A/N: Good morning everyone. So I might have gotten caught up with Summer Fest Gaming and E3 last week and didn't work on this chapter. For that I do apologize. So this week, I am releasing two chapters. Hopefully you will enjoy them :)
Pokemon Journey: Indigo League
Chapter 6: A New Friend
"Squirtle, water gun!" Brandon commanded, aiming towards the targets that were set up against a tree trunk.
"Squirtle!" Squirtle cried out and aimed for the lower target with his water gun. Unfortunately, it just missed the target.
"That's alright buddy," Brandon said, petting Squirtle on his head. "That's why we are training. Once again, water gun."Squirtle tried once again, but it still fell short of the target. Brandon scratched his chin, trying to figure out how to help Squirtle.
It was early in the morning with Brandon the only person in the practice field. He had got stomped in his first gym match yesterday, and so, like some sort of tradition, Brandon wanted time alone. Forrest had somehow found him and gave him some advice. Brandon returned to the center and immediately went into this room and soon fell asleep. Now, he is taking Forrest's advice and training.
"Keep working on it Squirtle alright," Brandon said before walking towards Tangela. Understandably, Tangela seems really bummed about the lose, so Brandon sat down beside him.
"Hey Tangela," Brandon said softly.
"Tangela," Tangela replied, though not looking at his trainer.
"Just so you know, the loss yesterday wasn't your fault," Brandon told him. "Ultimately, it's my fault."
"Tang?" Tangela said, cocking his head at his trainer.
"It's my job as a trainer to make sure you are ready," Brandon explains. "Something I failed to do. In all honestly, I was surprised at the speed of the battle." Tangela said nothing but is listening, feeling a little better.
"Instead of feeling bad, let's use it as a learning experience," Brandon suggests. "Now, instead of focusing on that battle, I want you to think back to that Mankey battle." Tangela nods, feeling slightly better. Brandon points to the field."What say we get some training in?"
Tangela gets up and proceeds to walk onto the field, Brandon following suit. "Alright. Let's work on your vine release. The quicker you can release them, the better the fight, I think anyways."
Brandon quickly set up more targets along a tree trunk. He pointed to them. "Let's try this. Aim for the targets but with each strike, see if you can release it a little bit quicker."
Tangela nodded and focused on the targets. First one, he reached halfway. Second and third attempts, same distance. Brandon watched while thinking. Finally, after the fifth attempt, Brandon called out to Tangela.
"Tangela, don't worry about speed for now. We should try and focus on your accuracy," Brandon said. "We will add these exercises to our morning ritual. Soon, you will be able to hit them."
"Hey there," a male voice called out behind Brandon, causing Brandon to jump in fright. Turning around, he saw a lad standing there about his age and height. He wore a blue beanie, with a red polo shirt and blue jeans. 'Sorry. Didn't mean to startle you. I just saw you're training and watched for a bit. Please don't take this the wrong way, but it seems you are a new trainer?"
"I am," Brandon said as Squirtle came walking over to Tangela and Brandon, Tangela hiding behind Brandon's leg. "In fact, I am training for a re-match."
"I see," the boy said with a kind smile. "I'm Saul, from Hau'oli City from the Aloha Region."
"Nice to meet you, Saul," Brandon said, extending his hand. Saul shook it. "I'm Brandon, from Pallet Town. These are my partners Squirtle and Tangela."
"Ever since we learned about gym battles, I always wanted to come to a league and try it," Saul said with excitement in his eyes. "Nice to meet you Squirtle and Tangela."
"That's pretty cool," Brandon said, smiling. "So you are here to take the gym challenge?"
"As much as I would love to, I can't right now," Saul replied. "I'm here to try and get Mantine Surfing popular here in the Kanto Region."
"I've heard of it, but never really seen it," Brandon told him. "I think the majority of the matches are in the south of Kanto. Cities like Fuschia, Seaform Islands and Cinnabar Island would be the ideal places to look."
"I've been told the same," Saul said, nodding his head. "I try to make it a habit to watch gym matches whenever I am in a city."
"Oh yeah. Aloha doesn't have gyms right? They have the Island Challenge, which sounds really cool," Brandon said. He looked down at Tangela and Squirtle. "That sounds like fun right?"
"Squirtle," Squirtle said, crossing his arms and pointing towards the gym's location.
"Yeah, you're right," Brandon said sheepishly. He was about to ask Saul something but then he remembered Forrest's voice about battling. "Saul, would you like to battle?"
Saul thought for a moment, before nodding. "I have three Pokemon but I can only use two if that's alright."
