Thanks for all the support, even after my break.
A question for my readers: I've got a few ideas of my own, but I'm curious about what are some Pokémon who you feel are overlooked and underappreciated, but can still be made viable with the right strategy or set-up. As a fun exercise, also consider aspects of Pokémon beyond just their utility in games. Who would be useful to have in the actual Pokémon world. Take Absol's ability to predict natural disasters or Vaporeon's ability to turn its body into water for example. What other Pokémon have cool or useful abilities?
To thank you all for sticking with me and continuing to read my story, here's my longest chapter yet! This one's a doozy!
Leave a follow and a favorite if you enjoy it!
Upon my arrival at the Mauville City Police Station, everything began to move in a blur.
Tracy was pulled aside by a man who was so angry that he had veins popping out of his neck and temples.
"See you in a bit, wild boy!"
She left me with a cheerful promise to meet up soon, but something told me that her boss wasn't about to let her off so easily. Not that I had much time to dwell on that thought as I, too, was swiftly ushered away to another room by a man and a woman in police uniforms.
All I could do was hug Goly tight to my chest (he kept squirming and trying to inspect everything new around us, which is literally everything for him) and follow along. My nerves were beginning to fray, wondering if any of these people around me had known my prior self. As such, everything the officers said to me went in one ear and out the other. It felt like a swarm of insects was buzzing in my brain, preventing me from focusing properly.
I'm sitting at a table in a small square room. On the walls are vibrant pictures of Pokémon, all the cute and colorful ones that young children might be particularly drawn towards, not that I dislike them either. Across from me sits the female police officer who led me here. She's saying something.
"…okay now." Her words finally come into focus as I manage to calm myself down.
I had always been a bit socially awkward, but this is the first time I've had anxiety this bad. I remind myself once more that I can easily get any personality changes written off as a result of what I went through.
The only problem is my memories, but I'll just have to take it til I make it. I'm not going to try to bring up any memory loss, as that would most likely result in mandatory therapy sessions for a young child like myself. Instead, I'll just have to bet on nobody being close enough to this orphan boy to notice that I don't remember any of them. Acting like a quiet child in front of people from Mauville might be my best bet.
"Sorry," I finally collect my thoughts enough to respond. "Just overwhelmed."
Her face lights up at the fact that I finally responded, and what follows is a long process of explaining what happened and signing a few papers confirming my return. I keep my telling of the story vague, especially concerning time and how long things took. I still don't know how long it's been since Reid went missing.
When the topic of Goly is brought up, she assures me that I will not be separated from him. However, that also means that we both need to be given medical check-ups. Goly will be taken to the Mauville Pokémon Center, and I will head to the Mauville clinic.
Something interesting to note is that the officer, unfortunately not Jenny (though I do remember seeing the back of a woman's head with spiky green hair while being escorted), mentioned that the orphanage had been informed of my return about an hour ago now. The fact that nobody has shown up yet implies that they weren't too concerned that I went missing. While terribly sad for the original Reid, this is actually welcome news to me, as it means I'm all the less likely to arouse any suspicion. Though the look on the officer's face when she told me this didn't look too good either.
Anyway, what's left is to get my medical check, find Tracy about getting a Pokeball for Goliath, and end this chaotic day.
Here I am, several hours after making that naïve comment about ending my day so easily. I now sit with my face and chest resting heavily on the table in front of me, the class of iced tea left untouched. Tracy is similarly positioned in front of me, mirroring both my posture and my mood.
For my part, I was jabbed with more needles than I could count at that hospital. I have no fear of needles, but there are limits. Upon escaping that torture after at least a couple of hours, I ran straight into a mob. I should have expected the media to be on my story like flies on dung.
Those reporters tried to tear me open and find out every exacting detail that is kept safely in my head. Without my police escort, I doubt I would have escaped them at all. Even as it was, I was stuck answering another hour or two worth of questions. I kept my answers vague once again, but I wasn't rude to them, considering that this is a big story that a lot of people will likely read.
