keep those lips sealed Patty. Don't want them split again do you? Now Paige", Bret retorted calmly to her look, "if you back down now, I will let you walk away from this. You have nothing to gain from sticking up for these babies." Paige ran the back of her hand over her forehead to clear a few droplets before shaking her head, replying with an issuing her next attack.
"Gale! Dive down to the ground and stay low." Gale complied with a wobble in midair as it dropped down from the tree and glided along. The Murkrow was ordered to follow close behind and Paige was counting on that. "Now Gale! About face and kick up some dirt! Sand Attack!" Gale spun around to face her pursuer and flapped her wings rapidly to the ground. The loose topsoil from the dirt patches around the area rose up and found its target. The dirt hit Murkrow's eyes and forced them to shut. Murkrow took back up to the sky to avoid any further effect from the ground attack but Gale was now in control of the dogfight. Paige yelled out for Gale to strike while Murkrow could not counter as Bret ordered his Pokémon to turn around and strike back with his wings despite eyesight being hindered. The two Pokémon collided.
Both Pokémon barreled down to the ground and hit the soil. Light dust clouds kicked up from where they crash landed. Gale had struck first blow in midair with her quick attack and sent the Murkrow spinning around, allowing him only to achieve a glancing blow with his wing attack. The impact of their two attacks nearly coinciding sent both of them to the forest floor in front of their trainers. The Murkrow stumbled back up to his feet with a ruffle of its body and wings. Gale however remained laying on the forest floor on her back, knocked out cold by the collision. Gale's body had several signs of blunt trauma accompanied by stray feathers lying around her. Paige stared down at Gale silently in disbelief, slowly kneeling down to scoop up her partner into her arms. Gale was still breathing but it was labored and she needed to rest. Bret watched as Paige called Gale back into her pokeball. Murkrow cried out in victory as Bret's cronies applauded their leader with hoots and claps.
"Looks like you learned a valuable lesson on sticking your nose in where it doesn't belong. I'll take my victory in cash. Now." Paige felt Patrick's and Alex's hands resting on each of her shoulders in comfort. Looking up at the two, Paige began to secure Gale's ball back on her belt.
"You did your best Paige. Thanks for trying to help us", Patrick said with a bit of sadness in his voice. Alex nodded in agreement with a weak smile. Paige felt like the consolation prize was a joke. She wanted nothing more than to wipe Bret's arrogant smile right off of his face. Now she had to pay up with both her pride and pokedollars. Her hand rested over Varem's ball first in thought of use but he was still injured from the first round and it would just be heartbreaking to see him hurt further. Sliding her fingertips over to Gale's ball she made a silent apology to her and thanked her for trying so hard.
Her hand grazed over the other pokeballs on her belt, a new habit to make sure they were still secured. For a brief moment, Paige felt a ball at her belt give a jerking motion towards her touch. Her hand froze, head rising up in disbelief of what she felt. The ball gave another soft jerking motion under her fingertips. N-no . . . it can't be. What is this? Looking down at the pokeball her touch rested against, the ball's movement jerked from side to side. Alex seemed to notice as well, moving his hand away from her shoulder and taking a few steps back. Patrick watched his brother do so before turning his attention to where Paige's eyes rested. Even Bret and his followers were now aware something was going on. Paige clasped the pokeball in her grip and pulled it free of its slot. The vibrations of the ball continued in her palm and only grew stronger until it would burst open.