"That's fine. As you can see, I only have two myself," Brandon said, stepping into the trainer's box. Saul took a step into the opposite trainer box. "Ready when you are."
Saul nods as he unclips a Pokeball and holds it in his hands. Brandon looked down at Tangela.
"Yungoos, you're up!" Saul shouted, releasing brown and yellow Pokemon.
"Tangela, you got this!" Brandon yelled as Tangela stepped onto the field. Brandon took out his Pokedex and scanned the new Pokemon The voice chimed. "Yungoos, the Loitering Pokemon. Normal type. Its stomach takes up most of its long torso. It's a big eater, so the amount Trainers have to spend on its food is no laughing matter."
"That is accurate," Saul said, chuckling. He looked down at Yungoos, who was staring at Tangela. "Isn't that right Yungoos?"
"Yung," Yungoos replied, nodding his head but not taking his eyes off Tangela.
"You can have the first move," Saul shouted across the field. Brandon nodded before issuing his first command.
"Tangela, let's start off with stun spore!" Brandon yelled.
"Yungoos, countered that with a tackle!" Saul cried out.
Tangela began to shake, releasing a sprinkle of orange powder towards Yungoos, who began sprinting towards Tangela. Yungoos ran through the powder, slowing down but still managed to knock into Tangela.
"Yungoos, use tackle again," Saul shouted.
"Tangela, sidestep the tackle and grab his tail!" Brandon countered.
Tangela was able to sidestep the slower Yungoos and wrapped vines around his tail. Yungoos quickly bucked, knocking Tangela back with an angry growl.
"A little advice, Yungoos doesn't like his tail touched, even from me," Saul advised Brandon across the field.
"Good to know," Brandon shouted back. "Tangela let's avoid the tail. Use bind to keep him place."
"Yungoos, sand attack!" Saul commanded. "Then tackle through the sand attack."
The image of Geodude attacking through the sand flashed in Brandon's mind. Without thinking, Brandon issued another order. "Wait until Yungoos comes through the cloud. Once you see him, wrap him up!"
Yungoos kicked up a sand cloud and proceeded to jump through it, only to land on the ground and immediately get wrapped into Tangela's vines. Saul was impressed.
"Impressive. It seemed like you knew I would do that," Saul said.
"Forrest, the gym leader, did that exact same move," Brandon explained.
"Well, dang. Looks like I need to come up with a different tactic," Saul called out before issuing Yungoos an order. "Yungoos, bite the vines and break free."
Yungoos began to chew on the vines, causing Tangela to cry out in pain, letting Yungoos free. Tangela backed up a little, trying to create some space.
"Tangela, you ok?" Brandon asked.
"Tangela," Tangela nodded, the vines retreating back into his body.
"Yungoos, you alright?" Saul asked.
"Yung," Yungoos nodded, advancing upon Tangela.
"Good. Let's go in for a tackle attack!" Saul commanded, thrusting his arm forward.
Just as Yungoos sprinted forward, he was suddenly halted, showing signs of paralysis. Seeing this, Brandon took adavantage of it.
"Tangela now's our chance. Wrap him up and use absorb!" Brandon shouted.
Tangela's vines snaked out and wrapped up Yungoos (careful to avoid the tail though) and soon was absorbing his energy and regaining it. Yungoos tried to struggle against it but his tiredness was evident.
"Yungoos, use tackle!" Saul called out desperately.
With a sudden burst, Yungoos managed to tackle Tangela, causing the vine Pokemon to stumble back, dropping his hold on Yungoos. Yungoos immediately followed it up with another tackle.
Tangela wobbled back before looking at Yungoos. He felt a surge of energy flow through his vines, expanding a little in size. Brandon observes the learning of a new move with a smile.
"Tangela, you learned a new move. That's awesome," Brandon said, flashing Tangela a smile.
"That would be growth," Saul said, also watching with a little pride. "It raises your Pokemon's attack and special attack. Which means we need to be careful Yungoos."
"Tangela, use growth again!" Brandon shouted out.
"Yungoos, keep your distance for now," Saul instructed his partner.
Tangela grew a little more in size as Yungoos keeps an eye on him. They continue to stare at each other for a few seconds before Saul and Brandon issued commands.
"Yungoos, sand attack!" Saul shouted.
"Tangela, get in close!" Brandon yelled.
As Tangela was moving closer, Yungoos kicked up a brief sand cloud and hid in it. Tangela had to advert his eyes and that let Yungoos the chance to move undetected to Tangela's side. Once he was in position, Yungoos sprang at Tangela, hoping to catch him off guard.