When I retreated to the Pokémon Center, I was so mentally drained that I didn't even have it in me to be surprised to see Nurse Joy looking exactly like her anime Hoenn counterpart. I simply accepted my tiny raccoon, who was only calm due to having been sedated by Nurse Joy to allow for a proper inspection, and slumped down into a lobby seat.
That seat was where Tracy found me before pulling me out of the Center and into a quiet nearby café.
Tracy now sits before me, looking every bit as exhausted as I feel. Her reasons are apparent. Her boss had clearly put her through the wringer for delaying on returning with a child who had been lost for four weeks and presumed dead. The fact that she just showed him the video she took, as if it explained everything, did not help her case.
"Ugh," Tracy lifts her head with a weary groan. "Well kiddo," she smiles lazily. "I didn't get demoted."
"How wonderful for you." I quip back. "I didn't get any lethal infections."
"How wonderful," her head rests on her hand. "Looks like we're both going to survive then."
"Looks like it," I mumble. "So, about getting a Pokeball for Goly."
"Finally bringing that up, are you?" Her smile widens. "It's been painfully obvious that that's the only thing you've been thinking about." She takes out a red and white Pokeball and places it on the table between us. "I've got an empty, unregistered Pokeball right here for you. Go ahead and catch him. Since we're right here, you can just head across the street and register him as yours with Joy over there."
I look at the Pokeball before me and feel my heart flutter. It's finally real. How many people have dreamed of this moment? How often have I dreamed of this?
I turn my gaze onto my first partner in my new world: slightly over a foot long, spiky brown and light tan striped fur, a black bandit's mask, big cute eyes that are only half-lidded, a tongue hanging out and dripping drool on the table.
Honestly, what more could I want out of a partner?
I look back at the Pokeball and finger the item in my pocket until I finally make a decision. I can always make more money later, but my first catch can only happen once.
"Actually, I had a bit of a favor that I wanted to ask you regarding that." My voice is apprehensive and slow.
"Well, then ask," She urges. There is no displeasure on her face though. "Really, why does a kid like you talk so uptight and formally all of a sudden? If a kid wants something, they should just ask. The worst I'll do is say no."
"Alright then," I let out a deep breath and my tone goes back to being casual. I lift the Leaf Stone out of my pocket and set it on the table, next to the Pokeball. "If I sell you this Leaf Stone, will it make me enough to buy a Luxury Ball for him?"
She looks at me for a while, then sits back in her chair and sighs.
"It might, but just barely." She affirms. "Luxury Balls cost about 3,000 Poke at the cheapest. Any other evolutionary stone would easily bet you that much and some change, but Leaf Stones have the lowest demand of them all. Depending on the buyer, you could sell it for 3,000, or you could sell it for 1,500."
"Then," I go to respond, but she holds up a hand to cut me off.
"But I can't recommend that you get one," Tracy warns. "I get why you might have some kind of illusions about Luxury Balls, coming from a place like Neon City, but they're just a pointless way to show off your money."
"What?" I'm initially taken aback by both the new information about myself and her disapproval. "But don't Luxury Balls help you bond with your Pokémon easier? Aren't they more comfortable inside for them too?"
Tracy shakes her head.
"Nope, those are just rumors that the rich started and those who envy the rich have spread." She leans forward and looks directly into my eyes. "If they really were more comfortable, don't you think that every powerhouse trainer would have their Pokémon in them?"
"I guess."
"In fact, there are only downsides to using them." She continues. "I'm sure you know, but there aren't only good people out there in the world. People using Luxury Balls are the number one targets of both criminal organizations and common thieves alike."
"That makes sense," I nod along. "I guess that wasn't as well thought out as I'd assumed."
"No worries kiddo," Tracy's smile returns. "Just take it as a lesson not to vainly flaunt any wealth you might run into. There is a lot more good than bad out there in the world, but never forget that bad exists."
"I won't."
As it turns out, this ended up being a conversation I really needed to have. I can never forget that it's not only dangerous Pokémon that can be a threat to me here. Every region has its own local crime group.
"And just remember that you're friends with the coolest, most beautiful, and strongest Ranger around!" She flexes her bicep. "If you ever do get yourself into trouble, just remember that you've got my number and give me a call. I'll send all the bullies packin'"
"I'll make sure to keep that in mind" I smile back in gratitude. "I suppose I should just catch him with this then" I reach out for the Pokeball, but she catches my wrist in her hand.
"Not so fast buddy!" She wiggles her free finger at my face. "I can see that you want your first catch to be special, so as a proud member of the Ranger Corps, how can I allow you to settle for less than your perfect dream?" She turns back to her bag and digs through it once again. When she turns back, a pure white ball with a red line across the seal is in her hand.
"A Premier Ball?" I honestly hadn't even thought of using one. In the games, I pretty much only used Quick Balls and Ultra Balls for regular catches and Luxury Balls for my main team.
"So you know what it is," Tracy smiles kindly at me. "The inside of every Pokeball is pretty much the same: an artificial biome specific to the needs of whatever Pokémon you catch. Serious trainers only use the different types of Pokeballs to increase their catch rate, but that's about it. Although not many people do it, when a trainer does feel a need to make a certain catch extra special, they use a Premier Ball. Each trainer is only issued one in their career, and that's only if they specifically request it at a mart sponsored by the League."
"But, doesn't that mean you won't get to use one?" I ask, slightly apprehensive about taking it now. These semi-useless things in the games are so rare here?
"It's fine! No problem," She waves me off. "Once you've registered Go-*Pfft*-Goliath at the Pokémon Center, the system will recognize that I'm not the one who used the Premier Ball, and I'll be able to get a new one. This is only possible because you are still unregistered as a Trainer. If this was a year later, once your journey starts, it wouldn't be allowed." She finishes her sentence by picking up the pure white Pokeball and tossing it to me. "Now, hurry up and catch that drugged-up stinker before he wakes up and runs off to cause trouble."
I scramble to catch the Premier Ball before turning to look at my partner. Part of me was expecting to have a grand and emotional scene where my partner and I solidify our trust and dreams by looking into each other's eyes with passionate gazes as my new Pokémon willingly taps the button of the Pokeball. You know, the sort of thing that happens with about half of Ash's catches in the anime.
Unfortunately, that seems unlikely at the moment.
I poke Goly's side and my finger sinks deep into his fur before squishing his belly.
No reaction.
"Goly," I call out to him. "Wake up, buddy. This is a pretty big moment for us."
No reaction
I lift his paw and let it go. It drops to the table without resistance.
No reaction.
That was pretty fun, so I do it a few more times.
Tracy reacts. Her watch, a Poketch, I now know, is recording us.
I grab his hanging tongue and gently pull it further out of his mouth.
Still nothing.
His half-lidded eyes and lack of reaction make him seriously look dead, so I lift him with both hands and hold him out in front of my face.
He hangs limply in the air.
I give him a little shake.
He Tail Whips me in the face.
Tracy is fighting for her life between cracking into a fit of laughter and holding her camera steady.
Well, he's clearly alive. I guess that will need to be good enough.
I put my Pokémon down with a deep sigh and pick the Premier Ball up once again. My eyes go back and forth between the ball in my hand and the comatose raccoon on the table. Myriad emotions pass through my eyes: exasperation, humor, pride, glee, expectation, determination, fondness, and love.
Am I really going to conquer the world with this silly little trash panda?
Yes. Yes, I am.
I tap the ball on Goliath's head and it doesn't even shake. The click that confirms a successful capture is instantaneous.
"Congratulations kid," Tracy's voice confirms reality to me. "You now own a Pokémon."
Despite myself, a massive grin splits my face.
Thirty minutes after separating from Tracy at the café, I'm walking towards the orphanage. I managed to get some directions from Nurse Joy after registering Goliath under my name.
While registering him, I found out another crucial bit of information from the kind pink-haired beauty. 12 years old is the starting age for trainers in Hoenn. As an 11-year-old, I can officially register as a trainer for another 8 months. This means I also can't have official battles until that time. Fortunately, that only means that I can't wager money or enter any tournaments. When I asked her about it, Joy told me that I can still have casual battles at any time. She even recommended using the field behind the Pokémon center, since plenty of Trainers are always looking for battles with their young and new Pokémon there.