"On your left side Tangela. Grab and throw him!" Brandon shouted out.
Tangela stepped back, wrapped his vines around the midsection of Yungoos, and with a mighty heave, chucked him across the field. Yungoos landed with a thud and didn't get back up.
"Way to go Tangela," Brandon said, grinning at him.
"Yungoos, return. You did a great job," Saul said, a red beam recalling the fallen Pokemon. He unclipped a second Pokeball. "Alright. Pikipek, your turn to shine!"
Out of the ball came a black and white bird Woodpecker Pokemon, with a purple stripe down his head. Brandon took out his Pokedex and scanned it. The voice chimed back. "Pikipek, The Woodpecker Pokemon. Normal/Flying Type. It may look spindly, but its neck muscles are heavy-duty. It can peck at a tree 16 times per second!"
"Don't let the size of her fool you. She's much stronger than she looks," Saul said, rubbing her head affectionately.
"She's a different color than the one in the Pokedex," Brandon pointed out. "Tangela, come back. You did a great job. Squirtle, you're up!"
"She was hard to find but well worth the effort," Saul replied. Pikipek flew down on the ground and eyed Squirtle. "You can have the first move this time."
"Squirtle, use water gun!" Brandon commanded.
"Pikipek, dodge it and use echoed voice!" Saul yelled.
Squirtle unleashed a water gun aimed at Pikipek but Pikipek swooped above the water gun before opening her beak and let out a high-pitched voice, causing Squirtle to cover his ears.
"Great job Pikipek. Keep using echoed voice!" Saul shouted.
Pikipek continues to use echoed voice, causing Squirtle to cover his ears but each time, it seemed like Squirtle was taking more damage. Brandon had to stop Pikipek from using that move but how?
"Duck into your shell Squirtle!" Brandon shouted, hoping that his shell will provide some sort of cover.
Squirtle ducked his head into his shell to avoid to shrieking and found cover for it. Pikipek immediately swooped down, landed on the shell and began to peck into the hole. Squirtle responded with a water gun, hitting Pikipek, causing her to fly away.
"Pikipek, fly low and come in for a peck attack," Saul commanded.
"Squirtle, roll to the right," Brandon countered. "Fire a quick water gun!"
Pikipek flew low to the ground, her wings open. Squirtle managed to roll to his right quickly and got to a kneeling position before releasing a water gun, hitting Pikipek on her wing, causing her to crash into the ground.
"Squirtle, tackle attack now!" Brandon ordered, hoping to catch Pikipek off guard.
"Pikipek, return," Saul recalled the woodpecker Pokemon. He walked forward and extended his hand towards Brandon. "That was a good match."
Brandon recalled both Tangela and Squirtle before shaking Saul's hand. "It was. Thank you. Why recall Pikipek though?"
"This was just a training match," Saul explained, falling into step with Brandon as they entered the Pokemon Center and found seats in the trainer's lounge after leaving their Pokemon with Nurse Joy to get checked out. "And it's important for a trainer to know when to forfeit a match to save your Pokemon from unnecessary damage."
"I should remember that," Brandon said, storing that bit of advice in the back of his mind. "So will you leave Pewter City today?"
"Yeah," Saul said regretfully. "I would love to stay and explore the city but I need to get going. I'm actually waiting for the bus."
"Here, take my number. I would love to see you surf at some point," Brandon said, writing down his number and giving it to Saul. Saul did the same, handing Brandon his number. "What time is your bus?"
"Should be any moment," Saul said. He saw the bus down the street and got up. "Right on time. Good luck with your re match Brandon, and I look forward to battling you again sometime later."
"Thanks, and good luck with trying to get surfing popular here," Brandon responded, watching Saul walk towards the bus stop outside of the Pokemon Center. Soon, the bus was driving into the distance and was out of sight.
Brandon is sitting on the couch, waiting for Ava to come down. His parents booked a hotel room nearby. They are going to meet up later and discuss what will happen. Tangela and Squirtle are good to go and were resting in their Pokeballs, clipped to Brandon's belt.
Brandon began to doze off when Ava finally came downstairs. Brandon felt bad for leaving Ava and his parents, and as he got to the Pokemon Center late last night, he didn't have a chance to speak with them. He wondered if Ava decided to leave and travel on her own after that, but when she smiled at him, he knew the answer.
"Sorry about last night," Brandon said, rubbing his neck.