As I walk along the well-lit but empty night streets of Mauville, I begin to think of my plans for the future.
Well, I try to think of my plans, but a burst of light from my right pocket indicates that Goly has woken up and freed himself from his ball.
He materializes on the street before me (and isn't that cool to see?)! Immediately, his ears perk up and he begins to pace in circles. Then his nose twitches and he begins to bounce from one paw to another. Already seeing where this is going, I begin to speak up.
"Goly, just wait for a…" And he's off!
Somewhere in the distance behind me, the bell from a convenience store's front door resounds and Goly takes off after it in a full sprint. I reach for his ball, but it's impossible to get anything out of my jeans pockets quickly. Realizing he'll be out of sight before I can get his ball, I can only turn and sprint after him.
He quickly zeros in on the convenience store bell, and it is soon in sight. Just when it seems that his curiosity will be sated, a neon light flickers at the end of a nearby alleyway. Goly makes a sharp right turn to chase the new source of stimulus.
There's truly no time to plan with this Zigzagoon as my partner. I just need to go or get left behind.
Even as I sprint after him, alternating between panting for breath and calling his name, there is a wide smile on my face. My uncontrollable giggles interrupt me every now and then.
I wouldn't have it any other way.
The Mauville Orphanage is an alright place.
The director of the place is named Mrs. Melda. I don't know her first name, but I don't really need to. She doesn't particularly like or care for any of us, as evidenced by the fact that nobody even bothered to come to find me when I was missing until well past midnight on the very day I returned from being missing for four weeks. She doesn't care much about us, but she makes sure we have everything we need. To most children, this is probably emotionally damaging. To me, this is perfect.
I asked her for a library card. She got me one and sent me away. I asked her if I can take classes on Pokémon care and being a Trainer. She signed me up to Trainer School and shooed me off.
It's been three days since I arrived here, and I have decided that the Mauville Orphanage won't be a terrible place to spend my eight months preparing for my journey. It's definitely not a terrible place to be, and yet here I am, standing on the opposite side of a field as a group of several orphans, about to have a grudge match with one of them.
"Let's crush him and his pathetic Zigzagoon," My opponent tosses a Pokeball into the air. "Go Phanpy!"
Goly is already on the field, just stewing in anger at our opponent's ridicule. I almost worry that he plans to ignore the adorable blue, miniature elephant before him and attack the Trainer.
"Alright Goly, let's focus now!" I call out to my angry partner. "Don't waste time being mad, just show them why they're wrong."
Goly's rage calms to a cool heat. He's ready.
One of my opponent's friends, another of the older orphans, steps up to act as the referee.
The battle is starting.
Before that though, how did we get here?
When I first arrived at the orphanage, I made no attempt to hide Goly. He didn't want to be secluded in his ball, hidden from all the new sights, sounds, and smells. I didn't want to lessen our time together by having him in his ball either. The result is that he acts similar to Ash's Pikachu: he runs along with me when we go places, he will sit on my shoulders and let me carry him, and he'll eat some of my food, but mainly his own. Long story short, he's a free spirit.
As such, everyone saw him from the very start. Their first sight of dear Goliath was one of him being covered in dirt and trash, with his face, in particular, being slathered with jelly and cream. He was being hugged to my chest, but any onlookers could tell that he was actually just being restrained with all my might.
I should add that this was at approximately 2:11 A.M.
You see, my nighttime chase for Goly became a little more desperate when he took an interest in all the enticing new smells in the dumpsters behind the restaurants which lined the streets.
After several narrow escapes, I finally managed to catch him chowing down on a jelly donut in the dumpster of a pastry shop. How many he managed to eat before I caught him is uncertain, but his state of being near comatose once again tells me that it had to have been more than a few.
Anyway, I snatched him up and held him tight as I returned to the Orphanage.
My first interaction with Mrs. Melda, along with all the orphans who were still awake and stood behind her went like this:
"Welcome back Reid," Her eyebrow raised and she looked less than pleased. "It's good to see you again. I would ask where you were, but first…" She paused to find the right wording. "What is that?"
"My trash panda." That was my honest response.
We did not smell great.
Fast forward to earlier this morning and you will arrive at the spark which led to this battle.
You see, Goly's presence was not overly welcomed at the orphanage, even after we had gotten cleaned up.
The very young kids still love him. He is small, cute, furry, and funny. Those are all that children six years old or younger need to love something.
The older kids were much less enthusiastic about him. In the first place, most of them had already had plenty of interactions with Zigzagoons, even just in their kindergarten classes.
Second, and much more of a factor in their distaste, is that Goly is very much a little shit. He explores their rooms and beds, steals their food, plays with their toys, and even once peed in their clothes. Thankfully, the last one only happened once, as I had a no-nonsense talk with him about where he can and cannot do his business.
At this point, Goly has done everything to get on these kiddies' nerves short of stealing their woman. It's no wonder that they don't like him.
Nurse Joy did say that he is technically still in his toddler phase. So his behavior isn't out of the norm for a wild Pokémon, but that doesn't make it any less annoying for others.
To make matters worse, the four oldest kids still here had all turned twelve within the last two months. They had all received a starter Pokemon and were only waiting for their fifth friend to get her starter in two more weeks to begin their own journey.
Having Pokémon of their own, they didn't get why Goly was so poorly behaved. Even after I told them that Goly was a wild capture and their starters had been bred in captivity and pre-trained for behavior, they still wouldn't accept it.
Anyway, since their anger was justified, I allowed the insults and snide remarks to just go by. I wasn't looking for their approval or friendship in the first place. That is until they said something I couldn't forgive easily.
"That stupid Zigzagoon caused a mess in the kitchen again this morning." The oldest child, a ginger girl named Addison, gossiped to the second oldest, Mitchell. Her periodic glances my way tell me that she is intentionally in my hearing range. "I don't get why Reid keeps that filthy thing. There are enough Zigzagoon, just around the city, that he could easily catch one that doesn't cause a mess of everything and bathe in dumpsters." She laughs along to her own words here. "He even caught it with a Premier Ball! Zigzagoon are a dime-a-dozen, pest Pokemon, and Reid's is the worst of the bunch. I bet you he'll be releasing it after his first gym battle."
Goly's hackles rise and a growl far more adorable than threatening sounds out. I can tell he's absolutely livid because he's stopped running around the living room we're sitting in. Only anger and food can stop my partner so easily. Though I can't say anything, since I'm just as made. I can't even make out the words in the Guide to Caring for Young Normal-Type Pokémon written by Larry Aoki of Paldea.
"How about I show you how quickly this 'dime-a-dozen pest Pokemon' puts your little pet in the ground." I close the book and stand up.
When I walk up to the two gossiping brats, they turn to face me as one. I'm a good three inches taller than both of them. Now that I've gotten some food in my system, my large frame is becoming more obvious. I'm still rail thin, but I don't look like death anymore.
"What?" Addison looks up at my eyes and takes a brief step back. When she notices that she'd been intimidated, she glances at Mitchell and steps back forward, getting in my face. "Did you really just say that? Did you hear that, Mitchell?" She turns back to her friend.
"Looks like the Trainer's as brain-dead as the Pokémon." Mitchell's haughty voice always pisses me off. "He must not understand what a Zigzagoon is."
"I understand well enough to know that I can put you on your ass." I fire back. "I also know that Goly can do the same to either of your Pokémon, probably both of them to be honest."
That may have been a bit of a stretch. Mitchell and his Taillow are one thing, but I've seen Addison training her Phanpy already, and I know that it's strong. She's already had it for a full two months. In that time, she hasn't had any of the distractions a normal trainer would on their journey either. She had entirely dedicated the time to training her partner up in preparation for the gym circuit.
"I've heard about enough," Addison's tone is flat and no longer laced with teasing ridicule. "Let's go out to the field. Phanpy's been wanting to do this since your pest stole her poffin yesterday. Mrs. Haily only gives me one of those each week."
I feel a twinge of guilt at that last bit, and Goly pointedly looks away from me, but I follow her out to the field regardless. The guilt is washed away easily enough by remembering her words. Several others follow us out to the field. I can even see Mrs. Melda watching from the upstairs window.