"Don't worry about it," Ava said, waving off his apology. "Trust me, every trainer tends to go off by themselves after their first loss. It's like a tradition."
"I still should have said something, or come back earlier," Brandon said.
"Did you learn anything on your own?" Ava asked.
"A few things, yeah," Brandon answered. He got up and followed Ava t to the door. "I had a match with a guy named Saul this morning."
"Then it was worth it," Ava replied, stepping towards the door. "How did it go?"
"It was fun but I learned a few things," Brandon said, following Ava. "In fact, I want to book the rematch for today."
"Have you figured out your training routine yet?" Ava questioned as her and Brandon followed the stream of people before veering off towards the gym.
"Kinda," Brandon said sheepishly. They had arrived at the gym and Brandon quickly booked a morning time."It's a work in progress."
"Good," Ava said with a smile. "As long as you start it, training will become easier after a while."
"Wait a minute," Brandon said, realizing something. "You knew I was going to lose."
"I didn't know you were going to lose, but I did know you would be in for a difficult fight," Ava told him, stopping in front of the hotel.
"And you didn't warn me?" Brandon asked, looking around for his parents.
"Remember when I said I wouldn't give you all the answers?" Ava asked him. When Brandon nodded, she went on. "This is one of the those times. You needed to learn the hard way."
Brandon thought about it. After a moment, he could see her point. "I see what you mean. Will you help me with coming up with training sessions?"
"Of course," Ava replied. She looked at her watch. "Your parents said to meet them at this time."
"And there they are," Brandon said, pointing them out. His parents are walking through the doors. Brandon went over and hugged them both. "Sorry about leaving you guys last night."
"Don't worry about it bud," Fred said. "Did you figure out what you needed to figure out?"
"I did," Brandon nodded.
"Good. Look, honey, we are sorry but we have to get going," Lisa said.
"It's alright. I have my rematch in about 15 minutes." Brandon said with a smile. Just then, Lisa's phone rang. She smiled when she saw who it was. She answered it, showing the face of Kelly on the other end. "Hello, Kelly."
"Hi Kelly," Brandon said, a wide smile spreading on his face. "How's Kalos?"
"Busy but good," Kelly said. In the background, she was sitting in a Pokemon Center. "How are you doing?"
"Doing pretty good," Brandon answered. He waved to Ava. "Kelly, this is Ava, a new friend. Ava, this is my sister, Kelly."
"Nice to meet you Ava," Kelly said with a smile. "Hope my brother isn't causing too much trouble."
"Brandon? Causing trouble? Haven't heard," Ava said in a teasing voice while Kelly laughed.
"I hear that. Brandon, mom and dad told me about your battle," Kelly said softly. "Tough break Brandon."
"It was a disaster," Brandon admitted. "But I am ready for my re-match."
"So soon?" Kelly asked, surprise in her voice.
"Yeah," Brandon said confidently.
"Just be careful," Kelly advised him.
"I will," Brandon said. "So did you find the Pokemon were you hunting for?"
"What makes you think I was looking for a Pokemon?" Kelly asked him, amused.
"The fact that you spent a week in a cave," Brandon pointed out. "We both know how much you love caves."
"Har har har," Kelly responded, a twinkle in her eye. "But, yes. I did find the Pokemon I wanted."
"Glad to hear it, Kelly," Brandon said sincerely. "I need to hand you back to mom and dad and get over to the gym for my rematch. It was great speaking with you again."
"Good luck with your rematch Brandon," Kelly said before being handed to her parents.
"Hang on a second Kelly," Lisa said. She turns towards Brandon and Ava, hugging them both. "It was fun hanging out with you guys. Good luck Brandon with your rematch and Ava, thank you for taking care of him."
"Good luck son," Fred said, giving Brandon a hug. He smiled at Ava. "And what Lisa said. Thank you for looking for him."
"Any time," Ava said with a smile as she and Brandon turned towards the gym, a determined look in his eyes. Together, Brandon and Ava entered the gym, with Brandon heading onto the field, and Ava heading up to the spectator's stands. Meanwhile, Lisa and Fred were still talking to Kelly.
"We're about to head out now," Lisa said.
"Stay," Kelly immediately said. "Stay and cheer on Brandon for his rematch."
"You sure?" Fred asked. "You know if we stay, we will miss the flight for today."
"I'm sure," Kelly said with a smile. "I love you guys. Just let me know how it turns out." With that, Kelly hung up.
Fred and Lisa quickly made their way towards the gym and sat down beside a surprised Ava, watching as Brandon entered the field.