"This will be a one-on-one casual battle between Reid's Zigzagoon and Addison's Phanpy," The fifth oldest, Lacy, has stepped in to act as our referee. "This battle will continue until either Pokemon is judged to be unable to continue fighting. Trainers, are you ready?" We each give her a slight nod. "Then let the battle begin!"
"Defense Curl!"
"Get up close!"
We both shout our orders as soon as Lacy's voice cuts out.
I already know what she's planning. The main focus of all her training sessions is to combo Defense Curl into Rollout. It's simple, yet devastatingly powerful at low levels. If she gets on a roll, this battle could end quickly.
Goly uses his great speed to close the distance in record time. I've long since noticed that he's incredibly fast for his species, even without using Extreme Speed. He is just about to make contact with Phanpy when the blue elephant has finished curling up in a ball.
"Rollout now! Crush him, Phanpy!" Addison also panics a bit at Goly's speed. She had expected more time to set up her combo.
"Sidestep it and Tackle as Phanpy passes you!" I want to shorten my orders later, but we don't have that trust yet. For now, it's best to be clear and direct.
Phanpy begins to roll forward, towards Goly, but Rollout isn't dangerous at the start of its motion. The slow roll is effortlessly dodged, and Goly rams his shoulder into Phanpy's side.
"Phan!" The long nose Pokemon lets out a shout; more surprised than hurt thanks to the Defense Curl.
"Phanpy, no!" Her trainer is far more rattled though.
"Press the attack Goly," I take advantage of her slow reaction. "Sand attack, then charge forward with Tackle."
As an inexperienced battler, it's all too easy to fall into a panic when your go-to strategy falls apart. I don't doubt the fact that it will happen to me too at some point, but this works in my favor for now.
Goly kicks up a stream of dirt and sand into Phanpy's eyes before lunging out for another Tackle.
"No, Phanpy! Dodge it" Addison cries out.
It's too late though. Phanpy frantically stumbles around with her vision blurred by the sand. Soon, she cries out once again as she is hit with Goly's tackle. This one went completely unguarded, and I can tell that it hurt.
"Sand Attack again, then back out and circle her! Think of Beedrill and attack on my signal!" I continue to feed Goly my instructions.
"That's cheap!" Addison calls out in anger and frustration when her partner is blinded once again. "Fight me fairly!"
I don't bother to respond.
"Now!" Goly strikes fast and returns to circling his prey.
"Defense Curl! Quickly!" Addison opts to go on the defense in the face of our onslaught.
"Now!" Fine by me, it may be less, but damage is still damage. It will pile up if they just play passively. She won't be able to start Rollout in this situation, so they can't attack.
What follows is about a 30-second beat down. That may not seem like a lot of time, but in reality, Phanpy took about eight tackles in that timespan. I look to Lacy to see if she will call it, and she begins to raise her arm. Lacy is forced to halt her motion when Addison finally speaks up.
"Listen Phanpy," She calls out in a shaky voice. Is she crying? "I know it isn't ready yet, but we have to try it. You're frustrated too, right?"
"Phanpy!" A determined voice comes from the beaten ball, even as she takes another hit.
I still called attacks during their conversation. There's no pause button in real battles, after all. Directly after another Tackle, as Goly was backing away to continue circling, Addison's voice returned.
"Now, Bulldoze! You can do it Phanpy!"
"Phan," Phanpy broke out of her curl, sporting many bruises. She stands back on her hind legs, and I begin to worry. "PYYYYY!"
Phanpy's legs stomp down with much more force than they look like they should be capable of containing. The earth trembles in what seems like a smaller, more localized Earthquake. From where I'm standing, it's only a vibration, but I can see that Goly has it much worse.
Being only a couple of feet away from Phanpy, He is at the heart of the tremors and is unable to stand up. The intensity of the shaking ground has his legs collapsing under him every time he tries to get up. He winces in pain every time. Injuring the legs must be how Bulldoze reduces speed.
This isn't good. Things only go from bad to worse when my opponent's voice rings out.
"Now, Rollout! Go away from Zigzagoon and build up speed first!" Addison urgently calls and her Pokemon is quick to comply.
"You can't let her!" My voice is desperate for the first time in this match. I know how this can end. "Chase her down and Tackle! Before she picks up any speed!"
Bulldoze has ended and the ground is now still. Goly leaps to pursue Phanpy, but his legs collapse and he falls on his face; he had taken more damage to his front legs than either of us had thought. My warrior is quick to get up and run through the pain, but it's too late. Phanpy has rolled far away from him and is now in the process of making a wide U-turn back in this direction.
"Run him down, Phanpy!" Addison grins with her face bright red; either from her previous tears, her current excitement, or both.
"Stop chasing," Goly halts at my words. "We have no choice but to counter now." I look at the approaching ball of power. We have probably got about 10 seconds until she reaches Goly. No, she's gaining speed, so more like 6 or 7 seconds. No time for a complicated plan. "It's going to be harder now, but you need to do the same as last time. Sidestep and counter with Tackle. You know your timing better than I do. I trust you to dodge at the right time."
"Zig! Zigzag!" I hope that means 'I've got this.'
There's no time to think as Phanpy is about to make contact.
When they are less than a single foot from collision, Goly makes two swift side steps: one to avoid a head-on collision, and the other to ram his shoulder into Phanpy's side.
The timing was perfect. His attack's aim was perfect. He did everything exactly right and showed me once again why he is his pack's battle prodigy.
He did everything perfectly, so why is he spinning through the air, out of control? Why is Phanpy continuing to roll past him, unhindered?
The answer comes to me in an instant: power. Goly's timing, speed, and technique were all perfect, but his Tackle didn't have rough strength to interfere with the momentum and power behind Phanpy's Rollout. Not to mention the fact that Phanpy is twice his weight and Goly didn't have a running start behind his Tackle, Tackle is just a weak move in the first place.
Goly hits the ground after several midair spirals and continues to roll for a distance. He's hurt. Badly.
"Zagoon!" He quickly gets to his feet and barks out aggressively, but spirit alone won't keep him standing if he takes another of those.
"One more Phanpy," Addison can sense that as well. "You've got this, girl!"
Goly looks my way, his eyes clearly asking me what to do, but I can only feel this battle slipping away from me. Phanpy is still rolling away from Goly, so we have time to think, for now at least. What can we do? How do we turn this around?
Extreme Speed? I had wanted to avoid using it so it doesn't become a crutch for us later. We need to learn how to fight without relying on an overpowered move to win. Otherwise, we will certainly hit a wall down the road when people know that's all we've got. Bringing it out to win a casual battle would be shortsighted. Plus, that move takes everything Goly's got; he won't be able to do it with his legs as injured as they are. That's out.
Using the environment to interfere with her Rollout. We're in an open field of grass and dirt. There's nothing to hide behind or take advantage of. We could make a hole if we knew Dig, which I planned on working on soon, but we aren't there yet. Phanpy is coming at us too fast to try and improvise a new move with zero training. That's out too.
"Great work, Phanpy! Now finish it!" Addison's jubilant voice reminds me that Phanpy is closing in and Goly is still looking at me for instruction.
All of a sudden a memory comes to my mind. A bright green light in the middle of a swarm of Beedrill. There was that option too! A move that my partner knows that we have never used together.
"Alright Goly," I finally give my instructions when Phanpy is about 10 seconds from contact. "Use Protect to stop her motion, then Tackle again when she stops spinning. You need to put your all into this one and end it!"
"Goon! Zigzagoon!" My brave partner sounds resolute as he turns back to face his enemy.
"Phanpy, you know what to do," Addison's confident words worry me. "Remember Whitney vs Electabuzz!"
I don't have time to piece together what that means, as my Pokemon has become surrounded by a green see-through sphere. Just before contact, Phanpy slightly changes her direction and hits the sphere at an angle, instead of a head-on impact. The force of her rotation on the rounded edge of the Protect sphere causes her to shoot off at a sharp angle instead of halting her roll.
They got us.
Goly is panting heavily from using a move that is more powerful than his level. We can't do it again, and even if we could, there'd be no point. It's humbling to acknowledge, but Addison outdid me as a Trainer and a tactician. In the past three days, I've only trained Goly physically, thinking that a solid foundation must come before all else. I hadn't actually planned on battling for at least a couple more weeks, but that's no excuse. That last move, along with Bulldoze, showed me that Addison has done extensive training in tactics and physical execution in the two months since she paired up with Phanpy.
I'm not too proud to admit when I've been beaten. Addison was the better trainer today. I hate the idea of forfeiting, but I'm not going to let Goly take another hit when we're out of options and he's this damaged already.
"Ref.." I call out to Lacy to admit my loss, but I'm quickly and viciously cut off.
"Zag! Zagoon!" Goly is pissed. Forgetting his pain in favor of anger, he proceeds to chew me out. "Zagoon! Zigzagoon zig goon zagoon!" No idea what he's saying, but it clearly gives off the vibe of 'forfeit and I'll scratch your eyes out. I'm winning this, damn it!'
"Alright, alright," I put my hands up to placate the irate tiny raccoon. "I'll let you finish this, but I'm out of tactics. She beat me there. Phanpy is already coming, so I'll keep this brief." My partner just grumbles and nods at me. "We don't have any new moves or fancy strategies to turn this around." His eyes narrow and he shakes his head. "No, you can't use that now. It takes too much out of you and you're too hurt to do it now anyway. You need to get much stronger if you want to use that in battles. Now face your opponent and listen, she's moving fast so we've only got one chance."
"Zig!" He twirls around to see that Phanpy is approaching rapidly, moving faster than ever before.
"Our only chance to win is to go back to our first tactic," I explain, even as I worry about the result. "You need to sidestep and re-attack with perfect timing, even better than last time. The difference is that you need to hit her much harder than last time. If you don't, we will lose. Got it?"
"Zigzag!" There is no doubt in my partner's voice, even in the face of my impractical non-plan.
At this point, it's up to him. Roughly knowing his level, I'm gambling on him learning a more powerful attack than Tackle in the heat of the moment. This type of nonsensical gamble is honestly too high-risk, considering the danger that all of Phanpy's momentum now poses towards Goly. That's why I elected to forfeit. However, Goly's not stupid. If he chose to bet on my gamble and battle it out, I can only trust him.
Phanpy closes the distance and threatens to shatter the bones of her much smaller opponent. I'm biting my fist with nerves at this point, but Goly continues to prove his fighting genius. Once again, Goly pulls off a perfectly timed dodge at the last second and immediately moves to counterattack.
I instantly recognize the difference in this motion. Instead of simply throwing his body weight at her with his shoulder, a dull, white energy surrounds the crown of his head, which he hunkers down and aims at the side of Phanpy's rolling form. All four of his paws dig into the earth and a forceful pull shoots his body forward. Goly's head, now glowing white, slams into Phanpy's side and sends her body rocketing away.
"Phanpy, No!" Addison's desperate cry tells me that she, too, has recognized the situation. She runs out onto the field towards her fallen partner.
This battle is over.
The gathered crowd of spectators watches in silence, spellbound by the sight.
"Phanpy is unable to battle," Lacy manages to break out of her shocked stupor and announce the result. "Zigzagoon and Reid are the winners!"
Her words break the spell of silence on the crowd, and the entire orphanage erupts into loud cheers and chaos.
I think nothing of it as I run out and catch my partner, who leaps into my arms.
I once again taste the addicting rush of pleasure from our victory, but it's laced with something else this time. Something bitter.
I lost that Trainer battle. Goliath simply carried us by winning the actual Pokémon battle. Goliath won, not me.
It still feels great and I have never felt this much pride in either of my lives, but it's not good enough. I'm not good enough yet. Never forget the "yet."
I need to become better; much, much better.
I WILL be better!
Addison
Badges: 0
Pokémon team:
Phanpy
Mitchell
Badges: 0
Pokémon team:
Taillow
Reid Redwood
Badges: 0
Pokémon: 1
Companions:
Goliath (Goly)
Zigzagoon
Moves:
Headbutt
Extreme Speed
Protect
Tickle
Growl
Sand Attack
Tail Whip
Tackle
Covet
